Dark Fall

Chapter 45 - Mercenary

Terra, now into the third trimester of her pregnancy, marveled at the growing life within her. Both she and Will eagerly awaited the emergence of their daughter, perhaps more so for Terra, since her discomfort grew with the size of her belly. Judging by all the movement within, her daughter seemed eager as well.

Terra and Will busied themselves with plans for town evacuation and hospital relocation in the event of war, the location set to the area near the water pumping and distribution facility, about an hour and a half drive away. Several trips to the facility would be required for surveying and planning purposes, but they did not mind. It was spring. The snow had mostly receded and new clumps of wildflowers appeared every day.

*****

Neige leaned back against the seat in the transport truck, his face as cold and impassionate as ever. Flanking him were the two he selected for the mission, Thorne and Haze, who busily inspected and cleaned the weapons they held. Thorne's dark skin and short black hair contrasted with Haze's light freckled face and bushy reddish-blonde mane. Despite different backgrounds, they became best friends and worked so well together it almost seemed like they were telepathic. Both appeared to be too young to be mercenaries, an advantage sometimes since enemies would underestimate their skill and experience. They were two of Neige's most trusted men, and also cool under fire. However, the most defining characteristic for their selection was that they had no family that the Emperor could leverage, unlike Neige himself.

Two Dynasty Enforcers rode with them and another two well-armed men sat in the truck cab. Details of the mission were revealed earlier. Essentially, Terra Lorr would die and the Hooded Man would be captured. Since the targets periodically visited a water facility about fifty kilometers outside of Freehold, the attack would occur there. But based on the terrain description, it may be difficult to approach because of the lack of nearby cover. With Terra Lorr's abilities, Neige knew stealth and surprise would be crucial.

They blamed Lorr for the death of the Emperor's former chief enforcer, but Neige thought it unlikely that she accomplished this on her own. This Hooded Man must have been part of it. His reported ability to contradict Talent and Lorr's Talent based fighting skills made them each formidable on their own, but working together they would be nearly invincible. Nearly. No one was ever truly invincible.

The restrictions set by the Emperor, that the operation take place well outside of Freehold and that Necros' blade be used to kill Lore, made it that much more difficult. Neige shifted in his seat and bent forward, seething within despite his stoic expression. The entire mission was distasteful to him.

"Don't talk much, do ya'?" Diego said, raising one side of his upper lip. He was one of the Dynasty Enforcers who accompanied Neige, a squatty balding man with a permanent sneer on his face.

Otherwise expressionless, Neige drew his eyes to narrow slits and held a steady glare, blazing at Diego. He held zero desire for conversation. Snide and particularly arrogant, Diego just might get accidentally killed in action.

Diego rolled his eyes and slumped down in the bench seat. "Whatever. Just do your job."

Leaning back with a deep breath, Neige closed his eyes. Terra Lorr and her man seemed like good people, undeserving of the fate the Emperor planned for them. Even as a mercenary, he had standards, but what choice did he have? Above all else, he must protect his wife and daughter.

Could the Emperor be trusted at all? He knew what would happen to him and his family if the mission failed. The Emperor's brutality toward those who fell short of expectations was well known. But would the Emperor even keep his end of the deal if it succeeded? If only there were any other options.

Haze, sitting across from him, paused his activity and met his commander's eyes. After a moment, the younger man returned a subtle nod, then returned to cleaning a rifle. Without the exchange of a single word, Neige knew Haze held the same opinion of their situation.

They stopped and made camp in a remote forested area out of sight, but near to the ambush location. Neige and Thorne left early morning to scout the site. Sneaking up through a shallow wash, they scanned the area with binoculars. As Neige suspected earlier, the lack of nearby cover would make any closer approach difficult to do unseen. After confirming the site was unoccupied, they walked toward the large rusty building that housed the pumps and water distribution piping. Solar panels mounted on the roof and on three adjacent stands provided power.

There were signs of recent activity. Excavated soil in a few places and a series of small yellow flags showed future development.

Neige motioned his companion toward the building. Together, they opened the door and entered. The noise inside made communication difficult because of the flow of water through pipes, valves, and pumps, but not so much as to be painful to the ears.

The jumble of piping and equipment inside would provide sufficient cover to spring an ambush, particularly with dimmer lighting inside compared to the outside on a sunny day. Anyone who entered the building would require a moment for their eyes to adjust. Thorne pointed to a ladder at the far end of the building that led to a high landing, apparently meant to access a beam crane that ran from one side to the other. Neige nodded. From that vantage point, a sniper could target nearly everywhere in the building.

Without a single word, the two mercenaries had agreed on a general strategy and they returned to the camp.

The next day, Neige returned to the building with everyone to assign positions and operational tasks. Neige himself would take the sniper position on the high landing and from there he would direct the action. The ear-bud communication devices were adjusted to filter out much of the noise, but nonetheless, a set of hand signals were devised as backup.

Three operation training runs were done. The four Dynasty men were less than enthusiastic until Neige threatened to shoot them if they failed to perform their assigned tasks.

Neige demanded that the two Enforcers not be present during the operation, but was overruled. Being fairly powerful Talents, their bright aura would be visible to Lorr from a distance if she shifted into the aura. If that happened, losing surprise would likely mean mission failure. Now they would have to hope that she did not look. Leaving something critical like this to chance vexed Neige, but there was nothing he could do.

The Enforcer Diego also ruled that he would carry Necros' dagger and make the kill himself, likely for his own glory. It was another restriction that increased the risk of failure.

Pulling back to their camp, they waited for the prey to come to them. Two days passed with no action. To the mercenaries, patience was a virtue, sometimes the difference between life and death. The Dynasty men had no such virtue, and every hour they became more irritating. It took all of Neige's restraint not to shoot one of them as an example to the others.

On the morning of the third day, word came from the spy in Freehold that the targets left town headed in their direction, leaving Neige and the others an hour to take their positions in the water distribution building. From a high vantage point, Neige had a good view of the road through a hole in the building wall.

At the expected time, a single truck approached on the rocky road. Neige signaled the team to take their assigned positions. The truck stopped near to the building and the doors opened. Four people got out of the truck, two men and two women. Neige identified Lorr, and the presumed Hooded Man, as among them. It was unfortunate for the other man and woman that they were also here — they would have to be dealt with.

Neige observed Terra Lorr with a monocular as the four gathered together in front of the truck. When Terra turned in profile, Neige dipped his head as his stomach soured to the task he would perform. Thoughts of his own wife and daughter swirled in his mind. That he would have a role in assassinating a pregnant woman revolted him, but he was a mercenary. Burying emotions was part of the job.

Neige made his choice.