Rescue Or Recovery

by Dave Hazel

  A seething hatred rushed through him like a mind altering drug that had been injected into his veins. Mykal desperately wanted to get revenge for the poor defenseless animal or at least the monster they caused to form inside him. But he didn’t want to jeopardize the rescue mission, and something came to mind of Diaz speaking about his enemy ‘the devil’ trying to interfere with their task. He wondered if Diaz’s devil was trying to interfere with their mission by luring him into an emotional blender of wrath, hate and destructive violence, but he no longer cared. His emotions got the best of him. The mission, the path of their task, intersected with the road of his hate filled emotions. The collision at that intersection was going to be bloody.

  He ran back to the others and tears of frustrated hatred were streaming down his face. His hate filled tears were from keeping his monster pushed down inside of him. He wiped his face and approached Towbar. “You gotta help me,” he whispered desperately with clenched teeth.

  “Wait here,” Towbar told the rest of the men who all took a knee and waited in the shadows.

  Staff Sergeant Campbell, a Green Beret, who was a part of the original Lost Patrol was in the lead and told the men to sit tight. They kept their vigil watching all around them for potential enemies. The men all blended into the shadows of the buildings and the darkness of the night.

  “What is it my friend?” Towbar whispered.

  “I can’t help it Towbar. These two pricks are torturing a dog and I have to do something about it. I can’t let them get away with it,” he said and tears started again. “Or I’m gonna explode.”

  “Are you sure my friend?” Towbar asked. “We will put the mission at risk.”

  “I have to Towbar, or I’m gonna freak out,” Mykal snarled with clenched teeth. He started to sob as if he couldn’t control his passions. He knew the ring was tugging and pulling his emotions, but at the moment he didn’t care. “I’m filled with so much friggin rage and hatred. I’m gonna kill these friggin scumbags. I really wanna make them suffer,” he hissed though his heart ached like the loss of a loved one. He couldn’t understand why he couldn’t control his thoughts or feelings. “I really have to do something to them or I’m literally gonna blow up and freak out,” he hissed quietly and did his best to keep from yelling his hateful anger.

  Towbar followed Mykal and they came near the edge of the building and they could clearly hear the drunken laughter and the abuse of the dog. The kicking thuds and the whimpering cries brought Mykal to tears again. But the laughter over top of the abuse was what infuriated Mykal the most. His hatred and evil thoughts got the best of him. He pulled his Glock 17 with the silencer attached and his magic sword in his other hand and rounded the corner.

  “Stop,” Mykal commanded and flashed his sword which ignited into a fiery red blade. If they made a ruckus he was going to shoot them with his quieted handgun and be done with them. However, he wasn’t about to let them get off that easy. “I have been sent here by the Supreme Ruler to question your actions,” Mykal said in a commanding voice in the hopes of getting their attention.

  The two stopped their cruel laughter and looked at the fiery sword and the strange colors of the man holding the flaming blade. “Yes my Lord,” one said and he looked frightened. They had never seen a blazing sword or a man outfitted in such a strange uniform with multi-colored makeup to match his dress. The second dropped his skin of intoxicating liquid behind him as if he was trying to hide it.

  “What is it you are doing?” Mykal asked to get their focus off the battered and abused dog that lay there whimpering. Mykal knew he played a dangerous game because of the magic tugging and pulling of his emotions. “What is this?” He pointed his flaming blade to the skin of liquid that slowly spilled onto the ground.

  “We are just having a little fun my Lord,” the second said and looked as petrified as the first.

  “Is this what you are supposed to be doing?”

  “No my Lord. We are supposed to be guarding the treasure,” the first answered and pointed up the wooden stairwell.

  “If you are supposed to be guarding the treasure, are you doing an effective job while you are abusing this animal? Are you doing the best job you can be doing while you are taking strong drink?” Mykal felt confident the ‘treasure’ was Doninka and he believed the strong drink was forbidden while they were ‘on duty’.

  “It is only an animal my Lord,” the second said.

  “And we have not had much drink my Lord,” the first added with shaky words. His voice whimpered as if he knew he was in serious trouble.

  Mykal wanted to slash their throats with the flaming sword because of the reply ‘it’s only an animal.’ “What are your names?” Mykal asked.

  “I am Dabinau Krishfarn, my Lord,” the first said and looked very concerned.

  “I am Angolow Krishfarn my Lord,” the second added.

  “Are you related?”

  “We are brothers my Lord,” Dabinau replied. “I am the elder. We have not stopped doing our task. We were just letting off a little fun my Lord. Nothing serious.”

  “Who does the creature belong to?”

  “Our mother,” Angolow answered and looked down. “The creature has become a burden. We decided to end the burden.”

  “I will have to bring this up to the Supreme Ruler,” Mykal said. “Do you know what you will face for dereliction of your duties?”

  “I do not understand what you mean my Lord,” Angolow said and looked like he was about to cry at the mention of being reported to the Supreme Ruler.

  “Dereliction of duties means that you were not fulfilling your task,” Mykal snarled. “You would rather torture an animal and drink your strong drink than guard the treasure you are supposed to be guarding. These are very serious crimes.”

  “Please my Lord, do not do that,” Dabinau begged. “We do not wish to go before the Supreme Ruler,” he added and sounded horrified. They understood how commanders dealt with their men and could only imagine what the Supreme Ruler would do to them. “It was a creature that belong to our very family my Lord. It means nothing to anyone my Lord,” he lied.

  “What about the drink?” He asked and nodded to the skin bleeding out its contents. Mykal waved his hand to bring Towbar into the scene. “Bind them,” Mykal ordered and nodded to the two of them. “And gag them cuz I don’t wanna hear them. Maybe we can settle the punishment here and now.”

  “We will comply with anything you desire my Lord,” Dabinau said and slightly batted his eyes as if proposing an offer. “Anything you desire, any special wants you have my Lord, so long as you promise not to take us to the Supreme Ruler,” Dabinau added and suggestively raised his eyebrows. “We will gladly submit to your requests than be taken before the One.

  “We have served other leaders in many a pleasurable way,” Angolow added in his suggestive manner in the hopes these two new leaders could be swayed to spare them their punishment.

  “You’ll do whatever I ask?” Mykal asked as if he was blackmailing them to submit to his desires.

  The brothers looked at each other and then back to Mykal. “Yes, we will comply with your every desire if you do not take us to the Supreme Ruler,” Angolow said again in a suggestive manner for the both of them while raising his eyebrows. He tried to give a sultry pout that would hint at their suggestions.

  “Bind them and gag them,” Mykal said to Towbar the giant. “I plan to have fun with them.”

  Dabinau suddenly had a look of relief wash over him. “Would you like us to take our clothing off first?” Dabinau asked. He showed they would be willing to do anything for Mykal rather than to be taken to the Supreme Ruler.

  “No. I will take care of that,” Mykal lied while Towbar bound their hands behind their backs and then balled a piece of cloth and stuffed it in their mouths and tied it in place so they couldn’t call out.

  Mykal started to sob as he listened to the dog whimper while it lay on its side. It started to cry and breathe heavily. Mykal didn’t li
ke that the poor dog was abused and tortured but he couldn’t understand why it brought him to tears. ‘It would have been one thing if these two low life scumbags woulda just killed the poor thing out right. But these friggin bastards tortured it and laughed about it,’ he gasped in thought. ‘And it’s their own damn dog,’ he thought and couldn’t keep the sadness inside his eyes. ‘They friggin laughed about what they did to it. So who knows what other abuse this animal had suffered at their hands?’

  He pointed the Glock 17 to the head of the dog and fired off two rounds into its head to put it out of its misery. Mykal felt horrible that he killed the battered beast but he would have felt worse if he left it to suffer any longer after what the brothers did to it. His rage grew wildly out of control. He hated the fact that he took the life of the poor creature, but if he wouldn’t have, the hapless animal would continue suffering. He hated these low life scumbags for making him feel the way he felt. He didn’t care that they were drunk or whatever reason they would come up with to excuse their actions.

  Mykal glanced at Towbar’s expression and he knew each moment he wasted on these worthless brothers was more time he was putting their group at risk, but he couldn’t stop. He had to make them pay. Mentally, he knew he would explode if he allowed them to get away with their horrendous crime. Mykal knew these two brothers for only a couple of minutes and he hated them with everything in his being.

  ‘These friggin little bastards think they’re gonna perform some sexual favors to get away with this, but I’m gonna make them suffer. I only wish I had more time,’ he hissed in thought.

  “My friend, we must hurry,” Towbar whispered as a voice of reason. “All of our men and Doninka are at risk.”

  “You’re right. Damn it, I know you’re right,” he whispered harshly as they took the two deeper in between two buildings where it was very dark. He wanted desperately to torture them and make them suffer. He looked up the long flights of stairs and contemplated taking them to the top and throwing them down the stairs or maybe just throwing them off the fourth floor landing with their hands bound behind their backs so they would get a taste of what they did to the poor dog that Mykal felt he was forced to put out of its misery. ‘I wish I could douse their legs in gasoline and set them ablaze,’ he thought and tried to think of inventive ways to inflict pain and misery. ‘I’d like to see these little creeps get impaled,’ he added and thought of Jackson and Thornton and the couple of hundred they found along the road.

  “If you must do anything my friend, I would suggest you be swift in whatever actions you take against these fools,” the giant suggested firmly. “Do not allow your emotions to put the mission at risk.”

  “You’re right,” Mykal replied and looked to the ground as if he felt a great deal of shame. ‘I’m thinking like a damn Soso who I hate with everything in me. I can’t be like a Soso.’

  The two brothers were mumbling and obviously their words couldn’t be heard due to the gags Towbar put in place.

  “I’m sure you’re asking what you could do for me, right?” Mykal asked and the younger, Angolow, shook his head vigorously. “Nothing. I’m gonna kill you two because of what you did to that poor baby,” he said and chuckled at their shocked surprised looks to each other. Their first glance was as if Mykal was someone from their past, but he didn’t care. They were going to pay. The two brothers begged and pleaded but their words were muffled.

  Mykal grabbed Dabinau’s hair with his left hand and then pulled his magic dagger and slashed downward onto Dabinau’s face stabbing him in the eye. Before the animal abuser could cry out or even pull away Mykal had stabbed his face several times penetrating the bones of his face and hitting both eyes a couple of times. “I hate you, you piece of shit for what you made me do to that poor baby,” he snarled viciously between clenched teeth as he got his frustrations out on the brute who abused the defenseless animal.

  Dabinau dropped to the ground wiggling and wobbling back and forth crying into his gag. He kicked wildly and begged for help but his hands remained behind his back. Angolow tried to bolt away but Towbar’s massive hand grabbed him by the throat and held him in place. Angolow cried and pleaded for mercy while begging for forgiveness. Angolow declared his muffled sorrow, but all his words were blocked by the gag. He cried openly in the giant’s grip.

  “Hold him Towbar, but move your hand from his neck,” Mykal said. When Towbar grabbed Angolow by the shoulder Mykal rammed the blade of his dagger up under Angolow’s chin. He curved his arc so the blade entered Angolow’s throat and forced the blade and the gag out of his mouth just under his nose.

  Without being told Towbar reached down and shoved the moist cloth gag back into Angolow’s mouth so he wouldn’t sound the alarm with his cries and screams. Angolow’s gurgling cry and moan was louder than Dabinau’s cry. Angolow dropped to the ground beside his brother who still writhed and thrashed wildly. Dabinau couldn’t see at all, but he could hear his brother’s mumbled cries. Mykal stuck the dagger back in his web belt and slashed his sword to ignite a fiery red flame on the blade. He touched Angolow’s face causing his flesh to sizzle and pop. The smell of burnt flesh filled the air.

  “My friend, we must hurry,” Towbar whispered and looked toward the wall where the hundreds of tents were lined. The giant didn’t want the situation to get out of hand where the soldiers would get involved.

  “Alright! Get off my frickin’ back,” he hissed at Towbar, but he knew it wasn’t Towbar he was angry with. It was the evil of the magic ring trying to control his emotions. “I’m sorry,” he said in a normal tone and looked at his best friend. “I didn’t mean that. Honestly,” he said and slashed down with the flaming sword. With one swing he took off both of Angolow’s feet at the ankles. The muffled scream demonstrated the horrific pain the animal abuser felt.

  Dabinau ceased his movement for a moment as if he was trying to understand what happened to his younger brother. A split second later, though Dabinau couldn’t see it because his eyes had been gouged out and his face was a bloody mess, he too lost both his feet. He tried to squirm and wiggle but his hands were bound tightly behind his back. Mykal stepped on Dabinau’s chest with one foot to help hold him in place. Mykal slashed out and chopped down on Dabinau’s left shoulder severing his left arm from his body. The arm flopped to the side and both hands remained under his form that now hardly moved.

  Mykal slashed at Angolow to strike his right shoulder so he could do the same thing he did to Dabinau, but Angolow moved which caused Mykal to miss his target. The blade sliced down onto Angolow’s right arm at the bend of the elbow. Mykal chopped off part of Angolow’s right arm. He cut into the upper part of the arm down through the middle of his forearm leaving Angolow with a stump at his right bicep, causing the elbow and part of the forearm to fall free from his body.

  “Look at that wild little dance,” Mykal chuckled evilly as the two brothers flipped and flopped violently on the ground. “They shouldn’t have abused that dog, their very own dog,” he snarled hatefully. Mykal realized he was going over board and felt Towbar staring at him. In anger he slashed out and struck Angolow’s neck, beheading him with a clean sweep and sending his skull flying about three feet. “You friggin piece of worthless garbage. How’s that? Is that funny, you frickin low life?” He snarled with clenched teeth. His teeth were pressed so hard he feared breaking enamel.

  Obviously Angolow couldn’t answer. Dabinau couldn’t see and continued to sob and cry into his gag. He had no idea his brother was dead, but Mykal was going to make it clear for him. “Hey Dabinau, I just chopped off Angolow’s head, now I’m gonna do you, you low life piece of shit. Is that funny or what?” He asked cruelly and swung the fiery blade. Just as Mykal swung Dabinau tried to move as if he was trying to get up. It caused Mykal to miss his neck and hit the middle of his head and cut his head off between the nose and lips. His body flopped over and lay still. They both bled profusely.

  “There, now that I got that stuff off my chest, I do feel a
whole lot better,” Mykal said and wiped the blood from his blade onto the trousers of Dabinau. “I’m sorry Towbar. We’ll talk later,” he added when he caught sight of the strange expression on the giant’s face. Towbar had killed many people and seen many deaths so Mykal knew it wasn’t the fact that he killed the two animal abusers, but it was probably because of how he killed the two pieces of human filth. “I know I shoulda just shot them and got it over with but you don’t know how bad I hadda do that.

  “Now don’t take me wrong,” Mykal added as he sheathed his sword and pulled out his Glock 17 so he could kill silently if the need arose. “I’m not an animal rights person or someone who gets all wacky when someone doesn’t treat their animals fine, but something about what they did and how they were laughing at the crying and whimpering of that poor dog just got to me. It reminded me of something I heard that happened in England,” he sighed and knew Towbar wouldn’t have any idea what he spoke of.

  “The dog didn’t even try to fight back or bite them. I guess cuz it was a family pet. This poor dog was relying on them pieces of shit to feed and take care of it and they tortured it,” he said and felt the tears welling up in his eyes again. He couldn’t get the look of the sad eyes of the dog out of his mind. “I don’t know why it got to me,” he said and choked on his words but looked at the gold band on his middle finger. He knew it was solely because of the magic of the ring doing something to his brain. “I’m not trying to make excuses Towbar, but--”

  “My friend, we must hurry,” Towbar cut him off with a stern tone. Towbar looked to be disappointed, yet he would back Mykal up in any situation.

  “I’m sorry, I’m sorry,” he replied and suddenly feared he lost Towbar as a friend, but he knew it was the paranoia of the ring’s influence. It reminded him of people who lost close friends and loved ones because of actions taken while drunk or on drugs. Just like ‘drugs and alcohol’ is no excuse he knew the ‘magic pull’ was not a legitimate excuse for his brutal actions.