Teraq Reborn
03-04-2007, 21:49
"Chaos." The man paused a moment to allow the viewers to register that. He was six feet tall, well tanned, with perfectly combed hair and perfectly straightened teeth. When he- or rather the people who wrote his script- decided he had paused long enough, he continued. "That was the scene in Teraqi Prime early yesterday morning, after the Beloved Leader was gunned down by an unidentified assassin or assassins."
The image changed, to another young, handsome man standing at a podium in a gleaming white suit. Suddenly there were two loud shots, and the man looked down at his chest, where two spots of blood were staining the suit. Without a word, he crumpled.
"The identity of the assassain is not yet known. Tune in to channel five for the latest updates on that situation. In other news, Teraq Enterprise, which began as a government sponsored security contractor, and recently moved into the public market with a wide variety of , announced that it has bought out its main rival, Harrison Incorporated, giving it control of an estimated fifty-three percent of the Teraqi economy."
***
"AK-47s," said Harry lovingly. "Together with Molotov Cocktails, the treasured weapon of freedom fighters, terrorists, and revolutionaries everywhere."
Mark sighed. He had been sitting in the van for several hours already as it moved from the Enterprise training camp in the back country to Teraqi Prime. Harry had been talking the whole time, moving from their mission to some chippy he was laying, to finally their equipment.
"And which are we," he asked tiredly. He wasn't particularly expecting an answer, but to his slight bemusement, he got one anyways. It didn't come from Harry, but rather from Todd, a hulking blond with a love of explosives.
"None of them," he said, clipping off a bit of wire. "We're the fornicating distraction." The van screeched to an abrupt halt, before Mark could ask Todd exactly what that was supposed to mean. He often got the feeling that Todd, through whom their assignments came, knew more than he was letting on.
They had pulled to a stop in front of the apartment building that housed the penthouse of one J. Wadsworth, founder, CEO, and majority stockholder of the only major automobile manufacturer that wasn't Teraq Enterprise. Mark pulled on a ski mask and climbed out of the van, drawing a tazer and dropping to one knee to disable the doorman. Todd and Mark, along with Bill, who had been driving quickly- and nonlethally, they were Teraq Enterprise employees, and putting up only enough fight to make a good show- disabled the three security guards.
The clerk on duty- who should have pressed an alarm for the overworked police force- tipped his hat to the masked men as they burst through the double doors.
The trip up the elevator was filled with a tense silence. They all knew that the hardest part still lay ahead. Wadsworth had at least three highly trained bodyguards, who weren't in the employ of Teraq Enterprise. For that reason, the elevator stopped on the fifty-third floor, instead of going straight up to the penthouse. About that time, Mark heard the sirens.
"Fornicating son of a slut!" He shouted. "That clerk tipped the police."
"All part of the plan," said Todd, producing a key and unlocking a door marked employees only. It opened into an empty linen closet. As the sirens grew closer, he removed several shelves. Mark had been wondering why Harry had been carrying a hammer, but he now knew. Harry handed it to Todd, who put a small hole in the wall, and went to work widening it. Bill, meanwhile, stepped over to the only elevator- which they had come up in, and produced another key, which he used to lock it in place. The police would either have to find one of the other keys (which, if this had indeed been part of a larger plan, Mark assumed would have been inconvieniently misplaced) or take fifty-three flights of stairs.
Todd, meanwhile, had uncovered what appeared to be an old service stairwell, which wasn't on any official blueprints of the building. Mark was sure of this, he had stolen the originals and planted the forgeries himself. They hurried up the stairs, which ended in another blank wall. Not bothering with the hammer, Todd merely shouldered the wall, which turned out only to be a single sheet of plywood, thinly covered in plaster. It collapsed, and emerging out of the dingy stairwell into the light, Mark found himself in a brilliantly lit bathroom, where an elderly man was swallowing a brightly colored pill. He looked up in astonishment, until Todd's massive gloved fist caught him in the chin. He crumpled, but not before letting out a small noise of surprise.
The doorknob to the bathroom turned, and Bill and Mark both fired through it. There was a scream of pain from outside, and Harry kicked open the door. He fired two quick bursts.
"That accounts for the guards," he said. "Let's dump the geezer and get out of here while the getting's good."
With Todd carrying Wadsworth, they quickly crossed to the window. "Look out below," called Bill, and chuckled at what he imagined was his wit before Todd threw the man through the window.
"Okay, so the cops are probably on their way up here now," said Mark. "What's the plan say about that?"
Harry appeared, dragging a large box. "Old man was a collector. Go figure." He opened it up. Mark swore at what was inside. "You're joking," he said to Todd, a pleading note in his voice.
***
Frank smiled again at the coffee girl. She smiled back.
"Frank! Quit flirting. You're on in thirty seconds!" Shouted a producer or technician. Frank had a hard time keeping track. He straightened his tie and looked directly at the camera. He rarely even paid attention to what the words on the teleprompter said, merely intoning an engaging voice, "Four unidentified men today assualted and killed J. Wadsworth, a name many people who own a car will be familiar with, and his bodyguards. They escaped by one of the most unlikely of means, four antique helipacks. The helipacks- remarkably in working condition, were part of Wadsworth's private collection of rare military equipment. A hunt for the four men is currently under way."
***
A few days later...
"Thank you Frank," said Mister Mayers, founder of Teraq Enterprises. "I know that the Corporate Scare seems to have been replaced largely by the issue on slavery. Which is why I hope it will not come as too terrible a shock when I announce that I'm buying your company as well. You're fired, Frank."
Frank laughed. "Very funny Mister..."
"I'm not joking. The purchase was made minutes ago. Clean out your desk. You were always to airheaded for me." He turned to the camera. "And with that purchase, I am now in direct control of ninety percent of the Teraqi economy, including the privatized police, the National Guard- I've just ordered them renamed the Corporate Guard, by the way- and what's left of the army. Ladies and gentlemen, for all intents and purposes, I am now in charge."
"Now, to all those foreign powers out there who love to turn interventionalist for stuff like this- to quote an old classic, go ahead- make my day. One word from me and I can utterly collapse this economy. Trust me, this place is much better off with me in charge than if I have a strange accident. Have a nice day folks, and remember, buy Enterprise." He laughed. "Not that there's much choice."
The image changed, to another young, handsome man standing at a podium in a gleaming white suit. Suddenly there were two loud shots, and the man looked down at his chest, where two spots of blood were staining the suit. Without a word, he crumpled.
"The identity of the assassain is not yet known. Tune in to channel five for the latest updates on that situation. In other news, Teraq Enterprise, which began as a government sponsored security contractor, and recently moved into the public market with a wide variety of , announced that it has bought out its main rival, Harrison Incorporated, giving it control of an estimated fifty-three percent of the Teraqi economy."
***
"AK-47s," said Harry lovingly. "Together with Molotov Cocktails, the treasured weapon of freedom fighters, terrorists, and revolutionaries everywhere."
Mark sighed. He had been sitting in the van for several hours already as it moved from the Enterprise training camp in the back country to Teraqi Prime. Harry had been talking the whole time, moving from their mission to some chippy he was laying, to finally their equipment.
"And which are we," he asked tiredly. He wasn't particularly expecting an answer, but to his slight bemusement, he got one anyways. It didn't come from Harry, but rather from Todd, a hulking blond with a love of explosives.
"None of them," he said, clipping off a bit of wire. "We're the fornicating distraction." The van screeched to an abrupt halt, before Mark could ask Todd exactly what that was supposed to mean. He often got the feeling that Todd, through whom their assignments came, knew more than he was letting on.
They had pulled to a stop in front of the apartment building that housed the penthouse of one J. Wadsworth, founder, CEO, and majority stockholder of the only major automobile manufacturer that wasn't Teraq Enterprise. Mark pulled on a ski mask and climbed out of the van, drawing a tazer and dropping to one knee to disable the doorman. Todd and Mark, along with Bill, who had been driving quickly- and nonlethally, they were Teraq Enterprise employees, and putting up only enough fight to make a good show- disabled the three security guards.
The clerk on duty- who should have pressed an alarm for the overworked police force- tipped his hat to the masked men as they burst through the double doors.
The trip up the elevator was filled with a tense silence. They all knew that the hardest part still lay ahead. Wadsworth had at least three highly trained bodyguards, who weren't in the employ of Teraq Enterprise. For that reason, the elevator stopped on the fifty-third floor, instead of going straight up to the penthouse. About that time, Mark heard the sirens.
"Fornicating son of a slut!" He shouted. "That clerk tipped the police."
"All part of the plan," said Todd, producing a key and unlocking a door marked employees only. It opened into an empty linen closet. As the sirens grew closer, he removed several shelves. Mark had been wondering why Harry had been carrying a hammer, but he now knew. Harry handed it to Todd, who put a small hole in the wall, and went to work widening it. Bill, meanwhile, stepped over to the only elevator- which they had come up in, and produced another key, which he used to lock it in place. The police would either have to find one of the other keys (which, if this had indeed been part of a larger plan, Mark assumed would have been inconvieniently misplaced) or take fifty-three flights of stairs.
Todd, meanwhile, had uncovered what appeared to be an old service stairwell, which wasn't on any official blueprints of the building. Mark was sure of this, he had stolen the originals and planted the forgeries himself. They hurried up the stairs, which ended in another blank wall. Not bothering with the hammer, Todd merely shouldered the wall, which turned out only to be a single sheet of plywood, thinly covered in plaster. It collapsed, and emerging out of the dingy stairwell into the light, Mark found himself in a brilliantly lit bathroom, where an elderly man was swallowing a brightly colored pill. He looked up in astonishment, until Todd's massive gloved fist caught him in the chin. He crumpled, but not before letting out a small noise of surprise.
The doorknob to the bathroom turned, and Bill and Mark both fired through it. There was a scream of pain from outside, and Harry kicked open the door. He fired two quick bursts.
"That accounts for the guards," he said. "Let's dump the geezer and get out of here while the getting's good."
With Todd carrying Wadsworth, they quickly crossed to the window. "Look out below," called Bill, and chuckled at what he imagined was his wit before Todd threw the man through the window.
"Okay, so the cops are probably on their way up here now," said Mark. "What's the plan say about that?"
Harry appeared, dragging a large box. "Old man was a collector. Go figure." He opened it up. Mark swore at what was inside. "You're joking," he said to Todd, a pleading note in his voice.
***
Frank smiled again at the coffee girl. She smiled back.
"Frank! Quit flirting. You're on in thirty seconds!" Shouted a producer or technician. Frank had a hard time keeping track. He straightened his tie and looked directly at the camera. He rarely even paid attention to what the words on the teleprompter said, merely intoning an engaging voice, "Four unidentified men today assualted and killed J. Wadsworth, a name many people who own a car will be familiar with, and his bodyguards. They escaped by one of the most unlikely of means, four antique helipacks. The helipacks- remarkably in working condition, were part of Wadsworth's private collection of rare military equipment. A hunt for the four men is currently under way."
***
A few days later...
"Thank you Frank," said Mister Mayers, founder of Teraq Enterprises. "I know that the Corporate Scare seems to have been replaced largely by the issue on slavery. Which is why I hope it will not come as too terrible a shock when I announce that I'm buying your company as well. You're fired, Frank."
Frank laughed. "Very funny Mister..."
"I'm not joking. The purchase was made minutes ago. Clean out your desk. You were always to airheaded for me." He turned to the camera. "And with that purchase, I am now in direct control of ninety percent of the Teraqi economy, including the privatized police, the National Guard- I've just ordered them renamed the Corporate Guard, by the way- and what's left of the army. Ladies and gentlemen, for all intents and purposes, I am now in charge."
"Now, to all those foreign powers out there who love to turn interventionalist for stuff like this- to quote an old classic, go ahead- make my day. One word from me and I can utterly collapse this economy. Trust me, this place is much better off with me in charge than if I have a strange accident. Have a nice day folks, and remember, buy Enterprise." He laughed. "Not that there's much choice."