The sound of a fist being slammed against something solid reached Vigo's ears as he approached Alex Wesker's office. He knew that she'd just received word about the duel between the Ronin CQC-140 and Rico.
"May I speak freely, ma'am?" Vigo asked as he entered to find her seething with the knuckle of her index finger pressed against her lips. "I think that due to the fact the Ronin was still being transported to the intended battleground at the Nightfall's main shipyard is a strong indicator that the Family might have gotten ahold of intel about it that we didn't expect them to. And, on a side note, the evidence that would've lead them to Tselinoyarsk wasn't finished being prepared either. I'm afraid that we're simply down a mech, a giant sword, and about a hundred and thirty soldiers, give or take."
"You think one of our own was intercepted?" Alex asked through gritted teeth behind her knuckle.
"No, I don't." Vigo shook his head. "I think we need another method to lure them into range of the Ogre, is all."
"I'll try to come up with something. In the meantime, send word to my brother that I need him back here immediately."
"Of course, I'll send word right now." Vigo nodded before turning to leave the office, pulling out his phone and calling the necessary people to pass along the summons to Albert Wesker.
"Right, now that the big guy's got his big knife, I say we assemble a strike force to carry out the assault on their base in Tselinoyarsk." Tobias tapped at Russia on a world map that was spread out over the top of the coffee table in the Darkwood house. "Due to the nature of the Ogre, the ship's going to be in live combat, and a ground force is going to be necessary to handle any sort of anti aircraft defenses or other mechs they might have. We've only got Rico, and even I know that being outnumbered in a mech fight isn't something you want to find yourself in, Sheva."
"Well, that's also not counting the fact that the Ogre's even bigger than Rico, and it's got a gun stuck to it that could take on the Nightfall with more than a mere chance of success." Yuuki pointed out at the hologram projector showing the huge mech with the shoulder cannon she was talking about.
"Remember how I said the Nightfall has some surprises in it?" Valentine glanced over at his oldest sister with a smirk. "Not all of them will seem that obvious at first glance. Especially since that's what some of them are designed for."
"Like what?" Yuuki wasn't kidding around with her question. "No, seriously, name at least one of these surprises."
"Magnetic shielding around the entire ship. Repels incoming metal objects, y'know... like bullets. Big or small."
"Then how can Rico stay on the deck without being sent flying?"
"His Magno-Core cancels out the shield's repulsion on himself, and he's not moving at a high enough velocity to even trigger the effects in the first place."
"Alright, so we can divert incoming fire. What about the knockoff ships? Don't they have the same railguns as the Nightfall?"
"Seras and Alucard both confirmed that they're all still using the old 315mm cannons. The only ship with any railguns is the Warhammer, and it's packing twelve of them, all single barreled, and located in the middle of the main cannon batteries on the main deck and around the superstructure, which are, again, the 315mm's."
"Why the fuck are they still using the old guns when you clearly replaced them with railguns months ago?!" Rachael asked in confusion. "Discounting that flying compensation she's waving around like it's her own cock!"
"I had official government backing to build these ones in general. My knowledge of engineering and direct control of magnetism also meant mine were constructed much faster than expected. The Syndicate would need to recruit the proper crews and gather the resources, as well as perform live-fire testing to ensure that it'd perform properly. In other words, they're not me, and have to deal with tried-and-true methods which means they are using the big bullets while I'm firing soda cans at Mach 8 velocity."
"Soda cans?" Tobias raised both eyebrows in disbelief. "You mean a sixteen ounce aluminum can full of soda? Like the one Sheva's drinking right now?"
"Yup." Valentine nodded once. "I did several tests, and found that Mountain Dew somehow performed much better than the other brands I've tested."
"Please tell me you're joking..."
"No. I'm not." Valentine shook his head. "Because the thing you're all missing is the fact that the Nightfall flies! And it sails in the ocean too! So that means I have to also consider the weight of the projectile, as well as the total storage capacity of the ship itself. A sixteen ounce projectile, times eighteen railguns, that's already 288 ounces just for one shot for each gun. Those 315mm shells weigh twenty eight pounds. Each. That's now just over... five hundred and four pounds, give or take my math being off. And that's not covering the financial differences either. A case of twenty four cans of soda is about five to ten dollars, I forget off the top of my head. One shell is easily over that price, let alone the fact there's 18 railguns to be loaded, so again, Mountain Dew performed the best out of the brands of soda I chose to test, and therefore that is what we're shooting out of the railguns. All the other munitions are proper military ordnance, with Quinque Steel warheads and bullets, of course."
"I have no words for this..." Yuuki held up her hands in defeat. "Congrats Val, I asked for one surprise, you gave us two!"
"Trust me... There's a lot more surprises that nobody's even seen yet. I made sure of that fact." Valentine grinned knowingly, since nobody knew it, but he'd personally hunted down and killed the council of leaders he'd hired to oversee and consult the development of each portion of the Nightfall, including developing Rico and the railguns themselves. Only he had the knowledge of his ship and her full capabilities.
"I know that tone." Sheva narrowed her eyes at him suspiciously. "What did you do, and who did you do it to?"
"The supervisors that oversaw each major segment of the Nightfall's construction, including Rico's development. I made sure that none of them could let slip any intel about the ship that shouldn't be known to the public. Yes, I did the thing to them."
"The Dalton thing?"
"The Dalton thing."
"How many of them were there?"
"Eleven in total."
"So what's the plan for Tselinoyarsk?" Rachael asked. "If I know my geography correctly, the region's mostly a jungle near a mountain range."
"Rico's just confirmed that, yeah." Sheva reported from what Rico just said in her DNI. "He says the base is an old factory complex from the sixties, he's using Big J to run direct recon over the GPS co-ordinates of the base."
"From the sixties? So it's from the Cold War, huh?" Tobias stroked his lip with his thumb thoughtfully. "No doubt it's... oh fucking hell." He grimaced before letting out a huge sigh. "Rico, access recon data from BSAA Operation: T-ALOS. Verify GPS co-ordinates of both bases."
Sheva gave a thumbs up to let him know Rico was checking the data. After several seconds of quiet from Rico, he suddenly hummed in thought.
"The layout and overall design of the two bases are 98% matched, but the GPS co-ordinates from Operation: T-ALOS are located in the Arctic whilst the Ogre base are far to the south." Rico explained, which Sheva repeated back for Tobias.
"That means... What?" Yuuki and Rachael shared a glance and shrugged, but Rize and Tobias sighed loudly.
"Tselinoyarsk is an old Umbrella base." Valentine revealed with a scowl. "So that's a big fat nyet for the ground force you were planning Dad... But that just means I can reveal one of the Nightfall's surprises when we get there."
"I'll get is cleared for an official mission, to use it as a smokescreen, make it seem like we've discovered an old Umbrella facility in the region... Which is technically true." Tobias chuckled darkly for a moment. "Only catch is that it's going to be a chat with the Kremlin... Not the White House."
"Why would that be a problem?" Yuuki asked. "You're full Russian, you work for the BSAA, and on top of that, you're a bioweapon that Umbrella made, so if anything they should be begging you to haul ass and wipe the facility off the map!"
"The Kremlin isn't full of idiots like the White House. This will take some finesse... But you're right, Yuuki, I'm probably the only one that could pull this off with any shred of success."
"Takes one to know one... Heh heh." Rize's eyes glinted teasingly at her husband. "You might want some help to get their number that you're gonna need."
"Val's not the only one with surprises." Tobias held up his phone and tapped the screen while he brought it to his ear. "Tobias Darkwood speaking, I require an international number."
"Individual or organization?" The secretary for the White House on the other end of the line queried.
"Government." Tobias replied.
"Oh... I don't have that level of authorization, please hold while I transfer you to the President herself."
"Of course."
After a few moments of silence on the line, Tobias smirked as he connected to the President. "Greetings, Madame President."
"Good afternoon Toby, how may I be of assistance?"
"I have an opportunity to eliminate an old Umbrella facility, but it's international, and I do not have the means to directly contact their government. It's Russia, as ironic as it might be."
"I can give you their President's direct line, but be warned it might not be a warm welcome."
"As is expected of an unknown number calling. Thank you."
"I shall send it to your cellphone directly, is there anything else you need?"
"No, that's everything, Ma'am. Again, thank you for the assistance."
"Not a problem, good luck with the call."
With that the call ended, and about twenty seconds later Tobias received the agreed text message that contained the phone number for the Russian President's direct line.
"Five bucks it'll turn into an argument in less than ten minutes."
"Ten bucks and you got a bet." Rachael pulled out two five dollar bills from her pocket and put them on top of the map as Yuuki did the same alongside them.
"If I wasn't the one making the call, I would put ten down too." Tobias chuckled as he dialed the number manually into his phone's screen. "Here goes..."
"Who am I speaking to?" The thick Russian accent that came through the phone was of a woman, already sounding terse.
"Captain Tobias Darkwood, of the Bioterrorism Security Assessment Alliance's North American Division, am I speaking to the President of Russia?"
"Ah, a fellow countryman. And may I ask how you've acquired my direct line?"
"A personal favour to the US President herself. Shall I get straight to the point for my calling?"
"That would suit both of us best, da. Continue."
"After verifying recently acquired intel, I have confirmed the existence of an Umbrella Corporation facility located within your borders, and wish to conduct an operation to search, secure and possibly even destroy the facility with our new asset, the Nightfall battleship."
"Ah, da... the Nightfall, I saw that little reveal you did over the White House... But I require a bit more context for this facility you've mentioned."
"Okay, what would you like to know? Bear in mind that even for yourself there are censorship that I must abide by."
"Firstly, is the facility active?"
"Not that our present recon would suggest. We do consider it a possibility."
"And where is this place even located?"
"I am unfortunately not able to reveal precisely where, but I can openly confirm that it is located in Tseniloyarsk. A facility that our intel suggests was built sometime in the 1960's."
"I see." The President hummed in thought, sounding like she was leaning back in her chair. "And I would presume you are requesting clearances and direct government authorization to conduct this operation against this Umbrella facility?"
"Yes, that is correct. The Nightfall is the only vessel that will be involved in the operation, and from it, a complimentary assault force will conduct the operation directly from the Nightfall itself. I will be personally present and involved in the operation from the moment you confirm that we're cleared for entry into Russian airspace."
"Might I ask why you're requesting government permission instead of taking full advantage of the BSAA's international authority concerning Umbrella and bioterrorism."
"Well, to be rather blunt, ma'am... how would you react if you saw a 600 meter long Quinque Steel ship flying over the Kremlin?"
"Ah... it's because of the ship, isn't it?"
"Precisely. If you would like, I can present you to the Nightfall's commanding officer, he's sitting right with me at this moment."
"I expect a press conference at the Kremlin after the operation is completed. All of the BSAA personnel that comprise the crew of your ship are invited, of course. I shall prepare all of the relevant clearances for your ship. From which Ocean will your arrival be taken over?"
"The Pacific, ma'am. I will likewise make the preparations for an immediate launch from the ship's homeport in Los Angeles. I shall call you again after the conclusion of the operation in Tselinoyarsk."
"Thank you for your continued battle against bioterrorism... and the Umbrella Corporation's remnants."
"Thank you for your assistance, Madame President. Do svidaniya."
"Do svidaniya, Captain. I await meeting you in person at the press conference." The call was ended without another word from either of them.
"Fuck..." Yuuki groaned at the lost bet. "I was expecting a dude... and an angry one at that." She held up both hands as Rachael collected the twenty dollars and tucked it all into her cleavage with a smirk. "But NO! She's fucking chill as fuck, and wanted a little grandstanding after we fuck up the Ogre and the Syndicate at the base."
