On the Hunt
by Tal Greywolf
-----
NATO Sector Command Division
outside of Banja Luka, Bosnia
October 29, 1997
1030 local
"Lieutenant Starling?"
The young officer sitting in the waiting room looked up at the
sound of the voice. "Yes, Sergeant?"
"They're ready for you. If you would please follow me."
Jeffrey Starling stood up from his chair, gathering his coat and
hat. Nodding slightly to the sergeant, he followed him down a dimly lit
hallway, stopping in front of a rather nondescript door. "Just step
inside," the sergeant stated, and saluted. Jeffrey returned the salute,
then knocked on the door.
A voice from within could be heard. "Enter."
Opening the door, Jeffrey quickly slipped into the room, closed the
door then turned and saluted the waiting individuals. "Lieutenant
Starling reporting as ordered, sir."
Colonel William Nethery sketched a quick return salute. "At ease,
take a seat." Jeff settled into the only available chair and nodded.
"This is Captain Rogers from Intel. He'll be giving you the
majority of today's briefing." Colonel Nethery tilted his head towards
the Captain, who nodded hello. "He'll bring you up to date on what's
been happening in Doboj, and why we're needing you for this mission."
Captain Rogers coughed discreetly and tapped a pad, bringing up a
map of the region. "I don't need to remind you," he began, "that all
information presented here does not leave this room.
"Recent reports from Doboj indicate that the Croat forces entrenched
for the last three weeks may be attempting a breakout. There has been
some movement of heavy armor over the last few days, until bad weather
forced the grounding of our aerial recon. There also has been several
skirmishes with NATO forces, preventing us from making a foray into that
region.
"It's believed that the Croat 2nd Division is massing for a push
north along this road towards Slavonski Brod." A green arrow formed
along the road, highlighting the movement. "If this is the case, we can
expect them to hook up with the 1st Division on the Croat side of the
river, possibly to push towards Tusla. It would also drive a wedge
between the British forces in Croatia and support forces in Bosnia.
"Forecasts indicate that the weather will not be breaking anytime
over the next three days. We need more information now, and the best
chance to get an idea on their movement is to send in a single scout to
survey the town. Naturally, the Croat forces would be on the lookout
for a human individual, but we believe that your special abilities would
give you a better chance at slipping in and out undetected."
Jeff nodded slowly. "Mmmm, but with no way to relay the
information back to headquarters. That would make it tricky at best."
Colonel Nethery pulled out a small collar. "Communications came up
with this." He handed it over to Jeff. "It's a self-contained tracking
system, using our latest satellite gear. There's a night camera here,"
pointing at the larger bulge, "that can give fairly good images even in
starlight. The signals are transmitted broadband, so enemy detectors
won't pick up anything other than a slight increase in noise."
Jeffrey looked at the collar and hummmed softly to himself. "Looks
about the right size," he commented. "Wild dog or wolf?"
"We'll leave that up to you, but a wolf would likely be more in
place." Captain Rogers smiled a bit. "There's been a few packs spotted
in the mountains around Doboj, so one more wouldn't be out of place."
Jeff chuckled gently. "Not hardly," he replied. "Speed and stealth
are of the essence here, I take it?"
"Speed, definitely." Colonel Nethery looked solemn. "It's
essential that you get in there safely, find out if there is movement,
and get out again." Tapping the pad himself, a red dot blinked as the
map zoomed in. "We're going to set you down here in grid Delta-27
Baker. That'll put you about some 15 kilometers east of Doboj. Get in,
snoop, and get out in that order."
Jeffrey nodded. "Understood, sir."
Colonel Nethery looked at his watch. "It's 1125. Get some sleep,
Jeff. Sergeant will fix you up with a temporary billet, we'll meet
again at 1830. Final pre-brief will be then. Dismissed."
-----
1910 local
Jeffrey shook his head and sighed, sitting on the examination table.
This was always the one part he hated, all the medical attention. As if
the Army already had enough information about his abilities.
The door opened and a doctor walked in. Jeff smiled a bit at the
sight of him. "Hello there, Mark."
Dr. Mark Green grinned and shook Jeff's hand. "Well, what are you
doing here? Don't tell me you got another hangnail."
Jeff laughed. "Come on, you know full well what I'm doing here."
Mark nodded, pulling out his clipboard. "Yah, I know. Business.
Time for you to get poked and prodded before you do your magic presto
chango."
The grin on Mark's face made Jeffrey laugh. "I can't explain it any
better than you can. All I know is that I can do it."
"I know. But try telling the brass at Walter Reed, much less
Weisbaden that." Mark started making notes, then tilted his head. "You
know the routine. Strip, and step on the scales."
Jeffrey grumbled, but complied. Mark checked his height and weight,
then made some notes about his physical condition, followed by a routine
check of reflexes.
"You're as healthy as an ox," Mark commented. "Not that I'd expect
you to become one any time soon." Jeffrey chuckled again, and Mark made
one final note. "Ok, rock and roll time, and you're on stage." He took
a seat and grinned, waiting.
Jeffrey took a deep breath and closed his eyes. Somewhere deep
inside of him a fire took hold, spreading throughout his entire body.
Rapidly his form began to alter, hair changing into a thick coat of
black fur, his arms and legs twisting into new patterns, a tail pushing
out from his ass into the air, his face distorting and becoming a long,
thin muzzle. The changes took less than a minute, leaving him standing
there in a slight daze.
Mark jotted down the time, then grinned at Jeff. "All right, let's
start the next part." A soft whine came from the wolf, but he hopped up
onto the table and lay down. Mark proceeded to check him out again,
post changeover, then pronounced him fit.
"I'll never get over watching you change like that," he said
conversationally, knowing that Jeff couldn't respond. "It's still so
fascinating seeing you go from human to wolf. Even if I've seen it a
dozen times."
A knock on the door made both look up. "Yes?" Mark called out, and
the door opened.
"Sorry, Major. It's time."
Mark nodded. "He's all yours, Sergeant." Jeff gave a short bark as
a way of thanks, and loped off behind the Sergeant.
The skies were already dark as they exited the building and trotted
the short distance to the helipad. There, a Nighthawk combat helicopter
was already primed to go, the pilot finishing up his own final
checklist. Jeffrey padded up to the side, then hopped up into the
chopper, the support technician helping strap him in.
The pilot looked back and gave a thumbs up signal. The doors slid
shut, and the engines proceeded to go to full. The Nighthawk smoothly
rose into the air, then quickly headed off into the evening gloom.
-----
2012 local
"Ok, people, listen up. Final checks are to be finished up in five
minutes."
Major Peters adjusted her microphone and looked at the banks of
monitors, computers and receivers. "Communications, what's your
situations?"
A Sergeant tapped at his console. "All systems green, Major.
Signals being relayed from Teal Indigo Two, no jamming."
Major Peters nodded. "Tactical, status."
"Tactical ready, tracking systems online for Forest Runner." A
series of maps came up on the main screens, showing present and
suspected troop movement. "Raven 2 is on course, delivery in 7
minutes."
"Heads up, folks. Time for our jobs, and let's not make any
mistakes tonight. This one's essential, as Forest Runner's counting on
us to get him in and out in one piece."
-----
2020 local
The Nighthawk chopper slid down into the valley, and the side door
popped open. Jeff jumped out and headed towards the edge of a small
forest, then turned, raising a forepaw towards the copter. The pilot
waved briefly, then the Nighthawk turned and flew off, vanishing from
sight.
The sights, sounds and smells of the night hit Jeffrey at once, and
he stood a moment drinking it in. It had been over a year since he'd
taken this particular shape, and the pleasure of it sent a shiver
through him. The feeling of freedom, to run through the forest, the
strength and power that was his alone.
A soft chirp reached his ear, where a small implant was resting.
<Forest Runner, this is Den Mother. Comm check.>
Jeffrey let out a purely lupine sigh. So much for the vacation,
it's time to go back to work. Slowly he started loping into the woods,
listening to the voice in his ear.
<Forest Runner, bear left just slightly. You'll be on track for
Doboj.>
-----
2230 local
Colonel Nethery walked into operations briskly. "Status?"
Major Peters turned and nodded in greeting. "Forest Runner was
dropped off two hours ago on target. All systems are running within
expected limits, and tracking has been keeping him moving towards the
target. He's been moving at around 12 klicks an hour so far."
A blue dot blinked on one monitor, showing the current location of
Jeffrey, just about to reach the road outside of Doboj. Colonel Nethery
nodded, then glanced at the video images, a bit grainy but viewable.
Trees and bushes filled the screen as Jeffrey loped along, the images
showing that he was indeed moving at a fair clip.
"How's he holding up otherwise?"
Another technician looked up from his post. "Heart rate's a little
high, but he's doing well enough otherwise."
Colonel Nethery nodded. "Keep me advised then. The moment he gets
into Doboj I want to be alerted."
"Yes, sir."
-----
2350 local
Jeffrey paused at the edge of a cliff, looking down cautiously. It
wasn't a far drop, but still he didn't want to alert the troops he
spotted earlier. A small patrol, perhaps three soldiers walking at the
edge of the woods.
He listened closely, then tensed and leapt down. Quickly he
scampered into cover, then peered out to make sure he was safe. Once he
felt secure enough, he took off again at a run into the woods, along the
edge of town.
The tang of diesel carried this far to him, along with the muted
sounds of engines growling. Already he knew there was something going
on in town, but he needed to get closer without being spotted.
A trail loomed ahead, leading towards the village. Jeffrey paused a
moment, then crossed it, vanishing into the trees again before turning
to follow just to the side of the path.
Winding his way carefully, he entered into the village, keeping to
the shadows and alleys. Ahead he could see some activity, large
vehicles being moved around. Twice he had to freeze and hide as patrols
wandered the streets, weapons at the ready.
It took him a while, cautiously moving deeper into the village until
he was able to see the activity. There, in what would have been a
market square several tanks sat, their engines rattling the teeth of
anyone close enough to hear. He couldn't tell how many tanks there
were, but it had to be at least 20. Enough to cause problems.
On a hunch he backed off, slipping into an alley. The darker
shadows helped camouflage him readily, and he could take a moment to
rest. He would need all his energy to get back...
A cat hissed loudly at him, and he let out an instinctive cry back
at the feline. Voices suddenly shouted from the square, and Jeffrey
turned and tore down the alley, leaping over the fence. Caution thrown
to the winds, he raced as quickly as he could out of the village, shouts
and lights flashing behind him.
Entering into the forests he kept up the pace, knowing that the
forces would signal patrols in the woods. He had to get back to the
rendezvous point, only then would he be relatively safe.
The trees and bushes flew past him as he raced on, never slowing.
His run startled a family of deer, making them scatter before him. He
jumped over fallen trees, skirted trails, dashes across roads as he tore
towards what he hoped would be safety.
---
0240 local
"Status, Major."
Major Peters ran her fingers through her hair. "Forest Runner was
spotted while in Duboj approximately 40 minutes ago. He's currently on
the run back to Delta-27 Baker and the pickup point, but enemy forces
are now on alert. As far as we can tell, he's managing to elude most of
the patrols, but he's got to cross here at Charlie 5, and it's possible
he'll run into trouble there."
Colonel Nethery let out a soft grunt. "Has he been advised?"
"Yes, sir. He's going to try and cross at this point," indicating a
a juncture in the road, "and make it into deep woods. His mobility
through that region should give him an extra edge, the terrain is fairly
hilly."
"Any way to better his odds at this point?" Colonel Nethery peered
at the display, troop movements being relayed constantly and updated as
best they could. "What about having him head south here?"
Major Peters shook her head. "There's suspected troop movement down
there as well, heading towards Doboj. Right now we have to hope he can
make the rendezvous point."
---
0305 local
Shots rang out behind Jeffrey, and he dove into the available brush.
Somewhere out there was a patrol, and they were closer than he had
guessed. All he could do now was try to outrun them, using every trick
he knew.
Weaving through the bushes he kept towards the rendezvous point,
hoping that the chopper wouldn't be late. Already the clouds were
starting to show breaks, letting a little more moonlight and starlight
to help him see.
Another shot ricocheted off of a rock, and Jeffrey turned again to
try and shake his pursuers. He could hear dimly off in the distance the
chopper approaching, all he needed to do was keep from getting hit.
Just a few minutes more, that was--
A sharp pain filled him and he fell to the ground, his legs buckling
underneath him. He fought the pain, trying to get up again but his left
rear leg refused to move. Already he could hear the shouts of soldiers
getting closer to him, and he lay down. If he hadn't panicked at the
sound of that cat, he might have been able to make it without discovery.
The voices soldiers kept getting closer, his vision starting to
blur. He could make out movement, a light starting to fill his vision
and drive all conscious thoughts out of his mind--and everything went
black.
-----
October 30, 1997
1400 local
Major Green closed the door on his patient, and turned to head down
the hall when he was surprised at the sight of Colonel Nethery. The
colonel smiled and shook his head.
"No, I'm not going to disturb him. I just wanted to find out how
he's doing."
Mark smiled. "He'll recover. Bullet wound in his left thigh, a
clean injury. Thankfully he didn't shift back to human shape until
after he pulled the bullet out, so it didn't cause more damage to him."
Colonel Nethery nodded. "How long before he'll be back for duty?"
Mark chuckled. "Given his physiology? About a week, tops. He
heals quickly enough, and by then you couldn't prove he even was
injured."
The colonel nodded and started to head down the hallway. "So you're
going to keep him here for a week? Good, he needs the rest. Just make
sure he understands that he's to REST."
Mark grinned. "Oh, I plan to make certain of it. Might send him to
Sembach for that time to recover."
Colonel Nethery grinned. "Write it up and I'll sign the orders
myself."
---
Copyright 2015
by Tal Greywolf
all rights reserved