CHAPTER 2: "REUNIONS"
"Captain ED-7EN722, Regeneration 1 - Generation 2 Pilot Jane Shepard, Generation 2 Titan KN-6D1687, here for debrief," ED said as the three saluted the woman sitting at the desk.
"At ease, you three," the woman said, smiling. "Director Harper's just finishing a meeting with someone, but you're free to go in."
"Thank you, Deputy Coré."
"Please, ED, Eva will be fine."
"Ah, but we have to set a good example for Pilot Shepard and Titan KN, no?" ED stepped forward and gave Eva a warm embrace before smiling at the two soldiers standing behind her. "You're sure the three of us are cleared for the meeting inside?"
"It'll be alright," Eva said, checking her terminal. "They've finished discussing sensitive matters and are just catching up at this point. Go ahead," she said, waving a hand lazily at the door behind her. The trio pushed through the sleek metal doors, entering an all-black corridor lined with a variety of scanners and detectors; a multitude of lights flashed as the three walked through the corridor towards the next set of doors, these ones wooden. ED opened the door to reveal a nearly-bare room with all-metal flooring and walls; the only furnishings in the room were a large, wooden desk housing a massive holo terminal, a series of lounge chairs in front and off to the side of the desk, and a wall-sized holoboard displaying either a video or a live feed of a massive, red star. Two others were in the room already: Director Harper, a tall, pale-skinned man with greying hair and glowing blue eyes, and another woman that Jane didn't recognize. The woman was sitting in one of the lounge chairs to the side of Director Harper's desk, facing away from the entrance, and despite the quiet sound of ventilators working overtime the smoke from the Director's and the woman's kreteks filled the room with a sweet, oily smoke.
"...of course. You have always had the entirety of the IS available to support you and I promise you that will not change," Jack said, nodding. "I believe we'll have to end our discussion there, however. My next appointment's technically begun," he said, putting out his kretek and leaning back in his well-worn office chair.
"Very well," the woman said, standing up. She shook hands with Director Harper and turned to face the door, showing a bald head and a scarred, olive-skinned face; her body was entirely covered by a long, navy-blue cassock. "Mmm. A pleasure to meet you at last, ED, Jane, KN." The woman extended a metal hand, which ED shook, and then saluted at Jane and KN. The two looked at each other before saluting back.
"Sorry, ma'am, neither of us are aware of your rank, so if our saluting is not in order, we apologize," KN said in his most diplomatic tone.
"No, no, it's quite alright," the woman said, in a deep, scratchy voice. "We've never met. Major Karen Timoshenko, SAAF Special Operations Command, Internal Affairs and Operational Security Logistics. Technically speaking I outrank you, but I see no reason to not show respect to a Pilot or Titan." She turned, tossing her kretek butt into the ashtray on Jack's desk, then bowed slightly. "I'll take my leave, then," the woman said, and as she exited the office Jane couldn't help but notice that the woman's footsteps were either inaudible or somehow silent.
"Come, come, sit," Jack said, gesturing to the lounge chairs as he stood up. "It's a pleasure to see you three in person again. Can I offer any of you a kretek?" The trio shook their heads, and he shrugged as he sat down across from the trio in the chairs next to his desk. He smiled warmly as he shook hands with Jane and KN, before pulling a kretek from the familiar metal case in his jacket, sticking it in his mouth without lighting it. "I won't keep you away from shore leave for long, I promise. Firstly, we'll be doing some long-overdue modifications to the Demeter during shore leave; I know there's been maintenance done on the ship but ever since its initial deployment - which was accelerated by nearly a year - the IS has been unable to afford an extended period of downtime for the ship and its operations. Part of that modification is going to be more room for crew, and pursuant to that IS Command has decided to expand the size of the on-board combat team." He pulled a small datastick from his coat, and passed it across the table. "IS Logistics has already identified a large number of potential recruits, mostly from within the IS. During your week of leave the two of you will select the additions to your team from the list of cleared personnel and prepare a training regiment for the new recruits."
"Director, is there a reason we're getting a larger combat team?" asked KN. "Not that I'm complaining, sir, more guns is always good- I was just wondering if we're expecting to be deployed into hotter zones."
"That's classified," Jack said, smirking, "but I am at liberty to tell you that we are expecting the Demeter to be deployed into more, how to put it, direct operations in the future. Rest assured, we're not going to be throwing the Demeter into warzones, or anything akin to that, but SAAF High Command has informed me that direct ground engagements will probably play in important role in some of our operations going forward." Jack's smiled vanished, and he leaned forward as he clasped his hands together. "You'll technically be informed in a few days, but continued negotiations with the Citadel Council have been going well for us. There's been a proposed series of joint operations between the Citadel's Spectres and the Alliance's Joint Special Operations Teams."
"But we're not part of the JSOT. Not yet," Jane said, nodding slowly.
"Exactly. Part of the overhaul will be modifying the exterior of the Demeter to be more in line with the rest of the Alliance's fleet standards. Captain ED, I'm afraid you won't have much in the way of free time during leave as I'll need you and XO Lawson to oversee the modifications and ensure you're comfortable with the layout of the ship. Helmsman Goldstein and the rest of the Helm Crew will need to prep on the modified ship, but they can begin their training once they've been briefed with the rest of the crew."
"Understood, Director," ED said, nodding. "Will XO Lawson and I not be leaving for Harmony with the rest of the crew?"
"No, you two need at least a bit of rest. Take a day or two, try and relax. Let's say, be back at IS HQ in three days unless otherwise notified. Jane, KN, you two are free to stay with the rest of the crew for the entire week - just make sure you get those selections done, preferably sooner rather than later. If anyone asks, you're clear to let them know that the Demeter's crew is expanding; Captain ED, you'll need to brief your teams before you leave Harmony. Understood?"
"Yes, Director," the three said in unison. They all got up, and Jack shook hands with all three before they began to make their way to the door. As they were about to exist the office, Jack rapped his desk. "Ah, right, before you leave, I thought you'd be interested to know that, pending review of their applications, Jane, the Demeter will be getting another Pilot-Titan pair." Jane and KN looked at each other, and high-fived after a moment as ED and Jack laughed. The Director lit his kretek, sat in his office chair surrounded by the glow of the red star, and leaned back with a smile on his face.
Thankfully, the ship that took the trio from the Intelligence Services headquarters to Harmony was built for speed and cleared as high-priority, and within a few hours they had arrived at an IS docking bay not far from Harmony. One quick shuttle ride later, they arrived planetside, docking at a private bay reserved for military use, not far from the heart of the capital megacity, Militia. After checking in with the bay's personnel, ED followed Jane and KN to the main entrance - which was empty with the exception of a few staff milling about -but did not follow them out to the taxi stand.
"Ma'am? You're not joining us?" asked KN.
"I''m not," ED said, shrugging slightly. "XO Lawson has a permanent residence in town, and she's apparently coming to pick me up in person shortly. I figured I would see you off and just wait for her here. I forgot to ask - will you be staying at the main SAAF complex?"
"No, I'll be at my mother's apartment," Jane replied. "She purchased a small unit in Daybreak a few decades ago, but as far as I know she hasn't set foot in the place since she got her commission. I haven't been there since well before I got into Pilot School, but she's been paying for it anyways."
"Ah, good, good. Well, I won't keep you two. Just keep an eye on your comms. There'll be a quick debrief session tomorrow afternoon for team leads, followed by a crew-wide one the day after."
"Ma'am," the two said, before heading outside. The taxi stand was mostly stocked with automated vehicles, although a few drivers, both human and binary, were hanging around either in our around their vehicles chatting. One of the cabbies, a short woman with long, red hair, waved the pair over as she made her way to her own vehicle.
"Oi," the woman shouted, "you two need a lift?"
"Sure," KN replied. KN and Jane walked over to the sleek aircar parked down the line and loaded their small bags into the trunk before getting into the back seat; the driver leaned back in her seat and shot the pair a grin.
"So? Where to?"
"Daybreak, 86 Jakarta Street, Horizon Towers," Jane explained as the car took off. "If I remember right you can avoid the E96 past Vancouver by moving up and over a few lanes into I30?"
"Mm, I know the place, though that shortcut's been blocked off for a while now - gotta take the main line all the way to the crossover point from Core to Daybreak. So," the driver said as the car ascended into a traffic lane and began making its way into the downtown core, "forgive my being all nosy, but you two coming back from a tour? Haven't been many people at this station today, you know. Think today me and the others only saw your ship and, say, one or two more."
"Yeah, we've been busy for a while," KN replied. "Finally got a week off - it'll be nice to relax, I think."
"Well, I hate to break it to you but none of the districts 'round the Core are gonna be relaxing, what with the alien tourists poking around. Seven hells, I'm excited about it, but I don't think you could call the atmosphere conducive for a good rest or anything."
"Eh, it'll be nice," Jane said, staring out the window at the never-ending expanse of metal dotted with greenery. "People in good spirits, maybe meet some new folks - really new - and have a good time. Sounds like a good vacation to me."
"Fucking hell, please don't jinx this," KN grumbled half-jokingly. "Last thing the cops need with all the new arrivals in town is someone starting something."
"Well they're screwed if they do," the driver said, nodding. "Security's tighter than it's ever been, long as I can remember, anyway. Community watch, regular police, military cops. Hells, I'd bet there're even some Pilots and Titans out there, hiding until it's time to kick ass."
"I think," Jane said, "that Pilot or otherwise, everyone involved with security would really rather not have to kick anyone's ass."
The rest of the ride passed by quickly, with the driver making a bit of small talk occasionally. About fifteen minutes later, the vehicle dropped from its mid-air lane and touched down on a landing pad outside of a massive apartment complex, its dull bronze towers shining slightly as the sun set. Jane and KN thanked the driver, got out, and took their bags from the trunk before making their way inside the leftmost apartment block. The interior was mostly bronze, with a few chairs arranged into a small lounge sitting opposite of a reception area, where an old, bald man with a pale complexion and dressed in a grey suit, sat at in a well-worn chair. He stood up and waved at the pair. "Jane Shepard, yes?"
"Soren," Jane said, slinging her bag over her shoulder and walking over to shake his hand over the desk, "it's good to see you."
"Ahh," Soren replied, stepping back, "it is good to see you too. Goodness, you look more like your mother every time we meet. Will you be staying for long? Last time you were barely here for a month!"
"Sorry, Soren, I'm only here for a week this time," Jane replied, shrugging. "Busy with work, as usual."
"Mmm. A noble profession, being a warrior, but one that leaves you with little time for vacations, I suppose." He waved KN over to the desk and shook hands with the binary. "Soren Mercurius."
"KN-6D1687, KN or Kenneth for short," the binary said, nodding.
"Well, well, you wouldn't happen to have passed that Pilot exam, would you?" Soren grinned, and shook his head. "Please tell me you've told your mother."
"Yeah, I did."
"Good, good, good! Anyways, I won't keep pestering you with questions that I'm sure I'm not cleared to know the answers to. I'm sure you've got to get to work having a day off for once," he said, chuckling. "Ah, one moment," he said, passing a cable out of his desk to KN. "Registering yourself as a resident in case you'd like to head out and I'm not here." He waited as KN plugged the cable into his hand, and placed it back on his desk a second later. "Okay, wonderful. Head on up- we've cleaned the place every few months, but otherwise it's exactly as you've left it."
The pair walked over to one of the many elevators beyond the foyer, and waited as a small scanner built into the keypad on the will flickered. A few moments later, a light on the keypad flashed green and changed its display to a list of floors; Jane tapped the button for floor 92 and less than a minute later the doors opened into a hallway styled similarily to the lobby. Jane walked over to a door to the right of the elevators, placed her hand on the door's keypad, waited for the keyhole scanner to finish its work and frowned as the keypad flashed red. "This unit has not been used for an extended period of time. Please present your key, or wait for the security staff to verify the situation."
"Want me to go back and tell Soren?" asked KN.
"Nah, hold on," Jane said, moving her bag around to her front and opening it. "I've got this thing somewhere in here. Thought I wouldn't need it, this security thing is new. Gimme a second." KN watched as Jane rummaged around inside the bag for a minute or so before pulling a small keystick out. "There we go," she said, inserting it into the slot in the keypad.
"Thank you for your patience," the synthesized voice said, as the doors opened. As the pair crossed past the door, shutters opened to let in light, illuminating a sleek, if somewhat sparsely furnished living room with only a small, green sofa and a few chairs in front of a holo terminal, as well as a small kitchen beyond. Jane let out a small whoop, kicked off her shoes and ran off around the corner, her bag in tow, and seconds later KN found Jane rolling around on a bed covered in a faded blanket and several plush dog and cat toys. She stopped rolling on the blanket and glared at KN.
"Don't judge me. And not a word to anyone, especially Miranda."
After unpacking what little she had in the way of luggage and stowing her personal weapons in a small locker next to the bed, Jane had a hot shower and changed into a pair of fatigues she'd had since boot camp which now served as sleepwear, and made sure to sort the most treasured of her animal toys - Francesca, Mr. Cat, Benson and Countess Floop - in their proper positions by the bed's pillow before returning to the living room. KN was sprawled out on the couch, his Light Assault rig carefully placed in a small pile in the far corner of the room, and a charging cable snaked out of his back and into a small port on the side table next to the couch. The holoscreen was showing a hammerball game, and Jane raised an eyebrow as she made her way into the kitchen. "I didn't know you liked hammerball," she said.
She watched as KN jerked upright, looking around. "Huh? What? Oh, I wasn't watching the game, was just doing some diagnostics, checking the tacnet and whatnot. Last time I was paying attention Optimum Drive was on." KN mimed giving his head a shake, and cocked his head as Jane opened the fridge. "You can't be serious. Augs or not, are you really gonna eat something you've left for, like, upwards of two years?"
"What? No, I'm just looking," Jane said, poking around the empty fridge. "I wouldn't have left anything, and besides, even if I did, the cleaners would have gotten it."
"Why're you looking if you know nothing is in there?"
"It's an human thing. Sometimes you just have to look," Jane replied, shutting the fridge door and opening the freezer. She sighed, shut the freezer, and frowned as KN sat up suddenly. "What's up?"
"Comm went off? Hold up," he said, his face-lights shifting from green to red. "Yes, KN speakin- oh, what? Yeah! Hold on, hold on." He motioned for Jane to come over, and pulled a small communications cable out from his arm, which Jane took as she leaned over the back of the couch and plugged it into her neck port. A small icon lit up in her HUD, displaying a speakerphone with the words 'Secure Tactical Network Transmission' underneath. "Go ahead," KN said, "Jane's jacked in."
"You took time off from being a spy and you didn't even let me know?" The voice was female, bright and upbeat. "I thought we were friends!"
"Lee! How've you been? I didn't know you were off-duty. Actually, wait, how did you know?"
"By accident, to be honest. One of the people you work with, AN-2E006A? Amina? She wouldn't explain more than that, said it was classified. Anyways, yeah, she's related somehow to Sucy, one of our Pilots. She mentioned that she'd been working with the IS for only a short while and I figured I'd ask if she knew you, and she did!"
"Huh. Small galaxy, I suppose," Jane said. "Well, I was kind of hoping for a relaxing evening since this is basically the first real night off I've had in months, and no offense, I feel like a night out with you and GB is going to be anything but relaxing. How long are you on Harmony for?"
"Well, most of the cadre's staying planetside for at least a few more days. Finished a bunch of operations and our bosses have to meet up with High Command for some reason, so we're stuck here for a bit. Tell you what, you stay in, and how about we meet up tomorrow?"
"We've got a debrief tomorrow afternoon," KN replied, "but we're free otherwise. How about in the evening? Does that work?"
"Yup, sounds good. GB'll be there, and you can meet some of the other Pilots from the Riflemen while you're at it. Alright, go get some rest or whatever and I'll see you tomorrow!"
Jane said goodbye, unplugged KN's comm cable from her neck and let it snake back into his chassis before turning to him. "Busy day tomorrow?"
"Speak for yourself," KN said, getting up to stretch an arm before miming checking a watch. "It's 2300. I'm powering down at 0100 and if you wake me up before 1100 tomorrow there'd better be a good reason," he grumbled, before flopping back into the couch.
"Sleeping in? Really?"
"Hey, just because I don't need to sleep, doesn't mean I don't appreciate it."
"I suppose. Well, I'm probably gonna head down to the 7-11 to grab some supplies, wanna come with?"
KN stared at the couch in a manner Jane could only describe as forlornly, then let out a long sigh. "Oh, fine, I'll get up out of this comfy sofa that I just sat down in and tag along. Really, though, this is a real nice couch," he said as he got up.
"Mom bought it, like, a year after I was born. Old couch here has served the Shepard family well," Jane said, patting the couch affectionately. "Many good after-school naps were had here. Gimme a sec to get changed - you can head downstairs if you want." KN nodded, first heading to the small pile of combat rigging to attach a light armour-plate and his sidearm module to his chassis before heading to the front door; he grabbed a small beret he'd left on the coat hook and put it on before heading out the door. Jane walked back into the bedroom and had just stripped out of her fatigues when her comm blared in her internal speakers and flahsed urgently on her HUD.
Urgent Tactical Network Update to all Pilots. Priority Channel Pilot-Two. Message to follow.
"This is Regeneration 98 - Generation 560 Pilot Jon Grissom, Charon Cadre. All Pilots and Titans on Harmony able to arrive at the Central HDFB in Core in ten minutes or less, report to base immediately pending permission of your Cadre leaders. We have a situation and require QRF units to intercept possible Cerberus agents incoming from multiple locations. Do your best to get here covertly. I say again, this is R98-G560 Pilot Jon Grissom, Charon Cadre..."
Jane looked at the plush toys on her bed and the pajamas she'd thrown on her dresser, then at her Pilot Suit that lay sealed in its protective casing in her closet; KN burst back into the apartment seconds later. "Jane! We gotta move!"
Jane sighed, unsealed her Pilot Suit and began putting it on. "One day," she grumbled, "I'll have a night off." Moments later, she finished sealing herself ino the suit, plugged her jump kit into her waist and felt the telltale sensation of water pouring into her skull as the suit interfaced with her body.
Pilot Suit IS Type online. Initiating systems check. Ark battery charged and ready. Primary suit functions active. Ark Shielding online. Reactive armour plates online. Munitions tracking online. Medical systems engaged. Grapple function ready. Phase ready. Cloak ready. Chronotech systems ready. Classified suit functions on standby. Jump Kit charge at 100%. OS Version: Intelligence Services Combat Type v.9.3. Good hunting, Pilot.
Jane grabbed her weapons out of the locker next to her bed and began filling her rig with magazines. Smart Pistol -R Semi-Automatic Rail Handgun w/ Smart Targeting. Alternator Anima Double-barreled Select-Fire Rail PDW w/ Adjustable ROF. She ran out into the living room, where KN was attaching the last of his Light Assault Rig, and the pair gave their equipment their usual check before opening a line to Captain ED, who picked up a few moments later.
"Jane? KN? What's going on?"
"You didn't get the message, ma'am?" asked KN.
"What me- hold on, yes, I'm getting a message now, one moment." There was a second or two of silence before her voice came back, cold and deadly. "Do whatever you need to do. We do NOT need Cerberus ruining our work with the Citadel."
"Thank you, ma'am." Jane popped open the living room window and pulled up a map on her HUD. "Fastest way to Central is a straight line, KN," she said, pointing in the direction of a large skyscraper. "Ready?"
"Always up to kill me some Cerbs," KN said grimly. "Let's go."
The pair took several steps back, sprinted at top speed towards opening at top speed and fired themselves out of the building, their cloaks making them invisible as they flew into the night sky.
The pair swung past buildings and weaved through traffic, their presence almost entirely unnoticed by the crowds of civilians they flew over and past; the only person who came close to noticing anything out of the ordinary was a man working late in an office building who happened to be taking a break outside, and even he only noticed the quiet 'thunk' of their grappling hooks briefly attaching to the underside of the balcony. Within minutes they left the Daybreak neighbourhood and were in the Core, and at the ten minute mark were on the roof of a small take-out restaurant next to Harmony Defence Force Base Central. The base's front gates were locked down, and Jane noticed a few other pairs of Titans and Pilots flying past the base's perimeter and uncloaking as they landed on the roofs of barracks and other buildings. KN nodded at Jane, and the two followed suit, landing on the roof of a garage next to the base's motor pool. As soon as they uncloaked, another Pilot jumped up from ground and landed next to the pair. "Briefing's already started," the woman said, gesturing to the main building. "Hatch on the roof, head right, third door on the left. Get moving, I gotta check for other stragglers." The pair followed her instructions as the other Pilot jumped onto the next building over, scaled the building and quickly made their way inside. The room they landed in was guarded by several heavily-armed binary soldiers who waved them over to the side and scanned them before letting them leave the room. A minute later, Jane and KN found the briefing room, whose door was sealed and guarded by three more Pilots. They simply nodded at the pair, unlocked the door and led them inside.
A quick scan of the room revealed about four dozen Pilots or Titans either sitting on the floor or standing, and as her HUD displayed their names she noticed the group was composed almost entirely of Pilots and Titans she didn't know. She ended up sitting next to Lee and GB, who she found near the middle of the room, and looked at the front of the room. She did recognize the three standing at the front of the room: Pilot Jon Grissom and his Titan partner SN-001EE1, Susan. Standing next to them was Major Karen Timoshenko, still dressed in the same blue cossack she'd been wearing when they'd first met. Susan rapped the lectern near the front of the room and waited for the quiet muttering to stop. "I'll skip the icebreakers today. I'm SN, this is Pilot Grissom. You've probably heard of us. Half an hour ago, we received intel from Major Karen Timoshenko here. I'll let her explain."
"Thank you, SN. To start," Karen said as she stepped forward, "I'm from SAAF Special Operations Command, Internal Affairs and Operational Security Logistics. Earlier today one of our operators noticed that a shipment of equipment bound for storage here in Core had an error regarding one of its containers briefly. The logs showed, just for a moment - we're talking just over a microsecond - that the container in question displayed its weight as zero before switching back to normal. The operator figured it was a software glitch, and kicked it up the chain. About three hours ago, we got confirmation that no less than ninety such errors have occurred over the past twenty-four hours. We investigated and found that while most of the equipment in question was delivered, two large containers are still unaccounted for. The manifests were altered to state that there were never any containers on there prior to their arrival at the offload points, and our current log says they've been delivered; the bases waiting for the containers say they recieved a call from the delivery trucks claiming they'd be late due to a shipping error. The few traces left during their hack is consistent with previous evidence or Cerberus activities; I don't know how they altered our records, but that's something for another time. Thanks to time dilation, satellite surveillance and a bit of luck we managed to locate the two containers." Karen nodded at Jon, who pressed a button on the lectern and watched as a map of Militia appeared near the front of the room. The map shifted and an icon lit up displaying a live feed, showing two massive unmarked air transports sitting in traffic just beyond the Spire district. "The trucks are currently making their way towards downtown Core from Spire, and at their current rate they'll be in Core in about two hours."
"Priority one is protecting the civilians, especially the diplomats and VIPs the Citadel sent. If anything happens to those aliens we are in unbelievable shit. Priority two is limiting collateral- those transports were mostly carrying small-arms munitions, but those containers are big enough to fit at least three or four Titans or equivalent in land vehicles, technicals, you name it. Last thing we need is some suicide truck going off near a crowd, let alone one of you guys firing off a bunch of autocannons and slushing a bunch of civs," Jon said, scowling. "Priority three is capturing these assholes alive. If you can, do it - fuck knows we need to figure how they pulled this off, and I'd love to hear it from their mouths. If not, that's fine. Don't go getting killed trying to bag one.
"Police ETF are gearing up to intercept those trucks right now - I want at least four of you on each truck for intercept duty. Rest of us are split between forming a defensive perimeter by Core, and protecting the buildings housing the alien civilians. Armoury on-base is open - you take anything you need. Questions?"
"Yeah," one of the Titans in the room said, raising a hand. "If the doggos do have tanks, strikers, whatever, are we cleared for Titanfall? I know we can all take out enemy vehicles on foot but it'd help."
"Depends on the drop point. SN's managed to get clearance for drops in any open, large spaces. Frankly if you need to, request a drop anywhere you want and I'll handle the fallout. Just try not to squish any civvies or destroy any buildings, please. As for chassis and loadouts, I know most of you aren't going to have access to your personal kits, but the on-site titan pool has a good selection. Any more questions?" He scanned the room, and grunted. "Alright. Armoury is in the basement, titan pool is next door. Gear up, ready your titan-chassis ready and start grouping up. Clear?"
"Yes, Pilot!" the room shouted back.
"Fastest way down is back out the hatch," SN said. "Let's move."
About two minutes later, the soldiers guarding the base's armoury jumped to attention as a crowd of Pilots and Titans entered the corridor they were manning. "Pilots, Titans, it's an honour to serve you," one of them said, saluting. "The doors are open and you can take whatever you need. Don't worry about signing anything out - we'll take care of it!"
Jon simply nodded, and clapped the soldier on the arm as he walked by. "Thank you. We appreciate it." The others followed him into the armoury proper, and immediately began unlocking various racks and pulling open shelves full of weaponry. KN picked up a shotgun and explosives module as well as a booster pack for his jump kit before carrying it over to a fitting station, while Jane topped up on magazines for her Alternator before selecting a long, thin weapon and opening an attached case full of small cylinders.
HPP41 Multiple Munitions Projector. Payloads: Shard Airburst, Gravity Penetrator, Firespray. Arc Chain-Mines. Electronic Countermeasure Explosives.
Satisfied with her choices, she made her way over to KN and waited for him to exit the station before the pair checked each other's gear. The two then made their way to the titan pool through a secure hatch; engineers were swarming over the rows of titan chassis, performing pre-launch checks and driving carts laden with towering weapon racks to each chassis before installing them into a slot in each bay. Jane and KN took off at a jog towards an empty Vanguard chassis, and as they neared the hangar bay Jane could see Lee and GB (both clad in heavier armour than she or KN were wearing) approaching a Bishamon. The engineer on duty waved at them as they approached, and pointed at the weapon rack which was now installed and powering up. "Hey," the binary shouted, "you two want this one?"
"Yeah," KN shouted as they arrived at the bay. "We good to make last-minute adjustments?"
"Go ahead - sync up at the rear maintenance terminal. I know you Pilots don't like working with stock gear but it's the best we can do. Guntower's online, too - selection's the finest you'll find in the galaxy. You guys need anything, just shout."
KN nodded at Jane and jogged to the rear of the cradle which housed the towering chassis and plugged himself into a small terminal jutting out of the cradle's structure, while Jane deftly clambered up the titan and slid into its open cockpit. Before she'd even fully sat down Jane was several steps into the initial startup procedure, flipping switches and deactivating manual safety catches by reflex. Less than a minute later, the work was done and Jane slapped a glowing blue button on the side of the cockpit before plugging the maintenance cable behind the headrest into one of her neck ports to begin equipping the chassis with weapons.
Manual Neural Link Established. R1 Pilot - G1 Titan KN-6D1687. Begin armament procedure. Armament set "Urb-Pac" engaged. Vindicaator II 70mm Autocannon: Online. Shells loaded: Urban ZeroCol Sledgehammer, Urban ZeroCol Gravity Well. Incisor Dual Shoulder-Mounted Laser Projectors. Shot-Gauntlets. Vortex Shield: Online. Phasic Core: Online.
"Guns up!" Jane shouted as she jumped back out of the cockpit; already, the weapon tower had encircled the hardpoints of the chassis and was mounting weapons onto the massive machine.
"Good here too," KN added, unplugging himself from the terminal.
"Alright, get up to the staging point outside," the engineer said. "I'll take it from here."
The pair both nodded at the engineer and rushed towards the titan pool's main gate, which was only now beginning to open; Jane was proud to note that she and KN were among the first dozen to finish gearing up. Outside, Jon and SN were already waiting, both kneeling on the ground with their shotguns placed in front of them. The other Pilots and Titans joined the group, and Jon began to speak via helmet comms as dropships began landing on top of the motor pool. "Listen up! We've got one-thirty until our interlopers show up at Core. Your titan chassis are being loaded now and will be ready for titanfall in ten - so get it together and get ready to move. I need at least eight of you to head out and move to assist the ETF officers. They're planning on doing the intercepts once the transports cross Vancouver and Lagos - big intersection, lots of room for civs to land, good fields of fire for us. Second group, secondary interception, spread between Freeport and Tidal - if anyone breaks past line one, you need to move fast and kill faster. Last team, spread between Militia and Main. Right now, every alien tourist, diplomat and VIP we can find is being escorted back to safe locations either in the residences or in the nearest bunker. Until we're one hundred percent sure all the aliens are in secure locations or all the terrorists are dead or capped, nobody gets past you. Clear?"
"Clear," the group responded.
"Good. I was contacted - personally - by Director Norris of the HDF. We have full satscan access, automated defenses, you name it. Don't hesitate to make use of anything - or anyone - you think you can use." Jon nodded at SN, who blinked her lights before speaking.
"Before we squad up," SN continued. "How many of you are R5 - G5 or below?" Jane, KN, and a handful of others raised their hands, and SN nodded. "We're not leaving anything to chance. You guys make sure you're in a group with with someone above your gen, okay? Not an insult, we just can't take chances today. Questions?"
Nobody said anything.
"Alright. Let's move. Remember, clean kills, good kills, everyone goes home. Good hunting."
GB - who, up close, cut a much bulkier and imposing figure than KN - and Lee both walked over to Jane and KN. "So," GB said, shaking her head. "Not quite the reunion I was expecting, but so it goes." The four briefly hugged before another Pilot and Titan stepped forward. "Our bosses," GB said, stepping aside. The Pilot wore the red-brown colours of Cooper's Riflemen, similar to Lee, while the Titan accompanying her was at least a head taller than Jane and even slimmer than KN in his Light Assault Rig.
"R12-G110 Pilot Sucy Lastimosa and R6-G110 Titan JP-X009E1, Joe," the woman said, shaking hands with Jane and KN. "Lee and GB speak highly of you."
"Means a lot coming from you, ma'am," KN said.
"We'll be part of the third line," Joe simply stated. "Any objections?"
"None," Jane replied.
The group that ended up holding the last defensive line consisted of about two dozen Pilots and Titans; almost all of them were from the Riflemen Cadre, and as the highest Generation Pilot and Titan, Sucy and Joe ended up taking informal command of the group. They reached the intersection of Militia and Main, smack dab in the centre of the downtown core, with nearly an hour to spare. They regrouped on the top of a shared-office skyscraper and immediately began setting up fields of fire and running through rollouts and shortcuts while the civilians below were evacuated and air traffic was rerouted.
"Pilot QRF force, this is HDF Operator Overseer," a woman's voice said via comms shortly after the group had arrived. "We've got all available sat-scanners on dilation duty to track the trucks and any passengers or mechanized units they have on board and will keep you updated. ETA to final line at current speed is 55 minutes. Primary line interception, 30 minutes."
"Understood," Sucy said, before turning to the rest of the group. "OfficeLink here is our staging area. From here we can roll out easily thanks to our height advantage - we stay here, track Cerberus movement and move to intercept if they change course. I'd guess that their primary target is the Diplomatic Corps HQ down on MacAllan and Liberty - if they make it past the first line we need to be ready to pull a fighting retreat back there. When they get close, we split into groups of four; priority one is killing them and priority two is pushing them away from here. Surround, harass, kill. Questions?" Nobody said anything, and Sucy simply nodded. "Good. Check gear, go over sightlines, layouts, whatever prep work you think you need."
Jane and KN joined Lee and GB, and the four began checking each other's gear; they made no small talk and instead waited in silence as their HUDs showed the two stolen trucks nearing the first interception point. From the camera feed, Jane watched as a swarm of police vehicles surrounded the two trucks mid-air and the assembled Pilots and Titans watched as makeshift firing ports slid open on the side of the left truck, unleashing a torrent of lasers and explosives at the police cars. Most managed to dodge the barrage entirely or escape with minor damage, but nine of the cop cars were unable to move in time and were sent to the ground in pieces. Seconds later, the truck on the right opened fire as well, and the police vehicles began retreating as automated turrets and previously-unseen Pilots and Titans hiding on or in nearby buildings began firing at the trucks. Their cover broken, the trucks rammed their way out of traffic and began flying a full speed towards downtwon Core; they managed to clear the intersection, but not before several Pilots and Titans managed to latch onto the trucks with grappling hooks while the rest followed as fast as possible, using jump-kit assisted grapples to fling themselves after the trucks at well over a hundred kilometres per hour. The Pilots and Titans who had managed to attach themselves to the trucks were now busy reeling themselves in, using their jump kits to avoid the fire aimed at them from the truck's guns. Once in range, they began throwing a variety of projectiles at the truck; Jane could see breaching charges, pulse blades and sticky grenades being thrown at the truck in addition to the heavy weapons fire supporting them. Most of the projectiles were shot down or deflected by what appeared to be a low-powered shield, but a few managed to slip past the vehicles' defenses.
"This is Oni, QRF, first line," shouted a Titan over comms. "Got a pulse blade online, sending info now!"
Jane's HUD flickered as one of the trucks switched to a see-through view.
The interior of the truck contained no vehicles; rather, it was crammed full of soldiers - a mix of binary and human - all wearing jump kits.
"Fuck," Lee said.
"Shit, looks like enemy Pilots," Oni said. "They got my hook - pulling back!" The first line's troops continued to exchange fire with the trucks, focusing their fire on the one closer to them; someone managed to fire a shot that pierced through the reinforced armourplate of the truck, wounding several of the hostile soldiers inside and damaging its engine. Less than a second later the truck's rear cab exploded in a shower of metal as the vehicle seemingly ejected the container it was carrying while simultaneously detaching the container's roof and walls, and Jane could only grit her teeth as a horde of Cerberus Pilots, their orange insignia now clearly visible on their armour, ejected themselves from the now-crashing truck and split into two groups. One group flew directly into the Pilots and Titans chasing them as the lanes normally reserved for traffic devolved into a brutal mid-air skirmish, with Alliance and Cerberus soldiers flinging themselves in, off, and around buildings while barrages of railgun fire smashed through office building windows and ripped apart cars parked on landing pads. The other group simply ignored the first line and continued, either by flying or by hitching a ride on the second truck — whose contents remained unknown — which was now barreling towards the second line.
"This is line one," shouted a Pilot, "we couldn't grab 'em all!"
"That's fine, just keep them busy! Line two! Multiple hostile enemy Pilots inbound as well as an enemy transport!" shouted Jon. "Visual on the truck - light'em up!" Even without the camera feeds, Jane could see the flashes of gunfire erupting not too far away from her current position and the booming sounds of railguns and autoturrets filled the night. Moments later, there was a massive explosion as the second truck went down, and from a traffic feed Jane could see that, like the first truck, the second was full of even more Pilots. "Shit, they're trying to pull the same trick," Jon said over comms. "We're going to try and kill as many as we can but it's not gonna be all of 'em - contact! Third line get ready! Come on!" Like the first line, the second group of Pilots and Titans began engaging the Cerberus soldiers both in and outside the buildings surrounding them, and though she was sorely tempted to watch Jon and SN's camera feeds in action she began checking her gear again and preparing herself for an actual fight.
"Well, this is it," KN said, sighing. "First time in, well, ever that we get to fight other Pilots and Titans. You ready?"
"Fuck yeah I'm ready," Lee said, readying her rifle. "Gets boring stomping all over grunts sometimes."
"Really? I always recall you enjoying it," Jane replied as she stretched her neck. "Something about being all-powerful?"
"Don't encourage her," GB said, snorting. "She's bad enough as is, y-"
"-cut that chatter!" Joe shouted. "Riflemen and others! Our job is simple: put those Cerb fuckers in the ground! Clear?"
"Clear!"
Sucy beat her chest rig with her free hand. "Riflemen! Protocol!"
Jane, KN and the two others not in the cadre simply watched as the others followed Sucy's lead. "Link to partner! Uphold the mission! Protect my partner!"
"Riflemen! Guns up!"
Jane grinned at KN, who flashed a red light back. "Guns up!"
"Pilot QRF Line 3, this is Overseer. Transferring wallhack and scan ranges to your suits. Contact in sixty. Good luck."
"Understood," Sucy said, as she and Joe assumed a ready position by the edge of the rooftop. "Half of us with me - we'll intercept. Everyone else, hold and engage any that make it past us." Sucy nodded, and she fired herself off the roof as the others followed.
Jane watched as her HUD lit up with the outlines of no less than sixty Cerberus soldiers coming into contact with Sucy's group; at least half were tied up fighting the interception group, which still left exactly thirty hostiles closing in, fast. "Lee! Aerials!" Lee simply nodded, and took the ready position. The second the Cerberus soldiers cleared the roof of the building directly in front of them and began to descend upon them, Jane, Lee and the others fired a barrage of gravity stars in a spread above and behind the incoming hostiles before activating their shoulder-mounted vortex shields and firing themselves directly at Cerberus soldiers. Her vortex shield flared as it began to catch incoming railgun rounds and deflected several grapple shots; Jane twisted her body as she neared one of the Cerberus Pilots, firing her jump kit to slingshot herself around a gravity star's field, underneath and behind the Pilot attempting to grapple her mid-air. Now behind the attacker, Jane fired her kit again and fired her grapple into the Cerberus Pilot's jump kit. A split-second after the grapple indicator lit up on her HUD, Jane accelerated past the Cerberus soldier towards the OfficeLink building, smashing through a window feet- first, landing in a boost-slide. "Ledge and tap," she said via comm to KN as she landed.
The Cerberus Pilot, still frantically attempting to dislodge the grapple line lodged in his kit, was pulled towards the open window and was angling himself for a slide landing like Jane's when KN boosted straight down into him, smashing the Pilot directly onto the corner of the open ledge. There was a loud crunching noise as the enemy Pilot's legs folded in, and before he could recover Jane retracted her grapple, pulling the Cerberus soldier towards her into the office in an arc; as he passed over her, Jane grappled him again, and as the Cerberus Pilot arced towards the floor she boosted up, slapped his hand out of the way and punched the barrel of her Alternator into his neck. Slamming the Pilot into the ground, she set the PDW at 1800 rounds per minute and emptied half the magazine into his neck and towards his skull. Two more Cerberus Pilots landed into the office building and began firing at Jane before she could recover; her shields were tagged, but she managed to flee towards an emergency stairwell and boosted a kick through the doorway.
"Up," shouted Lee, "and I'll assist!"
Jane jumped into the middle of the stairwell and grappled up towards the roof exit as the two enemy Pilots followed. Both followed her and attempted to grapple up towards the roof as well; she managed to turn her body towards them, unclipped two chains of arc mines and flung it down the stairwell. One of the grapples caught the chain and the enemy Pilot failed to disengage in time as his grapple retracted the chain of mines directly into his face, but the other Pilot simply boosted out of the way and fired his grapple again. Jane barely had time to activate her shield before the enemy Pilot began firing sprays of shotgun shards towards her, and as she cleared the stairwell and boosted back out onto the roof several shard blasts cut straight through the ceiling of the stairwell. Now on the roof again, Jane clamped her Alternator on her chest rig, unholstered her Rampwinder, loaded Gravity-Penetrators and fired a salvo towards the open door she had come through.
The enemy Pilot boost-slid underneath the barrage, but recovered into a sprint too quickly; one of the shells popped his shields, and the second hit him directly in the right arm, first rendering it useless as it flopped backwards, knocking the shotgun the Pilot was carrying away before bending at a ninety degree angle as the gravity warp activated and caused the arm to implode in a spurting spray of gore. The Cerberus Pilot's suit simply sealed the wound and the soldier continued his sprint as if nothing was wrong, and Jane fired herself at him, firing her Alternator as she holstered her heavy weapon; the Cerberus Pilot activated his vortex, catching the PDW rounds and drawing a Wingman rail-revolver with his left. Now in melee range, Jane launched a boosted kick at his groin, simultaneously punching away an attempted point-blank shot from the revolver; the enemy Pilot boosted backwards, only to be tackled from above by Lee, who landed knees-first into his head and slammed a flameblade into his visor before drawing a shotgun and unloading several rounds into the Pilot's skull.
"Hey, Jane."
"Hey, Lee," Jane said, reloading her Alternator and giving Lee a thumbs up.
"No love for ol' KN here, ladies?" KN exited the stairwall Jane had used, dragging the limp body of a Cerberus Pilot with him; the body was missing both legs, each blasted off at the kneecaps, and one of its hands was missing. "Bagged one alive, somehow." He paused to scan the horizon; Sucy's group had managed even better, and there were now only thirty Cerberus Pilots scattered throughout the area. "Come on, let's mop the rest up."
Jane and KN were about to take off again, when her comms lit up with a priority message.
"This is Overseer, we have a ton of Cerberus contacts just outside the orbital defense perimeter! We're shooting them down as fast as we can but - oh, fuck! They're jumping!"
Jane watched, eyes narrowed, as the sky lit up with the glow of incoming FTL; a dozen or so Cerberus-branded shuttles, many of them little more than flaming wrecks, burst out of the tears and began screaming towards the ground. Jane scowled and was about to make a smart remark when she noticed the objects falling from the flaming wrecks.
They were pods.
"Oh, for fuck's sake," Lee said.
"This is Jon! We've got hostile dropships with hostile Titans! Third line, you've got at least a two, no, three dozen enemy Titans landing in your area! Susan, come on!"
"On it," Sucy said. "Group two, kill those Titans. We'll mop up the stragglers."
"Ma'am," Lee said. "Let's move!" The group watched as the pods in the air above them burst open and flashed purple-white; the tell-tale screeching noise of warp-dropped Titans slamming into the ground in the streets below echoed moments later. The group's HUD lit up and Jane swore as several of the Titans began sprinting towards a series of bunkers well into the area the group was supposed to be protecting. Jane, KN and the others took off at full speed towards the crowd of Titans which were now engaging automated turrets in the streets.
"Overseer! Need Titans for our group at the corner of Nexus and MacAllan," Jane shouted as they closed in on the enemy mechs.
"Understood, Pilot. Stand by for Titanfall."
The sky lit up once again, and the intersection where the Cerberus mechs stood exploded into a shower of metal and asphalt as GB's Bishamon, KN's Vanguard and three other friendly Titan chassis teleported into the street. The Cerberus machines wasted no time engaging; Jane and KN flew through the hailstorm of fire, an as KN hooked his infantry body into the rear cradle mounted on the Vanguard's underbelly, Jane slid into the open cockpit. Her HUD lit up as KN transferred into the chassis proper.
"We are outnumbered six to one," KN said, as Jane's vision was replaced by that of the Vanguard's. "Target-rich environment," he said, gleefully.
"Good," Jane said, as they activated the Vindicator auto-railcannon, loading it with a fresh rack of shells. "I like it that way."