UNSCDF3 Chapter 14- Experienced Soldiers

Downtown Kandahar, Kandahar, Afghanistan

British Embassy

May 12, 2001

1400 Local Time

            “Almost done yet?” Sarah shouted from outside the room.

            Zyrok stood in the shower as warm water trickled down his dirty body. The pair had managed to find a section of the embassy that was untouched with the facilities still running. He had been showering for well over ten minutes in the change room with Sarah keeping guard outside.

            “You’ll get your turn Sarah!” Zyrok hollered.

            “You’re going to use up all the water!” Sarah pouted.

            Zyrok ran his fingers through his hair as he tried to straighten his hair. He grabbed a nearby soap and applied it to his arms. Dirt and blood turned the soap into brown bubbly foam and dripped to the ground. The hot water splashed against the ground and created a little steam and some condensation on the walls. Zyrok was relaxed and almost carefree. This was the break that he had been looking for ever since he was out in Afghanistan by himself. The shower was washing his past behind him and a new sense of hope renewed his strength. Feeling satisfied, Zyrok turned off the shower and stepped out whilst grabbing a towel. The hot water had warmed up the air and the room that was cold was no longer more.

            “Sarah, I’m done.” Zyrok dried himself with the towel and grabbed a new set of clothes hanging on the wall in front of him.

            It was a standard dress shirt and trousers he had acquired from one of the lockers. The shirt was a good fit, but the pants were too short. They were clean so Zyrok wore the trousers with a smirk.

            “Maybe I’ll find another one later.” Zyrok buttoned his dress shirt.

            Zyrok walked to the door while drying his hair with a towel. Sarah was sitting down on a bench swinging her legs with her arms crossed.

            “Finally.” Sarah jumped up.

            “Don’t take too long.” Zyrok watched as Sarah closed the door.

            He sat down on the bench and looked at a fully loaded M16 and Lock 17 he had found on one of the corpses. He removed the magazine from the M16 and looked inside the gun. He pulled the firing mechanism back and began to disassemble it for cleaning. He was bored and had nothing else to do than to sit and wait until Sarah was done taking a shower. From the corner of his eye, the main door into the change room creaked open a bit and closed back.

            “Hello?” Zyrok stood up and held the Lock 17 in front of him.

            The only sound Zyrok could hear was the sound of the shower and Sarah quietly humming in a melodious tune. Zyrok quickly holstered his sidearm and began to reassemble the M16. He wasn’t going to scout, but he wanted to be prepared to defend in the event that something did occur. In his gut feeling, something wasn’t feeling right. As Zyrok placed the magazine back into the M16 and cocked it, the lights suddenly turned off. Sarah cried out loud and Zyrok quickly pushed the door to the shower room open. Keeping his face forward to the main door, he turned on his flashlight and shone it behind him without looking.

            “Sarah, get dressed quickly. Get my flashlight.” Zyrok clicked on his flashlight on and off.

            “Ok.” Sarah whispered.

            Zyrok could feel Sarah’s wet hands touch his as she took the flashlight from behind him.

            “Close the door and get dressed.” Zyrok walked forward to allow Sarah to close the shower room door.

            Once the door clicked shut and Sarah was getting dressed, Zyrok steadied his M16 and slowly walked to the main door. Something wasn’t right about the door because of the shadows underneath it. It didn’t seem like the walking of an infected, but rather of a trained soldier preparing to clear a room. As Zyrok walked a step closer, he heard a beeping sound and he quickly turned his head just in time as the door exploded.

            “Sarah! Run!” Zyrok shouted as he rolled for cover.

            Just as Zyrok had expected, the Russians had somehow found them in the British Embassy. Maybe, there were soldiers already stationed here and that is why the facilities worked. Zyrok stuck his head out of cover behind the lockers and heard a series of gunshots. He ducked back into cover and looked at his weapons. He was no match for the Russians, but he had to protect Sarah. He slid to the next cover while spraying a light cover. A flashbang grenade rolled onto the ground in front of him and he quickly covered his eyes. The deafening bang briefly stunned Zyrok, but he quickly recovered just in time to shoot his gun at a Russian soldier.

            “Sarah! Run!” Zyrok shouted again as he saw more soldiers pour in.

            The room was lit up by the firing of guns and a smoke grenade which the Russians had tossed in. Zyrok coughed loudly and attempted to maintain his alertness. Suddenly, he heard a scream from behind him.

            “Sarah.” Zyrok immediately thought and had his eyes filled with fear.

            Using Sarah’s scream as his focus, Zyrok dashed into the change room and noticed a soldier holding Sarah and muffling her screams of help. Zyrok pointed his gun at the soldier and noticed he had a combat knife to her throat.

            “Let her go.” Zyrok commanded angrily.

            “Drop your weapon or I slit her throat.” the Russian soldier countered.

            “She’s just a child.” Zyrok held his gun firmly.

            A pistol click was heard at the back of Zyrok’s head. Before, he was about to shoot Sarah’s captor, but now he didn’t stand a chance to attempt a rescue.

            “You are a coward.” Zyrok felt his finger tingle on the trigger.

            “No, I’m a Russian and I don’t bluff.” the Russian pressed the blade on the neck of Sarah.

            From Sarah’s eyes, she was scared and unsure of what to do. The blade had cut the outer layer of her skin and a trickle of blood oozed onto the knife. Zyrok had no choice but to surrender.

            “Alright, don’t hurt her please. I’ll drop the gun.” Zyrok removed his finger off the trigger.

            “On the floor and kick your gun away.” the soldier ordered.

            Zyrok listened obediently and placed the M16 to the ground. Then, he kicked it with one foot and held his hands up.

            “Done.” Zyrok announced.

            Sarah’s eyes widened in horror as she saw something come up behind Zyrok. A Russian bashed his gun at the back of Zyrok’s head and knocked him out cold. Sarah tried to scream, but her mouth was covered. No one was going to protect her from the Russians now. She watched as two soldiers dragged Zyrok’s body out of the room and then saw another soldier with a cloth. Before she knew what was happening, the soldier gagged her mouth and placed a black hood over her head.