To Adam
We choose our battles, because
not only do they not always end in our own triumph
yet sometimes
conquest does not always get us what we wanted to begin with
•Parallels•
Book 1
-The Path to Victory-
-Chapter 1
A typically warm sun beat down upon the palm trees, sand, gravel, and pavement. The air smelt of the sea, and was filled with the sound of helicopter blades chopping along. Countless personnel were making their way along the pier, as it was a busy day at Okinawa Naval base after a typhoon struck southern Japan like a ton of bricks. One man seemed to stand out from the rest of the passersby, mostly due to the fact that he was in civilian clothes and carrying a golf bag instead of being in uniform and carrying sandbags like so many of the rest. He ignored all the dirty looks until a linebacker of a sailor with three chevrons on his cap had a few inquiringly crass words to say.
"Lieutenant Commander Brussel. I'm the, uh, new J.A.G. officer on base. Just looking for a nice place to stow these bad boys I got while on leave." He replied,sticking a thumb toward his clubs clanging on his back. The Petty Officer simply shook his head and carried on with his duties.
"No salute?" added Brussel with a frown before going on his own way. As he neared the officer barracks, Paul Robinson singing "Swing Low" could be heard. Brussel then answered his cell phone.
"Y'ello?"
"Mission parameters are set, Mr. Brussel. My apologies once more for pulling you into this on such short notice." came in a voice on the other end.
"Yeah, well I figure you'd find some way of squeezing more out of me here since I haven't had much leeway in leaving Asia. Not since Operation you-know-what." said Brussel, giving a casual nod at a nosy looking junior enlisted. "The guy won't get off my back. Keeps spouting all this nonsense about the great demon and the end of the world. Kinda like the stuff you talk about sometimes. Y'know. Minus the monotheism."
"Right. Anyway, I appreciate you willing to help in this matter. What I can assure you is that there is a direct need for someone with your particular skill set in this case, I am told." said the voice on the phone. Brussel always found the faint Spanish accent hypnotizing in some weird way.
"I have yet to see why you couldn't have just called NCIS on this one, Mr. Card." said Brussel, before looking over his shoulder. He now realized he was being followed by a small gang of sailors. The difference with these ones aside from the murderous expressions on their faces was the purple and crimson light shining from their eyes. "Now that you mention it, though, I think I see your point."
As the gang clenched their fists and brandished their crowbars and pipes, Brussel pulled out a unique looking 9mm pistol at them.
"Hang tight! Got another call coming in." he said, pressing a button on the phone.
"We have business with you." said the supposed leader of the gang in an unworldly sound of voice.
"I wasn't talking to you guys, but you may as well hang tight, too." Brussel said, taking off the safety and clicking back the hammer. "Listening."
"All work and no play." came the other caller.
"Makes Jim a dull boy." returned Brussel.
"Indeed."
The other voice was disguised by a filter, making it sound nearly as unworldly as the gang.
"Now's not a good time. Give it a few minutes." said Brussel.
"Special Agent James Edward Fly," then the gang leader began to bellow, "otherwise known as Hanshi Kaidan. We have business with you."
"Did I just hear your cover get blown?" said the caller.
"Don't worry about it." said Jim, formerly LTC Brussel, closing the phone and pocketing it. He tilted his head then sighed, looking back at the gang.
"You know that much, do you? Then you know what it is I have?" he said, reaching his right hand toward his golf bag. "And what I can do to you with it?"
The lights in the eyes of the gang started to fan out like flames.
"What did you get me involved with this time, Card'nal?" Jim muttered before a sudden light flashed out from what he drew from the bag, followed by a cloud of black smoke...
No comments:
Post a Comment