The Rescue

Delta storms the holdout with the hostage soldiers

Chapter 3: The Rescue

　

　

We set out in our designated groups, Nick and Tony in a pair and Sean and I taking out our battle knives, Sean on his second.

We sneak behind the bar to hear the cowboys relaxing, not aware of the impending danger. As we take position Nick is busy setting the charges.

“Whatever you do Jack, don’t free the hostages, we don’t even know what they are tied up with so this might take so analyzing. Understood?”

“Yes sir,”

“Good, let’s move,”

The charges go off as gunfire rings through the air. Curses are thrown wildly about as the cowboys prepare to fight. We wait a few minutes for the aim to be fully on Nick and Tony. Once enough time has passed we enter through the back door. We are instantly noticed by a trooper crouching behind the bathroom door. I dispatch of him quickly with a swift roll and slice across the neck maneuver. I give Sean a nod and he goes into the kitchen and stabs one in the temple, breaks another’s leg and dig into his skull right between the eyes as he falls. The majority of the cowboys are taking cover behind overturned tables or behind the bar. With the three hiding behind the bar, Sean and I dive through the window that connects the kitchen to the main room and begin our attack. I grab the middle man’s head and clean sliced him across the neck and used the momentum to powerfully stab the left man in the back of the head. Sean immediately went from the leap into a jab to the top of the man’s skull. We peak over the bar to see Tony spray away and pull behind the outside wall. Closely behind him Nick rolls in with his dual shotguns and blasts away at the two to his immediate left and right. Noticing the danger of the remaining four I split to the left and Sean to the right. We both throw our daggers which meet their marks and prepare for hand to hand combat. This cowboy seems to be the leader of the gang, standing well over seven feet tall with pounds of muscle layered on. He whips around his rifle to try an hit me but I duck, numb his arm and flip away his weapon. I prepare to aim but the gun is already empty,

“Typical,” I say as I realize the problem. The cowboy lands a huge right hook which drive me into the wall. I quickly get up to dodge his hammer punch and quickly punch his stomach multiple times but to no avail. So I turn around and run up the side of a support pillar. Once I reach the zenith of my momentum I spin around and kick the leader square in the jaw. He falters back and I take a leaping punch at his face which also connects. In blind furry he randomly begins punching and luckily lands one on my chest. I stumble back looking for breath but he already grabbed my throat and lifted me above his head. Powerful he drove me through a table, snapping it in two. Laughing at my broken state he lets out a hearty laugh. Using this opportunity I take a piece of the broken table and hurl it at his face. The collision occurs as a long, deep gash forms across his forehead. Painfully I get back up and run up to the giant. Jumping with all my might I manage to land a drop kick squarely in the chest which propels him into a glass painting on the wall. Seizing the moment I plan my finishing move as I take a final lunge and run up the man himself once I am on the middle of his chest I land a devastating right kick to the temple of my foe. As I land on my feet he collapses with a rumble. To make sure the job is done I take the gun of a fallen cowboy and send a round right through the brain.

“Wow Jack you really know how to go at it!” says Tony.

“All part of the job my friend,” I reply, wiping the blood from under my nose. We look over to see Sean deliver a crushing blow to his foe’s stomach and finish it off with a hard uppercut to his bent over head. Sean scurries over to the four men tied up in the center of the room. Wearing only their undergarments, bruises and gashes are abundant over the naked skin. Each man is bound by his arms to each other and to the central pillar between all of them. With bags over their heads, they wildly shake to and fro look for a way to free themselves. Sean inspects the means of their immobilization by taking a close look at the ropes that bind them and the pillar between them.

“No wires or bulky objects near any of them. Seems to be a regular tie up. Nick,”

“Yes sir,” says Nick as he stands straight before the tired captain,

“ I want you to un-tie them while we check the alleyways around the bar,” orders Sean.

“Yes captain,” and Nick takes out a Swiss army knife and begins cutting away at the thick ropes.

“ Move,” barks Sean at Tony and I. We run out the hole Nick created where the door once stood and started down the dark alley to our left. I hear the footsteps of Sean crunch down on broken glass and trail off to the right.

“ Is every day like this Jack?” says Tony as he smartly takes of his helmet. As he lifts it up, jet black hair tumbles down to his neck like water off a cliff. His face is soft, chubby at the cheeks and high eyebrows to compliment his green eyes. His light skin provides an extreme contrast with his hair that could almost annoy the person who sees him.

“Usually but you get used to it. Even Jake back there had a rough first day. Did you see that big scar across his face?”

“Yea looked like it hurt,”

“Yea well we had to hold a position back at Fort Lauderdale and some Pacific Coast motorboat actually drove from the water onto where we were staying and Jake got clipped in the face with the rudder,”

“Ouch,” squirms Tony.

“Yea he was out cold and bleeding a river. So me and Connor had to drag him out and clean him up. He woke up a week later with his infamous cross face,”

“ That was risky for you and Connor to go right into enemy held territory like that. Doesn’t one of those boats carry around sixteen men each? And there had to be more too,”

“ Remember this rookie, we all have each other’s back here in Delta. Why’d you think I didn’t run when you were dangling from that building? Everybody here has your back but you have to keep up your end of the bargain. Alright?”

“Of course,” shakes Tony as we reach the end of the alley.

I buzz on my earset and call, “All clear left Captain,”.

Another buzz ensues with Captain saying, “Same right. Return to the bar. Over,”

“C’mon rookie, back door’s open,” I say as I shrug the way to the back of the building. Once inside, we see the four now freed troops sitting on the bar top with Nick digging through a first aid kit. Sean walks in the front door and immediately gets to business, “ I am Captain Sean, leader of Delta Squad of the Eastern American Organization and this is a rescue. The rendezvous point is atop a hospital on the other side of town. Is anyone injured so as not to be able to walk?”

“Yes sir,” replies one of the men. He is very scrawny, with dirt crusted blonde hair and a low hanging face. He looks up at Sean and shows him the lashes behind his legs.

“Very well. Tony, you will carry the injured soldier. Everyone else let’s move,”. Sean turns around and waves for everyone to follow. I hurry along and look back at Tony struggling with the weight of the man.

“Carry him on your shoulders!” I call back and so he quickly shifts the wounded from his arms to his shoulders. The relief is shown in the thankful expression he gives back. Once we regroup with Connor and Jake in the center, Sean stands on what’s left of the fountain and gives his orders,

“ Jake and I will take point. The wounded will be in the middle with Nick on the left and Jack on the right. Tony will walk with the wounded since he has one on his shoulders and Connor will take the rear. Understood?”

“Yes sir,” we say in unison,

“Move out,” and so we get into position and begin the walk across town.