“So, what do you think?”
Val gestured to the large console in the center of the command room. The Sniper, whose name has been redacted for security reasons, slowly made his way around the large metal table. It was a massive metal slab with a top made of flat, dark glass.
“It’s a table,” [REDACTED] said.
“Sometimes,” Val said, making no effort to hide her amusement. [REDACTED] arched a brow.
“Are you going to tell me what this is about?”
“This,” Val said. “Is our new holo-board.”
Val reached under the table and flipped a switch. The large slab flickered to life and several beams of light projected upward from beneath the dark glass. In a flash, hovering several inches above the table, an extensive virtual detective board appeared. The board showed information on many of Cellstrike’s past operations, such as Da Nang Bay and Dubai. [REDACTED] stared at the table, his arms crossed, taking in the information being displayed.
“You brought me all the way down here to show me your new toy?”
“No,” answered a gruff voice. General Tex Fury rounded a corner and entered the room, coming to stand beside Val and across the table from [REDACTED]. The Unnamed Sniper snapped to attention and gave the General a salute, which he quickly dismissed with a wave. “Knock that off, soldier. I brought you down here to brief you on your next assignment.”
Fury fiddled with a small control panel on his end of the table. The holographic projection cycled through several screens before settling on a map of the Earth. Several notable locations were highlighted in red, with thin red lines connecting one to the next to form a pattern.
“We believe that a large-scale terrorist attack is being planned,” Fury said bluntly. “For the past year, we have received anonymous intelligence outlining potential threats against several prominent political targets. We have reason to believe that you are somehow tied to it.”
The only sign of [REDACTED]’s surprise was an ever-so-slight raising of his brow. “Me, General?”
“Don’t worry, hoss. We know you ain’t a part of it. Our concern is that you might be the target.” With a few more actions with the control panel, the holo-board flickered and showed [REDACTED]’s full service record while in Cellstrike. “You have made a lot of enemies over the years.”
“Most of them are in the ground,” the Sniper quipped.
Tex smiled. “True. But they had family. Friends. People they owed money to. The list of potential suspects is long, Hoss, and it is going to take a very real effort to get to the bottom of this.”
“Thus, the holo-board,” Val chimed in. “With this, you’ll be able to access your complete service record. It already has all of your past missions uploaded, and we can update it with your future missions as soon as you file your AARs.”
[REDACTED] pondered a moment, and then shook his head.
“Something wrong,” Tex asked.
“General, if you order me to sit in a cubicle and play connect-the-dots with my past, I’ll do it. But only if it’s an order.”
Tex laughed. “Good lord, no,” the General said. “Your place is on the battlefield. Val and her team will be spearheading the dot-connectin’. You just worry about puttin’ the bad guys out of commission.”
“Understood” [REDACTED] said. He started to walk towards the exit.
“I didn’t dismiss you, Hoss,” Tex called to him. [REDACTED] stopped mid-stride. “There’s one more matter that needs to be discussed.”
[REDACTED] turned back to face Fury and Val. With [REDACTED]’s full attention, Tex continued.
“You’re getting a partner.”
“Like hell I am,” [REDACTED] protested.
“I know you like working alone, and I am normally happy to oblige. But the intelligence she has provided is the only reason we know you’re being watched. Now, I trust her instincts more than I trust most governments’ intelligence. So when she comes to me with something concrete, I take it seriously.”
“Understood, sir,” [REDACTED] said through gritted teeth.
“You’re going to meet up with her in Dubai. We’re helping her locate an arms dealer. I feel like we’re close. We help her find this gunrunner, and she helps us with your secret admirer.”
“That’s the deal?”
“That’s the deal,” Tex reiterated.
[REDACTED] let a huff of air expel through his nose. “Okay.”
“Good. Val will clue you in on the details.” Tex turned to walk out but stopped, turned back towards the Sniper. “I don’t know who is after you, or why. But we are going to figure this out.”
Tex turned and walked out of the room. Val stepped over to the console and worked the controls, bringing up a holographic representation of Dubai.
“Let’s go over the target, a Mr. Florian Benik…”
…To Be Continued.
