I really worked to get you guys this chapter before I start training tommorrow at 7:00, which mean I'll have to wake myself up at 5:30 so that I can leave by 6:30.

Anyway it turns out that training is scheduled from wednesday-sunday. I'll be in barracks for that time, then I'll be taken back on Monday. So it looks like I'll only have Monday and Tuesday to give you updates for this. I'll be working on giving you updates, but I'm thinking that it'll be slow going.

Special Thanks to holywarrior, Vypress, and solid man for the the reviews.

Review Responses (I realize I haven't been doing this in a while. Sorry about that.)

solid man: My deadlines are actually every two days, though there were three or four times when I wrote a chapter in three days.

holywarrior: Glad to know that you consider my fic good enough to read while its uncompleted. Personally, I've never read any fanfics where rebels are portrayed as an awesome power, but then again I haven't read many others recently.

Vypress: I think that you'll find that I still left you hanging for the last chapter...


"Tactical preparation! Get that gear strapped on!" Kate shouted out her orders from outside the main armoury at Eagle Point. She had never really thought of herself as a leader, but once the others had started looking to her for orders it was if she knew what had to be done. Part of her couldn't help but wonder if she had gotten this from her father. With a great effort, she pushed her thoughts of family away. She couldn't bother worrying about them; she had to concentrate on her squad and the defence of Eagle Point.

Tac-vests were passed out to each soldier, the light-weight cloth was engraved with a khaki camo. Four pockets were attached to the vest and were quickly stuffed with ammunition and canteen packs. Recruits placed bayonets down the middle of the vest, the sharp blades were rarely used but, Barney had always taught them to prepare for anything.

"You ever used one of these things?" Jason asked as he examined his bayonet. Jason was the type of soldier who had a sniper's ethos, he preferred long-range combat to being up close and personal.

Kate didn't know if he was asking her specifically but she decided to answer anyway. "Only in training exercises," Kate said as Jason started to twirl the blade with his fingers. She frowned when she noticed that the others were getting distracted by it, "Let's move out, we've got a base to defend."

Jason twirled the blade back and forth, he grinned as he looked up at her. "Can I do it one more time?"

Kate looked at him as she tried to hide her amusement, "Jason let's go."

"Oh I'm sorry," Jason said as he watched the others head toward the wall, "how selfish of me. Let's do everything you want to do."

Even years of Barney's training couldn't stop Kate from rolling her eyes as Jason passed her, a smug look across his face. Kate headed for the wall, the steel barricade would allow Kate and the others to defend the base easily. All they would need to do would be to concentrate their fire on the area around the wall's only vulnerability, the blast door entrance.

With that in mind, Kate had ordered forty of the others to take up defensive positions around the blast door. She had given Ryan command of that group, since he had always displayed a knack for stealth during Barney's exercises. So much so that he had been able to lead a successful ambush against Barney and a squad of veteran rebels during training.

Ryan squad's position was marked on her H.U.D, which was something that Doctor Kliener and her father had invented. The H.U.D was nothing more than a small square shaped eyepiece that was attached to the squad's ballistic helmets. The HUD received wireless feed from the helmets of the others squad members, making it easier to identify who was who. The HUD had the unique ability to react to the wearer's thoughts; it allowed Kate to do everything from projecting displays of tactical maps to ordering her squad to a new location. Not only did it ease the responsibility of a squad leader, but friendly fire was often avoided now that everyone knew where everyone else was located.

"Red One?" A voice that Kate recognized as Patrick's said through the COM.

"Go ahead."

"I've got a bad feeling," Patrick said with a slightly shaky voice.

That had Kate's full attention; Patrick had always demonstrated a unique danger perception. His intuitive sense had allowed Kate and the others to avoid Barney's stun traps on obstacle courses. He was rarely wrong.

She instantly opened a COM channel to everyone else, "Possible contact sighting, eyes sharp everyone."

"Roger Red One, we're vigilant up here." Patrick replied. Kate could still detect the shakiness in his voice, she knew him long enough to know that his bad feeling was intensifying.


A-78 and his respective platoon moved toward their objective. They had been tasked with the infiltration of an enemy fortification and they moved silently toward their destination. Knowing that fully weighted gear betrayed a soldier's location while running, 78 had ordered the others to travel light. His plan called for a quick assault, a strike that would be fast and lethal.

The only obstacle preventing 78 from ensuring his objective was the steel wall. But 78 wouldn't quit now. He was a Combine shock trooper, and shock troopers never fail.

The answer came to him almost as soon as he gazed at the blast door. 78 was about to activate when his COM, when he check himself. Using the open COM channel would undoubtedly alert any enemy forces. Instead, 78 handed a pulse charge to a squad member and then pointed toward the blast door. The circular charges were fairly small, remote explosives that vaporized organic tissue on contact. 78 doubted that the charge itself would be able to tear through the door, but that didn't matter.

The appointed squad member nodded and headed out, his stealth field shielding him from enemy eyes as he moved to his destination. 78 and the others could see each other due to the thermal feed from their helmets, 78 switched to normal vision when he noticed that the charge had been placed.

As soon as the shock trooper was back, 78 withdrew a sticky bomb from one of his pockets. It had taken the Combine five years before they were able to duplicate the design of the salvaged rebel sticky bombs. But whereas the enemy variation ahd been used to eliminate the entire Strider population, the Combine had designed theirs with an extremely volatile compound. Upon detonation, the chemical reaction resulted in a thunderous explosion.

78 activated the bomb and threw it with all the range that his cybernetic enhancements could provide.


"Contact! Sticky bomb inbound!"

"Confirmed, get out of there!" Kate yelled into the COM channel.

"Wait, I can see something from here!" A voice that Kate didn't recognize shouted back.

"I said move out!" Kate yelled back into the COM as she and the others descended from the wall toward the blast door by using the watchtowers.

As soon as the bomb was in place, 78 detonated the pulse-bomb attached to the blast door.

The ear-splitting explosion was enough to knock everyone who was on the ground to their feet. For those who weren't quick enough to leave the wall, the explosion propelled them into the air as they let out screams, from surprise and pain.

A thick black cloud followed in the wake of the explosive storm, creating a smoke-screen that severely limited field of vision. Kate quickly got herself to her feet and caught a glimpse of wounded squadmates from just outside the blast door, she snapped on her COM and said, "Bring the others back to the rear lines."

"On my way squad leader!" A few voices responded before Kate noticed three of her soldiers move through the smoke screen.

"I can't—" A rebel halted mid-sentence. "I hear something…." The channel cut back in with the sound of a rebel screaming, "We're under fire!"

Kate heard the discharge of pulse-rifles and human screams; she yelled for the others to fall back but static was her only reply. By this time Kate and the others of Red Team were shuffling back, their weapons pointed toward the thick black smoke as they waited for Combine forces to come through. A trio of rounds erupted from the smoke, taking one of the recruits down as he let out a surprised yelp.

Kate's eyes flashed with anger as she pointed toward the smoke and yelled into her COM, "Open fire!"

Ryan and his forces obeyed instantly, their weapons firing on full auto as they filled the entrance with bullets. A few electronic screams were barley audible over the pounding of pulse-rifles in Kate's ears. Just when she was beginning to think that they must have retreated, more rifle bursts sounded from inside the base. Kate couldn't believe it, she had never seen any Combine get through the entrance. Shock troops, the thought came in a flash, as more pulse fire seemed to erupt from thin air.


An emotion welled up inside 78, something his cybernetic systems didn't process. If 78 was still fully human, he would have smiled.

Combine shock troops never fail.


I've been trying to incorporate Barney's trainees with military discipline but also leave them with some of Barney's humor. That way they're not just a bunch of military drones.

If you haven't read the first courple of lines up top, then I suggest you do that for information about updates.

If you have then great, and tell me what you thought.