Clive Larson stood in his kitchen, having just cracked a few eggs into a pan. He grabbed a spatula and began scrambling them, smiling to himself. He could hear the sounds of nature waking up outside of his cabin and was glad he had built this place out in the Canadian wilderness. It was the end of May, and Clive felt that the transition from spring to summer was when this part of northern Alberta was the most beautiful.
However, that wasn’t the only thing he noticed outside of his cabin.
“If I knew you guys were coming, I would have cracked more eggs,” he said to the empty kitchen, still poking his spatula into his breakfast. When no response came, he just smirked and sighed lightly through his nose, carrying on at the stove.
Another minute passed, nothing had happened, and the eggs were nearly done.
“Look, if you wanted me dead, you’d have killed me by now. Why don’t you just come eat with me and tell me what this is about,” Clive spoke to the emptiness again. Though it wasn’t empty for much longer.
A large man quickly stepped into the kitchen from one of the hallways and made his way toward Clive. He was very muscular, wearing camouflage patterned pants and a black tank-top, and had a shaved head. He smashed a fist into his other hand and was growing lowly as he approached.
“Well, then,” Clive said idly, turning off the stove and turning the handle of the pan so that it pointed inwards. He didn’t want his eggs to spill. Then he turned to the large man with a smile, putting one hand on his hip near an apron string, the other leaning on the edge of the stove.
The large man roared and attacked Clive, throwing a fist out with all of his strength. It connected with Clive’s jaw, sending him reeling across the kitchen and into the wall near the back door. Then he ungracefully slid to the ground. That was quite a punch, he thought, and did his best to not blackout.
Even though he was thoroughly disoriented, he hadn’t lost all control of his senses. He could sense the large man loom over him before he felt himself being picked up and carried to one of the chairs of his dining table, which was also in the large kitchen. Then he felt his hands being cuffed behind the back of the chair. All of this gave him time to recollect himself, which he knew would be necessary for what he assumed was coming next.
“I’ve cuffed him, sir,” the large man spoke to another, his voice deep and a little bit gruff.
“Very good,” another voice spoke, old but authoritative. Clive almost recognized it, but the pain was preventing him from putting a face to it. However, by now, the haze in his head was disappearing, and when he opened his eyes, the face was there, staring at him.
“Why, hello, General Harrington,” Clive said, smiling. “Is the violence and the cuffs really necessary?”
“If you recall the last time we saw each other, you kind of tried to kill me,” the General said. He was dressed in full uniform, his hands behind his back.
“If you recall, you kind of deserved it,” Clive lightly retorted, his pleasant smile growing wider. An awkward silence followed. The large man sneered at him, but Clive remained calm and cheerful, like a gracious host. The general just pursed his lips, looking him over. While the calm demeanor and sharp tongue were familiar, Harrington couldn’t help notice that Clive’s face was a bit more weathered and the black beard that clung to his face had started to show signs of gray. Of course, seeing him in an apron and pajamas instead of a uniform may have been off-putting, but this only heightened the general’s caution for the steel trap of a man sitting before him.
“You might as well just get the point already,” Clive finally said, breaking the silence for them.
“I need your help,” Harrington eventually said.
“Of course you do,” Clive said back. Harrington narrowed his eyes at him, but carried on.
“I’ve had quite a case drop on my desk, and you’re the only man I know that can pull it off without it getting too messy,”
“I’m flattered,” Clive said, sounding a little sarcastic as he leaned back in his chair. The large man growled at him again, but the general held up a hand.
“At ease, Davis. It’s just how he is.” However, the general also gave a scolding look to Clive, who just shrugged, his light smile beaming back.
“I’m sure you’re aware of what’s going on in Granloalgo,” the general continued.
“Civil war. The Yellow Spear Revolutionaries fighting against the Military State,” Clive answered casually.
The general nodded. “I’ve been asked to put together a covert special forces team to help bring that civil war to an end.”
“Oh, you want me to go in and overthrow the government in the name of democracy?” Clive asked, as bemused as he was sarcastic.
“Actually, the opposite. What the country of Granloalgo needs is stability, and while Eduardo Parades can be draconian, he clearly has the support and loyalty of the Granloalgon military. It would be much easier to diffuse the resistance instead of trying to take on his fortresses and strongholds.”
“Seems a little odd for an American operation to be dedicated to helping a government oppress its people rather than to liberate it. Then again, I suppose it’s not the first time it’s happened,” Clive said. His casual tone and pleasant smile made his commentary seem all the more cutting.
“Look, the United States needs this country to stabilize and develop an economy so that we can establish trade for its resources,” Harrington responded, becoming indignant.
“Oh, that’s right. Granloalgo has large oil reserves. Is the Middle East being difficult again?” Clive condescended, his voice taking a musically mocking tone.
The general sighed. “What we need you to do is to take out the YSR leader Matías Almarez,” he said, powering through Clive’s commentary. “We believe that if he is taken out, the resistance will lose morale and organization, allowing the Military State to sweep them up.”
“And you can’t just snipe him?” Clive asked, his face a little puzzled. While the cuffed man seemed casual, the general could tell that he was beginning to take this seriously, at least from a logical perspective.
“It turns out that Matías has an IQ of over 200 and is quite the tactician. That makes him properly cautious and defensive, despite being a revolutionary. He is rarely ever seen in public and seems to be an expert in stacking up small victories to build momentum. We need someone like you in order to even get close to him,” Harrington explained.
“I see. You need a snake to take out another snake,” Clive coyly stated.
The general’s face twisted at this metaphor. “That’s one way of looking at it, I suppose. In any case, we need you to join the resistance and rise through its ranks so that you can get close enough to Matías and take him out.”
“And I expect I’ll be taking him along with me?” Clive asked, motioning his head toward the large man without moving his eyes from the general, who sighed and nodded his head.
“Sergeant Nathan Davis. Spent 8 years in the Marines before working with me for the last three. He’s an expert in hand-to-hand combat as well tactics and survival skills.”
“He certainly knows how to pack a mean punch, that’s for sure,” Clive admitted, flexing his sore jaw a little.
“To be honest, I expected a better response to my attack,” Nathan said, suddenly speaking up. He glowered at Clive. “You haven’t lost your edge, have you?”
“I’m 44, Sergeant. I can’t just wrestle around whenever I want. I have to take care of myself when I can,” Clive responded, pretending to sound insulted.
“You didn’t tell me he was that old,” Nathan said, turning towards the general, who simply shook his head.
“He’s certainly more than he looks, and his mind is as sharp as a razor. He let you hit him because he knew that doing so would allow us to have this conversation sooner,” Harrington explained.
“That and I didn’t want our fight to mess up my kitchen. I just built this place a year ago. I want to keep it nice,” Clive added. He brought his hands around in front of him as he spoke, dropping the unlocked handcuffs onto the table. This made Nathan grunt in surprise, his eyes wide in shock.
“How long have those been unlocked?” the general asked, unsurprised. Clive just smiled back.
“Sir, should I-” Nathan started to say, flexing his muscles in urgency. The general waved his hand.
“We’re this far into the conversation. I doubt he’ll try anything now,” Harrington explained. Then he turned back to Clive. “There will be a support team that you will be in contact with for the mission. You will also have a third member go with you as well, though that slot has yet to be filled. If you have any recommendations, I’d hear them out.”
“Well, I know who I would normally recommend first, but you let her die out in Rwanda four years ago,” Clive said, still maintaining his calm demeanor and gracious smile. However, this only made Nathan more nervous.
Harrington grimaced uncomfortably, gritting his teeth before speaking. “Let’s just focus on the task at hand. The team will meet up at the Miami Military base on June 12th. You’ll need this to get in.” Harrington reached into the inside pocket of his military jacket, pulled out a white plastic card, and dropped it on the table in front of Clive, who picked it up and looked it over. On one side was just a large barcode and a few other coded shapes. He flipped it to the other side and saw a logo of a griffin wrapped in the American flag and wielding a sword. The word “GRIFFIN” sat under the logo.
“Is that what you’re calling yourselves these days? Is it because of the mess in North Korea?” Clive noted.
“You’re certainly well informed,” the general scoffed.
“Your security team hasn’t updated the algorithms for their passwords in twenty years,” Clive explained, putting the card back on the table. “I admit I haven’t checked in for a couple of weeks, though. This Griffin thing must have been pretty recent.”
“You hacked into our Paladin servers? That’s a criminal offense!” Nathan shouted, ready to pounce on Clive. Harrington just put a hand on the sergeant’s shoulder and shook his head. “But,” Nathan started to protest.
“It’s okay, Davis. I really shouldn’t be surprised. And even if we did bolster our digital security, it would only slow him down. He’d be back inside in a month,” Harrington explained.
“If not less,” Clive pleasantly added.
“Can we really trust this man?” Nathan asked, almost pleading with his superior officer.
“That’s a very valid question,” Clive stated. He smiled wide at the general.
Harrington sighed again and let his shoulders droop low. “If the incident in North Korea taught me anything, it’s this: We may have plenty of resources, but we are severely lacking depth in our personnel, especially those that can read a situation quickly and react effectively. I have no doubt that you’re the smartest man I have ever worked with, and we need you for this job in Granloalgo. I promise you will be paid well for your services.”
“The United States always does,” Clive said sardonically.
“We need your help, Clive. Are you in?” the General asked directly.
This time, it was Clive’s turn to sigh. He had really enjoyed his past year out in the wilderness. While he didn’t necessarily consider himself retired, he really didn’t plan on throwing himself back into that dangerous world again. Then again, he knew that the conflict in Granloalgo was getting bad, resulting in many civilian casualties. As much as he wanted to leave everything behind him and live happily in his cabin, he had to admit to himself that he really struggled to truly abandon the world and its problems. That’s why he was hacking into those servers in the first place.
After a minute of thinking, Clive finally stood up, picking up the white card and holding it up in front of him. “Alright. Miami. Two weeks.”
“Thank you. We’ll see you then,” the general answered, finally smiling a little. He then turned to the other man. “Let’s go, Davis.”
“Are you sure you won’t stay for breakfast? I can reheat these eggs pretty quickly,” Clive offered, his gracious smile returning. The general just glared at him, doing his best to not roll his eyes, before motioning Davis to follow him. Davis gave Clive one more skeptical look before disappearing around the corner to walk back down the hall where he had come from. Clive heard their steps make their way out the front door and down the path to his cabin. They should have just come in that way, Clive thought to himself.
He looked at the white card again for a moment, then placed it back on the table and turned towards the stove to reheat his eggs.
***
The two men made their way from Clive’s cabin down the rough path to the road where they had parked their Jeep a quarter of a mile away. Once they had made their way through the denser parts of the foliage and to a clearer section of the path, Davis matched his pace with Harrington’s.
“Do you really trust that man?” Davis asked as they walked.
The general chuckled a little under his breath. “He’s an eccentric. Always has been. But he’s a professional. Once he decides to do a job, he’s one of the best. Don’t worry too much about his sense of humor. It’s his way of getting people to reveal things about themselves, but it’s harmless. Usually.”
Davis scoffed. “When you said we’d be bringing in one of the best agents you had ever worked with for this job, I was expecting something else.”
“Clive can hold his own when he needs to, but he’s an expert in stealth and tactics, as well as human psychology. He’s the kind of agent who would rather sneak in and out without being caught than resort to violence.”
“I suppose that looks better on the reports,” Davis responded, smiling churlishly.
“His methods have also gotten him out of serious danger, and pull through against incredible odds,” Harrington added.
Davis smiled wider. “I’ve heard the stories. Kiev. Singapore. Tooele.”
They finally made their way back to the mountain road where their Jeep was parked. The general reached the door handle before turning back to Davis.
“The point is, he is always thinking, scheming, planning, and that’s what makes him so effective. And it’s why we need him for this mission. Matías Almarez is not an average leader, so we need the best we can get to take him out.”
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