A/N: I believe I saw a story like this once… To those who don't know, I have scoured the Alex Rider fandom for good fanfics. I read that one fanfic (which I believe was posted a looong time ago) and ever since, I've wanted to post something like it: just a little bit more… embellished. I credit the original person with the idea, hope he/she doesn't see this and want to kill me, and state that everything, but part of the plot, is mine. Even Alex. Only joking…
Disclaimer: I sadly do not own Alex Rider. Let me cry in peace.
Dire Circumstances
"It was my duty to shoot the enemy, and I don't regret it. My regrets are for the people I couldn't save: Marines, soldiers, buddies. I'm not naive, and I don't romanticize war. The worst moments of my life have come as a SEAL. But I can stand before God with a clear conscience about doing my job."
Chris Kyle
Matthew Hall looked up at the soldiers, eyes shining with an unknown emotion. He stared at their fatigues. He gaped at the little Union Flag, sown onto their uniforms. He gawked at their berets, with the little sword with wings and their logo embroidered in it. Who Dares Wins.
Someone nudged him, "Dude! Close your mouth. You're drooling."
Matthew closed his mouth with a snap, wiping at his face. Indeed, he had been drooling, but only a little. He flushed, turning a lovely shade of tomato in front of the SAS soldier.
He couldn't help it. His father had been a Lieutenant in the SAS, code named Nighthawk. He had died when Matthew was ten, far away from home. His last sight of the Earth had been a desolate desert, filled with one color: beige. A boring color to look at.
Matthew looked back up at the soldier, who was now giving his speech. He regained his doe-eyed look, staring at the man with undisguised admiration.
"Being in the SAS isn't a game," the man was saying, "We serve our majesty's country in every way possible. We do the dirty work. We get dirty. Sometimes, we consider ourselves dirty."
Matthew inwardly shook his head frantically. The soldiers weren't dirty. Never.
"But we live with that feeling because we know we're doing everything for the greater good. We live with that feeling because we're protecting the innocent. We live with that feeling because we were, we are, and we will always be…"
Matthew soaked in every word.
Dire*Circumstances
"100… 101… 102…!"
Matthew snarled at his body, scolding his arms for shaking and his muscles for burning.
"103… 104… Keep it up, men! This ain't cadets!"
He gave one last heave before he toppled over, panting from the exertion. He waited for the angry Sergeant's voice to scold him. He waited for the angry glares to land on him.
"About time, kid."
Matthew looked up, panting. The Sergeant gave him an approving look. The rest of the recruits were still on the ground, moaning.
"Stand to attention." The Sergeant commanded, his voice low. It carried amongst the recruits anyway.
They snapped to attention, perfectly in line.
"The moment that you've all been waiting for is nearly here," the Sergeant strolled up and down their line, "but first, you must prove yourself worthy one last time."
A truck was roaring down the path, and Matthew could see that it was filled with soldiers. Seasoned, experienced soldiers, with wide grins plastered to their faces. They were a minute away, perhaps even less.
"The rules are simple. Survive, evade, resist, and extract. Get captured: RTI. Don't get captured: RTI. Get back here in four weeks. You will get supplies and a jacket." The Sergeant pointed to a lump of jackets and a pack of supplies.
Matthew exchanged looks with one of the recruits, "Bugger!"
Dire*Circumstances
"Wake up!"
Fennec Fox, formerly known as Matthew, groaned and turned over, "Watzzz happenin'?"
"Get up, Fen! Sergeant wants us at the office in five minutes!"
Fennec shot up, changing as fast as he could. The rest of his unit, B-Unit, waited for him.
Fennec checked his watch, "What the f-!"
His unit leader, Lion, threw a shoe at him, "Don't curse, kid."
It was well known that Fennec was seven years younger than all the other members of his unit, who were in their mid-thirties.
"It's not even five yet!" Fennec snapped, "What does the Sergeant want?"
Lion looked grim, "It looks like you're going on your first mission."
Instantly, Fennec brightened, a grin stretching over his previously scowling face, "Great! Let's go!"
He was out the door in an instant. He could hear the mumblings and grunts behind him, but he didn't care. He was going on a mission.
B-Unit arrived exactly at 0515 hours, knocking on the door to the Sergeants office.
"Come in!"
B-Unit shuffled in, standing to attention in front of the Sergeant.
"At ease." The Sergeant wasn't even paying attention to them. Fennec deflated a little.
Two men were hunched over a table in the corner of the room, muttering to themselves in a different language. Japanese, perhaps?
"Men," the Sergeant looked worried, "as one of the best units here, I have decided to send you on a mission, joint with K-Unit."
Fennec inflated again at the Sergeant's indirect praise.
"These are your files." He handed a stack of papers to Lion, "Read through them now. Once you're done, you'll be going. These MI6 agents will be leading the two units."
Fennec stared at the two men, suddenly reminded of the time he was a teenager, and an SAS soldier had come to speak with them.
Admiration.
B-Unit clustered around Lion, each being handed a separate folder.
Fennec opened his, fingering the pages excitedly.
Rescue Mission
Agent R**** (Clearance Level 10), captured by S****** (classified: terrorist organization)
Led by Agent Daniels (Clearance Level 7) and Agent Abbot (Clearance Level 7)
Assisted by B- and K-Units (Clearance Level 2)
Location: Classified
Fennec gaped at the first page, his excitement dying. It practically said nothing! Around him, B-Unit made sounds that showed Fennec that this was not normal.
He flipped to the next page.
Target: Agent R**** (Clearance Level 10)
Appearance: Classified
Medical History: Classified
Previous Encounters: RTI; classified
Other: Classified. See S****** file for more information. See AR**** for more information.
Fennec pawed through the rest of the pages, but they were all blank, besides a small word at the top. He peered closer. Classified.
Was this some kind of joke? He turned to the Sergeant.
"It's not a joke." The man seemed to read Fennec's mind, "Grab your gear and get your sorry arses on the helicopter. Fo- Agent Daniels and Agent Abbot will inform you of any else you need to know."
Fennec, fuming silently, marched his way out.
Dire*Circumstances
"Go, go, go!" Wolf's shout made Fennec's legs to jerk forward. He clutched his gun in sweaty hands, adrenaline pouring through his bloodstream.
"Approaching compound," Lion's voice filtered back, "give the signal to blow the doors."
Wolf's voice crackled on the speakers, "Three… Two… One!"
On one, Hawk, another member of B-Unit, shot the lock.
"Go, go, go!" Agent Abbot's voice was now speaking, "Down the hall. Check every room for our agent."
Agent Daniels was behind them. He entered in last, holding a handgun loosely in his hand.
Fennec ran in after B-Unit, slamming into rooms that were completely deserted. Each room was clean and pristine. All the evidence, wiped down.
"East wing – clear!"
"Copy that. West wing, clear. Proceed with caution."
Fennec crept after Lion, heart pounding. He was ready to aim, ready to fire, and ready to reload.
"Check the rooms." Agent Daniels ordered, "His tracker is still in this building somewhere."
Fennec slammed into another room. Empty.
He backed out and made his way to another. He kicked in the door. Empty.
Feeling disheartened, he marched to another door, kicking it in. Empt-
What was that lump in the corner of the room?
"Guys!" Fennec shouted, gun pointed at the figure. It was unmoving, but he could see the small rise and fall of the figure.
"What is it?" Agent Daniels was by his side in a flash.
"We're SAS!" Fennec spoke to the figure, "Are you hurt?"
No response.
Fennec frowned, pushing Agent Daniels back as he tried to reach the figure. It might be dangerous.
"Let me through, dammit!" Agent Daniels growled, "Al! Al! It's me! Ben!"
Finally, a reaction. The figure shifted slightly, moaning.
"It's okay!" Agent Daniels called. He spoke into his mic, "Found the agent. Requesting medical assistance."
The figure groaned again, struggling to lift its head. Was it an 'it'? The figure was clearly human shaped now, but Fennec couldn't see much of the guy. He was clearly beat up. Blood stained his clothes, and he could see open wounds on the figure's back.
"Ben…" The voice was harsh, course. Cracked. Familiar.
Fennec crept closer, his gun lowered, allowing Agent Daniels to rush by the spy's side. Only now did the figure raise his head.
Fair hair. Brown, weary eyes. A broken voice.
Fennec knew this man.
"Alex?"
A/N: I had to do a bit of research to know about SAS training. Before, I felt a lot of respect for the soldiers, but now... I'm like... mindblown. Seriously! I don't know how, but I gained even more respect for them. And I thought I'd already had a lot of respect before...
I included a quote from Chris Kyle (for those of you who don't know: think American Sniper). Really, throughout all of the SAS soldier's speech, I was thinking about this quote. I guess if you squint hard, you can see part of it in the speech... Yeah and if it's awkward with the whole "dirty" thing, I was thinking how I would feel if I was a soldier and I'd killed someone.
PLEASE don't misunderstand me. I really do admire military personnel. I just think that if I killed someone, I would feel a bit... wrong, you know?
And if you were wondering, yes, this was another impulsive post. I got home around two hours ago and all I've been doing is writing. LOL. There's something liberating about writing about the struggles of others... I think. It makes you feel better about your own troubles. No matter what, the fictional characters of the fanfiction world will always have it worse than you. Just kidding. I don't know where that came from. Well, it's true for me... EH. I guess that only applies to me...ANYWAY. MY SECOND ONE-SHOT. EVER. WHOOOOOOO
Please review!
-Alice