Immediate Action – Outtake – Operation Whistling Shitcan.

A little Outtake from my Fic - Immediate Action, this is told entirely by Emmett, and elaborates on the 'Little Bird' and Jessica Stanley storyline.

NBC international reporter Jessica Stanley is on location in the Balkans with her camerman and a translator when she is kidnapped by rebels. This is how our boys got her home. It also shows Bella's role as a SOCOM operator for the team.

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February 3rd 2010 - Aegean Sea - The Balkans.

The Knighthawk dipped and banked on its speedy approach across the ocean; we’d been ensconced in this flying metal coffin for hours now, and our only intel was that we were heading to Carrier Strike Group Eight. It’s not that I hated flying per-se; it’s that flying normally meant we were heading towards a lot of hurt - although I hoped it wouldn’t be us experiencing the hurt. I was also secretly glad that they’d upgraded the Helos; the last time we were on an aircraft carrier, we’d been ferried around in whistling shitcans; the navy liked to call them Phrogs, but our name for them was much more apt, the CH46 Seaknight helo a twin rotor bucket of bolts. 

Edward hadn’t told us much about this operation, only that we were to be on standby nearby should negotiations fail. I shrugged to myself, whatever dude; as long as they feed me they can take me anywhere. A quick look out the port side and I spotted USS Mason; a destroyer class ship that acted as the guard dog to the USS George H. W. Bush aircraft carrier. I’d not had the pleasure of this one; I can only hope they serve better rations than the USS Nimitz. 

We circled the carrier once before we descended to the flight deck, landing with a thump. We all glanced around at each other before exiting the helo, kit in hand, our eyes trained on the ground crew running around to fix holding blocks to the helo’s wheels to stop it rolling. 

“Where to, Chief?” said Jasper, ,,,eyeing Edward with curiosity. 

Before he could reply, the welcoming committee arrived on deck. 

“Officer on deck!” 

We all snapped to attention; it wasn’t something we did regularly amongst our team, as we didn’t run strictly to regimented order of rank, but as they say, ‘we’re not in Kansas anymore’.

“As you were, gentlemen.” Thank fuck this guy wasn’t up his own ass. 

“Welcome aboard the USS George H. W. Bush; sorry it’s not in friendlier circumstances. I’m Liam O’Dowd, XO on this tub. If you’d like to follow me, we have quarters for you, then we’ll go see the old man.”

“Thank you, sir; I think the guys could do with some chow too.” Responded Edward coolly.

“Not problem, I’ll point you to the mess deck on the way.” He replied.

We strode casually across the deck, eyes stalking our every move; I chuckled to myself as I heard the usual whispers of ‘seals’ and ‘snake eaters’ as we passed by. Yeah just be glad I’m on your side. We followed the XO, a ragtag band of muscled misfits, through the corridors and stairwells to midships and guest quarters. We were put in a grey bunk room with eight bunks, shower room and head. It was small but adequate for our needs; it wasn’t like we were going to be using it for long. A row of lockers stood sentinel at one end of the bunk room, wordlessly we stowed our gear and claimed our bunks. 

“So what’s next then?” Jake threw out. He was the youngest in our leadership team and specialised in vehicles; anything with an engine, he could make it purr. 

“Well I’m off to see the old man with the XO; I’ll meet you guys on the mess deck as soon as I’m done,” Edward replied, a grin on his face as he mentioned the mess hall. 

“Thank god for that, I’m starving!” I called.

“Dude, you’re always hungry.” Snarked Edward.

“Hey, I’m a growing boy!” I replied with a smirk, rubbing my stomach.

“If I didn’t know any better I’d say you picked up a tapeworm when we were in Hong Kong,” Jasper quipped, reclining lazily on his bunk. 

I fixed him with a glare, “Dude, that’s not funny.”

The whole room erupted in laughter. Jake patted me on the back, “S’Ok Em, they just don’t understand. Us bigger guys need more carbs to keep these guns in fine condition.” He grinned, flexing his muscled arms. 

I laughed and then wrapped him in a headlock, dragging him from the room. “Let’s go eat!”

The walk down to the mess deck was jovial; full of banter and laughter. Edward had left us to head up to the bridge to see the old man, so the mission didn’t really figure into any of our thoughts; our primary focus at this time was food. The mess hall descended into silence as we entered, a sea of faces staring at us as we sauntered over to the serving counter. 

“I could eat a horse!” Jake exclaimed excitedly, I swear that dude could meet me bite for bite.

“ Let’s just hope they’re not serving horse cock on this tub, I swear I want to hunt down the asshole who came up with that shit and make him eat it till he’s sick,” I countered. 

Jasper just laughed. “Sure laugh it up, Tex; we all know that you’re delicate stomach groans at the thought of horse cock as much as mine does!”

“What’s for lunch?” I asked the skinny looking mess rating standing behind the counter, damn they need to feed that kid up. 

“Ugh,” he mumbled, looking at me like a deer caught in headlights.

“Well...” I grinned, flashing him a full set of gnashers. Hehehe, I love scaring the little ones.

“Baloney sandwiches, Chief.” He grimaced. 

“Awww shit, I hate horse cock! Don’t you have steak or something?” I moaned.

“Sorry Chief, it’s mid rats Wednesday, we do have chilli tonight though,” he squeaked out, flustered.

“Fine, kid, I’ll have four of those then please.” I smiled, rolling my eyes at his nervousness.

I looked back over my shoulder to see the guys just stood there, grinning at me; I shrugged grabbing my tray and walked across the hall to the lone empty table to wait for them to catch up. By now the silence had broken and the hall was awash with chatter, admittedly quite a bit of it was about the arrival of the ‘snake eaters’ and why we were here, but that just goes with the territory. The TV was on in the corner and we could hear the news over the thrum of idle chatter. 

“Tonight on NBC, our very own International correspondent, Jessica Stanley, continues to be held captive by an unknown rebel group in an unnamed location in Serbia. She was last heard from yesterday morning while travelling with her cameraman, Collin Montgomery, to meet with political leader Boris Petrovic. It is believed that the vehicle they were travelling in was stopped by a rebel patrol and they were taken. Their interpreter Konrad Bendkowski was found dead on the roadside beside their burnt out vehicle. At this time no ransom has been asked and no contact has been made with the rebels.”

Jasper broke the silence at our table. “Well that answers the question then.” 

“Yep, guess we know why we’re here now,” I muttered with a mouth full of chilli.

As I took my last bite, Edward strode into the mess hall, making a beeline directly for our table. 

“Jessica Stanley?” Jake questioned.

“I guess you saw the news then, let’s take this to the ready room and I’ll brief you with what I have. 

We also have CIA intel in on this too, hopefully it’ll be more than the usual maybes.” With that he turned and headed out of the mess hall. We quickly bundled behind him, armed with coffee. 

The walk to the ready room was short, just a few flights up. It was spent in contemplative silence, each of us wandering just how far inland we were going, and what sort of opposition we were up against. The room was set out like a theatre; it even had those huge comfortable seats, you know, the ones you just sink in to?

 A large screen was set up at the front, with maps and satellite images constantly flipping across. There was a communications station sat to the side; I guess this was to be used as a direct line to our intel lead back in the states. Normally SOCOM dealt with our intel, however there was a small team at the CIA in Mclean who often worked alongside. They had some guy called Crowley, or some shit, who used to talk through what they’d dredged up, normally it wasn’t much. At least he was there and not here, as face to face he was an annoying ass.

I slumped into my seat and eyed the display ahead of us; a map of Serbia with a huge red dot over the Serbian part of the Carpathian Mountains stood out like a beacon. 

“Dude, what’s with the dot, we hunting Dracula or some freaky assed vampires? Just so you know if any fucker runs at me with his teeth bared I’ll blow his damned head off.” I grinned.

Jasper snorted beside me and I could see the edges of Jakes’ mouth twitching, he was just dying to laugh out loud. Ha!

 

“Very funny, Em.” Edward rolled his eyes at me, I shrugged in response.

“So as you may have heard, Jessica Stanley from NBC has been kidnapped by rebels, her last known location is just west of the Serbian part of the Carpathians, and needless to say the land is pretty rugged. Our contact at the CIA has been doing some digging in the area and has come up with the intelligence that I will be briefing with. ‘Little Bird’; can you bring up the high rez on the last locale please?”

“Sure thing, Master Chief,” a sultry female voice sounded over the comm. as the image on the screen changed to high resolution satellite of the burnt out vehicle.

“I guess they got rid of Crowley then,” I whispered to Jasper.

He nodded, not moving his eyes from the screen ahead of us. More images flashed across the screen, until they reached the final one: a close up schematic with infrared and thermal detailing the locations of people milling around. 

“Gentlemen, as you can see, this last image that ‘Little Bird’ has brought up for us is of an old WW2 bunker set deep into the mountains. As far as we can tell, Stanley and Montgomery are  being held here,” Edward finished, aiming his laser pointer at a small cell about midway through the bunker, it can’t have been much more than 6 by 9 ft in size and had the thermal outlines of two people huddled together. 

“Due to the location, we need to arrive undetected, so a Helo insertion would be difficult. It’s been decided that we land three clicks from the target, which should lessen any noise from a Helo and walk in. The terrain is rugged: mountains, ravines, gorges, high cliffs and valleys. The one saving grace is an abundance of trees. Insertion in this manner shouldn’t be a problem. However the exit strategy is going to be a little more difficult, as we’ll need to exit in a different direction and the terrain will only get harsher, regardless of what direction we go,” Edward finished.

“Ugh, Master Chief, I may have a suggestion for exfil.” The small voice of ‘Little Bird’ came over the comm.

 I sat up straighter in my chair, I noticed the guys around me doing the same. It was very rare for an Intel bod to speak out of turn and we were all eager to hear what she had to say, not to mention that she sounded kinda hot.

“Go ahead, ‘Little Bird’, we’re all ears.” Edward grinned.

“Well as you’ve seen from the satellite images, the terrain is particularly rough, which will make things difficult for a Helo extraction. That along with the unknown number of rebels and the fact that I’ve picked up the presence of mines surrounding the bunker. The downdraft from a Helo would probably set them off anyhow. However approximately five clicks south west there appears to be a small encampment complete with helipad. It’s often used by a civilian registered Huey; my best guess is that is how they got them there. If you can get to this encampment, then you may be able to use the Huey if it’s there or we can have a KnightHawk come in and extract you. I’ll leave that one to you, but the encampment is quiet a lot of the time, so you shouldn’t get too much resistance.” She finished her speech quietly and images of the encampment appeared on the screen. Well damn, the chick was not only hot, she was good at her shit too. 

Edward coughed a little himself and scratched the back of his head. “Little Bird?”

“Yes, Master Chief?” she responded, almost timidly.

“Good work, I think this will be almost perfect,” he replied smiling.

“No problem, Master Chief, I’ll keep watching the scope and keep you guys informed of any new developments. Be safe guys, Little Bird out.” With that our Intelligence angel was gone. 

“Well you heard the lady; I guess we’ve got our way out too. Any questions?”

“Yeah! I got one,” I started.

“Em?”

“Who’s the new chick? not that I’m complaining, she sounds hot, not to mention she’s more on the ball than that idiot Crowley.” I smirked.

Edward snorted. “Did you forget Rose, Em?”

“Hell no! Nothing could make me forget my girl, but it doesn’t mean I can’t window shop. So is she as hot as she sounds?” I replied, a huge grin stretching across my face.

“Honestly, I’ve no idea; it was the first time I’ve talked to her,” he replied.

“Then I vote we do a little recon when we get back. Any idea where she’s based?” I grinned, slapping his shoulder.

“Afraid not, she was patched through SOCOM, and they only gave us her call sign. If this pans out though, hopefully we’ll work with her more instead of Crowley,” Edward replied with a grin. “Okay guys, if there are no questions I suggest we head back to our bunks, sort our gear and grab some shut eye. We have a go for 0400.”

With that, we all moved to head out of the room and head back down to midships and our palatial quarters. Okay so palatial is an exaggeration, they were more like a dreary looking dormitories only much, much smaller. 

I headed straight for my locker on arrival, much like the rest of the guys; there was a good amount of gear that we wouldn’t be taking. I was actually pretty thrilled to not be doing a ‘Halo’ jump, as much as I loved the wind in my hair; jumping out of an aircraft and not opening my chute until the last possible minute still made my butt clench. 

We stowed what we wouldn’t need, stacking our gear ready to high tail it out at 0400. I jumped up on my bunk, ready to get some shut eye, when Jake kicked me. 

“What?” I grumbled, couldn’t he see I was getting comfortable?

“Dude, it’s my turn for the top bunk, you had it on the Nimitz,” he whined. 

“Seriously, you’re arguing over who gets to go on top?” Jazz called from across the room. 

“Butt out, Tex, we had an agreement,” Jake groused at Jasper.

“Just saying, I’m sure my sister would love to hear about this one,” he joked.

“Enough! Get some sleep, Christ if this is what it’s like to have kids I’m so glad I’m single. Jake, take the bunk above Jazz; Em, stop winding him up; Jazz, shut it,” Edward bellowed. 

Jake grinned and bounded onto the bunk above Jasper, while Jazz muttered to himself. I turned over, chuckling quietly; he was so easy to wind up.

Go time came around much too quickly for my liking, it felt like I had only just managed to drop off to sleep and here we were, suiting up and heading up to the flight deck. The last thing to be put on was our throat comms. They were far less bulky than having to carry a full radio set with us, and not to mention pretty darn cool. 

“Comm. check!” Sam called out. 

We sounded off one by one until Sam was satisfied we were all sending and receiving adequately. The moon was still high in the sky out on the flight deck, air crew were running around in all directions and the beautiful sound of the KnightHawk engine thundering to life helped focus my sleep deprived mind. I love Helos, one day, I’ll get the chance to fly one on a mission, I’m not asking for anything special, just a Huey or hell I’d settle for a Bell. I stood there admiring the beautiful black beast before me; the curve of its fuselage; the pan of the rotas; the smell of grease and aviation fuel. A tap on my shoulder broke me from my day dream. 

“Coming? Or are you gonna stand there drooling all day?” Edward called from the door of the Helo.

“Yeah,” I said with a little too much enthusiasm, jumping in and bounding to my favourite seat with a view of the cockpit.

The Helo went through pre-flight and was given the clear to go signal from the bridge. We were soon in the air and heading back out across the dark waves, flying low to avoid being seen on radar. I sat back, taking in the thrum of the rotas and the sound of the sea below us. This was the best bit of my job; the build up to the big event. It’s not about the glory; it’s the delicate dance that preludes the final act. My inner peace was broken by my now favourite voice over the comm. 

“Morning, Gentlemen, I hope it’s not too chilly over the water.”

“Little Bird, you’re a voice for sore ears,” I said, grinning. Edward shook his head and muttered under his breath. 

“Someone smack you round the head, Brother Bear?” she responded with quick wit.

“Little Bird, I like you, you’re quick! Na, baby cakes, you’re just better than the regular guy, so do we get to keep you?” I answered, flirting a little.

There was an audible snort from her end. “Maybe, maybe not, we’ll see how well you play with others. I just needed to check in with you guys, to say that I’m set up on the scope and to call me if you need anything,” she continued.

“Thanks, Little Bird, good to hear we’ve got you as our eyes and ears for this,” Edward interrupted, stopping me from garnering anything from her. 

“No worries, Master Chief, I’ve got your back. Little Bird Out.” The comm. went quiet again.

Edward looked at me from across the Helo, his expression unreadable, so I gave him my best ‘what?’ face and shrugged a little. He shook his head in response, a smirk gracing his lips as he rolled his eyes at me. Yeah dude, that’s what I thought. After a while we could make out the lights of a small fishing village as we got nearer to the coast. It wasn’t long after that that the pilot came over the comm. telling us that we were now going radio silent for the final bit; we’d be reaching the LZ in about 20 minutes. Edward thanked him and told us to get ourselves ready to repel from the Helo, this would be a swift and hopefully undetected insertion. 

The further inland we went, the more mountainous and unwelcoming the terrain became - of all the places to be kidnapped, that Stanley woman had to choose here? I looked around me. The guys were all going through the personal preparations for the final leap into the unknown. I said a quick prayer that I’d get back to my Rosie and clipped my carabiner to the line coiled beside the door. 

The crewman sat beside the door, tethered by a light harness to stop him falling out. He pushed the door out and along the sliding rail and kicked the coiled rope from its position; it tumbled like a flimsy spring, uncoiling as it fell towards the ground below. He peered out of the door, his eyes obscured by a pair of NVGs. We stood and shuffled towards the door, watching for the hand signals that told us it was time to go. His hand flicked up as if playing rock paper scissors; Once, twice, three times, then his pointer finger shot out...

”GO, GO, GO!”

With swift precision we dropped from the Helo, a silent and deadly force moving snakelike, to the ground below. Last man down and the rope followed. The Helo lifted and manoeuvred away at speed, making as much distance from us as it could, so that it would be as if it had never been there. The ropes were quickly coiled and stowed away as we spread out in a close perimeter. Fluidly we moved into the trees in order to gain cover and orientate for our next move. 

A chill ran up my spine; a mixture of both adrenalin and actual cold. Edward looked my way briefly, his eyes alight with enthusiasm. He shook his head and went back to his map. We sat in a loose formation, watching all directions, until Edward clicked his fingers twice. All eyes went to him and he gestured towards the North West. A series of nods followed to acknowledge the silent signal and we stood and in an age old practice moved silently through the forest. 

The night was beginning to fade into a dull and foggy dawn; it wouldn’t be long before we would have to move further into the trees to avoid detection. Until then we followed a small trail inland from what Edward said was Lake Jezero. It was surprising to think that this was still quite the tourist area, with lakeside facilities and a nearby ski resort. The rebels would make for an unsettling stay for any foreign tourists I’m sure. 

By dawn we had crossed what was seemingly a major road, yet looked nothing more than a tarmac covered track to me. From here the elevation was going to get steadily higher and we had to be prepared for the possibility of being affected by the sudden change in altitude. Another hour passed and the day was finally showing promise. Blue sky lingered above, with a good chance that the clouds that danced across were filled with snow. That was something I hoped we could avoid; we didn’t need to be leaving tracks. 

The forest around us was a vivid, verdant green, lush and warming brown tones, mixed with the scent of pine needles and cool mountains. We didn’t see much wildlife, but we did hear it as it scurried away from our approach. I chuckled to myself; even the squirrels knew to fear us. We passed by small streams, awed by the red colouring of the water due to rust coloured rocks beneath. It was peaceful and crowded all at the same time. 

After two hours of walking we finally came upon our first encounter with the rebels. Thankfully they didn’t see us. Three young men stood huddled around a small fire, standard issue AK47 rifles slung lazily over their shoulders. They talked and joked without fear or sense of urgency, as if they had no concept of just how bad a situation they were in. Surely they were more aware of their surroundings than this? I edged forward slightly to get a better look of the small camp ground, but Jasper stopped me with his hand to my chest. I raised my eyes to him in a question of ‘what the hell?’ He pointed at the trip wire barely three feet from me, at the end of which sat two grenades, the pins only held in place by the tension of the wire. Well shit.

I nodded and wiped the imaginary sweat from my brow. That was close. I pulled my clippers from my front pouch and gently felt along the wire, hoping that was my only surprise. Seeing that there were no other complications, I pushed the pins in to the grenades, ensuring they were secure, before clipping the wire. I looked around to see the guys doing the same at various entry points to the camp. Well that explains why they are so relaxed. We approached stealthily from all sides, Edward, Jasper and Jake rising silenced MK23s and each firing with precision. The men dropped at the same time, each slumping on the floor in a heap of limbs. 

Slowly and with care we searched the camp for intel and any signs of useful equipment. Finding nothing but foul smelling rations, an old relic of a radio and three pallets, we moved on, reassembling a few of the trip wire traps on our way out. Hopefully they would serve to warn us of any approach on our tail.

“Little Bird calling Big Bear, over.”

Edward paused, raising his hand in the universal stop manoeuvre we held and crouched in readiness.

“Go ahead, Little Bird,” Edward responded.

“Big Bear, you’re one click shy of the mine field.   Approach with caution, there are ‘friends’ in your locale,”she stated.

“Thanks for the warning, Little Bird. We’ll let you know how the party goes. Big Bear, out.”

“Em, take point. Everyone else fan out,” he said quietly.

I stepped from my crouched position to Edwards’ left and moved slowly forwards. I know why he was sending me ahead; demolitions are my thing, so I would need to clear our path through the mine field. The guys would have my back. I strode ahead, setting a steady pace; I could sense the guys around me, giving me enough space to ensure all our safety. I saw a rebel walking leisurely ahead of us and signalled behind me. Pulling my knife from its sheath on my bicep, I approached him slowly from behind. He didn’t know what hit him until it was too late, as I grabbed him by the chin, pulling his head up and bringing the blade across his throat. He didn’t even have time to scream. I gently pulled him back into the tree line and hid him in a bush; if anyone came looking for him, it would give us time to move on. 

I noted his patrol path steadily worn into the ground ahead of me; I guess he walked the perimeter of the mine field regularly. That served to help me find a safe start to my next purpose. Slowly moving to my knees, I edged forwards, tiny movements at a time. I didn’t intend to be caught out by a pressure plate, not now. I used the blade from my knife to probe ahead of me, sweeping a line of dirt behind me to form a track for the guys to follow. The first mine loomed under my knife. I hate these things with a passion. I gently probed around it, revealing the pressure sensitive plate to me. Taking a deep breath, I eased my knife under the plate, disengaging the trigger mechanism. One down. I continued on through the mine field, clearing the path until I could see safe ground. Well, as safe as it got. 

Aware that talking would give my position away; I bleeped my comm. twice, letting the guys know it was clear for them to proceed. I took up defensive position, watching both the mine field and my own rear as they began to move towards me. A crack to my left had me holding my breath. Shit.

I bleeped the comm. they halted and crouched in position, their weapons making trails in all directions. I turned silently on my heels to see a rebel standing barely five meters from me, smoking a cigarette; he hadn’t noticed me or them. I removed my knife from its sheath and approached him quietly. Moments later he fell from my grasp and I dragged him back into the brush with me. I bleeped the comm. once more for them to proceed. 

Edward patted my shoulder as he passed, taking point and moving to a defensive position off to my left. Once we were all reassembled, Edward signalled for us to move on. We proceeded silently, ever watchful for rebel patrols. Before long the bunker appeared in our midst; a concrete structure that held a small viewing platform on the top, stairs leading up the outside and a door to the inner network of tunnels. From here on we had to use total and absolute stealth and radio silence, save for bleep signals. We couldn’t chance being seen or heard. To my surprise, there were very few rebels visible. Two men sat atop the viewing platform, they appeared to be playing cards and drinking heavily. A machine gun nested on the side. 

Seth and Embry took up positions in the trees on either side of the bunker, giving them a perfect view of the surrounding area. With a double bleep from Edward, the two shots were fired and the men playing cards slumped over their position. We moved swiftly towards the door and made a quick and silent entry to the tunnel. The concrete walls held little warmth; damp coursed down them, forming puddles on the floor. We moved as one cohesive unit into the depths, taking out the swinging, flickering light bulbs that illuminated the dimly lit passage. We pulled on our NVGs, now in our element, and made good headway, finding most passageways clear of any rebels and those that we did were removed with precision and silence. 

It wasn’t long before we reached the cell we had seen on the high res display. We could hear female whimpers from inside and a male voice trying to soothe her. We formed a defensive cordon around the entry; no one would approach us and survive. Edward moved to the door; a ring of keys hung to its side. He lifted the ring and worked to unlock the cell. The door swung open the man and women were curled together in the far corner, huddling together for warmth and protection. 

“Go away, I don’t know anything!” a female voice screeched.

“Navy Seals, ma’am, we’re here to get you home,” Edward said in his calmest voice. 

Her response was not what we expected. 

“About damn time you showed up, what took you so long? Don’t you realise who I am? Look at this cell, it’s disgusting, these savages...” she all but screamed at Edward.

“Ma’am, how about we save the shouting for when we have you somewhere safe,” Edward tried to placate her. 

“Safe! Safe? Are you serious, I’ve been stuck in this shit hole for who knows how long and you expect me to keep quiet about it? You, Sir...”

“It’s Master Chief, Ma’am, and if you don’t shut up, we’ll have a shit ton of rebels on our asses and we’ll all end up dead. Do you understand?” Edward said, grinding his teeth.

I chuckled under my breath. Oh she’s going to be great fun.

 

“Look, Master Chef, or whatever, I’m Jessica Stanley, a US citizen and I demand to be treated with respect. If I want to shout, I will. No jumped up meat head is going to tell me otherwise,” she spat.

“Look, lady, if you don’t shut up, you’re going to die, either at the hands of rebels or more likely me, because you are getting on my last nerve. So with respect, Ms Stanley, shut the fuck up,” Edward growled at her. 

“Your superiors will hear of this. I’m a reporter for NBC; I have contacts, you know,” she said, crossing her arms in a huff.

“Good to know, and for your information, I’m a US Navy Seal and I have a gun. Don’t make me use it on you,” Edward replied, glaring at her. 

I snorted and looked back down the corridor. I could see the shadow of approaching rebels moving in our direction.

“Incoming, Chief, time to go,” I said quietly.

Edward nodded, gesturing for Sam and Quil to bring our guests along. We backed along the corridor away from the cell; thankfully Ms Stanley had shut the hell up. Montgomery seemed to have suffered more than her. He was covered in bruises and looked to have been beaten recently; Quil all but dragged him along beside him. 

As we approached the entry to the bunker, we could hear the voices of the rebels; obviously they had found their prisoners missing and were now on the hunt. We’d just ducked into an alcove as an armed man ran passed us, his thick Serbian accent shouting orders into the darkened bunker. We soon heard more footfalls as more men ran past, none taking much notice of the group of heavily armed men crouched in the dark alcove off to their side. 

The comm. bleeped followed by the quiet sound of Seth’s voice. 

“Chief, they’re heading out across the mine field, if you’re going to get out of there, now is the time.”

“Thanks, Seth, we’ll meet you at the exfil in twenty mikes,” Edward responded coolly.

With a quick nod, he moved out towards the door, tugging it open, the daylight spilt into the corridor. We lifted our NVGs so that we could see and swiftly moved out of the bunker and into the tree line. We formed a protective cordon around the two captives, and hoped that Ms Stanley wouldn’t open her mouth. 

“I do hope you have a plan to get out of here,” she ground out.

I spoke too soon; this damn woman would be the death of us. I moved swiftly to her side and covered her mouth with my hand. 

“Shut the hell up! Are you trying to get us killed or are you really just stupid?” I murmured into her ear. 

Her eyes went as large as dinner plates as the magnitude of the situation finally dawned on her. Seriously, this woman should have never travelled if she didn’t have the brains to know when to shut up. How the hell she made it as a reporter is beyond me. 

Edward looked around then bleeped his comm. “What’s it look like, Seth?”

“Clear to the South West, get moving. Me and Embry will follow up and meet you. Just don’t leave without us, okay?”

“No chance, we’ll see you soon, be safe.”

“Always am.”

Edward gestured towards the forest leading to the South West of the bunker; we spread out in a protective knot and moved fluidly away from the bunker, thankful that we weren’t encountering any opposition. Ms Stanley thankfully remained quiet, yet clung to poor Sam like a limpet. I’m sure if he’d let her, she would’ve had him carry her. I was broken from my reverie by the sound of gunfire at our rear. It was far enough away not to be a problem for us, that meant Seth and Embry had trouble. Edward nodded at Jasper and Jake; they peeled off the side of our rag tag bunch and moved swiftly and silently back towards the approaching trouble. I could only hope that the guys were okay.

We soon lost the sporadic sounds of battle and settled into a steady pace, filled with silent observation and deep breathing. The terrain proved to be our biggest obstacle, rocky outcrops dotted the path we had taken, but shy of heading into the unknown, we had no choice but to remain. Ms Stanley stumbled regularly, punctuating every trip with a whine or moan, no doubt hoping Sam would take pity on her. 

“Why are we walking, don’t you have vehicles we could be using instead? My feet hurt, how long until we get there?” she whined.

“Ma’am, unless you missed it, we’re up a mountain, so short of saddling up a mountain goat, we’re on foot. It’ll be quicker if you shut up,” Edward said with exasperation.

“No need to be rude to me, you’re supposed to be saving me, not insulting me,” she spat back.

“Look lady, since we pulled you out of that cell, all you have done is bitch and moan. If you got your head out of your ass, you would see that we are doing everything we can to get you and Mr Montgomery out of here and to safety, but you just keep on pushing and pushing and you will end up getting someone killed. So please, for the love of all that is holy, shut the hell up,” Edward said, pinching the bridge of his nose.

“So damn rude,” she muttered in response.

It wasn’t long after that we reached the encampment. I was thankful to see that it was empty of rebels and a Huey sat on the helipad. I mental fist pumped. I’m gonna get to fly, yes! We moved silently through the rough looking camp. Someone had been here recently; a small camp fire was burning and a darkened pot swung over it with what looked like some sort of stew. We didn’t have much time before they would be back.

Edward looked at me and gestured at the Helo. “Fire it up, Em, do your thing. Call when we’re set.”

I moved swiftly to the helipad, taking the steps two at a time. I quickly scanned the area and the aircraft, ensuring they’d not booby trapped it and then bounded for the cockpit. I turned the key and flicked switches, checking pedals, joystick, and various gauges. The engine roared to life as I prepped for takeoff. Sam and Quil dragged Ms Stanley and Montgomery up to the helipad and settled them into the rear, buckling them in. She went to protest, but I shot up my hand in warning.

“Ma’am, I suggest if you know what is good for you, you shut it before you start.”

She sat back with a huff; her arms crossed over her chest and glared daggers at me. 

Sam took up a defensive position outside of the helo, Edward and Quil towards the entry of the camp took watch for the rest of the guys. The sound of sporadic gunfire could be heard to the North East, the direction we’d come from. Suddenly four figures charged into sight, stopping occasionally to fire back into the woodland. They would then stand and run before dropping again and firing into the forest. 

“Incoming!” Edward called back and Sam lay prone beside the helo, his sight trained on our four comrades running like they were being chased by the devil himself. 

“Fall back!” Jasper called as he charged through the opening to the encampment and dived into the Helo. 

“Easy there Tex,” I called out from the cockpit. 

“We’ve got to get out of here, they’re gaining ground and are armed with RPGs,” he yelled from his position on the floor of the helo, his gun trained back out at the surrounding woodland. 

“Edward! Get your scrawny ass in this Helo,” I called now, eager to get us the hell out of dodge.

Jake, Seth and Embry soon bundled into the back, closely followed by Sam and Quil, none of them losing sight of the encroaching danger. Guns aimed out of the helo in all directions.

“Edward! Don’t make me come get you, asshole!” I yelled.

“Just leaving them a parting gift,” he said as he climbed into the co-pilot seat with a cocky grin.

I grabbed the joystick and urgently manoeuvred us into the air, just as the first wave of rebels appeared from the woodland. Edward looked over at me and lifted his hand, a remote detonator sat waiting to be pushed. Damn, he’s quick with that shit.

“Holy Shit, get us the hell out of here,” Jake called, pointing at a line of men holding RPGs.

“Well don’t just sit there, assholes, fire back!” I yelled.

Not even waiting to gain anymore height, I dipped the joystick forwards, pushing the nose ahead and set us away from the area at speed, gunfire and the sound of multiple RPGs being fired in our wake. We gained height, dodging rocket fire as we went. A huge explosion rocked the Helo as Edward hit the button on the detonator, the encampment exploded behind us.

“Can I talk now or will you macho assholes get hurt feelings,” that damn woman screeched.

“Ma’am, we’re not out of danger yet, so how about you settle down and let us do our thing,” Edward said calmly.

“Look, Mr Macho-Man, we were fine until your band of idiots turned up, no one shot at us. No, you just turn up and go all macho, firing your ‘big guns’ and flexing your muscles and think the little lady is going to appreciate it. Well listen up, I don’t, do you realise this suit was Prada, Prada dammit, it’s ruined, all because of you!”

“Lady, if we had left you there, you’d be dead, because the US does not pay ransom to rebels. Your suit is of no importance, so get over yourself and shut the hell up,” Edward retorted.

“I will not be spoken to like that by anyone, especially not some knuckle head sailor. Believe me when I say, that you will treat me with respect or you will find your ass out of the military faster than you can say court martial,” she screeched in return.

“Ma’am, you’ll find that bitching to my superiors about your Prada suit and a little dirt under your nails will not result in any action being taken against me. Now should I find the need to shoot you before we get back to our ship, then I’m sure they’ll give me a medal,” Edward said, cocking an eyebrow. “Oh, and shut the hell up. I’m not afraid to throw you out of this bucket.”

“You wouldn’t dare!” she screamed.

“Try me,” he said calmly.

“Little Bird, this is Brother Bear. We’re currently en-route in UH1 –Iroquois, Tail number UH22, we have Ten for dinner, over,” I said over the comm.

“Greetings, Brother Bear, this is Little Bird. Continue on your heading, we have Big Bird and Snuffy en-route to guide you home,” she responded.

“Who the hell are Big Bird and Snuffy and who is that woman, it sounds like GPS? Typical, send in brainless men and they need a damn machine to tell them the way home,” Stanley’s nasally voice screeched out.

“Lady, that woman is getting us home and Big Bird and Snuffy are a couple of friends,” I said, shaking my head.

“Big Bear, have you considered Vitamin M to put Goldilocks to sleep?” Little Bird said over the comm.

We all laughed, that sounded like a great idea, but doubt she’d react very well.

“Little Bird, you have a naughty streak, I like it,” I said in response.

“What can I say, Brother Bear, you bring out the worst in me,” she responded. “Big Bird and Snuffy should be on your six, give them a wave.”

I looked out of the window and sure enough, just off our tail sat two F15s. I nudged Edward and gestured with my head for him to look, he grinned in response.

“Howdy, Big Bird, Snuffy, good to see some friendly faces,” I called over the comm.            

“Afternoon, Brother Bear, a Little Bird said you needed some company. We’ll see you get home safe,” they replied.

We continued on our trajectory as the terrain below us changed from mountains, to rolling hills, to open fields and finally dipped out onto open ocean. The sight of the George H. W. Bush on the horizon, a sight for sore eyes. Our little friends peeled off to run patrols around the coastline as we continued out to sea and our final destination, the drama of the day finally starting to catch up with us as we drew closer to the large ship.

The huey landed with a dull thud. I flicked switches and turned the keys, the rota blades slowing to a stop. Flight crew scrambled to our side as soon as it was safe to do so, securing us to the deck with hooks and cables. We exited the Helo, a bundle of sweaty, dirty men and a screaming woman.

“I demand to see the Admiral; do you not know who I am? I will not be treated like this, I’m Jessica Stanley. Do you not understand that I’m a Reporter for NBC. Move it, asshole, I could have you off this ship faster than you can wipe your nose,” she screeched as she was escorted across the deck, the sound of her annoying voice echoing through the ships tower as she stormed her way towards the bridge.

“Damn I’m glad we don’t have to ride all the way home with her,” I said, scratching my head.

“You’re telling me, what a piece of work. If I knew she was that bad, I wouldn’t have taken the mission,” Edward responded.

“Little Bird to Big Bear. If you’re all good I need to sign off.”

“Hey, Little Bird, we’re all present, correct and in one piece thanks to you. Go get a drink on us,” Edward replied.

“Pleasure was all mine, Big Bear. You guys be safe and maybe I’ll see you again soon. Little Bird, out,” she responded.

“Dude, we have to keep her, I like her,” I said to no-one in particular.

Grabbing our gear from the bed of the Helo, we headed back to our quarters for a much needed shower and some bunk time. Definitely bunk time. We were due to head out at 0600 so the short amount of R&R we had between now and then was like gold dust.

When we reached our quarters, I sat down on my bunk, a huge grin on my face. I didn’t make a move to go to the showers; I was still on a Helo High. Now if I could get to fly something bigger next time, I would be a very happy boy.