Red Steel

A side story of The Phoenix and Other Apocalypse Stories.

“This story was told to me by a group that I found while scavenging the remains of a once lively city who's name is now only know by the dead. They told me the story a few hours after I stumbled upon an entrance to their base. When I arrived they implored me to not tell anyone the location of the door. I agreed to follow their wishes if they let me come in and learn more about their culture. At first they were skeptical, but after I explained my mission of cataloging this new age they allowed me to come in.”

The plan was to attack a group of traitors fortified in the an old industrial park in an equally destroyed city. The same city we now occupied. The two of us were assigned to the black-op of “removing” the problem of the traitors but any who wished to join us again would be allowed. We were being sent in as deceivers to first make them believe we were part of them. When they thought we were part of them we could then assassinate them all easily in one place at one time. Our main kit involved silenced SMGs with minimal magazine capacity and stopping power. This meant that if anyone was wearing body armor we would have to aim for the head. Although, we did have a plan B. Our plan B, like most plan Bs, involved something much louder and more effective at the oldest of professions, a LMG hidden in some boxes hidden away for us to find and put to its full potential.

After about a week of being “among the enemy” as many at our base called it we got to know all the people who fled our cause. Now, many might say “These so called traitors deserve to have their own choice whether to revolt or not.” I would be inclined to agree with the naysayers but in this situation being a traitor is a liability for both us and them. If the government got a hold of one of them they could find all of our bases which could kill hundreds of innocents; This was a necessary evil. In our time with the traitors we meet everyone in their compound. The most notable of which was an old friend of mine. She was a red-head about my age, I never thought she would turn to leaving the cause. My partner, who had joined our cause after this group left, did not find anyone he knew but still talked with the people and learned what he needed to learn about his situation. All this time I spent rekindling my friend ship with my old friend. Then the day for action came. We were to strike during the time of rest when everyone would be in the housing area and guards became less wary.

In our room we donned our gear. It included Kevlar vests, armored masks, and our SMGs along with a halo-map marking heat signatures and the location of plan B. With our armor equipped we stepped out. Our first goal was to eliminate the two guards who patrol the Residential area. After waiting for them to pass at their scheduled time and ten minutes after we realized something was wrong. Then we heard a shot ring out over the silence. We moved in on the sound and found that some of our scavengers had been captured. The shot had been let loose by a guard in an attempt to intimidate their hostages. After surveying the area we established that only five soldiers were in the surrounding area. Seeing this we opened fire on the guards killing them all. Then a sniper shot rang out and the ground next to me exploded into the air. My partner seeing I was pinned down took a shot and removed the sniper from his perch. Then three heavily armored guards and a multitude of other soldiers came out and started to fire at us. As we retreated to our plan B we fired into the heavily armored soldiers. All we got in return for these volleys were sparks and the occasional laughing of those who would not die. Plan B was placed in a box under and enclosed stairwell which would give us cover if we needed it. As we ran in I dived under the stairwell to the LMG as my partner played decoy just around the corner of the first staircase. Seeing my partner the heavies ran in the door only to utter out their last words as a volley of super-heated rounds poured into them. With the heavy units dealt with we moved on to clearing the rest of the camp. As we fought out way through the encampment we came upon the last three heat signatures, my red-headed friend and two of her guards.

As we breached through the door two shots rang out and her two guards lay dead, with wounds in the backs of their heads and a smoking gun at the other side of the room. As we raised our weapons she threw her pistol to me. It was the gun she took from me when she escaped with the other traitors; a gold plated 1911. The she said to me, “I thought about what you said and I want to join your group again.” and with this she opened her arms for a hug. I, quite happily, obliged. It was then that I felt the kiss of cold steel as it dug into my back. Realizing what had happened I shoved her away and ended her with a flash of gold. Then I pulled the knife from my back, centimeters from my spinal column. I solemnly turned to my partner, my friend, and said, “At least she believed it was a cause worth dying for.”