Alexa - Legionnaire : Training an Assassin: Prequel to Alexa - The Series by Arno Joubert Read Free Book Online
Authors: Arno Joubert
Tags: Alexa Guerra Prequel
in her pocket. She dug it out of her jeans pocket and read the message.
“Happy Birthday, baby. You're a grownup now and you need to know you're in grave danger. Perreira and Callahan have been located. Phone conversation intercepted, 11:37 AM GMT+3. Map data at https://mos.isly.com. Love you, Becky. ZC.”
Natalie reread the message. She clicked the link and was directed to a Google map with a drop pin labeled “Perreira.” It zoomed into a location somewhere in Mozambique. The world tilted on its axis, forcing her to sit down on a wooden deck chair. She pulled her knees to her chin, and hugged her legs. Memories flooded back. She was overwhelmed, nauseous, and scared. “How is this even possible?”
She dialed a number on her phone, but it went straight to voice mail. “Dad, when you hear this message, please phone me. I've received a text from Zachary.” She hesitated. “You said he was dead.” She blinked and swallowed hard. “Why would you lie to me?" she asked softly. She disconnected the call, closed her eyes, and rested her brow on the palm of her hand. Her heart thumped in her chest, and she felt the bile rise in her throat.
Jordan ambled towards her, a concerned look on his face.
Natalie took a few deep breaths and rocked on her heels. Her phone vibrated in her hand, and she read the new text message from Bruce.
“We need to talk.”
Jordan sat down by her side. “Are you OK, Nats?” he asked, concern etched on his face. He wrapped a protective arm around her shoulder.
Natalie pursed her lips and shook her head. “No, I’m not,” she said biting her lip. “Something strange is going on.”
Tel Aviv, Israel
Private First Class Yehudi Schweda opened the evening's operational plan. He was the shift leader at the Israeli Defense Force's computer operating center, also called “OPS.”
The night ahead was uneventful. Backups to be run, a biweekly payroll job for the nursing staff. He looked around at the brightly-lit room.
Nice, quiet evening.
He took a joint from his coat pocket and lit up, inhaling deeply.
He pulled open a drawer and took out a headlamp, switched it on, and tested the beam on his hand. He nodded and walked to the electric distribution board. The room went dark as Yehudi flipped off all the breakers. He looked around. Red, green, and yellow lights were flashing on the tape devices, and a faint green glow radiated from the central consoles. Soft buzzing, whirring, and clicking noises emanated from the robotic tape libraries. Against a wall, a 42-inch LCD TV displayed the Israeli Defense Forces’ network diagram, a crisscross pattern of green lines connected to green blipping dots.
All green, all OK.
Yehudi took another drag and followed the headlamp beam to his chair. He sat in the chair, moved the public announcement system's mouthpiece closer, and switched the setting to “Ops” before switching off the headlamp.
"This is your captain speaking." His voice boomed through the darkened room. Yehudi smiled and took another drag. "We are embarking on a mission of epic proportions to annihilate the home world of the Klingons. Yes, yes, I know. It will be fraught with danger, but if any Starship is capable of completing the mission successfully, it is the Enterprise." He stood up and held the mouthpiece close, gesturing with a waving arm. "And though we may face imminent danger and life-threatening situations, you know you may always count on my sound judgment. Your captain, Yehudi Schweda.”
He typed on the console and announced, “Captain's Log, new entry."
Yehudi logged into the Israeli Defense Force’s centralized messaging system called SYSM. He opened his own message box and read the posts. A new message had arrived some time earlier.
“Subject: Nightly Procedure Directive: Batch Job Scheduled
Job Type: Production Update to Backend
Name: Becky22
Scheduled: 23:15
Initiators Required: 2
Assembler: Cobol
Run time: 15 minutes
Media
“Happy Birthday, baby. You're a grownup now and you need to know you're in grave danger. Perreira and Callahan have been located. Phone conversation intercepted, 11:37 AM GMT+3. Map data at https://mos.isly.com. Love you, Becky. ZC.”
Natalie reread the message. She clicked the link and was directed to a Google map with a drop pin labeled “Perreira.” It zoomed into a location somewhere in Mozambique. The world tilted on its axis, forcing her to sit down on a wooden deck chair. She pulled her knees to her chin, and hugged her legs. Memories flooded back. She was overwhelmed, nauseous, and scared. “How is this even possible?”
She dialed a number on her phone, but it went straight to voice mail. “Dad, when you hear this message, please phone me. I've received a text from Zachary.” She hesitated. “You said he was dead.” She blinked and swallowed hard. “Why would you lie to me?" she asked softly. She disconnected the call, closed her eyes, and rested her brow on the palm of her hand. Her heart thumped in her chest, and she felt the bile rise in her throat.
Jordan ambled towards her, a concerned look on his face.
Natalie took a few deep breaths and rocked on her heels. Her phone vibrated in her hand, and she read the new text message from Bruce.
“We need to talk.”
Jordan sat down by her side. “Are you OK, Nats?” he asked, concern etched on his face. He wrapped a protective arm around her shoulder.
Natalie pursed her lips and shook her head. “No, I’m not,” she said biting her lip. “Something strange is going on.”
Tel Aviv, Israel
Private First Class Yehudi Schweda opened the evening's operational plan. He was the shift leader at the Israeli Defense Force's computer operating center, also called “OPS.”
The night ahead was uneventful. Backups to be run, a biweekly payroll job for the nursing staff. He looked around at the brightly-lit room.
Nice, quiet evening.
He took a joint from his coat pocket and lit up, inhaling deeply.
He pulled open a drawer and took out a headlamp, switched it on, and tested the beam on his hand. He nodded and walked to the electric distribution board. The room went dark as Yehudi flipped off all the breakers. He looked around. Red, green, and yellow lights were flashing on the tape devices, and a faint green glow radiated from the central consoles. Soft buzzing, whirring, and clicking noises emanated from the robotic tape libraries. Against a wall, a 42-inch LCD TV displayed the Israeli Defense Forces’ network diagram, a crisscross pattern of green lines connected to green blipping dots.
All green, all OK.
Yehudi took another drag and followed the headlamp beam to his chair. He sat in the chair, moved the public announcement system's mouthpiece closer, and switched the setting to “Ops” before switching off the headlamp.
"This is your captain speaking." His voice boomed through the darkened room. Yehudi smiled and took another drag. "We are embarking on a mission of epic proportions to annihilate the home world of the Klingons. Yes, yes, I know. It will be fraught with danger, but if any Starship is capable of completing the mission successfully, it is the Enterprise." He stood up and held the mouthpiece close, gesturing with a waving arm. "And though we may face imminent danger and life-threatening situations, you know you may always count on my sound judgment. Your captain, Yehudi Schweda.”
He typed on the console and announced, “Captain's Log, new entry."
Yehudi logged into the Israeli Defense Force’s centralized messaging system called SYSM. He opened his own message box and read the posts. A new message had arrived some time earlier.
“Subject: Nightly Procedure Directive: Batch Job Scheduled
Job Type: Production Update to Backend
Name: Becky22
Scheduled: 23:15
Initiators Required: 2
Assembler: Cobol
Run time: 15 minutes
Media
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