Prowlers: Rise of Phynix
Soon to fall: Chapter 1
The flicker of lights passed as the military Humvee whizzed by torches lighting the sides of an abandoned dirt road, silently lifting a trail of dust into the air. The night sky was void of stars; they too seemed to be hiding as the night dragged on. The small villages on the way, all empty and abandoned seemed too familiar. As the truck ran over small stones and logs on the path, jolting with each and causing a rock or stick to fly up and hit the side. A larger sized male soldier in the back jumped, his Mexican accent mixed in with American "Damn it" he growled "How much longer?" Sounding mostly agitated from the sudden noise waking him from his nap. The smaller figure closest to the cab, Alexander Killroy, had been overlooking the trip since they left base three days ago seemed quite relaxed. He removed the aviators to reveal hazel blue eyes, combing back his short blonde spikes as he looked over. "It's only 2300 hours Gladiator, should be soon if I remember correctly" his voice strained as he held back a yawn. Carlos Sanchez, also known as Gladiator, stood at six foot and weighed two hundred fifty pounds. He was well known for his anger issues and fighting skills in hand to hand; giving him the nickname which stuck once out of boot camp. "Didn't headquarters say we should have been at base by 2200 hours? Or did I hear wrong, Shadow?" he mentioned angrily as he popped his neck. The discussion woke up the third figure that had been wrapped snugly in a blanket the whole time, Kyle Killroy, Alexander's older brother and second hand. Kyle found no reason for nicknames but still went by Ky for short; "Look big man, The SK30 has no set schedule" he argued. The SK30 was a special ops team of the selected few in the military that possessed high skill; strangely known to some, the group had thirty one members all under the age of twenty five. Alexander was the Alpha team leader and tactician, always keeping a cool head when shit hit the fan or was very resourceful in trying times. To this point they had never failed in any mission assigned and earned the saying 'They can't, we will'. "Be Patient old friend, it's like any mission. We just have to be careful, you know our work here is one step closer to peace", Alexander being optimistic "If not, none of us go home. Ever". They knew failure meant death for every member of the team, even those at base. "Even if we finish the Job, You think they'll let Archangel go home?" Kyle Asked. Gladiator noded, "Yeah, I overheard that she was doing two more tours, don't think they will" he was hoping he was wrong. Alexander sighed softly, taking a picture from his front pocket; a blonde haired woman with aqua eyes was smiling and wearing a white sundress, in her right hand was a red rose. A smile appeared across his face as he let the memories of that day repeat in his mind. "Yo, Romeo" Ky snapped, snapping Alexander back to reality; "The gaga eyes won't make her magically appear you know?" That's when the base security gate came into sight and he tucked the picture back into his shirt pocket. "Well….." Alexander patted dust off his uniform, gently tucking the picture away "Time to get back to work boys".
Voices rang out orders and the gates slid open, allowing the truck to ride on through and soon come to a stop near the main building. More members of the SK30 rushed over and started taking inventory before putting the weapons away. Above the station there were several guards, all with sniper rifles and walkie talkies. Procedure took over and Alex got to overseeing the storage; He was so busy with what he was doing he didn't see the woman standing behind him. A familiar feminine voice came to his attention, "Welcome back, Captain Killroy" she saluted "I see your trip went well, No problems I hope". Alexander turned his gaze to the woman and smiled, "Hey Angel, Yes everything went just fine. How is everything on the mission info?" She rolled her eyes sarcastically, "You know to call me either Archangel or Captain Armstrong and there have been no developments as of when you left". Her report was to be expected, but they had to make sure. He chuckled softly, "I would prefer my loving Wife, Laurisa Armstrong Killroy but whatever makes you happy love". He then placed a soft kiss on her forehead, "Ma'am". Laurisa then gently shrugged him away, playfully flicking his nose "Captain Killroy better get back on duty or the men are going to think he has gone soft" she teased. Both gave a tender smile before turning back to their work. Laurisa was head of the security team and Second in command in the SK30; to outside military branches she is known as 'Archangel' or less popular 'The Replacement', her skills exceeded that of the norm from military hardware or weapons or vehicles all the way down to public relations and hand to hand. Her best skill was not one you could teach or drill into one's head; it was not the way she could handle herself in battle but the way she thought, her heart was in Alexander's words ' her best feature'. She quickly adapted to any situation she was placed in and could think outside the box, also alongside her superior reasoning skills making her a force to be reckoned with.
Laurisa had entered the main facility building at the center of the base; this was the main base of operation since the start of their current objective. Once entering the building and going down a heavily secured hall, she had come to the Main Security room. This room had two separate levels; One lower level where all the computers and Security monitors were lined up, then a higher second level where Laurisa had her desk. She could oversee all the other military personnel coming in and out. The Master Technician was Adrian, Same age as Laurisa; but she was way more into her work. Snow white hair fell to her shoulders, tipped with a blue frost at the ends and Honey Colored eyes covered with purple tinted shades as she watched information and blips scatter across the screen in front of her. Adrian was running a simple diagnostic as Laurisa walked over, leaning over Adrian's shoulder, reading the monitor. Something on the far Monitor to their left caught Laurisa's eye, their target came into view of one of the spy cams near a hidden base to the north. Something was different though, something wasn't right by the way the man was acting; he was too fidgety. "Has there been more movement since yesterday?" Laurisa asked cautiously, her eyes not leaving the monitor. Adrian looked over, lowering her shades slightly "There has been less actually" turning away from her diagnostic "I think most of his security went to get more supplies". Adrian didn't sound too concerned about the change; the Target, Peter Rodrick, a government spy for the Russians, was beginning to run out of men to do his supply runs. So naturally, whoever was remaining had to pick up the slack; this would leave him open for an ambush. This was the first opening in months and still didn't sit well in Laurisa's stomach, but it was an opening. Laurisa stepped back from the computers and motioned to two of the soldiers standing close by, "Get me Alpha Team, We have a job".
The message soon reached Alexander and Ky, immediately gathering the rest of the team and heading to the War tent close to the main security building. Within minutes, the ten members of Alpha team were gathered around a monitor screen and projector. The last to arrive was, David Deviline, Tier One Sniper in the military, top class and considered the best. He was recognized as the only person on the base that wore a full black uniform and by his eyes, the outer part was brown with a small ring of blue in the middle and dark brown hair. This was the reason many in the group called him Demon, not to mention his loner attitude; So far there were only two people he would listen to, Alexander and Laurisa. Alpha team was formed of ten people, all those in the lineup were masters in Offensive military tactics; Shadow the team leader, Gladiator the muscle, Demon Weapons expert, Adrian the Computer whiz, Ky as the medic and several others. Laurisa led Beta Team which mostly comprised of defensive skilled individuals and the medic team, but a select few could handle weapons and these were the brains of the operation. The beginning of the mission briefing began as the projector flickered to life, showing a picture of Peter Rodrick and another military personnel they could not identify shaking hands.
Alexander was standing to the side beside Laurisa as she started the briefing, using a pointer to direct their attention to some pictures. "You all know our goal here, Avoid Military Corruption turning into a Fourth World war and Nuclear Warfare. Alpha Team is to capture and interrogate, Peter Rodrick, No screw ups". She resumed a few pages further, her voice commanding and direct "We now have a second objective, we have believed for some time there is something more to this military base and a reason we are here. Let's find out why?" In one movement the whole team stood up, looking to Alexander as he gave a sharp whistle to his team "You heard the Lady, Let's move!" The tent emptied quickly and Alexander gently grabbed for Laurisa's arm, pulling her back "Hold back, we need to talk babe". The concern in Alexander's voice concerned her, looking back "You ok?" She could recognize that look on his face, something was bothering him. "I know that look" she sighed softly, "Smokes coming out your ears. What's got you bugged?" She crossed her arms, waiting for an explanation." He had not wanted to concern Laurisa but he had a bad feeling about all this, something just didn't seem right. "You know at the beginning of this mission, you said you had a bad feeling?" he bit his lip lightly. Laurisa was slightly confused, but nodded "Yeah, just something about it didn't fit. Why?" Reluctantly, Alexander let his shoulders roll back some "Now I'm getting that knot in MY gut. I think you were right, something is going to happen." She gave a second nod, knowing the feeling exactly "I hate to say it but ever since we were posted out here, I always had that feeling Shadow" she admitted "I don't trust our mission orders". Since they both had joined the military there were never issues concerning trust, but now, they had a choice. "Have you heard from home at all?" he asked, sounding worried "From headquarters?" She shook her head, pacing around slightly as she thought.
Something was different this time, no communication other than to move transports or weapons and no one was allowed to call their loved ones; Laurisa got an idea and turned to Alexander, "We need to evacuate the base, abandon it and get back to the states". Alexander was unsure of this plan but agreed, giving one nod "I trust your judgment on this one, but how do we go about it?" They had to give a bit of thought about this plan, the general and superiors had 24 hour surveillance all over the base and would know if they did a major evacuation and Alpha team was most likely ready to go. "Slow evac, one group at a time. Alpha naturally will go first and Beta will follow piece by piece over a two hour period". This plan was not one Alexander liked in the least. He glanced at the door before directing his attention back to Laurisa, his voice low but forceful "And leave you and the others behind? Not a chance. If something bad will happen..." She cut him short, giving her voice the same tone "Then at least some will make it out, either way a major evacuation will alert the General. This way we have a chance." David and Kyle had overheard the conversation and came back into the tent; Kyle suggested he stay behind and help with preparations in attempt to help Laurisa. "Not doable" David argued "If you're trying to doing this and not get caught, you are taking a medic as usual. I will stay behind; this would look the least suspicious, alright?" David was a difficult to argue with, especially when he had a point. This plan still didn't settle with Alexander, he didn't want to leave Laurisa or the others this time. "Angel, You and Alpha team can go…" She stopped him short, "That would raise some questions that we are not prepared to answer and it might raise an alarm. We will be careful".
A short and sour moment of goodbye was exchanged as they hugged and then proceeded to putting the plan into action. Alpha team loaded up two Humvees and left, a heavy feeling of dread in their chests still lingered as the base disappeared from sight. Laura had waited patiently as the vehicles disappeared before turning to David again, her face showing some deep concern "We don't have long, let's see if we can gather everyone in the main building and prep for evacuation". The facility was functioning normally as it had been for months as they entered and as they went through, they told the news and personnel headed to different stations, one group at a time like they had planned. A quick overall headcount and Laurisa had realized two people were unaccounted for, a young male engineer and a computer technician. She decided to step away and take a quick sweep of the facility before doubling back with David back at the main security room, leaving David to instruct the last two groups on the evac plans. The first few groups were most likely ready to start out by now.
The rest of the facility was dead quiet, which seemed odd and sent a cold chill down Laurisa's back as she ventured through the empty corridors. Most of the machines that ran the facility were still on strangely, humming away like normal but she paid no mind to that now. She could hear a soft ruffling in one of the rooms ahead and drew out her pistol, keeping it handy in case of emergency; a dog came limping down the hall and she called him over. Noticeably his leg seemed to be broken; this concerned her greatly as she examined it "Oh, What happened Fang?" Just as she began to stand up another noise caused her to turn sharply, pistol aimed at the chest of whomever was walking around. "Don't!" the woman whined softly, "Archangel? Please" she said pleading; her hands rose to show she had no weapons. Somewhat startled, Laurisa slowly lowered her weapon and holsters it and sighs "Take Fang and get to the Main Security Room, Now" she ordered. The woman did as she was told and rushed quickly to the Security Room as Laurisa continued down the hall; A further investigation brought no luck into finding the missing Engineers whereabouts and she was going to turn and leave, then something odd got her attention. A maintenance door was open with a light shining through the crack, a closer inspection of the door revealed a large spill that was leaking under the door. A heavy fear yanked at her as she drew her pistol one more time, pushing the door open a bit more. The door swung slowly to the side and the light revealed a gruesome sight; the engineer lay dead on the floor, a gunshot wound to the head. A closer examination as Laurisa kneeled down, she placed her hand over his forehead. "Execution and it was not too long ago", she hissed to herself. She had only spoken to the kid a day ago; he was just fresh into the whole military stick and about to go home. Laurisa could not help but feel sorrow or anger for the kid's death, but that was cut short as the click of a pistol is heard and voice soon followed. "Very disappointing", the man chuckled softly. Laurisa had but no choice but to drop her gun and raise her hands at this point, grumbling "Son of a …". "Now, Now. No grotesque language" sounding as if he were playfully scolding a child, "I would expect a bit more from Nathan's Miracle Child".