Securing Lima-9

[Bigkz42]

CNI Facility Lima-9
Local time: 0900
Theme Music

Five years. Five long years of silence from the Director of Commonwealth Naval Intelligence. No new orders, no new training regiments, no new equipment from the laboratories beneath the main compound. The only thing that had kept the facility in working order was the strict discipline of Lieutenant Merrick and what minimal guidance the facility's VI, Alice, could provide.

Three years ago, when it became glaringly obvious that resupply transports would not be arriving as scheduled, Merrick had begun placing restrictions on nearly every resource in the facility. Training exercises with the MARVs became a rarity in order to conserve fuel and their dwindling ammunition supply. Live rounds for the facility's small arms were locked away in the event an emergency arose, leaving only paint rounds used in training excersises available. Soon even those were locked away. Fire Fight drills involved unloaded rifles from then on, becoming little more than fast paced games of hide and seek.

A year ago the facility was largely deserted. Civilian technicians and a majority of the scientists, military or otherwise, took all but one MPD-11a, abandoned their posts, and returned to The Commonwealth home world. Less than fifty military personnel were all that remained of a population more than one hundred times that size before the tragedy known as the Netherworld Event. Worse still, Lima-9 was left with only four combat personnel, Fireteam Azure.

Today, like every day before it for the last five years, had started at zero four hundred with a ten kilometer run from the main facility to the edge of The Devil's Forest and back again. A little over a half hour later the team broke for a meal, and by zero five hundred they started a two hour routine through the gym. Another break was taken to shower before they returned to the gym for another two hour routine of close combat exercises, hand to hand, grapples and knife combat. Today however was unlike any Fireteam Azure had experienced in a very long time. Their second round of training was interrupted by the facility's Virtual Intelligence, Alice.

A ship, Commonwealth in design, was approaching the Cordian Moon. Merrick immediately began issuing orders to her team. Armor was dawned and weapons were gathered. Each soldier was given a pistol, a rifle, and two types of ammunition. Paint rounds in the event this was another incursion excersise from the CNI, and live rounds incase Alice's sensors were mistaken.

The approaching vessel was hailed, accompanied by a miniature hologram of a woman in a naval dress uniform. Her synthetic voice addressed the ship the moment she appeared, "Attention unidentified vessel. I am virtual intelligence designation Alpha Lima Nine Three Five, codenamed Alice. You are approaching restricted Commonwealth airspace. If you do not change course, I will be forced to take action to divert you. This is your only warning." The facility's weapon systems, an Anti-Orbital Cannon and more localized Anti-Aircraft Guns, came alive under the VI's control.

 

[The Upright Man]

[ T H E M E ]​

Search, Retrieve, Establish. That was the operation. Fireteam Black had been assigned by Section Zero for this Op, the target in question was Lima-9, a facility that was used by CNI for black operations that had only just come to light by the investigation of Lord Admiral Horus and the new Director of CNI. They were experimenting on soldiers, and as he took a glance at the environment, in the middle of nowhere. This was also outside Commonwealth space, and their jurisdiction. This was a political calamity in waiting. To what purpose, he wondered.

Just as Dean was about to settle into his seat beside Hadiyya, a hologram of a woman in standard issue naval dress appeared in the center of the MPD's troop bay. "The hell. . ." Marguerite whispered from a far corner. The VI looked to them and began to address them, but before her speech could be done Dean interrupted. He stood, he knew the woman was only a computer program but he felt the need too nonetheless, "We are Commownealth." He turned his head to the command table and saw ground defenses had come online. "I'm ordering you to stand down or face termination as per CNI protocol."

 

[Bigkz42]

The little blue hologram turned to face Dean. For a long moment she regarded him with a blank expression. Finally she snapped a crisp little salute, "I apologize Commander but I am unable to comply with your order. My sensors indicate you are aboard a Commonwealth vessel but your clearance codes are not in my database. I must therefore assume they are falsified and carry out my standing orders. Do not enter my airspace Commander." The little hologram saluted again before going completely still, as though her attention were elsewhere.

Lieutenant Merrick and her team emerged from their barracks, armed to the teeth and ready for war. They made their way across the parade field, little more than an open patch of grass between the main facility and the hanger, passing a handful of parked MARVs along the way. One of Anat's men broke off toward a MARV-1a only to be halted by a stern command from the Lieutenant. "Leave it, Kogra."

The Sergeant turned back toward her, "You want the 1b instead, Anat?" Mild confusion coloring his tone.

"No. I don't want the MDA weighted down if these guys try to outrun Alice's guns. If they have a MARV, we'll have to disable it. Otherwise I want us going in as silent as possible." Merrick waved a hand toward their waiting dropship and her straggling soldier rejoined the team as they boarded.

Preflight checks went by without incident and in a matter of minutes the MDA's engines rumbled to life. The ship lurched as it's landing gear left the ground. "Alice, start the mission clock please." The Herglic murmured into her helmet's comm.

 

[The Upright Man]

"Kark it," Dean cursed, he cut the line. The hologram that was waiting on standby vanished from the command table. Marguerite slowly moved forward, having unbuckled herself from her harness. Her dark brown-eyed gaze fell onto Deans smooth icy blue. Her skin was a frosty pale, he wondered for a moment if she was from Pontiac, the coldest planet in the Cadi System.

The three of them were all at lengths from each other, a diverse unit, socially, racially and economically. He would have known where Marguerite was from, but she didn't peep a word about it, and the CNI sensors had 'accidentally' spilled black ink on her profile, in a manner of speaking. "She's right about the codes, Commander, CNI tend to alternate codes for installations. Unfortunately for us, I don't have access to this installations codes. I'm locked out."

"So where does that leave us?" Hadiyya chirped up. Her skin was perfection, smooth and tender, a silky brown that matched her eyes, and a buzz cut that seemed to naturally fit the soldier, but Hadiyya was more warrior than soldier. She was a fighter, and no challenge was ever great enough for her. Although Dean appreciated her fierce competition in combat, he didn't ask for her assignment as a soldier, her experience as a radio communications officer and experience in a broad spectrum of Marine Corps positions made her invaluable to the team.

"Crew Chief, sitrep," Dean barked, his fist thundered against the door panel to the cockpit. A moment later it opened and a woman wearing an MR Flight Helmet peered out, ahead of her were the pilot and co-pilot whom also wore the helmets. "Immediate: Grid kilo two-three is hot. Recommend mission abort. It's your call, Commander." He nodded, "We're going in - tactical drop outside the kill zone, bring us as close as you safely can." He gave her a nod and she followed with a salute, "Sir, yes, sir."

The MPD took a hard swerve and a quick dive. They were leaving the firing range of Lima-9's defenses, but close enough it made the pilots sweat. The forest floor below was quickly closing in, and as Dean took a stand by the door Hadiyya and Marguerite fell in behind him. "So that's the plan, eh?" Hadiyya remarked in her thick Uluru accent, she checked her assault rifle, "Take the facility by force? I can dig it."

The MPD pushed through the immediate brush of the forest and hovered briefly, "Fireteam Black, dismount," Dean ordered, not a moment later the hatch began to lower and they quickly leapt to the forest floor. There was a moment of free fall where he felt his stomach lift and then slam back down as his feet made contact with the ground. Two more thuds and Marguerite and Hadiyya were beside him. "Wide wedge, guns hot," Dean ordered and then motioned a forward march command with his hands.