Trigger warnings & Author's notes
May contain: violence, extreme domination, degradation, sadism, non-consent/coercion, slavery.
Chapter Six: operation eastrun
----------------------------------------
Officer Symond Welles was at his desk, sitting across from the fidgety man from Wolfpine. The man's name was Malla Broggs; he was the Wolfpine villager who had previously assisted the royal army in placing security cameras throughout the town. Symond slid a backpack across his desk toward the man.
"You know what I'm going to ask of you."
Broggs nodded, his nervous energy never dissipating.
"You'll find multiple tracking devices in there as well. If possible, I'd like you to plant them on the ring leaders. They are small enough they can easily be inserted into the tread of a boot."
Broggs nodded again. "I think I can manage that."
Symond glanced at the other man skeptically. It wasn't that he thought the man incapable, he simply was wary of trusting him after the first stunt he pulled. Symond half expected to lose more of his tech when the man inevitably chickened out again. In the end, he figured the opportunity was worth the risk.
Broggs had reached out to him him a couple of months after he had retracted his initial offer of assistance. When pressed to explain himself, he painted a picture of a messy operation with no long term plan of action. "Boys playing war," Symond had thought to himself. The entire town of Wolfpine was on edge with the growing rebel presence.
Broggs explained that he, along with the other villagers he had spoken to, wanted the rebels gone and the town to return to normal. There was growing concern that the royal army would target the town as a whole when it came to retaliation -- innocent townsfolk and all.
And so Malla Broggs took it upon himself to sneak security cameras back into Wolfpine for officer Welles, making sure to hide one in the community center where the rebels had their meetings. "They meet every Sunday," he informed the officer before stepping out of the room, backpack in hand.
Things seemed to be looking up for Symond.
----------------------------------------
Sunday afternoon, Wolfpine.
The community center in Wolfpine was bustling with activity as the rebel soldiers socialized while they waited for the meeting to begin. Eros, Dego, and Bere all sat at the table in the front of the room. They had been talking amongst themselves for the last fifteen minutes or so.
An abrupt, loud whistle brought everyone's attention up front as Eros stood facing the rebel soldiers. "We have decided to take the town of Kilead." The room went silent as everyone received this news. This was a major development.
Bere was next to speak.
"I will personally be leading a company Tuesday morning at dawn. We have outgrown our resources in Wolfpine. Scouts have reported that we have an overwhelming amount of support within Kilead. We don't expect much resistance to our residency there, but we will be prepared to fight should the royal army arrive."
Eros placed a clipboard on the table. "We have a group of Kilead citizens who have joined our cause stationed over there ready to assist. If you are willing to join the company for this mission, please add your name to the list."
Symond, now privy to their meetings, was surprised by this bold move. Had their numbers really grown so much in such a short amount of time that this was a feasible plan of action? He could not believe it. Either way, he would be ready to meet them with a company of his own.
----------------------------------------
Tuesday morning, Kilead.
Symond was stationed outside of Kilead on horseback. He and General Narder had managed to convince king Oppius Domarc to allow him to lead a company of 200 to Kilead to deal with the rebel threat. They had arrived before sunrise, but as the sun crept higher and higher into the sky there was no sign of the intruders.
Symond found himself pacing his horse. He wondered if one of the Kilead rebels had caught wind of them and warned the others. The thought was disappointing to the officer. He had to admit he enjoyed commanding the company, and he hadn't had the opportunity to do so since he was put on rebel watch. Alas, it was looking as though no great battle would take place today.
Symond pulled out his phone to check on the tracking devices that Broggs had succeeded in planting in the suspected rebel leaders' boots. He was surprised to see that the map was indicating that all three of them were here in Kilead. But where -- where were they? What was their move?
"Hold your positions," he barked at the company before taking off toward the location of the three tracking devices. The map led him straight into Kilead. Down the street, toward a house, into a chicken yard. Symond looked around. All he saw were chickens. They clucked obliviously and pecked the ground around his feet. He looked from the map to the chickens and back again. Did they...
"Fucking hell," Symond cursed when he saw a small tracking device attached to the leg of one of the birds. His thoughts were immediately interrupted when he received a call on his phone.
"They're here, sir. The rebels are at Eastrun."
The reality of the situation quickly dawned on Symond. He'd been duped. The rebels had lured him away from the base and he had easily fallen for it.
"How many?"
"A small squad of less than ten, sir."
"Don't let them escape. Use any means necessary to stop them." Symond ended the call and stared off into the distance toward Wolfpine. He was absolutely livid.
----------------------------------------
Tuesday morning, Eastrun.
This mission had gone horribly wrong. It had gone well until an explosive landed near the small group of rebels, knocking them off their feet. Luckily it hadn't been a direct hit, but Mile still grimaced as he found himself on his back, rubble raining down upon him from the sky. He grunted and propped himself up. Cerys and the others were further up ahead, picking themselves up as well. Cerys looked back at him.
"Don't stop -- Get it home!"
