Operation Chi-Bang: Part 4

Contd from PART 1, PART 2, PART 3

~Flashback 2019~
The frail looking militant stepped forward and looked back @ the burly man, on whose nod he reached out and pulled a slick plastic covered rectangular piece from my pocket. The thick, smooth holographic plastic-like cover did not give away what lay sealed in it. He tried to make sense of what he held in his hand. Slowly, re-treading his steps, he handed it over to his boss, who slid two fingers into the small opening on the side of the cover and pulled out a card, the moment the realized what his eyes were now looking at, he put his uzi down and wasted no time in asking the others to do the same. Like the men-above had told, “Comrade, no rouge will stop u when they see this, but use it wisely”, and their words have come true and not for the first time. I don’t know how and why our C Kompany ID commands such fear.

After para-jumping off the Cessna 172 stolen from the sheik’s private hanger (VRN’s fix when our Plan A din show up) with the last 2 pipelines in our cargo, we landed in middle of the poppy growing - militia inflicted ACHMEDI area under the cover of night for the last phase of our operation. All we needed now is a point to right direction and path which does not put us in cross-hairs of the local army police. Now that our credentials were established and IDs returned, we sat around the freshly cut opium produce of the day and listened carefully to the chief’s instructions on a crumpled hand drawn map.

~FlashForward 2020~
VRN:
VRN was the TRANSPORTER of our operation. Co-ordinating our every move, a skill or rather expertise he honed during his time in the largest airline among the oil nations. And his daily proximity to the sheik’s private airline hanger came in handy during the operation’s crucial last phase. With him positioned at karama, the mission’s ground work had begun, their moves to ‘refresh’ the hesitant oil governments had started to what seemed like a people’s revolution back then, all key ones toppled one after the other making way for the so said ‘DEMOCRATIC’ process. This enabled the men-above to create a perfect diversion while we were carrying out our mission.

~FlashBack 2011~
“When were you let in on this?” I asked bob
“the day u left for CHI” he replied. Lighting another of his UltraLights.
“So this operation, it’s just 2 of us?”
“Nope all the FAB-4” he said. And my Jaw dropped!
“And none of us knew??” I asked pushing my jaw back to its place.
“Yupp. None but one” he said with a hint of suspense.
“Who?”
“The silent one!” He said, with a smile inevitably breaking across his face.
“He knew all along?? Impossible! ”
“Don blv it? Well, picture this, who surprised us with least amount of blabber of what i-m-going-to-do next talks? When we spoke incessantly- he was quiet, When we spoke of job change- he quit and quietly went to the sea, When we spoke on & on abt study & did nothing- he gave his xams and joined college! Quiet, well planned, and purposeful with least amount of fuss, and to think of it he happens to be the only one amongst us who never went to SHOOTFIGHTERS, now, makes any sense et all? He’s the man behind the scene, overseeing that our mission clicks like clockwork. And that's not the best part , I’v come to hear that his real name is not Nandu, that’s just one of his many aliases. Nobody knows his real name- he goes by Nandu, Francis, Ranbir or Chetta depending on who u believe. He’s the SPOC of men-above and our mission’s PUPPETEER”

~FlashForward 2019~
The opium lords were kind enuf to provide us with two of their horses and a cart, our transport. After 2 days and 3 nights of cold wind and sand blowing into our body openings we finally reach ACHMED OIL site. Nandu was there waiting for us, as he always was, one step ahead. He helped us unload the pipes and got to work immediately wasting no time. After 5 hrs of assembling, checking and re-checking finally a satisfied Nandu radioed our co-ordinates to karama and VRN confirmed a chopper would pick us up @ 0600 next morning, just before the break of light. As we huddled in a tent that chilly December night, a distant murmur of a Black Hawk that we waited for so long finally came by, Nandu shot a red flare star to assert our position and just like that, after 7 years of running from one corner of the world to another, Project Chi-Bang was finally over.

~Present Day (late 2020)~
With the operation complete, C Kompany had no reason to continue as a front. The company was taken over by a government organization to handle its “IT requirements”, the reason stated for purchase. Just a matter of time before it would slowly cease to exist. As for us the Fab4, we return to our mundane cover, waiting for our next mission, if time comes, if duty calls.

Signing off-
Shady: The Tactician!