Disclamer: I don't own Kim Possible and any related characters/vehicles/trademarked names to either her or Roughnecks: The Starship Troopers Chronicles. However most of the cast is of my creation.
Chapter 10
Regroup
The sun set fast. The area was shrouded in the cloak of night, except for the parts lit up by the Marauder lights. Yet the battle continued to wage. All but the slowly charging laser cells depleted and even they would not last long. Then something happened. Sarah figured she was going insane when she saw flashes of light on the horizon and the sky began to light up all around them.
"Lieutenant Stoppable. Are you there?" came a voice over the radio
"Affirmative, this is Lieutenant Stoppable. Who is this?" Sarah replied as her guns ripped through a warrior
"This is Ranger One. We are coming in hot and among for close quarters engagement. Acknowledge"
"Close quarters engagement confirmed. We are ready to assist" she replied through gritted teeth
"Affirmative. We have lock. Do not move from your position" came the voice.
Seconds later the area around the Marauders lit up like a desert in the middle of a nuclear explosion. Bugs were charred and melted away. And just as quickly as it had happened, it was over and everything was still. But more bugs were incoming, they were heard over the range and they were not far.
"Lieutenant Stoppable. You are ordered to set your Marauders to self destruct and eject"
"What?" Who is this?" she demanded over the comm
"Your ride" came back as a chopper came into view
"Could you be a bit more specific?"
"Transport chopper. This is Colonel Gelfex. NOW MOVE!"
"You heard 'em, troopers. DO IT" Sarah ordered and hit the button. A chime began to sound through the cockpit and the canopy broke open.
The chopper ramp extended and the team ran up it, into the waiting craft. But as Shelis took a step onto the ramp, a Kamikaze thorn hit and went straight through her helmet and by extension, right through her head, killing her instantly. She fell back and landed on top her Marauder, her body draped over top, a lifeless stare on her face.
"NO!" Sarah called out and put out her hand, as if to grab her XO's. It took a second, but her survival instincts kicked in and she turned and bound up the ramp. On the last step, she tripped and fell inside, her squad mates pulling her in. When she stood up, she realized that she was not only covered in the dirt, grime and bug guts, but she was looking at a Colonel's uniform. She quickly saluted
"Lieutenant Stoppable. Colonel Gelfex. SICON Intel" He saluted back
"Colonel. Thank you for the pick up" Sarah said, offering her hand, her brow covered in sweat.
"Well, we were in the neighbourhood"
"Sir if you don't mind me asking..." Sarah began
"Where did we come from? We just got here in the Destiny. Picked up your beacon and headed right here. The Admiral was going to pick up the General Stoppable, but she insisted that we come and snatch you up first. Though from the piles of warrior bodies we saw, doesn't look like you needed help"
"Well, we were getting a bit bored. So thanks for the save" Sarah said as she removed her helmet "Now the other survivors, Sir?"
"Being rescued as we speak. We have fighters to spare and choppers grabbing whoever is alive. But it isn't many I am afraid"
"I'm not surprised"
"The rest of the fleet is also on the way. High command has decided that this sector is under lock down until this problem is eradicate" he said.
"So what is going to be done about it?" Zelna asked
"These are bugs. We are going to stomp on them" he replied "First we have to stop and pick up the General"
"Oh joy" Sarah muttered under her breath. Luckily, nobody heard her.
The explosion lit up the horizon as everything within a kilometre was obliterated by the combination of the Marauder's detonation. Sarah took a quick second to look out the window and thought about her fallen friend. Her head hung low and she sighed in disbelief, her mind beginning to realize what had just happened.
xxxx xxxx
The chopper arrived quickly at the site of the Valkyrie crash. Sarah was in the cockpit and they could see the fires rising from the hull
"What happened?" she asked and stood up
"Apparently the bugs decided to use long range plasma to attack. Luckily they didn't do too much damage
"I wondered why we didn't encounter plasmas on mission. Now I understand. DAMMIT!" She slammed her fist down on the console, "I should have anticipated this scenario"
"Now Lieutenant, you can't know every situation and how it will work. You made the right move. This would have happened anyway and it might have been worse had you not taken on impossible odds" the Colonel said to Sarah. She said nothing. Just gritted her teeth, with her head down.
"I failed. I tried and I failed" she said quietly, holding her head. Gelfex walked over to the comm and activated it
"General Stoppable, this is Colonel Gelfex. We are one minute from touchdown. Are you ready to head out?"
"More than ready, Colonel. We await your arrival" Kim said and closed the channel. Gelfex watched as Sarah walked off of the flight deck, towards the gun turrets.
xxxx
Kim watched as the transport flew into view and positioned itself above her, it's ramp extending as it came to a full hovering stop.
"GO GO! MOVE!" she yelled at the waiting troopers, ushering them up the ramp. Carrying crates and supplies they moved up the ramp, Kim stood beside and kept them moving. After the last one she picked up the crate that was lying at her feet and moved to head up the ramp.
"WE'RE ON, GO!" she ordered the pilot
"Going" he replied as the ramp closed up behind Kim.
Making her way to the flight deck, Kim didn't see Sarah anywhere
"Thanks for the save, Colonel" she said to Gelfex
"Glad to be of help, General" he replied
"Where is Lieutenant Stoppable?"
"I believe I saw her heading for the turrets"
"Thank you, Colonel" Kim replied.
She approached the turret ladder at the same time as Zelna
"General" Zelna saluted
"Corporal" Kim replied
"I was just going to talk to the Lieutenant"
"As was I"
"General, if I may, I think I should be the one to talk to the Lieutenant. You have more authority over her than anyone and I don't think she needs an authority figure right now"
"Very well" Kim replied "Come see me after we dock"
"Da, General" Zelna replied as she climbed the ladder.
"Lieutenant?"
"Corporal" Sarah replied, standing up "What do you need?"
"Actually, I was wondering what you needed" Zelna said, climbing over the top of the ladder
"I don't need anything. I'm fine" Sarah replied, looking away and trying to facade her face
"Permission to speak freely?"
"Granted"
"Any teenager who has just flipped through a psychology textbook could see you're trying to suppress your pain and alienating your team" she said. Sarah's shoulders sunk though she didn't turn around
"I got them killed. The Sergeant, all those people on the Valkyrie. If I had done my job they would still be alive"
"But you did your job. You saved many lives by diverting Warriors to us"
"But the Plasmas and Kamikazes didn't"
"You couldn't have anticipated that. No one could have" Zelna said
"The General could have. She always does" Sarah replied, talking about her mother as an officer
"We did the right thing. I think the Sarge would have agreed"
"Every time I close my eyes I see the same image. Her lying on the Marauder as we fly away. Me, unable to help. Unable to do anything"
"It wasn't your fault. She chose to cover us. She sacrificed her life so that we could survive" Zelna insisted
"Thank you, Corporal. That will be all" Sarah said without looking at her
"Aye, Lieutenant" Zelna replied and walked away.
xxxx xxxx
"Corporal, how is she?" Kim asked Zelna once they were back aboard the Destiny.
"Distraut. She was convinced that the mission would ensure the bugs left you alone and they didn't. She sees that as a failure on her part. And then losing the Sergeant was another nail for her" Zelna sighed "Permission to speak freely, General?" she asked. Kim nodded "Give her some time. She feels like she failed both the Sergeant and the survivors. Worst of all, she feels like she let you down, that was the real breaker for her. It wouldn't be bad if it hadn't been coupled with the loss of the Sarge. Her mind is fragile and it might break if she gets any more stress"
"Since when did you become a psychic?" Kim asked with a raised eyebrow
"I'm not, Ma'am. But psychology was one of my favourite studies in school"
"I see. Thank you Corporal" Kim said. Zelna saluted and walked away. Kim sighed and headed for the comm office.
xxxx xxxx
Barcel walked into the med bay, after getting out of her power suit and weapon, to see that it was a chaotic mess. Nurses and doctors moved from table to table, treating all sorts of wounds. Med bay that she normally recognized as plain and sterile white was smeared with red.
Picking up a nearby doctors kit she moved to attend one of the troopers when one of the doctors stepped in
"What are you doing here?" he demanded to know
"I'm the resident medic. I attended to many of these troopers on the surface" Barcel replied. The doctor turned to attend to the trooper
"Sorry. But I've had people in and out of here all afternoon. Can't tell who is hurt, who is helping and who is just mucking around"
"Fair enough. I'm Corporal Alexa Barcel" she introduced herself "They call me Angel"
"Doctor Thomas" he replied
"Nice to meet you. What's his condition since he arrived?"
"We managed to stop the bleeding and I gave antibiotics to fight off any infection"
"Okay, I'll take it from here" Barcel replied, looking under the patch as Thomas walked off.
xxxx xxxx
"Well, General, it seems you did your job well in the face of such odds" Admiral Horwizte said over the comm
"We did what we had to do, but we lost a lot of good lives in the process" Kim replied
"Speaking of casualties, do you have a final count?" General Tracia asked
"I do. Out of the two thousand that were sent, only thirty seven returned" Kim replied, looking at her data pad
"That is a pretty steep list" Lieutenant General Yerz said
"Indeed it is. We have to wonder about how this happened" Horwizte said
"Faulty intelligence. I believe" Kim said, trying to subtly blame INTEL
"But from where. We must do what we can to prevent this in the future" Tracia said
"I agree, Sir. But most of those who survived were saved did so only because it was all they could do" Kim snapped
"General Stoppable, I think you misunderstand our tone. We are not trying to place blame for anything here. We are simply looking at the situation and what occurred. We have already set up a investigation into how intelligence missed this" Admiral Helioa said
"We must also find out how a Bug colony was allowed to grow under our noses" Tracia said
"I have already ordered the Sixth fleet to make their way to your location. We are going to reclaim this world and destroy the bug menace" Sky Marshal Granger said, stepping into frame.
"Generals. Admirals, Sky Marshal If I might make a suggestion?"
"What is it, General?"
"We should just firebomb the planet. I fail to see a point in risking more lives when we can eliminate the threat from orbit" Kim said. The officers all looked and chatted amongst themselves
"General Stoppable, You have done your best in the task presented to you. You will be given a commendation and a merit for your accomplishment And when the Sixth Fleet arrives, you will be commanding the ground forces under Admiral McMillian"
"Until then, Firebombing is not something we are considering. We do not have the resources to commit to a planet wide firebombing campaign. Not to mention the tunnels that snake the planet" Helioa said.
"Understood" Kim said and saluted. The comm went dead. She cursed silently under her breath.
xxxx xxxx
Affixing a solid black armband to her left arm, Kim swept dust off her uniform. While annoyed that the Destiny did not have suits that fit her, she made do with her tattered Generals uniform. With a sigh she walked through the doors of the cargo bay and towards the podium that had been set up. She paused for a second to gaze out at the faces of the soldiers and officers in front of her.
"Many of us would not be here right now, if not for the sacrifice of those who died. Their death meant our survival" Kim said, gazing down at Sarah "And we honour their sacrifice, whether they stepped in front of a thorn to protect a fellow trooper or in the crash when we were attacked. We honour their memory and their name by being here today. And we will honour their sacrifice by returning to the surface and driving the bugs from the planet" she finished. She took the piece of paper that had been inscribed with the names of the dead, she placed it in the centre of the coffin and backed away. Kim stood at the ready "Company, ah ten-HUT" she barked. Everyone who could came to attention, their heads forward and arms at their side. The belt began to move, carrying the coffin out to the void of space. "Present ARMS" she barked again. Everyone who could, and even some who couldn't at least tried, raised their hands in final salute and turned to face the outer window as the coffin slowly drifted away from the ship.
As it drifted away from the ship, Kim took a second to compose herself.
"Burial detail, dismissed" she said and watched as the troopers filed out.
xxxx
Sarah walked out of the service, bandages over much of her body, her black jumpsuit was torn in several places.
"Lieutenant" Barcel walked up behind her
"Corporal. What can I do for you?"
"Are you alright?" Barcel asked rhetorically
"I'm fine" Sarah said as she climbed the ladder up to the observation deck. Barcel followed her up
"Corporal, I don't need anything" Sarah insisted
"Lieutenant, SICON regulations article four section three line twenty gives medical personnel the right to relieve officers of command if said officers mental or physical health is deemed unfit for duty" Barcel quoted "Now, as your squad medic, you can let me help you or I can go to General Stoppable office and collect form thirty four dash A and have you relieved of command"
"Is that a threat?" Sarah replied
"No. Yes. Maybe. More of a way to try and help" Barcel replied with her usual friendly smile
"I just can't shake the feeling of failure. I let everyone down"
"How?"
"I went to try and distract the bugs so that the Valkyrie would remain unharmed. But Plasmas attacked it and several more troopers died. If I had been on the ball I would have anticipated that"
"And if the Intel experts had been on the ball, we never would have come to this world. And if Command had been on the ball they would have expected something like this"
"What's your point?"
"No one is perfect. Everyone makes mistakes. You have to move on" Barcel said. Sarah didn't reply but instead looked out the window.
Barcel turned her head when she heard someone climbing up the ladder. Kim's head popped over the top
"General" Barcel and Sarah saluted as Kim stepped off the ladder
"As you were" Kim replied. Sarah sat back down. "Corporal, I believe you are needed in med bay"
"Aye General" Barcel saluted and climbed down. Kim closed the hatch and sat on the bench
"Sarah" Kim said quietly
"I failed them. I failed the troopers, I failed the Sergeant, I failed you"
"Sarah, how do you think I felt when I almost lost your father?" Kim asked quietly
"Devastated?"
"Exactly. I failed him then. As his friend and as his commander"
"But that was different. Dad was only wounded. Here people are dead. All because of me"
"Lieutenant, consider for a second that had you not drawn the attention of the Warriors, they and many of the Hoppers and Kamikazes would have attacked the Valkyrie and cost more lives. Yes, there were a few lives lost and that is unfortunate, but, as a leader, you have to be aware of the cost to benefit ratio. In this case, the benefit was worth the cost. Consider that" Kim said and stood up. "We have one week until the Sixth Fleet arrives. I'll assign command of your squad to Corporal Zelna until then or you start feeling better" Kim said and climbed down the ladder, leaving Sarah alone with the stars.
xxxx xxxx
A few days later...
Kim sat down at her office and went over the data pad briefing from command, detailing deployments and operational objectives for the mission at hand. Her door dinged
"Come in" she said
"General?" Sarah saluted as she entered Kim's cabin. Kim returned the salute as she stood up.
"Lieutenant, what can I do for you?"
"Nothing much, General. I'm just wondering if you can give any details about the attack plan for when the Sixth Fleet arrives"
"No, I can't. Most of the details are still being worked out. I can give you some good news, though. All squads will be getting full reinforcements, so your unit will be back to full strength. You need to decide who you want to promote to squad XO"
"Yes, I have been thinking about that. I decided that Corporal Zelna should fill that role. She isn't Sergeant Shelis, but she knows her job and I trust her to do that job"
"Good choice, Lieutenant. That was who I was going to suggest"
"Glad we are on the same page then. Now I have the files on the new troopers in your squad. I suggest you look over them" Kim said as she handed Sarah the data pad Sarah took a quick glance at the names. One in particular caught her eye - Corporal Andrew Kultai.
"You're giving me a spec ops washout?"
"I am. I figured you could use someone with guts and reckless abandon" Kim said. Sarah glared at her mother, Kim chuckled. "How are you holding up, Sarah?" Kim asked in a much more calm manner "I know what it's like, to see others be killed."
"Yeah, I read the report" Sarah admitted "I know you nearly lost your mind when dad was injured"
"I also lost my squad leader. So I know what you are going through" Kim said
"I'll be fine, mom. I spent some time in med bay so my leg is healed, but losing half my squad, that's not going to be easy to deal with. I should survive though"
"If you're my kid, I have no doubt" Kim chuckled "And we'll discuss how you managed to read my personal dossier after this ordeal is over"
"I'll look forward to it. So what are we getting in way of reinforcements?"
"The star ship Desert Hand, one fighter carrier with a whole squadron, five trooper squads, a fleet marine squad as well as a Spec Ops team on top of full reinforcements for every squad"
"Lot of firepower" Sarah commented
"It is. But we need everyone we can get."
"Well, I guess I had better get the troops in training" Sarah saluted and then turned around and walked out, gripping her arm as she walked. Kim sat back at her desk and began looking through more data pads.
xxxx xxxx
When the makeshift reinforcement fleet finally arrived, Kim led the briefing with Brigadier General Ted Mackenzie, second to Kim, providing additional information. All the trooper Squad Lieutenant's; Ortis Oscello, LeWhay Aytus, Joshua Kersah, Marcus Cortez, Lucas Cosan, Alex Max and of course, Sarah. Also in attendance was the Fleet marine squad commanded by Lieutenant Amanda Mikare. From Fleet was Admiral Lindsay McMillian, commander of the battle group, Commander Lisa Kazli and the overseeing commander of all the fighter squadrons, Colonel Eric Iers. Colonel Gelfex from Intel was present and finally, so was the Spec Ops squad leader, Major Eric Setref. The last minute addition of a Fire team from the Marauder Corps had added Lieutenant Benjamin Effallt to the roster. All in all, it made for a large crowd, and Kim couldn't remember the last time she had led a briefing with this many officers.
"Thank you all for coming" Kim said to the officers "So here is where we stand. We have ten squads, four fighter squadrons and we are going to need all of them to complete this mission. And make no mistake, we WILL complete this mission. We will stop the arachnid threat once and for all"
"Our plan is simple" General Mackenzie stepped in "A planet wide search for the queen. Now I know that isn't going to be as easy as it sounds, but it is the best plan for the moment"
"Unlike in previous missions" Kim started "We are not going to be establishing a surface base. We have four days before the Sixth Fleet arrives with reinforcements. But make no mistake people, we will have the threat eliminated before then" she finished. Quiet murmurs rolled between the officers, too many for Kim to pick up on
"Now, thanks to Lieutenant Stoppable bold actions in drawing the arachnid threat, we believe we have a starting point in looking for the bug queen" Mackenzie said and pressed a control button. A holographic projection of the planet emerged. The spot where Sarah and her troopers had held the line with their Marauders was highlighted. Sarah felt a pang in her heart as the image of Megan lying on-top of her Marauder sprang into her conscious mind. She quickly put it aside and tried to focus on the briefing.
"So our plan of attack is this" Kim said "We are going to send squads to various points around the area to try to flush out the bug queen and then hit her with a tactical nuclear strike" Kim finished. A hand was raised in the back.
"General?"
"Yes, Major Setref?"
"Permission to speak freely?"
"Granted"
"The original queen was one smart bug and we are dealing with an enemy that is fully entrenched and prepared for our arrival. Bugs don't show themselves unless they have the upper hand and in this case, they do. They would know we would send reinforcements and they would know that we would be hunting her down. They will be ready and we won't be able to just lure her out" He finished. There were murmurs of agreement from other officers. Kim walked around to the Major
"So what would you suggest, Major?" Kim asked with a sneer
"We send out troopers to plant nuclear devices around the wide area and then detonate remotely once they are clear. Then we will either crush the queen or incinerate her"
"That is a good idea. But that still leaves us with the problem of finding her. Do you have any suggestions for that?"
"No, General"
"Your observation is noted, Major and will be taken under advisement. For now we proceed as planned. The operation launches in five hours. Get some rack time if you need it and make sure all squads are on their transports at oh-seven hundred exactly. Admiral, do you have anything to add?" Kim looked at McMillian
"Nothing to add, General"
I have something to add" Colonel Gelfex spoke up
"Yes, Colonel?"
"INTEL wants it to be clear that any brains that your troopers come across are not to be killed. We need them for study as to how this bug colony rose" he said. Kim was obviously not happy with that
"Make sure your troopers are aware of the strategic value of Brain bugs and should try to avoid killing them" Kim said to the squad leaders
"General, I'm not sure I was clear" The Colonel said, Kim turned to him
"Colonel you were very clear" Kim snapped
"Very well"
Everyone clear on that? Good" Kim reinforced to the officers "Anything else?"
"General?" Major Benjamin Effallt spoke up
"Yes, Major?"
"General, I'm just wondering, do we know that there is, in fact, a Queen bug and that it isn't just a outcast colony?"
"The bugs are acting exactly the way they have before in the war. We have seen what happens when a Queen and Brains are not in contact with the Hive mind and they are acting exactly like they were in a Hive. Bugs aren't independent creatures. Without the Hive they have no sense of what is what. Now..." Kim took a breath "There may very well not be a full Queen in control, it might just be a brain bug but it is still a leadership caste and that is our objective. Clear?"
"Sir, yes sir"
"Very good" Kim spun on her heel "Any other questions?" no one spoke "Then dismissed" Kim said and began to walk to her office when McMillian stopped her
"Are you sure this is a good idea, General?" the Admiral said when the other troopers were out of the room
"What else do you want me to do, Admiral?" Kim replied
"Take a step back. For your own good"
"What is that supposed to mean"
"In the week since you got rescued, how much have you slept?"
"I got in a few hours here and there..."
"I bet none in the couple of days before we arrived and add in the stress from being down there. You are going to get people killed. You need to step back, get some sleep and realize that you are making rash tactical choices and that never ends well"
"You do know that I have fought in war before"
"Kim, that was over twenty years ago. I'm your friend, you should listen to me. I'm not saying the mission op is a bad idea, I'm just saying that you aren't thinking clearly. You should go and get some rack time until wheels up"
"I have too much work to do"
"Kim, I can have any junior grade medic up here to tell you that you need to get some rest. At least go get a few hours sleep. you need it"
"I..." Kim stuttered and then sighed "Fine"
xxxx
"Is this Sahara Squad bunk?" Private George Hetlya asked as he and the two other new recruits entered the Strikers' bunk room
"Who wants to know?" Anna asked
"Private George Hetlya. This is Privates Cameron Fontina. And that, that is Corporal Andrew Kultai. We've been assigned to Sahara"
"I'm Private, er, Corporal Anna Theon, this is Corporal Alexa Barcel, squad medic and Sergeant Tamona Zelna" Anna said, pointing to each trooper
"So you're the boots that have been assigned to provide fodder to the bugs" the newly promoted Sergeant Zelna said in her thick accent, walking slowly up the sweating new recruits. At 6'9", she towered over the recruits
"Well, I, uh..." Hetlya stuttered. Zelna laughed
"Hahahaha, you'll be fine. just keep your head down" she put her arm around his shoulder and guided him to his bunk
"So what's your story?" Anna asked, looking at Kultai, who had move to lay on his bunk
"Not much to tell. I was in Spec Ops. Got booted out for recklessness"
"I thought that was what Spec Ops was known for" Alexa joked. She and Anna high fived
"Wait, you were kicked out of Spec Ops?" Anna asked "No one gets booted out of Spec Ops"
"Yea, I know the legend. You either retire in a coffin or live long enough to be a legend. Well not me" he finished as Sarah walked in the room
"OFFICER ON THE DECK!" Barcel shouted out. All the troopers stood at attention, Kultai took noticeably longer to get up
"At ease" Sarah said "In five hours time, we are going to launch an assault on the surface, try to drawn the Queen out and take her down" She said, walking the room "Now make no mistake, we WILL succeed"
"How many other squads?" Zelna asked
"Six other trooper squads" Sarah replied "Now, I want everyone in their racks and asleep. You have four hours of rest and no plan as to when you will get more so I want you to use that time. That's all" Sarah turned and walked out, heading for the officer's bunk room.