Flames of the Night.

Chapter 2

Undisclosed detainment centre-Earth
16th March 2560, 4.00 AM

Harvey Blinked at the bright light as the hood he had been forced to wear for hours was violently pulled off. He looked at around as his new surroundings. He was in a very small room with bland white walls, and ceilings. The only break came with a two way mirror to his left, which took up half the wall on that side.

He was tied to a metal chair which had been screwed into the floor, along with the cool steel table he that was in front of him. He looked up to see a man sitting on the opposite side of the table. He was as tall as Harvey was, and was in a black suit and tie, and held a folder in his hand. His green eyes stared right into him, and his brown hair was filled with grey streaks. As Harvey stared back at him, he suddenly recognised him.

‘James….Is that you?’ Harvey asked.

‘You still remember me then Harvey, that’s good, I thought with your recent activity you had completely forgot about your past,’ he replied.

Harvey thought back. James Weyers had been a lieutenant when Harvey had first met him. He had worked for military intelligence….ONI. During the war, the office of naval intelligence had gathered a lot of information on their enemies. James had given Harvey and his squad vital Intel during the war. Harvey wondered why now, after all these years he was here.

‘What’s going on James? Why am I here?’ Harvey asked.

‘You didn’t think that all those people you have killed would go unnoticed did you? We have had our eyes on you for quite a while Harvey, for the last six months we have been keeping tabs on you,’ James explained, opening the folder. It was full of photographs of him, and the murder scenes of his targets. It made Harvey feel even more uncomfortable.

‘Who are we? ONI?’ Harvey guessed.

‘Bingo. You’ve been causing quite a few headaches here. We never thought someone like you would be on our wanted list,’ James admitted.

‘Why? I didn’t think criminals disputes would be something high on ONI’s agenda’, Harvey replied.

‘Normally, it wouldn’t, but we couldn’t ignore this. There is a lot more going on than you realise,’ James said cryptically.

‘What do you mean? Get to the point already,’ Harvey said, getting annoyed.

‘We have suspicions that Jerome Calini is a major benefactor to the URF. We believe he is using his criminal activities to fund them and is supply them with weapons and equipment. Obviously he poses a threat to all of UNSC space, and he needs to be removed before the URF can launch another major assault. That’s where you come in,’ James explained.

The URF? Harvey thought. The United Rebel Front or URF was a terrorist movement that was opposed to UNSC control of the outer colonies, and fought for independence from an Earth controlled government. Harvey had run into them a few times back when he had worked for the UNSC, and he remembered how they had used shock tactics, such as car bombs in the middle of crowded neighbourhoods. He also remembered putting down some of their hierarchy with his men. Harvey thought the URF had been disbanded, especially after the war, but if James said they were still alive, they probably were. ONI rarely got its Intel wrong.

‘I don’t like where this is going……’, Harvey said.

‘We want you to keep an eye on Mr Calini. We know he trusts you, so we want you to tell us what he’s doing, try to find some evidence of his dealings with the URF,’ James said.

‘Why me? Calini has hundreds of men he trusts. Why me specifically?’ Harvey said.

‘The rest of his employees are all the same type of scum. We knew they would either betray us, or would fail. Besides, somebody with an expansive military record like yours makes us believe that you can get the job done quickly and efficiently,’ James answered.

‘And what if I refuse to play your little game?’ Harvey said defiantly. He may not have liked what he had become, and who he worked for now, but Mr Calini had been there when he needed him the most. It made Harvey resistant to turning around and betraying him.

‘Then we will pass you to the proper authorities and you can spend the rest of your natural life in prison,’ James said.

‘It looks like I don’t really have a choice then. Lucky me,’ Harvey said.

‘So you’ll do it?’ James asked.

‘Yeah I’ll do it. It beats being felt up by a man called Susan in a prison shower,’ Harvey replied.

‘Good. We knew we could count on you. Here what we want you to do. We know Mr Calini is planning something big against the other criminal factions, and he has you in the centre of it. Pull of it off as you would normally, and that should get you in his private confidence. You could then try to steer a conversation about the URF, or he might even show you the extent of his operations with them. Either way, we will give several recording devices, audio and video to document it. Get enough dirt on it so we can move on him. Any questions?’ James said.
‘Just one. What will you do when I get you get the evidence?’ Harvey asked.

‘We’ll put Calini where he belongs, close down his operation and cripple the funding of the URF. In generosity we will wipe your criminal record clean so you can start again, we will also give you a new identity should you need it,’ James said.

‘It seems like you and ONI has thought of everything as usual James,’ Harvey chuckled.

‘Look Harvey, you were a great man during the war. As an old friend I hope you see this as a chance of redemption, not just something we forced you into,’ James said, looking concerned.

‘There is no redemption for men like us James. We have too much blood on our hands. I just want to live the rest of my life in peace,’ Harvey admitted.

‘Then it’s settled. I’ll make the arrangements. You will have everything you need by the time you reach your apartment, we’ll give you a secure phone line so you can contact us,’ James said, rising to his feet, and tucked all the documents back into the folder and closed it.

James headed for the door behind Harvey, and paused as he opened the door.

‘It was nice to see you again Harvey.’

‘Likewise,’ Harvey said.

As the door shut behind him, James walked down the corridor and into the observation room where his superiors had been watching. His boss, Director Stanford said,

‘Do you think we can trust him Weyers? You’re the one with the history with Steel.’

‘Once Harvey’s committed to something, he will do it no questions asked. I’m positive he will do what we ask of him,’ James answered.

‘I still can’t be a solider like him ended up doing what he’s doing. How can anybody fall that far?’ Stanford pondered.

‘From his file, I would guess it was desperation. Steel hasn’t been able to hold a job since the war ended,’ James answered.

‘That doesn’t surprise me. Men like Steel have been fighting most of their lives. It’s all they know, all they can do. Now that the war is over, they can back integrate with the society they helped protect. It doubt Steel will ever find the peace he craves,’ Stanford replied.

They watched as two armed men grabbed Harvey and placed a hood on his head, while a third man injected him with a needle. Within seconds Harvey’s body went limp, and he was dragged away as they took him out of the facility and back to his apartment.

‘You may be right sir, but hopefully this will be the first step at bring his life back on track,’ James said optimistically.

‘We shall see Weyers. We shall see.’

End of Chapter 2

Good, good, but there are mistakes.

Angatar wrote:Good, good, but there are mistakes.

Thanks.

There always are. What was it this time?

You used 'it' for 'I' the second-to-last time Stanford speaks. And in the paragraph after Susan is mention (nice!) it says 'pull of it off'. You need to remove the 'of'.

Ok Thanks. I'll edit it soon.

Vigil wrote:‘I still can’t be a solider like him ended up doing what he’s doing. How can anybody fall that far?’ Stanford pondered.

Hm..
Believe, perhaps?

Believe.