Gunfire erupted in the artillery site, blending well with the storm above the southwest province of Zaire. "LAUNCH THE MISSILES, NOW!" The ZLF insurgents spoke in their native dialect, but the soldier pointing towards the artillery rockets, which had been switched on, made it evident what they were saying.
The JSOC operatives led by Rourke would find themselves in an open field, occupied by tents and storage depots. It was now clear that that reinforcements were slowly beginning to arrive at the missile site and would force the operatives to retreat if they did not press on immediately.
Creed reloaded his rifle, and turned to Rourke, "Only half a klick away, we can make it!"
Rourke ducked behind cover and reloaded his rifle before turning his attention towards Creed, "Press onwards, we only have 5 minutes!"
Walker took off and pushed forward with a patched-up Dolgen and a couple JSOC operatives, while Creed, Rourke, and another operative flanked left. Creed shot a few retreating ZLF Insurgents as the artillery bombarded the village. "We don't have much time....We gotta move before they wipe everything out!"
The artillery had begun launching it's first barrage of missiles, and now was loading up a second. The pitch black sky turned into a blinding ray of light as the missile launch lit up the air, blinding the insurgents and the operatives as well.
"DON'T GIVE UP BROTHERS! GO GO GO!" Mullah was pushing up the hill already with the remaining Militiamen.
Despite being slightly disoriented by the blinding lights, Rourke knew to seize the situation before they found themselves surrounded. He picked up his M16A3 and began making his way towards cover, taking out the blinded insurgents on his way there.
Everyone began regaining their senses as they pushed into the artillery site. This battle was turning the tide.
Creed pulled out his explosives and peered beside a wall, seeing the self-propelled artillery being manned by a few insurgents. He turned to the squad, "I got the explosives. Clear a path and I can make it!"
Rourke acknowledged Creed's instruction and shot the operator of the artillery rockets in the chest, before turning his attention towards the ZLF insurgent who shot at him from the watchtower nearby. He knelt down to avoid the sniper, but wasn't able to avoid being grazed by a stray round. This left a trail of blood on his scarf and a grazing pain.
As the sniper occupied himself with another target, Rourke shot several scattered bullets towards the watchtower's direction, causing it to pierce through the wooden planks it was made of and putting the sniper out of commission.
He was then able to provide fire support for Creed, assisted by Walker and Dolgen who were covering fire from the roof of one of the buildings.
Creed threw himself onto the launcher, engaging hand-to-hand with a remaining insurgent. He fell backwards, but pulled a knife out of his boot, grazing the insurgent. The insurgent tried punching him in the face, but Creed managed to stab him in the hand before kicking him onto the floor. In one final moment, he stabbed him in the chest.
In the final moments before the artillery rockets neared their launch and before Creed planted his C4, the remaining insurgent forces advanced towards the JSOC operatives.
Creed got the C4 planted and picked his M16A4 up from the tarmac. An insurgent came out of nowhere and he shot the insurgent twice in the chest. Creed ducked behind a nearby vehicle before shakily pulling out the detonator. "FIRE IN THE HOLE!!!!"
The artillery launcher exploded, leaving behind a devastating blast that knocked back the JSOC operatives and a large crater. As Rourke slowly came back to his senses, he knew the battle had not ended, with the remaining insurgents closing in on their position. It was unknown to the operatives if the militia had made it out alive, their auditory senses had been overloaded by the sound of the blast.
Mullah and his leftover men soon arrived at the site, having fought past the insurgents at the base who had half-retreated and half-defended the militia. They joined the fight valiantly.
The blast had caused the tear on Rourke's shoulder to intensify. He tried to apply pressure with his left arm, while shooting from his right with his M1911A1.
Creed crawled to his M16a4, panting heavily. The explosion had left him dazed and confused. Walker and Dolgen had managed to fight back on the roof, opportunistically eliminating insurgents who were fighting the militia.
Soon, the insurgent fighters began falling back and retreating towards the trees, still shooting at the operatives to cover their escape.
As the fighters were now out of his range, Rourke made his way up to the building where the rest of the JSOC operatives had been fighting from, observing the retreating fighters from a distance.
Mullah jogged over, panting heavily. He and his remaining men were dirty and wounded. "Captain."
"Your men fought well..." Rourke faced Al-Bashir and sat on the ground as one of the JSOC operatives handed him a roll of bandages to temporarily take care of his wound. I expect to be fighting alongside you in the near future, Al-Bashir."
"You did what I ask. And you did efficiently. I lost good men, but they died fighting for what they believe. I am willing to support you. The insurgents will pay."
Mullah shook hands with Rourke, Walker, Creed, and the rest of the team.
Walker laughed and fist bumped Creed, "We did a good job out there."
"Great to hear that." Rourke stood up, extending his arm out and shaking his hand firmly with Al-Bashir. He then sat back down and tended to his wounds. "Creed, report back to Baseplate and get our exfil."
"Roger that." He radioed Baseplate, "Baseplate, this is Creed...target destroyed. We've got multiple friendlies shaken and one officer wounded but stable. Insurgents are breaking contact to the tree line. Requesting immediate exfil at our current grid, over."
Major Merrick came in on the other side of the line, "Roger that, Big Bird is on it's way. You'll be reporting to AFRICOM HQ in Angola for debrief and new orders."
Several minutes later, a beacon of rescue was seen overhead. The helicopter pilot responded over the radio, "This is Big Bird arriving on LZ, standby!"
"Everyone in! Go go go!" As Big Bird landed, the JSOC operatives got in one-by-one, leaving Walker as the last one. He climbed on.
Mullah Al-Bashir and his men combed the area to ensure everyone got onto the helicopter safe and sound, Rourke sat on the seat closest to the window, giving a brief salute towards Al-Bashir as they left the hot zone.
- - -
Soon after the raid on the artillery site, a helicopter touched down on the tarmac. There was nothing left but a burning fire, corpses of insurgents, militia, and JSOC alike. There were clear signs of a bloody battle. From the helicopter, out came Anslo Garrick, his lieutenants, and Ogund Keita, also known as Judge, ZLF's second-in-command.
Lieutenant Victor Wolfe took a few mercenaries and scoped the area out, while Anslo scoped out the scene with his right-hand Amos Kellar, known as Spectre, and Judge.
"Smokes still warm. Which means this was recent. They're sloppy and scared." Anslo turned to Judge "Your men took a beating."
"I do not understand. These marks… they're inconsistent." Judge kicked over a corpse of his own soldier, eyeing the bullet holes, and the shot patterns as opposed to the one Garrick was using. "See, the one you showed has sloppy aim, this one has precise aim, among many others."
"Not inconsistent. Its layered. These weren't that militia...A bigger task force was here." Anslo continued walking cautiously, "This wasn't one unit. It was a strategic approach. Multiple angles. One objective."
"My forces weren't expecting outside interference, this is hardly the fault of them or I." Judge let the corpse roll back over. Turning his head back to Garrick, clearly angered at the situation, but gritting his teeth and keeping it rolling.
Anslo kept moving, but suddenly stopped.
"What do you see, sir?" Spectre walked over cautiously.
No militia rags. No local kit. The operator was facedown in scorched dirt, plate carrier still intact, rifle a few feet from his outstretched hand. Anslo rolled the over the body, and immedietely noticed the JSOC insignia, "Joint...Special...Operations...Command..."
"I don't believe it." Judge emerged from the silence he left, huddling up to the side of the body, tilting his head down, his confusion growing, and his own anger. "The Americans… what business do they have in my country? Still?"
"They didn't deploy JSOC for curiousity....They want the commissioner back..And this was merely a distraction for them."
Anslo took the insiginia and put it in his pocket. he turned to Judge. "The business they have, is what we will deal with. I promise we will inact revenge when the time is right.."
"This revenge better be soon. A lot of good men of mine were killed for American interests." Judge then spoke up, kicked a 1911 away, it landing a few meters away, making loud clangs against the rocks as it flung through the landscape.
He nodded, and turned to Judge. "I want you to tell your boss...You have our support. Citadel Security Agency can help your soldiers in battle, and politically. Whether its security and getting you to Point A to Point B, or solidifying positions along the frontline....My soldiers are well-trained. Victor and Spectre....they do my dirty jobs. And they'll be a great deal of help."
Anslo was not apart of Zaire Liberation Force in any way. But what he offered was merely support in battle to the ZLF's movement. They would get gear upgrades, weaponary upgrades and even more firepower. Without the support of the CSA, they were lost.
Zaire Liberation Force needed Anslo Garrick.
Judge knew that.
"I will see to it. Inform your men that there is foreign interference in the region. For now we will find out why they're here, and what they want, clear out of any remaining stragglers and ensure they won't return." Judge looked back into the horizon, then Anslo, turning his own body as though to leave.