Andres Rhys Aguinaldo Thomas Jenner

Devon Howard

Devon met Thomas Jenner at his apartment at 11 am the following morning, so that they could discuss their plan of attack. Jenner also wanted to contact Andres Rhys Aguinaldo, the proposed third member of the team. He wanted to make this call when Devon was present so that he could get his impression of the man. It had, after all, been a while since he had worked with him. For their mission to be successful, all three men had to work together as a well-oiled machine. So getting to know each other was the first step towards achieving that goal.

Thomas greeted Devon warmly and motioned for him to enter his eat-in kitchen. Thomas offered Devon a cup of coffee, which he gladly accepted. On the table were pamphlets, books, and maps of the Philippines. There were also several newspaper clippings about organ harvesting and some internet printouts on Marco’s death. As Devon sat down across the table from Thomas with his cup of coffee. Thomas spoke first. Yesterday, I talked to Archbishop Peter Ignastius to inform him that we need $2 million USD to start with, for expenses. After conferring with the Pope, he wired the money to a joint account in my name and your name. I did this just in case one of us were killed; this way, the other one would still have access to the funds to continue with the mission. If Andres agrees to join our group, he will also be added to the account. I really hope that Andres joins us, because he has essential contacts in the Philippines, including the police department in Puerto Princesa. It is imperative that we get the police report on Marco so that we have a starting point from which to work. We also need access to Marco’s airport security footage. It will be easier if we have someone who can access any information on the various gangs in the Philippines. Andres will give us all of that.”

Thomas looked at his watch and said it is 6 am in the Philippines now. “If what I remember of Andres still holds true, he is an early riser. So now is as good as any to give him a buzz. He is probably sitting in his kitchen enjoying a cup of coffee just like we are. He added.

Thomas took out his cell phone and looked up Andres on his contact list. When he found it, he hit auto dial. “I am putting the phone on speaker mode so you can hear and talk to him.” Thomas declared. It took a few moments for the international connection from Rome to Manila. When it did, Thomas and Devon could both hear the dial tone. After four rings, Andres picked up the phone. Andres immediately said, “Thomas, you old dog, how are you?” “Andres, I am doing fine, but as you may have guessed, this is not a social call. I have a very serious business proposition along with a very serious payday. How does a cool million US dollars grab you?”

“Thomas, what do I have to do for this money?” Andres queried. “Andres, if you have to ask, you are not the man I thought you were,” Thomas stated. “You will do exactly what I tell you, and when I tell you, and yes, it will involve bloodshed. But I promise it will not be innocent blood that is shed. We will be a service to humanity by eliminating a disease that has been plaguing the world for over a decade.” Andres replied, “You didn’t have to sugar coat it, you had me as soon as you stated the amount you were going to pay me.”

Since you have already heard this story more than once, I won’t repeat it here. Thomas informed Andres that they would meet him at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport in two days. The flight from the Leonardo da Vinci Rome Fiumicino Airport in Rome was a 16-hour and 20-minute flight with one transfer at the Charles de Gaulle Airport (CDG) in Paris, France, to the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (MNL) in Manila.

Thomas wrapped up their conversation by giving Andres a list of things he needed him to do in the next couple of days. “Andres we need you to use your contacts to get a copy of the police report of Marco’s abduction, a copy of the airport video showing his abduction, a list of any and all gangs in the Philippines that may be involved, a list of mysterious deaths that have taken place in the last few years, and a complete list of unsolved missing person cases. This way, we can hit the ground running when we arrive in the Philippines.”

After Thomas ended the phone call with Andres, he looked at Devon and asked him what he thought of Andres. “If he can get all that information in the next couple of days, he will certainly have shown that he deserves his big payday. It will take some time working with him to see how good he is, and if he can be trusted when the shit hits the fan.” “I think you are right, Devon, time will tell. We have one more item to work on: figuring out what guns we will need to get, the body armor we will wear, and other supplies, and how we will get it all to the Philippines.” Thomas continued. Devon chimed in, “Thomas, while I have used a private jet to get my gear where I wanted it. I think we can utilize something a little cheaper, and that is shipping our gear via diplomatic transport. Nobody will open up a crate shipped by the Vatican. I know that the Pope wanted to keep his distance from this mission; however, in this case, I think he will be OK with it.” “That is an excellent idea, Devon,” Thomas concurred. Devon continued, “I don’t think that we will be taking on a large number of bad guys at a time, so I don’t think we will need automatic weapons. I think we should each carry two Desert Eagle .50AE handguns with suppressors. The gun holds seven rounds and works quite well with subsonic rounds when suppressed. Supersonic rounds are preferred when you are using these guns without a suppressor. However, the gun is quite loud in this mode and could attract some unwanted attention. It is one of the most powerful handguns in the world, and is accurate up to a hundred yards.”

Desert Eagle Mark XIX .50AE with suppressor

Devon continued, ” I have used semi-automatic shotguns to good effect. One round will take off an arm. I call it the great equalizer.

Franchi SPAS-15 Dual Action Semi-Automatic Shotgun

You never know what the bad guy will be carrying, Level IV body armor should be used.

It was decided that since a lot of their work would entail using stealthy techniques, which meant utilizing the cover that the darkness of the night provided, they would need night vision scopes and optics, with comms.

PVS-14 Military IR Binocular Night Vision Device with mask, goggles, and headphones

RMJ Tactical 3V Syndicate Wyvern Sword Hand Textured Blade w/ Black G-10 Handle and Sheath

Finally, you never know when you are going to run out of ammo, so a good knife can come in handy. The Wyvern hand sword will decapitate a man in one blade swing. You may think that this is overkill, but the one time that we did not use the body armor, my partner and friend Varga/Burak lost his life.”

“I agree wholeheartedly with your weapon selection, Devon. I will make all the arrangements and get the gear, and you go spend some quality time with your family because we don’t know when we will be on assignment. I will see you in two days,” with that final statement, Thomas concluded their meeting.