~W~F~T~S~R~

VOLCANIA

The plan was elegant in its simplicity – or so Dread believed.

Intricate plans involved many steps which could be derailed at any moment, so the simpler the plan, the better. That was a hard-learned lesson after so many battles lost to Power and his team. Dread had put a lot of hours into planning multi-level security and logistics for his projects only to have them destroyed by Power because he always found a flaw in the plan. This time, there would be no ruse, no hiding, no distraction. This plan would be forthright and obvious. What was even more gratifying was the fact that Power was nowhere in the vicinity. He hadn't been seen in the days since he fought Soaron.

"You seem somewhat satisfied, Dread" Overmind's voice echoed through the throne room.

"I am, Overmind," Dread's mechanized voice answered. "I have placed our fighters in a large perimeter around the base camp. We are uncertain if their sensors are capable of recording our movement at that range, but it is of no matter. After a month of test infiltrations and mock battles, we know where their weaknesses are, where their personnel are positioned and exactly what types of armaments they have to defend themselves. Our attack should come as a complete surprise to them. We will take as many prisoner as possible and destroy the rest."

Overmind processed the information. "What about Chase, the organic you wish to use to trap Power?"

The Dread biodread's head turned toward the speaker. "She will be in the base camp. She has fought inside the main structure every time we've attacked over the last month, so we know that is her position in a battle. I have downloaded her likeness in the biomechs' databanks with instructions to find this organic inside the boundary wall and capture her alive. There will be no reason for failure."

Again, Overmind considered this information. Dread could hear the processors whirring in the background. "You are sending only biomechs. Why is Soaron conspicuously absent and why are there no Youth Corps soldiers assigned to this offensive?"

Dread placed his arm into the dataport and began downloading the recent reports from facilities all over the Empire. "Soaron is still regenerating and will not be fully functional for several days. As for the Youth Corps soldiers, there seems to be some confusion on their part when they meet our undercover soldiers in battle at the base camp. They question the basic precepts of loyalty to the Empire in those circumstances. They do not understand how so many once loyal to the Machine could betray it and fight alongside a resistance force. Since we cannot tell any of our troops of the individuals we placed there under a memory lock, it creates needless confusion. The biomechs will not suffer any such attack to their belief system."

"I understand," Overmind told him.

Simple plan – send in the biomechs, capture Chase, capture as many as possible for interrogations and destroy the base camp. What could be simpler.

"What if the biomechs fail?" Overmind asked him.

"We have contingency plans," Dread quietly explained. "If the biomechs cannot secure the area, then drones will be flown in to create a fiery perimeter, cutting off all avenues of retreat. There will be no escape for anyone at the base camp."

Again, Dread could hear the gentle sounds of Overmind's databases analyzing the information. "The organics at the base camp have proven they can defend the area and destroy our biomechs with a variety of techniques."

If Dread could have grinned, he would have. "Indeed they have. However, they have only fought small numbers of biomechs. Their defense tactics are geared for the small incursion or the surgical strike. They will not have anticipated or prepared for what I am about to launch on them."

"When will the attack begin?"

"Within hours," Dread informed him as he continued on with the daily business of running his empire. The base camp would fall soon enough, and Chase would Be his prisoner. It wouldn't be long after her capture that Power would fall into Dread's trap.

~W~F~T~S~R~

DAY THREE – Late Afternoon

The plan had been simple or so Jon thought.

Ask Annie to show them where Stinson's laboratory was, fly out there and talk to the man. Persuade him to tell them the truth. Annie had seemed hesitant to go that far from the base camp with an attack of unknown enemy numbers pending, but the mere mention of flying out there in the jump ship changed her mind immediately. Her entire face lit up at the thought of flying. They made plans to go as soon as the sun was up the next day.

Simple, right?

It was late in the day before Annie could leave. New reports of biomech movements had the group leadership concerned, and some high level meetings with strike team commanders were underway from breakfast throughout the afternoon. Dread was planning a major offensive, but none of the group had any plans of leaving. They were making plans to stay and defend.

The Power Team continued working with various strike teams, answering more questions about Dread and developing a few new tricks to use in their next fight against biomechs. Surprisingly, no one seemed worried about the impending attack. Defenses were set up, weapons were placed in strategic places - it was a rather busy morning for everyone, but absolutely no one seemed concerned that they were about to face what could be the largest offensive in their experience.

"This is strange," Scout commented as they walked toward the base camp entrance. "Look at them. None of them seem worried at all."

Tank pointed out a group that was preparing for hand-to-hand combat not far away. "Felix told me earlier that they've been planning for a larger attack for some time since the number of skirmishes has increased over the last month. He thinks there will be more biomechs on foot than in transports. They're planning what he calls the Cannae defense. It's inspired by the one Hannibal used against the Romans when they outnumbered him. He said it's the first time they've tried it and he's curious to find out if it'll work."

"Jon," Hawk stopped walking and turned to the others, "I've got a bad feeling about this. Maybe we ought to wait until after this attack before we go see Stinson."

Jon glanced around at the camp, at all the individuals preparing for the fight, preparing for the night, preparing supper – "They've been detecting movement for days. Now they've got new movement coming from different areas. Biomechs could attack an hour from now or a week from today. They're putting their people in place and they'll be on the alert until the biomechs attack. This is exactly what they'd do if we weren't here, so I don't think our presence means much."

"But what if we find out the truth?" Hawk asked. "If we can reverse what Stinson did, should we wait until after all this happens?"

"I vote no," Scout interjected. "I say if we can undo it, then that's what we undo. We might be able to get everyone out of here before there's an attack. They wouldn't have to fight."

"That could be dangerous," Tank obviously agreed with Hawk. "If we can undo everything, that could leave them vulnerable because they wouldn't be the same army any longer. They'd have their memories back, and some of them are not soldiers."

Jon raised his hand to silence them. "We're putting the cart before the horse. First, we need to find out exactly what Stinson did and if it can be reversed. Let's see what we can find out from him before we start talking about the next step. Annie said she'd call an end to the meetings pretty soon, so I'll wait for her. You three prep the ship and keep an eye on the sensors for anything strange moving in the area. We don't want to get caught out in the forest if biomechs start moving around."

With a nod and a wave, the rest of the team went to the jumpship to do pre-flight. Jon walked around the camp as he waited for Annie to finish her meetings. He listened to the conversations as he strolled past people. The mood of the camp wasn't any different than it had been for the previous two days, and yet everyone was aware that there was a pending attack. How could they all stay so calm? Any other resistance group would be under red alert.

As he passed by some of the tents, he noticed other preparations being made. Guns were being cleaned and loaded, rifle sites were adjusted, various types of hand weapons like knives were being sharpened. Shoulder-to-air missiles were being checked out and prepped for launch. They had such a strange assortment of weapons and an ability to use them without hesitation. Maybe all their practicing and training kept them from becoming too apprehensive or anxious at the thought that they would be fighting very soon. After all, that was what training was for, to be prepared when the fight happened. Regardless, Jon couldn't imagine leading an army with such an attitude. If fear was a necessary emotion to heighten people's awareness and instincts in a battle, how could you lead an army into battle when there was no fear? Yet, they were more prepared to fight in unison than Jon had ever witnessed soldiers to be.

Prepared – that was a word that had developed multiple meanings in Jon's mind over the last few days. These soldiers were ready for anything that came at them. Nothing shocked them. Nothing surprised them. Maybe that was part of whatever it was Stinson had done to them, but it was still quite a revelation to a seasoned soldier who had fought everything Dread could throw at him. However, prepared for anything was something Jon wasn't when he landed at the camp. He had expected to see a successful new resistance group fighting from a base hidden in a settlement. He had no idea he'd find what he did. He was a professional soldier, a career soldier, and he had seen a lot in his years of fighting, but he wasn't prepared to see Jennifer alive and well. He wasn't prepared to see a massive resistance cell with men, women and children working in various ways to fight Dread.

The children… that was a surprise no one was expecting. The day they arrived, they didn't notice many children, but the next day, they began to see more and more of them helping the adults prepare for battles or playing in certain areas. Certain individuals were assigned to care for the children full time, but it wasn't a type of daycare. The children helped the adults keep the camp running. They helped gather and prepare food. The older ones were assistants to the trainers, the younger ones worked half days with the rest spent playing and, Jon assumed, some type of schooling since the building they were going to use as a school hadn't been completely furnished yet. Everyone behaved like their behavior was what they'd always known – and in truth, it was. Since none of them had memories, all they knew was what happened at the base camp. Still, whoever the children were, who their parents were, all of it was still a mystery.

But maybe it was a mystery they could help solve once they visited Stinson.

Jon looked at his watch, and the hour was getting late. If they were going to fly there and back while it was still daylight, they needed to leave soon. Jon thought it wouldn't hurt to walk by Annie's office to see if the meetings were over with.

As he walked around several of the tents, he saw the leaders of the camp speaking to each other outside the outer building Annie used as an office. Bingley, Frost and Jones were there – obviously returned from their posts outside the boundary walls. Milo was there as well, standing by Annie and seemingly unwilling to be moved from that position. Jon waited, but he couldn't help but overhear.

"The power cells are working at 100%," Bingley explained. "We should be able to deliver an uninterrupted supply of power to the Command Center."

Milo looked at a checklist. "Buffers and batteries are in top working order, so if the power supply does get halted, we should be all right for at least thirty minutes before we need the backups to kick in."

Frost looked at a hand held sensor again. "There's no movement at the moment, it stopped about a half hour ago, but we know how these tin cans work – they'll hit us when they think we don't expect it. I'm betting on a simultaneous attack myself."

"That'll be tough to fight," Jones added. "We can have the usual personnel at the strategic points, but if we're looking at a hundred or so of these things hitting us all at once, we could be in trouble."

Annie held up her hand to get their attention. "It'll be tough, but we've got some surprises on our side that we'll have to utilize. That might help balance the odds. Frost, when do you think they'll hit us? Best guess."

Frost looked at his sensor, checked his reports, and finally said, "Any time, to tell the truth. They've been hitting us in small squads over the last month, and they've hit us someplace different each time. They've got the measure of some of our defenses and are probably prepared for them. Still, it takes time to get a lot of these clickers into position before they can arrange a coordinated attack. With the massive amounts of troops being moved into areas all around us and with them concentrating more of them to the south of us, they know where some of our critical points are."

Annie seemed to consider what she heard. "Can we protect the power generators and the silo with the defenses and weapons we've got there now if a major attack hits with, say, fifty biomechs at one location?"

Frost shrugged his shoulders. "We haven't practiced for anything like that at the silo or the power generator, but we haven't seen them attack with that many yet either. Our areas are secluded, so no reinforcements could reach us in time. We'd be on our own. We only have skeleton crews, so I'd say probably not. In the base camp itself, we can hold off an army."

Milo handed Annie a reader, perhaps one with all the information they had at the moment. "All right," she finally said. "Take extra guards with you tonight. Make sure your personnel are armed. Frost, Bingley, if you need to evacuate, do it. Lives are more important than buildings. Jones, you'll go with Frost but keep yourself available in case transports are needed. Milo, I need all sensors in the Command Center focused on as many areas as possible. Strike team leaders need updated locations of the biomechs by the minute. From the information we've got now, they could attack any of our sites outside the main camp first." She looked over other information. Jon tried to look like he wasn't eavesdropping, but he thought that perhaps Annie saw him standing there. "Have the infirmary get ready for casualties. The mess hall will need to store as much water as they can for easy use. We'll need to set aside the usual areas for the dead."

"You still planning on going to Stinson's?" Milo asked her.

Annie nodded. Jon noticed that she looked his way that time. "According to the information Hawk got, Stinson's a fraud and a liar and an escaped convict who did to people what's been done to us. It's a good guess to say he knows more than he's told us, and if I can find out something useful, it might help us."

Jon overheard them muttering, their voices too low to make out any words. Then he saw Frost, Bingley and Jones leave. That left Milo and Annie standing there talking. Milo hadn't seen Jon, so Jon kept his distance until they were finished. Still, he couldn't help but overhear what was being said.

"I just don't think it's a good idea, Annie," Milo told her. "We don't really know these guys."

Annie handed him back the reader. "They've got a ship to get us there, and Stinson's lab is too far to walk to and get back before sundown. How else are we going to find any answers?"

"We don't know if they're telling the truth that Stinson could be involved somehow. They could be making it up to… well…"

"To what, Milo?"

"Dang it all, Annie, I don't know. I know they're here to help, but I just don't trust them. Especially Power. He's always looking at you."

Jon had hoped that everything was all right between him and Milo, but apparently it wasn't. Milo didn't like him or trust him.

Annie took a deep breath, and then answered quietly, "He knew me. Before. That's all."

The look on Milo's face was utter surprise. "Why didn't they say anything?"

"Jackson told them what Stinson said about forcing memories. He didn't give me any personal information about myself, but he did tell me he knew me."

Milo took a couple of steps away, then stepped back, the put his hands on his hips. "And how do you know you can trust him?"

"Don't you mean them?" she asked with a slight smile.

"Him, them, whatever," Milo combed a frustrated hand through his hair. "We met them the day before yesterday, and you're willing to go off with them? That's not a smart move."

"We need answers," was Annie's calm reply. "And don't worry. I can take care of myself. I've been training as well, you know."

From Milo's posture, Jon could tell that he didn't like the idea of Annie going off with them. He was being overprotective, just like that first day when the team came into the base and spoke with them.

"I don't trust Power," Milo repeated. "He may be the hotshot resistance fighter that Dread hates, but that's all we really know about him."

"Milo," Annie gently took hold of Milo's arm, and Jon felt a twinge of jealousy. The look in Annie's eyes showed that she did care about Milo. Jon hoped it was nothing more than friendship. He didn't think his heart could take it. "I know you don't trust him, but trust me. For some reason, I know we can trust them. I feel it in my gut. They want to help."

Milo blew out a frustrated breath. "I don't like it," he muttered loudly, "but, you're the boss. Keep your communicator on at all times though. If we have to come get you, I want to be able to track your signal."

"Yes, sir," Annie offered a mock salute as Milo walked off.

Once Annie was alone, Jon walked over to her. "I didn't mean to eavesdrop," he told her.

"Don't worry about it. Since we have no locked door policy, there aren't a lot of secrets around here. Are we ready to go?"

"Absolutely. The others are already at the jump ship. Are your meetings over with?" he asked casually as they walked toward the boundary entry, Jon asked, "I mean, is everything okay?"

"As okay as it can be," Annie told him. "The attack is coming at any time, so everyone knows to be on alert."

They really thought it was going to come soon. Should they leave now? Maybe Hawk was right. Should the trip to see Stinson wait? "It's okay if you leave for an hour or two?"

"It's fine," Annie smiled and nodded. "Defenses are in place. Besides, they're big boys and girls, Jon. I may be in command, but they know what to do when attacked. We've trained so everyone does what they have to without being ordered to do anything and knowing what everyone else is doing as well. They don't need to be told, and they don't need me to hold their hands."

Jon took a quick glance again at everyone making preparations for… everything. "You really do have a good group here," he told her.

Good group, good leaders, well-prepared - all professional attributes of a working army, but the one thing Jon noticed with gratitude was the ease with which Annie called him by his first name. She sounded more like Jennifer.

~W~F~T~S~R~

As they approached the ship, Annie felt something akin to pride and satisfaction, but she didn't know why. There was something very familiar about the style and shape, something recognizable in its form and lines. The battle scarring looked somewhat odd to her, but she didn't know why.

"Nice ship," Annie said as they entered the hold. "It's a TF, isn't it?"

"From its nose to its thrusters," Scout said as they each took their accustomed seats.

Accustomed seats? Annie seemed to recognize the configuration, but she couldn't remember from where.

She moved toward the front, her eyes taking in everything she saw. The TF was familiar… but how? She quickly noticed that Hawk almost sat in the co-pilot's seat, then immediately switched to the pilot's seat. If he was the pilot, then why did he start to sit in the co-pilot's seat? Something was wrong with that move. She didn't say anything, but seemed surprised when Hawk asked, "Think you've ever flown a ship?"

"Not that I remember," she answered quickly, her eyes not leaving the console. "I seem to know a lot about ships, so maybe I did?"

"Take the co-pilot's seat, and let's find out."

With a big smile, Annie sat down in the co-pilot's seat and looked at the gauges and instruments. It all seemed familiar, but not quite comfortable. She glanced over at the pilot's seat – those instruments seemed very familiar. She felt like she could fly the ship on instinct alone.

"Want to sit here for a minute?" Hawk offered. "Take a view from the pilot's seat?"

"You don't mind?" she asked.

"Not one little bit." Hawk got up, moved over and Annie took the pilot's seat while Hawk sat in the co-pilot's. "Feels right," he muttered to himself. "Ringing any bells?" he asked her.

She carefully looked at the control panel in front of her. Something was familiar. She reached out and touched the panel… smooth metal. She knew the feel of that. "I've been in a ship like this before," she whispered mostly to herself. "At least, I think I have."

"Feels good, doesn't it?" Scout asked her.

Annie nodded her head as she continued to physically explore the pilot's area. The seat, the throttle, the thruster controls – she knew where every single control, button and switch was without thinking about it.

~W~F~T~S~R~

Jon watched from the captain's seat. If there was one thing in this world that could possibly jog Annie's memory of being Jennifer, it was the jump ship. Jennifer loved that ship. It was her ship and woe to the person or biodread that damaged it. "Let's see if we can help you recognize anything else. Take her up," he said. It took a great deal of willpower to not say Pilot.

Take her up…

Annie, seemingly without thinking, reached over and ignited the engines from the main console. She opened the throttle and the ship took off more smoothly than Hawk could ever get her to do.

"You've got the touch," Scout said, the admiration evident in his voice. "Hawk can't get this temperamental ship to take off or land without a few bumps and jumps."

Everyone watched her. The smile on her face told them more than anything how she felt.

"Feels natural?" Hawk asked her.

"It feels like I know what she'll do before I press the button to do it," she told him. "Maybe I was a pilot." She glanced back at Scout. "What do you mean temperamental? She feels like she handles fine."

"For you, she's handling fine," Hawk pointed out. "This ship just doesn't like me as much, I guess."

Annie laughed. "Do you think the ship has feelings?"

"You'd be surprised," Jon answered quickly. "How far is it to Stinson's lab?"

"Not far if you're flying, more than a few of hours by foot. It's almost twenty miles from the base camp. Do you really think Doctor Stinson is the key to all this or just part of the memory problem we have?" she turned her head to look at Jon.

"Stinson isn't exactly an honest person," Jon explained. "He hid his past from everyone. That has us curious."

"And we trusted someone who turned out to be an escaped convict," Annie said dejectedly.

"You had every reason to," Scout told her. "From what we've been told, Stinson has made a name for himself these last years as a competent doctor. He treats a lot of people. The problem is that Stinson isn't really a doctor, and his research is too close to what happened to all of you, so we think he's involved."

Jon kept an eye on Annie as she watched through the viewport silently for a moment. He thought she was processing the information. "I hate the idea that we let someone like that in our base. Do you think he's the one who took away our memories? All by himself?"

"It's possible if he has the equipment," Tank answered. "Do you know if he's been in this area long or if he's come here recently?"

Annie kept her eyes on the ground below as she flew over the newly growing trees and foliage. She didn't look back at the team. "He was at the lab we're flying to when we woke up. One of the visitors to our camp said he was much further south of us before that, but I don't really know. Why?"

"We were in this area for a long time," Tank answered, deliberately hiding the truth. "I don't recall hearing the name Stinson before."

Annie began the ship's descent as they approached the lab. "Was that your base in the mountain?" she asked.

Four heads turned in her direction.

"Mountain?" Hawk asked.

Annie nodded. "Our sensors found the remains of what looked like a base inside a mountain dozens of miles from the base camp. Turns out it was an old NORAD installation. Scans indicated that it had blown up recently. It must have been massive."

Scout stood up and walked behind Annie. "Your sensors can reach that far?"

"We have good sensors and good equipment techs who can increase their range," Annie bragged.

Scout nodded his head and smiled. "That's true. Did any of your people go to the mountain themselves?"

"No, not yet" she said. "We were able to use long-range sensors once we found a frequency that the equipment could use without interference. No one really wanted to go to the mountain if there was nothing there to find."

"Exactly how far is the mountain from your base?" Jon asked. They knew, but did Annie?

"About seventy miles," was the quick answer.

Seventy miles was out of the proximity range of the electronic pulse. It was further out than any of the camp personnel had traveled. They had only traveled in a twenty mile radius according to Annie, and it all lent credence to the theory that the pulse was keeping them at the base camp.

"It was our base," Hawk confirmed sadly. "We lost someone there. Our pilot."

Annie's brow furrowed. "You did?" She was quiet for a moment, then inquired, "Is your pilot the one who worked on your ship? Kept up the maintenance on it?"

"Oh, yeah," Hawk almost laughed. "None of us would dare go near this ship with a spanner unless she was there watching. It's her ship. We just fly in it."

"You lost your pilot but your pilot is the one who took care of the ship?" Annie reconfirmed. "I thought Scout said that he works -"

Jon cleared his throat. This conversation was getting dangerously close to forcing a memory. "Let's talk about that later. I don't want to keep Stinson waiting."