AN: FINALLY, THE NASTY ONE HAS COME BACK TO FANFICTION!
Yeah, it's been a minute hasn't it hope everyone is doing well. Life's just been going on here and I lost track of time when it came to uploading this chapter. Thankfully I didn't forget about you guys and have been working to make sure this story doesn't end up like my previous Xenonauts one, dead after two chapters. Anyway, last time out the team was ambushed in the jungles of Nigeria and suffered heavy casualties with two serious wounds (Meier and Loharani), and four KIA (Mattila, Calvo, Bhabra and Kurd). How will they deal with the impending threat awaiting them back at base? Continue reading to find out, without further ado let's jump into this shit!
Chapter 3: Jungle Warfare
== Sandtrap Hangar #1 (2331 Hours) ==
No sooner had Barnes finished docking the ship in the appropriate hangar, Vidrai was already off the ship and had launched himself at the base commander who had been awaiting their return with four rookies on standby. Vidrai threw a right cross that the Commander skillfully dodged before countering with a left jab and had Vidrai in an armbar as the rest of the squad hustled up to the scene.
"Cool your jets soldier!" ordered the Commander as he kicked Vidrai back towards the other returning soldiers who caught him to prevent him from falling on his face.
"What the fuck was that shit mate! You sent us into a goddam ambush!" Vidrai responded with unbridled fury as he continued to try and get at the Commander but was held back by Lefebvre and Santos.
"We didn't know what was going to happen! We made a judgment call that ended up being the wrong one, maybe we could've sent you guys on a night mission, but it would've been worse by our estimates as the aliens have great night vision." replied the Commander in a hostile tone that cooled off as his speech progressed allowing his logic to wash over the somewhat hostile soldiers.
"Now dust off and grab some new equipment we've got an immediate situation in India. Another UFO was shot down an hour after you guys landed. It'll be daylight when you arrive so prepare for anything as we're entering another jungle environment." said the Commander straightening his uniform as he turned away from the incredulous soldiers.
"But..." started Vidrai as he wanted to protest, but the Commander silenced him with a raise of his left hand.
"Sleep on the ride there, you don't want another repeat of this disaster again, do you? Also, some advice Lieutenant, keep the war out there. Turning on your higher ups and fellow squad mates is a bad look for a field leader." said the Commander in a firm yet scolding tone as he walked away from the conversation before a rebuttal could be made.
The injured members of the squad, Meier and Loharani, headed off to their sleeping quarters, while the four rookies joined the four veterans on the Chinook as Barnes led off towards another drop zone.
== 200 Miles NE of Mumbai, India (1112 hours 9/9/79) ==
The squad managed to get a few hours of sleep on the near twelve-hour flight to the drop zone in the jungles of India, but were still a tad bit groggy and annoyed. Vidrai was the most annoyed given that he hated to admit he was wrong, but the Commander had him beat in that argument. Not to mention his jaw was still killing him from the jab the Commander snuck through his guard.
The new soldiers were able to brief the veterans on what the mission entailed once they awoke from their nap. The UFO was the same size as the previous ones and had been shot down in combat with one of the Interceptors at the base. The squad was going in with only eight members for the mission as the newly purchase five soldiers had yet to arrive at the base to bring them back up to full strength. The new members of the squad joining Vidrai, Lefebvre, Santos and Fujita were:
Cpl. Andy Kurniawan a 34 years old Indonesian male standing at 5' 10'' with a black crew cut and tan skin. He'd fought as part of the Wega Yogya Gabhira in the Kopassus a Special Forces Battalion of the Indonesian army. Because of the high level of clearance required to view his missions, Kurniawan's combat experiences had been redacted from his public file in the base's personnel folders. Only the Commander had the full version of his file and knew how qualified he was to be on this team.
Cpl. Bayomi Danjuma a 31 years old Nigerian male standing at 6' 0'' and sporting short curly black hair and a thick beard and sideburns, but a shaved moustache. Danjuma was a member of the 21st Battalion in the Nigerian Army but had yet to see combat experience during his tenure.
Cpl. Mohandas Bhandari a 28 years old Indian male standing at 6' 2'' and sporting lightly tanned skin, a thick beard and moustache combination, and with his black hair parted to the right side of his head. Bhandari was a native of Mumbai and was rather familiar of the area and would be the point man for one of the teams in the upcoming mission. He also fought in Sikkim as a member of the Special Frontier Force in the Indian army.
Cpl. Natalia Zielinski a 28 years old Polish female standing at 5' 9'', sporting light skin with her blonde hair hanging in three tufts down the center of her forehead and had shaved the sides of her head completely of hair. She was a member of the 4101st Paratroop Battalion in the Polish Army but had yet to see combat experience prior to joining the Xenonauts project.
The squad had split their eight members into two teams of four and would split up to encircle the crashed UFO and hopefully end this without the loss of another team member. The teams broke down like so:
Team 1 – Vidrai (Sniper), Fujita (Rifleman), Kurniawan (Rifleman), Bhandari (Point man/Rifleman)
Team 2 – Santos (Sniper switched to fill Mattila's slot), Zielinski (Rifleman), Danjuma (Rifleman), Lefebvre (Rifleman switched from Heavy Weapons before the mission)
Without a word said the two teams departed the Chinook as soon as Leon dropped the ramp to get this mission done and dusted in a timely manner.
'Godspeed you brave souls. Put your anger over the deaths of your comrades to good use.' thought Leon as the last soldier's back disappeared into the thick jungle brush.
== Overhead (Commander's) View of the Battle ==
The Chinook had landed to the Northwest of the crash site and with that knowledge, Santos led team two in an Eastern direction as they aimed to secure the left flank of the crash site to prevent any enemies from escaping in that direction. Vidrai and Bhandari led team one in a southern direction as they were in charge of securing the right flank of the crash site. No movement or contact was detected as both teams advanced within a few hundred meters of the crash site.
Team 2 was able to secure the left flank without issue and was heading towards the UFO, while Team 1 finally had contact with an alien unit.
== With Team 1 ==
Bhandari was out in front with Vidrai directly behind him with Kurniawan to Vidrai's right and Fujita bringing up the rear. The team had been cautiously moving forward on high alert as they were well aware of what had happened last mission. Suddenly Bhandari held up his hand and signaled them to stop as he stared intently ahead as some thick brush to the left front of the group. Vidrai approached him as Kurniawan kept watch on their right and Fujita kept eyes on their rear.
"What do you see Mo?" asked Vidrai as Bhandari calmly raised his rifle at the brush, he'd never broken eye contact with.
"Something that disturbs the jungle and angers the animals around us." he said cryptically as he fired a shot.
*BANG* *GROAN* *BZZT* BZZT*
Bhandari's shot was met with a shriek as one of the gray humanoid creatures wearing a blue shirt came barreling out of the brush and fired two quick shots at Bhandari in response to being wounded. Bhandari calmly dodged them both as Vidrai rattled off a round from his sniper rifle.
*BANG* *SHRIEK*
The round struck true and the creature fell to the ground unmoving after giving off its customary death scream. In response the UFO door was heard opening and closing as the team slowly inched forward.
Without warning Bhandari shoved Vidrai to the ground as three shots rang in around them.
*BZZT* BZZT* BZZT* OW!
Bhandari had taken a wound to his chest and was pulled to safety behind a large rock by Vidrai as Fujita led Kurniawan towards a group of shrubs out of the UFO's vision that would allow them a flanking position.
Peeking around the shrubs it was revealed that another blue shirted humanoid alien was the one taking fire on the two soldiers as Fujita and Kurniawan opened fire on the creature.
*BANG* *BANG* *BANG* *MOAN* BANG* *BANG* *BZZT*
Fujita opened up a three round burst that hit the alien once in the left arm, while Kurniawan missed his shot but suppressed the alien to take cover and miss a bad shot back at Bhandari who was more concerned with healing his wounds than having been suppressed. This suppression of the alien had the unintended consequence of making Vidrai's sniper shot miss high as the alien ducked in time to save itself.
*BANG* *SHRIEK*
This would prove to be short lived though, as Fujita finished the alien off with a shot to the head ending his life and allowing team two to arrive without incident as the two teams prepared to breach the UFO and finish of any remaining hostiles.
== With Both Teams ==
Santos and Vidrai dropped back with the injured Bhandari to help provide overwatch with Fujita. The other four soldiers prepared to breach as Lefebvre and Kurniawan were in front of the door with Zielinski and Danjuma behind them. Lefebvre opened the door revealing a third blue shirted humanoid cowering in the rear of the craft along with three other humanoids (1 blue shirt, 2 red shirts) killed in the crash.
*BANG* *MOAN*
Kurniawan fired off a shot as soon as the door dropped striking the alien in the chest. Lefebvre slammed the door closed immediately after preventing the alien from returning fire on the exposed squad members. On an unspoken count between the two leading riflemen, Kurniawan opens the door and fired off a round.
*BANG*
This pinned the alien down and prevented it from seeing the near suicidal charge of Lefebvre until it was too late. Her rifle was already at the ready and unleashing its fatal rounds as the alien could do nothing but scream when the rounds tore it apart.
*BANG* *BANG* *BANG* *SHRIEK*
As the last alien fell to the ground lifeless after Lefebvre's charge, the squad waited a few moments to ensure nothing else was moving around outside. The tense moments passed with no more contact as the team went about their duties securing the site for the trip back home. They departed with minimal conversation back to Sandtrap. The mission had been a rousing success, but for the members of the strike team, it didn't feel as if they'd accomplished anything.
== Mission Three Summary ==
Alien Combatants Killed: 3/3
Civilians Saved: 0/0
Xenonauts KIA: 0/8
Xenonauts WIA: 1/8 (Cpl. Mohandas Bhandari)
Kill Tally (Active Soldiers Only): Sgt. Fujita (3), Sgt. Meier (2), Sgt. Santos (2), Lt. Vidrai (2), Cpl. Loharani (1), and Cpl. Lefebvre (1)
Promotions: Cpl. Claire Lefebvre to Sgt.
Medals: Cpl. Mohandas Bhandari (Crimson Heart for serious wound)
Active Roster:
Lt. Alten Vidrai
Sgt. Masao Fujita
Sgt. Fernando Santos
Sgt. Clare Lefebvre
Cpl. Andy Kurniawan
Cpl. Bayomi Danjuma
Cpl. Natalia Zielinski
Out of Action Roster:
Cpl. Joaquim Rodrigues (Out 1 Week)
Sgt. Jens Meier (Out 2 Weeks)
Cpl. Zee Loharani (Out 3 Weeks)
Cpl. Mohandas Bhandari (Out 3 weeks)
Memorial Wall:
Cpl. Benjamin Muller (KIA on Mission One)
Cpl. Delfina Calvo (KIA on Mission Two)
Cpl. Konsta Mattila (KIA on Mission Two)
Cpl. Rameen Bhabra (KIA on Mission Two)
Cpl. Moheem Kurd (KIA on Mission Two)
AN: That's a wrap on this chapter! The squad got through another mission with only one injury and no deaths, yay! Hopefully, this stars a bit of a reprieve for them allowing the injured members to get healthy and the new soldiers to arrive before the next attack occurs. Tune in next chapter as we see how that line of thinking goes for them. Thanks to everyone who's read this story and if you like what you read, leave a favorite, a follow, and a review letting me know so. That really keeps me motivated to continue writing content like this. Until next time, this is "The Nasty One" signing off!
PRAK #TheNastyOne