Alexander
GA Member
- Oct 11, 2023
- 369
The contents of this post may be disturbing to some.
I. Amélie
It was a beautiful Friday Evening in Paris, August always brought with it great weather but this year especially had been a highlight. The 16-year-old Amélie had been looking forward to that night. A tall brunette, wearing a silver shiny dress that covered a lot less of her legs than her parents would have liked. Normally, she was a lot more conservative but tonight one of her favourite rappers, Médine, was performing. Another thing her strongly religious Jewish parents likely didn't approve of due to the rapper's Islamic faith. Tonight she just wanted to forget everything and live in the moment. As she looked over the crowd in front of the Bataclan theatre, she was looking for her friends.
"Amélie! We're here!" She heard a familiar voice yell her name. It was Eleonore, one of her oldest and best friends with the rest of the group she was going to go.
With a large smile on her face she ran to the group and joined them at their spot in the queue. "I thought you weren't going to make it, you look beautiful!" Eleonore continued as she hugged Amélie.
"Thank you, you look beautiful too. Sorry, my parents were drilling me to find out where I was actually going so I had to find a way to get out of there" Amélie replied.
"Well, we're happy you made it. And just in time too!" Luna, another friend, said before giving Amélie her ticket for the night.
II. Khalid
Khalid looked at a picture of a young Algerian looking girl on his smartphone, she was 5 in the picture but that was taken the last time he had seen her when he still lived in Algiers. By now she was 13. Eight years Khalid had lived in France. He had come over with great ambitions, the first in his family smart enough to pursue a university education. His parents had saved everything they had, took out a dozen loans, all to get him admission to a prestigious French university. After all, they were much better than the universities in Algeria. He was going to become a doctor, spend a few years working in a French hospital and when he was done earning enough money for him and his family he would move back and set up a hospital in Algeria. The first few years had gone well but when the Civil War started so did the lack of central law enforcement. Segmented in small local police departments, Khalid had found himself on the wrong end of a particularly aggressive Gendarme. By the time he woke up again six months had passed and he found himself unable to concentrate, and with that his lofty dreams were crushed. The years since he had been working a series of menial jobs as at least they still earned more than they did in Algeria and at least that way he could somewhat pay his family's debts. He hated the people that had done that to him, but that had not translated to hatred against France at large. All of that changed a few months before when not only did Israel declare its intent to fight another war against his brothers in Palestine, but now the Empress of the country he had tried to call home declared her support for them. Through a co-worker he managed to get involved with the 'Amr Qatil Jadid, or as its name translated to English the New Assassin Order. Named after the ancient Order of Assassins. Its purpose was as clear as its name implied. To strike at those who would do their people harm.
Looking up from his phone Khalid saw through the window of the small apartment he and his brothers had rented in one of the less advertised areas of France where many of his people had been forced in the 60s and 70s to be forgotten by the government. He usually lived in Toulouse but for this job they had come to Paris.
"Get ready brothers, the time of our holy mission has arrived" Zamir said from some distance. At that point, Khalid turned around and walked to a table where he put on his vest and picked up a FAMAS Commando, the rifle he had been practising with in recent weeks.
III. Hugo
Hugo sighed as he walked into the locker room of the Paris HQ of the regional GIGN. He had been called up last minute due to some chatter the DGSI had picked up. Normally he didn't mind, but tonight he had been planning to propose to his long-term girlfriend. She had recently found out she was pregnant and she wanted to prove his commitment to her, and show he would stay for her and the baby. Especially after having grown up without a father as his own father had died in a peacekeeping mission thirty years prior and before he was born. While he didn't like it, however, DGSI weren't known to raise alarm bells without cause so if they had decided extra GIGN was needed in Paris it means something was probably going to happen. As he finished changing into his uniform he moved on to the armoury to pick up his body armour and from there to the Briefing Room where he took his seat as the final arrival.
"Excellent, now everyone is here. You have all been called up because DGSI has picked up chatter about a major event happening in Paris. We don't know much more than that except that it comes from Islamic extremist circles. While our disengagement from the Arab world and Africa has made us less of a juicy target, things have changed with the Israeli alliance so they want us on high alert. The National Police is increasing patrols but if something goes down they want us deployed. Get your weapons ready and prepare to move when the word comes in"
IV. Amélie
Despite its length, the queue had gone a lot faster than she ever expected, a mere half hour after she arrived Amélie and her friends were inside and in their seats as the Bataclan steadily filled up. As the concert was ten minutes from beginning Amélie suddenly had to go to the toilet. She turned to Luna "Please watch my bag" She said as she got up and walked outside of the concert hall itself and to the toilets. After she finished and had cleaned her hands she walked back out only to see a group of tough Arab looking men walking towards the concert hall. She moved aside but not before one of the bigger men knocked right into her and pushed her off her balance. Hitting her behind painfully on the ground she let out a short scream of pain. The men completely ignored her, but one who turned around.
"I am sorry, my friend is an idiot sometimes" He said as he knelt by her. "Are you okay, miss?" He continued asking as he extended a hand to help her up.
Amélie looked up at him. He was bald and clean-shaven, but his piercing brown eyed and thick red lips gave her a weird feeling in her stomach. He clearly was older than her but still seemed very young. "Yes... I think so... Thank you" She said as she grabbed hold of his hand to get back on her feet.
"No worries, I am Khalid. Aren't you a little young to be here?" He asked once both were on their feet.
"Amélie... I'm Amélie... I guess so, but Médin doesn't perform often so when he did in Paris I couldn't miss the opportunity" She answered.
"Ah, so you're a big fan of him? I take it you're here with other people. Maybe you should go back to them?" Khalid said, keeping up his kind demeanour throughout.
"I am, and you are probably right. I should be going back to my friends. Thank you Khalid" She concluded the conversation with a bright smile before walking back into the concert hall and to her seats. She was just in time for the first song.
About thirty minutes after the concern had begun several loud explosions could be heard before everything turned dark. Screams soon followed with more explosions and then the sound of gunfire all around her. Completely disoriented she tried to grab hold of her friends but couldn't find them.
V. Khalid
Friends of the cause had got Khalid and his brothers access to the Bataclan through a service entrance, as a result they could bypass the security gates at the entrance and the Police checkpoint just inside. Once they were in they all gave their weapons to one who would use the service hallways to position them at all pre-agreed positions to avoid causing too much attention. The vests were covered under bulky business suits but rifles were a bit harder to hide. They also couldn't all use the service hallways without raising alarm bells for other reasons. Thus Khalid found himself with the main group walking through the public part of the theatre. As they walked passed the toilets Ibrahim had bumped into a way too young for this concert looking girl. She was pretty but it was immediately obvious to Khalid that she was way too young for him. The fact she somewhat looked like his sister didn't help either and made his heart weak for a moment so he broke off from the group and helped her up. After the exchange and seeing her walk away he felt the urge to tell her to get her friends and get out but before he could Zamir grabbed his shoulder. "Is there a problem, brother?"
Startled Khalid turned around. "No, brother. Nothing. Sorry" He replied and rejoined the rest of the group. He was to take his position near one of the exit points of the concert hall. Once the music began he was to take his rifle out of the garbage bin to the right of the entrance. By that time everyone was inside and the police didn't patrol this far inside so he should be safe. In the days prior others had positioned explosives throughout the theatre to block of all exits except a few. This way the 1500 inside would have to go for one of the two remaining exits and at each one a brother was ready to mow them down. Especially as the explosions and brethren inside would take care of most of them, with the trampling taking a lot more. Regardless of his convictions, the brunette girl stayed in his mind. Only when he heard the first explosions did she finally leave his thoughts. Now she was just one of the 1,500 and the thought that she was likely already dead gave him some comfort. As more explosions followed Khalid kicked open the door as he saw the first people run up the stairs already. As he began shooting the chaos that ensued would make sure even more died to trampling than to his bullets. He began screaming louder and louder as rage overtook him and the stairs before him became covered in a mountain of corpses and a sea of blood. "Allahu akbar! Allahu akbar! Allahu akbar!" He kept yelling almost in line with his racing heartbeat.
VI. Amélie
In the chaos of the first few seconds Amélie was completely dazed but then she suddenly thought to get her phone and use the torch. She had felt something heavy on her and a fluid soaking into her torn dress and onto her skin. As soon as she turned on the torch she regretted it immediately. On her were the bodies of Eleonore and Luna. The fluid she felt soaking into her was the blood of her two best friends. "Eleonore! Luna! Please answer!" She said as she tried to shake their bodies with no response. As tears and deep sadness overtook her she pushed the bodies off of her screaming "Sorry" the entire way for disrespecting their corpses. As soon as she got out from under them she saw her other friends in an even worse state. Some she could hardly make out. In the meantime the tears in her dress ran deep and had she not been covered in blood would have likely exposed most of her torso and tighs. Deciding there and then that she was going to get out of here in honour of her friends she turned off the torch to not draw any of the attackers' attention. She managed to silence the sound of her crying yet the tears kept flowing down her face. Crawling over corpses she tried to move towards the light, whenever she heard one of the attackers near her she would lie down and pretend to be one of the dead, only to continue moving once they were away. That was how after much effort she found herself at one of the few remaining exits and crawled towards the light. The light of her salvation. At the top she saw a familiar figure. Not thinking he was one of them and not seeing his rifle she got up and ran towards him. As she did she stopped as soon as she saw his rifle but the man seemed almost as startled to see her. It was Khalid. He pointed his rifle at her but didn't fire immediately.
Speaking without thinking she raised her arms. "Please Khalid, don't shoot me. Please, I just want to live"
Perhaps it was the unexpectedness of her arrival and her pleas but his look seemed too soften and he lowered his rifle.
VII. Khalid
Khalid had continued his objective expending magazine after magazine on the infidels before him. He realized there were Muslims among the crowds as well, but any Muslim indulging in the decadence of this Empire of France was even worse than an infidel. Then he saw a figure that had haunted his mind before the spree started. She was almost unrecognizable covered in blood and with her dress torn but when he looked into her eyes he immediately recognized them as Amélie's.
As she begged for her life he knew that he should have shot her but like before his resolve softened so her lowered his rifle and grabbed hold of the girl to hide her in a place where his brothers wouldn't be looking. As he grabbed her without meaning to he looked down her cleavage. Then he saw something he hadn't noticed before. Hidding by her dress before and the length of her gold necklace was a gold Star of David. The sympathy he felt for the girl was instantly replaced with rage. Without her noticing he grabbed a knife from a holster on his belt.
"Where are your friends, Amélie?" He asked coldly.
"They... They died" She replied, clearly in shock.
"So you abandoned them? All you dirty Jews are the same!" He yelled as he threw her on the ground and knelt over her. Before she could respond he began stabbing into her stomach and chest. Over and over and over again in a blind fury as he became just as covered in her blood as she was in a mix of her own blood and that of the corpses she had crawled over.
"Please! No! Stop! Khalid please! I want to live!" She yelled as long as she could but her voice became increasingly softer as the life left her eyes. When he was done he got up and turned back towards the entrance but not before feeling a sudden pain sensation in his chest.
VIII. Amélie
She hadn't noticed the knife as she kept focusing on his beautiful piercing eyes. They emitted kindness until in an instant they no longer did. Too far in shock she gave no response as he pushed her on the ground and called her a Dirty Jew. Only when she finally saw the knife did her eyes suddenly open wide. She pleaded and pleaded for her life but he kept pushing the knife into her soft flesh. After the first ten stabs it didn't even hurt anymore somehow. As the life left her she turned her head to the wall.
"Eleonore, Luna, Chloé, Aurore, I am so sorry. Mom, dad I should have listened. Please forgive me. Rachel, Mia, you must keep mom and dad safe, I love you" Were the final thoughts as she moved from one life into the next. In the end she saw a bright light and felt a strange warmth before she no longer felt, saw, or heard anything anymore.
Fin
IX. Hugo
"Entrance clear!" Hugo said into his mic as he moved through the security gate and passed the patrol. Even this far out the corpses could already be seen. The DGSI had been right about tonight but the scale was beyond even the worst predictions. The Notre Dame, the Great Synagogue, the Stade de France, the Eiffel Tower, de Arc de Triomphe, the Bataclan, multiple streets in the 10th arrondisement known for their restaurants and cafe's, gunmen were at all of them and some of them even had explosived and suicide bombers. One of this latter categories was the Bataclan where Hugo's platoon had been deployed. The scale of the attack meant that it was all hands on deck with in addition to the National Police and GIGN the Army, Marine Corps, and essentially anyone in Paris that worked for any agency or service that came with a gun being called to service. But all of that didn't matter now. For Hugo and his platoon the Bataclan was their entire world. That is where they could do something. If they were done there they could always move elsewhere. As they moved passed the police corpses they soon encountered their first gunman and took him out with three shots centre mass. "Remember, if it stands and carries a weapon it's a legitimate target" He repeated over the comms as they continued moving. The National Police had surrounded all exits so none of the terrorists were getting out alive but they had to hunt them down first.
"Deploy tear gas" He said as the designated specialist shot tear gas grenades once they had reached the hallway and concert hall proper and the order was given.
"Split up; Rouge and Terre on me. The rest clear the concert hall" He ordered before breaking off from the platoon with a young female GIGN officer and a grizzled male veteran of not just the GIGN but also the Imperial Army in the Civil War. As they moved through the hallways wearing the gasmasks they shot terrorists one by one. Even faster than the gas was spreading which was how they found one of the terrorists, a young looking man, still unaffected by it and kneeling over a woman that he kept stabbing into. Opting not to give him a chance to grab his rifle as he got up he shot him in the chest followed by two more. As he approached him he gave him a final shot between his eyes for good measure. He turned to check on the woman. As he did shock came over him. He had seen a lot, but there lay a girl nowhere near 18 and that beast had left her almost beyond recognition. Against better wisdom he tried to pick her up, hoping that she was somehow still alive. As he carried her over his shoulder he suddenly noticed something that made him run with the girl's corpse away from Khalid.
X. Khalid
As the painful sensation in his chest was joined by two more Khalid first fell on his knees and then entirely on the ground. As he bled out time seemed to slow down to a snail's pace. Before him flashed his life. The happy young child in Algiers, the promising student in high school and then all the work his parents had done to give him a better life. For him to give his sister a better life. Then the pride in their eyes as he was accepted at university and approved for the student visa and the love they still showed him after it became clear all their dreams were gone following the attack. What had he done? How could he have done this? He had betrayed them. He had betrayed his parents, his sister, everything his faith stood for. With his final willpower he tried to move his hand to his chest to press a button but before he could he was given a final shot through his head. Even now he had failed, to disable the deadman's switch. Unlike Amélie no light awaited him. Only cold unforgiving darkness.
Fin
XI. Hugo
Letting go of the deadman's switch had triggered a timer and by the time Hugo finally noticed there were only a few seconds left. Knowing he stood a better chance without Amélie's corpse he knew he should let her go but something in him just couldn't let go of her. Perhaps he imagined his future daughter in what had remained of her face. He had managed to yell to Rouge and Terre to run away but then it hit him. First he saw the light then he heard the bang and then he felt hundreds of shrapnel tear into his skin. Even worse the final terrorist's death had sent out a signal for further explosived to go off making the roof of the Bataclan collapse onto them. Covered in tons of stone Hugo didn't get to see his life flash by or think of his friends and family. Instead in the few seconds he had left he lived a lifetime. He proposed to Léa, she gave birth to Amélie who they had named after the girl he couldn't save, and then he experienced a lifetime. "I love you dad" Were the final words that ran through his mind as he too fell into an eternal slumber.
Fin
