Chapter 16: 16

“That fu**!”

The DGSE member who was obviously using the fake name, “Miguel,” shook his head. This was why he hated those muscle-brained military soldiers. Most of the commanders within the Legion Etranger were from the main French army.

French commanders acted like gentlemen and had a vast pool of knowledge. When such people entered the Legion Etranger, they changed in nature. In simpler terms, they became idiots who couldn’t think straight. Strangely, even the most educated and famous commanders became stupid when they entered the Legion Etranger. Commander Philip was considered slightly better than the others. Although, nothing could be done if even he started to act strangely.

The plan to rescue Makumbo had been approved by Mitterrand. The Department of National Defense had also approved a plan to deploy a small unit of the special forces. The Deuxieme Rep and the Airborne Regiment Staff members had to decide the method of fulfilling the order.

This order required the sacrifice of the Deuxieme Rep. It wasn’t that he couldn’t understand Commander Philip’s frustration that was akin to an alligator with eggs. The problem was Commander Philip’s violent prejudice and bias. He was a commander who strongly believed that the DGSE only stirred up trouble.

This was a strategy that battled against time. The prejudiced Commander Philip did not help the situation. Miguel was also annoyed.

Of course, DGSE did a lot of dirty work behind the scenes. The entirety of DGSE was made in resistance to Charles de Gaulle’s SDECE (a national intelligence department).

The SDECE was created to find the communists within the resistance. At that time, the Vichy government infiltrated the masses of communists. SDECE hunted them out by creating traps using mainly family and friends.

The DGSE was an intelligence agency that was basically created to betray the SDECE. In 1981, Mitterrand reorganized DGSE, but it was highly criticized because of its exceptionally radical back-door work and rough information activities.

Behind-the-scenes dirty work was inevitable because of the nature of intelligence agencies. Such a gentlemen-like intelligence organization would not be able to exist in the world. It was similar to asking a cobra to pour out potions instead of poisons.

Colonel Philip was a gentleman. The problem was that a gentlemanly tendency of his was to delay the operation. Colonel Philip hated and did not believe that Makumbo joined hands with the Habre government. But an operation was an operation.

Miguel was about to erupt out of frustration. What was Legion Etranger? It was a group of elite soldiers who went into battle. The reason for growing a pig was to eat it during a feast. It was normal for mercenaries to be sacrificed. But he couldn’t say his thoughts out loud, which made him angrier.

“Commander, if we manage to procure Makumbo, we will be able to sway the other leaders of the FAP. For France’s well-being, we must confirm his safety as fast as possible.”

Miguel attempted to convince him while swallowing his anger.

“Yes, we must save him with my subordinates’ blood, this man who commits the holocaust as if it’s his daily meal. Of course, we must save the man who kills women and children in a pub while drinking a beer while handing over some power for him to grasp.”

Colonel Philip commented sarcastically. Makumbo had offered a deal to the DGSE. “I will abandon all vested interests for the people and join hands with Habre’s FAN. I will resolve the opposition and jealousy of religious sects and various races on a grand scale.” It was a request for the French government to be his political backer and push him into the prime minister’s position. DGSE immediately accepted Makumbo’s proposal.

Philip dismissed Makumbo’s suggestion as a hoax. According to DGSE’s internal documents, Makumbo was one of the most guilty amongst the FAP’s warlords. A slayer suddenly standing up for justice and laying down all vested interests for the people? It was something a hyena would laugh about. He was just a raccoon who read the flow of the battle and decided to change sides.

“Colonel, Makumbo is necessary for France.”

“Look, Miguel, here are the documents that came from your company. Within the last year, Makumbo burned down 10 villages within the Sahel belt and Kanem region and conscripted over 300 young boys for his army. He killed over 1000 natives.

Makumbo’s group that was headed down south attacked a northern Laka village near Lake Chad. There were over 40 villagers killed. It seems like he used an ax to save his bullets. On top of that, he kidnapped another 20 teenage boys.”

Philip drank some water before raising his voice.

“Miguel, you know why they kidnap the boys, don’t you?”

Philip banged the table with the information file.

“Ugh, that idiot!”

Miguel wrapped his hands around his head. Colonel Philip had completely lost the main point. The conversation was flowing in the wrong direction. Of course, he knew better than anyone else what the Chad militia had done. The rebelling guerrillas had burned down the village and kidnapped teenage boys. The teenage boys were raised to be sacrificed to the oncoming bullets.

The most disgusting thing happened in the rebelling guerrillas’ conscription after the massacre. They made the young boys kill their own families.

The ten years old boys, after watching their village burn and killing their parents with their own hands, became mentally impaired. The young soldiers didn’t fear anything. They ran forward when the command came.

They harbored an absolute fear of the person delivering oppressive violence and submitted wholly to the leaders. Their decision-making skills had been impaired even before they could grow. Whether it was the FAP or FAN, warlord or politician, they were nothing but bloodthirsty mass murderers.

The DGSE saw Makumbo’s movements as a diversion strategy. Makumbo was planning to move his main forces south to garner the attention of the FAP so that he could slip out with his bodyguards.

Why did Makumbo ask the French government for a joint escape plan?

The DGSE saw it as insurance. He had prepared for the off-chance that the FAP would notice his diversion. The DGSE decided that Makumbo’s intentions were real by looking at his diversion strategy.

The problem was that Makumbo was caught on FAP’s radar. The Habib army abandoned their forces and surrounded Makumbo, isolating him.

What was the cause of such a situation?

Either the black slipper had turned into a triple agent and handed over information about Makumbo to the FROLINAT, or this was something Makumbo and FROLINAT had planned.

The DGSE was in a state of panic trying to procure Makumbo before an unexpected situation occurred. Even Commander Philip trusted the DGSE’s decision and analysis. But he was still resisting, which made him angrier.

“Commander!”

The conversation kept falling to the wayside, causing Miguel to shout.

“I know, I know. We do need to extract that murderer for my paycheck.”

Philip waved his hands to stop Miguel from talking. As long as he was a soldier, he was unable to defy orders. He had simply thrown a tantrum out of frustration.

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As a high-ranking officer, he knew what was happening. When Makumbo joined the government and the military, there were going to be tremendous benefits. The pro-French government of Habre could gain political legitimacy and military advantage. France would also gain legitimacy as well as political justification for Chad’s civil war. As an added bonus, the internal division of the FROLINAT could be expected.

Five of the eleven FROLINAT leaders were members of the FAP faction. Goukouni, Tombalbaye, Habib, Makumbo, and Lomu. When fourth-ranked Makumbo changed sides, fence-sitters Tombalbaye and Lomu could be swayed.

DGSE’s focus on Makumbo was to destroy the FAP internally. Nevertheless, Philip’s mischief was due to the pity his men felt murdering that trash in cold blood. Had it been a command to rescue French people, he would have complied excitedly.

Philip drank the new cup of coffee that his lieutenant brought as if he was drinking water. The lieutenant had brewed the coffee too thick. It seemed to be scraping down his dry esophagus.

“Miguel, is fruit-selling management a problem?”

“You don’t have to worry. It is a reliable local source and is currently being double monitored. ”

The black slipper linking Makumbo with the DGSE was an illegal fruit seller at Paya Market. As the situation progressed, DGSE was taking over management.

The problem was Makumbo’s rescue. There was no way to avoid the FROLINAT’s ferocious dogs. Large troops couldn’t be deployed, and small commandos were likely to be defeated.

Miguel was also worried. DGSE, too, had not been confident in uprooting the FROLINAT’s elite forces and had pushed the matter into Legion Etranger’s hands. It was an adventure that required them to extract the lion cub from the lion’s den.

Of course, they did not anticipate a high rate of success. Even if it was the Deuxieme Rep, they were no specialists in extraction missions. The DGSE planned to sell the operation to Legion Etranger and, as always, insert a wild card. Miguel never uttered a word about it. If Colonel Philip found out about it, he wouldn’t be able to say a single word to defend himself, even if he was pummelled to death.

“Captain, please leave it to me. I will put my hat on the line and get the raccoon out of there.”

Pief shouted with determination. Putting one’s hat on the line within Legion Etranger was synonymous with risking one’s life. The hat was a symbol of pride. Pief was a senior commander, and he was driven by greed to pull off this operation and receive a promotion.

Pief was well aware that the operation was based on a small number of snipers and required the sacrifice of his men. There was a great risk of total annihilation.

But as long as he was within the Deuxieme Rep, he couldn’t stay where he was if he was afraid of blood. As long as he wore a military uniform, he was bound to put forth the amount of blood he received as payment. A soldier earned his promotion through the blood of his subordinates. This was no different within Legion Etranger.

“Pief, have you been listening to the meeting with your behind? The group of hyenas forming the net in northern Kanem and southern Boruku rivals the size of a brigade. They are ferocious guys with mobility, wandering like crazy dogs. This operation will require breaking through their nets and moving 600 miles in a straight line with a bulging middle-aged man on your back. Do you think you’re Lawrence of Arabia? No, actually, not even he would be able to pull this off.”

Even with the dressing down of his regiment commander, Pief did not yield; he knew Black Mamba’s skills and was confident. The chances of success were good if the special forces had Black Mamba and a special subject to assist him. The haphazard rebels with their faulty equipment were mere numbers in the end.

“Captain, there is no Lawrence of Arabia, but you do have a Black Mamba who would beat Rambo hands down.”

“Hm, Black Mamba?”

Commander Philip suddenly altered his posture. God sniper Black Mamba was the pride of the Deuxieme Rep and the secret weapon within Legion Etranger. The moment Pief mentioned Black Mamba, he garnered attention.

Philip glared at Pief. It was troublesome to ignore his subordinate when he was stepping forward with his life on the line. And with Black Mamba; the possibility of success turned from 10 to 50 percent.

He had already acknowledged the fact that they were only able to deploy a small unit. If he deployed the main force, there was no way out of a war.

“Right, he is a monster. But he’s a newbie who hasn’t even been a soldier for a single year, isn’t he? He has no real experience.”

“He’s not a newbie; he’s Black Mamba. Commander, you should know! He’s a one-man unit. He has no experience, but no one can beat him in close combat and concealment escapes. I also lost my consciousness at a single blow. His lack of experience can be covered by the veterans.”

Philip’s eyes grew wide. This was the first time he heard about Black Mamba being an elite, close-ranged fighter. For a sniper who was also proficient with a knife, he was the perfect man for this job.

“Whoa, for a Capoeira master like you to be defeated by a blow! It’s a shame I didn’t get to see it happen.”

Pief’s expression crumpled when Philip laughed. He didn’t even know how he was defeated in the regiment’s combat competition and had fainted after a single blow. It was a memory he didn’t wish to recall.

Philip contemplated this idea with his arms crossed. He had been suspicious the entire time about why the DGSE had handed the rescue of Makumbo to him. So far, he had been trying to figure out the rest of the details through Miguel during his tantrum. Not just anyone became the regiment commander of the Deuxieme Rep. He had tried his best, but Miguel had been slippery.

Philip stared at Miguel.

“Miguel, are there any underscores in this operation? You’re not using my babies as bait are you?”

“That is a question that exceeds my security level.”

It was a natural answer for Miguel. He could neither deny nor agree with sensitive questions.

“Sh*t! There won’t be any interference in this operation, will there? ”

“Yes. Everything, including the start and end of the operation, is with the Chief of Operations and you, Commander.”

“Do you have any other information for me to consider in this operation?”

Miguel’s stomach turned. He wanted to crush the nose of Chief Aprica who had stuffed him in this meeting and ran away.

They had received information that STRESLA 2 was in the hands of the rebels. STRELA 2 was a Soviet portable surface-to-air missile known as SAM-7. It was clear that Commander Philip would cause a scene if he told the truth. This was because helicopters were going to be used to transport the elite unit. Helicopters with low altitude and low speed were also targets for portable missiles. But if he hid the information, he could be called to military court for concealing information.

“There is information that the FROLINATs got the SAM-7.”

“What? Damn it! Why are you mentioning that now? This is why bastards are impossible to work with. Your cheap words are going to turn my babies into drowned ducks!”

As expected, Philip flared out in anger.

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