Chapter 110: Spring Break Mission – This Ain’t Kansas

“Upgraded electrically augmented armor protection and camouflage. Lightweight kinetic charging power source will provide thirty seconds of digital imagery covering two hundred-seventy degrees of view angle. Impact gel augmentation distributes projectile forces across armor surface,” the text read. “UD target tracking utilizes multiple spectrums. Activate?”

Uh, yeah. So how do I activate?

It turns out that the armor and camouflage weren’t exactly tied to the goggles.

Duh! Whoever made this couldn’t quite do that without someone eventually asking questions.

Nothing I thought to the goggles, no trying to blink at something on the screen like in Sci-Fi books and stories, or anything else I tried worked to activate the armor. Finally I closed my eyes to let the place in my head could find the power cells. I made my shield feed them energy to keep the fully charged at all times unless I needed the energy to actually protect myself. Once I back traced various wiring I located multiple colors of energy going into places on both sleeves, but not making a full circuit. Opening my eyes I found a number of buttons covered by flaps printed with the same computer generated camouflage pattern as the rest of the armor. Looking closer I could see buttons to turn on the system, activate the adaptive computer generated camouflage and turn on the special armor shielding. I turned the system on to have it power up every bell and whistle. My goggles showed that power was full and everything was good to go.

As I moved back into the shadows, I told the system to look for anyone around me. I also closed my eyes and had the place in my head remove everything around me for half a mile that wasn’t the ground, rocks, animals, weapons, or people. Buildings, trees, rocks and other blockages were a very light gray to give me a pretty good idea of what I would need to doge. While the goggles did better than in any video games, they still didn’t find the groups of goons looking for me.

In the building I saw that there were a few people, but they were sitting around a table playing cards. I didn’t see any guns, knives or even a simple baseball bat. Other than a few kitchen knives in a block at the sink, they didn’t have any weapons I could see. One person did stand out. It was the one who was supposed to be the old man’s private body guard.

Does he know it is me here on the island? Was he sent to protect me or kill me?

I got a weird feeling that made me go back to the gun cases. I found a case I hadn’t paid attention do when it was unloaded from the plane or when I moved it into the trees. It turned out to hold a big drum magazine very similar to the one for my MP5. The only difference I noticed were the bullets that were loaded in it. There were many spare boxes of bullets in foam cutouts inside the case. Looking closely at one I saw that it looked a lot like one of the old one-use flashbulbs. Using the place in my head I looked closer to find a tiny battery inside each one that was connected up to equally tiny circuit boards. The sub-machinegun I had right now used a bigger round than my MP5, so I only had fifty shots instead of the one hundred.

I hope I don’t need more than fifty of these bullets. I don’t want to kill anyone. I really have to focus on pulling out all of their good energy and putting them to sleep if I have to start using real bullets.

As I got the battery bullets swapped out for real ones, I notice groups heading towards me at the far end of my vision away from the old man’s bodyguard. Since going after those groups would put me farther away from him I headed toward two of the other group. I headed off as quickly as I could toward those two groups without making much noise. My goggles had to have some sort of analysis algorithms for quick travel in all sorts of terrain because they started plotting where I should step to make the least noise. It was definitely quieter than what I was doing a minute before.

“Target located. Two X-ray Lima Three Five,” I heard in my ear and saw on my goggles that the signal was coming from a group heading my way.

Now they are finally working right. I guess they can’t reach anywhere near as far as the place in my head.

From somewhere, not on this island, I heard, “Target is juvenile male. Capture and secure for transport. High probability of a short lasting physical altercation. Terminate any other targets.”

“Confirmed. Capture, subdue, secure,” a voice said from both of the groups moving toward me quickly.

When I moved further into the trees, they gave out updates on where I was heading. They were very well trained and damn fast. My goggles showed a group of animals a short distance away that were just a bit smaller than me so I ran hard in that direction. I turned off the camouflage as I got close to them. As I passed one small area, with a clear line of sight to one of the groups, I heard a “whump” a part of a second before a net when whizzing past where I had just been standing. When I got close to the animals I quickly cycled the camouflage back on. When I looked down at my arms and legs all I could see was the ground. I started using my goggles to help me walk slowly and quietly toward the bigger of the groups of animals. I found them to be huge wild boars. On the other side of the lake I found groups of baboons, orangutan, and gorillas.

I really need to read up on the difference. I really should know a baboon from a gorilla from an orangutan.

When I stopped to get an idea of where the group of men were now, I saw two groups were flanking me on each side and one was heading right for me.

As long as the groups moving up behind me don’t see me I can get to that group of rocks that will block all of them seeing me unless they are right on top of me.

I almost made it all the way behind them before something made a large thud as it hit the large rock beside me before there was another thudding into my side.

If not for my shield it would have hit the body armor hard enough to have knocked the breath out of me.

“Target seeking escape vector Two X-Ray Lima Four Nine,” a different voice said.

The group that had been in front of me and the one from one side had already gotten down below me on a lower path. I could see them joining together to head back my way. I heard another whump and then the sound of another net getting tangled up on the trees I had only just run past as they fired. I got myself behind a rock wall, got my sub-machinegun ready, turned and found that my goggles were tracking the targets now. I flipped on the green laser and fired two shots as fast as I could move from target to target. I watched the bursts of sparks as at least one of the bullets hit each target and caused them drop to the ground.

Shit! These stun bullets pack one hell of a punch!

Not wanting to leave anything to chance, I quickly drained their good energy and used the triplets sleep shield trick to keep them asleep for a while. I then moved to get a good bead on the larger group making their way around to get to me.

Didn’t think I could climb up and get behind you did you?

Finding the places in their heads to put them to sleep, and getting a hold on their good energy, I only shot them one time each. The stun bullets had enough punch to slow them down without quite hitting them as hard as two did to the others. I only had so many of these stun bullets in the big drum magazine, so I didn’t want to have to try to reload it. Just to make sure it wasn’t out of place, I made them only sleep about half as long as the first group I had stunned.

“Harper One, Tango Two and Orion Four incapacitated. Be cautious. Target appears to have unseen assistance,” I heard in my head and saw on the goggles.

The group with the man from the resort and two others were now approaching me very cautiously from the other direction. I took a few seconds to quickly look over the larger group I had knocked out. Two had the same sub-machineguns as I did with what looked like rubber bullets. I took three magazines of the rubber bullets.

I still had time before the last groups got to me, so I made myself think to my goggles to show me how they could find me so quickly with me wearing the camouflage. When I checked the last big group of these men I didn’t see anything to give them details for the other groups, my location or any basic terrain data. Having no other ideas I made myself see the energy that was bouncing off me. Following it showed me sensors hidden up in the trees all around me.

Multiple targets, silenced pistol, excellent accuracy. This I have practiced way too often to get a perfect mission score and all bonuses.

Getting my sub-machinegun back on the sling, I pulled my suppressed pistol out and moved quickly to take out the sensors. When the ones closest to me were gone I moved to shoot the ones further out before I was in the range of the approaching groups. Someone noticed.

“Triton Prime. Sensor grid failing. Unable to track subject,” I heard from whoever was talking to the groups from somewhere other than on this island.

The man I knew from the resort replied, “Acknowledged.”

Now that I had them blind they slowed down even more. I had already shot out the various sensors they were just moving towards. I saw that the man from the resort stayed back by the building with his group as the other two groups moved toward where I had knocked out the rest of their larger team. I stayed completely still as they walked right past me. Twice I had different members of both groups look right at me, but couldn’t see me because of the camouflage. When they were far enough away I grabbed onto their good energy and got the shield ready to go around the place in their brains to keep them asleep for a while. I started shooting so quickly that before the person in front of the one I just dropped could turn around; they were also being hit with a stun bullet.

Now that definitely noticed. They could hear the shots fired from the new submachinegun and yet they couldn’t see where the firing was coming from, only that the members of the two groups dropping like files.

Trying my best to move silently I got up on hill near the building and threw a stun grenade as hard as I could toward the group I had just knocked out.

My aim still sucks, but at least now I can definitely throw a baseball from center field all the way toward home. I would probably hit the fence behind the catcher, but at least I can get it there now.

It was such a long throw that it went off up in the top of the trees. That had a better effect than I could have hoped. The blast caused hundreds of birds to fly noisily into the air. I was able to get behind the last group and stun all of them except for the man from the resort. I made sure they were all put to sleep too. I dropped the now empty drum magazine and slammed home one of the magazines of rubber bullets. Knowing where I had bruised him at the resort. I quickly targeted three of the places on his back and one on his leg as he as turning around. I fired two more that hit him hard in his right shoulder.

He was looking down as I turned off the adaptive camouflage and walked up so he was looking at my boots, but still far enough away that it would cause him a lot of pain for him to try to move close enough to attack me.

“First you attacked me when I was unarmed and outnumbered. Why would one trusted to guard the most powerful man in the underworld think he could capture me when I’m armed with an arsenal provided by my three new families? Did you think my Aunt and Uncle would have let me travel unaccompanied without being well armed? Was my boarding school so private and secretive that no one knew we were taught how to defend ourselves? I didn’t lie when I said we learned to defend ourselves from being raped by the other boys. It is quite amazing how adept a boy will be at Kung Fu, Aikido and various other unnamed martial arts when being attacked by students who have trained years longer than they in the same disciplines,” I told him before reaching to pull his chin up to look at me. “You spoke of the fate that befalls a man when attacking a cornered animal. Why should I spare you of that fate?”

“Because I know you are a better man than all of than those sent against you. Our orders were to attempt capture. Failing to do so we were to use deadly force to terminate you. Or at least attempt to do so,” he told me as he struggled to stand up. “Of course you have no reason to believe that I was misled regarding the details about our target. Twice now you have spared my life. I don’t wish to be indebted to you a third time.”

Into his earpiece, he said, “All teams down. I have the target. What are your orders?”

A young man’s voice came through saying, “Bind him and bring him to us.”

Arrogant son of a bitch.

“I will remain in this location as you stow your gear. If you are able, I suggest you change into more casual apparel if it is available. No weapons or armor is required for this meeting. Indeed your skills make weapons unneeded against those awaiting your arrival,” the old man’s bodyguard told me. “I am honor bound to do my own duties. Soon all will be clear.”

I walked off around the side of the building to head over to where my gear was hidden. I quickly stripped, reloaded the stun dart cylinder, packed it all away and then found a pair of shorts and a cheesy vacation t-shirt. Sue had bought it for me as a spare for when we flew to pick up my “cousins.” I topped it all off with a pair of ninety-nine cent flip-flops.

The old man’s bodyguard’s eyes expressed his approval at how I was dressed. He wouldn’t tell me who was in the building, only that I would know what was going on as soon as I was led to face the men waiting.

Sounds like they are all pretty damn cocky to be in there with no weapons as they play cards. Do they think they are so untouchable as to not need any protection?

He led me into an area that entered behind the old man and three younger men. My hands had been bound, very securely, with both plastic zip cuffs and leather strips. I started to use the place in my head to weaken them when I realized that my shield feeding my muscles made me more than strong enough to break them easily. I was moved back out of sight of the old man as the men talked to the old man in a very crude Creole of the languages I had used to speak to him before.

“My father is weak! He allowed my sister, a mere weak female, to twist his mind to her will. Now her lover is being placed at the head of succession. Father has liquidated my businesses he gave to me when I became of age all because of her lover. My cousins were stripped of their means to make their own fortunes. What remains goes to my sister until her lover claims it for himself,” one man said.

He sounds like he is a servant speaking to a master in the servant’s uneducated version of this language.

Another said, “I am told the new male head in succession is only a mere little boy who hasn’t even developed into a man yet. My sister spends a night in his bed and now he joins her in running what is left of my family’s business? Father has become blinded by his fatherly love of my sister. He is very weak and stupid. All of my family’s businesses cannot survive without those which generate the largest income.”

The old man didn’t move much other than to turn his head slightly to the last man. Now this man was red with rage. I could see the veins popping on his forehead as he worked to keep his breath under control.

Seeing it was his turn to state his case he said flatly, “My uncle has proven unable to father a male heir. As you are aware, my family placed me as his successor. Under my control all of the family business ventures I have quadrupled the income every year since I was given the responsibility. He earned his place at the top by showing the same ruthless ambition I learned from watching him, but his fire has died. No longer does he lead my family toward prosperity, only ruin. Now he is merely catering to a boy toy for his daughter who he decreed will take his chair when he steps down. She is a dumb woman with no ability to make the hard choices to ensure we aren’t crushed by our rivals. Instead of keeping the succession in the family, he brings in an outsider. This can’t be permitted. Is not our way.”

With a wave of his hand, I was brought forward and thrown down onto the floor in front of the old man. His face was emotionless, but I doubt that of all of the possible people in the world to have warranted the costs to capture me, was he expecting it to be me on the floor before him.

Using a cheesy martial arts movie move I was quickly on my feet facing the old man as I said, in what I felt now as the very formal version of the languages used between the three families when they were had to meet, “I find myself in your presence lacking knowledge regarding the intricacies of these three families to which I have been named as the male heir. Each man here has a very valid grievance. I’m merely a fourteen year old boy. One fresh out of a highly structured world of a very secretive boy’s boarding school. I’m flown to a resort where the elitist of the elite in the world aren’t even deemed important enough to be invited. Before I had been on the island twelve hours I was summoned by the man upstairs. With no explanation he presents me with an unheard of privilege to explore my sexual interests with only minor restrictions. This you are already aware. Without my appearing to have any choice in the matter I’m escorted in each of the larger family’s suites to sleep with their daughters and wives who met the requirements of the restrictions I had agreed to honor. These three men before you now are rightfully angry at being displaced by an outsider. A mere child who was adopted into all three families as a son. This you also know.”

Yeah. I’m going to sit here to be quiet as I appear to be contemplating my words carefully. Those morons should know better than to speak out of turn with the old man here is giving me my say.

“What you don’t know is that I fully comprehend the world-wide economic disaster I would cause should I kill you where you sit. It is fully within my right to do so and take my place as your successor. Who would question that right given I speak your private language and I have twice been within your presence where no outsiders have ever been allowed. Likewise I have bested your private bodyguard.” I told him in a calm, but imposing, voice. “You know that isn’t how my parents ran their business and I will not dishonor my family’s name by doing that which is my right by the very code all of the family’s at the resort follow. Each time we have met you have treated me honorably and conversed with me as a peer, an equal, rather than a fourteen year old male who still has the body of a boy. Unless you wish to confirm otherwise, I will permit myself to believe you were by these men or have chosen to witness them demonstrating exactly why an outsider, a mere child, was chosen over them to head their families.”

All three were sitting up straight like I had gone around with a ruler to slap their knuckles with the skill and speed of an eighty year old nun in a Catholic orphanage.

Changing to the less formal version of the language that the old man had spoken to me, when I first met him, I said, “All three of you are quite ignorant and uniformed. Your actions here today were made in anger without a moment’s thought. A careless mistake of one unfit to attend to your families affairs. I don’t know a bit about your family businesses, but even a young child learns what happens when rash decisions are made. Obviously you are too stupid to comprehend that your sister or female cousin moved to the head of the line for succession because their fathers learned long ago that their daughters wouldn’t make such mistakes. Unless I have failed miserably to observe them properly, I’m quite sure not a one of you has the balls to challenge any of them. Before they began to become women you feared how they would respond should you cross them. Your claims about my still being a boy are correct. I haven’t finished the physical transformation into an adult, but I shan’t ever discuss our relationships as possible lovers one day. Do you think I’d be given access to the harems of two of the families and still manage to leave as virginal as I arrived? Have any of you even seen a one of the girls in your families naked since the day they hit puberty? What about your father’s wives? Have you confirmed any of the sexual claims you make with those with whom you claim I fucked? What about the men you so stupidly proclaim need to be killed so you can ascend to their seat at the head of the table? Did you question them about their reasons for why they have granted me, a completely outsider, my place at the right hand of their daughters? We all know not a one of you are man enough to take the action required to take what you believe is rightfully yours or you wouldn’t be sitting here whining like spoiled little children whose sister took away their toy. Depending on how you asked the questions of your fathers or uncles, they would have told you where you fit into their businesses or would be already be passing through the digestive tract of the local marine life around the resort. Each of you is a little spoiled snot-nosed brat in need of a good beating to show them they aren’t worthy to wipe a baby’s ass.”

Ah that did the trick. Finally. Mister hot-head over there just can’t control his temper as well as he thinks. In what universe would someone baited by middle school taunting even be placed in a position of power unless it was to have him be taken out due to his own stupidity.

Corwin’s cousin was out of his seat in seconds. He was so blinded by rage that all I had to do was twist my body and stick out my foot to cause him to go stumbling off into the table they had been using to play cards. After getting to his feet he really went out of his way to telegraph the haymaker punch he was sending toward my head. As it sailed over my head I stepped into him to cause him to roll over my hips and fall onto his back.