Chapter 43 - That's My Command

After complete silence goes on for a few seconds, Captain Yelena finally spoke up. "It's me." Her voice was clear and firm.

The terrorist leader tilted his head to her with an amusing smile. "A woman? How strange." He muttered. He then gestured his men to bring the leader forward.

One of the men pointed Yelena on her back to forced her to step forward. He made Yelena stood before their leader. 

The leader passed his gun to his men and take out a pistol from his waist. He lifted the pistol and pointed Yelena. The end of his pistol clashed with the Captain's forehead. He slowly loaded the pistol and put his index finger on the trigger, ready to shoot anytime.

"No! Captain!" Lt. Morris shouted but he was instantly knocked down to the ground by the enemy. The other members also struggled when they saw their Captain in the brink of death, but they were controlled by the guns pointed on them.

A few seconds passed that way but Captain Yelena looked at the terrorist leader right in the eye. She showed no signs of fear or anxiety!

The terrorist leader released his finger and lowered his pistol. "You are one tough woman. I like your attitude." He chuckled.

"What do you want?" Yelena nonchalantly asked him.

"Our base is exposed, so we need to flee from this place. That means we need a hostage to keep us safe. We also need some vehicles to leave this place." The terrorist leader told her.

He was quite amazed by the bravery of this young woman. Even a brave man would panic when standing before the end of a loaded gun!

"Then I will be your hostage. Let my team members go." Yelena calmly opined.

"No!" All the team members retorted in unison. Losing their Captain will be a huge defeat for them. Besides, their Captain was not an ordinary Captain.

"Shut up." The two words from their Captain immediately shut the mouths of the team members. They stared at their Captain, trying to figure out what she was thinking.

"That's so brave of you. And it seems like your team members truly care about you. But I think every one of you would make the same hostage. Besides, your ranks didn't differ that much. Why would I agree to your suggestion?" The leader asked her.

"Of course, we didn't have many gaps in terms of rank. But I will tell you this just for your knowledge. Who knows? It might even help you in making a decision."

"What is it?"

The team members desperately hope for their Captain not to say anything. They can't speak out because that would anger their Captain again.

"Simple. I'm the granddaughter of General Logan Arista."

It's the end. Now that their Captain had given them a good reason to keep her hostage, there was no way to save her now!

The terrorists exchanged glances with each other, debating whether to believe her or not.

"Didn't that make me a good choice for a hostage?" Captain Yelena asked the leader.

"How can I know that you're not telling a lie?" The leader asked for confirmation.

Yelena rubbed her forehead. "Well, I'm on a mission and there's no way for me to bring such identification things. But you can look at my name tape." She pointed her name tape on her right chest. "You must be aware that Arista is a rare surname. If this doesn't convince you, then I don't have another way."

The leader lowered his eyes and reads the name tape. Yelena Arista? So, there was a high chance that she was speaking the truth.

The leader thought for a while and finally made up his mind. "Fine then. But I cannot let all your team members go. I will release only two of them."

"But I don't agree with that. You can take me as a hostage only if you release all my teammates." Yelena firmly replied.

The leader laughed at her words. "Hey, Captain! I don't think you're in a position to decide that." He said in a mocking tone.

"Is that so?" The Captain slightly smirked. "Then how about this?" She kicked the man who pointed her with a gun and take his gun from him. The movement was so swift that the man had no chance to react nor fight back. But to everyone's surprise, she pointed the gun at herself and not the leader!

"What do you think you are doing?" The leader yelled at her and immediately pointed his gun at her.

"You may not know this, but the moment I entered the Military Academy; I was never afraid of dying. And even now, I still feel that way. If you can't accept my condition, then forget about having me as a hostage. I can just die here."

She glanced at her team members who looked at her with a bewildered face. "If I die here, make sure to kill all of them. None of them must be alive. That's my command." She declared.

When her team members continued to stare at her with an amazed expression, she became impatient. "Do you hear me?" She said again in a high and authoritative voice.

The team members finally came to their senses. When they witnessed their Captain betting her life just to save them, the fear they felt before completely disappeared. They brace themselves and muster up their courage!

"YES, CAPTAIN!" They responded with a high energy.

Captain Yelena smiled. She had completed what she aimed. She managed to give back the courage to her team members!

"See? If you don't agree with me, then you are the one who has no choice." She said to the leader with a playful smile.

The leader turned his head around and look at the team members. The Captain was right! The fear he previously saw in their eyes were gone!

Now, they looked like an injured beast who would tear apart anyone who provoked them! They were full of courage and determination. And he was very sure of what a person with determination could achieve!