The Heist

• Aayush Chand, Grade 6, Somerset College -
• Short Story
• 2018

Excellence Award in the 'Write Along 2018' competition

I heard the sound. The sound of the rattling tracks as the train edged near us like a speeding wall of death. This was the mission, my mission that would get me a free life and a ticket out of this hell. My name is Commander Raptor this is my story.
I found a way to get back to my home world. But the portal needs refined wolframite to be activated. Coincidentally, the Galactic Enterprise was advertising for trained soldiers to intercept a communist shipping carriage before it reaches the enemy territory. Why am I doing this? Because the shipment is filled with my pot of gold.
My two older brothers Rex and Cody are with me. We’re in a military helicopter and Cody is flying us over the train.
“It’s the teal one with the symbol on it.” I tell Cody.
He replies, “Roger that.”
We go over our plan for the umpteenth time.
3, 2, 1, drop. I watch as my life flashes before my eyes, we make contact with the carriage and begin the dangerous feat of unclipping the cargo from the train. Everything was going well, and I was nearly halfway through a chain when an ear-piercing sound rained through the cavern. My heart raced as I turned around fearing the worst. Yep, Marauders. Marauders are the nickname for the Imperials in this… I guess you could call it a Dimension. They were gaining on us, they knew we were here. They were more in numbers, but we were better trained.
It still seemed impossible. We were trapped on all sides. The Marauders not only stole; they murdered. I realized that Cody had left to evade them. I vaulted over the carriage, sharp-shot a Marauder and, using my training, silently hijacked air-speeder.
I began to laser the other air-speeders taking them down like flies. Rex had retreated behind the train and resumed the segregation of the carriage between the others. Uh-oh, the leader noticed me, I knew it would be fight now, talk later. Thus, I engaged in combat. My skill, no superior than his, nor inferior. I felt like the face behind his mask was vaguely familiar, until it snapped in my head. He was Rockwell, the leader of them all. From then on, I went hardcore. Relentlessly, I pummelled him with fire, bullet after bullet just ricocheted off his what felt like impermeable shell, I was outmatched and there was no denying it. His armour was a hundredfold rank above my ghillie and his aim was the same level.
There was only one hope for me, I loaded in my last shocking tranquilizer dart, I had one chance, fire. The dart neatly fits in between the air hole on his helmet. It has an instantaneous effect, he falls to his death. I had only won that battle by the skin of my teeth I call in Cody to load the carriage, and after that, he hands me a detonator, I press it. And… BOOM!