The air was coarse and frigid cold, and I shivered as I zippered my tight-fitting jacket as far as it would go. The Russian wind was smooth and even, but it’s thin, icy chill was something I had never felt in my two years of travel. Not even northern Canada, where I had been stationed previously, had this kind of thinness to the air. You felt like you were being caressed with small switchblades, delicately dragging themselves across any exposed area of your skin.
The old joke of never invading Russia in the winter briefly crossed my mind. Clearly this was why. In the middle of Spring, the temperature was already down to 13 degrees Fahrenheit.
Mid-April my ass. Feels more like mid-January.
Andra, my team member and best friend, especially hated being stationed in cold countries. The two of us were always together--we worked swiftly and efficiently as a team, and years and years of knowing one another gave us excellent communication skills. We progressed and trained at nearly the same rate, although she was always better at close combat and technical programming, while my strength laid in my marksmanship. She joked that she’d sooner be stationed with the SEALs somewhere then have to endure another frigid placement. Just in the last six months alone, we had been everywhere from Canada, to Norway, and even near northern Finland. I was getting a little sick of the cold myself.
Andra’s long, blonde hair was tied into a tight bun with a cotton hat covering her ears. I had a red scarf covering my neck and mouth in an attempt to keep out the biting wind. We were dressed as pedestrians, with tight coats buttoned up to our throats concealing our weaponry incase we ran into trouble. Our mission was one of stealth and concealment, and we couldn’t afford to be seen in enemy territory. Agents of the CIA were stationed everywhere, and even as we pushed through the tightly woven knit of people, I could make out several familiar faces. We didn’t acknowledge them.
Russia’s cold was a different kind of cold. It wasn’t necessarily more unendurable, just...different. It gave off a sense that this wind has been all over the globe, traveling endless miles across continents only to find it’s way back here again.
Granted, Prague was bustling with people. Luckily my supplies was already set up for me on the rooftop of the industry building on 23rd street, if my language training in Russia was accurate. I had spent seven years studying it, and was quite proud of myself when I found I could hold full conversations with our Anti-Putin ambassadors in their native tongue back in the states.
Checking to make sure Andra was close behind me, we made our way up the street as casually as we could. Most people were heading towards the central park, considering today was the big day of the year. Vladimir Lenin was getting ready to make his “Address to the Common Man”, right in the heart of Russia’s most vibrant and cultural city. He’d be as exposed and out in the open as we’d ever see him.
Srgt. Burns was our other team member, wandering somewhere nearby to provide any assistance we would need regarding dealing with the locals, and ensuring our area was clear. He was basically our on-ground intelligence, while our other source, that we referred to as “intel”, was up in the air. Burns was a good kid, about three years younger than Andra and I. With sandy brown hair, and a bright, friendly smile, he always made the best out of any stressful situation.
Shoving my hands into my coat pocket, the wind began to pick up through the buildings. We bumped into several pedestrians as we made our anxious, short journey to the office building. While on one hand I was grateful that our supplies would be up on the rooftop, it was still dangerous to our security, and would have to be dealt with once this was all said and done.
We had literally been dropped off here through taxicab from our station in South Korea, and was told that our supplies would be waiting for us. We were to stay undercover for as long as we could. It didn’t help that we were literally dropped off the day this was supposed to take place. Arriving in Prague early this morning, we had spent the day making our way to the main plaza, getting information from Intelligence from the drone flying so high above Russia, it was not visible to the naked eye.
Our mission wasn’t one gathering intelligence on the ground, however. This was a removal of leadership. We were to assassinate the Russian dictator, Rodokin Gargarin on sight and create mass chaos in the city of Prague. A helicopter would come to pick us up immediately. From there, marine units would flood into Prague and take the city. Finally, after all these years, we’d have a foothold over the Russians. It was terrifying and thrilling at the same time to know that Andra, my best friend, and I would be making history.
Gargarin had been the replacement to Putin after he resigned just three years ago, and had been giving the United States trouble ever since.
We would make history, but might not live to tell it. I was struggling, even now, to accept that this would be a one-way mission. Andra refused to believe it all together. But we couldn’t afford think about that right now.
I hastily apologized to several pedestrians in Russian, bumping into a mother and her son who couldn't have been more than six or seven. I imagined him being trampled to death in the chaos, or killed when the marines moved in, and forced the thought aside.
People die everyday, Petra, I told myself. It was the hardest thing for me to learn as part of becoming a soldier for the Army, much harder than learning how to run a six-minute mile, or operating drone-strike machinery. Andra never seemed to have a problem accepting it as fact, yet it was always me that was assigned to fire the shot. I have two confirmed kills under my belt. Maybe three will be my lucky number.
We hurried down the cracked sidewalk, riddled with holes and evidence of poor treatment. The roads and buildings didn't look much different, all falling apart and unkept. We were in a very wealthy part of Prague, and I knew it wasn't always this way, even when Putin first rose to power nearly thirty years ago. I could only imagine what the poorer parts looked like. The man was growing older, but his voice of authority and command still held strong over Russia. Andra and I were about to witness it for ourselves for the first time in less than a half hour.
It wasn’t a long distance away from the hotel. I was still fuming about the way this was being orchestrated. The Russians had eyes on us everywhere. If we were caught, we’d have the entire city upon us.
The hotel was abandoned, to my slight surprise. Hurrying through the automatic doors, there was nobody there--no concierge, no attendants, or anybody carrying luggage. Andra and I glanced at one another, our hands going to our coats which concealed our weaponry. The whole situation screamed of trouble, and while I knew most were gathering in the massive plaza for Putin’s presentation, it was a very expensive hotel and there should have been at least one person lingering inside.
“Hotel will be empty,” Burns said over our earpieces. “Everyone’s gone to speech. I’m watching a couple of stragglers leave the backdoor now, although I’d keep an eye out. They might have cleared the hotel in suspicion that you guys might be here. Don’t let your guard down. Worst case scenario, you’ll get asked out on a date, or-”
“Shut the fuck up, Burns,” I said dryly. “And thank you. Over.”
“This doesn’t feel right,” Andra said, ignoring the young sargent’s last remark. “Burns could be right about clearing the hotel.”
“Keep your voice down,” I warned. “We’re still keeping low-profile.” I turned on my earpiece to contact Burns again.
“Burns, I’m going to try and get ahold of intel to see if they can give us a full visual of the hotel.”
“Roger that, Longshot. Good luck.”
I switched lines, asking intel for an overview of our position.
Silence on the other line. I only heard static.
“Intel we need that visual, over.”
Andra looked at me, glancing up the staircase anxiously. “Where are they?”
I tried again.
“Intel. We need that visual.”
Frustrated, Andra put her hand to her earpiece. “Intel, we need that fucking visual now. We have less than fifteen minutes before we’re live. Do you copy?”
We heard nothing. For the first time, a slight flutter of panic drifted through my stomach.
“Petra-”
“Stay calm. Burns didn’t see anything suspicious in the area. There shouldn’t be anything too major, and we need to get a move on.”
Frustrated, she ground her teeth and nodded at me. “Let’s go.”
Andra took point, and I stood ready at her flank to attack when we needed. If we needed. I still didn’t like the emptiness of our surroundings, and the lack of communication from our intel. I suddenly realized just how alone we were with no eyes in the sky. I chose to imagine that it was a signal jam and not something more serious.
We didn’t dare take the elevators, and we didn’t dare try and split up. We moved to the second floor. It was clear.
The silence was crushing. I could faintly hear the roar of the expanding ground at the plaza, as they prepared for Gargarin’s speech to the people, false promises and lies of a hopeful future where Russia commanded all of the world and beyond. Even now, the United States was horrified at the Russian’s newly inducted space program. We tried to gain information on what they were building, but it was something big.
Something huge. But even out most clever of agents and technology couldn’t figure it out.
Third floor was clear. We had ten minutes. We’d have time when he began speaking, but the longer we stayed, the greater our risk of getting caught.
The entire hotel was empty, at least so far. Andra and I grew more and more anxious as we reached the rooftop, glancing down the darkened hallways with rooms lining each side of the hall. It was a very nice place, complete with flourishing Russian-made light fixtures and carpeting. Andra was angrily trying to contact Intel again, and the line came up silent.
Where was everybody?
But it didn’t matter. No matter what we heard or didn’t hear, it was crucial to pull this through. But we were nervous. Our earpieces were the newest and most updated technology. There was no reason for them to stop working just as we were getting ready to pull this through.
I was almost out of breath by the time we reached the top floor, climbing up one last, short flight of steps and breaking the lock on the trapdoor that would take us to the roof.
It certainly was no warmer on top of a hotel. The wind was harsher, and I had a feeling this wasn’t going to be as quick as I hoped. As promised, my equipment was already there waiting for me. I just had to set it up.
The sound of the trap-door opening made Andra and I whirl around, guns at the ready, until we realized it was Sgt. Burns. A little short, with messy brown hair and dark brown eyes, he threw his hands up when he saw us.
“Ladies, ladies, no need to be that way. There’s enough of me to go around.”
Andra snarled at him, not appreciating his humor. I chuckled a bit.
“Good to see you, Burns.”
“You too. Ready to get this shit finished?”
I nodded without another word.
Almost as if on-queue, a booming, commanding voice echoed through a set of loudspeakers, nearly startling Andra and myself. Deep, with a heavily accented Russian tongue, I knew it was none other than Rodokin Gargarin, the czar of Russia. The massive crowd that had gathered itself around the plaza cheered and roared in admiration, the sound of thousands of mindless people worshipping the very sound of their beloved leader’s voice.
I ignored it and got to work.
Setting up the position of my rifle on the tripod was easy--the more intricate settings, such as accounting for wind speed and fine-tuning were a bit more tedious, especially in weather like this. I took a deep breath, calming myself and letting my mind go blank as I worked my hands around the familiar device. I loaded it fully--four-millimeter rounds would surely do the trick of blowing his head sky-high. The thought made me giggle, and Andra shot me a look if irritation.
“I wonder why they don’t let me do this,” she huffed, setting up her laptop to check the wind speed.
“Because you’re a lousy shot.” Burns laughed.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPzPzM0D3hr
She rolled her eyes, but I knew that she knew I was kidding.
But it was time to get serious. I couldn’t afford anymore distractions. I took another deep breath, and after ensuring everything was in place, began to position myself with the rifle.
This is it.
I closed my eyes for a moment, letting the wind howl past my ears and drown out any other thoughts and distractions. Gargarin’s voice continued to boom across the city, and I found myself entranced by his words.
“The stars themselves are our goals...they are merely beacons to be conquered. Mother Russia owns the galaxies and the oceans of earth, the wind on the plains and the sunlight at dawn. We do not stop! We are united!”
The crowed roared. I was fully in position now. But I saw why he proved to be such an effective leader...his words painted vibrant colors of hope and power, and even I couldn’t help but listen, entranced. Burns and Andra stayed quiet, allowing me to concentrate.
“Nothing is beyond our reach. Nothing is outside of our conquest. Every man, woman, and child of the Russian Federation has done their part in creating our endless expanse of greatness…Every single one of you has done your part these past ten years. I thank you.”
Click….Click… He was almost in my sights now. I was a small distance away from him, only about a block and a half.
The people surrounding him were mad with excitement. His very voice commanded their emotions and pride in their homeland. I felt my breath catch, and the rifle jumped dangerously. I needed to calm down…
“Petra...they know we’re here. Insurgents are approaching from the west. Intel! Intel we’ve got company!” she cried. No answer, as usual. I heard them both load their rifles, ready to defend me if needed.
I took a deep breath, clicking my rifle into place quickly. I could see him as well as I could hear him now. Deeply charismatic, I could even see the dark, passionate expression upon his face. He was old, much older than myself, but he had a burning flame in his voice that made him sound at least twenty years younger. I had never heard anybody so deeply commanding, as if his very presence was an iron clad around the people gathered around the pavilion. Dozens of cameras were pointed at him, and I imagined the entire world, sitting in awe at the promises of a new world, and a new generation that would be the future of Russia.
“Wind speed at twenty four kilometers per hour,” Andra rattled off, anxiety creeping into her voice, snapping me back into reality. “Distance approximately a half a kilometer from target. You are clear to engage.”
I nodded. My finger went to the trigger. Gargarin’s voice surrounded my mind like a tidal wave about to crash to shore. It was more difficult than normal to focus. His voice alone was stunning, and I only wanted to hear more and more of it as I laid there, ready to pull the trigger. I remembered why I was here. Why I was laying here. New York City, four years ago. I had enough.
I pulled the trigger.
A loud boom! resonated throughout the city. I watched as Gargarin jerked back and fell from the podium, a spurt of blood shooting from his neck, dead without even knowing what hit him. I released the breath I had been holding, looking up from my gun with a jerk as Andra bit her lip
The three-quarters of a second before the mass panic was awe-inspiring.
People screamed. The roar that came from the crowd was not one of awe and admiration, but of horror and panic, confirming my shot. People began running and shoving and screaming like animals. I sat up hurriedly and looked at Andra. She grinned at me.
“Nice going, Longshot.”
Before I could say another word, our earpieces were suddenly live and hissing with static.
“Tag Team Five, this is intelligence inquiring on status update-”
“It’s about time!” Andra shrieked into the earpiece. I sighed with relief, too glad to be angry. Andra was about to burst.
“Our apologies for the silence, Striker, we ran into difficulties with the insurgents nearby. As it turns out, they had intelligence that you two would be there and we had to deal with it immediately. Is the mission accomplished?”
“Yes,” I said before Andra could say another word. “But we have insurgents approaching. They’ll be here any minute.”
“We have a chopper on the way. Just hang in there for another minute. And good work today ladies.”
And then it was silent.
“Another minute,” Andra spat. “Those blasted idiots!”
Burns looked at Andra. “We can fend them off for now.”
All I cared about was that the mission was done and over. I found myself wondering how many people would die in the panic now that Rodokin Gargarin, the great ruler of Russia, was dead. I watched over the building as the people began scattering throughout the streets in mass hysteria. I disassembled my rifle quickly, grabbing my MP-40 as Andra and I prepared to engage the insurgents that were surely about to find us by now. I looked behind me. No sign of the chopper.
Almost right away, two men wearing all black burst through the trapdoor. Before they had time to react, we shot them down quickly, kicking their bodies aside in preparation for more to come. Andra always had this bloodlust gleam in her eyes whenever she successfully killed somebody who was trying to get in our way--and she was good at what she enjoyed. I watched as a man lunged at her, trying to force her to the ground so that he could shoot her as two more went after myself. He didn’t even have time to grab her. She stabbed him quickly and efficiently, yelling out as she kicked his body off the rooftop before Burns could even turn to shoot him. Amid the screaming and panic that was erupting down below, I could faintly make out the sound of the helicopter coming our way. We opened fire one several men charging up the staircase, keeping close together as the helicopter drew closer.
“Tag Team Five, be advised there are several insurgents coming your way. Keep together and send out a flare to your position.”
I was on it. With Andra covering me, I released the red smoke flare on the rooftop. This would surely alert all of Prague of our location, but it didn’t matter now. Our ride was almost here.
Burns kicked another man off the rooftop, knocking another to the ground for Andra to finish off with her knife.
I kicked another man off the rooftop, snarling as I heard his screams as he fell to his death. My head was ringing, and I felt like an animal trapped in a cage. Here we were, unable to make any decisions on our own, waiting to rely on someone else to save our asses. And I had just lit up our position like a beacon.
As the helicopter came into view, I pulled Andra over to the far edge of the rooftop, Burns close behind us, the wind suddenly picking up, making us both shiver as the flow of Russians suddenly ceased. We looked at one another, our guns at the ready for any sign of movement. Suddenly, a loud, booming explosion sent us toppling to the ground, causing me to bite down on my lip. Blood shot from my mouth and I cried out in anger. Andra was already scrambling to her feet, a look of horror on her face.
“They’ve got RPG’s! They’re trying to blow the whole building down! That flare is telling every goddamn Russian exactly where we are!”
I crouched down, spotting the man with the RPG on the opposite building, an office complex that was about as many stories as the hotel. Another RPG rocked the other side of the roof, sending a large chunk of concrete and glass falling to the ground below us.
“Intel where are you?!” Andra shrieked.
“Less than a minute from your location. Keep calm. We’re on our way.”
I took out the RPG closest to us, shooting him directly through the open window as Andra attempted to take out the other. Sniper fire was ricocheting off the side of the building, and we heard shouts as more men began coming up the steps . Andra kicked the door down, locking it securely in an attempt to buy us some time as the chopper drew closer, and began opening fire into the building opposite from us.
“Yes!” I hollered in triumph. Andra whooped and crouched down as gunfire began targeting us from the streets down below. The chopper rounded on us, just as the trapdoor burst open, with nearly twenty Russians flooding onto the rooftops.
Andra and I opened fire, the chopper’s heavy Minigun taking out the majority of them from directly behind us.
“We can’t land. Ground fire is too heavy. We’ll assist you from above but we’ll risk getting shot down this way.”
And RPG soared dangerously close to the chopper as we attempted to find cover behind one of the antenna bases. Andra was bleeding from her shoulder where a bullet grazed her, and Burns was bleeding even more from his arm. He launched himself to the ground, taking out five men in quick succession. All I could hear were the sounds of the Minigun, and men shouting in Russian.
“They won’t make it,” Burns said. I violently shook my head. “They’ll make it!”
“Attempting to land now.”
We hurried out from behind the base, the rooftop littered with the bodies of the fallen soldiers, now laying in pools of their own blood. I grabbed my supplies, scrambling onto the rooftop just as another RPG struck the building on its weakest side, where large chunks if it were already missing. As the chopper landed, I grabbed Andra, who was closest to me, and dragged her over to the chopper as several men helped pull her aboard. Turning behind me, I saw Burns bravely fending off the RPG’s and ground soldiers that were flooding onto the roof. I yelled out his name, but he seemed not to hear. He was covering us, allowing us to get on the chopper safely as the gunfire rained down harder.
“Burns let’s go!” Andra screamed. He turned, briefly, giving us a salute as the chopper began to rise into the air. I screamed at the pilot to stop, to let Burns on board.
“We need to get you two out of here. I can’t land again, we’ll be shot right out of the sky.”
I felt a pair of hands drag me from the edge of the chopper as I continued to scream Burns’ name over and over. I could still make out his figure as the chopper rose higher and higher. I eventually gave up. I knew he was gone.
The soldiers on board tended to Andra right away, dressing her wounds quickly. I saw the look of pure shock on her pale face, and I could only stare back at her in return. Burns had been a marine, like us, but not a sniper. I didn’t know him very well. But he had sacrificed his life to let us live.
“We need to get you two to England right away. Russia ain’t gonna be too happy that we killed their beloved leader, and this will surely mean an official declaration of war on the United States from now on. We’ve officially entered this bizzare shit business…” Our pilot, whose name I could not remember, trailed off. Still stunned, I could only nod.
“You’ll be meeting with the Prime Minister there. He wants to have a word with you two before we send you back to the States.”
We mumbled in agreement. This was only the start of the war- the official “spark”, you could call it. Whatever we were in for would be heavy from here on out. I could only hope that we would, in time, know what to do when all else failed us, and that Andra would still be by my side when shit hit the fan. She looked at me, and nodded, as if understanding everything I was thinking. I knew she did.
Laying back against one of the lumpy chairs, I closed my eyes, hoping to get a few moment’s rest before it was time to start running again.
