Chapter 7: Icarius
As soon as Sebastian realised that the Jackal wasn't moving anymore, and he was lying on the floor of the air bay, he felt like his heart was about to burst out of his chest and throw itself into space. He had most of his engineering and his mechanical crew staring at him as if he had just gone and thrown himself into space, and that was to say that their eyes were wide and their mouths agape. The silence had taken hold of the bay, until Sebastian pressed the button on the back of his helmet and the glass that kept him safe from the cold hands of space retracted into his combat suit.
His harpoon was still impaled into the body of Slade's Jackal, keeping the captain of the Titan attached to the jet. He took his knife and sliced the rope off, freeing himself. The crew continued to stare blankly at the captain until he managed to stand himself up. Slade Jones made his way over to the commander and hauled him up to his feet. From what Slade could feel as he held the commander's forearm, he was shaking as if he had Parkinson's Disease.
"You alright, soldier?" Slade asked with a smirk as he took his harpoon back.
Sebastian continued to shake. "Yep, just fine mate. That… that was pretty awesome huh?"
Some of the SCARs and the engineers laughed. "Yeah." Slade replied. "Pretty awesome, commander."
Slade and Sebastian quickly made their way back to the cockpit and all the officers on the Titan had swarmed the rising tactical map that emerged from the floor. If the Retribution had one, then the Titan also probably did.
Sebastian, Elsa, Slade, Winters and Paul Flagg, head of the Dragoons, surrounded the table. Slade placed the chemical component on the tactical table, and Spyglass immediately began to holographically deconstruct the component and soon had a full analysis of the compound on the table in front of all the officers.
"The component in front of you is possibly the most dangerous weapon that we could have encountered. It goes by the tag EM-1986, and is even more dangerous than the atom or hydrogen bomb. When triggered, the compound lets out a massive emission of zeta and gamma rays within a specifically designated bubble that will target any area. The emission will kill off any human lifeforms, leaving it completely open for hostile take over. There is one flaw in this sample, although it is certifiably the best sample. The component is a touch too overdone, and if this was released the blast would be so powerful that it could cause an anomaly in the space-time continuum, and create a hole in the universe where my 9,543 platforms and GPUs wouldn't want to go."
The crew was silent, all staring at the table as well as the officers that manned it. Spyglass was completely emotionless as he had spoke, and it had some effect as he detailed that the small cannister in front of them could have tore apart the universe.
Elsa spoke first. "Spyglass, you're saying that the little cannister in the middle of the table could rip a hole in the fucking universe?"
"Affirmative." Spyglass replied.
"Well, the SDF have us fucked." Paul Flagg said, with a smirk.
"Not funny, Paul." Winters shot back. "Spyglass, what's the most ideal way to deal with it?"
The computer was silent as it began to calculate equations and possibilities. The officers seemed to be shocked that the SDF had almost completed what could have been the perfect weapon. All of them were in full battle gear, including the commander, who was in full combat gear. The commander had been given some 'assets' as Raines had said and Commander Lyall had put the funds into creating some more updated weaponry from the past.
Apparently, Commander Lyall was fan of the classics.
The armour that Sebastian wore was an updated version of the gear that the Sentinel Task Force used to take down the despot, Jonathan Irons in 2054. Jet black gear that seemed much better fit to be used as reconnaissance gear, but as Sebastian had been given some 'assets' the armour had been updated for the current time of 2198. Nobody really complained, like his black admiral dress, it gave the commander a unique presence in the room that echoed a sense of discipline, and it made everyone in the room feel small, as if they were nothing in his presence.
"Extra-planetary expulsion, or we can submit it to R&D and improve it's design for maximum efficiency." The AI replied.
"Spyglass, drop the R&D plan. We aren't planning a genocide against Mars, we're not the fucking Nazis. Space it." Lyall commanded.
"Affirmative, Commander."
The officers (and the crew) seemed to breathe easy. The genocide canister was thrown into an airlock, and spaced immediately afterwards. The only detractor of spacing the emission bomb was Major Paul Flagg.
Paul Flagg was one of the very few Winslow Accord Cyber Soldiers. After what had happened when the Coalescence Corporation had decided to make a program built from the brains of fifty-four Cyber Operatives, nobody knew. Paul Flagg had been purged of what he had called the Frozen Forest. As such, people understood why he was off a different mind on most matters, he had to fight against himself to keep his brain from melting. He had fought against his own brain and won, and Paul Flagg had considered it a curse and not a benefit of being a Cyber-Soldier.
Neither did the group of Dragoons. They no longer used the term cyber-soldiers even though it is the most basic term that was used. They preferred the term Dragoon and nobody was going to judge them for it.
The officers returned to the table, beginning to plan out the next strategic strike. The Hellas was out of commission, torn apart by Venus horrific storms and the sabotage done by the SCARs of the Titan.
"Commander Lyall, may I make a suggestion?" Spyglass asked.
"Go ahead, Spyglass."
"I would highly recommend that you strike the SDF Icarius next. My 9,543 platforms predict that three important members of the SDF High Council will be meeting there to discuss tactics and my 9,543 platforms have estimated a ninety-seven point nine percent chance they will be talking about the disappearance of the SDF Hellas."
"Strategy, Spyglass?" Winters asked.
"I highly advise that you take a small team and infiltrate SDF Icarius. Although the Titan had more than enough weaponry to destroy the Icarius, I would advise to be completely certain that the three members of the council are eliminated to deal the SDF a significant loss."
"Thank you, bot." Slade said.
"I prefer the term Artificial Intelligence, Lieutenant Jones."
"Whatever, Skynet."
The tactical table was invaded by the holographic avatar of Spyglass. The red figure of what appeared to be a normal C6 Combat Robot marched over to Slade and began to berate him from the table. It was extremely hilarious for the crew until Slade Jones all glared at them, and his glare contained what appeared to be the ability to turn them into stone until they returned to their jobs. As soon as Spyglass disappeared from the table, Commander Lyall addressed all of them.
"Merrick, is our jamming equipment still working?" Lyall asked.
"At seventy-five percent capacity sir." Merrick responded, and Li began to activate the device.
"Good. Jam the Icarius comms so it can't call for back up. Set a course for Pluto."
"Yessir."
"Slade, get your Jackals ready for immediate first response. As soon as we have confirmed the objective, the Titan will immediately drop to the Icarius and destroy it. We'll need those Jackals to keep the Skelters at bay, and we'll need a Raven to pick us up. Winters, the Bullfrogs are out for this one, take some relaxation. Elsa, get two of your Marines and gear up, your with me. Flagg, I'll need five Dragoons with me for this one."
Elsa was first to reply. "I'll get Cobb and Van Zant." She said, going off to get the other two marines.
"I'll organise Crimson Squad, Commander." Flagg stated, before walking off.
"Good. All dismissed."
The officers disembarked from the bridge, leaving Sebastian alone with the crew and Spyglass giving him constant updates as the Dragoons and the Marines organised up for an infiltration mission, and until the Titan's drop-engine sparked purple, he felt peace for the first time since Geneva.
That was until he heard the unmistakable sound of the Titan's thunderous engines, and he realised peace on the Titan was a very rare thing.
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Elsa had always had a soft spot for the commander of the Titan. Other than the fact that he had saved her on Deimos, she felt like she owed her life to him. Although he had quickly dispelled the fact that she owed him nothing, she still felt like she did.
Elsa moved down to the crew quarters, and moved through the waves and waves of marines, NCOs, SCARs, Dragoons and Bullfrogs. Some of them were simply talking, some were chowing on some food that the mess sergeant had cooked up with whatever ingredients he had managed to find using the budget given to the Titan.
Flagg had some how appeared behind her silently, towering over her as if he were a human skyscraper. He must be at least seven foot… Elsa thought as the man-machine hybrid gathered his squad of Dragoons. Sometimes she worried about them, and at times she was downright suspicious of them. From what she had read about Coalescence and the Corvus Disaster, the soldiers that had been upgraded with robotics had turned insane, gone rogue and had to be brought back for recalibration. She had no idea what recalibration was, but she had no doubt that it sounded horrifying, at least to a Cyber Soldier.
Elsa soon caught sight of Xavier Cobb and Logan Van Zant in the middle of the room, sitting at the table busy reading, the only remnant of calm in the storm that was the massive groups of soldiers and crew members on the deck. It seemed that Cobb was thoroughly invested in The Lord of the Rings, but that was before Elsa had smacked the book down on the table, drawing both Marines' attention.
"Was that really necessary, ma'am?" Xavier asked. "I just lost my page."
"We've been called. You too Van Zant." Elsa replied.
"Gunny, you serious? Just take Cobb, god knows the SDF will die just looking at him..."
"You want a boot up your ass, Van Zant?"
"No, Ma'am."
"Then get your ass up and get prepped and checked on the air deck in five." Elsa threatened, and the two marines were quick to start moving off to the armoury.
It didn't take long for the group to all meet in the armoury. Elsa had took her RPR and Kendall 44 with her for the mission, she didn't expect to use both of them, but the RPR with it's smg-to-rifle switch would become handy in the Icarius' structure. She soon caught sight of the Dragoons that had marched onto the ship, their own legs and arms clanging and smacking hard against the metal of the Raven that held them. Cobb and Van Zant had already taken their places and strapped themselves in for the ride.
Last but not least was Commander Lyall. In the jet black Sentinel CI armour, he marched through and was given salutes until he took the co-pilots chair alongside Pilot Moreau, who seemed happy to have a co-pilot again. Sebastian placed the heavy black helmet on, and the seals immediately attached the helmet to the rest of his gear, making it suitable for space combat. The helmet was like none she had ever seen before. It covered his entire face, covering it with a black canvas filled with eye lenses and goggles that were where his eyes were.
"Briefings on the HUDS, be briefed or be sorry."
"Commander!" The men yelled back. The mechanical and soothing voice of Spyglass took over the briefing.
"We have confirmed reports that three high admirals on the SDF High Council will be meeting on the SDF Destroyer Icarius to discuss possible strategy to deal with the remaining SATO forces and the Titan, Retribution and the Tigris. Soldiers Lyall, Cobb, Devereaux and Van Zant will infiltrate the Icarius alongside Crimson Squad and terminate the admirals. To assist, Crimson Squad will use their abilities to hide the fact that SATO forces have infiltrated the Icarius."
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It had been three hours since Lyall and his men had been dropped into Pluto's orbit, and there was no sign of the Icarius anywhere. The documents and manifests from the Ares Vales had been useful, detailing which admirals would be there and when the meeting would take place, but it seemed that the information was a little sketchy.
Mainly because the Icarius was three hours late.
The group had to put up with the incessant bickering between Cobb and Van Zant, the two British marines that had joined the UNSA at the same time. They were part of the Delta Squad, but Elsa had authorisation as leader of the marines to pull out whoever she wanted. Cobb and Van Zant were the best that she could find that were decent at infiltration. The SCARs would be busy dealing with threats when the Titan dropped in, and the Bullfrogs…
Well, they were the Bullfrogs.
"Oxygen is dipping to twenty percent, can't wait much longer, Commander." Elsa said.
"My DNIs got something, sir." One Dragoon spoke up. "It's coming fast, drop speed."
As soon as the Dragoon finished speaking, the massive destroyer shot above them, the roaring engines dying down as the ship floated effortlessly around Pluto. The group began to fly toward the bottom of the ship, and Elsa soon planted a small EMP on the cargo doors to allow them in.
"Hey, do you think Pluto is still a planet?" Van Zant asked.
"You're an idiot, Logan. Pluto's always been a planet." Cobb shot back.
"Not according to Spyglass."
"I couldn't care what Skynet..."
"Quiet." Sebastian ordered, silencing the two marines.
The group floated through the open doors, and simply waited until the doors closed them selves and the gravity returned. The nine soldiers soon hit the floor and climbed the ladder that led directly under the barracks of the Icarius. Sebastian was the first to climb the ladder, and soon spotted and SDF technician fixing some torn wiring. His hands gestured as if he were pushing something back, ordering them to stay down as he drew his knife and plunged into the back of the man's neck, severing his spinal cord before tearing the knife out and entrenching it into the man's heart.
"Tango down. Move up."
The team began to move up the ladder, and soon the Dragoons began to set up a mini-base underneath the barracks. The set out monitors and wires, and began to connect themselves to the inner workings of the Icarius. One of them, Hunt, gave them a quick nod and indicated that the Dragoons were connected to the ship.
Lyall, Elsa and Cobb climbed up to the barracks, catching sight of three more troopers who seemed to be coming off duty. Van Zant had already taken the uniform of the technician, and had disguised himself. The three other marines quickly eliminated the troopers and took there uniforms, although when Elsa had put her disguise it seemed to make her a little more bulky than she already was in the SATO armour she wore.
Sebastian quickly tuned the touchpad on his wrist to both SDF channels and the Titan channels. As soon as the four could hear the mechanical voice of Spyglass, they were certain they couldn't fail. With a team of cyber-soldiers and the AI, they would never be spotted and if they were, it would already be too late.
The three marines followed Sebastian, as he was dressed as the highest ranking officer. The way the destroyer ran was a lot different from how the UNSA ships were ran. SDF soldiers ran around to their stations, whilst some were busy observing or making repairs to either the ship or its robot contingent.
It wasn't long until they managed to get to the meeting room between the admirals. Some of the soldiers that were the guards were milling around the room, some were on guard duty and some were on what looked like a coffee break. They didn't pay any attention to the four undercover UNSA soldiers who walked right past them. Van Zant and Cobb immediately went into the life support section for the meeting room and began to record the meeting before setting up the ship-wide EMP.
"It's hard to try and not shoot them." Elsa mumbled.
"I know, but just keep your finger steady and we might just get out of here alive." Sebastian replied.
"Who are the admirals?" Van Zant asked over the radio.
"Admirals Oren Emin, Khosi Siyada and Omar Gatica. Admiral Siyada is the commander of the Icarius, well he is now. Before that, it was Caleb Thies." Cob whispered as he continued to fiddle with the recorder.
"Thies? The Butcher of Charon? I thought he was at Normungard?" Elsa almost screeched.
"Chill, Devereaux." Sebastian growled. "Nope, the damn jackboots that call themselves politicians broke down to the demands of the SDF and gave Thies back to them. From what I heard in private channels, Thies leads from the Mars Shipyard."
Sebastian could see Elsa shiver. Caleb Thies was a monster and one of the admirals that was responsible for the massacre on Deimos during Operation Hacksaw. He sent waves and waves of Martian soldiers into a killing zone, and killed anyone who dared give an opposing order or deserted. It was no wonder why Elsa shivered and despised the man known as the Butcher of Charon.
"Job done." Cobb said. "Life support sabotaged and meeting recorded."
The two marines marched out of the life support section and nodded, informing the commander that the life support in the meeting room would be going off in three seconds. As soon as the four marines began to move, there was an audible thunk, and the gravity turned off. The men began to scratch and claw at their throats as they gasped for oxygen until they could not breathe any longer.
The SDF soldiers were running, some sprinting around the ship in order to try and bring some order to the chaos when they all realised that their superior was confirmed dead.
The four marines quickly made their way to the barracks, only to be met by the surprised faces of SDF troopers who had found the dead bodies of their comrades. Cobb was the first to fire on the SDF soldiers, mowing down the soldiers with his rifle, only to be taken by surprise and shot in the back by more SDF soldiers who had heard the gunfire. Van Zant was furious at seeing his friend injured, and began to provide covering fire as Elsa dragged Cobb down to where the Dragoons were situated, who had packed all their equipment up and began to see to the injured marine.
Van Zant and Lyall were busy fending off the SDF troops that threatened to break through the barracks. One soldier charged the two men, only to be smacked by the butt of a rifle and shot dead a second later. Van Zant began to gather the leftover equipment and taken it down to the others. Sebastian held off the soldiers for a few more minutes before beginning to retreat, and as he dropped to the cargo doors, he threw a grenade to the SDF forces who threatened to follow him, smirking as the explosion silenced the shouting and gunfire.
There was a massive crack that could be heard outside, and the massive guns of the Icarius began to fire. Sebastian quickly placed the SDF helmet on, and watched as the other soldiers did the same. The cargo doors opened the nine soldiers floated peacefully out of the destroyer, watching the massive battle between the destroyer Icarius and the super-carrier Titan.
A black Raven flew near them, the doors opened and waiting for the nine soldiers to enter. The Dragoons aided Cobb into the Raven as the marines flew inside just after them. The Raven pressurised itself and the soldiers removed their helmets. Sebastian watched with a smile as the Titan obliterated the Icarius, and it wasn't even using the MAC.
That was until the Raven left the immediate vicinity of the Icarius. There was massive booming, and the Icarius tore itself apart. Sebastian smirked and began to help the other soldiers in providing first aid to Cobb. Van Zant held his best friend's hand as the other soldiers began to keep pressure on the wound. The bullet had gone straight through the uniform and out the other side of Cobb's body.
"Cobb, the bullet isn't inside you. That's good, it means you won't need too much surgery." Elsa reassured the Brit.
"Damn, I thought the chicks dig the scars." Cobb laughed.
Van Zant chuckled as he held his friend's hand. Cobb continued to laugh as the Raven planted itself in the Titan's air bay. The medical officers took the injured marine, and Van Zant soon followed them to the medical bay. The Dragoons marched off back to the crew quarters as Sebastian and Elsa were busy speaking.
"What happens now?" Elsa asked.
"Not much. Retribution and Tigris are busy eliminating pockets of SDF task forces as they attack supply depots. When Top Cat gives us orders, we'll follow orders. Until then, we hunt down any lone destroyers wherever they are."
Sebastian grabbed his Sentinel armour and began to take of the SDF armour that he wore. As he tore off the red and black armour, Elsa got a decent view of the leather black undersuit that he wore underneath the armour. He soon began to place the black Sentinel CI armour on, and soon the only skin that Elsa could see was Sebastian's face.
"Dismissed, Chief."
"Back to the bridge, Commander?"
"Free time, Elsa. I'll call when I need you."
"Thank you, Commander."
The gunnery chief went on her tiptoes and planted a small kiss on the commander's cheek, before marching off to the social quarters. She left Sebastian Lyall blushing in the middle of the air bay, until he marched off to the bridge to sit in his seat, and deal with whatever he had to deal with until Admiral Raines contacted him.
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