Grimacing as his boat finally hit the dock, Pearson thought that if he had known then what he knew now, the jail cell wouldn't have seemed so bad.
Looking around his team, Pearson was the only Ruluka native with any commanding position in this operation. His reputation seemed to precede him, and when he was singled out from a group of lazy recruits, he tried to modestly decline.
But, unfortunately, the fat tactician would not take no for an answer, and, quickly realizing this, Pearson accepted the responsibility on the condition that his team would be located closer to the city's government buildings and naval batteries.
This earned him admiring glances from the rest of Ruluka's residents and even surprise from the more experienced Marines, but in reality, Pearson calculated that the least amount of fighting would be at the island's government headquarters.
Because even if this island was a pirate haven, he thought the official government wouldn't be stupid enough to shoot at the Marines.
When the last team landed on the island, all groups dispersed to their assigned areas. Pirate Bay was located near the mountaintop, and this was their final destination.
As he passed what appeared to be a courthouse, Pearson felt the need to check his gun, and while doing so, he happened to turn his head and noticed a metallic glint from a second-floor window.
"Well, just look at this..." he thought, simultaneously shouting: "GET DOWN! GET DOWN! GET DOWN!!"
His crew, already wary, shuddered like startled gazelles and scattered in all directions as the first shot rang out in the air.
As Bill hurried up the steps, he was surprised to hear the shooting start so early.
He, Borodo, and Baskud moved purposefully, but only covered a few blocks. Their destination was a special bar with a secret passage. This passage led to the central volcanic chamber, which was the pirate cove.
This bay was unique in that it was an incredibly tall, hollow tube. According to Bascoud, it was crucial to seal this entrance, because if Bill entered through the top opening—the place where the ships were launched during the race—the pirates would flood into the streets.
In that case, they might still be able to catch those whose heads were valued at high rewards, but many pirates might escape the net, and the danger to rank-and-file marines would increase many times over.
Therefore, despite not knowing the exact direction, it was decided that they would enter through the lower entrance and block it, while simultaneously subduing those inside.
With these thoughts in mind, Bill burst through the door of one of the bars, and the bartender with a big red nose looked stunned when he saw Baskud and Borodo start turning over tables and booths.
While Baskud and Borodo were working, Bill began to interrogate the bartender.
He claimed he knew nothing about the secret passages, and when the other two concluded that this was not the place, Bill received a list of other bars in the city.
That was all Bill could get out of the short interrogation, but being a pirate port, the town had dozens of bars, and as they headed to the next one, gunshots rang out again from the other side of town.
Realizing he had to hurry, Bill quickened his pace, turning his head toward the first shooting spot.
Having knocked down one of the massive door panels, Pearson cursed his luck.
Luckily, none of his team had died in the failed ambush, but that was only small consolation, because now the worst kind of fighting imaginable was about to begin.
Leaning against the door, which was still hanging on its hinges, he tossed a grenade over his shoulder and tightened his grip on his rifle.
A flashbang grenade was his signal. Bursting inside, he found two poorly armed and clothed men clutching their faces at the other end of the room, near the ornate staircase.
He counted three more on the stairs and, running as fast as he could, shouted to his team: "Stairs! Stairs!"
Five shots ripped through the air, and as Pearson watched the two men collapse on the stairs, he cursed under his breath again. He was breathing heavily, even though he'd only run one room, and he knew he needed to calm down. He delivered a powerful kick to the first armed man and drove the butt of his rifle into the other's nose.
Turning toward the stairs just in time, Pearson raised his weapon and fired at the rapidly recovering enemy. Without waiting for the shot to take effect, he spun sharply and delivered another crushing blow to the one he'd kicked first.
Huff... Huff...
Breathing heavily, Pearson didn't have time to consider that this was the first time he'd killed a man. His only thought was that he wouldn't die a nineteen-year-old virgin today.
As the last man from his team entered the courthouse, Pearson slung his rifle over his back and commanded in a firm voice, "Guns at the ready! Clear the building in teams of three! Frank, Lyn, you're with me."
Pearson's team was made up entirely of former Ruluka soldiers, and unlike the senior Marines, they did not have the new riveted rifles.
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