Chapter 18: Payback

June, 1986

Charlie POV: (Still)

Rex sent us all (mentally) some info on how two unsuspecting Coast Guard Cutters had been hit by torpedoes, down in the Caribbean. One had been sunk and the other was barely able to stay afloat. 12 crew had been killed and another 20 severely injured. The Lieutenant that I’d met as ‘Jonah’ was among the injured. A Naval Destroyer had just arrived and the injured were being treated thereon.

I was now even more emotionally invested in taking out Rafael and his forces. That submarine’s crew were ‘dead men skulking’!

Rex popped in to join us in making plans for hooking up with the Naval Destroyer. Rex had a fellow NSA Agent on the Destroyer and he suggested that we ‘follow’ him after he ‘used’ his fellow Agent to get on the Destroyer.

His plan seemed somewhat convoluted, but, I figured at worst, we could just use ‘CS’ spells on anyone asking any questions.

To avoid creating a major cluster-fuck, it was decided that Rex, Jeremy and I would teleport to the Destroyer, establish a plan, then Bob and Greg would join us just before we went on any kind of attack.

The three of us went invisible. Rex popped into his friend’s office, still invisible, then Jeremy and I joined him. I materialized first as “Jonah’/’The Terminator’, startling NSA Agent, Alex Grant. Rex and Jeremy simultaneously materialized a half-second later.

“Holy shit!” Grant gasped, “How did you guys get here?”

Rex stifled a chuckle, “Beats the hell out of me! Jeremy found Jonah and explained what just went down. The next thing we know, ‘poof’ here we are!”

Grant asked open-mouthed, “Are you Jonah? I’ve heard about you. You look like the Terminator!”

“Yes, I normally don’t look like anything. I need this persona to be able to talk to people. One of my friends, a Lieutenant, was on one of the Coast Guard Cutters that came under attack. I wish to help you find ... and PUNISH those responsible for this attack.”

Grant looked at Jeremy and Rex, “Well, hell’s bells, let’s get up to the briefing room. We’ve got two sub-chasing attack helicopters searching for that bastard right now. No luck yet, I’m afraid.”

I looked at him sternly, “Tell them to search in a direct line between here and the big island just north of Haiti! I believe that’s where they’re headed.”

“Not toward Cuba? Sonar contact made just before the attack suggested it was a Russian sub.”

I scoffed, “Do you really think the Russians want to start a war? I believe it’s the crime lord named Rafael who is behind this!”

His eyes darted between Rex and Jeremy. “We’ve been keeping Rafael’s island under close surveillance. There’s been no mention of a submarine being seen there.”

We were headed toward the briefing room when klaxons started blaring. The Ship Captain’s voice shouted over the ship’s intercom, “Battle stations, Battle stations, this is NOT a drill! We have two torpedoes inbound at 3 o’clock! Prepare for impact!”

I grabbed Jeremy and teleported topside on the starboard side. We both saw two lines coming right at us! I told Jeremy, “Take the one on the left and turn it 180, now!”

While he was doing that I did the same to the one on the right. Now they were (hopefully) headed back where they came from.

Less than 10 seconds later the surface of the ocean ¼ mile away from us erupted in a spray of water and debris.

The roar from the sailors on the deck was deafening!

Jeremy just looked at me, “Wow! Did we just sink that sub? With its OWN torpedoes?”

I grinned, “I think SO. I just hope Viktor and Akbar were on the sub when it exploded!”

The Captain’s voice came over the intercom, “Prepare to search for survivors. All command personnel and NSA advisory personnel report to the bridge immediately, thank you.”

The bridge was fairly crowded when Jeremy, Rex, Agent Grant and I got there. The Master at Arms didn’t want to let me enter. “Sorry Mr Schwarzenegger, you’re not authorized.”

“As you were, Master Chief! I am personally authorizing this man’s presence on my bridge.” The Captain grinned at me, “It’s NOT Mr Schwarzenegger, it’s ... Jonah? Correct me if I’m wrong, Mr Cosgrove.”

Jeremy was smiling broadly, “No sir! You got it in one!”

The Captain, Lane Burke, extended his hand, “I’d like to shake the hand of the one who just saved my ship!”

I shook his hand and had a quick vision that caused me to chuckle. The Captain’s 12-year old daughter always talked about ‘Jonah’ whenever there was a news story. “I’m just glad the father of one of my biggest fans didn’t get hurt. It was fortunate I could react fast enough. How is it that bastard got close enough to fire on us without your knowing it?”

Capt Burke’s face flushed, “XO, my new friend asked a VERY good question, CARE TO EXPLAIN?”

The XO snapped to attention, “SIR. It seems he was lying in wait all the time we were enroute here to rescue the Coast Guard survivors. With the submarine’s screws not turning, their sonar footprint was nearly undetectable. As we maneuvered into position to board the remaining CG vessel, we didn’t notice him maneuvering into firing position, either. It’s on me Captain.”

I nodded at the Captain, “Capt Burke, I would LOVE to interrogate any survivors of that sub. Any chance some of your men could find me one or two?”

BOTH the Capt and XO gave me a feral grin. The XO exclaimed, “If there ARE any survivors, I’ll make it happen! I’d SURE love to watch. You’re aim with their torpedoes was pretty damn good, Mr Jonah!”

“If you watch, I HOPE you have a strong stomach.” I said, smirking.

The Captain grinned, “Make it happen, XO. I want some answers and Jonah is just the man to get them. Mr Cosgrove, I know you’re a good interrogator, also, but, I’d like to see Jonah in action!”

Jeremy chuckled, “Me too! No offense taken. Jonah is my friend also and maybe I can learn something.”

We all (except the Capt) went out on the deck to watch the rescue operation. The XO was in radio communications with the smaller rescue craft now sweeping the area amid the flotsam from the submarine. After a few minutes, they’d fished out one survivor.

The XO smiled, “We’re in luck. Apparently the Captain DIDN’T go down with his ship! Let’s head on down to the interrogation room. We can start with him while my boys keep fishing for more.”

Shortly after we were seated in the interrogation room, a very haggard-looking man was brought in wearing hand and ankle shackles. He looked defeated, but defiant.

“Who ordered the attack on the Coast Guard and this Naval vessel?” I asked firmly.

“If I tell you, I’m dead!” He spat.

“And if you DON’T tell me, I’m going to break every bone in your body, one at a time, until you DO!” I stated matter-of-factly.

“You are Americans ... I have rights! You won’t DO THAT!”

I mentally snapped his right forefinger, eliciting a scream. I yelled at him, “YOU ARE A FILTHY PIRATE AND TERRORIST. YOU HAVE NO RIGHTS HERE.” Since he pissed me off I broke another finger. “WHO ordered the attack?”

He was now crying in pain. “Rafael ordered the attacks. You Americans are ruining his business.”

I chuckled, “See? Was that so hard? You could have saved yourself some pain.”

I could hear laughing on the other side of the two-way mirror.

“Where did you get that submarine and how many more does Rafael have?”

He hesitated before realizing another one of his fingers was about to snap backwards, “I stole it from the Cubans. It’s the only one. I think they bought it from the Russians. I captained one just like it a decade ago in the Balkans. “YOU KILLED MY CREW.”

“No, YOU killed your crew when you fired at this ship! Those were YOUR torpedoes that took out your sub!”

“That’s ridiculous! I fired at nearly point blank range. There’s no possible way they could have turned on me!”

I picked him up, chair and all, and spun him 180 degrees. “Oh no?” I snickered.

When I spun him back around, his mouth was wide open, gasping for air. “Those torpedoes were just as easy! NOW, was either Viktor or a guy named Akbar on that sub with you?!”

His eyes widened like saucers and he huffed, “They WERE. But, just as the torpedoes hit they suddenly disappeared! They were in the conning tower with me. Then, just as I went to open the escape hatch, they just vanished. They had been muttering something about a backup plan.”

I was getting tired of this method of questioning. I was pissed off and I wanted everything this asshole knew about Viktor and Akbar and I didn’t want to waste time with questions!

I decided to try a new method I’d learned from Zeus’s ‘Instruction Manual’, that he’d put in my head. This method was about as subtle as a Louisville Slugger! It’s like what Dad could do, getting someones whole history, instantly. The difference was, if the subject resisted, it would simply ‘RIP’ it from their mind, leaving them with essentially a ‘reformatted’ hard drive for a brain. They wouldn’t remember anything they’d ever done, but, would still remember how to function! I.E., they would remember their High School Math Class, just not who taught it, or anyone they were in class with.

I flashed Jeremy, telling him to bond with me, so he could learn.

I announced, “I am going to enter your mind and get what I need to know. IF you try to resist, the pain will be excruciating! You’ll end up never remembering anything, not even your name!”

I heard gasps from behind the glass, then silence. I instantly sensed this scumbag had no intentions of cooperating. “Last warning. Relax and open up your mind to me!”

He didn’t, and his screams could be heard for miles. I held my hands against his temples until I knew I had everything that I needed from him. As the last of his memories flowed into my ‘storage vault’, his screams died. He looked like a zombie. Except that, he was grinning like an idiot.

He asked me, “Duhhh, are you my Daddy?”

I knew I had to come up with a plan, and fast!

“No, you don’t have a daddy, but Capt Burke and his friends will take care of you now. They’ll teach you ALL KINDS of fun things to do.”

“Huh, huh, duhh, what’s my name?”

“Your name is Booger!”

Capt Burke came into the room with his hand over his mouth, trying to hide his surprised look and the fact he’d been laughing. I grinned at him, while putting my arm around ‘Booger’s’ shoulder. “Capt Burke, do you have any fun things for Booger to do? You know, like could you show him how much fun it is to clean the latrines? Or like swabbing the deck? Or peeling potatoes, doing the dishes and other fun things like that?”

Choking back a chuckle the Capt looked at the XO, “XO, do you think we can find something fun for our boy, Booger, to do?”

The XO smirked, “Oooooh yeaaahhh! I’ve got ALL KINDS of FUN things. And if Booger is a good boy, maybe I can give him some milk!”

Booger was jumping up and down with excitement! “OHH, GOODY.”

The Capt whispered, “How long before his REAL memory comes back?”

I grinned at him, “NEVER, right now, his mind is like an empty slate. If you tell him something is fun, he’ll believe it! He’ll only do what you tell him, how you tell him and that’s it. If you train him right, you can use him for many tasks and trust that he’ll do them. You WILL have to keep an eye on him, just like you would a 5-year-old kid. Just remember, he’ll learn things very fast, so you’ll want to shelter him from learning things he shouldn’t!”

The Capt had a questioning look on his face, “What about when we put him in prison?”

I shook my head, “And why would you want to do that? That man, Booger, ISN’T the same guy who fired torpedoes on your ship. That guy is gone forever. Treat this guy like a kid and show him how to be a responsible, productive crewman and he may surprise you!”

I could see the light come on. The Capt was nodding, “That was very kind hearted of you, Jonah. You KNOW there isn’t one man on this ship who would have had a problem with you just killing this guy? What you did was probably the most ‘humane’ thing you could have done.”

“Oh, make no mistake. I DID kill this man’s evil spirit and soul. Those died a brutal and terrifying death! His body wasn’t what was evil. His spirit just USED his body to commit evil deeds! Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have two evil spirits to find, who will be MUCH harder to kill!”

What I didn’t tell him was that I had a ton of information that I needed to sift through. Using my computer analogy, I just did a total ‘data-dump’ into my ‘hard drive’ and now I had to sort out all the important things from the impertinent crap! There was A LOT of the latter.

AT RAFAEL’S COMPOUND ON A BIG ISLAND JUST NORTH OF HAITI

Viktor POV:

What the FUCK? Am I ALWAYS going to be surrounded by morons? That asshole Captain told me he couldn’t miss at that range! “It’s like shooting fish in a barrel.” He said. I knew EXACTLY where Jeremy’s little office was on that destroyer and knew he and Jonah would be there. I could see through the periscope that the torpedoes were dead on target, when suddenly the Capt announces we had torpedoes INBOUND! Two seconds later the whole goddamn sub is shaking like a spastic maraca and the Capt says we need to abandon ship!

That BASTARD Jonah must have done something. Now Akbar and I MUST figure out a new trap.

Rafael isn’t going to like what’s about to happen if Jeremy follows through on his threat.

AHHH, YES ... maybe, just maybe all is NOT lost. Akbar and I can take advantage of what I think is going to happen and set a better trap!

“Ahhahaha! Viktor, are you REALLY as stupid as you look?” It was Tsau Ni. The fucker was taunting me again! He must have had a spy somewhere, watching everything.

“Tsau Ni, how very ‘fucked-up’ it is to hear from your ‘non-helping’ ass! Quit laughing ... you could have helped me you know. HOW DID you know what just happened, anyway?”

“Oh Viktor, you magnificently ignorant dumbass, ever since you and Akbar visited, I’ve been able to see through your eyes and hear through your ears! And from what I just saw, you’d better be careful. I’m certain that ‘Jonah’ DID do something! He most likely turned your torpedoes BACK on you, you stupid fuck! Don’t be so overconfident of your next plan. I’ve got some information from my guy in the CIA. This ‘Jonah’ is TRULY one scary fucker! His powers are quite possibly stronger than ALL of ours put together! My source tells me that he mentally picked up a 160-ton yacht and moved it off of a sandbar! Can YOU or Akbar do that? I sure can’t! He DOES have a weakness, however... “

There was an interminably long silence, where I thought he disconnected from me. “Well, Mr ‘Know-It-All’, just what weakness does he have!?”

“He’s madly in love with his wife, a beautiful brunette with tits like Casaba melons and eyes like sapphires. He also has a baby son. He would go crazy if anything were to happen to them. Might I suggest kidnapping them and setting a trap for when he teleports in to save them!? Set up a killing field and use them as bait. I can help you with the details. Just know ... if you fuck this up, BOTH you and Akbar will be dead faster than you can blink!”

Akbar was salivating, “What about Jeremy? Shouldn’t we kidnap HIS bitch, that sassy-assed redhead, too! We can get them both at once?”

I heard Tsau Ni chuckling in my head, “Now, THAT’S a PLAN. I suggest you set the room up, BEFORE you put the snatch on them. You can just about bet that those women can communicate telepathically with both Jonah and Jeremy! You WON’T have much time once you take them! I also STRONGLY suggest you use ether on them. You don’t want them calling for help until you’re ready!”

Akbar sneered, “And after we kill them we can have fun raping their women! I can’t wait to hear that little redhead scream!”

I was just envisioning fucking that big-titted brunette when I ‘heard’ Tsau Ni, “Don’t get overconfident, you two perverts ... AND LOSE THAT GOD-AWFUL COLOGNE... “

I felt like giving him a piece of my mind, but, then I remembered; that fucking Jonah and possibly Jeremy might STILL be coming here! I told Akbar that we needed to go see Rafael in his headquarters bunker before it was too late. Maybe we could still get lucky with ‘Plan B’. We could ALWAYS kidnap Jonah’s bitch.

Charlie POV:

As I reviewed all the new data obtained from ‘Booger’, I discovered the sucker lied about knowing what Viktor and Akbar had planned. Their ‘Plan A’ had been to draw us to the NSA’s office on the Destroyer, then hit it with two torpedoes. Had Capt Burke not raised the alarm when he did, THAT plan would have worked. The two weapons WERE headed directly at the part of the ship we’d been in. Ten seconds later and we WOULD have been killed. His ‘Plan B’ was figuring that if we survived, we most likely would have attacked Rafael’s Island fortress, just like Jeremy had threatened.

Jeremy led Rex and me to Rex’s private office, where Bob and Greg ‘popped in’ to join us. Greg immediately felt uneasy about leaving the girls, so, since now we all ‘knew’ where Rex’s office was, we decided to do our planning back at home.

We could get back here in a flash if we needed to ‘pop’ back here to use the ship as our ‘jumping off’ point.

Once we popped back home, we started discussing the different ways we might attack the island fortress. Rex had grabbed his file with all of the recon photos and other information the NSA and CIA had compiled about Rafael’s Island and his various Compounds. It was extensive.