Lion at the Gate

Beware the night.
No matter how safe you think you are,
You know not what predators roam the dark streets.
You know not when a lion stands just outside your gate.

Bertrand Younger Choice


Chapter 1

“It’s who I am”

Somewhere over Palmyra (Central Syria)
21 February, 04:15 Lima (Local Time)

It’s reported that war rages on the Earth below. But countless acts of vile brutality against defenseless women and children aren’t “war” – they’re an abomination. The men committing these atrocities have no fear of retribution. But they should. These men have no idea that damnation is about to rain down upon them from a cloudless firmament – because now a lion stands at their gate. This time, the gate opens in Syria.

Thirty-five thousand feet above Palmyra, in the belly of a C-130 Hercules, a pride of true apex predators have travelled halfway around the world to level the playing field. Captain Stephen Riley and the thirteen Obsidian Raiders under his command prepare to jump into the black abyss of a moonless night sky.

Among the best of the men under his command is Gunnery Sergeant Jack “JD” Davis, the Leader of one of the two tactical elements found within a Marine Special Operations Team (MSOT). This is a billet normally held by a Staff Sergeant. JD has been recently promoted and is awaiting reassignment to Riley’s HQ Element.

Raiders are the Special Operations forces of the Marine Corps. Obsidian Raiders are the cream within the highly trained Raider community – the best of the best. These elite warriors possess more than advanced training. They possess a special set of personality traits. Obsidian Raiders have a unique mindset that allows them to complete missions for which other Special Operations Units would be ill equipped.

Unlike Navy SEALs or the Army’s Airborne Rangers, Obsidian Raiders are rarely sent on operations that are likely to make the evening news. This top secret subset of USMC Special Operations forces are sent when National Command Authority wants to send a message to America’s adversaries in the most brutal of terms. That message is always the same.

All four, fourteen member, Marine Raider Special Operations Teams (also known as MSOTs) in Alpha Company are presented to the outside world as normal Marine Raider units. Their Obsidian designation is known to very few outside the unit. This designation is rarely mentioned by members within the unit and only when everyone present has the appropriate clearance.

The four MSOTs of Alpha Company of the 1st Raider Battalion have ostensibly been sent to Syria to train the fighters of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) to more effectively engage President Assad’s Syrian Arab Army (SAA). Prior to the Raiders arrival the SAA had subjected the SDF to wholesale slaughter. Under the tutelage of the Raiders, the SDF have begun to achieve significant tactical and strategic victories against Assad’s military. The tide appeared to be turning in favor of the rebels until Moscow decided to regain the initiative by covertly sending Russian Special Forces to crush the SDF. The rebels are just beginning to hold their own against the SAA, but they are no match for Spetsnaz.

From the beginning of this operation, the National Security Advisor informed the President the United States that Spetsnaz involvement would be inevitable. An Obsidian Unit response would be needed.
JD is deep into his mission mindset. No form of leniency or compassion abides within him. He is not a sociopath. He is a professional whose skills are similar to those of a surgeon.

JD looks into the eyes of his teammates. The look in their eyes confirms that they of a singular mind. They have no questions, no doubts, nothing but absolute resolve. No words are required between them. These men have been tasked with a mission uniquely suited for Obsidian. Neither JD nor any of the men with him have any doubt that they are the best tools to bring chaos to the doorstep of their enemy.

The light within the cargo bay of the C-130 shifts from white to pale blue. The Raiders stand ready as the rear cargo door of the aircraft opens. A small light near the opening shifts from red to flashing green. Fourteen Obsidian Raiders move through the opening in rapid succession, jumping into total darkness.
They wear full-face, oxygen masks to allow them to breathe at this altitude. They are dressed in black combat utilities, balaclavas, and tight helmets. Their weapons are similar to the one used by the rebel-SDF forces engaged in combat in this war-torn nation. The pattern of the soles of their boots matches those worn by those same rebel forces. None of the gear they wear bears any identification or rank insignia. The only sign that they are U.S. military is the use of their specially modified, Multi-Mission Parachute System – evidence that will be buried before the Raiders leave the landing zone.

As they free-fall through the night in a loose formation, they use their bodies as airfoils to guide their descent. The foul smell of the rubber in their masks, the bone chilling temperature at this altitude and the danger that they are speeding toward merely serve to steel their resolve. At 1,800 feet, each of the Raiders deploys the main canopy of their chutes. Guided by pre-placed infrared strobes, they land silently and undetected in a secluded meadow five thousand meters north of their objective.