The unveiling of covers on New Year's Eve.
…
- By a fortunate turn of events, today we will not only celebrate the start of the new year, but also put a definitive end to the history of the mafia within the territory of Heroesland!
The military personnel present at the meeting exclaimed in approval, supporting the general.
- As previously stated, it was necessary for us to find someone whose reputation as a notorious criminal and crime boss would be no less than that of the don of the destroyed mafia – Hostor. And today we received the final intelligence report; such a person is… Morning. Furthermore, the reputation of the best organizer of criminal gang meetings belongs to… Vegtam, - the general looked at the Major with fire in his eyes, - but it doesn't matter. My next order will be…
A sounding siren and lighting that shifted its color to red interrupted the commander-in-chief's speech.
- What is happening?!
- The security system has detected three intruders on base territory.
- Put the surveillance camera footage on screen. Now! – seeing three familiar faces, Silverfail's lips curled into a satisfied smile, - it seems the beast is running straight to the hunter.
- Oops!
- Arandor, what have you done? Of all things, you had to run into this corridor! – Hostor exclaimed indignantly.
Having remained as a trio, Arandor, Hostor, and Morning secretly penetrated the guarded territory of the military leadership and remained unnoticed inside for quite some time, achieving this only thanks to the skilled guidance of Imaris and Drakkosha. Using maps stolen from the database, they pointed the way for the three brave souls so that they could remain unseen and penetrate deep into the base to free the hostages. And then the king ruined everything.
- Alright, Hostor, stop grumbling, - Morning added, - there's no going back anyway, let's keep going like this.
- No, you lot can keep going like that.
- What do you mean, Hossie?
- You will free the hostages, and I will kill that bastard.
Amko, Lord Mortulus, and Plesen remained as a trio for quite some time since Omega agreed to cooperate with those who had taken them prisoner.
Naturally, the wailing siren attracted their attention as well.
- What do you think happened? – Mortulus wondered.
- Surely it's our lingering scoundrels >:3 – Amko explained.
- Hey, Moldy, why are you silent?
- "We are approaching" - sounded from Plesen's cell, not by his own lips, but from a tiny radio transmitter.
Without thinking twice, Plesen approached the door of his cell and fiddled with the electronic lock for some time. At first, it wouldn't give way, but eventually, the door opened. Without saying a word, the escaped prisoner headed in an unknown direction. Only Mortulus's shout broke the silence hanging over the cells
- Hey, Moldy! MOLDY!
Silverfail, Ment, Nebo, Vegtam, Wishmaster, and Tox also took part in searching for the intruders, each performing their assigned task. Silverfail and Ment coordinated the actions of all personnel; the others led small squads that had been given a clear order – open fire to kill. Nebo, however, acted alone. He moved faster.
Private Tox and his squad were lucky enough to find the intruders. He and six of his men blocked the passage to the next corridor for Morning and Arandor.
- Surrender! – Tox commanded, - my squad and I were ordered to liquidate you upon first contact; however, out of respect, I am giving you one last chance!
- That shall not happen! – Arandor exclaimed.
- In that case, forgive me…
Suddenly the ceiling collapsed, burying Tox and his entire squad. Black Comanches hovering over the base were destroying the structure with rocket volleys, while equally black helicopters were landing descent squads. Arandor and Morning didn't spend long pondering what was happening and simply rushed further.
- Lokki! Do whatever you want, but we must save Amko!
- What about Mortulus?
- Well… him too, yes.
Meanwhile, chaos reigned among the soldiers and their command, and only the general maintained his composure.
- Report damages!
- General, it seems all AA units were the target of the rocket strikes. After their destruction, the shelling ceased, - Ment explained.
- I understand that, yes. But I am extremely curious as to how these helicopters destroyed our air defense when the purpose of the latter was to destroy any hostile aviation!?
- It seems we simply weren't ready for an external attack, having focused on internal problems.
- Perhaps so. Damn. What is the force ratio? Can we hold the base?
- If the analyzer statistics are to be believed, the troop ratio is one to three in our favor; however, our unknown enemies have the element of surprise, and we cannot know what reserves they have outside the base. And even though the defense system is still under our control, the probability that we will lose is extremely high.
- In that case, I will coordinate the actions of the remaining officers and ordinary soldiers, and you hurry and evacuate the queen. If that does not prove possible… Well, kill her.
The series of explosions slightly cooled Hostor's fervor, calming the rage that filled him; however, he did not abandon his idea to kill Silverfail.
He was a bit shaken, leaving many bruises on his body, as he was currently in the ventilation system, right above the command center.
- "Strange, why is no one here?"
As if responding to his mental question, one of the doors opened, and a man in military uniform and a peaked cap entered. When he saw the face of the person entering, his surprise and joy knew no bounds, and he wanted to descend and say "Revan, old friend," but an inner feeling and the instinct for self-preservation stopped him from such an impulsive act.
- "He looks exactly like brother Revan, but… The facial expressions aren't right, the gaze is different… It's not him."
Another person appeared on the other side of the room; it was Nebo. Upon his appearance, the man in the cap spoke, and Nebo reactively pointed his barrel toward him:
- I recognize your face, soldier. That professional gaze… I venture to suggest that you are Colonel Nebo, one of the best fighters, if not the best in the entire army of Heroesland.
(Reinhard's line)- Identify yourself.
Nebo's line- Laconic, just as described in your dossier, - the man approached the central computer and connected some device to it.
(Reinhard's line)- I'm counting to three.
Nebo's line- Would you like to guess what this device is for?
(Reinhard's line)- One.
Nebo's line- It reads all the information from your computers, providing my people access to the entire security system of this facility, and more.
(Reinhard's line)- Two.
Nebo's line- And what do you think can be achieved by possessing information on all the enemy side's plans?
(Reinhard's line)- Three.
Nebo's lineWhen the last sound left Nebo's lips, he pulled the trigger of his pistol and the bullet sped toward its target. A piercing sound of clashing steel rang out; something fell to the floor. However, it was not a body, but two fragments that flew apart. The brave colonel's surprise knew no bounds; he had carried out many combat operations, but had never seen such a thing – they were bullet fragments. A man in black, appearing as if from nowhere, had sliced the bullet in motion with one lightning-fast swing of a katana.
- I have seen a similar sword before.
Nebo's line- Yes, correct. One such blade, crafted in the style of a zatoichi blade, was brought into the country quite recently and used by an impostor.
(Reinhard's line)- An impostor?
Nebo's line- As I said - an impostor, or did you not hear me?
(Reinhard's line)- What are you talking about?
Nebo's line-
Some time ago, the man you call Revan and by other names conducted an interesting experiment. He kidnapped a girl. He completely erased her memory and replaced it with his own. The irony is that he himself is the result of a similar experiment. The man you have known all these four years never had a past and was artificially grown based on my DNA.
(Reinhard's line)- But… how can that be??!
Nebo's lineNebo was surprised, but Hostor, who was still observing the events, was even more shocked. Revan, his friend… Moreover, the man who sliced the bullet was none other than Vistrit!
- Naturally, he never knew of his origin and considered himself an ordinary man, believing all achievements to be his own; however, that is not the case. His body, as well as his mind, were heavily modified and surpass the ordinary human. At first, the experiment was successful and yielded results. He even managed to gain recognition in this country and became the ruling king, albeit for only a year. However… He began to make friends, developed his own ideals different from those beneficial to us. He simply did not meet expectations. Therefore, I gave the order for his liquidation, and afterwards moved troops into the territory of Heroesland. Decided to take another path, so to speak, - the man looked at his wristwatch, - it's a pity to interrupt such an interesting conversation, but I have already spent too much time lingering here.
(Reinhard's line)Nebo opened fire again, but the bullets did not reach their target; they were all knocked aside in mid-air by Vistrit's blade swings.
- Damn! – Nebo tried to reload, but his opponent did not hesitate and, closing the distance, sliced his barrel into two pieces, making it useless. The colonel jumped back and drew a combat knife, trying to repel another lunge… But in vain – the knife followed the pistol. Nebo had no weapon left to fight back. Dodging strikes and retreating, he found himself at the edge of a cliff created after the wall's destruction.
- It looks like this is the end, Colonel, - a Desert Eagle hidden under a cloak already gleamed in its master's hands; Reinhard pulled the trigger and a large-caliber bullet, cutting through the air, hit Nebo in the chest, knocking him into the abyss, into the river.
(Reinhard's line)One man left this scene, and another appeared in his place.
- Plesen, excellent work; however, we still have much to do. Prepare everything for the broadcast.
(Reinhard's line)During the first military attack at the masquerade, it was no trouble for Plesen to escape safely; however, his plans were different. He allowed himself to be captured only to determine the location of Silverfail's base. Today's attackers planned to destroy everyone in one blow.
Hostor was once again overcome by the desire to avenge his friend's death; however, he suddenly realized that in the current situation it was more important to save his sister than to try and seek revenge, and he headed in another direction.
… When Silverfail, together with the remnants of the team, reached the last surviving cargo helicopters, the scene he encountered did not please him very much.
The invading intruders – Arandor, Hostor, and Morning; the escaped prisoners Amko and Lord Mortulus; as well as Queen Neyra, were taking their seats in one of the two surviving helicopters, and this action was led by none other than Brigadier General Ment.
- How am I to understand this? – he asked puzzled.
- With all due respect, General, I struggled for a long time with what decision I should make. I faced an insoluble dilemma. But now I have found the strength to make what is, in my view, the right decision. Once again, I offer my apologies, - Ment closed the helicopter door and it lifted off the ground.
Regardless, even in such a situation Silverfail maintained his composure and ordered the survivors to board the last helicopter and leave the base as quickly as possible. To Vegtam's question about further actions, he only replied that they would go to the main base and use "this".
Dozens of rocket launchers watched the receding helicopters and were ready to shoot them down at any moment. All they needed was the corresponding order.
- Perhaps we should destroy them after all? – two men, VisTrit and Reinhard, also watched them, staying in a place that previously resembled the command center.
- Let them fly. You can consider this my leniency or a gift. It's not wrapped, of course, and I hardly look like a pot-bellied old man in a red outfit, but…
- Surely there is another reason?
- Perhaps, - Reinhard turned away from the view and looked in a completely different direction, - you know, I have big plans for this land, and a person like me will always have enemies wishing for my death. My effectiveness as a soldier is hardly higher than that of an ordinary army private; therefore, I need someone to cover my back. And I am glad that someone is you.
- As long as our goals are similar.
- Of course, - Reinhard glanced at his wristwatch again, - perhaps it's time. Are we ready?
- "Camera set up, hack complete, signal intercept also" - Plesen spoke into the radio transmitter.
And on the screens of all televisions and monitors, the usual image was replaced by the face of the leader of the third party in the emerging political—no, military—conflict.
- Dear residents of Heroesland, much has happened over the past year, hasn't it? Both good and bad. Spiteful people choke on their own malice, remembering the bad like a greedy man whose excessive appetite forces him to eat, eat until he is torn apart; but others act more wisely. They leave the bad behind and remember the good with smiles on their faces. I believe we all belong to the second type, otherwise we wouldn't be here. Much will happen this year as well, so I wish you strong health and patience; you will need it.
- "Ready".
- Alright, Plesen, come down here already, - suddenly a mobile phone rang; Reinhard answered, - Yes?.. How are you, my dear? No, sorry, but I won't be able to welcome the new year with you. Yes, all because of work. But it's okay, I left something for you under the tree… Great, I'm very glad you liked it. Bye.
- Daughter?
- Correct.
Meanwhile, Plesen and another man in a black, expensive suit entered the room.
- Ah, Lizard, - the commander and one of those who entered shook hands, - I must admit, your blueprints helped us greatly. Thanks to this, we managed to discover the exact location of the entire AA system, which allowed us to strike so accurately from the air.
- It's nothing. Always happy to help those who resist royal power.
- Strange, but why us and not the military here, for example? – Plesen inquired.
- They seemed indecisive to me.
- Well, clear.
After some time, each held a glass of red wine.
- To our goal!
- To the goal!
The sound of glasses clinking rang out. The glasses were drained to the bottom, and then simultaneously thrown to the floor by the four and shattered.
P.S.
