Doomsday By Design -- [STORY THREAD]

"Thank you for your sacrifice Ryujin but before you do this please listen".

We can take some ketchup or for that matter the real thing an make you look like you are totally blown away and with some boot polish even make you look like a crispy critter which was burned badly in the explosion....missing limbs and everything... It is not you they want but to secure the envelope which we now have in many hands. We can photo shop just about anything in the command APC.. Even give you the body of a bird and make it look good. We can then send a BDA report back to home base of the explosion and say you were in the house. We can take one of the many copies we have now of the Armageddon ops spec and burn the pages to the point of only being able to identify them enough so someone will think they are the real thing. Photo copy what's left of the pages and send the whole thing off.. We are still the good little soldiers in their eyes so there is no reason to believe differently.

Sandra said, "BDA?

"BDA" stands for Battle Damage Assessment" which we would normally do on the house that blew up...... once it cools off enough to walk the area".

Sandra could not keep from rolling her eyes and shaking her head in a funny cute sort of way at all the military jargon and initials she had heard over the last hour.....

"What I am saying Ryujin is we are trying to prevent the after action team from coming into town after whoever blows up the APCs. If they think you are dead and the Armageddon envelope is destroyed they will be after the other copy.. It is not you that they want. It was not any of the people in this town they wanted ... Just the damn papers and computer sticks"!

Before you do your Ninja Yoda trick (Star Wars 29 had just been released) at least wait until we get word at noon.. Then we will all have a clearer picture of what needs to be done".
"Agreed"?

ryujin listened as john explained what they could do .. stood quietly thinking for a few moments he admitted to himself that in his current state he had no idea he could hold up the illusion of being dead .. and overall johns plan was sound .. he thought a few more minutes considering possibilities .. then spoke ..

sounds like a better plan your way .. to be honest not sure could maintain the illusion long am close to exhaustion now .. make the pics look like i was caught in the expplosion then .. and to make it bit more believable i'll let your doc get a bloodsample so they can confirm by dna that it was me ..

Looking at sandra he said .. will be needing the keys to my bike back .. then to john lets get it done so everyone can get to safety ..

He thought to himself .. this plan is crazy enough it may just work ..

"Thank you Ryujin this will work"

"Someone find me Sargent Chow "!

Jason came back in John's head set and said, "He's on the way with a camera now".

Thanks boss....

"What your commander can hear you", asked Ryujin?

John pointed to his head mike and tapped his ear piece, "Only when he wants to" and smiled.

"I heard that and here I was thinking about putting you in for a medal".

Sargent Chow arrived and John started explaining what kind of pictures he wanted to send back to base..
"Holding up his hand for John to stop explaining and talking Sargent Chow said, "Boss I can do all this on my personal computer without all the blood and ketchup.. All I need are a few pictures and a bit of time.

"Ryujin I will leave you to work with Sargent Chow.. he knows a lot more about this stuff than I do".

Ryujin looked at the Korean looking Chow and after a short bow said, "What would you have me do"?
"Sir if you would please I would like to put you into a few positions and take your picture"

As they walked away John looked at Sandra and asked, "How many (if any)did she think would want to be E-vac ed from her group if they were able to arrange CIA transport"?

Sandra pondered on this.

She hadn't considered that anyone would want to be evacuated from her bunker... especially unknowing the current state of the world beyond the outskirts of Las Nueva Era. And by the guys who slaughtered the school, no less. Where would they be evacuated to? How could they be sure that they were heading to safety, rather than stumbling into a place ten times more hostile...?

Sandra was unsure of anything occurring around her now. The men in black storming her school and shooting her teacher wasn't enough, now here she was, less than 24 hours later, calmly enjoying snacks and listening to speeches from the men who killed everyone in her home town... and, in all honesty, she adored the rogue elements they were all turning out to be. It sounded as though this particular unit was planning an all-out revolt against their superiors, and, as Sandra figured it, that was the best thing they could do. Still, she didn't know if she could trust them all entirely...

And then, there was Ryujin, who had been a complete mystery to Sandra since they met eyes in the burger joint. His past and affiliations were both muddled in murky, crooked politics, and apart from his calm, polite disposition, she hardly knew a thing about him.

Still, standing here, her gaze switching from one person to another, she was not meant to trust everyone around her. She was a representative of the Las Nueva Era survivors, and, after a few minutes of thought, Sandra decided she would not have been summoned here without a solid reason. If these people honestly wanted the survivors of the town to die, they would have simply shot her on sight, then waited for her comrades to either exit the bunker, or waste away inside of it.

"No." Sandra finally said. "I don't think any of them want an escort... but I'll ask them anyway, just to make sure."

Sandra, did not know how many or if anyone would want to leave their bunker however she replied, "I don't think any of them want an escort... but I'll ask them anyway, just to make sure."


"I understand ..... if you don't mind let me check with our other guest and see what they think"

The woman Sara with her eyes all swollen from crying was now standing in her little group with Sid, her husband, and Ron, who was Sid's brother as John approached.

Since Sid appeared to be the oldest John directed his question at him.." Do you have any idea how many survivors there are scattered about your side of town and in various groups"?

However before Sid could form and answer Sara flew into a foul mouthed rage that would have progressed into a striking and hitting fest if Sid had not grabbed her and restrained her with a big bear hug from behind her lunging body. Between the screaming and sobbing and letting John know about his and the teams ancestry Sara looked like a puppet on a string as she jumped, kicked, and lunged in Sid's grasp..

John put his best concerned and nurturing look on his face and 'let her blow'. He just stood there at a respectful safe distance and let the waves of hurt and despair from her wash over him.
After a couple of minutes Sara finally ran out of cuss words and ancestry remarks and basically collapsed into a quivering blob in Sid's arms.

Ron at that moment approached John and said, "Sorry for that.... but she lost, Mark and Mary,.... her boy and girl.... they were twins... about 11 years old, 6th grade, in the school."

A brief vision of the two kids in the corner of a class room holding onto each other and John's stereographic image of their heads exploding as he had fired one shot each into their once cute heads burst forth from one of the many red doors in John's mind.. A weaker man's knees would have buckled....

The red door was open and John was having a hard time closing it... All he could manage to say to Ron was, "You will never know how sorry I am for all this".

Thank goodness Ron was a talker and started in on how many surviving groups he knew were hidden.... along with a rough estimate of their numbers. His talking gave John enough time to shut the red door of his mind and have something else to think about.

All told in Ron's estimation there were a little over 400 survivors hunkered down and Ron was the groups rep.
"We need to burry and find our dead as soon as possible, was Ron's closing remark after his numerical evaluation of the remaining groups.

This brought John out of he fight with the Red door of his mind and he replied, "There will be drones overhead until sometime after we leave... I would suggest everyone remain in place until either the APCs are attacked or you guys know for sure we have left. Whatever happens we will do a broadcast sometime today so all of you can make your plans".

Ron stuck out his hand and John took it in a warm firm grip..there was no shaking of hands just a grip of sorrow, trust, and friendship.

Sue-Lin was scanning when her peripheral vision caught a movement to her right. Most people would have turned their heads to check but then Sue-Lin was not a normal person. She accessed her peripheral vision instead and studied it.

Another blur of movement. She quietly placed her Steyr on the floor and went down the ladder of the tower, then out the open door to the opposite classroom, went prone with her silenced 9mm at the ready, slowed her breathing and waited.

The older Japanese guy glided up the corridor reminding Sue-Lin of a wraith. Then she said, "We have not been introduced and it takes a while for me to trust people."

He had frozen in place on her first word, ready to move to avoid whatever she did. She may not trust this one but she had great respect.

He actually smiled and said, "My name is Gozaimon. I was asked to deliver a message to you, little flower. You have done well, I wanted to sneak up and see how close I could get. My thought was to add to your training, but I see you have been surprisingly well trained. May I ask why you were trained."

Sue-Lin thought and then answered, "I was trained as a child assassin until I was ten. I did not want to go through their sex education program so I left. After that I was trained by a member of Australia's SAS. There are people that, should they become aware of my location, would send wave after wave of assassins until I was dead. If they do come, the cost to them will be high."

He slowly took a note from his top pocket and approached. Sue-Lin rolled sideways coming to her feet always keeping the 9mm very close to her body and aimed. She took the proffered note and read it.

Sandra watched the scene as the mother hollered, kicked, and screamed. It was only natural, after all... she'd just lost her children... of course, Sandra didn't know what it was like to lose a child, but she imagined it felt similar to losing Dorian... your closest family disappearing from your life forever...

Then, she swallowed, her expression stoic and unmoved, masking her wild emotions flawlessly. As she continued to watch everyone, she began to wonder what everyone must've been doing back at the bunker right about now...


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"Jackson." Alan said, adjusting his rectangular glasses, staring at the beds.

Jack met eyes with Alan, and Angus turned, watching them both.

"I just noticed, er..." Alan started, looking between Jack, Angus, and the closest empty bed. "Where is Sue-Lin?"

After Alan asked the question, Jackson looked around.

"Huh. She was just here."

"Weren't you watching the door?" He asked Alan.

"Personally, I wouldn't worry, really. She's probably just on some super secret mission with that ninja fella."

He shrugged his shoulders and walked away.

"Alan, I was working on my laptop at the time of the explosion, she ran out just after. She did not return after Sandra closed the door in my face. She, and that rifle of hers, is the only reason I didn't go after Sandra. "

Gozaimon left sue-lin after delivering the message. He was considering what little he knew of this mere child .. he corrected his thoughts she was young yes ..but so was little ryujin and he was deadly

Most of the chinese girls movements were purely western military the way she moved the way she set up her sniper position the way she handled her steyr were all western training .. but that sideways roll gave a great deal away that roll was pure ninjutsu .. he considered everything he had seen and came to the conclusion someone had violated the code and trained this girl in the arts of the ninja .. at her age she could not conceal everything from one with his experience and her eyes had turned to stone as she read he concluded she was not happy..
he had heard that one of the clans had been training outside the clan and worse .. outside japan to train children .. this was confirmation ..
He hoped he would not have to send her for another turn of the wheel of life but then he would do as he was requested it would be distasteful he hoped she had the maturity to handle the situation but he didnt believe she could .. she would take careful watching
he once more took up position observing the negotiation ..

Since she had been located, Sue-Lin moved her position. She took up another just out of town close to where she had ambushed the SUV. It was still sitting there waiting to explode. It had a new hole in it and she imagined her Dad had warned townsfolk away from it. Perhaps she should disable the claymore, perhaps not.

She set up her position and scanned for a full 5 minutes. Satisfied, she re-read the note.

I realise that I don't know you and thank you for keeping watch at distance .. I cant explain all now as time is short. It is critical that the world think i am dead no matter what happens below. DO NOT fire, everyone's lives depend upon what is about to happen .. in a week, meet at the following coordinates. These coordinates are my house. It is protected by a defense system. Sandra will have documents to explain to you all what is about to occur .. do not tell the others any of this, it is not a concern of Gaijin beyond what occurs at this negotiation .. it's a lot to ask, but trust me, there's far more at stake. Thank you, Ryujin

She considered asking her Father but she already knew what his response would be. He was letting her make the decisions so that she would learn and understand how to use everything she had been taught. So she composed a lengthy message to bring him up to date and asking if he had further intel. She sent the message and resumed scanning the edge of town.

It took two minutes for her Dad to reply.

I dropped in one of our own small hexacopter drones to monitor the meeting. Military said it was all a mistake. They apologized and blamed it on orders they had received. They believed they were stopping a pandemic. They wish to join forces with the townsfolk. What are your orders sweetie.

Sue-Lin resumed scanning while she considered everything. Satisfied she sent back,

Military are the enemy, this has not changed. Monitor for now, do not engage without reason. Wait and see what happens. Repeat - Military are still hostile.

Her Dad sent back.

Well done. Know that I love you and I respect you. You make me proud every day.

She continued scanning the town.

Once sgt. chow had finished getting his pictures ryujin thanked him and went to go find sandra .. spotting her talking with john he walked over to them ..

he waited for them to finish talking then spoke to sandra ..
For the present it best if everyone thinks Im dead .. and have a feeling once you tell the others whats happened they wont be very happy with me .. i will make my way back to my house later after everyone has pulled out and its dark .. by then the drones will be gone and i will be able to make it ok .. here he once more hands sandra the keys to his bike take it and take good care of it ..

Then he turned and asked john how long till your guys are set and extract ?

Sandra exhaled, watching Ryujin.

It was odd, being worried about him... but hell... she figured he could hold his own. Besides, she had plenty more to worry about right now... a bunker full of survivors she was responsible for, and a missing uncle...

She stared down emptily, staring at the keys she twiddled between her fingers.

Time passed.

It was a full 10 minutes later when an Armored Personnel Carrier came down the street. It stopped right next to the SUV and the bodies. The tail gate descended and four men got out. They collected the weapons strewn around and then started putting the bodies into body bags and placing them next to the tail gate.

The last body was laying next to the back of the SUV. The body had no head left. It was one of the two hit by Dad's .50 Cal. As one of the men was zipping up the body bag, another lifted the back door of the SUV. The explosion was quite satisfying to Sue-Lin.

She switched weapons to her 9mm and approached while the debris was still falling. Very quickly, she stripped the new bodies of their weapons and placed them in the APC.

After closing the back door, she went through the APC until she found an 'APC Operations Manual.' Going through it carefully but very quickly, she found what she was looking for. She lifted a panel from the wall and started flicking circuit breakers until only three were left. The engine had not died so she must be doing something right.

She hopped in the driver's seat and drove down the middle of the road taking first a left and then a right. An abandoned building that had once been a service center for tractors was her destination. She drove straight in through the open doors and killed the engine before disabling the other circuit breakers. For good measure, she disconnected the batteries.

She could only partly roll the heavy door closed. Years of neglect had taken its toll of the bearings but from the street it was somewhat hidden. She took one of the Assault rifles and some ammo with her, leaving the rest behind.

She used a marker pen and wrote in smallish print on the door. Explosives set by The Sniper - leave now

Satisfied, she found a new place to hunker down and scan the town.

Hearing the explosion in the distance .. ryujin muttered chikusho .. diving for cover .. just what needed .. looking around for sandra hoping john and the team wouldnt start shooting things up .. bakka ..

Sandra, giving a final, hesitant look to the conglomeration of rogues, climbed onto Ryujin's motorcycle and jammed the keys in. It was unnerving, sitting there, trying to figure out how to work the thing... after a few minutes, she was able to work up the courage to rev up the engine, and the motorcycle sped away.

After speeding down the empty road, the orange, red, and brown autumn leaves flying by at the bike's wheels, Sandra looked up at the trees overhead, the dying leaves raining down... autumn was her favorite season... and, for some reason, the scenery seemed much more beautiful now that the world had gone to hell... if she had a backpack of supplies, she might've driven away from the town in order to find her uncle... but no... leaving town without supplies would be foolish, and she didn't want to abandon her friends in the bunker...

Soon after, Sandra arrived at her house, driving the motorbike down the hill as slowly as possible. She parked the bike outside of the bunker, pulled the keys out, entered the password, then stepped into her uncle's bunker, hoping she wouldn't have to go out again for a long while.

Sue-Lin watched Sandra roar past on the motor bike heading for the Bunker. She waited for a few minutes scanning both the ground and the sky before satisfying herself that Sandra had returned without being followed.

As she returned to the bunker she wondered where the other two had gone. Arriving at the bunker door she knocked in the proper but silly sequence and waited for the door to open.

Even in the APC Jason was able to hear the Explosion which appeared to come from the direction he had sent the 4 man retrieval team to. They were to retrieve the bodies of the FNG's next to the SUV that had been hit on the first day; the bodies were to be used later when the APC's were possible struck by a big bird drone upon the teams exit. Bodies would be needed for a realistic BDA that "no doubt" one of the little birds was sure to do once the APCs were destroyed..

"Godzilla, damn it to hell"

The 4 man call sign for this mission had been RT 1 (Romeo tango 1) ..... Jason continued to try to make contact with RT 1 every few seconds.. there was not answer.

For the meeting Jason had placed 3 LS teams (long shot) to cover the meeting area and he now called LS 1 to see if they were able to see what had happened... LS 1 had the highest staked position and therefore the best chance of an observation..

The reply was, "Lima see-air uh 1 that is a negative Red 9. That location was blocked from my position. All I saw was an explosion.. I can move and try to get a better 'look see' if you want"? came the reply in a serious South Texas drawl.

"Tex find out what you can and get back to me ASAP"

"Lima see-air-uh 1 will do"

All the team members were good shots and had to qualify every three months. Tex was one of those guys who was always in the top 5% of the scores no matter what weapon was being used.. A childhood of shooting squirrels for supper and Rabbits on the run is what he attributed his marksmanship to but in truth he was just a natural.. a shooter among shooters.

Marcus watched Alan move over to the counter, in the dim light he couldn't quite read Alan's expression. He only half listened to Jack talking with Angus. But he heard enough to give a wave when Jack pointed him out to Angus. Alan seemed more pensive than earlier and when Jack pointed out his closeness to her, it became obvious.

"Alan, I got a question for you." Marcus said as he walked over to him. "Do you mind telling me what is behind that other door? I watched you and Sandra duck in there." Marcus chuckled a bit and then continued "Another *ahem* sleeping room?"

Marcus hoped his gamble might get Alan to blurt out what it was, he had a feeling that it was something the group needed to know.

Alan gaped at Marcus for a moment.

"Classified." He said. "When she gets back, you can ask her--"

THUNMP.

The metal door slammed shut, grasping their attention.

Sandra stepped inside, surprised to find them all awake.

"Ask me what?" She said.

Alan looked between them.

Just when Sandra suspected that Marcus was going to elaborate, the bunker rang with a few, thick KNOCK KNOCK KNOCKs.

Sandra turned and opened the bunker's door again, her hand grazing lightly over her hip, where her holster was placed. Upon opening the door, she came face to face with Sue-Lin.