Chapter 38: The Aftermath
Looking at Christmas, Yin Yang said to Caesar, "Do you get it now? They could find us anywhere in the world. The moment we got to the safe house, they were on us. How many organizations have that kind of power? I can only think of a few. Think about who is the biggest and most powerful entity in England."
Caesar understood immediately. "No… Yin Yang, are you talking about the Military Intelligence Bureau? How is that possible? How could those guys from MI6 find us? Are they really that powerful?"
Gunnar said angrily, "They wanted Christmas, and we just delivered ourselves to them on a platter. Now we're in trouble."
"The Military Intelligence Bureau now has leverage on us from our pasts," Yin Yang added. "If we don't obey, we'll have offended both MI6 and the CIA."
"And they have files on all of us. Our families can't just run. Even if they could, where would they go?"
"Why don't we all go hide in your Great Celestial Empire?" Caesar asked sarcastically. "Would that be safe?"
"It's a forbidden zone for mercenaries," Yin Yang replied flatly.
"A large group of white people would be too conspicuous in your country anyway," Gunnar grumbled. "Besides, I don't want to go to a world without guns. I can't sleep without a gun and a knife under my pillow."
Barney had already guessed what was happening. He never expected the British Military Intelligence Bureau to be so powerful that one person could take down his whole team. He'd heard stories about the agents in MI6's 00 section, the most famous being 007. If they were all this powerful, how could mercenaries like them even compete?
Barney asked Christmas, "The man from military intelligence just now…?"
Seeing all eyes on him, Christmas nodded dejectedly. "I got a call yesterday. The man on the phone said he was a chief from the Military Intelligence Bureau and ordered me to report to him today. His information on me was perfectly clear. I had to come to London to see what was going on. You know my family is all in England. You know the rest. That's what happened. You guys got dragged into this. I'm sorry."
Everyone was silent. They knew this wasn't Christmas's fault.
He had intended to come to London alone, never thinking of dragging them into it. But they had followed him without asking, trying to help. They hadn't expected their help would only get them all caught.
Barney said to everyone, "This is my fault. I didn't expect we'd run into MI6. Mercenaries and state powers are worlds apart. From now on, we don't take jobs that could involve government intelligence agencies. We don't touch them."
Everyone nodded. In the past, they thought their team was the best in the world, that there was nothing they couldn't do. But today, reality had hit them with a hard slap. The entire six-man team had been taken down by one person. The shame was palpable.
Barney saw that everyone was dejected and knew he couldn't let it continue, or morale would be gone and the team wouldn't be far from dissolving.
"Guys," Barney said, "don't overthink it. We went up against the power of a nation, and this is their home turf. It's no surprise we were discovered and attacked. We lost, but it's no shame. This wasn't a level playing field at all."
"But I believe we are the best in the mercenary business because our mission completion rate is one hundred percent. In this world, no other mercenary team can do that. We are the best, the strongest, the most fearless. Don't compare ourselves to a country. It's pointless."
"That's right! We're the best in the mercenary world!" The team's confidence returned after listening to Barney's words, and their morale soared.
Seeing everyone regain their confidence, Barney nodded with relief. "Okay, guys, let's move out. Gunnar, check the GPS. We'll head to our backup safe house."
"Okay, boss."
The team got ready and ran back to the first safe house, driving from there to another location. Once the others were settled, Barney gave Christmas a look. Christmas nodded, and the two went outside to talk.
"Christmas, who was that guy today?"
"William Devinshire."
"What? The one on TV?" Barney was shocked. He couldn't believe his opponent was a nineteen-year-old kid. And a tycoon at that. The thought of his own daughters made Barney decide he needed to get back to the States to see them soon.
"Yes. The one we saw on the BBC when we were eating earlier."
"He's a billionaire, a scientist, an inventor, a super-genius, and a nobleman. How can he be with the Military Intelligence Bureau? Are you sure you're not mistaken, Christmas?"
"I wish I were, but it's a fact. You don't know, boss. The Devinshire family is an ancient house that goes back hundreds of years. Anything is possible for them."
"I heard some rumors when I was in the special forces. It's said that for over a hundred years, every generation of the Devinshire family has had one member join the military intelligence bureau. They're a secret team; no one knows what they do. William Devinshire probably wanted to recruit me yesterday, but now… now I think he wants to recruit all of us."
Christmas thought for a moment and said, "Boss, only the two of us know this, because we can't quit. The others don't know the details. If they don't want to do it, they can back out. And you know the rules these guys live by."
"I know. We do dirty work anyway. As long as it's not against our code, like attacking women and children, or a suicide mission, it doesn't matter who we work for, as long as he pays," Barney said, comforting himself.
Barney and Christmas talked for a long time outside the safe house but couldn't figure it out. They didn't think they had anything that William would want. The only thing they could offer was their combat ability, but the methods of agents and mercenaries were completely different.
Agents were stealthier, operating silently in the shadows, while mercenaries were more likely to engage in open combat with real guns and blades.
Barney couldn't have known that William's motives were purely based on his envy and admiration from watching *The Expendables* movies in his previous life. After seeing Barney's team in the archives, William hadn't thought about anything else. He just imagined how cool it would be to have this group of superstars from his past life, now real-life super-fighters, at his command. He could send out the Expendables to deal with anyone who offended him in minutes. The thought was exhilarating.
And although this group killed for money, at least they had a bottom line. They only fought militants and never touched civilians, women, or children. For a mercenary, killing militants was just part of the job.
---
$5 Tier – Early Access!
Read 30 chapters ahead of public platforms like RoyalRoad and Scribble Hub — with plans to increase to 40 chapters ahead once I reach 10 members!
Chapters are posted as soon as they're completed, so you'll always stay ahead of the curve.
Support the story and unlock early access:
Patreon is linked in My Profile or About.
Please select your membership carefully, as I have multiple novels ongoing. If you're on Apple, consider subscribing through your browser instead — it will be cheaper for you, and I won't have to wait 2 months for payments. Thank you!