The Mad Dog

[Sheridan]

The Summer of 1941
Just outside the town of Shale, Sheridan


Marcus Arrelano was a boy aged 16. He had left his education years behind him last year, and joined up with a local militia. The town of Shale was where he lived, and it was some 250 miles away from the border with Loago. The purpose for this early time in the militia, was in hopes of gaining some experience before entering the People's Organized Defense Force. The People's army was where every fighting man wanted to get into. But there was a boot camp, and entry tests. Many of the men in Marcus' militia were grown and had either failed in getting into the PODF, or decided militia life was for them. Marcus enjoyed it thoroughly. Most days they acted as peacekeepers, making sure that life in Shale was not overly violent. Today however would be different. Marcus was woken up by his 'Sergeant' shaking him awake after having already woken up his bunk mates.

"Marcus get the fuck up!" he yelled as he shook him. Marcus sat up with a jolt and began getting dressed immediately. "We need you guys ready in five minutes. Today ya'll are gonna see some action." Sarge said as he left the small bunker, presumably headed to wake more of the men up.

"What the hell did Sarge wake us up for at 0500?" One of the boys in Marcus' bunk asked out loud to anyone listening. Nobody answered though because none of them knew. Marcus was a little worried. This wasn't his shift time. He was part of afternoon patrol, always had been. And for Sarge to say that they would be seeing action? Likely not good. But this is what he signed up for right?

Before leaving the small bunker the boys, and the few men, grabbed their rifles and gear and strapped up. As Marcus stepped out of the bunker, he realized that all of the vehicles were on and many of them were already loaded up with men and boys. The self proclaimed Colonel of their militia was standing on the vehicle in front already midway through a briefing.

"These dirty fucking counter rev's are going to get whats coming to them! We have credible intel that they have been funneling products out of the country without going through organized trade channels. They are robbing the People's Organized Defense Force every time they move their shit across the borders. They belong to no Union, and do not identify with the solidarity of the People! They must be squashed! Our mission today is to seize everything in their make shift camp. If they will not relinquish their goods..... WE WILL KILL THESE ROGUES!" The Colonel shouted, as the men cheered. The rest of the vehicles were loaded up by now and the Colonel gave the signal to roll out.

The vehicles did not head into town, but rather headed the opposite direction taking a dirt road. As Marcus and his comrades mobbed down the road, Marcus loaded his .44 caliber revolver. The pistol was a gift from his father, a good luck charm of sorts as well as a family heirloom. He put it back in its shoulder holster and clutched his rifle. The rifle fired 7.62 x 39 and was made in a local manufacturing plant. Before Marcus knew it he heard gun shots firing. He looked ahead, and as he did so he witnessed a rocket smash into the Colonel's vehicle. The convoy pulled forward a little more, and the order to exit was shouted out by somebody. Marcus did as he was told, but not before witnessing one of his friends taking a bullet to the head. Marcus hugged the side of the vehicle while clutching his rifle. He was scared, but he could hear his comrades shouting and shooting back.

I won't be the coward, he thought to himself. He poked out from behind the car, and took aim into the encampment. He seen one boy who couldn't be much older than himself, the boy was running. Coward, he thought to himself as he fired a shot at the boy. The bullet smashed into the other boys back, and his hand flailed upwards as he collapsed to the floor. It was Marcus' first kill...

"FIRE EM UP!" He heard one of the actual men in his camp shout, as flames began to erupt from the flamethrower another man was using. Marcus heard screams, presumably from the rogues that had been in its way. "ADVANCE MEN!" Was what he heard next. His whole company began to take the positions the rogues had occupied a mere two minutes ago. Marcus moved up as well. He could have sworn he didn't hear any dogs, but suddenly there a few were. At least three had found Marcus before he found them, and one leaped bit into his leg.

Marcus screamed in pain, but managed to whip out his pistol and blast one of the dogs in the head, but almost instantly after the other sank its teeth into his shooting arm. As his comrades continued opening fire, his cries where drowned out. He knew know help was going to save him before he died, so he decided to act. He used his left arm to pull out the knife he kept in his left boot. He yelled as he stabbed the hound on his arm in the face. A short whimper and the dog fell limp. The one on his leg was twisting and gnawing, as much as Marcus tried he could not get the knife out of the dog's skull. So he let go of the knife and shifted, painfully but quickly, and grabbed the dog on his leg. It refused to let go, and Marcus wrapped his hands around the hounds throat. The dog reacted by biting at his hands.

Marcus screamed in pain, but continued to wrestle with the dog. Eventually Marcus fell to his back, and the dog climbed onto Marcus' chest. The dog didn't get the chance to finish Marcus off. Marcus used what was left of his strength to grab the dog by either side of its face. The hound threw its head from side to side and clawed at Marcus, trying to free its head. To no avail. As soon as the dog paused, Marcus sank his thumbnails into the hounds eyes. The dog made horrible, vicious snarls, that soon turned to loud painful whimpers as Marcus blinded it. It snapped aimlessly hoping to find Marcus' leg or arm. But Marcus was still able to think fast. He grabbed the nearest rock and beat the dog to death.

The sounds of the fire fight were over now, and it appeared Marcus' comrades had won. A few came rushing to his side to give him aid.

"Holy fucking shit Marcus! You did this?" one of the grown men gasped.

"He's a fucking mad dog!" Laughed another older chap.

"Mad Dog Marcus!" One of them chuckled. It was then that Mad Dog Marcus gained the nickname that would follow him for the rest of his life.

 

[Sheridan]

Winter 1950
Wadestone City, Wadestone Island (De-facto Capital of 'Sheridan')

Marcus 'The Mad Dog' Arrelano had gotten that job in the military and was now a 25 year old man. The Military Intelligence Forces recruited him five years ago, and he had been a success since. He had done many jobs that were horrific, but none so far had made him lose any sleep. All in the name of stamping out counter-revolution, he had killed, burned, robbed, bombed, and whatever else it took to silence the reactionaries. In return, the MIF made him a very rich man. Inside his account, he had just over 10 full kilograms of gold in coins and bars.

Today he assumed would be like any other day. He was to capture and interrogate a female target known simply by Claudia. This girl was assumed to have come from somewhere in Germania. She was in charge of decryption for a group called The Order of Peace. The Order of Peace was made up of mostly pre-Revolution soldiers and intelligence officers, from all the different colonies that made up what is today Sheridan. The name was quite the misnomer, as even though they didn't use violence often... when they did they meant business.

The Mad Dog sat on the couch in the Janice Hotel's lobby, he looked over the report again. It seems Ms. Claudia has successfully intercepted and broken the code on at least one MIF communique. What was on the communique Marcus was not told, not that he cared anyway. The plan was to capture Ms. Claudia, and make her a MIF mole. If he could successfully do this he would be given 450 grams of Gold. If he had to kill her the job would only be worth half that. Well, time to go. Marcus thought.

He tucked the report back into his inside pocket on his suit jacket, and walked to the elevator. When he got inside he hit the top floor button and stood quietly. The elevator was packed with tourists and businessmen. He had paid to make sure that the floor Claudia was on would be empty, and hopefully these people would remain oblivious to what was about to occur. One by one the elevator emptied until the next floor was his and only he and the attendant remained. He tipped the elevator operator on the way out, and quickly moved to Claudia's room. He cleared his throat as he approached the door and put his ear up against it.

At first he heard nothing, but then the he began to hear sounds we all know and enjoy from time to time. It was apparent that Claudia was not alone, and at least one other person was with her in bed somewhere in the room. He frowned a little at the aspect of ruining such a time, but began to pick the lock anyway. He quietly opened the door and crept towards the bedroom. It turned out that Claudia was a homosexual, and that the other occupant was a woman. She wasn't on the room registration, so likely a friend who came to see Claudia after check in. Killing women was always easier than killing men but how unfortunate that Claudia's actions would mean the death of her lover. Regardless, Marcus couldn't risk anybody seeing .

Claudia was under the sheets, and the other girl had her eyes closed. Marcus grabbed a knife out of his coat and quickly plunged it into the other girls heart. As blood poured down the girls chest and down towards Claudia, she quickly lifted up the sheets to see what was going on, but Marcus was quick in covering her mouth and slamming her to the ground. As Claudia tried to scream Marcus began to speak.

"I killed her, and I'll kill you too so you better shut the hell up and start listening. You had to have known this would happen." As he spoke he put the knife up to her. Claudia went quiet. "Good! Now lets have you put on some clothes and join me for a little stroll to my car."

Claudia was dressed and Marcus got behind her and put a gun on her back, but draped his jacket in a way that would hide the pistol. As they began to exit the room, Marcus again spoke.

"If you make one signal for help, or try to run I will kill you. My job today isn't to kill you, but I certainly can and will if I have too. You know who sent me don't you?" Marcus said while looking at her. Claudia nodded. "Good than lets get going."

Later that day in an undisclosed location.

Claudia was now restrained and sitting in a chair in a small windowless room. Marcus was smoking a cigarette and sitting in a chair facing her. The two had sat in silence for a full hour, while Marcus intimidated and tried to assess how best to interrogate. While Claudia sat there feigning an indifference to the situation. Marcus broke the silence.

"Who was that woman?" Marcus said bluntly.

"A prostitute." She said sharply.

"Ah! Okay you had me thinking I just murdered the love of your life or something! That certainly makes me feel better." Marcus said in between chuckles.

"What do you want from me?" Claudia asked/

"Well first of all your real name." He said, now not laughing. Claudia went silent for a moment, so Marcus spoke again. "Look 'Claudia'... I really want this to be a simple interview really. If you don't answer my questions though..." Marcus trailed off as pulled out his knife.

"It's Claudia Hoffman." She said, as Marcus smiled.

"A pleasure to meet you Ms. Hoffman. My organization is aware of what you have been up to ma'am, and quite frankly... you're in some shit." He said.

"Well.... what am I doing still alive than?" She asked.

"An excellent question! So glad you asked. You see, we can tell that your smart. Far to smart for those Order of Peace pre-revolution defectors. That organization won't last more than a few more years at the most. But you... well we have a way to ensure that you outlast them and continue doing this kind of work while still being alive." Marcus said.

"And how the hell would that work? You want me to collaborate?" She said.

"See I knew you were smart." He said. Again Claudia went silent. "We are even going to pay you, and excuse all your past crimes against our cause. BUT, and there is but, we need you to feed organizations what we want them to think. Only give them what we want them to know. Whatever we give you we expect you to give to them. And absolutely nothing else Claudia. Because if another legit communique of ours becomes deciphered... well it won't be good for you. Your end won't be as quick as that poor prostitute's."

"I won't be a rat. I can't tell on my comrades surely you can understand this at least." She said, looking like she was leaning towards working with Marcus.

"Of course I can! And that is why we don't want you to rat anyone out. You just have to only give them the intel we send your way. You will be paid handsomely for it, and may I add... not dead and dumped into the Clarencian."

"Okay... okay........."

 

[Sheridan]

Summer of 1951
Casper, A Small Town Located in Central Sheridan


Marcus Arrelano had been working closely with Claudia Hoffman for a little over a year now. The Order of Peace was already long gone, and a few other organizations had been ended with their fake information and teamwork. But today, in a small bar in a small town, Marcus was waiting on her to bring him something a little more real. Marcus wasn't called the Mad Dog for nothing. He was never quite satisfied with his lot, and even now with more wealth than most he was not satisfied. For months now he had been working side gigs with other 'organizations'. Nothing that would ever threaten the solidarity of Sheridan, but just the odd well paying job here and there. Recently though, he felt as though he was being followed. What Claudia brought back would ultimately decide if Marcus was as paranoid as he was Mad or if he was in real tangible danger. He put his glass of whiskey down and stood up indicating where he was and for her to come sit. She was still holding the encrypted communique in the same manila envelope when she walked up and sat down.

"So what do you have for me?" Marcus slurred, as he lit a cigarette.

"It's not good Marcus. Not at all." She said not looking up from the table.

"Well? I need details woman." He spat as he slid her a few hundred Certs (the national currency of Sheridan).

"They know you have been working with other organizations. What they don't know is whether or not you are giving away secrets. From the communique, it seems they deemed the possibility of you selling secrets to be too high to risk. So..." Claudia drifted off.

"Soooo!?" Marcus said as he drank some more out of his whiskey glass.

"Well, they are going to kill you. It says in here someone by the name of Wesley 'Crook' Robertson was already contracted to do the job." Claudia said, finally looking up at Marcus' face.

"HA! Those idiots. I've never heard of this 'Crook' so he must be new." Marcus laughed, but now seemed a little troubled.

"Are you still in contact with the MIF?" Claudia asked.

"Yes. They usually play it like this. Send me to some place, make me think I'm still on the payroll and then- POOF gone like that. Makes me less of a flight risk." Marcus said nonchalantly.

"Well... what are we going to do?" Claudia asked, she had been making GOOD money working for Marcus, and she wasn't very excited for that to end. Even if she did work for a psychopathic murderer. He was a well paying boss.

"I'll tell you what we are going to do. I am going to start intercepting a lot more of these, and bring them to you to decipher. I'll still pay you the same as when we were working for the MIF, but now..." Marcus said, trailing off at the end.

"But now I am right back where I started. Working against them." Claudia said solemnly.

"That is right Ms. Hoffman."

"What about you? Aren't you going to be dead soon?" Claudia asked.

"I wouldn't worry to much about that hun. Money talks, and if that doesn't work then well.... you have seen me in action. How many big bad men have I put in the dirt just since you have worked for me huh? A few dozen? I am not worried about any man they send my way."

"Okay Marcus, but at least tell me... What is the long term goal here? What do you hope to gain from stealing info from the MIF? How does this end in me and you both still being alive and making money?" Claudia would have gone on, but Marcus interjected.

"Don't worry your little head about it sweet heart. If they want to kill me for selling secrets, why don't we sell secrets? All you need to worry about, is deciphering every document I bring to you Claudia. The Military Intelligence Forces are sloppy, and out of touch. Me and you, we know what it takes out here to fight counterrevolution. Those idiots are only concerned with making themselves look good to the administrators up stairs. Fuck them." Marcus said, now looking around the room while speaking. He was looking for anyone in particular that looked like they were eavesdropping.

Marcus knew the body language of an assassin. He knew the look of someone not trying to be seen. And he had found one such person in that bar with them. He would soon discover that he and this 'Crook' fellow had more in common than he imagined.

 

[Sheridan]

Marcus, Claudia, and the assassin named Crook were now out behind the back of the bar in a small dark alley. Marcus and Claudia were standing next to each other, while Crook stood about five feet in front of them. Marcus had his old large frame revolver out and aimed right at Crook.

"So the Mad Dog. Never even thought I'd get a look at your face before you killed me." Crook said, smiling.

"Ah, I thought the plan was for me to die here today?" Marcus said not returning the smile.

"Hey Missus. Do you know why they call him that? Why he's called the Mad Dog?" Crook asked, now facing and speaking to Claudia. She just stared at Crook and didn't respond. "It's because he'll kill anyone. Kids, women, cripples. I'm surprised you are still alive." Then Claudia spoke up.

"He introduced himself to me by murdering someone and kidnapping me. So if you think I'm oblivious to any of that you're an idiot." She said plainly.

"Well Marcus why haven't you shot me yet?" Crook asked, his smile was now gone.

"Because you're going to help me." Marcus said plainly.

"And why in the fuck would I do that?" Crook asked.

"Because otherwise I will kill you, and not quickly." Marcus said.

"The MIF will kill me the second they find out I'm helping you!" Crook almost yelled.

"That's why they won't find out. Your going to go back to them and tell them you killed me." Marcus said.

"They didn't even pay me up front, they don't expect me to survive this. I'm in almost as much shit with them as you." Crook said now sounding desperate.

"And why is that?" Claudia now spoke up and asked.

"They call me Crook for two reasons. One because my face is crooked, and two because I am a fucking crook." Crook said, the smile back on his face.

"Enlighten me." Marcus demanded, now more intrigued than before.

"I've been helping a few Unions make a little money under the table. Haven't really even made a dent in how much money the military rakes in from the exports. But enough to were the MIF is probably going to have me killed if I pull off killing you." Crook answered coyly.

"What Unions?" Marcus bluntly demanded.

"A couple. Uh, The Chemists Union, the Automakers Union, and the Union of Coal Miners."

"Well well well Mr. Crook. Looks like you have more than one reason to be kept alive. Consider that business mine now. Lets walk around front and get in my car." Marcus said, as he motioned with his gun for Crook to come closer. Crook spoke as he walked slowly forward.

"If you get that business, and I can't go back to the MIF.... then..." Crook said drifting off.

"Those Unions don't trust me Crook. But they trust you. Just expect the funds you used to get now part of the cause." Marcus said, putting his free arm around Crook's shoulders.

"And.... what cause is that?" Crook said, with a confused look on his face.

"The one that keeps you alive."

 

[Sheridan]

Autumn, 1956
Wadestone, De-Facto Capital of Sheridan

It had been over five years since Marcus Arrelano had 'recruited' Crook. Now the Mad Dog, Crook, and Claudia had a good thing going. They even could afford to hire some help from time to time. Marcus didn't even have to kill as often as he had before. Nowadays, he only really had to get violent if one of the Unions didn't pay up, or when the MIF sent another agent his way. They had learned by now though that none of them ever come back anyway, so there wasn't very much of that anymore. Marcus had lots of moles inside the MIF, estimated at something like 60% of the people on the MIF payroll. So he had a steady flow of their communiques that he gave right over to Claudia to get deciphered. Once deciphered, most of the information was sold o handed out as a 'favor'. Most of the Unions want to keep exactly how much they export quite, as to not have to pay the hefty taxes on most of the goods. A lot of Unions got away with it, but every once in a while the MIF would bust one. And those Unions paid top dollar to ensure they knew when the next raid would be.

There was a few Unions in particular that Marcus and his organization where making a lot of money on. The Chemists Union, specifically the pharmaceutical end of things, was one such Union. Opium grows very well in certain parts of Sheridan, and the Heroin from the region was top quality. The Military could never make money off exporting the dope, because in most of the world it was totally illegal. Every once in a while the MIF would use some to make a quick buck, or to have an overseas crime syndicate 'owe them one'. But for the most part, it all got hoarded up and sold to Sheridanians. That was until Marcus and Crook got their dirty hands on the Union. In exchange for 33% of the money made, the pair had set up a near flawless trafficking system. Crook was often heard bragging about how now Sheridanian dope was reaching markets all the way in Germania. 33% was a hefty toll too, but worth it so those poor Chemists could make some real money off their product.

Despite all these gains, Marcus Arrelano was still hungry for more power in Sheridan. He also thought he had a way to get more. He had invited his partners Claudia and Crook to his apartment in Wadestone. They arrived and he had them all sit around his dining room table. The apartment was surprisingly simple for a man with so much wealth.

"Well everyone. I called you here because I have an idea to run past you." Marcus said, while sipping from his cup of coffee. Crook was snorting up lines and lines of heroin. One of the perks of the job. While Claudia anxiously awaited the new idea.

"Well come on Marcus spit it out." She said.

"I want to take over the MIF." Marcus said bluntly, still looking down at his coffee. The statement was enough to make Crook look up from his pile of dope, and Claudia's jaw dropped.

"Well shit Marcus, I hope you have more to tell us than that." Claudia said, the look of shock not leaving her face.

"Marcus you can't be fucking serious, we could lose everything if we try that shit!" Crook spat out.

"Think about it Crook, in all your time as an agent... did you ever even have a clue as to who the Director was?" Marcus said, now looking at his guest's.

"Huh... no I guess not. I just got the job from a secure drop point. Only ever seen the guy who hired me." Crook answered.

"That short bald white guy? With the glasses?" Marcus asked.

"Yeah with the white mustache thing?" Crook said.

"I don't know he could have grown a mustache since I last seen him. That was a while ago. What did he tell you his name was?" Marcus asked.

"He introduced himself as Mr. Brown. Said he was one of the MIF's ears and eyes." Crook said.

"Yup Mr. Brown. Well according to some of the info we have gotten recently, he might be the MIF's only eyes and ears. Which means...." Marcus trailed off looking at Crook to pick up for him.

"Which means.... which means that he is likely the only one who even deals with the Director and the other administrators!" Crook said now looking a little excited.

"Well so what, we capture Mr. Brown, and then what?" Claudia asked.

"I'll fill you in on those precious details once we know where Mr. Brown is Claudia don't worry. I need you to decipher the next batch of documents quick, so that we can catch him before he vanishes again ok?" Marcus said confidently.

"I'll sure as hell try Marcus, but I'll be working in the dark. Not knowing which document to start with. Tell your moles that I need context with each communique. That should give me a head start if I know why each one is being sent." Claudia said, clearly constructing her plan of attack in her head.

"Great.... good excellent! I won't hold you guys up anymore. I'll contact you in the next couple days with the next batch of documents Claudia. And as for you Crook, for the next few days don't get too fucked up. I'll need you to help with Mr. Brown's 'interview'." As Marcus finished, Crook began to scoop up the pile of heroin off of the table. Claudia interjected.

"Hey not so fast Crook. Let me get a little bit of that." Claudia said, then leaned her head down to take a big snort.

"Haha, yeah it's good shit! What about you boss? Want a quick snort before we go back to it?" Crook asked while smiling.

"Eh- why the hell not." Marcus leaned in and took a decent sized snort. Almost immediately he began to feel the effects, it was indeed good shit. "Hey on second thought, there's no reason we can't do all this tomorrow. Why don't you guys stick around for a little bit?" Marcus said. Claudia and Crook both cracked up in laughter as they all made up more lines to snort.

 

[Sheridan]

(I know that I'm not really going with the whole Anarcho-Communist concept anymore, but I would still like to finish this story out)

A Motel 12 Miles Outside Pizma Beach City
3:00 am


Marcus had not been completely honest with his colleagues. While everything he had said up until now was certainly part of the plan... it was not that whole plan. As they loaded up into the large sedan, he thought about how strange it was that he hoped his partners weren't mad at him. He didn't remember a time when he had had any similar feelings...

Claudia was driving, while both Crook and Marcus were seated in the back. There would be plenty of room in the middle for Mr. Brown. It had been discovered in the last couple of days that Mr. Brown was really Mr. Howard at 7456 170 N 990 E Pizma Beach City. The house was very nice! Especially considering officially he was an accountant. He also had a wife, and three children. Two of them were for sure going to be there, the other might be off at college or somewhere else. The ones that would for sure be there were a 14 year old boy and 9 year old boy.

The entire ride on the way was near silent. Only the sounds of the highway were to be heard, as none of the three spoke. Marcus figured they would both be very nervous so he didn't try to spark up any conversation. They knew for the most part what to do, and Marcus was more than capable of the rest. He did catch himself re-checking his pistol to make sure it was 'still' loaded. He couldn't tell if this just further reinforced his idea that he was insane, or was evidence that he should quit doing so much drugs before this kind of thing. Finally however they did arrive.

As the house approached on the right side of the road, Claudia turned the cars headlights off. The house was on the beach, and was almost completely isolated if not for the beach goers near. There were no lights on.

"Back the sedan up to the front porch, then pop the trunk." Marcus said, shattering the silence of the 45 minute car ride. This was the first deviation from the original plan he had drilled them with. He watched Claudia's face shine from the dash board from the back via the rear view mirror. She looked puzzled, but she did as he said. As soon as she was as close as she could get and the trunk was popped, they all threw on their masks and dashed out of the car. The front door caved in from Marcus' boot and the three quickly moved through the one story home clearing it room by room. They then posted up outside of what the house's construction crew had said would be the master bedroom.

"You two secure Brown and the wife, I am going to grab the children. Bring him and his wife into the living room." Marcus whispered.

"What?" Crook whispered.

"Go." Marcus said whispering, but with a much angrier tone. Then Marcus bolted to the children's bedrooms, and as he heard the master bedrooms door get caved in he quickly snatched up both children. The first good sign was that there had been no gunfire in 'securing' anyone. Marcus threw the children into the trunk.

"If either of you makes a fucking noise your dad is dead, and so are you." He said before slamming the trunk shut.