GI Joe: The Rise of Cobra

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Chapter Twenty-Seven

Early the next morning, the entire Joe team assembled in the Pit. Duke stood in the front of the command center, wearing khaki pants and a black shirt. Gathered in front of him was the entire team, including Stalker, who was seated gingerly in a chair, looking tired. Scarlett and Clutch stood in front, looking more awake than the others. Shipwreck, Gung-Ho, Short Fuse, and Heavy Duty stood around, while Breaker was seated at a nearby computer terminal. In the back of the room stood Snake Eyes, nearly blending into the shadows, and General Hawk, who watched the proceedings with his arms crossed and a pleased expression on his face.

Behind Duke was a large plasma screen television turned on to show satellite images of a wooded area viewed from a high altitude.

“Okay, here's what we have so far,” Duke started, nodding toward Breaker, who tapped a few keys. The satellite image zoomed in to reveal roads and some tiny gray squares in the middle of the wilderness that must have been buildings.

“Right now you're looking at a small town in Kansas called Springfield. It was founded in the early 1800s as a town for coal workers. However, all the local coal mines were stripped around 1940 and the town, as far as we can tell, was abandoned soon after. Up until a couple of years ago, the place was basically a ghost town. There are no records of anyone living there for at least the past 20 years.”

Duke opened up some folders spread out on a table next to him. “And as far as we can tell, no one owned any of the land, either. Until recently, that is. Four years ago, it seems that a company called Perfect Living Associates applied to purchase most of the land in and around Springfield. We can't find records of the exact amount, but it's possible that the entire town could have been sold for just a few million, since it was basically unwanted land in the middle of nowhere.”

Duke cleared his throat and took a drink. He didn't like speaking like this in front of groups of people, but he decided that he would get used to it. He glanced up to see Short Fuse looking at him with a sarcastic look on his face.

“Anyway,” Duke continued. “Perfect Living Associates no longer exists. They were a subsidiary of another company called Advanced Property Developers, who were then bought out by another company. It gets pretty tangled, but one of the companies involved in all these real estate deals was called Arbco Developments.”

“I think I see where you're going with this,” Gung-Ho commented.

“Yeah,” Duke said. “Just like Arbco Marketing. And Arbco Construction, and all those other companies.”

“Are there any other connections?” Scarlett asked. “I don't want to sound skeptical, but it sounds pretty thin so far.”

Breaker blew a bubble and it popped loudly. He spoke up, leaning back in his chair. “We found some banking information for Arbco Marketing that connects them with Arbco Transportation, a trucking company. Thanks to the FBI, we have records from the trucking company that shows they made numerous shipments to the same zip code as Springfield, going back over a year.”

“Thanks, Breaker,” Duke said, glad for the interruption. “Can you zoom in this image some more?”

The satellite image came in closer, but became blurry. “That's as close as it gets,” Breaker said apologetically. “I don't know how old this picture is, either. It might be six months old for all we know.”

“That's good enough,” Duke said. He used a laser pointer to indicate some whitish rectangles off to the side of one of the long roads heading into the town. “These are trucks, I think. And this looks to me like some kind of construction site. We're trying to get some verification on that.”

Hawk spoke up from the back of the room. “What about the video, Duke?”

“Yes, I was getting to that,” Duke replied. Actually, he had nearly forgotten about it, getting caught up in the details of the small town of Springfield. Thankfully, Hawk was there to steer him back on course. “Can we switch to that video, Breaker?”

“Sure thing,” Breaker said, casually tapping some more keys. A new window popped up on the plasma screen and expanded to show a security video from what appeared to be a parking garage.

“Did they find footage from the parking lot?” Scarlett asked.

“Not exactly,” Duke said. “This is a security camera from a parking structure a few blocks from Arbco. The time on this was six o'clock in the morning.”

The video started, showing a black-and-white view of one of the rows of parking spots . Several large trucks and vans were parking in most of the spaces. A large set of doors at the end of the aisle opened, and a group of men came out, wheeling large carts behind them. The video went on for a few minutes, as more people came out, carrying equipment and computers and loading them into the vehicles.

“Those doors lead to a maintenance tunnel,” Duke explained. “It goes right into the sewers and you can guess the rest. That's how they got everything out without anyone noticing.” He pointed at the screen and said, “The interesting part is coming up right now.”

Most of the trucks and vans pulled out of their parking spots and drove away without the camera getting a good look at their license plates. But the last van, at the front of the aisle, was close enough to the camera that it got a clear image of the plate.

“The FBI traced that license plate to a staffing agency in New York. They raided the place about three hours ago, and it was empty. The company was nothing but a few empty offices. But they did find some leftover paperwork in a dumpster out back, which included purchase invoices from various other companies. The address on most of them was listed as Springfield, Kansas.”

“So exactly what are we dealing with here?” Gung-Ho asked after a moment. “This little town is what? Their base of operations?”

“We think so,” Duke said. “And we've received authorization to go there and find out. The FBI and local law enforcement will assist.”

“When do we leave?” Scarlett asked.

“Right now,” Hawk answered. “As soon as we can get out the door.”

“So let's not waste any time,” Duke added, stepping forward and speaking to the members of the team in turn. The team seemed to gravitate around him as he gave them their orders.

“Clutch, get the MPAVs ready, we're taking both of them. Heavy Duty and Short Fuse, you two handle the ordnance, take whatever you think will come in handy and get it loaded up. Shipwreck and Gung-Ho, take some time and study those satellite pictures. I would like a plan of action as soon as possible. Give Hawk your recommendations for an assault plan.”

He turned to the others and said, “Breaker, get us some transportation. You're coming along too, don't forget.”

“I wouldn't miss it for the world, man,” Breaker said.

“Scarlett, you and Snake Eyes are going to do primary surveillance and intelligence. Talk it over with the others, but I think you two should parachute in ahead of us and let us know what we're up against.”

“Yes, sir,” Scarlett said with an excited smile on her face. She ran off and Snake Eyes followed silently after her.

Hawk gave Duke a wide grin, and Duke shrugged it off as he walked over to Stalker.

“What about me?” Stalker asked with a weary smile.

“I think you're going to have to sit this one out,” Duke said apologetically. “You're still too injured to go out on a mission like this.”

Stalker nodded, although the disappointment was clear on his face. “Yeah, I guess I understand that. The doc said that I'm lucky to be alive at all, so I guess I shouldn't push my luck, huh?”

“Just stay here and get healthy,” Duke advised. “We'll be in constant contact with you here at the Pit, so I promise you won't miss anything.”

“Thanks,” Stalker said. “And good luck out there.”

Duke patted Stalker gently but reassuringly on the shoulder and headed out of the command center, with Hawk walking beside him.

“Good job, Duke,” Hawk said.

“Thank you, sir.”

“I think you're going to grow into a fine commander. I know you're still a bit nervous about giving orders, but you're doing a great job so far. The team likes you, and better than that, I think they trust you. That's the most important thing a team can give their commander.”

Duke felt uncomfortable receiving such praise, so he changed the subject. “Are you going to come along with us, sir?”

Hawk shook his head. “No, I think I'll stay here at the Pit and keep Stalker company.”

“Hey, Duke,” Breaker called out. “They have a transport plane waiting at Andrews just for us. We have priority clearance.”

“Okay, excellent,” Duke replied. “I'll let the others know.”

Down in the garage, Clutch updated the MPAV data systems and ran diagnostic checks, and made sure the vehicles were fully fueled and armed. From the armory, Heavy Duty and Short Fuse appeared, carrying weapons and equipment. Short Fuse loaded half a dozen M-16 assault rifles into one of the MPAVs, while Heavy Duty carried over the XM250C Minigun and set it inside the other vehicle.

“You have a chance to shoot that thing yet?” Clutch asked, eyeing the Minigun.

“Oh yeah,” Heavy Duty answered with a chuckle. “I shot off a few clips yesterday down in the firing range. Man, that thing is a beast.”

“You think you'll actually need it today?”

“I like to be prepared. Those Cobra guys we fought the other day weren't shy about shooting back at us, were they? If we're gonna get into a firefight, I want the biggest, baddest gun on the battlefield.” Heavy Duty patted the casing of the XM250C affectionately. “And this baby is it.”

Back in the command center, as Gung-Ho and Shipwreck discussed the assault plan with Hawk and Duke, Snake Eyes appeared and walked over to where Stalker was sitting. Stalker nodded and motioned to a chair beside him.

“Sorry, I can't go with you, Snake. I gotta stay here. Doctor's orders.”

Snake Eyes sat down and hunched forward, resting his elbows on his knees. He glanced at Duke and the others, and then slowly turned to look at Stalker. His eyes were invisible behind the shining black visor, but Stalker saw meaning and emotion in his body language that no one else could ever decipher.

“Listen,” Stalker said gently. “You know he's going to be there, right?”

Snake Eyes nodded.

“He probably realized it was you, even with your mask on. He would have recognized your fighting style.”

Snake Eyes did not nod this time, but his shoulders drooped ever so slightly.

Stalker weighed his words very carefully. “If you see him, you can't let your feelings get in the way. Whatever happened between the two of you, that's all in the past now. He's not the same person anymore, Snake.”

Duke announced over the intercom for everyone to meet up in the garage and get ready to leave. Snake Eyes sighed and stood up, taking a deep breath, his arms straight at his sides.

“He would have killed Hawk,” Stalker reminded him. “And he damn near killed me. Don't think that he won't try to kill you too, if he gets the chance. If you have to fight him again, you're going to have to accept that.”

Snake Eyes let out his breath slowly, shaking his head almost imperceptibly. But Stalker knew what he was thinking.

“You don't have a choice, Snake. I know you think of him like a brother. But he's our enemy now. And he's not going to surrender, you know he won't. If you fight him again, you're going to have to fight to win. And if he won't back down, and you have no choice, you're going to have to kill him.”

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