Page 11 of Zero
“You can relax.” Justice told me. “It won’t be nearly as bad as you thinkin’.”
The echoes of footsteps behind me caused me to turn. Two soldiers entered and stood at attention. I smiled and turned fully to face them. “At ease, soldiers.” I told them. “I’m not military.”
They relaxed.
“Have a seat for a second.” I leaned back to speak to Justice privately. “They are only men. Are there no females on this base?”
“Of course, there are.”
“None qualified for this?” I asked.
“None of them applied.”
“Well, this country belongs to both men and women.” I told him. “They should have a hand in protecting it, don’t you think? Besides, we men are morons.”
Justice laughed softly. “I hear that.”
“We’re going to have to fix that.” I frowned at him.
Justice nodded. “I’ll gather a couple files for you to go through. I’ll come back in a couple of hours?”
“That’s fine.”
After he left the room, I faced the soldiers again. They were staring at me and I knew the questions going through their heads. Still, I sat on the edge of the desk, picked up the remote for the projector and pressed the arrow to the first image, which was of me all geared up.
“Good morning.” I called. “Yes, I speak English.”
They laughed.
“As you know, I’m Rei Hakama.” I smiled. “They call me Zero. Yes, I am a part of Germany’s Grenzschutzgruppe 9.”
One raised his hands. “Sorry—what?”
“Grenzschutzgruppe 9.” I replied with a smile. “You can call them GSG 9 for short. But my team is an offshoot of the GSG 9 called CIRO. The team comprises of myself, Pitbull, Mouth, Barbie, Crash and our leader Beastmode—we just call him Beast.”
“Barbie?” One soldier asked.
“Yes.” I used the remote to pan back to her picture. “What’s your name?”
“Patrick Woods.” He replied.
“Well, Patrick.” I smiled. “Sabine Henson. Dresses better than any runway model you’ll ever meet. But one of the deadliest snipers to come through the GSG 9 program.”
“A sniper?” Patrick gasped.
“Yeah. These are the folks who have my back on every mission.” I continued. “They are the ones who ensures I go home at the end of the day. It’s strange being here with another team. But I will manage. Once you’re on a team like this, loyalty is one of the most important things. You’re no longer just soldiers working together—you’re family. You leave no one behind and you do everything to ensure your brother, and sisters, go home in the end. There’s no debating that concept, no second guessing it. If you can’t do that, tell me now and we will replace you.”
No one moved.
I exhaled. “Good, now tell me who you are.”
I finished with the introduction with what was to come for the team, and dismissed them right before Justice walked in. He handed me a couple of files as promised and I opened the first one. Marion Hope didn’t seem as if she had much experience. She had some discipline problems, and I knew the signs. She wasn’t going to make it long in the military. The second file was of a Jasmine Caine.
“Her—can I see her in action at some point?”
Justice nodded. “Come with me.”
We made our way across the testing grounds and into a building at the far end. We climbed some steps to an observation deck. I looked down.
