He rose high enough to see over the top of the container and fired twice, both rounds striking the enemy with enough force to knock him backwards.
Tanner hauled himself onto the roof, rolled to his left and came up on one knee, his pistol pointed at the other end of the container. He saw the first ICA thug ten feet in front of him and to his left, but there was a second terrorist only fifteen feet away and to his right. Both were swinging their weapons toward him.
Tanner fired first, two rounds into the closer target's central mass. The gunman rocked back, his AK-47 flying away. He spun into the side of a container and slid down.
Before Tanner could take aim at the second target, two more shots rang out. The second terrorist staggered but didn't go down. Tanner then fired twice more, until the man's legs folded and he fell over.
Naomi scrambled onto the container, her own pistol out. "Clear.”
"Thanks," Tanner said.
"De nada." She flashed him a smile.
Stephen was up next, then Danielle. Once Axiam arrived, Tanner started searching the bodies for extra magazines while Stephen scavenged a radio from one of the dead terrorists.
Ahead of them, Tanner could see another container beyond the one they were standing on and beyond that, the flapping of a tarp and a few lights that signaled the enemy's location.
"Think they heard us?" Liam asked in a low voice.
"Don't think so," Tanner said. "Too much gunfire going on.” He raised his radio to his lips.
“Javelin, status?"
"Slow," the SEAL commander returned. "They're dug in like ticks on a hound dog. But Javelin Two and Three say what's left of the stern is secured."
"We're near the first nuke. We have our bird's pilot with us. He's a Somali jarhead, and one of the good guys."
"A Somali jarhead?"
"Yeah. We'll keep him with us. Have Javelin Two and Three move up to support, but don't go inside the superstructure — it's full of smoke."
"Copy, OUTCAST. I'm sending Three portside and Two starboard. ETA, one minute."
"Copy Javelin. OUTCAST out."
Using hand signals, Tanner directed the team to start moving toward the other end of the container. They quick-walked the length of the transport structure, weapons up and ready. A four-foot gap separated one container from the next in line, and they could see light up ahead of them.
They leapt across the gap easily and pressed forward. Halfway along the new container, the radio Stephen had picked up came alive with rapid-fire Arabic. The three stopped and listened until Stephen translated for them.
"It's the man in charge. He's ordering his men to get clear of the blast zone and to hold the ‘infidels’ for another minute." His expression became grim. "He's going to fire one of the missiles.”
CHAPTER FORTY-ONE
Despite the dire situation they were in, Narsai couldn't help but feel a sense of excitement when Masood ran up to him and shouted, "It's ready to launch!"
The cacophony of battle from both the bow and stern told him that the enemy had them surrounded, but he knew that his men would fight as true soldiers of Allah would. In the meantime, he would launch the nuclear missile. Once airborne, the infidels would have a hard time tracking it, and there would be little chance of destroying it over the sea, especially at night.
To stay and fight would mean his life, because of the missile's back blast, but it was worth the sacrifice if he could kill hundreds of infidels.
He snapped at Faisal. "How much longer?"
The engineer and two of his men were splicing together a launch switch. The primary launch station had been in a cabin on the deck below the bridge, but it was lost in the inferno consuming the superstructure along with the three-man technician team. Fortunately, there was enough electrical equipment lying around for Faisal, with his Master's degree in Electrical Engineering, to cobble together a switch to ignite the missile's engines and enable a launch.
"A minute!" Faisal did not look up from his technical work.
Narsai grabbed his radio. "Warriors of Allah!" he intoned. "The time of vengeance is at hand! Keep the enemy at bay, but stay clear of the missile's back blast! You have fifty seconds!"
Men were running everywhere, but Masood and a couple of his team stood there, looking confused. "What are we supposed to do?" the doctor asked. "We are not soldiers!"
"Now is the time to learn," Narsai said. "Or do you think the infidels will care if you are a soldier or not? They will kill us all to prevent us from completing our mission and future missions. It is best you try to kill them first."
Masood wiped his brow with a handkerchief. "Captain, we have no weapons."
Narsai shot him a cold glare. "Then find some!”
Faisal stood and shouted, "We are ready!"
The ICA captain ran over to the table and eyeballed the device sitting on it. The hastily constructed object consisted of two toggle switches and a button. They were surrounded by a mass of wires and two cables that led to the missiles.
Faisal pointed to the new components. "Throw both of these switches and push the button."
Narsai made eye contact with Faisal. "Are you certain this missile will launch?"
Faisal nodded. "I am sure of my work."
Another round of explosions from both sides of the ship was followed by intense gunfire. Narsai flipped the first switch. "Go. I will launch the missile."
Faisal picked up an AK-47. "I will stay with you sir.”
Narsai placed his hand on the engineer's shoulder. "Thank you, my brother. Guard my back."
"Captain!"
Narsai turned to look at Masood. "What?"
The Pakistani's expression was grim. "I will launch the missile," he said. "You are a soldier — lead your men. I will do my part."
Narsai stepped back and motioned toward the launch station. As Masood stepped forward, Narsai caught something out of the corner of his eye. He turned as the object bounced off the catwalk of the frame securing the containers, flew over the rail and fell to the deck. He experienced a brief flash of recognition before a blinding light and deafening sound overwhelmed his senses.
Tanner and Liam crouched on top of the container staring down at the missile launcher and the nuke itself. The rest of the team was ten feet behind them, hidden in the shadows.
Illumination from portable work lights lit up the area, reflecting light off the containers and the tarps that covered the overhead gap to help shield the missiles from overhead observation. The space was only fifteen feet wide, and bordered by the containers on the long sides and a four foot drop-off to the deck on each side of the beam.
Tools, equipment, crates and tables were set up all around the missile, and a number of people occupied the immediate vicinity. A new set of odors mixed with the faint aroma of gunsmoke — sweat, food and machine oil combined with the humidity to assault Tanner's nose.
Gunfire from the bow and both the port and starboard sides indicated the battle was still raging.
The launcher occupied the center of the space, and was little more than a u-shaped platform wide enough and long enough to hold the nuke five feet off the deck. The launcher was supported by a number of steel-tube braces welded to plates that were in turn bolted to the deck itself to support the missile.
Tanner judged the missile to be about twenty feet long, two feet in diameter, with a pair of folded wings in the middle part of the body. It was painted a dull gray, with no identification marks anywhere that he could see.
"I can see ten gunmen," Tanner said. "The rest look like civilians."