The Wolf of Los Angeles

Chapter 434 - 434: Breaking Through

[Chapter 434: Breaking Through]

Hiding behind the front tire of a Land Rover Defender, Bosque knew very well that as long as they prevented the enemy from breaking through, victory would be theirs. To achieve this, the M2 heavy machine gun mounted on the armed Humvee had to be taken out.

He ordered via radio, "Squad 1, Squad 2, prepare RPGs!"

Andrei responded, "Copy that!"

...

In the middle of the camp, the smell of burned flesh filled the air. Hawke and Raul crouched, rushing into the tent where Raul lived. They laid on the ground and opened a crate.

Inside the crate was an RPG-7 and rockets. Raul expertly attached the rocket propulsion tube and detonator, assisting Hawke to mount it onto the launcher.

Hawke slung the weapon over his back, holding the RPG with one hand while covering the warhead's fuse with the other, crouching out of the tent.

...

Nearby, Andrei carried the RPG, searching for the perfect firing position.

Hawke dashed behind a dirt mound, lying prone and listening to the roar of M2 machine guns and AK rifles. He shouted into the radio, "RPG ready, cover me!"

Guti finished reloading his M249 and called out, "Ready!"

Bosque commanded over the radio, "Squads 6 and 7!"

These two squads had orders earlier to flank the camp from both sides for a rear attack.

"Copy! Ready!" both squads responded.

Bosque shouted, "Attack!"

Guti set up the machine gun, aiming wildly at the direction where the M2 machine guns roared.

Erica's M700 kept firing rapidly, silencing a machine gun on one of the Humvees.

The remaining mercenaries raised their rifles to fire. Those carrying grenades pulled the pins and warned, "Grenades! Watch out!"

Suppressive fire continued, throwing grenades forcefully into the western distance without much preparation.

...

Mousad's team had already charging within 20 to 30 meters of the camp, just a bite away from breaking inside, but they'd lost over twenty men, some wounded and wailing in agony. Morphine was unheard of here; there was none to manage the pain.

This team was holding on only because of the two armored Humvees behind them.

Just as Mousad hesitated to launch another charge, gunfire erupted from the side and rear, breaking the team's wedge formation.

They were trapped in a crossfire!

...

On the battlefield, some enemy soldiers started retreating, and the faithful shooters on this side nearly ceased firing.

Almost simultaneously, Hawke used the last light from a flare to locate a firing spot. He hoisted the rocket launcher, aimed at the Humvee closest on his side, and fired.

Flames burst, dirt flew, and the rocket trailed a long blazing tail as it soared.

"RPG!" the enemy shouted from the camp's perimeter.

...

Mousad, hiding behind his team, cursed in his native tongue, frustrated that these bodyguards went out armed not only with machine guns but RPGs too.

Boom!

The rocket slammed into the Humvee, triggering a fierce explosion. The vehicle deformed, glass shattered, completely destroyed.

Before they could react, a second rocket streaked toward another Humvee, delivering a devastating hit.

The vehicle was instantly engulfed in heat so intense it seemed to ignite the very air.

They couldn't hold their ground any longer. Some scrambled to their feet and fled; others played dead to avoid certain death, while some crawled backward desperate to escape.

The heavy rifles and ammunition they carried became burdens, and many threw them away in panic as they bolted.

...

Bosque glanced at his wounded men and ordered without hesitation, "Fire the flares to finish them off!"

Someone started a still-functioning Land Rover, turning it toward the enemy and switching on the roof spotlight. With a dull boom, another flare launched skyward.

Hawke dropped the launcher, lay behind the dirt mound, aiming at targets showing in the light, firing steadily.

"Take them out!" came a shout over the radio. "Valencia, Sanchez, and Anthony are hit!"

Erica's M700 picked off the fastest retreating enemies one by one.

Hawke quickly emptied a magazine and swapped for a fresh one.

Enveloped by crossfire, the enemy soldiers felt completely surrounded, bullets coming from all sides.

No one escaping managed to stay on their feet. The survivors lay motionless, acting dead.

...

Hawke finally said, "Capture a few alive! Find out who these attackers are!"

Bosque ordered over radio, "Cease fire! Cease fire!"

The gunfire gradually stopped. Andrei shouted loudly, "No killing of those surrendering!"

No response came from the other side.

...

Someone fluent in Arabic shouted, "Surrender and you won't be harmed!"

Others repeated in French and Spanish.

The men lying on the ground only understood the local dialect. But Mousad could understand English and French. He looked at the pile of corpses, then at the gun in his hand.

His troops had lost morale completely, trembling on the ground.

This was supposed to be a surprise attack; why had it turned out so badly? How was the enemy's firepower stronger than their own, despite preparation?

Mousad was baffled but called out, "Don't shoot. We surrender!"

...

Andrei, hearing the English, replied in English as well, "Drop your weapons, hands on your heads, move to the illuminated vehicle and lie down."

Seeing no movement, he added, "You have thirty seconds!"

...

Mousad hesitated to move forward and pointed to the person in front, "You go first."

The man hesitated but, yielding to Mousad's authority, put down his AK and slowly stood with hands on his head, walking toward the spotlight.

...

Hawke spoke into the radio, "Don't shoot yet."

Many had seen their leader fight alongside them during the crisis, even destroying an armed Humvee, so no one objected.

The surrendered enemy reached the illuminated Land Rover, lying down on the dirt. Behind the vehicle, rifles trained on them.

As the first surrendering man reached safety, more followed, dropping weapons, standing up cautiously, hands on their heads, walking toward the vehicle.

Mousad threw down his rifle, removed his helmet, ripped off insignias, discarded them in the bushes, and blended into the group, lying down near the vehicle.

...

Squads 6 and 7, after inspecting the exploded Humvee and finding no survivors, advanced, killing two clever enemies hiding in the grass and finishing off the wounded or dead on the ground with gunfire.

...

Hawke remained behind the dirt mound, glancing at the still-burning bodies. He told Raul, "There's something wrong with the guides. Weren't there supposed to be two more? Find them."

Raul and Morentes cautiously entered the guide's tent at the back and found Onard and another guide asleep, unresponsive to calls.

They fetched cable ties and bound them together, then poured cold water to wake them.

Onard regained some awareness but was groggy and mumbling incoherently.

Hawke told Raul to keep them tied to the vehicle wheels for the time being.

...

Meanwhile, the mercenaries feared the prisoners might hide weapons, but thorough searching was too troublesome. Andrei ordered them to strip.

The men were terrified, desperate to cover themselves while undressing, dreading worse than death.

Some seemed to have encountered this before; after undressing, they willingly lay prone, spitting into their hands.

Bosque noticed one bearded man trembling and wondered what horrors these men had endured.

He looked at the uniform black military gear and berets and asked, "Who's the officer?"

Naked and almost indistinguishable, no one spoke.

Bosque gave a signal, and a nearby white mercenary kicked down the closest man and shot him in a vital spot, causing him to writhe in pain.

Bosque asked again, "Who's the officer? Who shouted surrender?"

One desperate enemy mumbled in the native tongue and pointed toward the wounded man, implying he was the officer.

Andrei unsheathed his bayonet and approached to take action.

Mousad raised his hands and declared in English, "It's me."

...

Nearby, Hawke and Erica sat behind a vehicle, quietly watching.

Such dirty work was not theirs.

Sympathy for these surrendered enemies was out of the question.

Both understood that if they lost, it wouldn't just be lives lost.

...

Meanwhile, several mercenaries collected their fallen comrades' bodies, gathering three dead soldiers altogether. None were hit by AKs but by bullets from the M2 machine gun's suppressive fire.

The bodies were badly mutilated and horrific to behold.

Two more were wounded: one hit in the shoulder by a ricocheted AK bullet, the other grazed on the wrist during their firefight.

Luck sometimes played a role against automatic fire.

Their injuries weren't severe; the first had emergency bleeding control and morphine injections, while the second was bandaged.

...

Bosque was interrogating Mousad, with Hawke only exchanging a few words over the radio.

Onard regained full awareness, shocked by the carnage around the camp: battle scars everywhere, mutilated corpses being stuffed into makeshift body bags made of animal skins.

Hawke pointed to them, and Raul and Guti went over to interrogate.

...

After confirming Onard posed no threat, Bosque had him dragged to his side, serving as an interpreter.

The other guide also revitalized, was taken by Raul for a separate interrogation.

The captured enemy was to be questioned individually. From the guides' translations, they'd determine if any posed a problem.

Facing enemies who had killed their comrades, the mercenaries showed no mercy.

Screams filled the camp continuously; some enemies even dropped dead on the spot.

Hawke only cared about results, not the process.

*****

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