Xavier whipped around with his hand on his blade.
“Welcome stranger…Wait. Your face is familiar to me—”
A long gaze analyzed the shape and curves of Xavier’s face.
Xavier’s eyes narrowed as he began to draw his weapon.
“The last face you’re gonna—”
“Yes. The great Lieutenant Phillip. It grew quite annoying following you.”
Xavier’s eyebrows raised, and his defense dropped as he took his hand off his weapon’s handle. He leaned in with a confused look on his face.
Santiago laughed at him.
“Right, you do not know me. My name is Santiago Sanchez, but as a member of United States Seal Team Three, I was known as Pablo Fuentez.”
Xavier’s eyes narrowed once more as he clenched his fists.
“Pablo Fuentez…why does that name sound familiar.
Santiago crossed his arms and leaned back.
“We have met a couple of times before. You should know me.”
Xavier began to grow impatient as he looked down at David, and then back up into Santiago’s eyes.
“I don’t know you. And this is the part where you tell me why I should care.”
Santiago laughed mockingly at him. “But of course, the villain should always share his master plan. For fun, I will entertain you.”
Xavier began gritting his teeth again. It took everything in him not to attack him, but he needed information. He didn’t even know what he was up against.
“You see, after you moved up to the great and mighty Crimson Force, your Commander Sullivan had to fill your spot before the transfer of a high-profile prisoner.”
Santiago held his hands out with his palms up as if presenting himself.
“And why would you care about that?” Xavier growled.
“Well you see…the prisoner was my cousin. I believe you were directly responsible for arresting him twice, Mr. Phillip.”
“José Sanchez.”
Santiago mockingly applauded him. “The ones I represent needed to know what he said. He sold us some rare blueprints for a bomb. That is why your team arrested him. But I am sure you did not know that. We live in the shadows, and we choose to remain there until the opportune time.”
“And when is that?”
Lieutenant Sanchez curled his lip. “Soon.”
“And I don’t suppose you will tell me where José is now?”
“That is pretty far below your pay grade, Lieutenant. But he is no longer with us.”
“You killed your cousin?”
“And your old squad. They did not even stand a chance, really.”
He laughed to himself.
“You should have seen their faces when ten men with swords descended on them.”
Regaining his composure he stared Xavier in the face.
“We actually just shipped out their bodies this morning. You just missed it. Pity.”
Xavier couldn’t contain his anger anymore he went to draw his sword. Santiago leapt over the table separating them and kicked Xavier’s sword back into his sheath.
Xavier was caught off guard by Santiago’s agility. Before Santiago could execute a follow-up attack Xavier kicked him back. Santiago’s momentum was stopped by the table he just hopped over. Santiago’s sinister smile left his face as he struck a combat stance. Xavier readied himself.
Santiago attacked first. His strike was strong and relentless. A timely dodge put Xavier in a better position. Santiago whipped around. Xavier blocked. Santiago attacked low. Xavier dodged his attack and landed in a kick that sent Santiago reeling. With a cry of irritation Santiago fired a combination. Xavier successfully blocked every attack. Santiago was good, but he wasn’t as good as some of the recruits Xavier had already defeated to get to this point.
Xavier continued ducking and weaving around Santiago’s every attack. He began to change up his combinations to get inside Santiago’s head. After several leg shots Santiago began defending his lower body. When he did that Xavier started attacking other body parts. Santiago grew greatly frustrated. Xavier was able to maneuver Santiago exactly where he wanted him to go. With one last kick Santiago flew back into a wall. He threw a small piece equipment at Xavier’s head. He dodged it. Before Xavier could rebound Santiago drew his sword and swung it at Xavier.
In a quick motion Xavier drew his sword to parry Santiago’s attack. He barely caught him. The two were locked in a battle of strength. Santiago laughed as he analyzed Xavier’s sword.
“A katana? I did not know Crimson allowed anyone to wield that kind of weapon anymore. Who could have possibly trained you in it?”
With a grunt Xavier attacked ignoring Santiago’s statement. Santiago blocked. Xavier attacked again. Santiago blocked again. Xavier unleashed a fast combination, but Santiago kept perfect pace with him, blocking every move. He knew what he was doing.
Xavier was confused. He wondered how anyone else could know how to use swords. Only the Crimson Force was supposed to know how to use them, and they were definitely the only ones able to get a hold of them.
Captain Stanley was watching all of this occur through the window. He was unable to do anything about it. The building was still on lockdown.
“Commander! Get these doors open!” He shouted.
“Kira, there should be a control panel in that room on the northeast corner. Do you see it?” Raquel asked through the earpiece.
“I do, Commander.”
“You are going to have to hack into it, Kira.”
Santiago reversed Xavier’s attack and began his onslaught, but Xavier blocked his every move. David groaned. Xavier countered. He and Santiago were going back and forth throughout the room, and neither one was able to gain an advantage. Xavier pushed Santiago back. With a powerful reversal, Santiago had the advantage and was able to control Xavier’s every move.
Xavier began jumping around the room. His focus was on setting David free. Santiago cut Xavier off at every attempt to get near David. He began to strategize how to get around Santiago’s defense. Somehow he had to get to the control board. As Xavier began working his way toward the control panel. Santiago reversed a strike that threw Xavier to the opposite side of the room.
He rolled out of the way into the wall. He pushed himself off the wall and at Santiago. Santiago defended the attack but Xavier was able to switch places with him. Xavier began to control the exchange of their attacks. Maybe if he could defeat Santiago it would be easier to set David free. Xavier began to back Santiago into another corner. With a quick move Santiago grabbed a loose wire and smacked Xavier in the eye blinding it momentarily. With a smooth attack Santiago cut Xavier’s left arm.
Xavier could only use one arm now to fight for his life. He was surprisingly quick and strong with the one hand but he could not gain an advantage over Santiago. They kept pace for several more seconds. Santiago lost focus as he became consumed with defeating and killing Xavier. He controlled Xavier’s every move. Looking over his shoulder Xavier saw how close he was to the control board.
Xavier disengaged and dove at the control board hitting the release button. David’s body dropped. Santiago exclaimed in anger as he sliced Xavier across his side between his back and stomach. Xavier keeled over in pain. Santiago went for a fatal strike, but Xavier rolled out of the way, readying the syringe as he did. Santiago attacked. Xavier just barely blocked the strike. Santiago was in control as a weakened and distracted Xavier was struggling for his life.
David began weakly crawling towards the action. Xavier deflected an attack as he noticed David in motion. He did a back flip, knocking Santiago back. Xavier landed on his stomach and cried out in pain as he injected David.
Santiago let out a roar of frustration. David and Xavier popped up together seconds later. Xavier summoned his remaining strength and let out a fast combination, but Santiago successfully defended against it. David flew at Santiago with a powerful kick while Xavier fired off an aerial attack with his sword. Santiago was disarmed
. David caught Santiago’s blade and stabbed him with it. Santiago fell to his knees laughing.
“Dawn is coming. This is just the beginning.”
David ripped out Santiago’s blade and sliced his throat with it. At that moment, Kira successfully hacked the system and Raquel regained control. She shut down the anti-aircraft weapon on the roof and began to see a countdown.
Raquel could see that Santiago triggered an airstrike when locked the facility down.
“Get out! That place is going to be blown to pieces in two minutes!” she cried out.
All the doors opened and Cecilia joined Kira and Violet. The six of them ran to the stairwell, with Xavier and David limping behind. They stumbled up the stairs as Captain Stanley called out to them. As they stepped onto the roof, their getaway plane was already waiting for them. Captain Stanley made sure his entire team was on the plane before he jumped on. The engine fired up as Stanley closed the door. As they took off, a barrage of missiles leveled the island.
The plane landed just off the shore where Laurence was waiting for them. He made eye contact with David and Xavier.
“You two look dreadful.”
They took off again, and Xavier forced out a laugh, but David was somber and quiet. The moment the adrenaline wore off David crashed. Violet went over to Xavier and lightly touched his knee.
“Are you okay?”
Putting pressure on his wound, he responded with a weak nod, “I’m good…but David isn’t.”
She looked at him questioningly. Xavier forced out the painful statement.
“They killed his siblings.”
He looked at the ground, not knowing how he was supposed to feel about everything. Cecilia made her way over to Xavier.
“Let me patch that up, Lieutenant.” Xavier leaned back displaying his wound to her.
Laurence had a look of confusion and frustration on his face. “So they used swords?” he asked while looking at Xavier’s wound.
“I thought we were the only ones that could acquire those types of weapons and were trained to use them?” Kira asked.
Captain Stanley intertwined his fingers and covered his mouth while staring at the ground. He was calm but deep in thought. He was just as puzzled as the rest of his team.
“We will debrief when we are back at headquarters,” he responded sternly.
The rest of the trip was quiet. The team seemed deep in thought.
Chapter 28
December 15th 2062 8 a.m. Crimson Manor, Berlin, Germany
David was in the emergency room, and Emily, Stanley, Violet, and Xavier never left his side. He came to when the drugs wore off and immediately tried to get up, but Emily calmed him down.
“Your body has been through terrible trauma, David.”
Captain Stanley nodded to Violet and Xavier, signaling them to get up.
“Take care of him, Emily. We will return shortly.”
She nodded, and the three of them stepped outside. As soon as the door closed, Stanley had more orders for them.
“We have to meet in the meeting room.”
Within minutes, all six of them were circled around a table to go over everything they saw and experienced. A silence lingered in the room for what seemed like forever, but Captain Stanley finally broke it. They went around the table sharing their observations.
“They are calculating, brilliant, and heartless killers. They knew enough about the United States military to get onto the exact squad they wanted to,” Xavier said.
“What do you mean?” Violet asked.
“They were able to infiltrate my old squad in order to capture a criminal from my last mission and question him. They also eliminated my entire team.”
“A plan like that would have had to take several months, or even years to develop,” Violet observed.
“You may have even known him while you were in the SEALs,” Kira suggested.
Stanley looked at Xavier. “What could you tell about the boss’ fighting style and mannerisms?”
“He knew me. He was able to combine several disciplines and was ruthless and conniving. I’ve never been up against an opponent like that. If I hadn’t injected David with the adrenaline and had his help, I’m not sure I would’ve been able to beat him.”
“I am sure you would have found a way,” Stanley encouraged.
“I don’t understand. Aren’t you guys normally up against enemies like this?” Xavier asked.
Captain Stanley shook his head.
“Most of our missions are uprisings, rebellions, and pre-military units. We have never had to face another enemy that could fight with our same weapons and use multiple disciplines. It is our duty to eliminate threats before they become threats. We are ghosts. No one ever knows when we come or go. To the rest of the world, we do not even exist. But these guys…they knew us. They knew our systems and our methods.”
Xavier leaned back rubbing his chin deep in thought. “He said ‘dawn is coming.’ I wonder if there are more of them.”
Kira stood up fiercely. “We have to find out what they wanted with David and what he told them.”
“I agree with you, Kira. But he was just tortured for almost a full twenty-four hours. Then he was forced to watch his family be murdered. Even when he physically recovers, he may never recover mentally. He may not be able to continue on with us.”
Xavier leaned in. “He will. He has the strength. And now I believe he is going to have additional motivation. He’s stronger than you all think he is.”
“What makes you so sure?” Laurence objected.
Xavier looked at him. “He believed in me when no one else did. Now I get to do the same for him.”
Violet chimed in. “I agree with Xavier. I watched him train. He is a fighter. With our support he can get through this.”
“Cece?” Stanley looked to Cecilia.
“I am also in agreement. I worked with him on his weapons training. If we push him, I believe he can do anything.”
Captain Stanley stood up.
“It is decided. Commander, you and I will ask David what he knows and what he told Santiago. We need more information before we can formulate a plan.”
Several hours passed before Violet and Stanley entered the room. Emily stood up when they walked in. Upon making eye contact with Captain Stanley, she shook her head as if she were upset, then saluted before stepping outside.
The room was very still, and David was staring at the wall in silence. He had a terrible look of disappointment and defeat stretched across his normally chipper and happy face. Laurence and Kira sat in some chairs just outside the office. Xavier watched through the window with his arms crossed, worried about his friend, and Cecilia stood beside him with her hand on his shoulder. Once Emily stepped out of the room, she pulled Xavier to the side. She looked up into Xavier’s blue eyes as she struggled to hold back tears.
“He has been incredibly quiet. He has barely said two words to me. Do you think he will be okay?”
Xavier put his hands on the outside of her shoulders. Doing his best to do what David would do in this situation, a big smile stretched across his face. “He’ll be just fine. He has been through a lot. I’ll let you know when they’re done.”
She forced a smile, thanked him, and continued on her way. Xavier returned to the window. He felt like it was his duty to look out for David now. He had done everything he could to push David to earn his spot on Team Alpha. He decided not to let anything like this happen to any of his teammates—his new family—again. He would protect them. His thoughts lingered on Santiago and whomever he may have represented. They would all pay for what they had done to David and his family.
The team stood outside the room waiting anxiously. On various occasions they took turns pacing back and forth, knowing full well that there was nothing more they could do until they had answers. The minutes turned to hours and the day was over. Captain Stanley and Commander Violet were unable to get any information, and the team was no closer to acquiring t
he information they needed.
They left the room looking disappointed. Captain Stanley huddled everyone together closely.
“We need to call it a day. David needs his rest. I am not sure if he is ashamed or traumatized, but there is nothing more we can do today. We will come back tomorrow morning.”
The six of them made their way to their rooms. It was a sleepless night for Xavier. He was having nightmares of his old squad being tortured and killed. He couldn’t rescue them because he wasn’t with them. Just like he couldn’t rescue David and his siblings and his own family because he wasn’t with them. He felt that it was his responsibility to protect those he cared about, otherwise all the training in the world is useless if he can’t protect those closest to him.
Dawn of a New Era (Crimson Blue Book 1) Page 21