Chaos Theory – Chapter 15

Betrayal

2020, Manticore Mission to Assist US Combatants – West Africa

They crept stealthily through the dense jungle. The heat, humidity and tension radiating off his unit mates was enough to drive 494 insane. They hadn’t exchanged a single word since the uncomfortable heat encounter earlier that morning. 

494 could feel the hard eyes of his fellow soldiers boring into the back of his skull. 714 in particular, was trying to avoid him something fierce, which was becoming increasingly frustrating as she was his Second on this mission. He couldn’t make this work without her cooperation.

They were nearing the enemy camp. It was roughly 3 klicks ahead; the only available and undetectable route through a stretch of bug-infested, rancid swampland. 494 reached up and scratched his head vigorously, noticing many of the others doing the same.

“Seam-squirrels, sir! We’re covered in them!” One soldier whined as he scraped at his scalp and over his arms. Lice. It was every soldier’s deep-rooted dread to have lice on a mission. Keeping quiet and still was virtually impossible when overcome with the urge to scratch.

“Kerosene would kill them,” another muttered only to be smacked on the shoulder by a third soldier.

“And if they shoot at us, you go up in flames, dumbass. Use your head!” 

714 stood tall and addressed the two bickering soldiers. “Bearing in mind that we have no kerosene, your argument is pointless. Can we concentrate on the objective?” They lowered their heads, chastised.

714 glanced at 494. “Sir?”

494 cleared his throat, knelt on one knee and spread a map out in front of him. “Okay. I suggest a 180-out ambush at these coordinates. CSAR goes in from here,” he indicated a path covered in dense vegetation that would provide good cover, “and proceeds with extraction.  The rest of the unit goes in here on diversionary attack. Draw them out this way,” 494 marked the map with an ‘X’ indicating an area just short of the swamp ahead of them. “664, 714 and I will lay the mines and take position. Wait for my signal. When the trap is set, I want you to lead them past critical point A. When they’ve all passed into the attack zone, we blow them to hell.”

Turning to the CSAR team he eyed each soldier carefully. “It is imperative that we get these men out and back to base without revealing our position. Radio in as soon as you’ve successfully accomplished extraction. Are we clear?”

A chorus of “Yes Sir!” resounded in reply. 

One soldier stepped forward. “Sir?”

494 looked at the girl with unmasked annoyance. “What is it, 277?”

“I’m not questioning orders, sir, but who are these soldiers and what were they doing here before they were captured, sir?”

494 had wondered the same thing and like 277 hadn’t been able to keep his curiosity to himself. He could understand her need to know why they were involved in this rescue mission.

“1st Battalion, 16th Infantry, US Military Corps. They are deployed on worldwide contingencies as directed, conducting RSOI and combat operations. They were sent in to deal with local rebels; some sort of region-wide crisis the US government wanted in on.” 

664 snorted derisively. “America isn’t the superpower it once was. Isn’t there a saying ‘charity begins at home’? The fucking government wastes a lot of time and money they don’t have on bullshit operations that don’t involve them. It’s a waste of resources…and a waste of time.”

“I didn’t ask for your opinion, soldier!” 494 barked. He felt the same way, but speaking out against the very powers that controlled them wasn’t a sound strategy. 

Looking around at his unit, 494 issued his command. “Assume positions and proceed with caution. Move out.”

664’s bruised ego didn’t take humiliation well. The strong urge to get back at his CO was like a drug and he couldn’t get enough. The voices in his head were telling him 494 had to pay for stealing his mate, for in his mind 714 was his mate. But his training told him that getting 494 into trouble would be infinitely more satisfying and practical. He knew his own strength; knew that going up against 494 would be pointless. He wasn’t known as Manticore’s finest for nothing.

But 494 had provided him with the opening he needed. By assigning him together with 714 to lay and set the charges for the ambush, 664 knew he had the perfect opportunity to sabotage the mission and pay back 494 for his disgusting treatment of 714.

494 handed him the case full of M-18A1 AP mines, perfect for the stretch of jungle they had designated for the ambush. 714 nodded curtly at her CO and together the three of them stepped into the bog.

Ankle-deep in the thick, putrid mud, 494 held his hand out to 714 who handed him the first of the mines. 494 secured the canister and stretched the wire from the blasting cap to a second casing that 714 had already sunk into the jungle bed. He wrapped the wire and continued on strategically placing and interspacing the mines along the course they’d chosen.

714 looked up and out of the corner of her eye noticed something out of the ordinary. 664 seemed to be bending over one of the canisters 494 had semi-submerged and was exposing it to view. She squinted in the sunlight, zooming in on his fingers. There. She hadn’t just imagined it. A glint reflected off steel and she could see the pocket-knife clearly in his hand. 714 stayed silent, but kept her eye on 664, curious to see what he had planned.

494 moved quickly and silently as he finished laying the ambush. He called to the others.

“The diversion team should be here any minute. As soon as they come through, 714 will remote detonate. Make sure to wait until the last of the enemy has passed critical point and entered K-zone.” 664 and 714 nodded. 

714 motioned 494 aside. “I’m going to double-check the wires. I’ll be right back.”

494 grabbed her arm. “Negative. You stay here. They’ll be coming at us any minute. I need you in position.” 714 struggled to shake him off. “Why are you fighting this, 714? What’s going on?” 494 was far too perceptive to accept her statement at face value. Something was underfoot and he hated being kept in the dark.

714 broke free of his grasp and ran off into the brush. 494 cursed under his breath and took the detonator from the case on the ground, making sure to cover both himself and all traces of their presence with camouflage. 664 crouched opposite him, some 20 meters away.

The sound of running feet and gunfire reached their ears long before they saw the diversion team heading their way. 494 cursed again. 714 still hadn’t returned and he didn’t dare detonate while she was in the kill zone.

494’s radio crackled. “CSAR to base. Extraction successful. Proceeding to rendezvous point, over.”

“Copy that, CSAR. Maintain course West-Southwest, 4 klicks. You’ll come to a clearing. Establish a secure perimeter. We’ll rendezvous shortly. Try not to get your asses shot. Base, over.”

He looked across at 664 only to catch the self-satisfied smile on his face. 494’s apprehension grew and fear curled inside him. Something about his fellow soldier’s grin made him think it wasn’t the anticipation of the trap they’d set that was giving him such satisfaction. And then he knew; it all clicked. 714 must have known 664 was up to something and gone to fix it.

His eyes threw daggers as they locked on 664. The other man visibly shuddered. He’d been caught out. Before he could say anything, 277 scrambled through the brush and came to a halt before her CO, breathless and frightened.

“Sir! They have 714, sir! They’ve turned back!” she let out in a rush, stumbling over her words in her haste to explain the situation. 

494’s mind was whirling with possible strategies and rescue plans even before 277 had finished her report. He sprang to his feet and called to the rest of the advancing unit.

“277, 645. Keep a careful watch on 664. He’s to be under guard at all time. Do not, and I repeat, do not let him out of your sight. 664 has compromised our mission and led to the capture of  714.” 

494’s voice was harsh and commanding as he ordered his unit to take up their supplies and head to the extraction zone. They were silent, eyes never wandering far from 664 who sat huddled against a tree, two semi-automatics trained on his head and chest. The grim-faced soldiers could hardly believe they had a traitor in their midst. And they all knew why 664 had done it. It was a bitter pill to swallow.

“818, 602, come with me. We’re going in after 714.” The two soldiers snapped to attention and fell in behind their CO. He turned abruptly and called to the rest of the unit. “We’ll meet you at the extraction point ASAP. You know what to do. Fall out!”

The trio waded through the fetid swamp and then crawled through the thick mud as they hurried to reach the enemy camp. Their enemy’s position had been compromised and 494 knew they would moving soon. They had to find 714 soon, or they could very well lose her. And 494 never abandoned his unit. It was an alien concept he refused to acknowledge.

Silently, they inched forward, a small hut loomed ahead. Patrol was heavy and 494 could make out a dozen guards on first glance. He was uneasy. Three X5s could take out any number of Ordinaries, but the odds were not in their favor and their minimal firepower put them at a disadvantage.

He signaled to 602 to approach from the right. He watched as she crept quietly around the side of the bungalow, swiftly and easily taking out three guards and arming herself. Smart girl. 818 nodded to his CO and swept around the left side of the building, successfully stripping a further four guards of their weapons and ability to fight back. 

494 circled through the trees and bushes and came up behind the structure. Strange, there were no guards posted there. A window sat above him and he carefully raised his head and peered through the dirty glass. He could barely make out the shape of 714, chained to a chair. A swarthy, thick necked, dark skinned man was slapping her back and forth across the face.

“Who are you?” he demanded of her. When she didn’t reply he continued to beat her. “Who sent you? What is your rank? Who are you, filth? Answer me!” 714 was sitting as straight as she could; strong even as a captive. 494 was proud of her. But he knew the leader wouldn’t take her silence for long and Manticore had finally managed to fuck something up beyond comprehension.

In the military, a prisoner of war was expected to state name, rank and serial number to the enemy. Manticore soldiers only had designations. If the enemy thought 714 was from a mercenary group, they would stop the ‘gentle’ treatment and beat her senseless, or worse.

Safe in the knowledge that 602 and 818 were keeping watch, 494 pried open the window and sprayed the room with bullets. 714 took this opportunity to fall forward, breaking the chair and releasing herself. She blurred to the door, which opened to reveal five heavily armed enemy soldiers, weapons trained on her. 494 smiled as he saw the tip of 602’s submachine gun glint just over one soldier’s shoulder. 714 dropped as the soldiers fell around her.

494 raced around the building and pushed past 602 and 818 to help 714 to her feet. She smiled up at him, the first genuine smile since their talk by the stream earlier that morning.

“Never abandon your unit, huh 494?” she said, eyes twinkling despite the obvious pain she was in.

“Never abandon your friends, 714,” he responded with a smile. 

The brief moment of contentment was shattered by the crack of a single shot fired. Their eyes widened in horror as 818 fell to the ground, a gaping hole in his temple. 602 whipped around and emptied an entire clip into the brush. A faint grunt, followed by a thud was the only indication that she’d hit her target.

602 raised 818’s body and threw him over her shoulder. 494 supported 714 and they made their way to the rendezvous point. 494 radioed for extraction. Thirty minutes later a US-101 lowered itself to the clearing.

277 and 645 marched 664 onto the chopper and settled in at the back, keeping him under guard. The wounded US soldiers were assisted by the CSAR team and followed by the rest of their unit.

The mission was over. They’d freed the battalion, rescued 714 and sustained one casualty. It had been a sloppy operation. Bone weary, 494 was dying to sleep but he knew it would not claim him. He still had to draft his mission report and he dreaded what was sure to come.