I put my hand on Taylor's shoulder and hit Clark softly with my elbow. They were aiming down their sights, with one knee on the floor, behind these barrels, keeping an eye on the guards. They looked at me as they felt my touch. I pointed two of my fingers at them and then shook them sideways towards my right side. They shook their heads affirmatively and moved, disappearing in the distance. I looked back at Hunter and Johnathan and then down my sights. Everything was calm, like we were expecting it to be. Our troops were standing behind us, near the location, there wasn't much movement. I raised my right hand and waved it back and forward. Soon, Hunter and John were right besides me.
-Shoot whatever moves.-I whispered to them. They shook their head affirmatively and I backed down. I jogged back to our troops and started putting on my suit.
We were official the Fast Intervention Team. We were pretty much like a Swat team. Whatever was too heavy for our mates to handle we would be called. We dealt mostly with bombs, hostage situations, and sometimes perimeter check.
In that moment, our troops were sure there was a bomb in the car 300 meters away from us. I was the expert, so it was my job to get it disarmed or to blow it in safety.
That's what I always loved about bombs. When you're putting on that suit that makes you look like a damn astronaut, you have no idea what the hell you're going to find. It can be garage junk or engineer stuff. It can blow like a drop of water in the ocean, or like a pissed off ocean wave over some city. You never know. You don't know where it is, who built it, what triggers it, how much time you have... Sometimes I cut a wire and I go back to my smoke, sometimes I smoke a pack and it's still not over. You can't really tell what you're gonna find this time...
-Guys, do you copy?-I tested the comms inside the suit.
-Crystal clear, over.-I heard Taylor.
-So sexy!-John joked.
-Let's get it done then. Status, T?
-Location: Over the hill,-This was our own code. It simply meant he was above the ground level.- flying with the eagles. -And this meant he was on some building.- 700 East. All clear.
-J?
-Location: Down the hill, sleeping with the ants.-Once again the code. It meant he was standing on the ground level, outside.-500 south. All clear.
-Let's go then! Hunter and Clark on me 300 southeast-I was just telling them to meet me 300 meters away from the target on the southeast direction. I couldn't carry a gun with that outfit and I couldn't approach it unarmed.
Thankfully, we didn't run into traps. Everything was calm around the car. It wasn't exactly a good thing but at least we didn't have snipers or something on us.
-Keep your eyes on the rooftops.-I warned them as I noticed civilians watching carefully our movements.
-I don't like this...-Clark whispered. We kept in silence as we got closer to the car. When we were about 10 meters away, the boys stopped walking and I kept moving alone. The car was in a pretty bad shape, like it had been taken straight out of the scrap yard. The windows were broken, the outside was a disgrace. Even the tires were gone! The seats were burnt on the inside.
I searched for any strange wire on the outside but I didn't get any luck. I then shoved my head inside through one of the windows and examined the door. I had seen countless cars armed with bombs that blow up when you open one of the doors. That shit wasn't knew for anyone, anymore. It was falling in disuse but... We never know. Thankfully, the door wasn't compromised. So I opened it and kept searching.
It was all about patience and persistence. Specially for the boys back there. My job was never easy but theirs was nerve wrecking. Clark and Hunter were standing in muddy lands. They had to keep their eyes open as wide as possible. Crowd control, movement detection, guns, long distance devices, drones and everything else was fully their responsibility. Not to mention the fact they were on open field. They could be blown up by the bomb or shot dead by snipers in a second. It was definitely not a job I'd like to have. I'd rather deal with the explosives.
-Hurry up, Jones!-John whispered.-The civilians are getting too restless...
-And they will get even more...-I had finally found a weird wire, out of its element. I followed it. As I opened the front part of the car, where the engine should be, I triggered the bomb. I had then 5 minutes to figure it out and disarm it. The 5 minutes didn't bother me at first. It was more than enough to put an end to the show but then I realized the caliber of what was standing in front of me. That wasn't amateur work. I backed off and removed the helmet of the suit.
-What the fuck are you doing, Jones?!-Clark said, pissed. I ran my hand on my head.
-Listen up. I want these civilians out of here and I want a safety perimeter of AT LEAST 700 meters. Now!-I then bent down over the bomb, observing it.
-Put your helmet back on, Jones!
-Oh shut it, Clark! If this things blows with me this close, the helmet will only make me die in an embarrassing outfit. Warn me when the civilians are out. Can't touch it with you guys around. 4 minutes.
-Oh fuck!-They started running. I could hear them screaming at the crowd but they were moving too slow.
-Clark.-He didn't answer.-Clark!-I screamed.
-A few more seconds, Jones! C'mon!
-No more seconds! I'm calling it...
-C'mon, Jones! Just...
-Thunder!-I screamed.-I repeat, Thunder!-That was another code word. Whenever the word was said, everyone was supposed to stop whatever they were doing and get the fuck out by yesterday. Clark took some time to answer. I heard him sigh. I had less than 3 minutes.-CLARK!-Still nothing.-CLARK THUNDER!
-Copy that...-He finally gave in. I watched them run and then started working my magic. I was short to 1 minute and half. I didn't have time to think. It was either do something and be like 50/50 or do nothing and be 100% dead. I cut the wire I was hoping to be the right one. Thankfully I wasn't wrong.
The bomb hit the 0 and didn't blow. I took a deep breath and kept going. The job still wasn't finished. I had to unarm the bomb. That was the easy part.
-Fuck yeah!-I screamed as I finished it and walked away. I thought it was all done. I had disarmed it, it was all good... Wrong. There was some other bomb I activated when I unarmed the big one. I was about 200 meters away when the bitch blew up. I threw myself on the floor immediately. Thankfully I was hit by nothing but dust. It was a smaller bomb which meant I was far enough to be safe but I almost had a heart attack.
-Jones, do you copy?-Taylor asked right away.
-I'm alright, guys... My pride might need a doctor though
YOU ARE READING
Army Strong
Teen FictionI was never meant to be a stay at home kind of wife. I was never meant to simply get a job, pay bills and die. I was 19, looking for a purpose. I was just another kid who had finished school but soon found out the whole sea of opportunities they tel...
