Chapter 2- First Mission

Adrian had gotten to know his team mates over the next few weeks and all of them had come to respect each other. They had learned that Area 51 was divided into seven sections. There was the main section, which included everything that wasn't restricted. The other six sections were devoted to various activities that only the employee's knew about.
Section tree was the Lucifer Complex, a name Adrian didn't really appreciate, but was where Project Lucifer was located. No one knew who had named it that or why. No one cared.
Kelly Lorenz had become one of Adrian's closer friends on the team. Lieutenant Hanz turned out to be a good, but strict leader. Julian Fine seemed to always be talking about theoretical physics and things the other soldiers could barely follow. Adrian was smart, but not quite that smart. None the less, the troops had become good friends and were hoping for a good mission to come their way.
Information circulated around the complex about a science team being captured and executed for using magic. Major Norman's team was sent to get them back but arrived too late to find and save them.

"Good news guys, we just got handed our first mission." said newly made, Major Hanz.
"Sweet, what is it?" asked Julian through a mouthful of food.
"It's a recon mission. We're going to go into the city undercover and make sure things have calmed down enough to send science teams back. Simple." he finished.
"When are we leaving?" asked Lorenz.
"1200 today. We need to see Colonel Hayes at 1100." Adrian looked at his watch. It was 1030."
"Let's go now." he said. "It won't hurt to get a couple of extra minutes to prep."
"I agree. Let's go." said Hanz. The four soldiers left the cafeteria and walked across the main complex to the heavy steel blast door of the Lucifer Complex.
Hanz swiped his card first, followed by Adrian, Lorenz, and Fine. The door opened into the ground and ceiling. The new team stepped in and the doors closed. The metal platform jolted and started to descend into the bowels of the Area 51 Lucifer Complex.
The elevator stopped and after a minute, the doors opened to reveal their first sight of the main floor.
They had been into the Lucifer Complex before, but not so deep. This was "ground zero" as many called it because it was where the main portal room was located and the main control room was above the portal room.
Lights ran from the floor around the tube-like walls of the corridor, and touched the ground again on the other side. The four soldiers walked down the weirdly lit hall and stopped at a door that had a sign above it labeled "Gear Room".
Hanz swiped his security ID card and the door opened with a hiss. A man was standing on the other side.
"Oh, hello Major Hanz. I was just about to go up and find you. Looks like you found you way by yourself." said the man. "Anyway, follow me." Walls with full size lockers made the room seem like a maze. "If you would please locate your lockers."
Adrian was the first to find his and the Colonel told him to slip his card into the slot. He did, and the locker opened easily. The inside had a shelf and a strange thick black vest. "These were developed about a year ago here at Area 51." said the colonel holding up on of the vests. "They are called PCV's. Powered Combat Vest. They're quite remarkable and will soon be in the regular military. The Marine Hazardous Environment Combat Unit has volunteered to test them out in future missions. Anyway, this vest will always be on you when you pass this room. Understood?"
"Yes sir." they said in unison.
"Put them on." The soldiers proceeded to put their vests on."
"Sir, won't these look out of place, sir?" asked Lorenz.
"No, you'll be wearing these robes." he said handing bags to them. "It will make you look a little fat, but this vest has saved the lives of combat teams numerous times." The troops zipped up the vests and slipped the robes over. "Here. Since they are powered combat vests, you can charge them. The charge will be able to maintain flashlights and has a cooling and heating system that will keep you at a comfortable in bad climates." he said.
The team looked like they were ready to hike across the desert. They were wearing their tan robes over the PCV's and Hanz was in the process of wrapping a turban around his head.
"We don't look fat." remarked Lorenz.
"If you'll follow me into the next room we'll get you equipped and armed." They walked into the armory room. Shelves with guns and ammunition lined the walls. There were P90's, MP5's, and MP5k's along with all other kinds of guns. "Choose what you will." said the colonel. Adrian picked up a P90 and pulled the hammer back. He walked over, picked up the right magazine, and slipped it into the gun. Lorenz and Fine chose MP5's and Hanz chose and MP5k. They were all given a Desert Eagle and combat knife. They followed the colonel into the next room which was an obstacle course.
"First, I want you to get used to moving around in the PCV's. Complete this obstacle course and you'll complete your PCV training. Hurry up though. Your due to leave in thirty. The team clicked the safety's on their guns on and ran through the obstacle course.

The large steel blast doors opened to reveal a huge room with a rather big platform in the center that was raised about three feet. Four ramps slid out of it a connected with notches in the floor.
A big pyramid shaped machine hung from the ceiling with it's point directly above the platform. Long poles extended from the ceiling of near the four corners of the upside-down pyramid.
Four small bell shaped bell shaped domes were attached to each pole.
Large florescent lights gave the room a bluish glow. At the far end of the room was a big glass window that contained the control room.
Lucifer Team twelve marched into the room. Adrian made sure he had his P90 well hidden underneath his robes.
"Initializing sub-space jumper. Jumper initializing in, five. Four. Three. Two. One. Initializing now." The pyramid started to hum and the domes began to rotate on the poles. The center of the platform descended to the floor. A thin purple beam of light appeared and crackled. "Portal initializing in, five." Small lightning bolts began to pop around the domes. "Four." The domes lit up in a purple glow. "Three." The small bots got more powerful and connected with the tip of the pyramid. "Two." The purple beam got thicker and started spouting small random bolts. "One." The beam flashed and an uneven sphere of purple light formed. Dozens of small bolts snapped around it. "Portal stabilized." said the tech in the control room.
"Move in now." said another voice. Adrian, Lorenz, Hanz, and Fine ran at the sphere of light. Hanz went first, followed by Fine and Lorenz. They all disappeared as soon as the light touched them. Adrian ran into the portal. He heard a loud crackling and everything turned bright green. Adrian looked around and couldn't see his body. Everything turned black and silent. He couldn't move, or feel. After a few seconds the green light came back and the world materialized around him.
They were in a wooded area. Birds were chirping and the pine trees branches were high enough not to be of any nescience. Adrian walked toward the other members of his team.
"Let's go. The city is just a mile that way." said Hanz. He pointed north. "Our orders are to kill anyone who gets in our way."
"Even if they aren't a threat?" asked Adrian. Hanz shrugged.
"Those are our orders. It's to preserve secrecy."
"Okay."
They started walking the distance to the city. It took them about an twenty minutes before they got to the outskirts of the city. No one bothered them, the citizens simply thought they were travelers.
Adrian was amazed at the similarity between them and ancient Islamic culture. The soldiers patrolled the city and memorized the layout of it in three hours.
The sun was just beginning to set when they got back to portal sight. Adrian looked at his watch. They still had five minutes left before the portal was set to open again to bring them back.
"What do they do when there is nobody to open the portal?" asked Fine.
"There is an emergency button on the receiver here that sends a signal for them to open it." replied Hanz.
"How come you know more than us about this stuff?" asked Lorenz.
"They briefed me privately."
"Why you?"
"Why do you think? I'm the commander." replied Hanz.
The small receiver hummed and sent a thin beam up into the air about five feet. It shortened and turned into the portal. The soldiers walked into it and found themselves back in the control room.
"Welcome back. Briefing will be in twenty minutes." said a voice over the intercom. Adrian walked back across the room and ended up in the locker room again with his team. They removed their robes and PCV's. Adrian noticed that the locker had a special hook for the PCV's and robes.
Adrian unloaded his P90 and put it on the top shelf with the spare magazines.
"C'mon guys, lets go brief the general and colonel." said Hanz.

"Everything's fine. No one bothered us, the city was quiet except for thieves. They cut they're hands off." said Hanz in an almost innocent way.
"Okay, that's all I need to know. Do you believe it's safe to send science teams back?"
"Certainly."
"And what about you Lieutenant Shephard? Do you agree?"
"Yes sir."
"Good. Then It's settled. Teams will start going back at 0500 tomorrow. You are dismissed." The troops got up and walked out of the room.
"Well, that was fun. What are we going to do tomorrow?" asked Fine. Adrian smiled and looked foreword to their next mission not knowing it would be their last.