Encounter in Strife

Chapter 6: Saiku on the Loose

Drake breathed a sigh of relief upon seeing that the truck where Zula and Captain Morgan were had finally left.
Now, he can focus on the matter at hand, protecting his men and leaving the rest to the mercy of the Almighty.
 
He then ordered the Beta, Charlie, and Delta companies for the execution of plan E, where each company will send two platoons to ground zero for reinforcements.
 
After a while,
Drake received a call from the infiltration unit.
 
"Status"
"Bombs are in position, sir, ready to extract,"  Seagull reported.
 
"Come back safe and alive; that's an order!"
 
"sir, yes, sir."

***

Seagull ordered his men to retreat and said that they should all meet at the rendezvous point.
 
 
While making his way out, a husky and drunken voice called him from behind.
 
 
"Ey yow, go get mah weapon in ma' room; I'ma crush those soldiers' asses myself."
 
Seagull turned around to see who was talking and to confirm if he's the one addressed, and he was surprised to see that it was none other than Saiku.
 
 
Seagull didn't know what to do. He just nodded slightly and kept on walking forward.
 
 
"Whatta fack? U deaf? A boy?" Saiku seems annoyed.
 
"Seagull, do you copy? We are all at the extraction point; where are you?"
 
Seagull heard his comrades waiting for him through their microchip communication piece attached on his ears. At some point, he was relieved to know that they were out of danger as they were already outside.
 
"Ya, boss, I need to piss." Seagull tried talking his way out and immediately ran towards the exit.
 
Saiku was smirking, laughing at how the man's bladder might explode any minute by how fast he ran away.
 
Not until he realized how unusual and suspicious that man was.
 
"Damn it! You useless punks. We are infiltrated!" Saiku shouted immidiately making him sober.

Everyone was alarmed.

***

Saiku immediately followed Seagull; fortunately, Seagul reached the open ground, continued to run as far as he could, and then immediately pressed the detonator, creating a domino of explosion, raging the entire forest.
 
Seagull was unfortunately affected by the blast since he didn't get too far. He's curling on the ground out of pain. His face is covered with blood, and a loud piercing noise seems to be drilling from his ears to his brain.
 
 
Saiku, who barely made it out alive, was unconscious, lying on the ground. His body was filled with cuts and bruises, and blood was dripping on his forehead. He is lucky enough to survive the blast, while almost all of his men are dead.
 
 
 
Since the explosion was too great, it caused an earthquake-like incident on the battlefield. The sound of an explosion also echoed throughout the forest, which caught the enemies off guard.
 
While the enemies were confused about what might have caused the explosion,Drake and his army took that opportunity to turn the situation in their favor.
 
They began attacking at full force until the enemies lost their ground.

***

After a few moments, Seagull managed to contact his lieutenant colonel.
 
"Mission Accomplished" were the only words he managed to say before he collapsed.
 
Drake ordered a squad to rescue the infiltration unit and to bring them immediately to the base camp for treatment.
 
He also ordered a platoon to monitor and evaluate the damage from the explosion and to confirm the body of Saiku.
 
 
Although the enemy camp has been destroyed by the explosion, it's still too early to say that all of them have been annihilated.
Moreover, until Saiku is not caught or confirmed dead, danger will always be prominent.
 
With the possibility that some terrorists might have survived the blast and may be planning to escape, Drake ordered the companies situated in the south, west, and east to stand their ground and to stay vigilant.

***

After assessing that the situation was now in their favor, Drake passed his command to Shane, ordering them to attack in full force and finish the war once and for all.
 
A few moments later, Drake received a report.
 
"Sir, Saiku's body can't be found, and it is expected that some terrorists have fled and survived the blast."
 
"Roger, look for possible break-throughs and follow any leads that could point out the location of Saiku," Drake ordered.