Time: 12:21 PM
Insurgents ‘New’ Base Perimeter, Plutarch Mountains
Friday, June 17, 2011
Staff Sergeant Patrick Dane is a graduate from Scout Ranger School and being one of the Private First Classes in his time to finish and to gain the title. While he has longed for quite some time to be transferred to Obsidian Division, the part of the Force he originally wants to be in, he is bound to stay in Chrysoberyl.
However, Patrick realizes why the cosmic gears have placed him to the division that uses the golden thread.
With the news from last night, First Lieutenant Stewart Mace has told him first in secret about the disappearance of Sergeant Klovern and Corporal Ewing, and currently, he leads a small team with the remaining present members of Fornax Squad. Threading the dense path they are scouting, Staff Sergeant Patrick Dane stops and signals the soldiers on the back to crouch down.
Brent is just right behind him, pointing his rifle outwards, same goes with Jinhai and Elly. Patrick lowers his hand down and removes some lush from his feet.
Bigger footprints. It is said that Cheetah Thirens’ foot are bigger by three inches than the average human. Alas, even the pressure down the soil is evident.
However, Patrick is not dumb to fall on such trick.
“Let’s press on,” Patrick commands. He rises from feet, as the rest follows behind. If it checks right, the trenches will be around the west side based on the early recon team, then another underground grotto will be there. It must have been where Judd is sent to scout on, except…
Jinhai, who is at the end of the file, hears a rustle on his eight.
Only for a wild boar to get out.
Elly notices how tense her squadmate is.
“Sarge, there’s smoke over there,” Hoover informs.
Patrick looks where Hoover points at—from a distance, perhaps approximately 200-300 meters away from them.
Jinhai frowns. “There might be active insurgents there, sarge.”
“What’s worse, they’ll be nearby,” Patrick says and turns around, seeing a hill enough with vegetation. “We need to find a place to watch in a safer distance.”
They start walking again.
Until Jinhai steps on something. He looks down and notices he steps on a can of cola.
“Sarge.” Jinhai picks it up. “Cola. Still looks new.”
Patrick raises a brow. “Oh right…”
Elly seems to also pick up something. “Sarge, look at this, too. A receipt.”
Patrick reads the content as he receives it. “Isn’t this a convenience store in…”
“Veco Store from Rotterdam District, sarge,” Elly elaborates. “I believe, the closest route getting there aside from the road we’re using in the outpost would be the path behind Plutarch Mountains.”
“The time is not adding up. That’s gonna be at least three days on foot since there is no other road going there. Unless…they’re using a path in the Hollow. Hoover, inform the LT about this.”
Brent grabs his radio.
Maylene leads her squad again in patrolling, looking for enemy traces in the new area they are sent on. While this is just an extension of the recon job, the flow seems to be oddly uneventful. This is a good thing as she believes so, as they still has to stay alert and cautious.
In a way, Maylene looks forward to their dinner tonight.
Her communicator then activates.
“Return to the outpost in an hour. Apollyon Company will take over the watch.”
It is Lieutenant Mace.
Maylene signals everyone to a halt, as she responds.
“Roger that.”
“Redford, turn around, we’re asked to return,” Maylene says.
George looks at her and nods. He circles around the path to turn around and the rest follows. This kind of situation is nothing new, but then...
I thought this would be prolonged patrol, why did they ask us to return?
Time: 4:43 PM
Hadrian Hollow Operational Outpost, Located at the foot of the dense forest of Plutarch Mountains
Friday, June 17, 2011
Maylene and her team enter the operational tent, and spots Stewart with some of their platoon mates. Both Dane’s and Gavin’s teams are back, even the last two of Fornax Squad. She can tell that something is going on but proceeds where the lieutenant is to make an after-action report, when the lieutenant stops her.
“We can save that for later. I’m just glad you and your team are back safely.”
“Did something happen, sir?” Maylene asks.
“Private First Class Vox was taken by the insurgents.”
Alisa’s eyes widen. “No…”
“I need to call the squad leaders back immediately to devise a backup plan, in case Sergeant Combs failed to do the rescue mission. I already reported it to our superiors, and Captain Gilo ordered we must handle this.”
“Who are in Staff Sergeant Combs’ team?” Maylene asks.
“Rothstaylor, Efflstein and Tausend.”
Tausend.
Maylene feels her heart sunk.
“I see.”
Sheena arrives in the tent, together with Samantha.
“I’m here, Lieutenant.”
First Lieutenant Stewart Mace looks ahead.
“Let’s begin the meeting.”
In every operation, there must be a gathering of intel. Securing both the parameter and perimeters, they cannot just act foolishly. Yet such freedom is given to commanding officers, and the subordinates can only follow as ordered.
With this situation, Maylene is not certain how Zachariah’s team will be able to perform such infiltration without enough intel inside. The meeting fails to address any more concrete investigations about the routes and networks of the insurgents, and the previous ones are either erased or changed—effectively rendering some of the information invalid and outdated. Although they can make up some routes in theory, there is always an element of surprise because of the nature of some of their opponents.
And this is what makes her worry about Charles.
At the same time, Maylene suspects there are things going on in a background that permits Zachariah’s team to be confident.
While they are preparing for another sojourn to the mountains—when they can just do the meeting in the last rendezvous point at the grotto earlier—Maylene spots Staff Sergeant Dane.
“Sergeant Dane,” Maylene addresses, saluting him.
“Oh, if it isn’t Maylene,” Patrick greets back.
“I think this is reckless, at the same time, there’s no going way around it. What would happen if we got the first death in our platoon in this operation?”
Patrick sets aside his organizing and looks at Maylene—straight to the eyes. “That’s why we’re moving fast as contingency.”
“This is not like Lieutenant Mace, you know something?”
“I believe you understand that emotions will often get in the way, especially with a delicate mission like this.” Patrick grabs his rifle again. “However, an order is an order.”
Maylene almost clenches her fists yet soothes her nerves down sooner.
“Forgive my insolence, sarge.”
She turns around and leaves to arrange her things. Additional flares, smoke bombs…
Even in busying her mind, sometimes the water keeps boiling up.
It rises and rises—and she is afraid the steam will go ballistic without awareness.
Samantha stares at Myrna’s arm, perfectly concealed by her uniform, yet she can only imagine what had been earlier—effectively torn from the Cheetah Thiren’s ambush.
But now, Myrna is still part of the next operation.
Injuries are far common. It is not even something new for Samantha. However, the young kid thinks that this is too soon of a change, and adapting to the next objective will be this quick?
As her contemplation goes, Myrna notices the blonde kid and pats her head.
Samantha only looks at her, whilst Myrna merely gives her a smile.
“Corax Squad, attention.”
Sheena calls them as the two rookies line up by their sides, facing their actual squad leader, Staff Sergeant Dane.
“Our role in this mission is to arrive in the coordinates given to us, and which means we will merely observe a tactical point from a distance where Sergeant Combs’ team are. This is to ensure that we can extract them in time given, as much as saving the prisoners that the insurgents held. We will be working alongside Lyre Squad. Is that clear?”
“Aye, sarge.”
“Good.” Patrick looks at Sheena. “Lead them.”
Sheen complies. “Let’s go.”
Samantha grabs her backpack and rifle. As they leave, Samantha spares another glance at Myrna’s arm.
Upon leaving the outpost, the rest of Red Sparrow Platoon set their foot once again into the mountains.
“Hey, wake up.”
Charity can only hear such call, as she flutters her eyes open. Quite a dark place with uncomfortable stink entering her nostrils, she feels a damp beside her cheek—only to realize that she is in an unfamiliar…cell.
She immediately spots some metal bars downwards and the events of a smokescreen and blunt to her neck rush into her mind.
Held captive. Charity already assumes the worst.
Charity needs to find a way to escape here. Possibly that is not a good idea. She is part of the patrol groups, and her being still alive means the insurgents wanted something from her. Whether for intel or ransom, Charity suddenly concludes of biting her tongue—
“I said wake up.”
It is when Charity recognizes the voice.
She gets up—only to also realize her hands are also tied, and so she pushes her upper body to barely sit.
Charity looks at the cell in front of her, seeing someone is looking at her. Out of the darkness, she can barely see someone with a long hair and bears the same EDF uniform as her.
“Finally, you’re up. I’ve been calling you for a while already. Did they really knock out you cold, huh?”
“Corporal Ewing?” Charity asks.
A smile trails and her image finally illuminates clear from Charity’s eyes.
With hair of flames and dignity, it is indeed Corporal Conleth Ewing.
“So, you’re here. We…lost contact on you last night.”
“Got unlucky last night, along with Judd,” Conleth says. “It seems you are too. I recognized that long twin-tails a Cheetah Thiren is carrying earlier, and it was you.”
“Where’s Klovern?” Charity asks.
“I’m here.”
Charity hears from a cell beside her, only spotting a hand flailing across the bars.
“Quite surprising, yeah?” Conleth starts. “We don’t know that they manage to create an underground prison here. Which means there might be some underground network here in the mountains.”
“Or rather, we should have expected something like this. Plutarch Mountains based on speculation had been a stronghold from a war during the old civilization.” Judd ads.
Charity frowns.
“For a prison ward, I find the lack of guards here…unsettling,” Charity says.
“Maybe they are rounding to the other cells, well, as I heard last night, they were deploying more men somewhere,” Conleth answers.
“Do we have any other prisoners here?” Charity asks.
Conleth nods then gazes to the cell at Charity’s left side. “One of them here is from another patrol group in the other company, who had been missing in the past three months. He’s sleeping right now.”
Charity breathes heavily.
“Oh well, I guess that’s gonna be our fate here for the next few months...or maybe even years… Yet they’ll be asking the Force to take them seriously.”
Then there is some footsteps.
Charity moves away from the bars and merely listens at the footsteps. Without their gear and even the knives she often carries—even the ones she hides in her undergarments. This is a frustrating situation at best, but the first thing she must take account—they must survive their whole time here at all cost.
After all, this is something part of their training before. Expect the unexpected. Even the worst possible scenarios that can happen.
As the footsteps are closing in, Charity keeps up her poker face.
She notices that the guard seemingly carrying rations. The guard crouches down to Conleth’s cell, giving her meal. There is some murmurings she barely hears, as Charity begins to tilt her head. The guard stands then turns to her, and he also does crouch down again—only to surprise the twin-tailed soldier.
A mole under the left eye, and a smile that only a certain dork possesses.
“Here’s your meal.”
Charles Tausend.
Before Charity can utter a word, Charles hushes her and slides the plate and meal covered with paper.
“Don’t forget to look at the dirt under your plate. We don’t have any medicines here, and we don’t have money to spare on you, government lapdogs. It’s on you if you get sick.” Charles says.
Charles stands then proceeds to the next cell. Charity immediately looks under the plate and sees a set of instructions and directions.
Wolfgang would arrive later with the keys, and he’ll lead you where your equipment is. Here’s also the map where you need to go to escape this prison. There will be another team waiting on you outside. Clean the plate immediately after reading this. ASAP - Varg
Varg? It’s Sergeant Combs.
Charity widens her eyes. She never thought her companions would be here immediately—as she wipes the plate clean.
She looks across from her, seeing Conleth nodding on her.
It is time indeed to get the prisoners out of this place.
That is the order upon her.
And she must enact it.