“Understood,” Laredo said. “We are in support distance right now. Gus fed the mosque coordinates into our weapons system. We’re ready.”
Johnny backed in beside the mosque, the hands on his watch reading a little after one in the morning. The three kept dressed for the time being while approaching without weapons showing. Before nearing the mosque’s entrance, Jean fired their wide range EMP weapon at the approach while Johnny and Cala took positions on either side of the approach. By prior agreement, if they could talk or shoot their way past the guards, the armory they were certain had been placed in the mosque would be target one. Jean threw the electromagnetic pulse weapon in the car again. She then ran past her two guards to the front with a hand held battering ram, tried the door, determined the locking mechanism, and smashed through with one stroke of the ram.
Automatic weapons fire sliced through the opening as Jean slipped to the side, dropping the ram, and readying her weapon. Johnny and Cala ran to the other side with Johnny pulling the pin on a grenade. They knew the armory would not be on the main floor of the mosque. He tossed it in. It made a spectacular explosion inside with fire and debris shooting out the open entrance. Johnny waited twenty seconds and threw another one in harder. Jean smiled as the second one exploded with screams of agony.
Shouting, running figures firing wildly approached, only to be cut down immediately from above. Sirens sounded on the highest tower which also acted as the call to prayer for the murderous cult. Johnny, Jean, and Cala crossed paths firing in short bursts after slipping on their night-vision helmets with breathing filters. They fired indiscriminately into every body alive or dead they found. The damage from the grenades appeared ancillary rather than structural. Firing outside increased every minute, but the three knew the mosque had to be cleared before proceeding to look for the hidden armory.
“Main floor secure,” Johnny stated.
“Secondary force on the way,” Clint said.
Devon zigzagged through the compound’s streets with the two UH-60M helicopters in support with ‘Ride of the Valkyries’ blasting from both helicopters’ sound systems. They fired the Yak-B Gatling guns, making sure everything in front of secondary force died. John shot ahead as the armored vehicle neared the mosque and blew the prayer tower and siren to pieces. Devon whipped the armored vehicle into a slide bringing it around to face the escape route. Secondary force deployed around the mosque. Quinn and Clint Jr. halted at the entrance.
“Kong and Cutthroat at the door, Viper. Secondary force deployed.”
“Come ahead. We’re at the access to the underground part, we-”
As Quinn ran toward the access with Clint Jr. watching his back the rear of the building exploded. He spotted Jean, Johnny, and Cala diving to the floor. Quinn ran through the exploded section, taking the force of five rushing at it completely by surprise. He smashed through them like bowling pins. Close order combat followed unlike anything the attacking men expected. Quinn and Clint Jr. drew their K-bar knives without hesitation, knowing from experience the lethal shock their vicious stabbing attack would cause. Only one of the enemy who had been at the back after firing the rocket launcher broke free. He stood to shoot down into the milling mass of warriors. Jean’s MP5 burst blew his face apart.
The bloodied Marines finished off the other four enemy with killing strokes up through their chins. A larger attacking force moved toward them from the maze of buildings behind the mosque, firing as they came.
“Get down, Kong and Cutthroat!” Nick’s sharp order was obeyed instantly by the two Marines. M2 Browning machine gun fire cut through the rear assault party with devastating accuracy. Bodies nearly cut in half pitched all around until John Harding landed the UH-60M into the street’s rear, firing the Yak-B Gatling guns in a tight rotating fashion, clearing out everything in their path. “Sorry, Kong. We saw the threat, but couldn’t move into position with the M2 until a moment ago. Thanks, Cheese.”
“Combat… the inexact science, right Muerto? I didn’t see anything move down there when I took out the tower. One more inexact science moment and we back out and let the ‘Ghostrider’ turn this place into dust.”
“Agreed,” Nick said. “Anyone hit down there?”
“Cleaner’s wounded.” Johnny worked to staunch the blood oozing around the wooden stake from the rear debris explosion, knowing better than to extract it.
Quinn and Clint Jr. arrived at her side a moment later. Quinn gathered her into his arms and headed for Harding’s stealth. Issac helped him ease her into an emergency gurney on board the UH-60M. Johnny dived in with her.
“Achmed! Move into support position,” Harding ordered. “I’ll fly Cala to T for transport.”