My Story - Chapter 1

Brandon grabbed his towel off of the beach chair and quickly rubbed his hair with it. He looked back at Anna, who was just making her way out of the water.

Brandon: "Slow-poke"

Anna: "I'm not the one who's a professional athlete here"

Brandon: "Point taken. Next time I'll take it easy on you"

Anna: "Well I suppose I should take it easy on you elsewhere then. To make it even."

Brandon: "Well we both know that you can't mean what I think you mean"

Anna: "Oh really? Because I'm pretty sure I'm the leader when it comes to that"

Brandon: "Well I would have to disagree. I am obviously the better of the two of us"

Anna: "Is that what you think then? What if I were to say that you get none anymore?"

Brandon: "Dammit, you got me. Fine. You're the best Anna"

Anna: "Thank you. You're pretty good too"

She leaned over and kissed him quickly. Brandon smiled. He looked out at the water. He sighed.

Brandon: "Just think. Our life is so perfect right now. In three days though......."

He trailed off. Anna grabbed his hand.

Anna: "Don't worry Brandon. We'll be together. Isn't that all that matters?"

Brandon: "Yeah, I guess. I guess I'm just scared now. Before, when I went here, I had nothing to lose. I was just a famous fighter, but I had no friends, no family, no nothing. So I didn't care if I died, I had accepted it. Now that I've got you, friends, family, everything, it's different. It's dangerous over there. I don't want to see you get hurt, or anyone."

Anna: "I know Brandon. I know this is different than before. But it's okay. We'll be okay. Remember what we always used to do before one of us did something that could be dangerous?"

Brandon: "We used to promise each other that we'd be okay"

Anna: "Exactly. Just because ten years have gone by, doesn't mean we have to give that up. Take my hands"

Brandon held Anna's hands and looked into her eyes.

Anna: "Promise me that you'll be okay"

Brandon: "I promise that I'll be okay Anna"

Anna: "And I promise you that I'll be okay Brandon"

Brandon smiled at her. He hugged her tight.

Anna: "See? That's never failed us before. And it won't fail us this time"

Brandon: "You're right. Okay. Thank you babe"

Anna: "What are wives here for"

Brandon: "Exactly"

Anna: "So Nick still hasn't talked to you?"

Brandon: "Nope. And I don't expect him to ever"

Anna: "It's too bad he doesn't understand what's going on"

Brandon: "I know. But that's what happens when you let a nineteen year old kid try to run a business. They don't understand things like grown people do. He just can't seem to understand that I have to leave, not that I want to leave"

Anna: "I know babe. Maybe one day he will. But until that, you just have to forget about him."

Brandon: "How can I forget about what they did to us last show? Ashley kicked you in the face, for no reason."

Anna: "Yeah I know. That was mean. I thought we were still sort of friends. But I guess not"

Brandon: "Or she was just listening to Nick's orders"

Anna: "Yeah, maybe. Either way, I wasn't pleased by it."

Brandon: "How do you think I felt? It was brutal. Some so called "friends" they became"

Anna: "You know Nick. He's power-hungry. He just wants the world to revolve around him, and he does everything that he can to make sure it does"

Brandon: "Yeah I know. But sooner or later that's going to come back and bite him in the ass. People are going to realize who he truly is. I just hope that day comes sooner rather than later"

Anna: "I'm sure it will. He doesn't really try to hide it too well"

Brandon: "You got that right. He's just an asshole."

Anna: "That he is"

Anna stood up from her chair. She adjusted her bathing suit a bit and looked down at Brandon.

Anna: "Time for me to go"

Brandon: ""

Anna: ""

Brandon: "But I don't want you to leave me. Why do you have to go?"

Anna: "I told you Brandon. I got a call from an old journalist friend, who needs a favour."

Brandon: "Can't I go with you?"

Anna: "You could, but it would be ridiculously boring and you'd have no fun and complain the whole time"

Brandon: "You make me sound like such a bad guy"

Anna: "Yeah, but I love you. Doesn't that count for something?"

Brandon: "Yeah, it does. Especially because I love you too"

Anna: "Glad we got that out of the way. Can I go now? I'm going to be late"

Brandon: "Fine. If you have to"

She leaned down and kissed Brandon, before wrapping a towel around her and walking up to the house. Brandon lay back and closed his eyes. In the distance he could hear a car start up, and drive away. A few minutes later, he could hear a plane begin to take off. He lay back in his chair, under the beach umbrella that was set up. He closed his eyes, and began to doze off, thinking of Anna and wrestling.

Brandon awoke to the sound of splashing and yelling. He sat up and looked around. There was a family playing on the beach close to Brandon. When they saw him move, they waved at him. Brandon smiled and waved back, before getting up and walking towards his house. When he got inside, he looked at the clock. 4PM. Anna was coming back in only an hour. This was going to be their last night on the island, so Brandon wanted to make it special. He got dressed quickly, and walked over to the golf course restaurant. He got there and walked inside, looking for the managers.

Raul:"Brandon Macdonald! What a pleasure it is to see you!"

Brandon turned and saw Raul Hernandez walking over towards him. Raul and his brother Rafael managed the gold course and the restaurant. Brandon had gotten to know them fairly well in the short time that they had lived on the island.

Brandon: "The pleasure is mine Raul. Where's Rafi?"

Raul:"He's off doing something. Not sure what. Why?"

Brandon: "I wanted to ask a favour from you guys"

Raul:"Of course. What is it you want?"

Brandon: "Well this is Anna and I's last time on the island for a while. So I wanted to make it really special. Starting with a really romantic dinner here. Do you think you could do that?"

Raul:"Of course Brandon. You know that romance is my middle name. We shall make this the most romantic dinner that you've ever had"

Brandon: "Thanks Raul. I know you won't disappoint. I'll be back in an hour or so. You'll be ready?"

Raul:"Of course we will Brandon. It's our job"

Brandon: "Thanks again. See you in a bit"

Brandon walked back to his house. He ran upstairs to his bedroom, and found a nice outfit to wear. He lay it out of a couch, and looked over at his bed. A little nap couldn't hurt. He was really tired, he had not gotten much sleep the night before. He quickly jumped on the bed and closed his eyes, for the second time that day.

Brandon awoke to dead silence. He looked around to see that it wasn't quite as bright as it was when he lay down. He got out of bed and walked over to the window. The sun was starting to go down. He looked at the clock in his room. It read 6:30PM. That couldn't be right.

He hurried downstairs to check all the other clocks. They all read the same time. He looked around. There was no sign of Anna having ever been home. He checked his phone. Two missed calls, both from Raul at the restaurant. The restaurant!

Brandon quickly ran out of his house and down to the restaurant. He was out of breath when he got there. He saw the room set up with candles, music, and a beautiful table set up for them. Brandon wheeled around to see Raul standing there.

Raul:"Mr. Macdonald, are you okay?!"

Brandon tried to speak between deep breaths

Brandon: "Raul....Anna....Where?"

Raul:"Calm down Brandon. What's going on?"

Brandon took a deep breath

Brandon: "Anna was supposed to come back an hour ago and I fell asleep and I woke up and she wasn't here and I haven't gotten a call from her and I came to see if she was here!"

Raul:"Brandon, she hasn't been here. We've just been waiting for you. I'm sure she's fine. Go check the airport. Maybe they'll know what's going on?"

Brandon: "Good idea. Thanks Raul"

Brandon quickly ran back to his house and hopped into his car. He quickly sped down the island road towards the airport. He arrived quickly and ran towards the control tower. He saw the other car, the one that Anna had taken, still sitting in the parking lot. He ran to the tower. Once he got inside, he saw a few of the workers.

Brandon: "What time did the last plane arrive?"

The workers just looked at him, confused looks on their faces

Brandon: "What time did the last plane arrive?!"

Worker: "Sir, no planes have arrived today"

Brandon looked at him

Brandon: "What about the one that left earlier today? The one that my wife was on, that was supposed to be back at 5!"

Worker: "That plane? Hmmmm. Ah yes. We got a radio message before they left, that the plane was going be staying in Miami for a few days."

Brandon: "WHAT?! That wasn't what was supposed to happen!"

Worker: "Sir, are you sure you knew correctly?"

Brandon: "I own this island! Of course I know what's supposed to happen! That plane was supposed to return, with my wife, an hour ago!"

Worker: "I don't know what to tell you sir, we were just told that it wasn't coming back"

Brandon: "I'll tell you something! If you want to keep your jobs, you'll get a plane ready to take me to Miami right now!"

Worker: "Sir, we aren't allowed to just make flights like tha-"

Brandon: "Do I need to repeat myself!? I own this god damn place, so you better fucking do as you're told! Get me a plane, now!"

Brandon stormed out to the tarmac. He quickly hurried to his car and got some stuff out of it. He walked back to where a plane was being brought over. Brandon quickly climbed in, and told the pilot to get to Miami as soon as possible.

---------------------1 hour later----------------------

Brandon quickly hurried off the plane. He ran to the head security office as fast as he could. He arrived there and told the lady sitting at the desk his situation. She directed him to the office of the Head of Flight Plans at the Miami-Dade Airport.

Man: "How can I help you sir?"

Brandon: "My wife was travelling on a private jet from Caye Chapel Island earlier today. I was told by my airport there that they were told by you guys that the plane would be staying here overnight. But it was most definitely not supposed to."

The man looked on his computer, presumably tracking all of the flights.

Man: "Hmmm, well you must be mistaken. That flight never left the ground today. They radioed that the captain got sick, and that it wasn't going to leave."

Brandon stared at the man

Brandon: "There has to be some sort of mistake. I own the Caye Chapel Island. I live there. My wife left this morning to travel to Miami to take care of business. I know she did. They said the plane left. You guys say it didn't. Figure something out! Find my wife!"

Brandon was standing and yelling now. The man told him to calm down, and got on the phone with the Caye Chapel airport. Brandon watched his face turn from no expression, to one of concern. When he hung up, he immediately got on the phone with someone else. He was yelling for people to come in, and yelling code names at them, and orders. Brandon sat there until the man looked at him.

Man: "Mr. Macdonald, it appears we have a bit of a situation on our hands. If you'd please follow me, someone would like to talk to you"

Brandon got up and followed the man through the offices, where people were running around like crazy. The man lead Brandon into a room, where a tall muscular man sat. The man extended his hand and shook it.

Mike Sears: "Hello Mr Macdonald, I'm Mike Sears, head of the Miami counter-terrorism unit. I have a few questions for you"

Brandon: "Okay"

Sears: "First off, when was the last time you saw or heard from your wife?"

Brandon: "This morning, it was about eleven in the morning. She said goodbye to me, and then drove to the airport."

Sears: "And you haven't heard anything from anyone concerning her since?"

Brandon: "No, none at all"

Sears: "Okay. And she was supposed to return to the island at what time?"

Brandon: "At 5pm, our time. I woke up at 6:30, and had not received a call or text from her at all"

Sears: "Mmm-hmm. Now I understand you are fairly wealthy"

Brandon: "Yes, I am. What does that have to do with anything?"

Sears: "Well we're trying to figure out why whoever did this would take your wife"

Brandon: "Are you sure this is a terrorist operation?"

Sears: "Positive. We received a tip-off of this last week, but they didn't give us full details, so there was no way to prevent it"

Brandon: "Well then I know who it is"

Sears: "How can you be so sure?"

Brandon: "Look, you have to trust me"

Sears: "Well I can't just trust you on this one"

Brandon: "Look, I'd tell you, but I'm not allowed to."

Sears: "I don't follow you"

Brandon: "Look. I'm in the military. Counter-terrorism, just like you. Obviously a little higher up. But just last week I was attacked by these terrorists. One's my team has been fighting with for 8 years. It's them. It's the Tanzim Qaidats. Maybe you've heard of them?"

Sears: "Thats the Al-Qaeda group from Iraq isn't it?"

Brandon: "Correct. They tried to kill me and my wife just last week. I know its them"

Sears: "It would make sense. They must have had someone on the inside though, that could get access to our radio frequency"

Brandon: "Well that's not my job to figure out. I need to get to my team, now"

Sears: "Mr. Macdonald, I really think you should stay here.."

Brandon: "No can do Mr. Sears. Good luck. I'm gonna go get my wife back"

Brandon walked out of the building and down to the airport main level. The place was crawling with cops and security now, Brandon had a hard time getting outside. Once out, he picked up his phone, and called the one man he needed to talk to right now.

General Smith: "Brandon"

Brandon: "Yeah, it's me. Look, something bad happened"

Smith: "Yeah, we know. We're almost there"

Brandon: "Okay"

Brandon hung up his phone and put it in his pocket. He sat down on the ground. Why was this happening to him? His whole life was quickly going down the drain, after months of amazingness. First having to go back to war. Then having to quit the Federation. And now Anna was kidnapped. Just perfect. The only consolation for him was that he knew Anna would be okay. These terrorists were smart, they kidnapped her for a reason. The same reason that they didn't just kill her when they had the chance last week. These guys were moving fast, but they had a plan. And they were not going to stop until they had Brandon. He just wished that this was all over.

Brandon heard a van door slam shut. He looked up and saw a few members of his squad, including General Smith, walking towards him.

Smith: "Ready to go Macdonald?"

Brandon: "I guess...."

Smith: "We know where she is"

Brandon looked up at him.

Brandon: "You do?"

Smith: "We received a call from them. They're holding her for ransom. They say they'll give her back unharmed, under one condition"

Brandon: "And that condition?"

Smith: "Well they want 100 million dollars. And you"

Brandon: "Of course. So what are we doing?"

Smith: "We're leaving. Right now"

Brandon: "Of course. I just need to do something important first. Give me one hour"

Smith: "Meet us back here in one hour"

Brandon quickly hailed a cab to the Fight the World headquarters. They had been closed ever since the terrorist attacks, and Brandon had been operating everything from his computer. When he got there, he unlocked the doors and ran up to his office, dialling a number on his phone.

Gunther:"Hello?"

Brandon: "Gunther? I need you to come to FTW HQ right now"

Gunther:"Okay. I'll be there soon"

Brandon dropped the phone and began searching through the massive pile of papers that he had pulled out of drawers. He started throwing useless one's away behind him. He finally found the one's that he was looking for. The Fight the World ownership papers. He pulled those out at the same time Gunther walked through the door.

Brandon: "Wow that was fast"

Gunther:"I live my life in the fast lane"

Brandon: "Right...Listen, I need to ask you something"

Gunther:"Of course. Anything"

Brandon: "You know that I'm going off overseas right?"

Gunther:" Of course. Very proud of you. Its a sexy thing to do"[/color]

Brandon: "Thanks. Anyways. Something's come up. I'd love to explain it, but I have no time. I just have to ask you a favour"

Gunther:"Of course Brandon"

Brandon: "I need to sell you Fight the World. And then I need you to take Anna and myself out of the main event, and out of the entire last show."

Gunther:"Done"

Brandon: "That's it? That's all the convincing I needed to do?"

Gunther:"Brandon, I'm a man of honour and respect. I respect what you're doing for this country. I will do this for you"

Brandon: "Wow. Thank you Gunther. It was really nice getting to know you"

Gunther:"It was nice knowing you Brandon. Will we ever meet again?"

Brandon: "I'm sure one day we will. I'm not coming back to the NLWF, but I'm sure one day our paths will cross"

Gunther:"Then I wish you the very best sir."

Brandon: "Thank you Gunther. I wish the same for you."

Brandon handed Gunther the ownership papers, told him what to sign, and then hurried out of the office. He ran to the street, where he saw his cab waiting. He hopped in and drove back to the airport. When he arrived, he quickly hopped out and hurried over to the military area of the airport.

Smith: "Macdonald, glad you made it back on time. We're about to leave, I can brief you on the plane"

Brandon: "Sounds good"

Brandon boarded the plane, and took a seat as it taxied out on to the runway, preparing for takeoff.

Smith: "Alright, so, as you know, in your last mission, you killed Abu Ghadiya, as per the mission goal. As we expected, the Tanzim Qaidats were none too happy about that"

Brandon: "I didn't expect them to be very happy"

Smith: "Well they seem to have taken it personally against you. So much so that they've tried to kill you many times."

Brandon: "Don't tell me....My house burning down in September? My car exploding? Those were all them, weren't they?"

Smith: "They've taken full responsibility for those attacks, and so far, we have to take their word. Those nothing else about those things that lead us to believe that it wasn't the Tanzims."

Brandon: "So why wait so long? I killed Ghadiya years ago. Why suddenly start now?"

Smith: "We believe that they wanted you to feel comfortable with your life. They wanted you to settle down, and forget about what happened, so that you would never see it coming. Maybe they wanted you to have a family too"

Brandon: "Fuck. That's ridiculous. So what's the plan?"

Smith: "Well, we're going to land in Baghdad, and convene with other troops there. We believe that they're holding her in a desert base in the outskirts of Samawah."

Brandon: "So we'll move out tomorrow? Head to Samawah, set up a perimeter, and begin infiltration?"

Smith: "Easy there Macdonald. We have a strict plan to follow. We can't just go barging in there whenever we please"

Brandon: "With all due respect General, if the plan doesn't involve getting my wife back safely, I'm not following it"

Smith: "Relax Macdonald. I'll make sure it does. Now relax a bit. We have a long flight ahead of us. Get some sleep or something."

Brandon was really tired. He lay his head back in the chair, and fell asleep.



The plane landed at the American military base in Baghdad. Brandon followed his Force out of the plane, and to the camp where they would be staying. Brandon found his tent, and threw all of his stuff in there. He walked back out to where everyone was gathering, getting instructions from General Smith.

Smith: "Alright guys. We're here. Our job is to eliminate the base, and everyone involved with Tanzim Qaidat. Don't forget, we have a civilian involved. Macdonald's wife must not be harmed. She's our number one priority. We have the element of surprise here, we'll have to use that to our advantage. Everyone head back to your tents, get ready, we move out in an hour."

Brandon walked back into his tent. He grabbed his vest and pulled it on. He started to pull on his belt, and load it with clips and grenades from a shelf. He couldn't stop thinking of Anna. Something didn't really add up. How did they know that she would be leaving alone that day for Miami? It was a last minute decision, and hardly anyone knew about it. Also, that was as weird a mission as he had heard. The military never gave number one priorities as rescuing civilians. Especially his Task Force. Sure it was technically one of their own, and Brandon was going to save her no matter what, but he had never heard the military give such an order.

Brandon grabbed his Ares Shrike 5.56 and began to load clips into it. He checked the gun to make sure everything was working with it. He grabbed his Desert Eagle and stuck it in his belt. He walked over to his bag, where he pulled out a picture of Anna. He kissed it and put it back in his bag. He reached down and pulled out his locket. He kissed it quickly, and put it around his neck.

As he was walking outside, he was knocked backwards by the force of something. As he got to his feet, he looked over at one of the tents, which was on fire. He heard lots of shouting.

Voice: "We've been ambushed!"

Brandon looked around as another explosion went off close to him.

Voice: "At the North end!"

Brandon quickly hurried into his tent and grabbed his gun. He hurried out to the North end, where a few makeshift barricades had been set up. He quickly hid behind one.

Brandon: "What's going on Sully?"

Sullivan: "There's bogeys in and around those three buildings to the northeast. Launching grenades in here. They knew we'd be here"

Brandon stood up quickly and shot down a man who was standing close to the building. He ducked back down.

Brandon: "I'm going to try and sneak around back. Hold them off as best you can"

Brandon ducked and ran back to the West end of the camp. He hurried down a hill, keeping his gun pointed out in case.

Smith: "Macdonald! Over here!"

Brandon wheeled around and held his gun at full length, pointed right at the chest of General Smith. He lowered his gun to his side.

Brandon: "Shit General, you scared me"

Smith: "I was just coming with you. You're not going alone on this one."

Brandon: "Yes sir. After you"

Brandon followed behind General Smith, who led them to a back alley. Brandon turned around. It was odd that nobody else was with them. Usually there'd be a group of them, and not just the General and Brandon. He continued with General Smith, until they reached a building. Brandon could hear yelling and shooting in the distance, but louder than before. They reached a door.

Smith: "Alright, here's the plan. I'll enter, you wait ten seconds, then come in behind me. Keep your arms high, they might have men inside."

Brandon waited as General Smith quickly moved inside. Brandon counted to ten in his head. He pulled out his locket, kissed it again, and took a deep breath, before opening in the door, and charging in.

Immediately he saw that the room was a lot brighter than he expected. Lights were on. And there were four men standing there, pointing guns at his face. Brandon slowly stopped moving. One of the men stepped forwards.

Man: "Put the gun down. Now"

Brandon slowly put the gun down. He saw a table overturned beside him. If he could dive over there, and toss a grenade, he might be able to get out of this one. He slowly reached for the grenade pin, when he heard a click behind him.

Smith: "Don't even think about it Macdonald"

Brandon recognized the voice behind him.

Brandon: "What the fuck's going on here General?"

Smith: "Well, I think it's pretty clear, don't you? Take off your belt, and hand me your pistol."

Brandon slowly did as he was told. He could feel the butt of General Smith's gun pressed against the back of his neck.

Brandon: "Why me?"

Smith: "They wanted you Brandon. They wanted everyone. But they have special plans for you"

Brandon: "So you just sold out the American military?"

Smith: "Well they don't know that yet. And they never will. I'm getting paid a lot of money from these guys"

Brandon: "How long have you been with them?"

Smith: "Longer than you can imagine. This has been a long time coming. We've planned this for years and years. And now, it finally comes to fruition."

Brandon: "You dirty traitor!"

Brandon spun around and knocked the gun out of the General's hands. He kicked him in the legs, then punched him right in the nose, breaking it. General Smith fell to the floor, and Brandon tried to jump on him, before being tackled by the other terrorists. They got a hold of Brandon and lifted him to his feet. General Smith stood up, cracking his nose back into place.

Smith: "Now that wasn't very nice, now was it?"

He punched Brandon hard in the face.

Smith: "So yes, it was I who coordinated all of those attempts on your life. Mostly to send a message."

He punched Brandon again in the face.

Smith: "And it was I who organized the kidnapping of Anna. Oh, but don't worry. I'm sure they're taking good care of her over there. All those grown men, away from young women for so long. She's probably been real busy lately"

Brandon looked at General Smith, and kicked him as hard as he could in the nuts. As Smith bent over in pain, Brandon spit in his face.

Brandon: "Don't you ever talk about her like that. I swear to god, if you hurt her, I'm going to kill you. All of you"

One of the terrorists kicked Brandon hard in the back. They held him in place as General Smith stood up.

Smith: "Oh Macdonald. When will you accept it? You've lost. These guys have some real big plans for you. And I mean real big. So don't you worry. Oh, and before you go, I just wanted to tell you something. I'll take care of Anna when this is over. I'll take real good care of her."

General Smith smiled an evil smile, before looking down at Brandon, and bringing his pistol down hard on the side of Brandon's head. Brandon hit the ground hard. He couldn't move, but he could see General Smith bend down in front of him. He grabbed the locket around Brandon's neck, and ripped it off.

Smith: "I'll give this to Anna for you"

General Smith took his gun, and brought it down to the side of Brandon's head yet again. The last thing Brandon saw was the men moving over top of him, talking in a foreign language, before he blacked out.