I was groggy as I climbed from my bed, but it was the smell of smoke that really woke me up. There was a fire outside, I was sure of it. I grabbed my gear, and hurried down the stairs.
It was just after 0600 at the base, but the lights were already on, and several soldiers were already out in the mist, heading into the village. I headed over toward the sergeant, who caught my eye.
“What’s going on?” I asked, not needing to explain why I was up so early as I rubbed my neck.
“Alarms went off. That’s all I know.”
“What kind of alarms?”
“I’m not sure,” he replied, baring his teeth. “We’ll know soon enough.”
“What do you think has happened?”
“I don’t know.”
My lieutenant soon came striding in, just stepping out of his tent.
“Right,” he said, growling. “Who wants coffee?”
We all raised our hands, so he ran into his tent to fetch the machine. He soon came back, and seemed to relax the moment he took a sip.
“Right, well, whatever is going on, it isn’t great, so just strap on your kits, get ready and take some body armor.”
He looked us all in the eye, and I was the first to meet his gaze.
“We don’t know anything more than that. There’s no cause for alarm, because we don’t have the slightest idea what we’re up against.”
He walked off, and I jogged back to my tent. I picked up my rifle and slung it over one shoulder, but picked up my P90 as well, swapping the two. I pulled on all my gear, put my field cap over my black hair, and popped my ear plugs into my ears. I walked out to find that the rest of the platoon was doing the same.
That sobered me up. It was six-thirty in the morning, but they were ready to jump into combat.
I met up with Richard (or Richie) and we walked over toward the bay, where the platoon commander was standing outside, smoking a cigarette.
“You again?” said Alex, grinning, as we approached. “What’s going on?”
“I don’t know. There’s something going on, though. The colonel himself came to brief us, but he didn’t say much at the time.”
“What’s up then?”
“He said that there’s no cause for alarm. We just need to be ready for anything, but to stay calm.”
Alex nodded. He seemed about to say something else, then calmly finished his cigarette. He flicked it away, and made to move on.
“So, what’s the plan?”
“I don’t know.”
Alex walked away from us, chuckling, and my heart sank. Richard looked at me, his mouth falling open. We both trotted after Alex, who was moving quickly, away from the bay.
The rest of the platoon were starting to board the boats, and I certainly didn’t have body armor or a helmet, so I was left to sit on the sand.
Alex turned to face one of the lieutenants.
“Where’s the colonel?”
“He’s already gone to the island. We’re taking the boats over. I guess he’ll be coming back here shortly.”
“What about the rest?”
The man laughed, puffing on his cigarette.
“What do you think? They’re staying behind.”
Alex nodded, and I stood up.
“I’m going with you.”
“Great. This is Richie. You’ve already met, but he’s a new guy. Richie, this is James. He’s the one who won’t shut up, and apparently refuses to go back to his tent.”
The lieutenant smiled.
“Welcome aboard James,” he said, patting me on the shoulder. “Let’s go.”
Alex and I and the rest of the platoon ran after him toward the beach.
“How many, are there?”
“Who knows?” replied Alex. “There’s always a few patrolling, and the rest are camped wherever they are. But mine are all going with me. We’ll bring them back, if we can.”
I nodded, and kept running alongside him. He turned his head and met my gaze.
“Hydra doesn’t show up on any sensors. They don’t seem to be close, they could be a long way away by now.”
“What kind of sensors? Can’t the marines – “
“No, they can’t. We can’t get even the slightest hint of where they’ve gone. We don’t know what they look like either. All we have is a description of your little friends.”
He grinned, showing his teeth.
I nodded.
“Nervous?” he asked, his voice dropping.
I nodded. He grinned.