1 1. Chasing The Devil

A black van crossed the traffic lights in the early hours of the night. The rush of vehicles was less tonight as compared to every other night as today was the most awaited baseball match between the local champions. And the whole town took that opportunity to spend a good time with their family and friends.

When the other cars ran in the North and towards the baseball stadium, this van cut the distance in the direction South of the town.

Taking a sharp left turn, the van left the concrete road behind to take the old road with bumps and gravel. Not long after, its flashlight showed an abandoned factory on the outskirts of the city.

In the pitch-dark night, only a single bulb at its entrance flickered as a guide. The van screeched to a halt, and five pairs of legs stepped down, clad in heavy shoes and dark pants.

The driver waited until all of them got down the van and once the last person closed the door behind him, he swirled the steering and the van left, leaving behind a trail of dust in the air.

Those five people did not find it hard to make a beeline for the entrance of the factory. Two big metal locks secured the entrance. But those were not their priority.

One of the two women stepped forward and raised her hands to turn the bulb. It stopped flickering instantly. Not saying any word or making any sound, they left the entrance and walked towards the back side of the factory.

There was another closed metal door. A man knocked on it five times and then pushed the brick beside the door to reveal a machine. He punched the passcode, and the very next moment, the door opened with a creak.

All five of them stepped inside, and the door closed behind them automatically. The bulb at the entrance of the factory began flickering again.

Walking through the dark, they reached the stairs, but instead of going upward, they skipped the stairs to go underground. Not a minute later, they entered a large hall where no wall was mundane without screens, a complex web of wires, various machines, laptops and everything that you see in those offices of secret agencies in the movies and shows.

The five of them stopped a few feet away from a man, who was waiting for their arrival though they reached him at the right time. They all greeted him with a salute.

"Relax." the man in his early sixties commanded.

The five people crossed their hands behind their backs as they nodded in understanding.

"Is everything ready?" The man named Chief Rodriguez asked with a serious tone. His sharp eyes observed each one of them carefully.

"Yes, sir! We are all ready for the mission sir." A man spoke in a confident voice.

Chief Rodrigues nodded in satisfaction.

"Officers, this might be our last mission for both you and me. I am retiring next week, and for the past decade of my life, I have spent on this one particular case.

I have personally selected you brave and intelligent people for this task, and so far, we have achieved so much in such a short time. And I am very proud of you all... of us!" He said in a definitive tone.

A sense of satisfaction washed over the five faces, which soon turned into grave seriousness.

"Tonight we are not going only on a mission but it... is a war! A war against the biggest criminal of not only this country but the whole world. A man who started from scratch became the mafia leader of the country. And within a short span of only two years, he has already grown up his empire that stretched to every nook and corner of the world."

They watched as the man's face twitched in anger as he spoke vehemently. "Every time... every time I got my hands on him, he managed to slip out of my hold effortlessly. And then came more destruction than before.

My colleagues, and my seniors, laughed at me. They taunted me, saying a kid was fooling me in his game. But now, finally, we have found an opportunity... a golden opportunity to catch that bastard!

Once I get my hands on him, I swear a week is enough for me to squeeze out every detailed information about him. Death is the easiest punishment he could ever get. So don't forget that I want him alive! Is that clear?"

"Yes sir!" The group said in a unison.

Taking a long drag of air, Chief Rodriguez said, "You are my precious asset T5. I wish all of you will attend the next meeting after the completion of this mission!"

Officers or not, the group named T5 knew who they were messing with. They caught the underlying warning in Chief Rodriguez's comment. Because they all knew that they were about to walk into the den of a hungry lion and returning back safely was only a foolish hope.

"Come on, it's time for some action!"

The group saluted Chief Rodriguez again and hurried to the back of the hall where the trunks of weapons and ammunition were ready. They all wore bulletproof jackets and filled their pockets with extra bullets, knives and other small weapons that could be handy in any situation.

"Dwayne, can you help in fastening these straps?" A grade one officer from Internal Affairs division asked a tall man with brown eyes and chestnut brown hair with a sugary sweet smile.

Dwayne was a man with a few words and the best one in their team. He was especially loved by Chief Rodriguez for his intelligence, presence of mind and strength.

The other three officers rolled their eyes. Women loved flirting with the kind and soft-spoken man. They always found an excuse to get his attention and as naive as Dwayne was, he didn't understand the hidden intentions.

He helped his fellow member in fastening the straps of the bag she had to carry for the mission. As soon as he turned around after getting a thank you from her, the other female member was ready with her shoes.

With a small smile, Dwayne kneeled down on one knee and helped her in wearing the shoes.

"I wonder for what Dwayne gets the salary from the department? I mean is it for his official job or the unofficial extra efforts he put in?" A male member of the team snickered, but anyone could tell that he was jealous of Dwayne.

"Shut up! You are just jealous of him!" The other member said.

"I can help you too if you need it!" Dwayne said after straightening up to his full height.

"Of course, I need one Dwayne. When that bastard King will have all of our asses on the stove and one needs to sacrifice their life to save others, please be kind enough to jump on that noble chance!"

The two men high-fived and began laughing heartily but the female members didn't look very impressed by their joke.

"You shold know by now that our enemy is not someone to joke about. We are tracing him for months now. We began with thirteen people and now look at us. Only five of us have been lucky to be safe." The officer from IA chided her colleagues.

"She is right. And after tonight, we don't know if we are going to come back alive. So this might be our last night to be respectful with each other at least." The other lady officer supported the first one.

"You both are overestimating that bastard. I know that we have lost many of our men and resources but if we have come this far then we will definitely catch him live."

"You just wait! Once I get my hands on that pig's collar, I will not hesitate to make him lick my shoes!" Both men gritted their teeth in anger.

But Dwayne was calm all this time. He had handled many mafia men, but he knew the person they were aiming for was not the one to underestimate. He knew what he had to do to get to his goal.

He would succeed today!

Ten minutes later, they left that factory and climbed up in a bulletproof vehicle, which was waiting for them in the dark.

Though Chief Rodriguez was not accompanying them, he was alert and ready with enforcement in their base.

"Cheetah24... coming Cheetah24. Can you hear me?" Rodriguez sat in a chair in front of a large screen with headphones on his head and a microphone near his mouth.

His other assistants were ready and alert at their respective positions filling him with every detail of the happenings.

"Yes, copy that Chief!" He heard from the other side.

Rodrguez's eyes were glued to the big screen where multiple windows were open at the same time. In one window, he could see the recording from the dashcam of the team's vehicle. On another screen, he could see if someone was following them or was there any other traceable signals on their way.

On the third screen, the details of the thermal images and heat mapping showed them the place where they knew King- the world's biggest criminal was hiding.

"Cheetah24, be careful with the next turn." Chief Rodriguez warned after twenty minutes of driving. In between, he kept barking instructions and orders not only to T5 but also to his other officers.

Every person on the base was tensed and nervous about this mission. Not many people knew about it because one thing they had found in their investigation was that King had his connections deeply rooted in every single government and public sector department.

His connections were not restricted to the higher officials only, but his people worked to the grass-root level too. And thus, the danger of leaking the details of this mission was more than any other missions they had handled in their whole careers.

Not only the government but also the whole world had their eyes on this faceless man. Only Rodriguez knew what a laborious task it was to get the whole data on the world's most feared man who had not given a single public appearance in his whole life.

Hell, they still even didn't know his first name, and they doubted the authenticity of his last name- KING!

Every person who had tried to track down King was either found dead or went missing mysteriously without any trace. Everybody was aware of his hand behind every case. Unfortunately, nobody could do anything about it.

Rodriguez remembered how his colleagues wondered after a decade of chasing, why King hadn't got his hands on him. Rodriguez had spent sleepless nights thinking about the same but got no asnwer.

Only King had it!

Rodriguez tensed once the vehicle entered the perimeter of an old club in the area. The usually packed club was quite deserted today because of the baseball match with only five-six cars parked in its parking lot.

"Chief... we have reached the location and everything seems alright." The man who was given the name Cheetah24 said, glancing around the quiet place.

Chief Rodriguez squinted his eyes as he carefully watched the recording from the dashcam.

"That is what irking me." He whispered, not getting good vibes from the situation.

"Start your cameras and don't forget... I. want. King. ALIVE!"

"Yes chief!"

Within seconds five more small screens appeared in front of Chief Rodriguez. Every officer had a small camera fit on their chest, which showed their every moment on the base.

T5 had stopped their van a little away from the club to not draw any attention. Dwayne used the night vision goggles with thermal imaging. The device was very useful in nighttime operations as it gave a clear idea about the place in the absence of light.

Cheetah24 also had his goggles on.

"Dwayne look. They are hidden in and around the club." he pointed to the right of the club.

The old club was famous for its disco music from the late 70s and 80s and was still a favourite place for people to hang out. It was especially packed at the weekends and thus a perfect property to catch King's eyes.

That man was a smart investor. He didn't care if the asset is small or big, if it meant he could make good money, then he must have it!

Dwayne also noticed the orange-green figures hidden in the shrubs around the club. Then he also found some hidden in those cars.

Five men kept watch from the roof, and the four windows in four directions on the top floor had snippers appointed and ready with their weapons.

"Shit! They have Nr.1 Barret M82." Cheetah24 cursed. But Dwayne ignored him.

More than a weapon, the hands handling it are the most dangerous! Dwayne remembered his father's words.

"How many are them?" A lady officer asked.

"Fifteen. Five on the roof, four on the top floor, three in the cars and three in the shrubs." Dwayne gave the details.

The other lady officer pulled out a tab and tapped on its screen with the stylus, and a moment later, a 3-D image popped out of the screen.

She could move it in all directions with the help of the stylus. It was the blueprint of the club. They noted the exact locations of the enemies and made a plan.

They divided the team into two groups. The first team had two members- Cheetah24 and one lady officer. And the other team had 3 members- Dwayne, the lady officer from IAD and one male officer.

Team A took the charge of tackling the men hidden in the shrubs and the cars. And Team B decided to charge at the club once team A clears the ground for them.

They got a nod from Chief Rodriguez as he could listen to their conversation clearly.

Team A silently climbed down the van, and instead of taking the road, they took the way where the trees and the shrubs would act as a blanket to keep them safe from the enemy's eyes.

With all-black attire, they had camouflaged in the dark well. Rodriguez and the people in the base watched in anticipation, their eyes were locked on the big screen.

Ten minutes passed, and Team B saw them approaching the cars. Rodriguez released a shaky breath after completing the first step of the mission. In the next five minutes, the three men hid in the cars, had been taken care of and now it was time for Team B to get in the action.

They had decided to attack from the left as many people along with King were present in the right part of the building according to the thermal images they had got.

"Be careful, Dwayne. He has his men ready around the perimeter of two kilometres." Chief Rodriguez warned, looking worriedly at the red spots around the club on one of the screens in front of him.

"Yes, Chief!" Dwayne whispered.

He directed his teammates with his hand gestures, and the two of them did what he had told them. They spot the snipper ready with his weapon on the top floor. They couldn't enter inside without killing him, or the men on the roof would be alert.

"There is no way to get him Dwayne. One mistake and the sound of windows shattering would alert them." The lady officer whispered into the microphone.

But Dwayne's mind was running faster than hers. He again used his night vision goggles to get a clear picture. The left corner of his lips stretched upwards when he found a narrow opening. The window was slightly open for the barrel of the snipper's weapon.

And that was enough for him to get at him.

"Cheetah24, give me the exact positions of the men on the roof."

The man obliged and gave detailed instructions to Dwayne. Once he made sure of the right time, Dwayne pulled out a small red laser light and flashed it nearby him for the snipper to notice.

He chose the time when the men on the roof were busied in smoking.

True to his expectations, the snipper caught the small red light in the bushes and instantly placed his finger on the trigger. He placed his eye behind the lens to get a closer look at what it was, and that was Dwayne's clue.

Without wasting even a fraction of a second, he pulled the trigger aiming below the barrel of the weapon. His powerful bullet hit straight to the sniper's throat.

Chief Rodriguez smiled proudly. "Didn't I say he is damn good at his job?!"

The people around him nodded in agreement. The women members were especially ecstatic by Dwayne's aim and wished someday his eyes also aim for them too.

Now that they had an opening, Dwayne didn't waste time and ran straight to the building. Behind him, team A was ready with the highly advanced harpoon guns and aimed for the top floor, where they had a safe passage to enter the building.

They shot the hooks, and the machine did its work. Four spider-like mechanical legs popped out of the spear and penetrated deep into the walls. By that time, Dwayne was already at the foot of the building. He checked the rope by tugging at it forcefully, and once sure, he was already climbing the wall at the speed of a lizard.

His teammates were hot on his trail. Within two minutes, they were already inside the club. They were so focused on their tasks that they didn't realise the pop music blasting through the speakers on the ground floor where the dance floor and a bar were.

They had chosen a great time for the mission. King didn't expect an attack at all and thus had his guards down. And even with that advantage, only T5 knew how much preparation they had to do to get here.

If he had any slightest of the idea about the attack, then... that thought only made them shudder in fright.

Once all five of them entered the club, they took different directions and began checking every nook and corner of the place, ready to face any surprise attack.

They faced some of King's men but took them down with not many efforts.

Dwayne signalled Team A to get the men on the roof and then advanced further into the building with his other two teammates.

Within the next ten minutes, they had the top floor clear, and the roof was taken care of by Team A. Dwayne signalled with his hand gestures to go for the lower floor. His teammates split in both corridors, checking every room.

Dwayne walked further down and hid behind the corner, looking at the ground floor where a mafia party was going in a full swing.

Chief Rodriguez could see the scenario on his screen, but the only problem was the lighting of the space. The red lights dominated the picture, with shadows obstructing the clear view.

Dwayne's brown eyes searched for their ultimate target-King, but it was difficult to locate him from where he was.

"Dwayne, be careful. He must be somewhere hidden in the shadows. That rat is too scared to face the light!" Chief Rodriguez warned.

While searching for King, Dwayne noticed a closed door near the end of the stairs.

"Chief." He whispered, moving his camera for Chief Rodriguez to get a view of that door.

Amongst the twenty or so men enjoying the drinks over the conversation and cigars, Rodriguez noticed what Dwayne was pointing at.

"I don't know why but I think I should check that room. We haven't found anything on the top two floors and on the groundfloor there is only this one room."

Rodriguez understood what Dwayne was saying, but for some reason, he found his forehead matted with sweat.

"Wait for your teammates." He said.

"We don't have that much time, Chief. We need to act before they realise our presence." Dwayne argued.

After a minute of back and forth, Chief Rodriguez warned him, "Be careful and come back alive!"

"Yes chief!"

Getting a nod from the Chief, Dwayne jumped from where he was and onto the ground as silently as a cat.

Rodriguez held his breath, seeing Dwayne opening the door. As soon as Dwayne entered inside and closed the door behind him, the darkness covered the screen.

When Dwayne didn't turn on the light, Rodriguez grew impatient.

"Turn on the lights, Dwayne. I cannot see anything."

Rodriguez's face scrunched up in worry as undecipherable sounds blasted through his headphone.

"Dwayne? Dwayne? Answer me?"

And then he heard a loud groan before an equally loud thump. And before he opened his mouth again, he lost his connection with Dwayne.