Storm' Fury: The Shenkar War

by Seth Libby

  Texas, EDF training facility

  Evan scratched the back of his neck as he looked around, yet at the same time trying to keep up with Liam’s brisk pace.

  “So where will we find these wonderful recruits?” asked Evan, looking over at him.

  “Most are supposed to be over at the mess hall so I figured we could start there first.”

  Liam and Evan walked quietly for several minutes before a voice calling to them forced them to stop and look around.

  “Hey Liam, Evan…wait up!”

  Steven Barrows came jogging up, a broad smile on his face.

  “What’s up, guys?”

  “We are going over to the mess hall to check out some recruits for an elite group of Praetorian Guard. They are supposed to be a colorful group that has authority issues. Liam here is supposed to train them.”

  “We are supposed to train them,” Liam corrected.

  “Cool, Liam would be perfect to train them.” Steve said, giving Liam a playful punch on shoulder.

  Liam rolled his eyes skyward and sighed.

  “What’s up?” Evan asked.

  “You both do realize that we do have to behave like real soldiers now that we unofficially joined the defense force. Last year we got away with it because we were not really meant to come back from the mission so military discipline was lax.”

  “Yeah we know, why do you ask?” inquired Steve.

  “I am your commanding officer, would it kill you guys to treat me as such once in awhile?”

  Evan and Steve looked at each other, grinned, then spun to face Liam. Clicking their ankles together they both threw an arm forward and into the air in a perfect imitation of an old Nazi salute.

  “YES MEIN FUHRER!” the both said in unison.

  Liam sighed again, shaking his head.

  “I don’t know why I bother?!” Liam asked no one in particular.

  “Yeah, we were wondering the same thing.” Steve said playfully.

  Liam looked up at Steve, one eyebrow raised, a severe look upon his face. Liam held his gaze until Steve’s smile faltered and he looked down. The tension was broken when Evan laughed.

  “Oh don’t let him fool you, he is just messing with you.”

  Steve looked up at Liam to see him smiling at him. Understanding finally blossomed across Steve’s face and he groaned.

  “Oh that’s just not right, you are an evil man.”

  “Yes, yes I am,” said Liam, smiling.

  Steve sighed, his shoulders slumping in defeat.

  “So I take it Kimino is okay?” Evan asked suddenly.

  This question fueled Steve’s fire and once again he was all smiles.

  “Yep, other than a few cuts and bruises she will be okay. The Okinawa took one hell of a beating though. She will be in dry dock for a few months at least. The good news is the Prometheus Shell really held up even though it wasn’t quite used in the manner it had been designed for.”

  “From what I understand that little maneuver saved the Reagan from being destroyed. I have even heard they planned to name it the Dvares Maneuver,” Evan explained.

  “Yeah, Captain Dvares is just happy he and most of his crew survived.”

  The three knights continued to walk in silence as each thought over the events of the past few days. They had walked in silence for perhaps fifteen minutes before Steve broke the silence.

  “So where is this mess hall anyway?”

  Before Liam could answer, the sound of breaking glass made him look up. A stocky black man came crashing through the window of the building across the street. The man hit the ground, rolled several times before coming to a halt, clearly unconscious. Liam groaned as he saw the sign on the side of the building.

  “That’s the mess hall.”

  December 26th, 2013 5:07 pm

  Olympus

  Texas, EDF training facility, mess hall

  Anthony massaged his jaw as he shifted the chair off of his chest. He didn’t even remember being punched. All he remembered was watching the large James Robinson lift his friend Dave by one hand and throw him through the large mess hall window. Anthony had jumped forward to grab the man but the next thing he knew he was crashing into a table behind him. The collision had resulted with Anthony being buried beneath a table and chair.

  Once free of his entanglements he then looked towards the melee. From his position on the floor it looked like a tangle of arms and legs with Robinson in the center. If Anthony had just been a bystander he would have probably found humor in the scene. Two men hung off the back of the large man while two more attempted to pin each of his arms. A fifth man ran straight at Robinson, lifting a chair over his head. It was clear he intended to smash the chair over Robinson’s heas. Or at least that HAD been the plan. At the last possible second, Robinson lifted a foot off the ground and rammed the heel of his boot into the face of the oncoming man. The man crumpled to the floor in a heap, not even feeling the chair land on his chest as he was already rendered unconscious. Two more men ran forward in an attempt to subdue Robinson. Twisting his left arm slightly, Robinson grabbed the shirt of the man holding his arm and threw him forward. The man collided with the two oncoming men sending all three to the floor in a tangled mess.

  This fight was quickly going in a direction Anthony hadn’t expected. Already five men lay unconscious or moaning on the floor. This needed to end now and he intended it to do just that. Reaching into his pocket he retrieved the taser he always carried. He didn’t care how big this bastard was, enough jolts from this would drop a bear. Standing on wobbly legs he slowly aimed the taser at Robinson’s chest. His finger was only on the trigger for a fraction of a second before the taser was suddenly and mysteriously ripped free of his grip. At the same time a voice boomed throughout the mess hall.

  “ENOUGH OF THIS, EVERYONE STAND DOWN!”

  Everyone stopped what they were doing and turned to the sound of the voice. Three men stood just inside the doorway to the mess hall. Two stood close to Anthony’s height but the third was close to the same height as Robinson. Anthony’s taser lay in pieces at the feet of the man in the middle. None carried any visible weapons that he could see. All three worn the new black uniforms of the Earth Defense Force yet they all radiated something that could only be defined as power. Anthony would bet anything that he stood before three Templar Knights. He also suspected that the one that spoke was the one known as Commander Brennan but he could not make out their name tags from where he stood.

  As if to confirm his suspicions Anthony heard a scuffling from behind him. Turning, he saw one of his men making a break for it towards one of the side exits. Suddenly the man was lifted into the air and thrown sideways into the wall by some unseen force. The man slammed hard against the wall and then tumbled to the floor unconscious. Turning back to the three knights Anthony saw that the one in the middle had his hand held out in front of him. The middle pilot stepped forward; moving closer to a point Anthony could read the name on his uniform. His suspicion confirmed…it read “Brennan”; the commander took a moment to look over the group before he spoke.

  “No one will be leaving until I get a few questions answered.”

  December 26th, 2013 5:15 pm

  Olympus

  Texas, EDF training facility, mess hall

  Liam surveyed the group before him and now understood what the admiral had meant by “not being the cream of the crop”. It was clear Liam would have his hands full getting these men and women to all view each other as a team. Everyone shifted as they looked at each other but none stepped up to speak. So they stuck together, that was something at least.

  After a few more seconds of examining the group Liam then walked forward from between Evan and Steve. He knew his destination but he took his time walking there as he made as if he was still deciding. Coming to stand before the large man, who was the subject of the attack, Liam looked up at him. The name tag read “Robinson”.

  “Would you care to explain what is going on here?�
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  Robinson averted his eyes to look over at Anthony for a few moments before he looked back at Liam. He seemed to be weighing whether it was worth telling what had happened. After several moments had passed he sighed and then spoke.

  “It is a case of mistaken identity.”

  “Would you like to clarify?” Liam asked.

  “Anthony over there seems to think I was the one who turned him in back when he was robbing the dead. In truth, it was someone else but he was worried about reprisals. I knew about the situation so I volunteered to go on record as being the informant.”

  At hearing this last part Liam heard Anthony quietly spout off some colorful expletives. So it seems this Private Robinson wasn’t really a trouble maker but in truth more honorable.

  “So what brings you to be stationed here? You don’t seem to fit the category that the rest of these men and women would fall into.”

  “Well, I am far from innocent; I have had a few disagreements with some of my superior officers.”

  “A few disagreements? Would you care to elaborate?”

  Private Robinson grimaced for a moment before he spoke.

  “During the bird flu my commanding officer ordered my squad to execute a group of women and children that were found looting a store for food. The looting had been going on for awhile and we were the first ones to actually find the group responsible. It was clear they were starved but he wanted to show his superiors he was on top of the situation and could make the hard decisions. I have issues with taking orders that get people killed just to further someone else’s career so I knocked him out, broke his jaw in the process.

  There have been a few other incidents but the most recently one I knocked out my current superior officer. He ordered me to cover up an incident involving his nephew and the rape of a local girl. So needless to say I have a problem with superior officers.”

  “So that is pretty much everyone seeing as you are only a private,” Liam observed aloud.

  Robinson seemed to consider this for a moment before he shrugged.

  “Yeah, that would seem to sum it all up or maybe I just haven’t met any worthy superior officers”

  Liam considered this for a moment and nodded towards Robinson.

  “Yeah, I think you will do for what I am looking for.”

  Robinson’s eyebrows rose but Liam didn’t elaborate any further. Instead he turned and walked over to stand in front of Anthony.

  “Now, what to do with you and your little group of hoodlums,” Liam observed aloud.

  Anthony began to squirm at this point, clearly not comfortable with the possibilities of what an angry Templar knight could do.

  “Give me one reason why I could still use you instead of dumping you in the deepest darkest pit I can find?”

  Anthony looked rather sick at this prospect but he quickly spoke up.

  “I am very good at finding things, if you need it I can find it.”

  Liam seemed to consider this for a moment before he decided to respond.

  “That all? I never seem to have a problem getting what I need.”

  “Depends on your situation…I have heard some rumors we are to go on the offensive. We will be taking the fight to the Shenkar which means we could be behind enemy lines. If that happens we could have our supply lines shut off and you will need someone good at finding things,” Anthony said with a little more confidence.

  “And if I accept this can I be assured that there will be no more confrontations with Private Robinson?”

  “Yeah…I was obviously misinformed about who turned me in and I am not stupid. He just dismantled my crew pretty handily so it would be pointless to try again.”

  “Okay and what about your little group of followers? Are any of them useful?” Liam asked skeptically as he looked over the battered group.

  Anthony turned looked at his battered group and seemed to be thinking it over. It was several moments before he pointed at a semi conscious man lying on the floor.

  “Henderson is an expert sniper; he grew up in Alabama where he hunted with his father all the time. I have seen him take some incredibly sick shots under the worst conditions.”

  “Okay that is a start…anyone else?”

  Again Anthony’s hand moved to point at two men and a woman standing off to the side. The man on the left was of average height with blonde hair and blue eyes. He was rather plain looking except for a scar above his left eye. He also had quite the bruise forming on his left cheek as well as a trickle of blood dripping down his chin from a split lip. The man in the middle was also average in height with short crew cut hair, he also sported several bruises from the recent fight. The woman had red hair, a pale complexion and was plain in features. Liam also noted she sported no bruises nor did her uniform look ruffled in any way that would suggest she had participated in the recent fight.

  “Carpenter, Flynn and Locke are excellent shots as well although not snipers.”

  Looking around it was quite easy to spot the perpetrators that had been involved in the altercation. Of the group in front of Liam, roughly one third looked rather disheveled in their uniforms. In addition to their roughed up appearances most sported some sort of bruise or cut to their faces.

  “Well I hope Henderson is up for it as I plan to put his skills to the test. As for the other three I am sure we can find a use for them. Is there any other snipers in the group?”

  Anthony looked at the group arrayed behind him as if searching for someone. After several moments he raised a hand to point out a short woman in the back of the group who was doing her best not to be noticed.

  “Dewitt is just about as good as Henderson although I have no clue where she acquired such skills as she doesn’t talk about her past,” Anthony explained.

  Liam took a few moments to examine the short women. While she did her best to look everywhere but at Liam, he still was able to see that she hadn’t been one of the people involved in the fight. In fact, her uniform looked to be perfect. If Liam had seen her anywhere but here he would have credited her with being a model soldier based on appearance. But her uniform wasn’t what made her stand out; it was how attractive she was. She looked to be in her early twenties; Liam would have guessed twenty two at most. Her sharp facial features, startlingly blue eyes and full lips formed a most exotically beautiful face. Shoulder length raven dark hair framed her face to add to her beauty all the more.

  This girl intrigued Liam slightly as in all appearances this girl would have better fit a model or movie star before a soldier. He found himself wondering why she was trying to hide. He made a note to himself to talk to Leah about this later; perhaps she could help him with this one.

  Putting Dewitt out of his mind Liam once again turned back to Anthony.

  “Okay so two snipers will be useful for our mission. Who else do we have here?”

  Immediately Anthony pointed to the black man who had been thrown through the window upon Liam’s arrival. The stocky man now sat groggily in a chair as he rubbed the back of his neck.

  “Reuban is an expert with explosives, if you need something blown up he is the man to do it.”

  Before Liam could comment on the man or even examine him, Anthony pointed out another man who stood a little ways off.

  “Graniar is also an expert with explosives, although he makes me nervous. Personally I think he is a bit crazy,” Anthony explained, the latter part he whispered.

  Liam looked over at the man who Anthony had dubbed as “crazy”. The man was perhaps in his mid thirties, average height, thinning brown hair and green eyes. He shifted a bit from one foot to the other, while he fumbled with something in his hands. As Liam looked at him, Graniar in turn looked back at Liam, looking as if he was just as curious of Liam. After a few moments of quiet scrutiny Graniar raised one hand, shyly waved at Liam, as he smiled slightly. Liam couldn’t help but smile back. It was now Liam could see what Graniar had been fumbling with…a small detonator switch. As if knowing what Liam was lookin
g at Graniar quickly tucked the detonator switch away and looked at his boots. Liam thought he would have Tim talk to this one as he was very good with people. Tim would be able to tell whether the man was just eccentric or really “crazy.”

  “Okay, they will be useful, who else do we have?” Liam once again asked Anthony.

  Anthony looked over the group again and then pointed to a small Asian man.

  “Kim Xang is incredibly good at breaking into places; he is especially good at fitting into areas no one can usually go. Contorts his body in ways you wouldn’t think is humanly possible. He is also very good with electronic equipment, can fix almost anything if given the right tools.

  His brother Chen, who is next to him, is excellent in breaking codes and cyber infiltration. He too is excellent with electronics.”

  Liam looked at the two brothers and couldn’t help but notice the differences between the two. Kim was the complete opposite in stature to his brother but looked to be several years older. He couldn’t be any taller than five foot and was fairly thin yet his brother, Chen, stood roughly Liam’s height and looked to be a body builder. Liam also noted that neither man looked to have partaken in the recent fight.

  “That’s really about it for specialties but I can assure you that while none of the rest of the men and woman possess any specific skill they all are very useful in a fight. I can assure you my men won’t let you down,” Anthony explained.

  Liam raised an eyebrow at hearing this pronouncement of Anthony’s. Anthony as if understanding Liam’s meaning quickly spoke up again.

  “I know I am just a criminal in uniform but even if you don’t like me I can tell you that these men and woman are loyal to those who earn and show them respect and I have earned their respect.”

  Liam looked over the men and woman arrayed behind Anthony looking for any sign that this was not the case. All wore determined looks on their faces but none showed the slightest hint that they disagreed with Anthony’s statement.

  Liam looked over at Robinson. As if understanding the meaning of Liam’s look, Robinson nodded his head once to confirm what Anthony had said. Liam gave a slight nod in return before he turned away and walked to stand between Evan and Steve once again.