Chronicles of The King- Rise of Legends

Chapter 8.1

Chapter 8.1

Hunter or Hunted

‘Alright you lot…..stay tight and check your surroundings…….we don’t want any unwanted surprises’, Captain Gordon Ryder said into his comm device, relaying the message to the rest of his troops.

They were on the move again, after having a nights rest and were now almost at the insertion point. They maintained the same alertness as the day before but now instead of fear in their stomach, there was anticipation. Now, after walking for a day with no incident in this god forsaken jungle, their fear had resided. That fear was now replaced with the anticipation of the fight in front of them. They all wanted to feel the heat of war and the sight of blood from the enemy. This was causing some of them to be careless and relaxed. The troops were starting to feel that they could handle whatever this jungle or The Order was going to throw at them. Some even felt that it was due to their presence, that there was not much activity in the forest, that the creatures in there were scared of them. This caused them to lose focus of their surroundings as they chatted quietly within their teams about how they were going to destroy the Cosmos base and how The Order stood no chance against them. And it was the lack of focus which allowed the group of figures lurking in the jungle to stalk them with ease, waiting for the right moment to go in for the kill.

King paused for a second as he felt a presence behind the troops for the umpteenth time. And just like before, it vanished when he began concentrating on it. The hide-and-seek game with whatever was out in the forest was annoying King. That and the attitude of the troops trailing behind him. They weren’t taking things seriously, they were getting too comfortable due to the fact that they had not encountered any enemy troops. This irritated The King to no end, but he kept quiet since he wasn’t in charge of the mission.

‘Bloody idiots……What the hell do they think they’re doing’, King thought as he resumed walking, trailing slightly behind Gordon Ryder and Anna Smith.

‘Something wrong King’, Anna asked, seeing that The King had stopped again.

‘……Nothing, just thought I felt something behind us…….probably some wild animal’.

‘Just in case…..’, Ryder said as he scanned the area.

‘All troops stay on alert we’re nearing the observation point…… ’, Ryder relayed through the comms.

‘The observation point is that cliff near the Klang waterfall….the one overlooking the base right?’, King asked, still more interested in the surroundings then the mission.

‘Yep…..they’ll repel down a 9 story drop and then make their way across the river…..once they cross it they’ll break in through the fencing at the west armory, after that they’re on their own’, Ryder repeated what he had told The King the night before, a  bit irritated that King had already forgotten it.

‘Oh yeah, you told me that yesterday……you also said something about us being on over watch if I remember’, King said lazily, moving his hands behind his head, further irritating Ryder.

‘That’s right……you, me, Ryder, Butch and Chris will be on over watch just like the General ordered. The trainee and seasoned soldiers as well as student cadets will be the ones infiltrating the Base. Once we get to the observation point, we’ll signal for a EMP missile from ‘The Kateren’. After which the troops will infiltrate the base’, Anna intervened sensing the tension from Ryder.

‘So in other words….. This ain’t a mission, this a test….’, King said, his attention focused on a humming bird flying by.

‘Yes…..i remember telling you that yesterday as well….. You should have remembered if you were paying attention during the brief’

‘I wasn’t paying much attention yesterday…..so sue me’

‘…..Anything else you need to know’, Ryder sighed, smiling slightly knowing there was no point in fighting The King.

‘…..We got any support’, King asked, moving his attention back to the conversation.

‘Three naval ships of the coast, each equipped with p90x rail gun, air support consists of 10 F 19 fighter jets…..we also have two UAV drones loaded with GH15 missiles……In short, we’re pretty much covered’

‘…..Damn, that a lot of shit for one mission’, King said, surprised by the amount of equipment that was being provided.

‘They really wanted to hit hard at The Order….’

‘By what?! Leaving a fucking hole in the middle of this fucking forest for no fucking reason?!’

Ryder and Anna tried their best to control their laughter. But The Kings facial expression made them laugh at his comment. It wasn’t due to what he said, but the way he had said. They never knew The King could make such a bewildered face.

‘That wasn’t a joke you know’, King said when he saw his two superiors laughing.

‘I’m sorry….it’s just that I wasn’t expecting you to say that…and with such a cute face too…’, Anna replied in between laughs, making The King blush.

‘Yeah well, I guess he’s right Anna……I mean if it was just King there be no I.M forces within a hundred mile radius’, Ryder said, stopping his laughing and trying to look professional again.

‘That’s......true, I guess’

‘Don’t worry King, If you ever need help just call for us’, Anna said reassuringly.

‘Heh, I prefer working alone….’, King said, causing the other two to snicker softly.