The White Feather- A story of infinite worlds

Time is on our Side

”You three, get out. Here, take this flare gun and use it only when you confirm heavy backup to assist the prison guards.” Thomas said, looking at the two men sitting in the back seat.

“Where do we rendezvous?” one of the men asked.

“Take your positions on the highest ground possible. Make sure you get a clear view of both routes leading to the prison. When we come back here, I will turn on the headlights for three seconds. You’ll have five minutes to get here or we roll without you. Clear?” Thomas said.

“You can count on us.” All three of them said.

“I hope so.” Thomas whispered to himself as they got out of the car.

“This wasn’t the plan Thomas! You do know what you're doing, right?” Veda screamed at Thomas. There wasn’t anyone else in the car except him and Thomas, so he was not worried about his reputation.

“I always have a plan. How do you think I surviv…” Thomas was saying when Veda cut him in the middle.

“Yeah yeah, don’t give me that crap again. At least if you have a plan, you can let me in on it. How can we be partners if you don’t trust me?” Veda hissed.

“I trust you. But I don’t trust your fuckbuddies.” Thomas said coolly, ignoring the heat coming from his adjacent seat.

“I’m not stupid. I can tell when someone is doubting me. If you had so many suspicions, why did you even agree to let me break in with you?” Veda said and looked away.

“Yeah, about that. You’re not coming with me. You’ll be on the lookout while I go in.” Thomas said.

“What?!” Veda shouted.

“Look, you're the symbol of resistance. How do you think your people will react when they find out their leader was slaughtered like a dog while breaking into a prison?” Thomas asked, looking into Veda’s eyes.

Veda was stupefied. Thomas took full advantage of the situation. He knew that Veda was too scared to walk into that monster of a building.

“Think about it. You're not risking only your life; you're risking thousands of others. It’s not worth it.” Thomas said calmly, allowing every word to pour into Veda’s head.

“So what do I do? Just stand here and let you go in on your own?” Veda said.

“Exactly. Because that’s what leaders do.” Thomas said and stopped the car.

Veda got out in silence. He was too ashamed to look at Thomas’ face.

“Here, take my rifle. If you shoot, then shoot to kill. Right in the f*****g head. You're our last stand. Are we cool?” Thomas asked.

Veda nodded.

“I just hope you're right about all this.” Veda said.

“Don’t worry my friend, time is on our side.” Thomas said with a mysterious smile and started the engine.

Thomas was in front of the thick prison wall. He had left the car one kilometer from the premises and took his time to get here, paying attention to every small sound and watching every angle.

Thomas pressed a button on his watch.

“Zeus, it’s time.” he said.

“Please confirm identity to proceed.” A girl spoke.

“Thomas White, confirmation code is 998217.” Thomas said.

Thomas felt a gust of wind behind him. He turned around and there they were. All four of them. He smiled at his team. They were the only people he could ever really trust.

“What happened to the rest?” Raptor asked.

“They thought it was impossible. I wonder what they would think if I told them about the time we broke into The White House to take out the rogue president whose plan to deal with terrorists was to drop nukes on them.” Thomas said and smiled.

“It’s good to see you, sir.” Raptor said and smiled back.

“So, what’s the mission?” Dillon asked.

Let’s have a look at Thomas’ team. He used to work with them until he single handedly took out Taliban, the most active and dangerous terrorist group in the world (of course they recovered, but never again did they gained as much power). He immediately caught attention over the ranks and was promoted. Henceforth, he carried out high-profile solo missions. But even the legends require help sometimes. So whenever he was on the edge, he called for his brothers. There were four of them- Raptor the sniper, Dillon the charming spy/assassin, Wanker the hacker and Warner the gunner. Each of them was the best of the best in their field. The reason Thomas was special is because he was the best in all of the fields.

“We have to break into this prison and I need manpower. We don’t have any time to waste so here goes the plan. Wanker will hack the cameras or play a loop while we blow a hole in this wall. Warner, I need you to compromise the wall with minimal noise. Then Raptor and Warner will get to the roof and put a jammer into the communications tower. Next, take down the front gate resistance. As soon as it is done, Wanker will break into the security room and shut down all cameras and motion sensors. Then Dillon and I will go in through the front door. As soon as we get inside, Wanker will lock all entry and exits. Warner and Raptor will take care of any backup that arrives. There will be some resistance inside but it’s nothing that Dillon and I can’t handle. As soon as the prisoners are out of their cells, we set up C-4 charges all over the building and escort the prisoners outside. Then, we’ll have some motherfucking fireworks. Clear?” Thomas said.

His team nodded and went to work without wasting any time. Warner whispered to his watch and spawned a lava bomb while Thomas and Dillon spawned MP5-SD, a powerful sub-machinegun that has a suppressor mounted, making it incredibly stealthy. Raptor was already carrying an AWM sniper rifle on his shoulder and holding a maverick assault rifle in his hands (also famous for its accuracy). Wanker was carrying a laptop bag on his back, and carrying a pistol in his hand (he wasn’t much of a shooter, whoops).

“Wanker?” Thomas said, looking at the hacker.

“I’m on it. This place has surprisingly good security for a regular prison. There are at least five firewalls to the mainframe.” Wanker said, looking at his tablet.

“How much time will it take for you to breach them?” Thomas asked.

“It’s already done. You guys are clear. Ain’t I the best to ever live?” Wanker said proudly.

“Yes you can blow me afterwards. Warner, let’s punch a hole in this ‘unbreakable’ wall.” Thomas said and double checked the magazine of his gun.

“You guys might want to stay back. The heat from this thing will melt your bones.” Warner said while he set up the timer.

All of them walked away cautiously. After thirty seconds, the bomb went off with a dull hiss and the brightness made all of them look away.

The heat melted a huge portion of the wall, and the steel inside continued to drip down in its molten form. They waited for it to cool down and as soon as they were clear, Thomas turned towards his teammates.

“Do you guys really need a motivational speech?” Thomas said.

“Yeah, let’s just get it done.” Dillon said.

“He’s right. You ain’t no Mandela.” Wanker said.

“Okay then, let’s deliver some souls to heaven…or hell. I don’t know, f**k it. Let’s add some kills on our accounts.” Thomas said.

“You see my point?” Wanker said, looking towards Dillon.

“I feel you brother.” Dillon smiled.

As they finally entered the premises, they were more cautious than ever. There was a reason why these guys were so deadly. Apart from their extraordinary skill sets, they always made sure that they had absolute control over the moment. Extreme focus, ruthlessness and sound mind were their deadliest weapons. If so much as a leaf fell from a tree at a distance, they would make sure that there isn’t a sniper lurking on the branch. It was a myth that their heart rate never crossed 120bpm, even in the most stressful of situations. And right now, this team was taking on a force of elite warriors, who had no suspicion that they were about to be executed.

Warner was the first one to enter, carrying a maverick in his hand. He was famous for the fact that he only scored headshots, making him a sick aimer. The others followed him inside. After confirming that they were clear, Raptor took a hold of his claw gun and aimed at the roof. After two minutes, he was climbing the wall followed by Warner. The others covered them.

“Here, take your laser comm. It’s not blocked by jammers.” Wanker said, handing Thomas a radio.

“Guys, we’re clear. Storming the front with knockout gas now.” Warner said on the radio after some time.

“Come on, we’re up. Put those masks on.” Thomas said and took off the mask from his utility belt.

“You do know that your utility belt dosen't go with the suit, right?” Wanker said to Thomas.

Thomas looked at his belt for a second without stopping.

“Yes of course.” He replied hesitantly, promising in his mind that he’s never wearing that belt again.

By the time that they reached the front door, the guards were already lying on the floor, with some of them trying hard to stay conscious.

“We should disarm them in case they wake up.” Wanker said.

Thomas went up to one of the half-conscious ones and shot him in the head. Dillon followed and it soon became a race.

“Or we could just shoot them in the head. Great idea guys.” Wanker said.

“I got seven.” Thomas said with triumph.

“I got six, but we can’t count your first kill because I wasn’t ready. So, it’s a draw. Good luck next time.” Dillon said.

“You f*****g spies.” Thomas said and smiled. Dillon smiled back.

“There, the door is unlocked. I’ll radio you as soon as I’m in control of the security.” Wanker said, gripping his pistol.

“Yeah, good luck. Don’t piss your pants.” Dillon said. Wanker didn’t answer.

“This seems too easy.” Thomas said.

“I’ve been thinking the exact same thing.” Dillon said, looking suspiciously around him.

“Helena, scan the building for heat signatures.” Dillon whispered to his watch after some time.

“Scan failed, too much obstruction.” Helena replied after several retries.

“The walls are too thick. f**k!” Dillon said.

“I know.” Thomas whispered. He took out a cigarette and put it in his mouth. He then took a 360 degree turn, frowning and noticing every single detail around him. His eyes froze at the main gate.

“It isn’t locked.” He whispered.

“What?” Dillon asked.

“The entrance isn’t locked. Think about it- this is the most secure prison in the city. It has laser fence on its walls, but no lock on the main door?” Thomas said, still staring at the large iron gate.

“Also, there are no guards around the perimeter. So they have an army at the gate, but no one is guarding the walls? Their either dumb or…” Dillon was saying but Thomas cut him in the middle.

“Or this is a trap.” Thomas completed him. Electricity ran down both of their spines as the radio crackled.

“Guys, stay where you are. Don’t move.” Raptor said over the radio.

“What is it?” Wanker asked from inside the building.

“I just saw birds flying from the bushes, about five hundred feet uphill.” Raptor replied.

Birds don’t fly at night, unless disturbed. There was a brief moment of confusion. Thomas and Dillon looked at each other.

“We just walked into a slaughter.” Both of them said at once.