JUSTICE IN FLAMES

[ACR]

 

New chapter soon

Aiming for this week

Maybe in a few weeks or so right ?

Anyway, sh*t just hit the fan in first 2 chapters of part 3, looking forward for next chapter/s, hope you post them in due time .

[Mokrie Dela]

 

New chapter soon

Aiming for this week

Maybe in a few weeks or so right ?

Anyway, sh*t just hit the fan in first 2 chapters of part 3, looking forward for next chapter/s, hope you post them in due time .

What you did there. I see it.

 

Glad you guys are enjoying my story. It's not far from the end now. Kinda sad!

 

Anyway:

 

 

Chapter Three - State of War.

 

In the mayor’s absence his understudy had taken office, having been out of town when the explosion hit. The news channels were quick to report on the political impact of the explosion and the state of the local government – more importantly that Liberty City still had one. The acting Mayor – a title that everyone expected to be shortened on the discovery of the Mayor’s body – made his first act in office by calling in the military to supplement the police efforts to respond to the disaster – something that had yet to be given any official designation.

Luis didn’t understand it, and nor did Johnny. The mayor was alive, wasn’t he? They got him out – he wasn’t killed in the explosion. How can this guy take control? Why was the mayor in hiding?

“He’s obviously still in danger.” Johnny said, looking at the live pictures from what used to be City Hall. “He was supposed to be there. I see that now. Those so-called security guards were supposed to keep him there so the explosion would kill him.”

“sh*t bro, but there’s one problem with that.”

“What?”

“What about the guards? How many mercenaries do you think would take on a suicide job?”

Johnny shrugged. “Maybe they didn’t know?”

“What, you think they’re sacrificial lambs?”

Johnny nodded slowly. “To the slaughter.”

Luis shook his head and stared at the TV. “None of this makes sense, bro. We’re sent on what turns out to be a useless mission, and a long and hard one at that, and in the end our only success was to get the mayor out. Why, Johnny? The bad guys still blow up half the city, and instead of the mayor returning to office, we carry on as if he’s dead. Why, Johnny? Why are we throwing it away?”

“Think about it. They wanted to kill the mayor, right? Just because we saved him from the explosion, do you think they’ll give up?”

“…or try again.”

“Exactly.”

“sh*t, bro. What the f*ck do we do?”

“We need to talk to Karen, but I think the only solution is a bullet in that man’s head.”

“It doesn’t help her being all the way in Los Santos.”

“I know. I think it’s too late to worry about them being targets. She needs to come back.”

“And your brother, J?”

Johnny’s reply was not one of voice but a contested knotting up of his face.

 

“This is no time for Bleeting, Niko.” Rami said as Niko booted up his computer.

“Something stinks about this.” Niko countered. “Why were those feds chasing us?”

Rami shrugged. “We were standing there watching the flames. Suspects?”

“No, I don’t think so. We weren’t the only survivors. Why were they not chasing anyone else?”

Rami blinked at that and Niko logged on, loading the internet up almost immediately. He scanned the news websites first, and found little that they didn’t already know.

“Niko – ”

“Look Rami, something’s off with this.”

“What are you looking for?”

“Something that may link us to this… I don’t know, maybe we got snapped in the paper or something.”

“Niko, you’re being….” Rami froze. “Try the police database.”

Niko did so, searching for himself. “Okay, searching and – govno.” Niko’s voice became a haunting whisper.

“What?”

“There’s a citywide ABP on me,” Niko said as he ran another search. “…And on you.”

“Well that explains it. What’s it for, the incident at the airport?”

“No, Rami.” Niko turned, his face as serious as a heart attack. “Terrorism.”

 

Karen sat with the two men she’d spent the last few days with. She was out of her depth but at least she now had guidance. Was this how Johnny and Luis felt? Without her, would they be as lost as she was without him?

“I haven’t a clue.” She said. “I was supposed to stop this wasn’t I?”

“Perhaps I misjudged things.” The man said. He never misjudged things, Karen said to herself. This man always had the authority. He was always in control, always right.

“I never agreed with that plan.” She said, finally voicing the thought that had been swimming in her head for such a long time.

“It was necessary, Karen.” He sighed and began to explain.

 

Niko and Rami shared a look.

“You think that’s anything to do with the explosion?”

“This far north?” Rami knew precisely where they were. The question was, did anyone else?

Niko risked a glance through the blinds. A police helicopter hovered in the distance slowly growing in size.

“I guess that answers that.” Niko said, turning back to Rami.

“Coming this way?” Rami had worried about this for a while. Things were simply not as they seemed – or were not. It was all apparent now.

Niko nodded.

“Suspicious that it’s coming this way, no?”

A nod. “Moving away from the explosion… Options?”

“Fight or flight, Niko.” Rami was exceptionally calm. In truth it was getting a bit old. One gunfight after another. Just another day. Routine.

“What I want to know is how did they find us here?”

Rami shook his head. “Feds? Maybe they put a team on you. With enough people on the team… We can discuss that later. Now though, I’d suggest leaving.”

“Shall we assume the front door’s out?”

“Yes. The helicopter’s far enough away…”

Niko knew what to do next. “Follow me.” Niko’s gun was already out, and Rami wasted no time in drawing his and following Niko as he moved to the patio doors.

The men jumped to the next building. If the helicopter was coming for them, they’d see them fleeing. That couldn’t be helped; staying and fighting was not a good idea.

They followed the stairs down but, to Rami’s surprise, deviated at the lowest floor, breaking into an apartment which allowed access – via a window – to the alleys to the south of Niko’s home. Their guns led the way, ready to shoot. Neither man wanted to shoot the cops – unlike many street gangs and, Rami remembered, some of the Russian and Italians, neither the Balkan nor the Israeli were opposed to the police.

The alleys hid no nasty surprises. They reached Frankfort Avenue and saw a Sabre GT parked under the railway. Niko led the sprint toward it, hoping the buildings and elevated rail would hide them from the helicopter.

Niko half expected the car to explode, but as the engine came to life he remembered that they weren’t fighting the mob. That chapter of his life was long-passed.

The truth that Niko didn’t want to think about was that their enemy was much, much worse.

 

The helicopter, it turned out, had spotted them, and a message had been relayed, informing the ground units that the suspects were heading east. The SWAT officers climbed back into their armored vehicle as the supporting LCPD officers headed toward the el-rail, their thoughts placing the suspects in a dash for the subway. In a twist of bad luck – or timing – they police units reached Frankfort Avenue just as Niko turned the Sabre south.

“Here we go.” Rami said, pulling his gun out again. Niko was already on the phone.

Rami actually remarked on that small crime – a strange observation, considering the crimes that they had stapled on them. The call was a short one and when it ended Niko’s posture changed slightly.

“We’ve got to lose them.” The Balkan said with hope in his voice.

“Well I wasn’t about to invite them to dinner…”

“Just shoot.”

 

It was the perfect balance of skills. Niko was driving – balls-to-the-wall, as Rami called the desperate style – and Rami was shooting, in an attempt to subdue the police. He was going for the tires, hoping to end the chase with a minimum of fatalities. Contrary to Vinewood blockbusters, killing cops was something to be avoided. The police had a righteous fury toward cop killers and would stop at nothing to even things up.

 

Both D’Amico and Greenhorn were looking through the binoculars.

“Ten bucks say they bite it.” Greenhorn shouted over the engines.

“Make if fifty. They’ll get away. That’s why we’re here, isn’t it?”

 

Rami’s shooting could be described as nothing other than expert. The police cars were disabled without fatalities – a feat that impressed Niko.

But they still had the helicopter to deal with. After dispatching the police cars, Rami looked up, knowing that he was ill equipped to deal with the aircraft.

“We’re going to have to break line of sight.” Rami said, knowing that Niko would have already come to such a conclusion.

Niko had already decided on the direction of his attempted escape. He was too far from, and heading in the wrong direction for his old subway tunnel trick, and that was a tool that he wanted to keep up his sleeve and not exhaust it; sooner or later the police may wise up to it and think of a counter tactic. Bohan’s combination of tight roads, moderately tall buildings, alleyways and el train track made it an appealing choice.

 

The biggest problem with the helicopter was the coordination that it provided with ground units. Police cruisers left the Bohan police stations, and began to close in on the target.

“We’ve got to get rid of that helo.” Rami said, inadvertently using the American idiom. Niko merely nodded and turned onto a street which name escaped him.

From above, the helicopter was beginning to have problems following the car. The close confines of the buildings and el train tracks lowered visibility to about forty per cent.

 

It was almost too easy – just break the line of sight, then alight from the car, perhaps taking another. It was typical that when they did break line of sight with the aircraft two police cars appeared behind them, their emergency lights lighting the road in red and blue warning.

They’d loop round and make another pass, Niko decided, giving Rami some time to disable the police units.

“I don’t mean to alarm you,” Rami said after popping one of their tails’ tires and thus needing to reload, “I’m running a little low.”

Niko grimaced as he turned the next corner. “How are we for tails?”

“Still got the whirly on us. I can hear sirens but can’t see any more – scratch that.” Another cruiser appeared behind them, drawing more fire from Rami.

It was almost a thing of routine for Rami – lean out of the window and shoot. It wasn’t even that hard, so long as he kept his breathing under control.

Niko saw the police car drop on one side, the burst tire quickly shredding and the metal wheel digging into the asphalt. With that unit disabled, Niko would be free to pull over, something he could do after the next turn.

“We clear?” The Balkan asked, having taken the turn.

“Yeah, but I can hear more.”

Niko nodded and applied the brakes. In seconds they were out of the car, looking up for the helicopter that they couldn’t see.

It was a stroke of luck for them. The pursuing helicopter was not equipped with infra red – a rarity for air units. All IR equipped helicopters were either being maintained, refueled, rotated, or positioned over the blast zone to the south. The police were simply stretched, even with the rising presence of the local military.

The two men ducked into an alleyway and made their way toward the road on the far side, taking off their jackets as they went. Rami led, and held his hand up for Niko to stop so the Israeli could check for threats.

He saw none and waved Niko out. They two men reached another car as a police unit sped past the far end of the road. For a second Niko’s heart skipped a beat, but he managed to catch his breath when the police car didn’t reappear.

They threw their jackets on the back seats and Niko, being the driver of the pair, put the car in drive and merged with the sparse traffic. They headed away from their abandoned car, and soon saw the helicopter again, though the air unit had already lost them.

“Looks like we’re clear.” Rami said, looking up out of the window. Niko merely nodded – for now, he didn’t say. He turned onto the main road and began the drive for Dukes. Their destination was already selected – Niko’s phone call had taken care of that – but now both men were on edge and the drive was tense.

Niko was good at what he did – partly down to his experience, but also down to Rami’s guidance. Every aspect of their operations would now have to be more thought out. They were targets, enemies of the state. They had to remain unseen, even when exposed. The solution to this, while in a vehicle, would be to select a car with tinted windows – though this sometimes was counterproductive, for it ironically drew attention – but the best tactic was to select their routes appropriately. Selecting the quiet, empty roads, while making for good travel efficiency, was actually not a good idea for remaining hidden as many newcomers to their trade would think. Instead crowds were the answer. But gridlock would be an enemy also. They had to select roads busy enough for them to blend with the traffic, but not so busy that if things went wrong, they’d be trapped. The easiest solution for this was the expressways. The higher speed of the traffic, as well as the volume, would not allow too many prying eyes. As it happened, their destination was close to the Broker-Dukes Expressway.

It was refreshing for Niko, but also slightly strange. He’d been driving so aggressively as fast as he could, and now he had to stick to the speed limit – it felt so slow! The contrast was both welcome and disorientating.

There wasn’t too large a police presence in the eastern island. The police were still occupied in Algonquin, despite the military presence. In some ways the biggest threat to Niko was complacency.

Hands were shaken, both between the two close friends and with Rami. The Israeli saw the respect between the two men, and realized there was some emotional connection there. He’d seen the same look only in men who had stood side by side in battle. It wasn’t just friendship, nor some kind of fraternity, it was something deeper, something that couldn’t be bought or sold, something that couldn’t be attacked. There was a loyalty there that ran deeper than blood.

The introductions were handled quickly beside the dingy bar’s centerpiece of a battered pool table. Rami, having spent too much of his life ‘operating’, couldn’t help casing out the place. There were several men here, each one a member of the Hillside Posse, and each one of them armed. The room was full of smoke too, like a bar before the smoking ban, and very little of it was from cigarettes. He decided that this was a bad place to be – from an objective operational point of view – but these men were all loyal to their master – an assumption; were they? – and their master was on Niko’s side. No, they were safe here. Relatively, at least.

Niko, however, was troubled by the events, and how much was their fault. He no longer wanted to share those concerns with Rami – with anyone in fact. How would Roman react, knowing his cousin was responsible for this? Niko was ashamed, but he had little choice but to hide it. The seriousness of the matter had also hit Jacob, who spoke quieter, slower, and with less lyriac idioms.

“Wha g’wan, Niko.” Jacob said as he shook his friend’s hand. He took Rami’s hand, eyeing up the man with suspicion. Niko caught the look, though Rami didn’t. Jacob led them out back, where they could talk.

“sh*t’s crazy out there, Breda.” Jacob said. “Badman not real good either.”

“Why? What’s wrong with Badman?”

“The herb, Niko. It making him paranoid.”

“It was making him paranoid two years ago.”

Jacob shook his head. “Recent events haven’t helped. He be looking at me with narrow eyes. He spends most of the day on edge, staring out of the window at every car that goes by. He thinks everyone’s out to get him. He can’t even go outside some days.”

Niko shook his head. Another thing he was responsible for. “I'm sorry, Jacob.”

Jacob merely shook his head also. “The world’s gone crazy, star. I keep expecting to wake up.”

“Me too, Jacob.” Niko turned to Rami, though his voice was still directed at the Rastafarian. “It’s like a bad dream.”

“You can’t get too vexed at yourself, Niko.” Rami again noted the connection between the two men. Jacob knew Niko was troubled. To his surprise, though, Niko didn’t react in the way the Israeli expected. Niko merely shrugged.

 

 

“Predictable.” Both men’s eyes were on the building ahead.

Greenhorn snarled, “Let’s go get him.”

D’Amico slapped a hand on his partner’s shoulder. “Think about it for a moment. They’re in there, with their Rasta friend. Who else do you think is in there?”

“His gang.” Greenhorn’s voice was not much more than a growl.

“We run in there, we’re dead men.”

“Even though we took them out?”

“Not all of them – what’s left will likely be inside, licking their wounds. We go in there, they’ll cut us down.”

“So?”

D’Amico smiled.

 

Elsewhere in the city, order was being restored – the hard way. The military had been called in to supplement the local police and federal efforts, and they were quickly spread out across the city. Small command posts were established in each district, standing in the middle of an improvised military base that, in some cases, closed entire streets. The civilians of the city were subdued by the intimidation of the forces alone. Rioting across the city was quelled in hours as water cannons were overlooked in favor of more aggressive weapons – notably gas and live ammunition, though the latter was used as a deterrent, not an active means of suppression. Many thought it an extreme measure, but the true agendas were, of course, hidden.

Checkpoints were set up between major districts – traffic between Broker, Dukes, Bohan, Algonquin (the lower parts were restricted farther) and Alderney were moderated with armed crossings, causing major queues. Niko and Rami found out about this over the TV that was in the Homebrew Café. Local news stations were reporting on the military presence – the media act encouraged by the acting mayor, as he wanted the city – more importantly Niko and Rami – to know that it was occupied.

Occupied. That was the word the Americans used, Rami reflected. He’d seen combat, though not much, and all of it domestic (not counting the deniable operations he conducted with both Shin Bet and Mossad), and this reminded him of a war. In truth, that’s what it was. A state of emergency had been declared. The military were now occupying Liberty City and the big talk on the TV at the moment was whether this was right.

“This is going to make things difficult.” Rami said, knowingly understating things.

Niko nodded. “There are ways round it though.” His voice was unsure. It was an optimistic sentence, perhaps even a plea, but Rami nodded.

“The city’s too big, too busy to shut down. People have to travel across it, to and from work. There’s no way they can regulate that without slowing it down. Sure they’ll set up checkpoints, encourage people to not travel unless they have to… “If the roads are watched…”

“Trains.”

Rami nodded at Niko. “Morning and evening rush hour – no chance of moderating those crowds.” Another nod. “That’s how we move. First though, we need to change our appearance.”

That’ll be a trick, Niko didn’t say. His appearance hadn’t changed much over the last few years. His hair was short – still a dark brown – and he displayed his usual stubble. A new wardrobe would help, but he could do little to change his face, and he was not a believer in wigs. He could shave his hair all off, but the change would be minimal. He could dye it – perhaps blonde? – and keep his face clean shaven. There simply wasn’t time to grow a full beard. Rami had more hair to work with, but his current facial grooming didn’t leave many options. Hats were good – but only to obscure the face. In fact, Niko surmised, that might be enough – if they moved with the crowds, they wouldn’t need extensive changes to their appearances.

Rami had decided to make himself look younger – his hair had slowly started to grey over the last couple of years and, while still having some of his color, some hair dye would change that significantly – along with a different hair style.

In the end both men decided that they’d have to dress differently. Rami would dye his hair darker and dress like a younger man. A leather or puffer jacket and jeans perhaps. Maybe even jeans and shirt – lots of people younger than him wore that sort of clothing. More importantly, blending would now be the name of the game….

 

Karen sat watching the news, streamed over the internet.

“This seems a little extreme.” She said. The man that sat with her shook his head.

“Not really. Bellic and Yalon are blown. Quite a smooth play actually, pinning it on them, though risky. Bringing the armed forces in is a natural move, to keep the peace and to show any other terrorists that they’re not to be f*cked with. No, they know what they’re doing. Plus with the military in place, it will be much, much harder for our guys.”

“What about Luis and Johnny?”

“I don’t know what else they can do at this point. We were trying to have them prevent this, but…” Karen looked at her boss, and although she was about to speak, she didn’t need to. “Don’t say it, Karen. The situation was one that could not be read, not with the information we had then. If I hadn’t done what I did, I wouldn’t be here and – well where would you be then?”

Karen remained silent.

“I think we should make preparations to go back.”

“But Michael – ”

“Has something they don’t want him to have. He can place at least two of the conspirators together, and is proof of a conspiracy. Prove this and those army dogs will turn on their so called master.”

“But at the first sign of trouble, won’t the rest flee?”

“Hmm. Likely. That’s why we need Bellic and Yalon, though I wouldn’t hold much hope for the latter. Don’t be naïve, Karen, things are not looking good…”

 

The horror struck her hard, and she looked at her hands. Right now she wanted two things more than anything in the world. Firstly, she needed a hit. She was scared, and alone. She needed that edge taken off. Secondly she needed Johnny. She desperately wanted to feel his arms around her, holding her safe. What the hell was going on here? It was almost like an invasion. The explosion was – as most disasters were – a shock, coming out of the blue. Who did it? She asked herself. Was it the Arabs? Terrorists? Was it an act of a nation state, an act of war?

“Johnny.” She begged quietly, secretly hoping he’d hear her whispered prayer.

She stood and decided something had to be done. Perhaps she could help Johnny in his crusade.

Luis was checking on his mother. It didn’t occur to him that he was lucky to not be hunted. Johnny would have to be careful, and of all the locations in the city, the biker returned to Berners Road in Alderney – to a building that had been knocked down and replaced with new apartments.

So much had changed – as he’d seen from the military checkpoints set up. He’d managed to get past these – the army didn’t know the city too well, and there were ways round them, mainly via alleys. He’d lost so much and most of it came from this place – or rather the place that used to be here. Such a big part of his life – gone.

“I thought I’d find you here.”

Johnny turned to see Ashley with a solemn look on her face. “How?”

She shrugged. “With everything that happened… Reflecting on the old days… We both had the same idea.”

Johnny sighed. “I was supposed to stop this and…” A shrug. “Boom.”

“Don’t beat yourself up, Johnny.” Ashley laid a hand on her ex’s shoulder.

“Look at this. The army’s here, people are scared. I…”

The time for words passed and they just stood holding each other.

 

Click Here to read the next chapter: Enemy At The Gates!

Edited October 23, 2012 by Mokrie Dela

[AndyGanteks]

I'll give it a read later today Mokrie, keep it up!

[Mokrie Dela]

I'll give it a read later today Mokrie, keep it up!

thanks Andy.

Let me know what you think and i'll get the next chapter on it's way

[Corndawg93]

Wow, nice ending man, awesome, very emotional in a way but awesome

[Mokrie Dela]

Yeah I tried to tie some emotion into it

The worlds falling apart in front of johhny - story or his life for years. I wanted to bring Ashley in on the explosion chapter but there was no room for her there.

Do you get the sense that they both still love each other to death but are to scared/stubburn to admit it?

[Corndawg93]

Do you get the sense that they both still love each other to death but are to scared/stubburn to admit it?

Of cause I did, the sexual tension was just slapping me in the face hahaha

[Mokrie Dela]

Looking at my notes and plan, I've realised how close we are to the end. This is both a good thing, but also quite sad.

 

But life goes on, and thus so do the chapters....

 

Also, i hope this chapter sheds some light on Michael's importance.

(Plus this chapter presented me with the challenge of.... Badman.)

 

 

Chapter Four - Enemy At The Gates.

 

The three men were trying to figure out what to do. Niko and Rami were felons – was that the right word? – and while they were safe hidden in the Café, they’d have to do something sooner or later.

“Yo’ gotta strike at the heart of the lion, star.” Jacob’s advice mirrored Niko’s own thoughts. Their boss had sold them up the river, and for no apparent reason. Had he found out that they’d failed their elimination of Michelle? Was it a mere insurance against their boss’s own exposure? Either way, Jacob was right. Their boss had bought himself a personalized bullet, and Niko would gladly deliver it. It was something that he'd had plenty of practice at. Revenge had become just a word to him.

 

The commotion was most unwelcome. A young Rasta burst into the bar, shouting out in the lyaric style that neither Rami nor Niko could understand. Jacob turned and exchanged rushed words with the young man. The only thing that was clear was that this was not good.

“Ras! Niko we got a problem.” Jacob was already heading to the door. “Word on the street is that the army are heading this way – taking out any resistance they see.”

“They’re all over the city.” Rami said. That they were heading this way was no surprise, and they would still be safe indoors.

“This is no war zone.” Jacob countered but Rami shook his head.

“They disagree.”

“The point remains that they’re heading onto our turf.”

“So? Don’t resist.” Rami believed that was the best answer for these men. To him it was that simple: “Ride it out.”

Jacob stopped. “Can’t be doing that.”

“It’s territorial,” Niko explained. “No one encroaches on their turf. Think of it as countries – Germany felt like strolling into Poland and, well look at how that ended up. No one rode that one out.”

“Except the Swiss.”

“Alright, Bredas. I’ve got to organize some defenses. We can’t allow these bloodclots to take our turf.”

Rami had to bite his tongue at that.

“Where are we going anyway?” Niko asked as Jacob led them behind the buildings and up toward the roof.

“To have a look, star.”

A moment later they were on the roof and looking south west.

“There.” Jacob pointed, seeing the military command post set up a few blocks away. Patriots were parked inside and around it, painted a dull green, and there were more than a few soldiers in their camouflaged fatigues.

“This looks bad.” Rami said, hoping Niko’s friend would listen. “A few ‘Rastas’ don’t stand much of a chance against these guys, and what we’re seeing here is but a fraction of their occupation force.” The men began to make their way back to the Homebrew Café.

Again Jacob shook his head. “It’s not about that.” Then he turned to Niko. “They’ve declared Liberty City as a warzone? Well let’s give them something to lose against.” He pulled out his phone and made a few calls. Niko merely stared at Rami, the two men exchanging silent concerns. Niko was concerned, but he understood that Jacob couldn't let this pass.

 

Upon returning to the Homebrew Cafe, with Jacob still on the phone to, Niko guessed, his lieutenants, the Balkan finally broke the silence with his partner.

“What do we do?”

Rami shook his head. “I'm tempted just to walk away. Go live in Hong Kong or something – there’s money to be earned there. Private security perhaps. Maybe Japan – no, they don’t like foreigners much do they?”

“You do remember we’re part of this?”

“What do you expect us to do, Niko? Rebuild City Hall ourselves? Why not build a time machine? There’s not a whole lot we can do.”

“There is. We can go after them.”

Rami chewed on that for a moment. He didn’t have time to reply though, as once again the door flung open. In marched four men, their guns were already out, and two of them were quickly aimed at Jacob. The other two watched the remaining men.

“Young Yardies?” Niko enquired, his voice hushed.

“No.” Jacob replied. “I an' I know these men.” The ‘visitors’ began talking in quick-fire lyaric. “They're Badman's boys.”

 

“How’s your mother?” Johnny asked. They’d met in North Holland, on a busy basketball court. The military had established themselves in the city, and had men on every street corner. The soldiers – were they soldiers? Johnny asked himself – were watching the African-American congregation, probably wondering if they were doing drugs, or something. Luis was curious as to whether they’d stop them if they were.

Yeah, L, with a bullet.

He shook his head at the sight – this was Liberty City, not the Middle East; Luis found the situation quite ironic, considering the name of the city – and turned back to Johnny.

“She’s good, bro. What about Ashley?”

Johnny leaked a tiny smile – a dark pressing of the lips – and shook his head. “She’s… worried. Scared I think. I saw her yesterday and, well, she seemed almost…”

“Sober?”

“I guess. Normal? I’ve forgotten what that is.”

“We’ve got to do something, J.”

The biker nodded. “Yeah. I'm worried she’ll fall off the wagon again.”

“Well, that too, I guess, but I was talking about them.” Luis nodded toward a soldier, who was intently watching a pair of black locals crossing the street. “Now we’ve got our tantrums out of the way, what are we going to do?”

Johnny shrugged. “I spoke to Michael. They’re coming back.”

Good, Luis was smart enough to not say. While they needed guidance, it was Michael’s failed assassination that started all this. What exactly was his role in it all?

“Do you think it’s true – what Karen said about that Niko guy?”

Luis shrugged. “Does it matter? What can he do?”

“We’ve seen his handiwork lately, Luis. You remember that diamond fiasco in the museum?”

Luis snorted at that – what a balls up, but rather funny how two men who, on that day were enemies, had become... friends? Luis wasn’t sure about that, and yet… “What about it, bro?”

“You remember he was there?”

“Not really. I remember getting the diamonds and skedaddling onto the roof.”

“You should have gone downstairs. I saw the carnage he left in his wake. I said to myself that this guy was dangerous. That was him, untrained, working for the mob. Now he’s trained, working for…”

“Us?” Luis shook his head. “He’s part of this, you think he’ll shrug it off and switch sides?”

“People switch sides all the time.”

“Not on the street, bro.”

“No? What about a bigger stage – the cold war. How many people defected during that?”

Luis exhaled. “Alright, bro, you’ve got a point. But we still need some kind of plan. The only government in the city is in on this – what exactly is it? Did they blow up half of downtown just to get their man in as mayor?”

“Seems a little excessive doesn’t it?”

“There’s got to be more.”

“But what, and how the f*ck do we find out?”

 

Karen was sitting in front of the Television, watching what had now become national news. The country now knew that terrorists had attacked Liberty City, using high-yield, non-nuclear explosives. It was those explosives that they’d failed to stop, in that truck from the airport, driven by Rami and Niko – sh*t! Karen’s mind yelled, what if they were in on it!?

No, she decided. Niko’s face said it all. He was a killer, a monster in some ways, but he was not that. Besides, if they were she’d be dead, right? He had every reason to kill her, but he didn’t.

 

N.O.O.S.E had been looking into the borders, looking for any known terrorists. None were found, though CCTV had apparently – this information came through The Man with No Name, and his moles inside LCPD, or the FIB or something – shown some workmen around City hall the day before the explosion. Or was it the day of the explosion? Karen didn’t know any more – she was stressed and traumatized.

“Who are they?”

“No idea.” He said, looking at the screengrab from the CCTV feed. He’d not gotten much, but his contact had provided a few frames of grainy pictures.

“They look foreign.”

The man nodded at Karen’s observation.

“F*cking hell!” It was Michael who practically shouted that out. Karen and her boss turned to see his face as white as a sheet.

“Did you just see a spider or something?”

Michael’s mouth was open, his eyes unblinking. He could only move his head in a slow shake.

“What is it?!” Karen stood now, placing her hands on his shoulders. “What’s wrong?!”

Finally Michael blinked. He pointed at the pictures. “You remember me saying about the prisoners we caught? And the intelligence guy took them away?”

“Yeah…”

“That’s them.”

Even Karen’s boss blinked at that.

 

Johnny answered the phone and spoke with his brother. Not Karen. She was too unstable at the moment, Michael explained. Johnny felt sorry for her. The pressure and stress was probably going to kill her. Luis watched, not hearing, as the brothers spoke. Finally the call ended and Johnny looked at the Dominican.

“Michael’s Identified some of the bad guys.”

“What?! How?”

“We need to get to a computer.” That task was simply a case of walking calmly, and not drawing attention to themselves. It was hard, with carbine rifles surrounding them, in the hands of ‘professionals’ on the streets as they patrolled, but they managed. They entered the internet café – which was strangely quiet with most people too scared to leave their homes – and found a computer right at the back, where no one could see what they were doing.

Johnny loaded up the news website, and they watched the feed. Johnny had emailed the photo over – encrypted of course – and after Bluetoothing it to Luis’s phone, Johnny deleted the email. He was thankful Karen had set up an account so he didn’t link his personal one to this.

“So what about them?” Luis asked.

“They’ve been in the city God knows how long. Obviously they’ve been working with that bastard. If that’s the case, where do you think they’ll be living?”

Luis shrugged. “If I was that asshole, I’d have them somewhere safe. Somewhere protected.”

“A safehouse.”

“Exactly. Karen knows all the safehouses in the city. We find these men… well it’s a step in the right direction, right?

Johnny nodded and pulled out his phone.

 

“You’re a genius.” Karen said to Michael. She gave him a list of all the safehouses she – and her boss – knew of in the Liberty/Alderney area, and within seconds, the information had travelled over two thousand miles to Johnny.

 

Johnny put his phone back in his pocket and looked at the list.

“Put on your detective hat. We’ve got some terrorists to find.”

“Going to take a while.”

A shrug. “Got any other ideas?”

 

Jacob and Badman were arguing now. The latter had turned up with two more men, and now the standoff in the bar got tense. Jacob’s loyals were unable to draw their weapons, and Badman’s were reluctant to fire upon a man to whom they held genuine respect. Rami saw the confliction in their eyes.

Neither Niko nor Rami could understand a word the men shouted. They were speaking in heavy Jamaican lingo and about as fast as a racecar. The two operators shared a look and the subtlest of nods.

Jacob was perplexed. He moved his arms around, to the discomfort of Badman’s goons, and even hit out at the pool table a few times. Badman, holding a gun himself, was getting more and more irate. He thrust the gun toward Jacob, but the younger man’s hand was too close to a pool cue, left on the pool table. He grabbed it and swung it through the air. The whooping sound of the instrument through the air filled the ears of everyone in the Café, quickly followed by the sound of it hitting Badman’s arm. The gun fell to the ground and Badman recoiled, practically spinning round as he fell also.

Badman’s men were taken aback, but not Jacob’s. Guns were pulled out instantly, and Niko was moving, his gun out. Before anyone could do anything, Niko had his gun to Badman’s head, and shouted as clearly as he could.

“NOBODY F*CKING MOVE!”

“I’ve got you covered.” Rami said, not for Niko’s benefit, but as a warning to the antagonistic men. He had two guns out – one pointed at the group of now six men, and the other at Badman. “I don’t think I need to state my skill with these guns.” He said for the benefit of all the Rastas.

Niko pointed at Badman’s men, not allowing his eyes off their leader. “Put down your guns. Slowly. Any sudden moves and your boss-man dies.”

The men obeyed.

Jacob picked up Badman’s gun and looked around.

“What is this bumbalot bullsh*t?! Where the love at? We got Babylon at our door, the army ready to move on us, and we’re pointing guns at eachother? How can we stand together, hand in hand, with our fists clenched? Open yo’ eyes, dreads, there’s no enemy in here.”

“Except you!” Badman managed to snarl. Wisely though, he didn’t move.

“Alright, Niko, back up a bit, ya hear?” Jacob gently brushed Niko’s arm away from his good friend. “It’s cool.”

The discarded guns were picked up by Jacob’s men, and the six of Badman’s were watched with keen eyes and itchy trigger fingers.

“Yo’ look wi’ hunger ‘n’ greed in de eye an ting. Tis a heavy game de play, some boy get to jump and no dog don bite de master!”

Niko cast a quick eye to Rami who shrugged. He couldn’t even understand half of what Jacob said, let alone this guy.

Jacob, however, did understand. He crouched down and offered Badman his hand.

“I an’ I your breda, you not realize that? I an’ I always got yo’ back, Badman.” Jacob waved to Niko and walked away a little. Rami stood in to cover the man on the floor but Jacob waved him down. “Be cool, star, be cool.”

Niko nodded his approval – Jacob’s men had this covered.

“Niko, I need your help with this.”

“I hope you’re not going to ask me to kill him, Jacob. I cannot do that.”

“No, Niko. Badman gone lost it, but I an’ I don’t want him dead. Sooner or later he gonna point a gun at the wrong dread and gonna get buried.”

“So what do you want me to do?”

“I need to get him out of the country. Granddad in Jam-Rock – he the only man who can calm him down, seen?”

“I see. What about this army sh*t?”

“Your friend doesn’t understand, Niko, but we gotta hold our court. We no having bludclots like these in our yard.”

“Rami seems to think going head to head with the army is a bad idea. I agree with him – you’ll get yourselves killed.”

“We need to remember the name of this city, me breda. Liberty City. It’s better to die a free man, than live in tyranny. We got some tricks for dem anyway. They gonna be limping home tonight.”

“Don’t get yourself killed, Jacob. Whatever it takes. Don’t be – ”

“Niko we got this. I an’ I need yo’ to get Badman to the plane, ya hear?”

“What’s saying that he’ll even go with me, or get on the plane?”

“This.” Jacob handed Niko the gun. It did not matter that Niko was already armed – the gesture said what needed to be said. “Make sure he gets on that plane, Niko. You’re worried about my life – I'm worried about his.”

“Ok, I’ll do it – but you have to lie low. Promise me that, Jacob.”

“Ok, Niko, you got my word on that, star.” The two men shook hands and embraced. “One love Niko.”

“One love, Jacob.” Rami caught Niko’s last words and found it strange – hearing a Jamaican catchphrase said with a Balkan accent sounded very unnatural. Still, the respect was there, and it was clear Jacob had just trusted Niko with something important. Rami realized that that was something that was missing from his life; such a deep relationship, with someone other than a woman – he’d certainly messed that one up.

“We’re moving out, Rami.” Niko said, pulling his gun out and aiming it at Badman. “You’re coming with us.”

Badman might have been ‘losing it’ but he wasn’t suicidal and he identified that he had no choice. His men turned to follow but the guns in their faces stopped that.

Niko led Badman into the car, with Rami taking the seat behind him, gun out and hidden.

“Jacob might like you – despite what your paranoid ass thinks, but I don’t know you and I don’t give a sh*t.” Rami buckled his seatbelt as he pushed the barrel of his gun into the back of Badman’s seat. The ‘Rasta’ would certainly feel it. “I’d suggest you go to sleep, because if you even as much sneeze, and I’ll make sure your head gets filled with lead. Got it?”

Badman nodded. The sad part was that he truly believed Jacob had hired these two men to kill him, so he could take over the gang.

 

“Hello… What’s this?” D’Amico was looking at the car ahead.

“That’s our boy. Now can we take him?”

“Who’s that with him?”

“Their gimp? I don’t give a sh*t, Marcus. Let’s just end this.”

“A shame.” D’Amico said as he started the engine with a chuckle. “A waste of good mercenaries. But, someone has to take the fall for this.”

 

“We’ve got a tail.” Niko said as they reached the airport.

Rami turned for a moment before reverting his gaze on Badman – what a stupid name. “Our former colleagues.”

“So he’s put them on us, has he?”

“Pfft. Won’t be too hard to deal with. Lyle’s a hot head, call his mother a whore and he’ll go for you. Marcus though, he thinks he’s smart – and he is – but inexperienced.

“They making a move?”

“Probably, but even Lyle’s not stupid enough to do so at the airport. We’ll deal with them once we’ve unloaded.” Badman flinched at that, believing his life was ending. “Now now, Badman, remember what I said.”

“A snake don turn will turn an’ turn. Yo’ tink he yo’ breda, but he no fo’ sight pon himself. An’ yo, Niko, yo’ slimy f*cker, in wit’ that dog an’ ting an – got no respect an’ ting, thought yo’ me rasta, but yo’ got no love fo’ I an’ I.”

“Whatever the f*ck you’re saying, Rasta, drop it. I'm sick of hearing this gibberish.”

“Badman, Jacob is not out to get you. He’s your boy. You’re just paranoid. We’re not going to kill you – well Rami will if you piss him off. You remember Granddad?”

Badman got angry at that. “Wha’ yo’ say bout Granddad?! He no be yo’, yo’ nah to good to be speakin’ his name!” He sucked air through his teeth, his annoyance overriding his fear.

“Enough, Badman – Rami will shoot you in a minute, and I’ve promised Jacob I’ll keep you safe.”

“Safe? Keep me fe safe? No gun to de head keep no dread be safe.”

“Well like it or not you’re going to Jamaica.” Niko stopped the car and ushered the man out. The army were here too and both men left their guns in the car. It was a decision that both men were relieved to make upon seeing the metal detectors, and also an act Badman did not see. He still thought the men were armed, and he didn’t believe they were helping him. It never occurred to him to make a break for it – such a thing would gain his freedom from his captors, but what would the military do to him? Let him go, or detain him with an iron hand?

 

“That was easier than I thought.” Rami said, on returning to the car. There was a moment of clarity as they reached the departure lounge. Niko and Rami had to hang around with Badman to make sure he got on the plane. Their cover for this was to say goodbye to their friend – no one questioned that – and the wait wasn’t too bad – under two hours. The current situation in the city had cut down on people flying out – surprising really – and they were heavy moderations in place. Hand luggage was checked thoroughly, and the men were glad Badman had none.

There was a moment of clarity as the flight was called. Badman walked across the terminal, having a final look back at the men, realizing that his survival rested solely on boarding the plane.

Niko and Rami stayed until the plane disappeared from sight. Jacob was arranging for Granddad to meet Badman. The flight wasn’t direct of course. The worry was that Badman would flee once the plane landed, choosing instant and short-sighted freedom over true liberty. The concern would be that he would return to Liberty with vengeance in his heart.

To counter this, Granddad had sent someone to meet the plane as it landed on the western coast, at great personal expense. Jacob had also arranged someone to accompany Badman on the flight and they all met in the departure lounge.

 

Niko nodded, relieved. Jacob obviously hadn’t gotten the tickets, but the man he’d sent had Badman’s passport. He hadn’t payed for the tickets though – Niko did that as a sort of repentance for partly causing this.

“I an’ I grateful, Niko.” Jacob said on the phone. “I hope he listens to Granddad.” It tore him up that he couldn’t accompany his friend on the journey.

“I'm sure he will, Jacob.”

“Well thank you Niko, you – RAS!”

Niko heard the sudden worry in Jacob’s voice. “What is it Jacob?”

“Them army bumbaclots! Niko, don’t come back here. They’re moving.”

“Stay off the street!” Niko ordered, turning the wheel and pushing on the accelerator. Two soldiers noticed and their guns came up, but no shot was fired. More noticed as the car sped up.

 

“sh*t.” D’Amico breathed as the first shot was fired. He didn’t increase his speed.

“Now what?” Both men were frustrated by the long and boring wait. They’d had to park and hang about in the airport for a long time, and they were worried Niko and Rami were running.

“I know where they’re going.”

“Back to the druggie ni**ers?”

“You got it.”

 

Click Here to read the next chapter: An Unstoppable Force...!

Edited October 28, 2012 by Mokrie Dela

[AndyGanteks]

Badman Boys, sounds cool.

 

I'm glad he's still alive at least.

bring on the next!

[Mokrie Dela]

 

bring on the next!

Ask and ye shall reiieve.

 

 

Chapter Five - An Unstoppable Force...

 

“We’re backing off.” D’Amico said, seeing the flashes of gun muzzles ahead. The sky was darkening – rain probably – and the battle (for lack of a better word) was easily seen at distance. Neither man wanted to get involved in the shootout; it was a lose-lose situation. Assuming they didn’t get killed, they’d become an immediate enemy to the victorious faction.

 

Niko and Rami noted their tail backing off. The Israeli grabbed his guns and nodded readiness to his partner.

They stepped out of the car, instantly greeted by the not-too-distant sound of gunfire. Rami looked at Niko, worry on his face, but Niko shook it off and led his partner down an alley and ultimately to a roof.

 

Rami was thankful for that. He scolded himself for thinking Niko was going to run into the middle of things like a hotheaded lunatic. Instead the Balkan was taking a good look first.

Neither man spoke at first. The military were down there, taking cover behind bulletproof barriers that they’d erected in seconds. The soldiers were in a tightly held formation, with good cover. The Rastas were using cars as cover, and both men knew that was merely a temporary measure.

“Small arms?”

Niko nodded. He was worried the military would have their 50 .CAL rifles out, but they only had their smaller guns out – smaller in comparison with the potential arsenal they had – Carbines and Submachineguns. The gunfire was sporadic, despite what most would expect. For the most part it was a standoff, punctuated with gunfire.

“I expected more.” Rami said, looking at the Rastas.

“Me too.” Niko was now worried. He knew how many men Jacob had at his disposal, and it suddenly occurred to him that his friend was, essentially, a general at the moment.

It was then that Rami realized how much he had underestimated the Jamaican gang. It started with activity on the roof – a few men at first – then more. It became suddenly clear to Rami where the rest of the gang were. He also noted that he wasn’t the only one who’d underestimated the gang. The military forces were now surrounded on the roof tops and, Rami noted with a squint as he leant forward, on the ground too. Rastas had occupied most of the buildings – probably their homes – and were appearing in most windows.

 

It had to start with a bang, Rami surmised as the ‘bang’ came. It was an RPG – a tool that one wouldn’t expect a gang to have, but Jacob was an arms dealer, wasn’t he?

The first target hit was a Patriot, which rolled in flames. The soldiers began to divide their attention and within seconds none of them knew where to shoot. Gunfire began to come from literally all angles.

Rami was actually impressed. The Rastas had the tactical advantage now, but even more so was the appearance they had of suppressive fire. To Rami it seemed like they were reluctant to kill the soldiers and, if they were skilled, that was impressive, though he was unsure as to whether it was a tactically good idea or not. Maybe they’re just bad shots, he had to say to himself.

The fact remained though, that this was a bad idea. They had helicopters in the city, and a military base was less than six minutes of jet-flight away, though no jets would be scrambled for such a ground situation. Helicopters were the worry though, but with the first shot coming from an RPG, they might be reluctant to commit air units to what could be a suicide flight.

Despite still thinking it was a bad idea – and it was – Rami had begun to think that maybe they could pull it off.

“If they pull back, we’ll have to do something.” Rami said, asking himself why he was still here. He guessed that he had already placed himself on one team, and now had to ride it out, no matter what.

 

It was tiring, checking all the safehouses. All were empty but, with four left on the list, they’d seen something abnormal.

“Wait a minute, what was the address?” Luis asked from behind the wheel. Johnny told him and both men stared ahead. “That’s it, it’s gotta be.”

Luis stopped the car as Johnny remarked: “This is not good.”

Ahead of them stood the charred wreckage of the apartment building which was the safehouse. Police were present, as were some firemen, who were moving through the scene. Even more concerning was the vehicle parked ahead of them, and the men around it.

“Feds.” Luis noted. Johnny nodded. “What does this mean bro?”

Johnny rubbed his hand across the stubble that had grown on his face. “I don’t know – I don’t suppose we can ask them.”

“No. In fact bro, we should probably be leaving.”

Johnny agreed with that and Luis pulled back into the sparse traffic.

“Are you thinking what I'm thinking, Luis?”

“What’s that?”

“This is too big a coincidence. The City Hall explosion, then a small fire here?”

“Too far for it to be an effect of the explosion?”

“Just a little. I don’t think this was an accident.”

“If it’s deliberate…”

“Cover up.”

“So your brother’s little group of prisoners are dead?”

“I’ll put money on that.”

“The f*ck do we do now?”

“Talk to Karen? I don’t know.”

 

The battle was going to go one way or the other. The Rastas had the element of surprise on their side, and that paid off quickly. The military began to pull back, many retreating to the command post, which was under better protection.

Upon seeing the military begin to pull back, Niko was moving. He was armed only with a pistol, but that was for protection only.

 

The worry for Niko – who took the lead – was the chaos that surrounded him made it risky to make his way through the district. To counter this, the duo mutually adopted a stealth tactic – a tricky feat in broad daylight.

Niko took cover against the wall at the end of the alley, allowing himself to peek out and survey the area. They couldn’t rely on the Rastas not taking them for an enemy, so evasion became their goal. Niko saw the opportunity to move, with all the Rastas facing away from him. He darted behind a bench, closely followed by Rami, and almost immediately vaulted it, making a wild dash across the road.

 

The next alley was reached in seconds with no one seeing them. They slowed now, allowing their guns to lead the way. Niko hoped they wouldn’t see anyone – most of all the Rastas. Anyone who filled their vision would die, that was certain. It would be too risky to not shoot, and Niko would rather shoot an armored soldier – who’d probably survive – than one of his friend’s men who had next to no protection.

 

They only had a couple of blocks to go. The main battle was focused around Cayuga Avenue, with the military command post, defended by 50 .CAL mounted machineguns and sharpshooters, sitting at the intersection with Sundance Street, right under the train station, which was also secure.

Niko again took a look out of the alleyway. They were at the west end of Pancho Street, and the alleyway on the other side of Tutelo was their target. A military roadblock was to the north, with the Rastas shooting in that direction. Niko and Rami would have to cross the line of fire, but as they decided to go round, someone saw them and began firing at them.

 

Niko had to fire back, but Rami saw an opening. At one point a grenade must have been thrown, as there was a small crater in the road, and the cars parked across the street were damaged, and moved. Instead of making a solid barrier, one had moved enough so that it was in front of the other – doubling the thickness of the protection for the Rastas, who had gathered behind them, but at the cost of the barrier’s width.

Rami darted out and dove between the cars. He was now hidden and in cover from both sets of gunmen. Niko followed, with bullets missing him by inches.

“Not the best shooters!” Rami remarked, guessing that Niko’s friend had probably assigned his best men to the central zone.

Niko didn’t respond. Instead he moved in a half-crawl, and looked at their target alley. They’d have to make another break for it, though the distance was half of their previous dash, and they were currently hidden. Rami held Niko’s shoulder, stopping the Balkan.

“Distraction.” He said, turning his gun round and pistol-whipping a wingmirror that was surprisingly intact. It came loose and he nodded at Niko.

 

Rami threw the wing mirror toward Pancho Street, successfully distracting some of the Rastas. Niko was already moving, keeping low and running forward.

It was seen in films and games all the time – Niko had his head down and his shoulders low – but the problem with such a low run was balance. The speed and power of the human legs would make even those with good balance fall to the floor. It reminded Niko of being drunk – sometimes you knew you were going to fall, and while you could sustain your forward movement for several seconds, you were still going down. Rami thought of soccer, of a player clipped by a defender and the ensuing stumble-run that ultimately ended with the player on his face.

Rami’s dash, however, got him to the alleyway before he fell. Immediately he was pushing up though, instantly adopting a sprinter’s starting position, and moving farther into cover.

Niko, being more accustomed to such manic movement, surged forward and deliberately landed in a sort of dive which ended with his body pressed against the wall.

Both men recovered and moved on.

 

Their final exposure was worryingly close to the main gunfight. Even though the military was falling back, the staggered gunfire still persisted and not all soldiers were in one group. There were pairs and trios all over the district, and several smaller gunfights focused on them.

Niko and Rami were on the north end of Cayuga, and saw the concentrated gunfire ahead of them. Rami was amazed that the gang that he’d given no chance, were pushing the military back with such strength. Well, that would change If more soldiers and assets were committed to the area, which would certainly happen once the military had finished licking their wounds. The weather threatened to rain, and the overcast sky helped cast a shadow under the El train tracks. Niko and Rami kept to the western wall, using the shadow by the shopfronts and the support pillars as cover. They managed to move forward, unseen, but with every step the tension grew. All they needed was foreboding Vinewood music, getting louder as they moved on.

 

Another roadblock was in front of them, complete with Rastas. They were now mere feet behind the men, but still undetected. Part of Rami reveled in the thrill of that – that was one of the things that drove him on in his work; the power he felt being so close to people with his presence unknown.

This was no time for such an act though. They had to move on, and the only option they had was back East.

Out of desperation they ducked into a shop and took the moment to catch their breath.

“Any ideas Niko?” Rami asked, again asking himself why he was following the Serb. Why didn’t he just leave? Why couldn’t he turn his back on it all?

“Yes, actually.” Niko was already moving, and Rami resisted asking for a minute. Rami had over ten years on Niko, and for the first time, he was feeling it.

 

Niko led the Israeli to the roof.

“You’re joking.” Rami breathed as Niko approached the edge. The Balkan merely looked back and shook his head. A younger man might have smiled.

 

Rami watched as Niko leapt onto the train track support. He pulled himself up and waved for Rami to follow. He did, and almost fell. He managed to grab the edge of the support, and Niko was there to quickly help him up.

Rami shook his head and shot Niko an unapproving glare. Niko ignored it and crossed the tracks, even with the state of mind to check for trains.

Another leap. This time Niko crashed through a window, showering glass on the street and the apartment. He recovered and again waved his partner in. Rami jumped and literally fell through the window. Niko caught him, and both men fell to the floor.

“You okay?” Niko asked as they got up.

“You’re f*cking crazy, Bellic.” Rami said breathlessly.

Niko shrugged and exited the apartment – which was a sh*thole, Rami noted. To the israeli’s annoyance though, upon reaching the stairs, Niko went up.

 

They were on another roof top and Rami realized they had one more jump ahead of them. This one was smaller though, and onto a fire escape. Both men managed it with ease, though Rami was beginning to tire.

“Vice City is sounding real good right now,” Rami said as Niko moved up the fire escape.

They entered an apartment block by smashing some poor-guy’s window. The apartment was empty, and almost as much of a sh*thole as the last one. Niko ran through and, finally, to Rami’s relief, went down the stairs.

“Here comes the risky bit.” Niko said at the door. He looked through the glass before opening it a crack.

“You mean jumping across train tracks and buildings, while the local gangs are waging war on the army was the safe bit?”

Niko actually laughed at that, and after a second, darted out of the door.

 

They could see the patterns on the soldiers’ clothing now, they were that close. The Rastas were too focused to see them, though one or two might catch their movement out of the corners of their eyes – that was the risk, Rami guessed. The military were blessedly too preoccupied with the gang to bother with the two men that they could barely see – if they had even noticed them at all. Perhaps they’d be marked as civilians, and ignored.

Niko was moving though, and he was thankful of the Peyote parked across the crossing, half shielding them from gunfire and the vision of the soldiers.

 

It took mere seconds, but they were through the door. It was little relief to Rami though, as they’d jumped out of the fire, and into the frying pan.

“Easy!” Niko said to the gun barrels pointed at his face. There were three men, all armed with AK-47’s. Niko slowly placed his pistol on the floor.

“Jacob.” He said, also slowly. “He still alive?”

One of the men frowned and leaned in, with obvious difficulty hearing him. Niko raised his voice, talking louder, but no less calm.

“Jacob!”

“Niko!?” A voice bellowed from upstairs. Niko was hit by déjà vu. “Let him through, my boy that.”

Niko crouched and picked up his gun – as did Rami, having mirrored Niko’s actions – and deliberately held it the wrong way round. The men parted enough for him to squeeze though, but their guns were still at the ready. As they passed, Niko noticed the earplugs the men were wearing.

 

“That’s one hell of a welcoming committee you’ve got, Jacob.”

Jacob merely sucked the air though his teeth. “Cho, Niko, I an’ I can’t be doing much up here, y’know.”

“You did promise, Jacob.”

A nod. “I know Niko. My boys are pushing the bumbaclots back though. See, Mister Expert?” Jacob turned to Rami, “We got some tricks yet.”

“Except they’ve seen that trick now. Don’t think you’ve won – they will push forward again, this time with gunships probably.

“An’ snakes hide best in tall grass.” Jacob shook his head.

“Rami’s right though, Jacob. They’ll lick their wounds and think twice yeah, but they will come at you again, and I don’t think you’ll stop them.”

“Then you need to take them down then Niko. Take them down fast.”

Niko nodded. “I think you’re right.”

 

Click Here to read the next chapter: ...An Unmovable Object!

Edited November 19, 2012 by Mokrie Dela

[Corndawg93]

Those 2 chapters were pretty good but I understand why Badman had it out for LJ

[Mokrie Dela]

 

Chapter Six - ...An Unmovable Object.

 

Rami was still questioning his unconscious decision to side with Niko on an apparent war that he seemed unable to turn his back on. Was he growing soft in his old age?

“You’re aware that you don’t have to do anything, right?” Maybe there was still the chance to walk away. Vice City or Los Santos – maybe even the Orient, that appealed to him for some reason.

Niko raised an eyebrow, “You really have worked alone for your entire life, haven’t you?”

“What do you mean by that?”

“You seem surprised at any display of loyalty or respect I have. Have you never had that?”

Rami sighed. “Not for a long time. I was part of a team, back in my Shin Bet days. We had a comradely of sorts, one might even call it a brotherhood. I guess I’ve forgotten that.”

“What happened to them?”

Rami shrugged. “I lost contact with them after I joined Mossad. A lot changed then. It wasn’t long before I was in prison, come to think of it. Another unknown soldier.”

“Right now, anonymity is the most attractive thing to me. With what we’ve done…”

Rami sighed, allowing his hands to come to his forehead. “How many times, Niko? We did not do this…”

“Yet you didn’t need any encouragement today.”

Rami was quiet at that. He didn’t have the answer. He didn’t know.

“Seeing as how I am,” He said after a moment, “How are we doing this?”

“What, no lecture about bad tactical sense?”

“Niko… Objective eye. It’s never smart to confront a pack of wolves.”

“I suppose in some ways it’s an advantage, but some ways it’s a handicap.”

“What is?”

“Objectivity. You joined the army for what, fun? I joined because war knocked on our door, and when you answer the door to such a caller, you can’t ignore it.”

“Fighting for something, I understand what you’re saying Niko.”

Niko couldn’t resist poking the old bear. “Yet you’re still following me and Jacob.”

“Enough Niko.” The Balkan smiled at the proof that his blow landed. “What’s our plan?”

 

Niko’s plan was simple – the best plans were, Rami remarked – but it still carried a level of danger. Well, they were used to that, weren’t they? They had to collect some gear, and Niko had arranged that, through Jacob. The Balkan had collected an impressive array of weapons over the last couple of years. Rami had no idea where from, but they weren’t old, backstreet AK-47s.

 

Both men were used to the kind of mission that was counterintuitive; one man against an entire army of thugs. Only this time, it was an actual army.

 

Niko entered the tall apartment building on Sundance Street and headed upstairs. He had decided against the roof – if the military sent a helicopter, he’d be screwed. Instead he chose an apartment near the top and knocked on the door. No one was home.

Rami took the long way round, and now watched the military command post from the south end of the alley that connected Sundance/Cayuga and Hickock Street. The command post itself occupied Sundance Street, Cayuga Avenue and Seneca Avenue, and included the el train station, and part of the alleyway beneath. It was well manned and, Rami assumed, well armed. The facility, if that was the right word, appeared to be of two sections, one inside the other. The central part, which was the most secure section, sat on the triple road intersection and housed the mobile buildings (like caravans) and vehicles, with the outer section allowing the public moderated access to the train station.

The soldiers would still be playing their recent battle with the Jamaicans over in their heads. They’d be on edge, but that meant alert. The day was ending, and with it came that false darkness that only a city can provide. But the facility was well lit – aside from a few shadows.

Niko was in position, and had set a nice little trap in the stairwells – two actually. His rifle was set up and all he had to do was wait for Rami.

 

With a simple codephrase, Rami began the night’s actions. Niko confirmed his readiness and the Israeli began to move. He stuck to the shadows where possible, allowing himself to dart across the lit areas where needed. Finally he reached the military facility’s southern checkpoint, installed to allow the delivery of vehicles and equipment, not for public access. The barriers were down, and a few men were patrolling the checkpoint. Rami allowed himself a moment to watch, and learn the patrol pattern. As expected, it was lazy and random, but also predictable. The guards would walk across the entrance, have an effortless glance down the alley, then return to the booth. A chat might occur at some point too.

Niko watched as Rami picked his way toward the checkpoint. He felt his heart rate increase, but Rami did well to conceal himself. Niko’s sniper rifle had thermal capabilities, and he had to switch that on in order to even see his partner. It also helped him see the soldiers, and he relayed that information to Rami. Within seconds his oversight had prevented the Israeli from literally bumping into a soldier.

Rami waited for the soldiers to stop and talk. One of them even turned out of the wind to light up a cigarette. Keeping low, Rami crept under the barrier behind their backs, and ducked into the nearest shadow.

“Hold up there.” Niko said, seeing the yellowish blobs approaching the checkpoint. “Are you concealed?”

“Yeah.” Rami’s response was a cautiously controlled whisper. He saw – and heard – the guards approach, and quickly voices were raised. The smoking guard extinguished his cigarette with a hanging of his head. Rami couldn’t make out the words, but the man was clearly being scolded.

A moment later the two new men walked off. Rami looked around and, as soon as he deemed the coast clear – and with confirmation from Niko – began to move.

Rami was up and made his way across to the next shadow, where he once again pushed himself behind one of the military’s shield-barriers.

Niko felt he had the easier job. All he had to do was to look through the scope, and warn Rami of nearby guards. It was too easy to detach from the situation, and in some ways that was an advantage to Niko. It allowed him to be objective, and to focus on the threats, without the emotional worry of Rami’s safety. But Niko had to remember how important his role would be if Rami was detected. The idea of this mission was, of course, to not be detected, but they couldn’t ignore that risk, and they had planned on it. He also knew how Rami would be feeling – experienced or not. With complete trust placed in Niko, the Israeli will be feeling the tension, imagining unseen threats where there were none, or experiencing that worry that one felt as a teenager, sneaking in during the early hours.

Rami’s side of the contingency didn’t differ too much from his primary objective, but for now he focused on moving unseen. He allowed his eyes to note down alternative escape routes, and found himself questioning why, against all experience and wisdom, he was sneaking into the lion’s den. He moved into cover, both in shadows and behind whatever object was nearby, then looked around, assessing his options and threats with a well trained eye. Niko’s thermal scope wasn’t revealing much more than what Rami could see. It was useful – and comforting – for the Israeli to know where the guards were when he couldn’t see them, but like being directed blindly through a minefield, it was not a walk in the park. Lesser experienced men would be scared. Niko would, on occasion, tell Rami to move, and he would do so, but even with complete trust in his partner’s judgment, there was still that feeling of insecurity that only rose as he infiltrated deeper and deeper into the facility.

It was repetitive, but the tension only rose. Finally Rami reached the central, more secure part of the facility, and even for Niko the tension increased, perhaps due to the responsibility he held. They took their time – that was often the key to stealth – and finally Rami reached the main objective. Part of the facility catered to the vehicles, and that section had a couple of large fuel tanks, which served to fill the tanks of the military vehicles.

Rami reached into his backpack and pulled out the C4. He affixed it to the underside of the fuel tanks, where it wouldn’t be easily found. He’d also placed some separate C4 on some of the vehicles. His main – and backup – objectives were complete.

“One more.” He whispered into the headset, hoping no one would detect the transmission – sh*t, that was something we hadn’t considered.

Niko’s job became more difficult now, as Rami’s destination was the facility’s armory. It wasn’t hard to locate it – there were few solid buildings, and they were mostly grouped together. The armory was also well protected, and both men’s roles would become twice as hard.

There was no gimmick that would help in this situation. Often movies and games implied throwing an object would distract the guards, allowing one to slip in unseen. In this instance this was not possible. The men were disciplined, and would not fall for such distractions – in fact such an attempt would only raise alarm. Another problem was the fact neither man wanted to kill any of these soldiers. Most of them were honest men, obeying their orders like any good American. Niko certainly didn’t want to kill men like that, though as Rami would point out, they were the enemy. That was one of the big points of war, wasn’t it? Niko had killed people in the name of war, and were any of those men evil?

One man’s terrorist is another’s freedom fighter, and Niko had learnt that the hard way. He was now a terrorist – a label he never thought would be affixed to him. He had killed people – some more innocent than others – and smuggled people – the latter being one of his darker deeds. Had his life following the war desensitized him to such acts? Was he a hypocrite for considering these men’s lives, and not others? Had he become a monster without realizing?

A moving orange blob pulled him out of his mental monologue.

“Incoming, from the North. Take cover.”

Rami did, moving behind a parked Mesa – a vehicle that wasn’t used much anymore, having been mainly replaced by military Patriots.

The blob passed and Niko gave Rami the all clear.

 

Rami’s final objective was reached and his explosives were placed. Now he had to leave, and that process was much the same as his infiltration. He got half way out when things went wrong – of course they went wrong. They always did.

The blob in Niko’s sights came out of nowhere; one of the parked vehicles was still warm, and the heat signature hid that of the soldier. The gun was extended toward Rami, and Niko could clearly hear the whisper, spoken through unmoving lips.

“In trouble here…”

Niko didn’t hesitate. He depressed the trigger and felt the recoil of the rifle. The blob fell instantly, and Rami began to move.

The crack of the rifle echoed across the district, and the soldiers undoubtedly heard it. Men shouted and within seconds, gunfire was directed toward the fleeing Rami, who was seeking shelter. The soldiers quickly forgot about the unseen sniper.

Nikos job was to take out the men that threatened to pin his partner down, or to move in. Their self-given mission had gone so well up until this point.

 

With Niko taking out the immediate threats, Rami was free to slip into the shadows, but he now had half as many to choose from, as the base woke, switching on every light it could as it did so.

 

The soldiers shouted and soon an alarm joined the mix. From his vantage point, Rami could see flashlights being affixed to the weapons and switched on. Darkness would not be much of a help.

They were smart too. The exits of the facility were secured with twice as many troops, effectively trapping Rami in. But he still had one trick up his sleeve.

 

Niko actually smiled at that – not just because it was a good idea, but because the target was not a living man. It was another myth of Vinewood that places like these had explosive barrels dotted around – such a thing was rare anyway, and the military were smart enough to keep them secured and protected. In fact you’d find more gas canisters throughout Liberty than you would in this command post.

But that didn’t matter. Rami’s idea wasn’t to blow up the tiny, non-existent canisters. The soldiers were checking the darkened areas of the facility with their weapon-mounted flashlights, and sooner or later, they’d find Rami. So Niko’s job was to make them think he was somewhere else.

 

The first three or four would work, but after that the soldiers would realize the shots were that of a sniper – the sound gave that away, and Niko found himself annoyed he didn’t have a suppressed rifle. The first shot was heard, but no one saw where it hit. The second though, Niko saw through his scope, took some men by surprise as the area beside them went dark. Perhaps they heard the sound of broken glass.

Shot number three was placed beyond that, taking out another floodlight. The soldiers were quickly on their radios, and once backup arrived, began to move into the dark area.

 

Rami saw the men turn away, as part of the command post went dark. He had a suppressed pistol, and in this environment, with the ambient city noise as well as the shouts of the soldiers, the muffled thud-pfft of his pistol would go unnoticed.

But the light shattering didn’t. Rami withdrew into cover and took cautious peeks out as the soldiers looked around.

Niko’s next shot got their attention again, and Rami slipped out of cover and through the darkness, behind the soldiers’ backs and to their side. By the time they turned, he was back in cover.

 

Exiting the secure area was going to be difficult. The gateways that separated both sections were locked down tight, and sneaking past by taking out the lights wouldn’t work. Even in darkness, this close to them, he’d be seen.

 

“I'm activated plan B.” Rami whispered. Niko acknowledged and momentarily looked away from the facility.

 

The soldiers flinched. Some broke for cover, some merely turned, but all those close enough reacted. The men at the gate turned and blessedly, the one nearest Rami’s position stepped forward as men did when something happened.

 

What had happened was the detonation of the C4 on the fuel tanks. For a half-second, the entire facility was bathed in orange-yellow light, and Rami was worried he’d be seen. The fireball had climbed into the sky and turned to smoke, and the command post got darker by contrast. Most of the soldiers’ eyes – especially the ones in the secure section – will have been disabled for a few seconds. Some men looked down, holding or shaking their heads, and others tired to blink it away.

Rami moved, tapping the detonator for the smaller C4s placed on the vehicles as he did so. This smaller distraction would mask the sound of his movements, and the soldiers’ temporary blindness would allow him to exit the section unseen.

 

With the large explosion out of the way, Niko looked back through the scope, just catching Rami’s red/orange heat signature disappearing behind a pile of crates. The secure section of the facility was in chaos as men ran to extinguish fires or locate a threat that had already left the area.

 

For Rami though, the fight was not over. The hard part had gone but he still had to leave the facility. He decided the alleyway was the best option, unless he was seen, in which case he’d high-tail it for Schottler station – No that would not work. Too much open space up there. Once he reached the alley, Niko would be heading to their car.

 

By this time, Niko’s sniping had been detected and his location was now known. A small group of soldiers left the west side of the facility, unseen to both Rami and Niko, and headed for the apartment block.

 

Niko had stopped shooting. Instead he watched over Rami as the Israeli moved past confused and worried soldiers. The final hurdle came, but this time twice the number of guards were present – four looking out down the alley, and four looking inside from the checkpoint.

Niko had set up a simple alarm system. The unknown group of soldiers entered the apartment building and headed up the stairwell. They didn’t see the tripwire. The light was disabled – by the stock of Niko’s Rifle – and the cable well hidden. The device detonated, making a loud flash and disorientating bang that Niko heard over a little receiver connected to a microphone in the stairwell.

“I'm compromised.” He said to Rami as he packed his rifle into the duffel bag. He checked the area for anything he’d left – apart from his guns he’d brought nothing anyway – then exited the apartment.

 

Armed with a stubby shotgun, Niko rushed to the stairwell and looked down. At the bottom he could see movement – a group of soldiers, no doubt. He’d considered drafting Brucie into this; having a helicopter escape would be useful, but that wouldn’t be a good idea. Any air support would have him. Niko did, however, have a daring escape plan, but he sincerely hoped he wouldn’t need it.

“What the hell.” He said, pulling out a grenade. Held it over the railing and took a deep breath, steadying his hand as much as he could. Then he released it and the grenade dropped, falling about six floors before it inevitably caught on the black plastic handrail. The grenade bounced around a little as it fell a further few floors, before the five seconds fuse expired. The grenade exploded – the stairwell amplifying the sound – and engulfed part of the stairs. Niko didn’t know if it had hit the soldiers, but he wasn’t hanging around to find out.

 

Rami was on his own now and sat staring at the men. If he engaged them, he was confident he could take four, but not all eight. He had no more C4 left – he had wondered about throwing a bit toward them, using it as a grenade. In the distance he could hear the dull thudding of a helicopter rotor. Judging by the sound of it – the deep, low-frequency rhythm – it sounded military. That meant air support, and most likely a gunship. He had to move.

 

Niko had to assume they had the first floor doors secured. But with an unknown in the military facility, they wouldn’t have that many men to spare.

Niko punched the elevator’s call button.

Rami had no choice. The helicopter was nearer now. He could hear the rotors whirring. The problem was that he had to get out unseen. They had to think he was still inside, or he’d have no chance in escaping. Rami stood and moved, heading away from the checkpoint.

On the bottom floor of the apartment building, a pair of soldiers noted the activity of the elevator.

Their guns came up and they checked that the safeties were off.

 

Niko took a deep breath as he rode the elevator down. He’d done what he needed on the way up, but it was still a challenge, twice so as the elevator moved. Floors crept past in front of him until the elevator stopped.

 

The soldiers on the checkpoint raised their guns for a second as the soldier stumbled toward them, huddle over. They moved out and reached out to help a man that was lying dead only fifteen meters away.

 

Rami took a deep breath, and a few hundred meters away, the elevator doors opened.

 

Click Here to read the next chapter: Public Enemies!

Edited December 2, 2012 by Mokrie Dela

[AndyGanteks]

This was a great tense chapter, i loved reading it. Can't wait to see what's going to happen next.

[Mokrie Dela]

I'm glad the tension came across. I was worried it might read like a list of events, or that I'd tried too hard to push the tension

Couldn't resist the cliffhanger either

[ACR]

Nice read. Maybe i didn't understood previous chapter, but what was objective of Niko and Rami? Was it to infiltrate military base and destroy it so they would create diversion to help Jacob and his gang to escape or regroup? Because i think military would be coming back for Jamaicans no matter what, even if their base is destroyed, they would send backup to hunt Jamaicans.

 

Just wanted to clear this out with you Mokrie so i can immerse in this story better and understand as much details as possible.

[Mokrie Dela]

Seems like an oversight on my part.

 

Nikon reacting emotionally, he's striking back at the army for attacking his friend. Rami's pointing out its madness but niko and Jacob aren't listening. I think I may need to edit that in. Thanks for bringing it to my attention!

[ACR]

Well it doesn't matter, i like the whole idea of infiltrating army base, it seemed very professional operation, but i see it as a mere distraction in order for Jacob and his gang to escape , since there is no point in fighting such an important government branch like an army because repercussions would be fatal and even professional hitmans like Niko and Rami know that and they don't want to kill any of army personal, just sabotage them and slow army operation for a bit of a time. Hope that after all of this sh*t is over Jacob an his gang could be back on their territory and conflict between them and military could be forgotten, but that's up to you to decide.

Edited November 5, 2012 by ACR

[Mokrie Dela]

The way Niko's looking at it is the local military are stretched with securing the entire city. Rami knows they will commit more men and ultimately take the district, but the army are innocent in all this; just trying to keep peace. They don't want to kill everyone, but they have to secure the area. Rami knew it was a bad idea, but he's developed loyalty to Niko that overrides his objectivity. I think for Niko the idea was to cripple the military and allow Jacob's men to get a strong foothold into the area, thus making it harder for the army to take the district. I think he's also buying time for whats about to come.

 

 

[Corndawg93]

I really hate cliffhangers, No Luis or Johnny what's up with that dude and I hope Rami doesn't kill Niko on Accident, but oh well pretty good Chapter, have a

[Mokrie Dela]

 

Chapter Seven - Public Enemies.

 

Rami felt the hands on his person, trying to help him. Three men were around him now, and the element of surprise was his only ally.

The two men didn’t see it coming. Rami mentally rehearsed it a dozen times as he approached, but now it was real, and his heart felt as if it was trying to leap out of his chest.

The knife came out quickly, and instantly made its path across the soldier’s neck. Before the man began gurgling, or even physically reacting, it plunged into the neck of the next guy.

Rami kicked out at the third soldier, and drew his gun. He pointed it at the fourth soldier, standing back from the commotion. He fired with no delay and adjusted his aim to the men with their backs to him – they were actually turning. He took out the men to the far left and right before ducking beside the man he’d kicked, throwing his right knee into the man’s face as he doubled over. He dropped to one knee and fired at the final two soldiers. Two more headshots and the men fell.

Finally he rose, turned and retrieved his knife from its pouch. He grabbed the stunned soldier in a headlock, and brought the knife up to the man’s throat.

 

It was a struggle, but Niko managed to open the doors as the soldiers entered the elevator below him. He’d even managed to replace the access panel after he’d climbed on the roof, but he’d got worried when his attempt to open the doors failed. He managed to wedge them apart though, using his knife as he did so – a knife was always a part of their loadout – and now stood on the second floor. The soldiers might assume he was still at the top, but they also might guess he’d slipped past them as he had. Nevertheless he had to make a gamble, and for Niko that meant moving to the right apartment… no… no… that one!

He wasted no time and kicked the door open, allowing his shotgun to lead him inside.

The apartment wasn’t empty, and a man stood, his mouth open to protest at the intrusion. His fist also balled, but Niko surged forward, bringing his shotgun up. He swung his arm out, smacking the man in the face with the handle of the weapon. The man fell, unconscious. Niko could only hope he’d wake up – sometimes people died from being knocked out, so it wasn’t always an appropriate way of ending a threat, contrary to Vinewood-induced belief.

 

Niko climbed out of the window and looked at the ground below. He had to be careful here as a police station stood in front of him. The courtyard was empty, save for a couple of parked cars – a Ruiner and an old battered Sabre. He climbed down the fire escape and, upon landing on the ground checked the exit to the west, and the wall by the police station.

 

 

Rami ran through the checkpoint as the last soldier fell. He’d have a few seconds – maybe a minute – before the bodies were found, and when that happened, the soldiers would know the target was outside. He had to be in the car by then.

 

 

Niko had taken the counterintuitive option. He’d jumped the wall and landed in the courtyard of the police station, his shotgun now in his duffel bag with the rifle. He wasted no time and headed south and thus to his car.

Rami was glad of the shadows in the alleyway. He was back in contact with Niko now, who was in the car. All he had to do was wait…

But as expected, there was a complication. The bodies at the checkpoint to the north were spotted and now a group of five men surveyed the area. Rami guessed five seconds before they’d put two and two together. Sure enough, more men arrived and began looking south.

“Running out of time Niko!”

 

Niko pulled over at the agreed upon spot, not seeing the Israeli at all. A few seconds later, after Niko spoke into his headset, Rami appeared, materializing out from the shadows. He got in the car.

Rami stole a quick glance back to the alley and there was no doubt that the soldiers could see the car.

“Floor it.” Rami said, resisting the temptation to shoot and ignoring the urge to take off his balaclava.

 

 

The meeting was not one that pleased any of the men.

“He seemed pissed.”

“Of course he is Lyle. We should have mopped things up by now.” A shrug. “I can’t see them doing much though. The media’s acting as expected, and the general public will soon be remembering their faces.”

“And the other two?”

“The biker?”

“Yeah.”

“Well that’s what this is about isn’t it?”

The apartments were in front of them, and D’Amico checked his notes to make sure they got it right. “Any objections?”

“Hell no.”

“Let’s do it.”

 

Niko knew his best bet was to merge with the traffic on the expressway, but as sparse as the collection of vehicles was, he wasn’t sure how effective that’d be.

“Is this a bad time to say I told you so?” Rami said, checking his gun. Their balaclavas were now off.

“Very.”

“Well I think we’ve brought some time, but we’ll have to act quickly. The army will regroup, Niko, I think you’ve forgotten that. Jacob’s going to have a day, two tops, but then they’ll push again, and this time expect APCs and air support. If Jacob doesn’t stay off the street then, they’ll get wiped out.”

“You’d be surprised what Jacob has at his disposal.”

“Does he have any tanks? Because that’s what he’ll need. And an attack helicopter.”

“He’ll be able to deal with the APCs. And they’ve got RPGs, you know that, the army know that.”

“How exactly, Niko? What has he got landmines?” Niko didn’t respond to that, and Rami blinked. Had Jacob got landmines? Really? IEDs? “I'm still not sure what this was all about. Buying time? Your tactical position is not too strong. Or was it revenge, Niko? They attacked your friend, so you struck back.” You have form for that, Rami didn't say.

“I said it before, if you opposed this, why go along?”

“You spoke of loyalty. Doing it on your own would only get you killed, but that’s it. No more suicide missions. No more pointless endeavors. Despite what you said Niko, you acted out of haste today. Apart from buying some time… we’ve got to exploit that now.”

“About that…” Niko moved to overtake a slow pickup. “Karen. What are we going to do about her?”

“Well we didn’t kill her, that says it all, doesn’t it?”

“They’re working with her.”

“Who?”

“Those two men – the biker I knew and the other guy.”

“Don’t forget our old boss – he’s the man pulling their strings. What are you thinking?”

“How can we get in contact with them?”

Sirens could now be heard over the traffic. No doubt they were searching for them. Niko decided to keep driving calmly – if he went so much as one MPH over the limit, they’d find themselves in trouble. The night's tension has gone yet.

Was Rami right? He’d spent ten years running after revenge and at what cost? He kept remembering the conversation with Ilyena Faustin, where they spoke of men’s souls. Had his quest for revenge cost him his soul? Or had that been sacrificed during the war?

He thought of the McRearys, a family torn apart by his actions. His friend had lost his brother - and sister - by Niko’s hand. And now, Jacob, who’d been there for Niko when it counted… had Niko again caused problems for him?

But there was one fact that Niko was undoubtful of. They had a small window of opportunity now, and had to use it.

He switched on the radio – that always helped him drive calmly, but to his annoyance the first sound to be heard was an advert. Then the chimes of a Weazel News report.

Neither man were surprised to hear their names read out.

“What’s the betting the website has photos?” Rami asked, looking out of the window.

“That’s worrying. Traveling is going to be difficult.”

“Yeah, public transport’s out.”

“Darkened windows are too obvious.”

“We have to end this, Niko.” Rami was thinking of the airport. No way he could catch a plane now. Point of No Return.

They’d lost the army, and the police, but it was traffic lights that caused a problem. Rami looked out of the passenger side window and saw someone looking back at him. The face, in the adjacent car, frowned then looked down at what Rami assumed was a phone. In this age, such devices were instant gateways to a plathora of knowlege, an almost infinite pool of information. The nameless person said something to the driver who also looked. Rami saw the man react and suddenly the car was moving.

Niko noticed the car run the red light, and almost cause an accident.

“What the hell?” Niko asked instinctively. He was used to crazy drivers but…

“He saw us.” Rami said, putting two and two together. “Niko, we need to get off the street.”

Niko nodded agreement but they needed to put distance between them and Schottler first.

“Got any safehouses around here?”

“I’ve got one on Asparagus. Small place and not used for a while, but it should do.”

“Ok, we’ll head there.”

“Dump the car first though.”

Niko nodded.

 

Johnny was nervous. Liberty City was dangerous at the moment, but they were coming back. He’d met Luis, who had provided a Serrano for transport, and they’d traveled to the airport.

Johnny had bought a new top; a turtleneck pullover that helped conceal his conspicuous tattoo. He had seen the news reports on Niko, as had Luis, and both men were paranoid that their names would be next.

“You still think they’re in on it?” Johnny asked, sitting in the airport coffee shop. Planes were still flying, but the terminal was much quieter. The terrorist attack on City Hall had the inevitable knock on effect for air travel; very few were comfortable flying at the moment.

It was actually Luis who had come up with the idea. He’d seen the checkpoints throughout the city, and the security on the trains. Surely the airport would be as bad, right?

Karen had agreed. They thus decided not to fly straight in to Liberty City. Instead, Luis and Johnny’s day started with an early drive to an airport out of the city.

The two brothers embraced and Luis offered a simple nod.

“How do we get in contact with Niko?” Johnny asked. Karen shared a look with her boss, and Luis saw the helplessness on her face.

“They’re fugitives right? They’ll be trying to stay off the streets. I also doubt their permanent residence will be a viable option. Perhaps a safe house, though we don’t know of any of their own ones do we?”

“What’s their next step going to be?” Karen asked.

“I don’t know,” Johnny said, “But I’ve got an idea…”

 

***

“The f*ck you want?” The face was from behind the security chain, but even in the shadow, they could see it wasn’t who they hoped.

“Who are you?” Johnny asked through a confused frown.

“The f*cking tooth fairy. Who are you?”

“I'm looking for Roman Bellic.”

“Never heard of him.” The voice was convincing but the man’s eyes gave him away.

“It’s about his cousin.” This was Luis’s idea, and Johnny delivered the statement drastically.

A few seconds passed and finally the man wavered.

 

“Nice house.” Johnny said as he followed Dwayne into the sitting room. Roman looked up and immedietly his face went pale.

“What the hell is he doing here?!” Roman shot to his feet and looked at Dwayne.

Johnny held his hands up. “Calm down dude, I'm here to find your cousin.”

“What, so you can kill him?”

“No, no – ”

“Get him out, Dwayne.”

Luis was behind Johnny and he decided his delegation skills (it was surprising how often he had to defuse situations at the club) were needed.

“Listen bro, we aren’t here to do anything bad. Can we talk away from the kid?”

Roman shook his head. “You leave. Now.”

“Just you and me, bro. Bring your friend, keep a gun pointed at me if you need.”

Roman and Dwayne shared a look, and finally Roman gave in. He followed Dwayne and Luis out of the room while Johnny was ushered away from Roman’s family by two of Dwayne’s men. Dwayne did in fact bring out a gun and stayed in the corner of the upstairs bedroom, watching Luis.

“Why is he here – the biker?”

“He’s not here for anything like that.”

“So you know what he did?”

“Yeah, bro, he told me like five minutes ago. Crazy sh*t.”

“You’re telling me.”

“He told me why, too, if you want to know.”

Roman pondered that and almost said no. “Go on then.”

“Does the name Dimitri Rascolov mean anything to you?” Roman nodded. “He was threatening Johnny’s former girlfriend hostage – if he didn’t do what Dimitri wanted, then she’d come to harm. He didn’t want to do it but Dimitri gave him no choice.”

Roman nodded, understanding. “We knew him, and that sounds believable.”

Believe me bro, Johnny’s not the bad guy in this insane story.”

“Who is then?”

Luis hesitated for a minute. “Niko.”

Roman collapsed in on himself. “You serious?”

Luis nodded. “But, we don’t think he was in on it. He’s responsible for this, but we think he was used. He thought he was doing good.” Luis didn’t believe that at all, but you had to offer comfort in these situations. “We think that he was manipulated and that now this sh*t’s happened, he wants to fix it.”

“How…” Roman slowly regained some exposure. “How can he fix it?”

“There’s a guy in charge of this. It’s a conspiracy. We don’t know to what end exactly, but we think it might be political. A group of guys want to control Liberty – the BAWSAQ, the cultural hub that is, it’s an attractive target.

“One other thing, Roman. It’s all over the news. Your cousin is public enemy number one. This is Liberty City, what do you think the residents will do if they see him? He’s in danger, and we need to find him.”

“How did you find me?” As was often the case when people were suffering from shock or trauma, Roman was asking pointless questions.”

“Not hard, bro. Our man pulled up your tax records. But that’s not the point. We need to find Niko. We need to end this, and we need him to do that.”

Roman, of course, never questioned whether Niko was in league with the bad guy. Luis was, and he was worried that they’d be setting themselves a trap.

“How do I do that?”

“Simple, just phone him.”

“And get him to come here?”

“No.” Luis said with a shake of his head. “We’ll meet here.” Luis handed Roman a slip of paper with an address on it. “Away from your family, bro.”

“Ok.” Roman took the paper and looked at it. He nodded then looked up. Luis reached out and placed a hand on the man’s shoulder.

“We’re sorry for coming here, causing you distress and worrying your family. I hope you understand why, and how important Niko is in this.”

“No – why is he important?”

“Because he’s good. Johnny told me he kidnapped you. How did you escape?” Luis already knew the answer – that was obvious, wasn’t it?

“He came and got me.”

“Tore through hoards of Russian gunmen?” Roman nodded. “He’s good at that kind of thing. I’ve never met a better gunman, bro. He’s not the bad guy,” Luis still didn’t believe that, “I wish we knew that sooner.”

Roman sat there for a minute, while Dwayne looked on. F*ck, Niko was behind his? Was this man right, was Niko used, manipulated to serving a goal he knew nothing about? Or was he in on it, part of a greedy conspiracy? No, Dwayne decided.

“Niko’s loyal.” Dwayne didn’t realize he was speaking out loud. “He’s a good man, as long as you don’t piss him off.”

 

Niko was looking around the apartment. It was small, and undecorated. Cheap. A small table stood by an open plan but cramped kitchen, and there was an old, worn out sofa by a small CRT TV.

Rami looked out of the window, at everything and nothing.

“I suppose we’re past the point of no return, Niko.” He said without turning. “Fugitives. The police and feds want us, the public know our faces. How long you think until one of those tries to take us down?”

Niko just shook his head and continued surveying the apartment. There was nothing more to see.

“We need a plan of action.” He said to Rami’s back. “More than just running in the front door – more of a plan than an infiltration method.”

“I don’t know, Niko. This is big. Who’s to say there’s not more of them?” Rami turned now. “You think our boss and the new mayor are the only ones? Can’t be.”

“We know some things though, right?”

“Like what?”

“D’Amico and Greenhorn.”

“You think we should go after them?”

“Maybe they’ll have something on – ” Niko looked down at his cell phone. He held a hand up to his partner and answered. “Roman!”

“Cousin, it’s me, listen I need…” Niko heard Roman sigh. “Can I ask you a question?”

“Sure.”

“It’s important Niko, I need your word that you’ll answer truthfully. This is the most crucial thing I’ve ever asked.”

“What is it Roman?” Niko had a feeling he already knew.

“The attack in Algonquin. Did you have a part in it?”

Niko’s breath was taken away for a moment, but then this should have been expected. If he wasn’t so stressed and frustrated, if the events of the last few days hadn’t made him so tired, he might have come up with something. He couldn’t lie: “Yes, cousin. I am ashamed that I am.”

Niko heard Roman’s breath escape him. For a moment he thought he heard a sob, but Roman’s voice came back. “Why Niko?”

“I do not know. I spoke to you about the guns before right? We were doing work to clean up the street. That…. We did not know, cousin, I promise you that.”

There was a few seconds of silence. Finally, Roman spoke. “If that is true, Niko, then go to Trinity Road in Alderney. At the end you’ll meet someone. Promise me one thing Niko.”

“Anything cousin.”

“You will stay calm. Listen, and put it all behind you. You’re the bad guy,” those words hit Niko like an bullet, right in the chest. They took his breath away and broke his heart. “Prove that that is a lie.”

Niko took a deep breath, then with a broken voice, said: “I will cousin. You have my word on that.”

“Okay cousin.”

There was no goodbye. Both men felt let down, but for Niko, it was by himself. Niko stared at Rami, wondering how any man could be totally objective. How could anyone live their live with no emotions? Was that all a lie? A front?

“We’ve got someone to meet.” Niko said.

 

Click Here to read the next chapter: Freedom Fighters!

Edited December 2, 2012 by Mokrie Dela

[Corndawg93]

Amazing chapter Mok, damn fine one indeed

 

Edit: Congrats on reaching 5000 post BTW

Edited November 27, 2012 by billy james

[AndyGanteks]

I've been busy missed the last chaper, now i've read it, good job Mok.

[Corndawg93]

Is there another Chapter coming or what, it been 21 days since the chapter

[Mokrie Dela]

Is there another Chapter coming or what, it been 21 days since the chapter

Yes

Unfortunately my job gets really busy this time of year, so I've not had much time to write an entire chapter but I've resumed writing

I aim to have this finished by Christmas

 

 

[Mokrie Dela]

Here it is: It's a biggie.

 

 

Chapter Eight - Freedom Fighters.

 

The drive was done in silence. No radio, no small talk, no debate over their choices, no philosophizing. Rami watched the city pass from behind a mask of two-day-old facial hair that would help hide his identity.

Niko tried to keep his thoughts on track, focusing on keeping his car in lane on the Skyway. A police cruiser had passed them five minutes ago with no incident and no one had – he hoped – recognized them. The overcast skies helped too; the semi shade that such foreboding weather created helped make their faces indistinguishable in the car’s darker interior, and many people were too focused on getting home before the rain that the sky threatened slowed their evening commute.

 

Johnny was cold – the air was chilly tonight. He looked up at the cloudy skies, darkening now with the onset of dusk. Then, with the gun tucked under his arm, he checked the time, wondering if they’d miss the rain. A strange observation, he said to himself, blowing into his hands – why did so many people fear the rain? It was just water.

Rain was of little worry to him, however. The AK-47 cradled back in his arms would still work – hell, those things worked in all sorts of conditions. He adjusted his grip and checked the time again. Would they show?

 

Neither man voiced the question that was playing on both their minds; who were they meeting?

Niko guided the car off of the Skyway and headed west.

“The moment of truth.” Niko said, turning the car onto Trinity Road. It was the first word either man had said to each other since they’d set off.

 

“We’ve got guests.” Luis said into his mic from atop the Xero Gas structure. He was armed with a scoped carbine, and he used the scope to eyeball the driver. “It’s them.” He said, already moving to cover the rendezvous.

 

Niko stopped the car, seeing the man standing in front of him, AK-47 in his hands, loaded and ready. This looked dicey but as Niko began to reach for his gun, he remembered Roman’s words.

Rami caught the hesitation, and raised an eyebrow.

“Roman said be cool, so we’ll be cool, yeah? Listen?”

“You trust him?”

“He’s my cousin, of course I do.”

Rami sighed and followed Niko out of the car.

Johnny tensed and felt his grip on the gun tighten. These men were dangerous. Even the words of Luis in his ear, saying “I got your back bro,” did not help his feeling of vulnerability.

 

“Keep your cool.” Niko said, having taken the lead. Rami had no choice but to trust him, and that made him immensely uncomfortable – nothing against Niko, but no one was as trustworthy as one’s self.

 

“Niko.” Johnny said by way of greeting, without so much as a nod.

“Johnny.”

“Gonna have to take your guns, dude.”

Rami blinked at that. “While you keep yours?”

“Listen, if we wanted you dead, we would have done it by now. We would have RPG’d your car as you approached, or places landmines or C4 or something. Believe me, it’s not like I didn’t think about it. The truth is we just don’t trust you. If you don’t give up your guns, turn around and go home, you can watch the city burn on TV.” Johnny didn’t waver. He kept the gun down by his waist, despite feeling the need to bring it up to aim.

Listen, Roman’s voice echoed in Niko’s memory. Be calm,

“Okay.” Niko said, opening his jacket slowly. “You want to take it or shall I?”

“You do it. Slide it over.”

Rami was impressed. Johnny was showing textbook tradecraft. He was keeping his distance – fair play to Niko; he didn’t even try to get close – and asking Niko to take the gun out eliminated the risk of a CQC disarm. The only question was – Ah, Rami said to himself on seeing the man on the roof. Good cover.

 

Johnny watched as Rami too slid his gun over. He crouched and picked them up, not taking his eyes off of the two men. When he was satisfied, he waved them in and led them round the corner.

Niko tensed, and everyone saw it. He gritted his teeth and suddenly thought he knew the real reason why their guns were taken away.

“Niko.”

“Michelle.” Niko said through gritted teeth. There was a minute of awkward silence, finally broken by Rami.

“What’s going on?”

“You need to ask that?” Karen asked.

Niko and Rami shared a look.

“What’s Roman got to do with this then?” Niko finally asked.

“We had to find you.” Karen/Michelle said. “That was the only way we knew. Don’t worry, Roman was not forced to do anything.”

“Oh, that makes it all okay then.”

“Niko, it’s been almost three years…”

“Celebrate a yearly anniversary do you?”

“Niko – ” Johnny tried to step in, but his words were ignored.

“I'm not the bad guy here, Niko, need I remind you that? Besides, there’s bigger things going on than you and I.”

“There is no me and you.”

“You’re not acting like it.”

“Seriously,” Johnny rose his voice now, “For one second – ”

“I wasn’t the one who stabbed me in the back.” Again Johnny was ignored. All the biker could manage was a stifled tut and a sigh.

“You really hold on to a grudge don’t you Niko. Yes, I betrayed you, and I am genuinely sorry about that, but the world does not revolve around you. You walk all over this city, acting like the world owes you a favor. Newsflash, Niko, it doesn’t. sh*t happens. Deal with it. I spent long enough feeling like sh*t over what happened, but you know what? I got over it. Why haven’t you? Need I also remind you of those you’ve betrayed? Because I'm not sure that’s a good idea, seeing as how one of them is holding an AK-47 right now.”

For a second the argument died down. Johnny actually thought that it was over.

Even from his perch on the roof, Luis thought that they’d got it out of the way.

“They should just screw and get it over with.” Luis said.

Johnny almost laughed at that. Rami caught the suppressed smile and wondered what it was about. Karen simply didn’t hear the comment. She was too focused on Niko’s tantrum.

“Niko, why do you think we got you to come here?”

Niko’s eyes darted from left to right. Rami noticed, and automatically did the same. It was an instinctive act – scanning for danger. For Niko it was one of paranoia; he simply did not trust Michele – Karen, whatever her f*cking name was.

“Where’s the SWAT then?”

Johnny sighed. Now Niko was acting childish.

“What SWAT team?”

“The one that you’ve probably got here to take us down. Is that what it is? You turn in the big bad terrorists and get a big fat juicy reward for your troubles?”

“No, Niko – ”

“How can I believe anything you say?”

“ENOUGH!” Johnny shouted, hoisting the AK-47 into the air and firing a short round upward. He then lowered the muzzle and aimed it at Niko’s chest. “You’ll believe her because, A, it’s the truth; and B, I'm pointing a f*cking gun at your goddamned chest. So how do you want this to go down, Niko? You want to die the bad guy, go home and live with the knowledge of what you’ve done, or redeem yourself?”

Karen sighed. “We asked you here Niko because we want your help.”

“Hell, we need your help.” Johnny said.

“We’ve been fighting on opposite sides, but I don’t think you knew what you were fighting for.”

“Admittedly, that has since become evident.” Rami said.

“The important question here is: what side are you on?”

Niko turned his head and stared down the barrel of the gun. “I get the feeling there is only one acceptable answer.” His voice was still laced with disdain but he knew, deep down, that Michelle was right.

“As said before, dude, if you’re not on our side, walk away. You’ve got a Get Out Of Jail Free Card. Use it if you want.”

Rami didn’t seem bothered about the presence of guns. Karen knew that was a front – he had to be concerned, but showing weakness was in itself a weakness in his eyes, wasn’t it?

“I do not care for the individual causes. The ultimate goal of my sponsor is not of interest to me. I receive an objective, I achieve that objective, and I receive payment.”

“Well aren’t you conscientious? Does it not bother you what has happened?”

Rami shrugged. “It is regrettable, but an event that was beyond our means of control.”

“And you Niko?”

“We did not do it.” His statement was delivered through almost gritted teeth. While the statement was true, everyone could detect the denial in his voice. It was clear, Karen observed, that Niko was struggling with the guilt. But Rami? That man was holding his cards extremely close to his chest. Either that, or he truly did not care.

“Yet you’re wearing the label of ‘terrorists’.”

“It would appear that our boss deemed us as superfluous.” Rami said, matter-of-factly. “It seems we’ve been REF’d in a harsh way.”

“So are you with us?” Karen asked, staring at Niko and Rami simultaneously. “A chance to get back at him at least.”

“Him. You know your target then.”

“Indeed Rami. We know everything.”

“Except his endgame.” This came from Niko and was one of a few things troubling him.

Karen nodded. “Whatever it is, we need to stop it.”

Niko looked around for a moment and shared a look with Rami. “I'm in.” He said, his eyes still fixed on the Israeli’s. His gaze was almost a challenge, and Rami found himself weighing up his options; leave town, or clear the record. Niko’s hard stare made the decision for him.

“Me too.” Rami sighed.

Karen was relieved, that much was obvious from the way she exhaled. Now she had the two most problematic of adversaries on her side. The scales were suddenly tipped in her favor.

“One thing I want to know though.” Niko said after a few looks were exchanged. “If you knew about it, why didn’t you stop it?”

Karen/Michelle sighed. “This isn’t my job Niko. My job is to – ”

“Get close to people, spy on them and entrap them?”

“Niko that’s not fair.”

“Look dude,” This came from Johnny. “Whatever the hell happened, either let it go, let her explain or walk away.”

Niko sighed. “Why did you do it Michelle – Karen, Rebecca, Persephone, whatever you name really is?”

“It’s Karen. Why did I do it? Why did you kill McReary? Or any of the guys for Faustin, or Boccino. Why did you and Rami do all you’ve done to allow this to happen? You were just doing your job. So was I. It’s a cliché, Niko, but it’s true; at first you were the objective. Get to know you, keep an eye on you. It wasn’t like you were flying under the radar. We knew you were coming through Roman, his communications with you. Did our boss ever tell you what we do? Fighting threats to the city. Any means necessary and all that? There was this mercenary, who’d done all sorts across Europe and the Adriatic – you. So from whatever sources he had, I was assigned to watch you. That’s what he does, remember. I was entrapped, as you put it, myself. Given the option to work for him to earn my freedom, or something like that.”

“So I was only ever an assignment?”

“In the beginning, yes, but… I saw something – I honestly did. I had to do what I did – just as you had to do some of the jobs you did; all three of you – Johnny, Luis and you, Niko – have had your paths cross, but mostly because you had no choice. If you didn’t kill Petrovic’s son, Niko – I assume Rami knows about that – ” Rami nodded, “ – Roman would have been likely killed, no?” Niko nodded. “Same thing with me. I had to. But then… it’s the risk of undercover cops, deep cover… you get attached. I felt for you – I genuinely did, but what could I do? I hoped you’d take it on the chin, realize I had no choice but...” Karen shook her head, “I dunno, perhaps that was naïve of me. For years I’ve carried the guilt around, but even now… there was no other way. It was the hardest thing I’ve ever had to do.”

“You could have told me the truth, from the start.” The Balkan’s words were weak, Rami thought.

Karen chuckled darkly. “Would you have done that?” She shook her head. “Of course not. That’s this city, isn’t it? Layer upon layer of lies and deceit. Betrayal and, what, revenge?”

Rami now knew the real reason for the guns – it wasn’t just security, Karen was likely worried Niko would shoot her to settle a personal vendetta – after all, he could hold a grudge for a very long time.

“Well now that’s all out in the open – ” Johnny began.

“What did you do?” Everyone stared at Niko. “To get him to use you like he did.”

Karen shook her head. “I'm sorry Niko, but I can’t go into that.”

“But why stay? I remember him telling me, in return for me, you got your life back.”

Karen scoffed. “What life? Living alone in an empty plain in the Midwest? Being another faceless ghost in this city? I had nothing – before and after you, Niko.” A shrug. “It was something, you know. Some sort of penance? Absolution? A punishment for what I did to you? OR just a job? Why did you stay?”

It was Niko’s turn for a shrug. “It was my trade. It’s what I'm good at.”

“And deep down,” Rami added, “We liked doing it.” It was something Niko wouldn’t admit to, but he didn’t deny it.

“The funny thing is,” Karen said, “I handled so much of the information he got for you. I could have set you up to be killed, but the cars that were left for you, the weapons, the safehouses – they were all me.” It was almost worthy of a laugh, but all Karen could manage was a sort of sad single chuckle.”

“I hate to break up this little reunion,” Johnny said, allowing a look up to Luis’s position, “But we should probably get back to business before our party is crashed. Are we all friends now? If so what the hell are we going to do?”

Karen nodded. “We need to do a few things, and as I said, this was never my job. Niko, Rami, you know he’s not dead. But nor is the mayor.”

“Why are we hiding him?” Johnny asked, getting Karen’s hand held up in reply.

“My boss uncovered something a while ago. It was something big, but we didn’t have enough on it. So he staged his death, and went underground. I was to get as much information from our new boss – we knew he had something planned but not what or how big. We miscalculated. Perhaps we should have taken him out then and there, but he’s not alone. There’s an entire group of them, and we found out some were in Los Santos. So my boss went there, to coordinate with another of our contacts – a guy named Marc. I was left to keep an eye on Liberty and… well I guess I didn’t do too well.

“Targets: there are several on the west coast, that my boss and Marc have or will be taking action against. Many of them are under surveillance, and will be eliminated when the time is right. We have to do all that sort of thing in one go. If word gets out that someone’s gunning for them, they’ll flee, and we’ll have failed again.

“Over here though, we have a few important people to take down. Firstly your new – former, I dunno – boss. For him it started in the Middle East. Johnny’s brother was in some unit that apprehended some prisoners – insurgents. An intelligence officer – our friend – went out there to take custody of them. We were trying to work out why Michael was a target but we’ve finally figured that out. He can place our friend, in the Middle East with these prisoners. And those prisoners were found recently, dead in a burnt out building.” Karen stated the address and Niko and Rami shared a look.

“That was us.” Niko whispered. “We started that.”

Karen nodded. “Want to know the real twist? These men were obviously hired by our friend – perhaps he promised them freedom in return for their acts, perhaps their religious zeal spurred them on. But it was those men who placed the bombs in City Hall, with the help of Greenhorn and D’Amico. Michael was a walking witness, connecting all those things together.”

“And we were plastered over the city as scapegoats?”

“Yes – you apparently helped these men. Officially, these men are the terrorists. They did the attack – you helped them – and the newspapers will soon say that you two killed the terrorists – as you did – to tie up loose ends.”

“sh*t.” Niko breathed.

“Yeah. Is it all clear now?”

“But what’s it all for?” Rami asked. “Getting their man in the mayor’s office?”

“Yes and it’s bigger than that. With one of them as mayor, they can reshape the city’s government – most of the politicians were killed in the explosion. The city will be run by this group of conspirators. We think it’s about gun control – but it’s more than that. It’s a big play on the countries politics. They’ll rebuild the city, be hailed as heroes, but in the meantime, while everyone’s looking at the disaster, they’ll be doing whatever it is they aim to. What that is, we don’t know.”

“And we find out by putting a gun to his head.” Johnny added.

“Maybe.”

“So,” Niko said, voicing Rami’s thoughts, “We go for him?”

“Not yet. First we have to deal with his lackeys.”

“D’Amico and Greenhorn.” Everyone knew those names well by now.

“They’re not as good as you two, but they’re too much for us.” Karen admitted. “But we’re short on time. If we don’t get our mayor back in power soon, their man will officially become mayor. By then it may be too late.”

“So we come up with a good plan.” Rami said.

Karen nodded. “Unfortunately our ace up our sleeve was eliminated by you two – our mercenary friend and his men, whom you killed.”

Niko bit his lip at that. “The airport.”

“Indeed.”

“I think we can make up for that.” All eyes suddenly turned on Rami. “Let me make a call, I have my own Ace.” He didn’t add that his suspicions – much like those he scolded Niko for – had been playing in his mind for a long time. He never fully trusted their new – former, now – boss.

 

 

***

 

It was more complicated than they thought. Their boss – they’d never learnt his name – had sent his men out to protect those which needed it. Greenhorn and D’Amico both had a small squad of ‘soldiers’ under their command.

It wasn’t hard to find them either. Niko and Rami did that, setting up surveillance on their former workplace. While Rami would follow by car, Niko would watch from high up, through an infra red telescopic long-range camera.

All the talk of Aces up their sleeves, and Niko had his own, though it wasn’t anywhere near as good as Rami – the Israeli surprised Niko; did he know all along? Why (and how) had he set that up? Perhaps he should be worried that he had his own game playing out, but whatever, more important things were beckoning.

Niko’s not-as-impressive ‘Ace’ was in the form of Brucie Kibbutz, and Jacob Hughes. He was learning, once again, of his friends’ loyalty. Dwayne had come through in his protection of Roman – something that probably caused Mallorie some discomfort – and Jacob, as expected, hurried to help his dear friend, once again. That was a debt Niko could never fully repay (though news had reached them that Badman was now with Grandad, and perhaps that was adequate repayment). But Brucie – behind the muscle and bull-shark testosterone, was a man who was concerned over the city’s status. So Brucie had agreed to help, thrilled at the prospect of joining Niko on his ‘Red Army’ escapade. Thankfully though, Brucie was to pilot the helicopter, nothing else.

Greenhorn left the office, as did D’Amico, and they split up. They decided to stay with Greenhorn – the lesser of the two operators. The brute’s style was a direct one; while he employed the basic ‘dry cleaning’ tactics, he did them half heartedly, taking the odd left-hand turn, and immediately resuming his journey. He was too impatient, too aggressive. D’Amico – the smart one, actually smarter than they gave him credit for – would take a much more roundabout journey. If his destination was in Dukes, he might drive south, through the Booth tunnel, across Alderney, loop round North Holland, the East Borough Bridge, Bohan, the Airport…. Greenhorn was easier to follow, making only three small digressions in his entire journey. At no point did it look like he was not going to cross the Broker Bridge.

The destination was in the north of the docks. Niko observed Greenhorn enter the warehouse and, ten minutes later, D’Amico appeared.

The key now was to split the enemy forces – a strategy devised by Michael. Niko and Johnny formed one team, with Rami and Little Jacob forming the second. Luis and Brucie, after sharing a handshake (which had threatened to turn into a alpha-male competition of strength), had left to begin their roles. Karen wisely wanted each of the lesser experienced men to be accompanied by an ‘expert’, and the Israeli had commended her for that. There was no ‘A’ team, or ‘B’ team – one thing that both their former bosses had not thought of. Michael himself was also gearing up for the finale, though he was on the bench at this moment.

The first shots came not from a gun, but from the rockets of two Buzzards. Seconds later, dual explosions rocked Broker and, almost simultaneously, Dukes. The military checkpoints and command posts – Luis had specifically been given the Schottler one as the first target by Niko – were torn apart by rockets and machinegun fire alike.

The headsets worked also, and, while not encrypted (no one was worried about being overheard), the message reached Niko and Rami. Both men shared a nod with their respective partners, and checked their weapons.

From inside the warehouse, Niko saw D’Amico leave. He grabbed a motorcycle and immediately gunned the engine. Greenhorn, however, was nowhere to be seen.

“We’re going after D’Amico.” Niko announced, already running toward Johnny’s chopper. Johnny would drive and Niko would hold on for dear life, hoping he’d not have to shoot.

“We’re going in.” Rami said, slapping Jacob on the shoulder. It was a deal that Niko had made with Jacob – the outpost closest to his home would be the first destroyed, and in return Jacob would help them It was the culmination of a plan against the soldiers that threatened the Hillside Posse that Niko never had – either way, that was one loose end that was tied up at least. The Jamaican followed Rami toward the warehouse, an advanced machinegun in his hands. Rami had a P90, claiming that was as deadly in his hands as the SAW in Jacob’s.

 

On Rami’s command, Jacob kicked open the door and threw in a grenade. The two men took cover until they heard – and felt – the explosion. Then Rami spun through the door, his gun up. Instantly he began firing in three-shot bursts, moving from target to target as he darted into the room. Jacob remained in the doorway, pushing his machinegun into the room and firing to his left – Rami had the right. The machinegun convulsed angrily in his hands and he watched the bullets fly – one round in every five or something was a tracer round, so he’d been told, and he saw the dashes as the tracers pointed at their ill-fated targets.

Rami was moving with speed, darting to cover as he unleashed his lethal barrage of triple-shots. Once in cover he reloaded – tactically – and popped back up. The grenade had the desired effect of surprising and disorientating the enemy, and the two-man assault successfully divided everyone’s attention; no one knew which man to shoot.

It was something Vinewood got wrong – either purposefully or unintentionally – but the shootout lasted little more than a minute. Rami, Jacob saw, was every bit as deadly as he’d claimed. Now they moved upwards, checking for more enemies and finishing others off, on their way to Greenhorn.

They approached the office where Greenhorn was – or at least where they assumed/hoped he was – and immediately, Rami realized they’d underestimated the brute. In the door way, behind a pile of sandbags, stood a minigun. Rami barely had any time to see the ogre-like figure behind it.

“Take cover, Jacob!” Rami shouted out. The Jamaican darted to his right and behind a pillar just as Greenhorn opened fire, screaming needlessly as he did so. The f*cker was enjoying this! Rami thought.

“Flank him!” Rami shouted out, hoping there wouldn’t be a language barrier. “On my word!”

Rami blind fired at Greenhorn, first to suppress him, but also to draw his fire. The Israeli’s shots missed of course, but no way was he sticking his head out there.

“GO! NOW!”

Jacob sprinted to the next pillar. He reached it just as Greenhorn’s direction of fire turned toward him. He felt the concrete chipping away at his feet.

“Bumbablot!” He breathed as he got in cover. “Done!”

Rami nodded, pleased the Jamaican could understand him and move quickly. “Cover me!”

Rami didn’t have the choices Jacob did. The Jamaican had four pillars that followed the walkway round to the far side of the building. Rami had two between himself and Greenhorn, but much greater distanced between them. He had to wait for Greenhorn to pause in his firing – even that brainless brute knew he couldn’t keep a constant stream of fire up with the weapon – it’d overheat, and he’d also have to reload. Rami used those few seconds to move to the next pillar. As it turned out, Greenhorn was surprisingly quick at the reload, and had enough brainpower to fire in bursts. The gap between bursts allowed Rami to blind-fire again, shouting for Jacob to move.

Once again the Jamaican reached the next pillar as gunfire snapped at his feet. “I'm here!” He yelled for Rami, who also withdrew, Greenhorn’s focus now returning to him.

It was tedious but it was what they had to do. Wait, blindfire, allow Jacob to move, take cover, wait. Jacob was feeling the tension, he nervously reloaded his weapon while in cover, but at the other end of the building, Rami was as cool as ever. Just another day at the office…

 

Luis and Brucie were staying within visual distance of each other. They had limited rockets of course, and they’d use all of them. They also had some extras – Air to Air rockets, for watching each other’s backs.

The first Annihilator crept out from behind a building and immediately opened fire – bullets, thankfully. Luis turned his helicopter round, having just released another pair of rockets, and allowed the targeting computer to lock onto the police helicopter. He fired one missile, and watched the white tear stretch toward the black helicopter. It was a direct hit, and the helicopter dropped like a stone, landing – luckily – in and empty intersection.

“HOLY sh*t!” Brucie’s voice sounded in his ear. “Good shooting homie!”

“You can pay me back in a minute, bro, I'm sure they’ll come for me.”

 

Niko was glad Johnny was good at controlling the bike, though he hated being on the back – not just because he wasn’t in control, but because it was hard to hold on. On the straights, though, Niko fired – he’d been given an automatic pistol – and the bullets came close. So far he’d not hit the target.

But one lucky shot was all it took, and one lucky shot was what Niko got. The bullet caught the rear tire as D’Amico slowed for a corner. The bike wobbled with D’Amico losing control. It toppled and the man slid across the asphalt. Johnny slowed, allowing Niko to aim more finely.

D’Amico was dressed in biker’s leathers – it was as if he was expecting to flee (or likely was planning a quick bolt to deliver a message or something). He recovered, knowing where the shot came from, and managed to get his gun out. He fired back, still lying on his side in the middle of the road, but his shots missed.

Johnny stopped the bike – careful not to do so too suddenly and thus catapult Niko into the air. By the time they’d stopped, D’Amico was on his feet and running toward a building. Niko followed, with Johnny a second behind.

 

Jacob reached the final pillar, now lateral to Greenhorn’s position. He didn’t have a clear shot at him though, but he didn’t need one. He unleashed his weapon, dragging the gunfire across the doorway and up the walls. The noise and volume of the bullets would be enough to make even the toughest soldiers shy away, and Greenhorn did recoil. Rami saw that and moved, his gun – now his pistol – up.

 

Jacob saw Rami move and stopped the fire as he saw the gun come up.

 

Greenhorn went for the gun, and felt his fingertips touch the trigger.

 

Jacob was moving now, and saw Greenhorn go for the gun. He brought his gun up –

His finger was beginning to squeeze the trigger, the gun pointed at Rami. Jacob squeezed the trigger – a little too hard. His accuracy went, but some of the bullets hit – mostly in the arms. As he dropped to his knees, taking a deep breath, Rami saw the dark splotches of red, and saw Greenhorn shake.

Suddenly the gunfire stopped. Jacob pulled the trigger again but nothing happened. The gun had jammed. He looked up and saw Greenhorn still alive, the brute’s eyes now fixed on the Jamaican.

 

Rami let half of his breath out.

 

Jacob stared back to see Greenhorn’s eyes go wide, and immediately saw why.

The shot was perfect – as if he’d expected anything else. Greenhorn fell backward, landing on the floor with a dull thud. Rami allowed his eyes to find Jacob’s through the gun smoke and saw the Jamaican sigh in relief. Rami rose and walked over to the minigun, which now drooped like a wilted flower. He stepped over the sandbags and checked their target.

He gave Jacob a nod and touched his headset. “We got him,”

 

Niko was glad to hear that, as was Johnny. But they still had D’Amico to deal with. He had fled into a building and they’d followed.

“Aint going to happen, comrade!” D’Amico was heard but couldn’t be seen.

“Come here and say that!” Johnny replied. Niko crouched and began looking for a way to flank.

“Think I'm that stupid? Think I’d run into the first building I’d see? You really are as stupid as you look.”

Niko and Johnny shared a look, and while no words were exchanged, it was clear they were thinking the same thing; ‘Ambush!’

Their guns were out – Johnny had his trusty sawn-off shotgun and an Uzi, Niko had an MP5 and the automatic pistol. Both men, like Rami and Jacob and Luis and Brucie, wore combat fatigues, complete with body armor, though they did not have the same headgear the police used.

Johnny led the way. If he saw anyone, he’d open fire – he had his shotgun in one hand, the Uzi in the other – and Niko, from behind him, would pick off the cowering or flinching enemies.

The first enemy was at the end of the hallway. He was no match for Johnny’s shotgun though; the biker’s nerves made him shoot the second he saw even the smallest movement. It was a good shot in the end, Niko observed.

 

In the air, Luis and Brucie had taken down most of the command posts, thus – they hoped – crippling the legitimate soldiers. They also hoped that casualties were low. They’d targeted the vehicles mainly, but fatalities were inevitable. Both men knew, though they didn’t dare admit it, even to themselves, that there would also be civilian targets. Collateral Damage.

“We’ve got incoming.” Luis said, seeing the blip on the radar screen. He couldn’t see the aircraft yet though.

“Where are you?” This came from Rami.

“Over Bohan.” Luis replied.

“Over Lancaster.” Brucie was further south than they thought.

“Holy sh*t!” Brucie practically screamed into his microphone. The aircraft – two of them – were over Alderney. “Can you see them, homie?”

Luis could just make out two black dots in the distance. “Not quite.”

“Motherf*cking jets!”

A second later Luis could make out the slightly arrow shaped silhouettes of the aircraft. He was heading toward them and it was now clear they were not helicopters.

“What do I do man?”

Luis saw two flashes from the jets and knew immediately they’d fired their missiles. “Fire everything you have, and fly low, head north!”

Brucie did, but his helicopter was beeping. A voice warned him of missile lock, and he relayed that to Luis. “I’ve got to bail! I can’t shake those things!”

Flying low would make him a more difficult target, Luis knew, but the missiles had him. “Get up high then!” He’d need enough space to open his ‘chute.

Luis could see Brucie clearly now, and the helicopter surged upward. The Buzzard was quick, but it couldn’t outrun the missiles – even without the extra weapon weight on board. The jets, however, were just out of missile range for him.

“To your left, bro. Go left.” There were a couple of taller buildings that would shield his ‘chute. “When you jump, fall in towards those two buildings. Pull your chute when you’re in between them.”

Brucie understood, and Luis watched as a tiny figure dropped out of the helicopter. The aircraft veered north and the missiles – now fifty or so meters behind it, followed. The figure neared the two buildings and his chute opened – Luis saw that just before he disappeared from view.

“Good chute! WHOO!” Luis allowed a small smile at Brucie’s excitement, but he still had the jets to deal with – and he saw them ahead. More flashes. He didn’t have radar lock, so he just took evasive action, guiding his helicopter out toward the river, and south. He too, bailed. Once his parachute was open, he turned his head to see the missiles catch up with his helicopter.

“Damn.” He said, guiding his parachute toward land.

 

The jets – Hydras, he thought – were close enough he could hear them now. Worst of all, they were close enough to open fire with their forward guns, and they did so, though their accuracy was off. None of the rounds hit, and a second later, as he neared the ground, the jets passed overhead. By the time they’d looped round, he was already on the ground. Rami announced he was en route to pick them up.

 

They pushed through the building, taking down enemies like paper targets in a shooting range. Finally they reached D’Amico who’d panicked and fled to the roof.

“It doesn’t matter.” He said, looking at Niko and Johnny. “You can’t stop it – so you’ve teamed up, like little school children. He has an Army. You don’t stand a chance.

“Turn around.” Niko said. D’Amico did so, believing Niko’s command wasn’t a lead up to an execution. In the distance, behind the buildings across the road, a plume of smoke was rising into the sky. To the left, just visible across the river was another. D’Amico didn’t need to be told what they were, thought the biker said so anyway.

“They’re what used to be the control posts.” Two jets were visible in the distance, and he’d seen and heard them take out a helicopter over the river as he exited the building.

He looked around then chuckled, turning back. “I'm impressed. I didn’t think she was capable of such a strategy. They your jets?”

“No the helicopters were.” Niko had heard the interchange between Luis and Rami, and knew everyone was accounted for. He waited a second, for D’Amico’s face to show his pleasure that his side had at least one victory this day. Then Niko burst the man’s bubble. “We got our targets, and the pilots are safe. You’ve got nothing.”

“Oh but we have.” They were not words of a desperate man, Niko noted. “You’ve taken out the military – that’s impressive, my hat’s off to you. But what about his men? PMCs, mercenaries… Even you don’t stand a chance against them.”

“Maybe.” Johnny said. “But you won’t be around to find out.” Both men’s guns came up.

“A shame.” D’Amico said. “Perhaps we should have kept you onside. Maybe we shouldn’t have set you up.” A sigh. “You wanna know my biggest regret?” D’Amico’s jaw tightened, and his eyes turned cold. “I should have taken you out when we were taking the gangs down.”

“Yeah,” Niko said casually. “but you didn’t.”

Both men pulled their triggers and their guns all found D’Amico’s body. The man shook from the force of the bullets, the gunfire pushing him back. He was most likely dead before he fell backwards, but even if he wasn’t the drop to the street below would have killed him.

Niko approached the roof edge and looked down. “I’ve wanted to do that for over a year, you know.” He said to Johnny.

 

Click Here to read the next chapter: ... An Old Friend

Edited December 30, 2012 by Mokrie Dela

[Kifflom112]

I'm only on Chapter 9(yeah I'm late) But I'm really enjoying this story. I have something good to read in my free time now.

[Mokrie Dela]

I'm only on Chapter 9(yeah I'm late) But I'm really enjoying this story. I have something good to read in my free time now.

no worries man, don't matter at all if you're late!

 

I hope you're enjoying it!

(feel free to read the first one too if you want afterwards)

 

thanks for saying it's good

[AndyGanteks]

Sorry Mokrie, i didn't have time to read through the above chapter til now. I've been quite busy this December.

[Kifflom112]

Love the way the story is going. May I ask, what is that diner that Roman and Niko like? Can't find one on Interactive map.

 

Wait is it "Fudz Deli"

It's that popular sandwich deli based off of Katz Deli, have it in my Real Life Counterparts Thread.

Edited December 18, 2012 by Kifflom112

[Corndawg93]

That chapter was amazing, The confrontation at the start, the killing of D'Amiko and Greenhorn all of it was just amazing