Wind Riders 2.0

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Duncan told the ruler to immediately evacuate this district and to wreck as many of the buildings, machinery and crops in the fields as they could. To do the same in the next two districts. Next, he wanted one hundred of the towns people and one hundred of her troopers to be transported to the capital. He wanted the male commander to be in charge of this. Ten of his people would train them starting in fifteen days. Until then, the towns people were to be instructed in close order drill. Jane would supply them with weapons requirements before the fifteen days were up.

Next he wanted another one hundred troops to be trained in defensive and offensive tactics by ten of his people, also in fifteen days. Lastly, he wanted one hundred of their best troops commanded by the female trooper to be trained in the Wind Riders tactics. They would start immediately.

“The people we will be training, will in turn train one hundred more after we are done. By evacuating these districts, you are buying time to train and arm. By the time the enemy start into the second district, my troopers and I will start doing what we do best as will the one hundred we train. You do not see it, but I do. The enemy troops are not high quality troops. They are brutes with weapons. We will show you how to first negate their weaponry advantage, then how to attack and defeat them using simple weapons and superior tactics.

“If we don’t’ win, well I guess you won’t have to pay us the final amount.” Then Duncan laughed. “Tomorrow morning at daybreak assistant commander. You be here with your one hundred. Now all of you get out of here and let me think.”

“Russia, 1940?” Jane asked after the visitors had left.

“Ya,” Duncan said. “Scorched earth to buy us some time. Then we start hitting supply lines as they start getting over extended. We will also do harassment raids more or less all the time. I think I have figured out their weapon systems and how to defeat them. Did you notice how the towns people grabbed what they could for weapons and came into the fight? They are not scared to fight. Shield wall and phalanx I think. Simple weapons, long axes, spears, hammers. That armor is definitely ceramic. We will find out their manufacturing capability, but it looks like they have a high metal working skill set.”

“Now here is the surprise we are going to give our friends down the way twelve days from now…”

A high pitch whine the next dawn heralded the small surveillance drones take off to get intelligence of the area surrounding the target. It was out of earshot by the time the female commander and her one hundred troops appeared.

“So commander,” Duncan said. “Are all of your troops going to be able to communicate with us?”

“Sir,” she said. “All better than I.”

“Well, then,” he said. “You had best pick it up fast. Now please demonstrate to me how your weapon works.”

The woman went through the motions on how to operate and handle the weapon, which, as Duncan had suspected, was a high energy light device. Or laser. He took the weapon from her, sighted on a beer can he had set up about a hundred yards away and fired. The can was blown away a distance and he sent Brett to retrieve it for him. Other than some scorching and a small dent, the can was intact. Then he aimed it at a G-Waggon, same result. Now he focused it at CT’s Coyote, which was just over a hundred yards away and fired. It didn’t even scorch the paint, then he moved closer and fired again at the same spot and finally at twenty five yards he fired the last shot. That one scorched the paint.

“OK, score one for us,” Duncan said. “Grab me a review mirror and set it up down there a bit.”

All of the Wind Riders were watching now as Duncan fired at the mirror and the light bolt careened off of it in another direction. Finally, Duncan tossed a smoke grenade and fired into it. Nothing came out of the other side of the smoke.

They had retrieved four sets of body armor off of corpse left on the battle field the day before and Duncan had set them up as targets. He pulled a ball peen hammer out of his G-waggons tool box and showed it to the armored clad troops. Then he walked over to one of the targets and swung the hammer at it, shattering it into pieces.

“We are going to show you how to defeat your own weapons systems so that you can get close enough to us this simple tool to kill your enemy,” he said.

He pulled a clip out of a pouch on his weapons belt and pulled a cartridge out of it and passed it around to the trainees. Then he put it back in the clip, Put the clip in his rifle and shot one of the armored targets. The rear of the armor exploded as the bullet exited it.

“I can do that just as easily at six hundred yards,” he said. “I can do it at night, under any kind of lighting conditions, in the rain and through smoke. Each one of these clips holds twenty five of these bullets and if I have to, I can fire the whole clip in a short period of time.” He fired the rest of the clip at full auto, hitting and destroying that piece of armor. Then he pulled out his sniper rifle and sighted on a block of wood six hundred yards away and fired, blowing a huge hole in the block of wood.

“I can target three troops at eight hundred yards with this weapon. Fire the first two shots and be firing the third, before the first man drops and the third will just be figuring out what has happened to his two buddie when the third bullet hits him. Essentially, I could kill all one hundred of you, by myself, before you even got close enough to me to even fire your weapons.”

“But we will be teaching you how to use your own weapons and simple weapons like this hammer,” then he pulled his combat knife from his boot and held it up, “and this knife to kill quietly and efficiently. We will be teaching you how to attack and retreat without being detected. This is how we begin to defeat the enemy. By hitting them when they feel they are safe. First lesson, take off the armor, it slows you down and won’t help you anyway.”

They spent the rest of the day demonstrating how to overpower opponents hand to hand. They had already had some training in this area, but were being taught new and different techniques. While they were doing that, Duncan and Scott learned the capabilities of the laser weapons. Both of them smiled.

“Piece of cake,” Scott said.

By the tenth day, they had all the information they needed to make their raid. Duncan would take the female commander and nine of her troops with them, but just as observers. The plan was simple, the enemy were so confidant of their superiority that they were not conducting patrols, nor had they posted any sentries. Duncan had split his vehicles into two groups. One would hit from the north, the other from the west. Two four man teams, Duncan and A troop being one, would wreck havoc among the sleeping men for twenty minutes first, then the vehicles would attack. After five minutes, they would all withdraw leaving what was left of the camp to the enemy.

It was all knife work for the infiltration teams. They entered a tent and killed all the occupantsoccupants then went to the next tent. Then the vehicles attacked spitting fire from roof mounted weapons on full auto. The chain guns on the Coyote’s spitting fifty calibre bullets at fifteen hundred rounds per minute, every third round a tracer. The twenty millimeter main gun firing high explosive rounds as fast as they could fire. Both Coyotes stopped in front of a large tent and fired smoke grenades into and around it, then troops came out of the back and went into the tent firing as they went. A short time later they emerged with large boxes, tossed them in the back and went back in. They did this four times, then the Coyotes left as did the G-waggons stopping only longlong enough to pick up the two infiltration teams. Leaving behind them devastationdevastation and destruction. Bodies lying everywhere and tents on fire.

The enemy commander looked at the piece of paper that had been laid on his desk. This is my answer. No deal. Was written on it in his own language.

The enemy commander looked at the piece of paper that had been laid on his desk. This is my answer. No deal. Was written on it in his own language.

It was past noon when they returned to the hill top original laager position. The town below was a hub of activity as machinery was being demolished and buildings and homes being prepared for demolition. The farm fields around were all ablaze, smoke filling the air. People were filling personal and public transport, some large open backed vehicles were filled to overflowing with people and possessions.

Duncan ordered Jane and E troop, all of their support people, to accompany and provide security for these people on their way to the capital district. Once there, Jane would start training the first group of civilians. The rest of them would proceed to the next district and help with security while the district was evacuated.

After night fall, the small drone surveillance aircraft was brought back in and refueled. Carol had decided it was her responsibility to care for the little beast and she started to go over it, inch by inch.

Somebody started a camp stove and pot of water going, while others made a camp fire, or pulled cammo netting across vehicles. Remote sensors were set up to monitor the perimeter from the Coyote and perimeter guard posts were manned. Technology was fine, but nothing beat a pair of ears and a nose. Boots on the ground were still required. The C-9’s were still armed, and a trooper was in the Coyote’s turret ready to man the guns. All the troopers had their C-8’s close to hand or draped across chests with clips loaded.

Duncan tossed his sleeping bag to one side of A-troops G-Wagon, grabbed his camp chair in one hand and a case of beer with the other and walked to the fire pit, setting up next to CT who was already sitting down, sandaled feet stretched toward the fire.

“Just what we needed,” Duncan said as an errant wind gust blew smoke from the fire in his face. “More smoke.” He handed a beer to CT.

Duncan had given up admonishing CT for wearing shorts all the time. They came to mid calf anyway, were the same colour and had the same cargo pockets the combat pants had. When it got cold, CT would put on a pair of knee high socks to keep his California blood warm.

“CT,” Duncan said. “I know it’s safe here right now, but I want you to be wearing combat boots all the time now. You will be with us up front from now on, not back safe in the rear like you are used to. Get in the habit now of wearing the boots. Changing footgear under fire will get you killed.”

CT was one of the Wind Riders technology people and while he was certified expert on all their weapons systems, last night’s raid had been the first actual combat he had been on.

“You ok?”

“Ya,” CT said. “A little more intense than operating a drone or watching a vid screen and a whole lot noisier, but ya I’ll be ok. Watching the vid screens doesn’t prepare you for the screams and the smells.”

Barb brought Duncan a small pot of hot water, a towel and a bar of soap. Her hands and face were newly scrubbed, but her uniform had dark patches all over it. Looking at Duncan, that’s when he saw the blood stains going up to Duncan’s elbows, covering the right side of his face and his whole shirt front.

“Megan ok?” Duncan said. “That was her first time hand to hand.”

“I don’t think it has sunk in yet,” Barb said. “I’m keeping my eye on her. How’s Karen?”

“She’ll be fine,” Duncan said. “She was manning Jane’s twenty mike. She’s done that before. I’ll check up on her in a bit. I think it will be after dark before that bunch is ready to leave.”

He finished towelling himself off and Barb took the cleaning utensils and pot and as she walked away tossed the red stained wash water to the side. Duncan reached into the beer case, pulled out two and tossed one to CT.

“Tough lady,” CT said.

“Not any tougher than the rest of us,” Duncan said. “Barb and Dave have each other, they’ll handle their shit in private. Just like all of us will. It’s Megan and you I am worried about.”

“Don’t worry about me,” CT said. “Dianne and I talk a lot. I’ll be ok. Dianne has sort of adopted me as her long lost brother. Wish it was otherwise, but there it is. Lots of babes in this new place anyway.”

CT told him that the enemy were in disarray, running all over the place expecting a new attack at any time. Duncan smiled and nodded his head. That was the whole purpose of the raid, to put the enemy on guard. Then CT told Duncan he had isolated the radio band the enemy was using and they could monitor anytime. Duncan smiled again.

“Good,” Duncan said. “Tonight, I’ll be wanting to have a chat with them.”

“Speaking of babes,” CT said nodding to the approaching female commander. She and her ten troopers had arms full of what looked like food with them.

“Sir,” she said. “Eaten your food have I. Disgusting it is. Better food make we for you.”

After putting his food load down a male trooper relieved the commander of hers.

“The commanders cooking is as bad as her Standard,” the trooper said, which rewarded him a dirty look which he laughed off.

“Oh thank Christ,” Brett said putting his arm around the trooper. “It’s Duncan’s turn to cook tonight and it’s usually down right inedible.”

Duncan tossed the empty beer can in his hand at Brett hitting him on the back of the head with it.

“See what we have to put up with in this chicken shit outfit?” Brett said laughing. “Your commander throws dirty looks, our commander throws whatever he gets his hands on.”

“Oh ours would like to,” the trooper said. “But being an officer, she is not allowed to.”

“Ah that makes sense then,” Brett said. “Ghost is an officer, but not a gentleman. Come on, while I show you how to work these camp stoves, I’ll tell you the difference between a commissioned and non-commissioned officer.”

“What means he?” the commander asked. “You always gentleman are.”

“Where we come from,” Duncan said. “There are two types of officers. Commissioned and non-commissioned. Commissioned officers are like you and have higher and lower ranks. They are called officers and gentlemen, or in your case ladies. Even the lowest ranked commissioned officer, like Megan out ranks even the highest rank non-commissioned officer. In theory. In practice, an ensign is tolerated, barely and the other ranks will make suggestions to her as they can’t order her to do anything. In combat, she follows orders and any she gives will most likely be ignored.”

“Yes we a similar system have,” the commander said.

“I am what is called a Master Warrant Officer,” Duncan said. “That is the highest rank a non-commissioned officer can reach. There are only four of us in my whole army.”

“Don’t kid yourself,” CT said. “Ghost could be a Colonel if he wanted it.”

“Well,” Duncan said. “I thought we told you that lieutenants were to be seen, barely and not heard ever. Sir.”

“What?” the commander said. “Even out ranks you he?”

“Yes commander mam,” CT said. “I out rank him, just as you out rank me mam.”

“Ya well,” Duncan said. “We have a loose command structure here. Sometimes you will see me defer to CT or anyone else if they have a better idea.”

“But he is the boss,” CT said. “What he says goes, all the time.”

“I..have.. much .. to learn?” the commander said.

“Yes you do,” Duncan said. “You said that correctly. Now calling you commander and mam all the time is a bit of a pain in the ass. I assume you have a name other than commander? Something your parents gave you when you were born?”

“Horschak, family is,” she said. “Katarina am I.”

“Dasvidania Katerina,” Duncan said in Ukrainian. “I thought I recognised your dialect. It is close to this one.”

Her eyes went wide and she rattled off a fast stream of words that Duncan only caught a third of.

“Sorry,” Duncan said in English. “If you are going to speak that language to me, you are going to have to speak much slower.”

“Hardly anyone speaks this here anymore,” she said slower. “I can understand you fine, yours is much purer than mine. Where did you learn this?”

“It and several other dialects like it are in common usage where I come from,” Duncan said in Ukrainian, then switched to Russian. “This is the most common dialect.”

“That I hardly understood,” she said.

Duncan held his hand up as his ear bud broke squelch.

“Alpha One, Echo one.” Karen said.

“Go ahead Echo One,”

“We might as well call it a night and come back to the laager. They will not be ready to leave until morning.”

“Roger Echo One, RTB. Alpha One out.”

“Yo, Brett, Echo and Foxtrot are RTB for the night,” Duncan said. “Make some room for them.”

Katerina was looking at him funny.

“E and F troops are coming back for the night,” Duncan said. “On long range open frequencies, we use call signs instead of our names. It makes it harder to figure out who is who. Each of our teams is broken up into groups of four or five which we call troops. Each troop is designated with a letter of the alphabet and each team member has a number. For instance I am Alpha One. Or A troop one. If we were with a larger group, we would be called a squadron. In our case it is Wilco Squadron or W Squadron. But you will mostly hear Wind Rider Squadron, that is because we have a certain reputation and we usually want the bad guys to know we are here. When we use it that is. Mostly we don’t.”

Jane’s Coyote and Karen’s G-wagon came into camp and shut down. Karen dragged her sleeping bag out of the rear of the G-wagon and tossed it beside Duncan’s, then came and sat on his lap and stole his beer.

“Commander Katerina Horshack, my wife Karen,” Duncan said.

“Pleased to you meet” Katerina said.

“Dasvidania Katerina,” Karen said. “And before you start talking Ukrainian at me, I am just learning it from the Neanderthal here.”

“Neanderthal?” Katerina said.

“Big, hairy muscle bound beast.” Karen said. “Now give us a kiss you beasty. I’ve missed you all day.”

“Yes Major, of course major mam,” Duncan said and he did.

“Very well Master Warrant, now why don’t you be a good little trooper and go find yourself another chair and some more beer, hmm?”

Duncan stood, made an exaggerated salute at a belly sticking out attention belting out, “Yes mam right away mam.” And strolled off in the opposite direction than where he was supposed to go.

Karen laughed. “Are your troopers just as disrespectful?”

“Not as blatantly,” Katarina said. “But I am relatively knew here.”

“Well I am sure they are being instructed properly,” Karen pointed at where several of Katerina’s soldiers were talking with Wind Riders.

“Are you involved in a lot of actions like the one we did last night?” Katerina asked.

“Ah as the booze takes hold her English gets better,” Karen said making Katerina blush.

“Oh I think it’s getting better because CT just left,” Jane said plunking herself down in CT’s vacated chair. “Toss me a beer hon.”

“Commander Katerina Horschak, my mother Colonel Jane,” Karen said as she grabbed a beer from the case and tossed one first to Jane, another to Katarina and one for herself.

“Katarina, Karen and I are usually behind the lines monitoring what the assault troops are doing. That was the first time for us. It’s always Troops A, B, C and D that do the hard work. Ah Barb welcome to the cats club.”

Barb had changed out of her blood stained clothing and was dragging her camp chair behind her and another case of beer in the other hand. She plunked both down, saluted and stuck her hand out to Katerina.

“Major Barb,” she said. “Or Voice. Take your pick.”

“Barb here has been on a few ops though,” Karen said. “But here come the real pros.”

Dianne, Carol and Amanda were walking up. They had their camp chairs in one hand and C-8’s draped across chests barrels down with right hand trigger fingers on the trigger guards.

“Commander Katerina here was just asking if this was normal for us, I told her you guys were the real pros,” Karen said.

“So is Ann, but she is hanging out with that Jarr head husband of hers for a while,” Dianne said. “She said she’d be by later. Hi, I’m Captain Dianne, that’s Captain Carol…”

“All you females are officers?” Katarina said.

“Hey speak for yourselves,” Amanda said. “I work for a living. Master Sargent Amanda mam. Master Sergeant Ann has apparently discovered she has had enough tostestorne for the day.”

Ann was making her way over to the little group just as the other three had, C-8 at the ready and her head on a swivel.

“Mam,” Ann said after being introduced. She pulled a bottle of clear liquid from under her jacket. “Second batch,” she said. “It’s not half bad.” The bottle went around and each woman took a healthy pull. Karen passed it to Katerina but held on to it.

“Now go easy Katerina,” Karen said. “This stuff has a big bite.”

She took a tentative sip, then looked up and took a strong pull.

“That is the best Waska I have ever tasted,” she said. “Where did you get it from?”

“You’re calling this good?’ Ann said. “The boys just made it this morning. They are having trouble getting the mixture correct with your vegetables. I guarantee the next batch will be almost perfect.”

“You make this yourselves? What can’t you people do?”

“Wash dishes,” Ann said.

“Make beds,” Dianne said.

“Wash windows,” all of them said and then they all laughed.

“The other ladies want to spend the night with their men,” Ann said. “Can’t say as I blame them. Was their first time last night.”

“Ya, no more virgins in this squadron,” Carol said. “Speaking of which?” she was looking at Dianne.

“CT will be ok. We’ve already talked.”

“I am a little worried about Megan,” Barb said “She only had that one action before and it was long range, not hand to hand.”

“Looks like Uncle Ghost has it in hand Voice,” Karen said. “Ok Katerina, spill the beans. Our hotty single girls want to hear all about your cute guys.”

Duncan found her sitting ten yards in front of B troops G-wagon. She had her arms around her knees and was staring off into the distance towards where they had fought the night before. He could tell from the darkness on parts of her face, arms and uniform that she hadn’t cleaned up yet. He quietly sat down beside her and also looked off into the distance.

What he was seeing was different than what she was. He was seeing the farm lands in flames and picturing where he would be placing his ambushes soon.

“I made four mothers lose their sons last night,” Megan finally whispered. “Four wives are widows tonight. Four sisters no brothers…”

“Four sons and daughters lost their father,” Duncan said. “Yay a, I get it. I killed six with my knife and about a dozen with my C-8, not including the hundred or so here last week. So what? Shit happens.”

“How can you be so callous!” Megan was almost shouting. “I killed four men last night. I felt their blood, I heard them scream, I felt them take their last breath and watched the light go from their eyes. How can you just sit there and say shit happens?”

“So, hitting a button and launching a 6 inch rocket, or lasing a target for a 500lb smart bomb or vectoring in artillery rounds is somehow not killing people?” Duncan said. “You probably killed a thousand in Iraq doing that. But that was not real. That was killing little green or red figures on a screen. Last night you heard, saw and felt what it really is for the first time. We kill people honey. That’s what we do. Last night was up close and personal. Those men at least had a chance to fight back. A drone strike, those people have no chance at all.”

Now it all came crashing down on her and she started to shake and to cry hard. Then she flung her arms around him and really cried. Duncan held her close with his left arm, stroking her hair with his right hand, his cheek against her hair and cried. He wasn’t only crying for her. He had also killed the night before.

She finally stopped and looked up at him. Seeing the tears on his cheeks she rubbed them away with her fingers.

“Look at us,” Duncan said putting a smile on his face. “The mighty Wind Riders a bunch of bawling pussies.”

“I thought it was only me,” Megan said.

“No luv, it’s all of us. Your mom and dad will be consoling each other later. Karen will come to me tonight. Some of us, me included, usually go off on our own someplace. But all of us goes through this. Otherwise we turn into animals like the ones we killed last night. They needed killing, but I don’t have to enjoy it.”

They both sat in the darkness for a while, arms around each other shoulders. Then Duncan nudged her in the ribs.

“Go join the cat club,” he said. “They need someone to pick on and you’re the rookie.”

He watched her go to the group of women by the fire and could tell she was getting some ribbing and then each of them hugged her but Katerina, Barb was the last and held her the longest. Then Carol tossed a piece of firewood at them, Dianne tossed a beer at Megan and Barb walked toward Duncan.

He rose as she came near and tears were streaming down her cheeks as she rushed into his arms and muffled her wails into his chest.

“I’ve lost my baby girl Duncan,” she finally whispered.

“Ya, that tends to happen,” he said.

“Ach and what do you know?” Barb said, thrusting him away. “Bloody men!”

She started stomping back to the Cat group, then stopped and looked back. She smiled and blew him a kiss, then walked to where Dave was standing and the two of them wandered away into the darkness. Duncan stood and walked to another camp fire. This one was all male. Bob tossed a bottle of vodka at him and Scott a can of beer and they did what most males did when dealing with what they had done. They made jokes at each other expense with sudden lapses in silence when something said triggered a memory.

It was almost daybreak, when wives collected their missing men. Karen was the last and she was feeling no pain and very wobbly when she came. When they snuggled under the sleeping bags she let out her grief and then they made passionate love.

“Come on you bums up and at it!” Brett yelled kicking the feet of the one hundred soldiers as he passed them. “If you’re gonna drink like men at night, you’re gonna work like men in the morning! Come on get up ya bums!”

“Ah, so good of you to join us Commander mam,” Duncan said. Katerina had just kicked away her blankets and looked around her.

“If you’re going to drink with the girls luv,” Jane said. “You’re going to have to work like the girls the next day dear.”

All the squadron was up and working. Gear was being stowed in vehicles, cammo netting being taken down, rolled up and stashed, weapons being checked. The remote sensors had already been retrieved and stowed away and the large antennae’s were being collapsed to the sound of hydraulics into their stowed positions on the Coyotes.

“Oh God!” Katarina said. “How can you people be so chipper?”

“The diction is correct,” Duncan said. “Now to work on the accent. Unfortunately for you Commander, you people cannot hold your liquor.”

“Speak for your self shit head,” Karen said. “God damn Canadians anyway.”

Jane and Ann laughed at her.

“Ya well you two are almost Bloody Canadians,” Karen said sticking her tongue out at them.

“Come my dear,” she said to Katerina taking her arm. “Let us leave these bloody colonials to their boorishness while we real ladies properly compose ourselves” both of them linked elbows and sashayed towards the latrine area.

“Bloody hell,” Karen said as Megan said a cheerful hello to them inside the latrine. “Can’t we escape you cheerful people ever?”

Megan only laughed harder and walked out.

“Woa those two got upon the wrong side of the bed this morning,” she said holding her coffee cup up to Duncan to be filled.

“Ya just like those other ninety nine,” Duncan said gesturing at the struggling soldiers that Brett, Scott and Carol were haranguing.

“Been there,” Megan said.

“Done that,” Dianne said.

“Wrote the book,” Barb said.

“Starred in the movie and sold the t-shirts,” they all said together and laughed.

“More than once!” Duncan finally snorted out and they all roared in laughter again, just as Karen and Katerina walked up.

“Oh you think this is funny do you?” Karen said. “I’ll show you funny!” She made a fist and advanced on them, which only made them laugh harder. Then she smiled and kissed Duncan.

“Ok, you got me you bums,” she said. “Laugh it up, it’ll be for the last time.”

“That’s what you said the last time,” Ann choked out.

“And the time before that,” Jane said.

“I ain’t saying anything,” Duncan said as Karen looked at him.

“Good boy,” she said kissing him again. “Next time I’ll show you how to control a bug hunk like this Katerina.”

“I love you Dunc, please be safe” she whispered into his ear.

“You too,” he whispered back. “All right parties over! Get your asses in gear! We’ve got miles to make!”

A and H troop stayed behind as the others left. With them were the one hundred soldiers that they would be training and their ten vehicles.

“So here comes the first lesson for Commander Horshack,” Duncan said. “The rest of you will be shown some new weapons. Commander follow me please.”

He took her into the Coyote, had her sit on a bench and handed her a headset. Duncan took another.

“Are they up yet?”

“Yup,” CT said. “Anytime your ready.”

“Commander of the Invaders, this is your enemy calling,” Duncan said in Ukrainian. Katerina’s eyes went wide.

“I know you can hear me,” Duncan continued. “Are you to scared to talk?”

“I’ll show you scared the next time we meet,” an angry voice said.

“I am waiting for you. You sure showed us how tough you were a few nights ago. Boring really.”

“We will not be so boring the next time I assure you. We have logged a complaint against you with the guild for your unwarranted actions.”

“It was after your deadline commander. You have no case.”

“But then again,” Duncan now said in French. “You had no intention of honoring that agreement anyway, did you? Come on what are you waiting for? There are only thirty of us and we are getting bored over here.”

“I’ll show you bored,” a different voice said in French. “I will cut your balls off then force you to watch your woman being humped by ten men before I kill her and then you.”

“Ya tough guy,” Duncan said. “I see how you operate against untrained militia men and civilians. I also see how you run like little babies when real soldier fight back. Come on, I am waiting for you, coward.”

Duncan cut the transmission off as the enemy commander lost complete control of himself.

“Holy shit!” CT said take a look at this!”

A figure in dark armor flung himself out of the command vehicle and stated shooting anyone near him. Only stopping when his weapon ran out of charge. Then he flung the weapon at another soldier and stalked away. CT and Duncan high fived each other.

“That Commander, is called getting the advantage over the enemy,” Duncan said. “Now he is so mad he is going to come rushing straight for us. Just like we want him to. Time for the next lesson .”