Devil's Due the flip side of the coin

Author’s note: Well umm yeah did not think anyone really was going to read this… so damn got to make more.

Also I use his flash backs and memories as fade to black because it’s just much more entertaining right?

I was stirred from my sleep by the sounds of birds chirping in the misty forest around me. I rose from the ground to stretch my legs a little and gather up my makeshift bed. After eating a can of some kind of fruit I liberated from the home I stayed in yesterday, I readied myself for the long trek south towards Equestria and Ponyville. I knew I would just have to go south to find those places; the problem was how far I’d have to go…

I looked down a long and somber road. I was miles from any sign of life, except the birds hopefully not in league with the Griffons. I started down the road and walked for about an hour before boredom kicked in. I always hated down-time. War was my element, my curse and my joy. I hated down-time because I always got all ‘soul search-y’ remembering the great operations and the ones best left buried. As I walked the path I receded back into the depths of my mind to either entertain or horrify myself.

The two SAW gunners moved to follow the squad leader’s orders. All five escorts of the caravan were lined up. Some praying to their respective gods while others just stood quietly with fear awaiting their fate. Then the burst of machined death that broke the calm of the wind around me rang out as the gunners opened fire. The squad leader’s eyes looked over the dead causally as he gave another order.

“You all know the drill. Burn the bodies and gear.” He said with a voice of indifference.

I knew what I needed to do. I took two charges of C4 from my kit and placed them on the weapons the now-dead camels were carrying as the two gunners grabbed some gas from the helicopter. I set both timers to give us time to leave without seeing the mess. Both gunners now finished with dowsing the piled up bodies in gasoline and lined up with me awaiting orders from the lead. I grabbed a cigarette from a fresh pack in my front pocket, and a lighter from the another pocket. The lead spoke again.

“Another day, another tally.” He grabbed the lighter from my hand.

He then flicked it open, flame almost in my face. “Live a little longer.” Then threw it on to the pile of the dead setting it ablaze.

I reacted brashly still with a cigarette in my mouth, “Scott. Seriously. Fuck you.”

He just laughed at my comment replying only with, “Alex, when are you going to learn to have fun.”

“Go to hell.” I replied with as I went back to the chopper.

“See you there.” He said as he waved the rest of our team back to the chopper.

I sat across from him in the all black interior of the Blackhawk. We lifted off the ground about 100 meters and headed off back to base. I glared at Scott in utter distain. I hated the fucker. I would have killed him, if the Board of Directors did not in deem him the ‘right choice’ to lead this team. As we neared home base the radio in the cockpit came to life with chatter.

“Echo Five this is Command, copy.” The radio bellowed.

“This is Echo Five, copy loud and clear.” The pilot said.

“I have new orders for your cargo.”

The pilot turned his head and yelled back at us, “Phone for you.”

Scott grabbed a radio receiver from one of the panels overlooking our seats and began to listen.

Scott was the one who the people upstairs always talked to first. He was the one who made sure we were never there, in and out, no traces. Sure, I killed people, but that sadistic asshole would do it just for fun. Women, children, anything with a pulse were not against his rules of engagement. Maybe that’s why he was the lead… and why shit like that was common around him.

I could see where this was going. I began to check my weapons and ammo. The rest of the team followed suit. Scott ordered us to check comms. I checked my ear piece and awaited orders. He then gave us our PDAs.

The PDAs came to life with the voice of someone from the senior staff. The map on screen showed a small outlining farm on the outskirts of what barley could be called a village. The debriefing began.

“Whiskey, you are the element we are sending in to extract a downed U.S. pilot named John Michel.” Said a voice over the speakers of the PDAs.

John? I knew John. I served with him for my first tour. Hell, I did not just know him I went to high school with him. I met his wife Janet, his two kids Gabe and Kelly, and even stayed at his home for a while when I was down on my luck. To find he was the VIP we were sent to conduct an exfiltration on was difficult for me. Sure, it mattered that I got the job done, but I never had a job be as personal as this. I had to make sure this did not go south… or else he would not go home.

“You will be dropped north of the village. This is a daylight raid people. The clock is ticking, a sand storm is due to hit the area in about an hour. So keep it quick and quiet.”

“Any air support?” Scott asked.

“Negative. You are the only bird in the area, and your only support.”

Scott had begun to twist on a silencer. I did the same as well as our radioman. I could not take the SVD for this kind of engagement so I took the MP7 from the cockpit, the pilot did not seem to care. The two SAW gunners bumped fists. The one on the right replied to the scene with only.

“Sweet air support. We got you little girls from up here.”

The other one chimed in laughing, “Give us a good show!”

Scott merely looked at me and the radioman. He started to speak as we reached the insertion point.

“Ok, we have a daylight raid so we have to keep this low profile. Sounds and heads low.”

We were dropped in at five p.m. on the dot. We stood just a short hike away from the village and even farther away from our objective, John. The mission was time sensitive but we could not risk spooking the insurgents and blow our rescue. We had to hoof it in. The sand around us was kicked up by a rather strong gust of wind as we walked towards the village. Scott murmured

“Let’s get this over quick. The sand storm is coming in faster than I’m comfortable with.”

Scott, the radioman and I all dress in the civilian clothes native to the area. We have our weapons and faces concealed under robes and face wraps. We finally entered the village after crossing the insufferable sands. The village was quiet, calm and serene. Its streets lined with a few cars, a small amount of people talking amongst themselves and the tiny shops that littered the streets. Its buildings were either brick and mortar or just the same color as the sands with alleyways on the right side.

I scanned the roof tops with my eyes and felt out of my element. Normally, I would be up there not here on ground the target of a lucky pot shot. I had extensive training in CQC and fast assault breaching skills. But I always preferred staying away from an open fire fight.

As we walked onto the village’s main road the town’s people one by one began to disappear behind closed doors and windows. I looked about the once-inhabited street. It began to empty out into a kill zone.

“Fuck me. This is why I stay far the fuck away from you.” I said in a barely-contained rage.

“Quit your bitching.” Scott remarked back at me.

“Shh, guys I think I saw some kind of light up there on that roof.” The radioman pointed at a three story building in front of us maybe a hundred meters away.

The building really had no special markings or look about it. My eyes ran along the length of the two story building and stopped at the sight of some kind of glare. A chill ran down my spine as I yelled out.

“Sniper!” My voice cracked with fear.

As if waiting to be named, a shot rang out. The noise was so distinctive of a 7.62x55R mm Russian, the standard SVD round. I did not need the noise to tell me what was fired, because I could already see the carnage as the round tore through the radioman’s chest leaving a gaping exit wound. It dropped him dead still clasping at his wound no more than five meters in front of me.

The adrenaline kicked in as I ran off the street into an alleyway on the right jumping over a wooden crate. Scott stayed on the road taking cover behind a white parked car. Various calibers of bullets punched into the car and the ground around it. A few insurgents came out of some of the buildings overlooking the street shooting at him.

I ran through the alleyway jumping over tipped over trash cans and other rubble as I pulled the MP7 from its hiding place. A door opened in front of me just eight meters away. I slammed into the door knocking the man behind it down to the ground. I then fired eight rounds through the door into him leaving him dead. I then set back off in a sprint to circle around to the snipers position.

The sound of a raging battle was still heard from the street to my left. I made it to the door of the building the sniper was using at his hunting post. I heard him pop off a few more shots, the shell casings raining down on top of me.

I set up in front of the door. “Three… Two… One…” I kick the door open to see nothing out of the ordinary, just chairs and a table set for dinner. I cautiously approached the stairs leading to the floors above. I kept the MP7 at eye level as I went up the stairs, its silencer leading my way. The second floor was very dark al the curtains close leaving the area in a darkened haze. I check all corners along the length of the second floor; the roof top was all that was left.

I stopped at the door leading to the roof and listened for the sound of the sniper firing… nothing well at least nothing from him. The street still rang with Scott’s desperate fight against the insurgents. ‘Must be reloading.’ I kicked open the door. The sun’s bright light burned my eyes as I went through the threshold of the doorway.

As I stepped out into the open air of the roof top I yelled. “Where’s your god now motherfucker… where did you go?”

The sky now growing darker with the coming storm was all I met up there or so I thought…

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I trekked down the winding road for a couple of hours. I was starting to wonder if wandering towards this Equestria place was a good idea. Maybe I am gonna be wanted there as well. I thought back to the Griffon’s. Why the hell did they want to capture me anyways? I didn’t look too appetizing or anything.

“Speak of the devils…” My voice faded into silence.

I saw a large group of the super chickens headed by none either than Gilda. ‘Damn she’s going to be a bigger pain in my ass than a knife-happy ex.’ I went prone and rolled off to the side and into a ditch. She led them with eyes full of a bestial rage, not the once pale blue I remember from our first in counter. ‘Seems she learned to keep herself some with a few meat shields.’ I count off twelve enemies not including her.

I knew at this point that, I would be hunted down like a dog… well two can play at that game. I understood war like this, they clearly did not, otherwise I would’ve been in their claws a while ago. I understood how dangerous this new land was now. Candy land had its share of bad guys. Sure there were no snipers, mines or tanks, but something even worse like those creatures in the tunnels. As they passed above I heard her speak to her subordinates.

“Fan out find this human and bring him to me.” Gilda said with authority showing in here voice.

‘Bad call, numbers where your only chance.” I looked at her through the SVD’s scope.

“But Sargent Gilda, orders where to kill the human and bring his belongings back to the kingdom.” A griffon soldier asked with a bit of fear permeating his voice.

‘I like her plan more, even if it is a little clingy.’

Her eyes looked like pools of fire as she responded to the soldier, “I don’t care what the Captain said! You bring him to me first, alive.”

The soldier shook in his boots… hmm… claws as he followed his orders and flew off with the rest of the team supporting her in all different directions. My eye followed her through my scope for a while. She now wore armor similar to that officer-looking one from their last attempt to re-capture me. It was plate mail with black base and golden trim. She wore a helmet with red fabric going down its back.

She ordered a few more from her group to search for me down the road ahead. She now flew with two in tow. They proceeded flew in a pattern in the sky above as if they were vultures on the scent of death. I slowly crawled in my prone position deeper into the forest, this time not giving myself away to them.

This time I had a plan…