31

Richard and the General were finally out but it was after a grueling battle and the General was injured.
After Richard had copied and scanned everything he needed as evidence of President Antonio’s misdeeds and crimes against humans, they made their way out of the office ready to look for a way out.
They walked back to the stairs and what they hadn’t banked on were all the soldiers being there because due to the power breakdown, the elevator wasn’t working.
There were more than twenty soldiers there who were looking for the general. Since they had combed all the floors and he was nowhere to be found, they had decided to check the elevator shafts to see if he was hidden there.
That was when the two knew that it was now a do or die situation. Richard didn’t like killing innocent people but for these scoundrels who knew no humanity, he turned into a living killing machine.
They were able to run back and lock those remaining in the stairway and they now needed to get out.
“We have to get out of here and wait for back up. When I came, I didn’t expect the mission to change and so, I wasn’t prepared for a war when it comes to the number of ammunition I carried.
I thought it was going to be a simple extraction and that’s all,” Richard said as he led the General towards the way he could remember they came in.
“You call an extraction in enemy territory simple?” the General asked and Richard looked at him like duh!
“That’s simple. I was just to come, get you and get out. But when I saw all those prisoners and…,” Richard didn’t get to finish as they heard the main gate open and more than a dozen people stream in.
“We have to be quick. The Doc said that the General got out and he is causing chaos around. Good thing that the backup was able to get here quickly,” one man said and Richard and the General crouched intending to let the men pass.
“Wear you goggles and stay alert. Remember, no one had ever envisioned an attack and so, we have been lax. We sweep all the floors again. We will start from up going downwards. Remember, he is no longer needed. If you can catch him alive, well and good. But if you can’t, shoot him on sight,” the man thundered as he addressed those he was with.
“Yes sir!” They chorused and they felt movement and knew that they had to fight their way out or die.
“How are you?” Richard asked the general in a soft whisper.
“I can hold on. Let’s do this,” the General said as he held his knife well.
“Silently, no bullets,” Richard told him and he crouched in a squaring position ready to jump at any moment as the general too followed suit and knelt on the ready.
The first few men to die didn’t even know what hit them. One moment, they were walking ready to start the mission then the next, they were down bleeding.
Before the man in charge discovered what was happening, several of his men were down. He didn’t know how or when or even who.
What was worse was that he couldn’t tell who was who because it was dark and all their dark goggles could see were the heat sensed by them but couldn’t identify the person.
Then he saw two more men fall and they were remaining less than five men standing and that was when it occurred to him. The general must be in their midst and that was why he was able to kill his men silently.
Then the shooting began. He had decided to take the general out together with the remaining men. It was better than everyone dying for nothing.
Richard was able to react quickly when he heard the click of the safety going off and he lay down flat and started crawling towards the man who was shooting at a very high speed for someone who was crawling on his stomach.
The general, however, wasn’t as quick as he would have loved. By the time he was reacting, he had a bullet lodged in his shoulder.
Richard was able to get to the man and disarm him. He did this by first cutting through the man’s leg with his sharp knife.
The man screamed in pain and bent to hold his leg and that was how Richard was able to incapacitate him and when he turned, the general was also down.
“You okay?” Richard asked as he looked for the other man amidst all the bodies lying around.
“Yeah, I’m fine. Let us get out of here,” the General said and stood up.
Richard rummaged in the pockets of the man he had killed last and found a bunch of keys and a card.
From what he could tell, maybe the keys belonged to vehicles or other doors and not the main gate. He was sure that that big gate was an automatic one and didn’t a key.
He thus took everything. He knew that they might need to run and having a vehicle would increase their survival chances.
Richard ran towards the doors and when he discovered that the General was lagging behind hind.
“You okay?” Richard asked as he waited and he heard the other man’s heavy breathing.
Even without being told, Richard could tell that the General he’d been shot but not in any major organ.
“Where have you been shot?” Richard asked as a matter of fact not needing confirmation Hut an answer.
“Shoulder,” the older man answered in defeat.
He thought he could fool Richard but…
“Okay, put pressure on it so that we can get out of here first. Take this,” Richard said as he handed the general a pill that he took without question.
The got to the gates and as Richard had thought, the card opened the gates and they were finally out but Richard knew that they weren’t past the danger still.
“There could still be soldiers around. Let’s be careful. Sit here first,” Richard said as he helped the General to hide behind a big boulder just outside the hidden gate.
He then took out his binoculars and started surveying around.
“I spot three. Stay here and don’t come out no matter what,” Richard said and the other man was too weak to even move and he nodded weakly.
Richard made a quick work of the soldiers and he was done in under an hour.
He looked at his watch and figured that it had been almost four hours since he rescued the General and that meant that their rescue was almost here.
He went back to where he had left the other man and he was still there fast asleep.
Richard knew that the General was a stubborn man and he would insist on helping. Richard had no problem with being helped but only if the other man was in good health.
The General had been shot and any vigorous movement would mean aggravating his wound further and Richard could not have him bleeding to death before their help arrived.
That was why Richard gave him a pill of his own making. This pill served as a pill to help the blood clot when one had an open wound and a painkiller.
Richard meant for it to be used when someone was in dire pain and bleeding. It worked well for the general whom Richard knew that was taxing his body by all the fighting after everything he has been through.
After the pain had subsided, the other man couldn’t help but fall asleep.
Richard sat there beside the General and by now, he had already made a forest disguise that he was sure that even if a person was standing next to them, he wouldn’t be able to tell that there were people there unless they moved.
He counted the minutes in his head counting down to when the planes would get there and he heard the first roar.
Even without being told, he could tell that those were American war planes and he stood with his flare.
The first plane to appear on the vicinity flashed a red light two times and a green one once and that was the signal.
Richard shot his glare up and that told the pilot that they were in the right place.
The five helicopters touched down one after the other and Richard met the first man who introduced himself as Mario Fernandez a CIA agent responsible for the Brazilian sector.
He shook Richard’s hand with admiration in his eyes and Richard didn’t bother to ask him why because he already knew.
The handler, must have told him that he was coming to meet the dragon.
What they knew about the dragon was all hearsay and none of them had the chance to meet with him face to face or even work with him. That was why the General was so happy to work beside him.
Richard told him everything that he needed to know about the bunkers and the estimated number of people who were still alive and the prisoners.
He then asked the pilot who was to take them away from here to help carry the General and take him to the helicopter.
He then left after saluting Fernandez because he knew that the prisoners were now in capable hands and that Antonio would get what was coming to him.
While in the plane, he took out another phone and dialed a number.
“Brother, I missed you and yes, we are all fine,” Asher said even without being asked and befire even greeting his brother.
“I want you to help steal an election,” Richard said even without preamble.
“What did you day? For real? You want me to steal a country?” Asher said all excited as he cracked his knuckles.
Asher was a computer nerd and cracking codes and hacking was what he did best as a hobby besides gossip collection and minding other people’s business and of course, running Imperial House that was an Armstrong’s group branch that dealt with artists management.
“An election Ash. An election and not a country,” Richard said.
“I’m in. What’s in it for me?” Asher asked as he took his laptop and sat down well forgetting whatever he was doing before Richard called.
“A full month’s vacation to a country of your choice,” Richard said.
“Three,” Asher negotiated.
“One and a half or the deal is off the table,” Richard said sternly.
“Deal. Name of the country?” Asher asked ready to start work.
“Dela Lucia. I want Jose Maria Luis in the ballot and he has to win fair and squarely. I also want news castigating president Antonio on every social network in the country and beyond. Will send you the materials for that.
Start by assuring people that General Luis is okay all over the net. Control their minds to hate Antonio and love the General,” Richard directed.
“Done brother. Done,” Asher said and smiled sinisterly.
“Baby, it seems your uncle has forgotten about us,” Macy, who was playing with Melvin said and they continued with their thing while Asher left their world and entered coding world.