by Eric Vall
Boom, motherfucker.
There was no getting away from that, the pilot was most likely dead on impact, and the plane burst into fiercy pieces. The only problem was the plane was no longer above the convoy of NK troops, it was heading toward us when it was shot down.
The explosion above us rang through my ears.
“Get down!” I yelled out as I instinctively threw myself over the girls next to me.
Small pieces of debris flew everywhere around us, some of them on fire, others just hot as hell. I felt a few hit my back as I shielded my women, but luckily there weren’t any larger pieces of shrapnel that landed around our area.
The larger pieces of the plane flew out in all directions, but it was probably lucky the plane was above us when it was shot, because the trajectory of the pieces was outward, so it created a sort of dome around us.
Once I was sure we were safe from falling debris, I lifted myself off the girls and peered back over the sandbag to the road where the NK troops were.
The semi truck at the end of the line was at a 45 degree angle as it hung over the edge of the peninsula into the water. It was absolute mayhem in front of us as the soldiers realized they had been lured into a trap. The semi truck driver climbed out of the vehicle as it unsteadily rocked side to side from the impact of the blast. The inertia of the truck was about to send it over the edge, and the driver was trying his damndest to get out. Before he could jump down, though, Bailey’s rifle went off, and I watched as the man’s head nearly exploded from the brutality of Bailey's .50 cal shot making contact with his skull.
Most of the troops were trying to turn their vehicles around, or figure out a way over the guard rail. They were in panic mode instead of fight mode, and it showed.
I took aim and began to fire at the soldiers in one of the smaller vehicles. I took out the driver first, and his foot must have pressed down hard on the gas because the vehicle rammed forward into the same style vehicle in front of it.
The passenger tried to duck after his buddy took a shot to the dome and his brains got sprayed all over the window, but he was too late. I took the shot, and the passenger instantly fell forward. His face hit the dashboard with such force that if he hadn’t already been dead, it probably would have fractured his skull.
I couldn’t see in the back of the vehicle because the windows were blacked out, but I wasn’t about to risk there being someone back there, so I quickly reloaded, then I shot out the back window. At first, I didn’t see anybody, but then the top of a soldier’s head appeared just over the window sill, and I didn’t hesitate before I pulled my trigger again and caught the man right in the center of his forehead.
I took a few seconds then to glance around and see how everyone else was faring. The civilians with the M51 were now shooting at the troops instead, as were the rest of the civilians and the SEALs. I couldn’t see the guys on the ship, but I could hear shots coming from them, so I knew they had joined the fray as well.
Bailey leaned over the sandbag table she’d made, and I watched as she adjusted her Barrett ever so slightly before each shot she took. The blonde was as focused as I’d expected, and I doubted anything could get her attention at the moment.
Tara was crouched on one knee with her arms out in front of her resting on the sandbags. The platinum-blonde’s eyes were narrowed slightly as she took aim, pulled the trigger, then took aim again. Her body shook slightly from the kickback of her weapon, and her breasts bounced each time she pulled the trigger.
Paige pushed up her glasses and adjusted her weapon, then she pulled the trigger, and her hands briefly lifted upward with the kickback of the gun. The brunette wasn’t the best shot of the group, so she took her time to aim and make sure she had the shot before she took it.
Anna was directly next to me, and the redhead was quick on the draw. Her emerald-green eyes were narrowed as she quickly adjusted her weapon, pulled the trigger, and did it again. The best part, though, was the small smile that was on her face as she took out her opponent.
I turned my attention back to the NK troops on the bridge. They still hadn’t been able to get in position to retaliate, and they were getting mowed down. Everywhere I looked, one of them was hitting the ground, and the sounds of gunfire filled the air as my team took them down.
One of the vehicles at the front of the line was trying to plow their way through the guardrail so they could try and get over to us, or away from us, I wasn’t sure which.
Either way, I wasn’t going to let them get through the railing. They’d already made a huge dent in it, though I wasn’t sure anyone else had noticed since they were slightly hidden from view by the other vehicles behind them, and it was impossible to hear them ramming the guardrail with the sounds of the battle going on.
The vehicle was turned toward us, so I adjusted my sight on the driver and pulled the trigger. The vehicle lurched forward into the guardrail as the driver fell face first into the steering wheel, and his foot mashed down on the gas.
The tires started to spin as the machine pushed against the resistance of the guardrail. I could see the metal of the rail start to bend, though, and I knew it wouldn’t hold up forever. If the vehicle made it through then it would create an opening for others to try and get through as well, and I couldn’t let that happen.
I lined up another shot, this time at the front wheels of the machine. I blasted the first tire, which caused the vehicle to skew to one side, but it didn't stop it altogether, so I lined up a second shot at the other front tire.
My gun went off, but just as it did, I saw a blue light flash from my left, then another, and another.
I quickly ducked behind the sandbag, then I peered out from the side to get a better look.
“They’re firing back,” Anna said as I inspected the situation.
“How many?” I asked.
“I don’t know,” the redhead answered. “None of them were firing back, but now there’s a group behind one of the vehicles.”
“I saw them, too.” Tara nodded.
“Shit,” I breathed as our sandbags were hit with a blue blast.
Dust flew everywhere, and I pulled up my shirt to cover my mouth and nose.
It seemed the NK troops weren’t about to go down without a fight.
Chapter 14
I had expected the soldiers to retaliate, but for the first few minutes of this battle they hadn’t done anything but try to get to cover. I was starting to think it was a little too easy, but it looked like they had finally got their shit together. Or at least, a few of them did.
Our sandbag cover took another hit, and the scent of burnt sand filled my nose as I tried to keep the dust out of my eyes.
“We need to take these guys out,” Paige said, and her eyes were squinted behind her glasses.
“I saw where they’re at,” Bailey said, and she covered her mouth to cough. “They’re behind one of the trucks that’s hauling the MiG.”
“Good eye,” I told the blonde.
I glanced around us, and from my vantage point, I could see the blue blasts hitting the sandbags of our other team members as well. There were also blasts that were hitting nothing, which told me the NK soldiers didn’t know exactly where we were, but even if they were hitting us by accident, that was too close for comfort.
“How many of them do you think are even left right now?” Tara asked. The gunfire had died down since our group was taking cover against the blasts from the NK soldiers, and everything seemed much quieter than it had been a moment ago, though I knew it was still loud as hell.
“We’ve taken out a bunch of them,” Anna said. “But there were a lot to begin with.”
“I saw at least ten guys behind the MiG,” Bailey said.
“Well, fuck,” Tara cursed. “We need to take these assholes out.”
I nodded and thought for a moment. We needed a plan. Those plasma guns were far too deadly to take a chance with, we couldn’t risk anybody getting hit. Even a small wound from one of
them could be fatal since we couldn’t be sure how to properly treat it.
We needed some sort of distraction, a way to stop them from firing so we could get a leg up on them.
I pulled the walkie from my hip and held it up to my mouth.
“Jeff, Ben, come in!” I hollered.
“Ben here,” the male voice replied nearly immediately.
“Take aim,” I told him. “We need some cover fire over here.”
I didn’t think the howitzer technically counted as cover fire since it gave off such a massive blast, but it would be distracting enough to cause the NK soldiers to take pause.
“Roger that,” Ben said. “Where do you want us to hit?”
“Same place as the first round,” I told him. “There’s some soldiers behind one of the MiGs firing at us. We need to get rid of them.”
“I’m on it,” Ben told me, then the radio went quiet.
“Good idea,” Anna told me. “Let the howtizer fuck them up.”
“Even if it doesn’t hit them directly, the blast should be enough to make them stop firing for a second,” Bailey agreed.
“Right.” I nodded and took a deep breath as I waited for the sound of the howitzer to hit my ears.
It didn’t take long for the blast to sound off behind me, and I instinctively pulled my hands up to shield the top of my head as the Earth shook from the titanic impact and bits of debris flew all around us.
Before the sound of the blast was over, I readied my weapon and carefully peered over the sandbags. I didn’t see any blue blasts from plasma weapons, so I took that to mean our plan had worked.
My eyes scanned the area, and I quickly found the MiG and the men behind it. I couldn’t see all of them, but I could see their feet underneath the trailer that was hauling the plane, and I could tell some of them were crouched down for cover from the blast of the howitzer.
We couldn’t get to them through the aircraft, but we could be ready as soon as they tried to attack again.
A quick glance to my right showed the girls were ready to shoot as well.
Bailey was once again leaned against the makeshift table she had her Barrett on while Paige, Tara, and Anna had their arms set on top of the sandbags like I did.
The NK soldiers had just been blasted from the side, and looking at Bailey’s Barrett reminded me just how powerful of a weapon it was.
“Bailey,” I called. “Take a shot! You don’t have to hit them, just land one near them.”
“On it!” the blonde called back.
She might not be able to hit them through the MiG, but she could cause them to panic even more than they already were. They’d just been nearly hit by the howitzer from the side, and now they were about to get hit from the front. We were going to come at them from all angles until they had no idea which way was safe.
Bailey lined up her shot, and the blonde sniper’s tight little body shook as she pulled the trigger and sent her .50 cal bullet hurtling toward the NK troops.
The shot hit the MiG with a loud bang, and it tore through the aircraft like tissue paper.
One of the soldiers behind it jumped up, though I wasn’t sure if it was intentional or if Bailey’s shot had startled him so badly he couldn’t control himself. Either way, he didn’t last long out in the open.
Bailey was already lined up, and when she saw the soldier pop up from behind the aircraft, she adjusted her weapon ever so slightly and caressed the trigger once more.
I barely even had time to react before Bailey took the guy down with one quick shot. The top part of his head exploded from the impact of her bullet, and his body crumpled to the ground where the rest of his buddies were cowering in fear.
Suddenly, a blue blast came from the tail end of the MiG right toward us. The girls and I ducked down quickly, but I wasn’t about to let these assholes win, so I carefully leaned around the corner of the sandbags and let off a couple of rounds toward the blue light.
On my second shot I heard a scream of pain, and even though I didn’t think I’d killed the soldier, I figured I’d fucked his hand up pretty good.
Still, these guys were smart, and they used the cover they had to their advantage. They spread out behind the MiGs and began to shoot from anywhere they could. They knew we were onto them now, and they weren’t going to let us get a shot off.
They seemed to know where we were now, too. I figured Bailey’s shots had probably given us away because their blue beams hit our sandbags continuously until the air around us was so filled with dust I had to cover my nose and mouth again.
“Cover me!” I shouted to the girls.
“We got you!” Anna yelled back, and they all turned around and crouched down, ready to shoot at a second’s notice.
“Now!” I hollered, and I popped up and took aim while the girls held their weapons just barely over the sandbags and laid down some cover fire.
I was able to pick off two of the soldiers who were firing, but then I noticed another group of them trying to sneak behind the other vehicles in an attempt to escape.
The group behind the MiGs was a distraction, they were laying down cover for the other group who was trying to escape.
“Fuck,” I breathed. “Bailey, I need you!”
“I’m here,” the blonde said, and she popped up and gripped her Barrett, ready to fire.
“Work on the guys behind the MiG,” I told her. “Anna, Tara, Paige, help me with these assholes trying to escape.”
“You got it!” Paige called.
“Fuckers!” Tara yelled, and she lifted herself up and yelled as she let off round after round.
Bailey’s Barrett went off, but I didn’t see who she got, since I was too concerned with the men sneaking behind the vehicles.
Anna, Tara, Paige, and I picked them off one by one, but there were quite a few of them, and they were running to and from whatever vehicles they could in an attempt to get away from our bullets.
Bailey was picking off the men behind the MiG as best as she could, but we were still under fire, and we couldn’t risk letting one of the soldiers get away. They’d no doubt find a way to contact the troops down south and alert them to our presence. If that happened then we’d only win the battle and not the war, and I was in this to take home the championship, not the semi finals. ‘
The civilians and the SEALs were all firing again now, too, but the blue blasts from the NK side kept coming. The world was filled with the sounds of gunfire and the scent of burned sand and concrete dust. There were too many NK soldiers for us to take out like this, especially since they’d found a place to hide where we couldn’t get to them.
They may have lost a MiG, but it was clear they weren’t going to give up this fight, and I couldn’t risk the lives of my fellow teammates. They’d followed me this far because I’d protected them, and I wasn’t about to let them down now. We were all going to get out of this alive, even if it meant destroying the MiGs and every single NK vehicle in this convoy.
“Keep firing!” I yelled, and I yanked the walkie off my hip and held to my mouth. “Ben, Jeff, come in!”
“We’re here!” Jeff’s voice crackled in. “Are you okay? Shit looks crazy over there!”
“I need you to fire,” I told him. “Try and hit the center of the convoy. Ten meters east of where you fired last. We’re under heavy fire and we need to take these assholes out once and for all.”
“Copy,” Jeff said.
I hung the walkie back on my hip and yanked Anna, Paige, Tara, and Bailey down to the ground.
“What the fuck?” Tara asked.
“Everybody get down!” I bellowed and once again, I threw my body over the girls’ as the sound of the howitzer rang through the air.
My eyes were squeezed shut to protect them from the falling debris all around us, but I could hear the explosion, and I knew Jeff had to have hit somewhere good. The sound was deafening, to the point where I couldn’t hear anything else until my ears started to ring from the trauma to my eardrums.
After a moment, the debris settled, and I looked up and around. My team was still crouched down, so I lifted myself onto my knees and peered over the sandbags.
There was no movement, and everything was absolutely silent. The road on the peninsula was still covered in the dust from the explosion, but as it cleared I saw the damage the howitzer had done.
Jeff must have hit the convoy right in the middle like I’d told him to, because there was a clear blast pattern radiating from that area. The flaming, wrecked vehicles on either side were pushed back, some were flipped over, and where there had been bodies on the ground before, there were even more now. Not that I was sure they could still be called bodies, some of them were torn into pieces from being in the blast radius. What was left of the pavement was stained black from the explosion and red with blood.
I couldn’t see the other MiG, but the one closest to me was on its side, its wing busted from the impact of the howitzer blast. There was no way it was operational, but that was a small price to pay to have my entire crew alive and well.
“Shit,” Tara breathed as she leaned over the sandbags to take a look.
I smiled as I reached for the walkie on my hip to radio Jeff and tell him he’d fucking done it.
“What the fuck,” Anna said, and her eyes narrowed on something.
With my hand still hovering over the walkie, I turned my head to see what the redhead was looking at.
I scanned the area, and immediately I knew what she was referring to. There was a single arm sticking out from behind one of the totalled vehicles, and in that arm’s hand was a white T-shirt.
It was the universal sign of surrender, and as soon as I saw it, my body heated up with anger.
Who did these jackasses think they were to try and surrender? After they came to my country and raped and pillaged?
“Oh, fuck,” Paige breathed, and she turned to me. “Are they surrendering?”
“No way,” Tara scoffed. “Seriously?”
“It appears that way.” I nodded.
“That’s bullshit!” the platinum-blonde exclaimed. “What dickbags. Why not just keep shooting?”
