Ch. 33: Elevator to Hell

A.N.:

Sorry everyone, I ran into a bad case of writer's block. Then, the file that I keep this story in got corrupted somehow. Luckily, I keep a backup in a different flash drive. Unfortunately, I had not backed up the copy of this half-finished chapter. So, I had to completely retype what I had plus finish it. Needless to say, I took a few liberties in this chapter for the sake of getting through it days after I said I would.

Oh, and sorry but I couldn't help myself but reference the USG Ishimura from Dead Space.

Anyway,

Again, sorry about the wait.

Fighting chapters will resume in the next chapter.

Read and review if you want.

Darkness ruled my senses and mind for seemingly an eternity. As I floated aimlessly in the purgatorial prison, I could not help but imagine myself as my lover while she was confined to The Vault. In some ways, it made me respect her even more so. While I had survived mentally torturous events by relying upon the safety net of my military training, she had only had the sheer force of her willpower to see her through the things that she had endured.

Torture has many different forms my beautiful daughter. The most barbaric of which, usually do not leave physical marks. All Special Forces have their own initiation rituals. The prospective recruits are forced to endure previously unimaginable torture by the experienced hands of veterans like my mentor. It is a matter of national security and preserving the integrity of the organization that they do those things. Special Force Operatives, with the secrets that they know, must never break at the hands of their enemies. Death must come before submission; there are no exceptions. The Articles of Conduct are the Special Forces' Bible. To break one of the articles is akin to committing an irredeemable sin.

"I…love you Alma Wade." The statement kept echoing through my mind like a broken record. Was I being sincere? Now that I was not being held prisoner by my own body, I naturally questioned if I had truly meant it. Despite my doubts, I wanted to believe that I truly did mean it. After all, she had never intentionally harmed me for the sake of harming me. Everything that she had done, she had done to make me stronger. How could I not love her? She had always been in my life, ever since I was a child.

Even if I was offered the chance, I know that I cannot separate from her. We have grown so attached to each other that I doubt that we would be able to operate without each other for an extended period of time. Even if I do not love her, I cannot live without her. What we have, no one can understand. It is not just emotional or physical: we are bonded physiologically. Our very beings have become so attached to each other that we literally cannot live without each other. Love her or hate her, I am her's until the end of time.

I had just concluded that I had meant my declaration of love when I felt a pull on my consciousness. Feeling as though I was being dragged out of the bottom of a well, I felt my senses returning to me. After a moment, I felt compelled to open my eyes. When I did, I found myself in the captain's quarters inside Athena. I was lying on my back on the flat cot. Lying slightly off-center on top of my bare chest with her left arm draped over my right shoulder was my goddess. She was lying prostrate against me in her nude adult form. She was smiling happily as she gazed at me with her glowing orange eyes that were slightly hidden beneath the shiny raven hair of her bangs.

I returned the smile as I lifted my left arm up and draped it across the back of her left thigh. As I did, I noticed that the muscles of my arm felt different. They felt tight and firm as if I had just finished working out but should have been impossible because it had been two days since I had last pumped any iron. In addition, it could have just been my imagination, but I also felt physically stronger than I could remember.

While I knew that no one could be stronger than Alpha 1, because Armacham had engineered the Heavy Troopers to be at the absolute extreme of what the human skeleton, engineered, enhanced, or otherwise, was physically capable of supporting, I felt that I could give him a run for his money. What sets Alpha 1 apart from his brethren, however, is that behind that muscle is a free will to command it. His actions are still bound by his programming but he is otherwise free from the restraints that hold his brethren back. Even Point Man is not a match for my brother in terms of raw physical prowess. While my strength was not increased drastically, I was certain that I was up to par with Point Man.

Soon after this revelation, I realized that my entire body felt the same way. Even stranger, my senses seemed to be heightened more than they should have been. They felt as responsive to my mental inquires about my surroundings as they did when I was in an adrenaline rush. However, unlike the almost spastic feeling that I felt when adrenaline was being pumped through my system as an emergency response by my body, I felt calm and even as though the adrenaline was being released at a controlled rate instead of being dumped into my system in one big release.

I had heard once that the average human being can only use approximately ten percent of her or his actual strength and endurance at any given moment. It was only when adrenaline is pumping through them in "fight or flight" situations that they could use one hundred percent of their physical prowess. Which, is why there are stories about individuals either lifting a car off someone that he or she cared about or running seemingly impossible distances through rough terrain to escape some kind of danger. Granted, once the adrenaline wore off, those individuals would never walk right again or even possibly had crippling physical handicaps for the rest of their lives, but human bodies are capable of doing amazing things when shit hits the proverbial fan.

There was something else that was different but I could not understand what it was. My psionic abilities felt natural and instinctive rather than awkward and unique. "Hello to you too." Alma riled me from my self-exploration. She moved a little closer while continuing to gaze at me happily. When she had laid the left side of her hand against my left shoulder and positioned her arms so that she was hugging me, she asked, "How do you feel?"

I replied with an unsure voice, "Different…I guess."

She rubbed her head against me briefly before she asked with a worried tone, "Do you…regret…what you said?"

I held her tighter as I replied, "No, of course not. I can't live without you Alma…literally and metaphorically."

Her smile increased for a moment before she smirked and then said, "That is not a metaphor dumbass."

I smiled slightly as I continued to hold her. Then, after a minute, I said, "Alma, there is something that I have to confess to you though."

She lifted her head up and then cocked it slightly before she asked, "What is it?"

I smirked before I replied, "I thought your sister was hotter than you."

Her demeanor remained disturbingly deadpan as she asked, "Did you now?"

Struggling to keep a straight face, I replied, "Yes. Her body was so much hotter."

Alma snorted quietly before she commented, "Oh…please…my sister was a huge prude that lacked any sense of depravity. She wouldn't have known what to do with a body like mine...or how to please a man…or…though it would be hysterical to watch her try…another woman. She barely knew what to do to herself, let alone someone else."

I said, "That...doesn't...really help your case...sweetie. I mean, to be honest, you do tend to take things a little too far. Don't get me wrong, the things that you can do, they're, well, they're just so great. But, I still think that it would be nice to, you know, not go against every social restriction or line that has ever existed."

Giving me a cute pout, she grasped my right wrist and guided my hand to cup her left breast. As I cupped the amazingly soft and perfect mound of flesh with my bare hand, Alma gave me a knowing smile before she said, "But…I thought you liked your dirty little girl."

I started to reply, but I suddenly heard Alpha 1 say in my mind, "Sorry to interrupt, brother, but we've got trouble."

I replied, "Understood, I am on my way."

He said, "Copy that."

I looked at my companion and said, "Time to go." She nodded and retracted from me to allow me to get up. After she had, a flash came over her body as she changed into her child form. I slung my legs over the side of the cot and then stood. As I walked towards the hatch, a flash came over my body and almost instantly, my form was once again encased by my Dark Signal armor. Minutes later, with Alma at my side, I walked through the open hatch that allowed access to the bridge.

Alpha 1, Athena 1, Stokes, and the man, who was dressed in attire that was similar to Better's, that was the representative from NATO were gathered around the holographic emitter with Alpha 1 and the representative on my side of the emitter while Stokes and Athena 1 were on the other side. A quick glance at the emitter reported that whatever the situation was, it had to do with a city or a stronghold of some kind as I saw the layout of a NATO controlled town or perhaps even a base that was apparently under siege.

As I made my way towards the emitter, from behind me, Foxtrot 813, who had escaped my notice as he leaned against the bulkhead to the right of the open hatch, called out in his modified voice, "Attention! Commander on deck!" Athena 1 and the other Replica sailors stood up and saluted me.

I said, "Carry on." They dropped their salute and then went back to what they had been doing. As I neared him, Alpha 1, as he stood with his arms folded across his armored chest, looked at me and gave me a slight nod, which I silently approved of since he had become more of a brother to me than a soldier under my command.

Stokes smiled at me before she said, "Becket, good to see you."

"Likewise Keira. So, what's the sitrep?" I asked as I stood next to Alpha 1 and folded my arms across my armored vest protected chest.

I saw a quick look of worry on her weathered face before she replied, "Akira's forces have reached SHAPE."

I muttered, "Damn it…so soon?" SHAPE was an acronym for Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe. Since 1967, it had been located in the city of Casteau in Belgium and in 2003, it had become the headquarters for Allied Command Operations (ACO), which controlled all allied operations worldwide. All of NATO was controlled at SHAPE. We had contingencies planned for when Akira's forces had reached SHAPE, but we had anticipated that it was going to take her until the end of the week to reach the stronghold.

This changed everything. Without SHAPE, NATO would be deadweight unless we took action immediately to transfer their command structure to our own. The main concern was that Akira would gain access to sensitive information and worse, the actual commanders of NATO if we did not interfere. If she turned them, we would be metaphorically between a rock and a hard place.

Without looking at him, I asked the representative, "Have you been able to contact your superiors?"

He replied, "Negative Sergeant. So, I guess a rescue mission is in order?"

Ignoring his question, I silently berated myself for allowing the weakness of a third party to undermine the resilience of the forces against Akira. It had been foolish of me to allow an unaffiliated organization to have any part in the war against her. Because of my lack of resolve to do what had to be done, I was paying the price for my naivety and worse, I had put people's lives in jeopardy. The time had come for me to let go of any remaining obligation that I felt to the outside world.

Egging on my dark thoughts, Alma, who was standing between Alpha 1 and me with a proud motherly smile on her childish face, said inside my mind, "They are meaningless now. They are ghosts."

Alpha 1 added, "Remember the Three Hundred Spartans, brother. The side pass that the group of Greek soldiers abandoned and allowed Leonidas and his men to be surrounded on all sides. All it takes is one weak link for everything to fall apart."

Alma then said, "Kill them. Kill them all."

Afterwards, Alpha 1 assured me, "We stand with you, Commander."

I replied to them both, "The mission is all that matters. Our personal feelings are not part of that mission."

Without giving any indication to what I was doing, I reached out and entered the man's mind. In a flash of memories, I learned everything that I needed to know. When I exited his mind, I telepathically communicated with Foxtrot 813, "Kill him." Without acknowledging the order, Foxtrot 813 left the bulkhead and walked up behind the representative. None of us made any indication as to what was about to happen. Meanwhile, I asked Stokes, "Keira, can you contact Betters on a secure channel?"

Oblivious to the Replica Trooper behind him, the representative asked, "Wait, what about SHAPE?"

Stokes ignored him as she replied to me, "Probably."

As she finished, Foxtrot 813 reached up and pressed his right hand firmly under the man's chin and his left hand firmly on the back of the man's head. Then, in a smooth motion, he snapped the surprised and confused man's neck. I moved slightly to the left to avoid the corpse as it dropped to the floor as I said, "Good, contact Betters and congratulate him on F.E.A.R.'s promotion to head of all non-Replica Armed Forces. He is only one that we can trust to not fuck around with his head up his ass."

"You got it, Becket." She replied before walking off towards one of the Replica sailors to contact the F.E.A.R. Coordinator.

I looked down at the corpse briefly and then looked over at Athena 1. With a flat voice, I said, "Feed 'im to the crabs." He nodded and then snapped his fingers with his right hand. Foxtrot 813 moved out of the way as two Replicas appeared. They gathered the man up and then began to carry the corpse to a spot to throw it overboard. Focusing my attention back on the issue at hand, I began to run scenarios through my mind to decide the best course of action.

We could not simply blast the site into rubble with Persephone's long-rang cruise missiles because there might have been some unspecified hazard or situation. Close-up satellite reconnaissance was currently unavailable for the area so I was assessing the situation blindly. Like it or not, we needed boots on the ground to assess the situation. Since there was still a chance that there were NATO defenders on-site and Akira's forces had encircled the fortress, a large scale assault was out of the question simply because it was too much ground to cover from the nearest safe zone to the area for an effective insertion. We needed to send in one, two, or even possibly three Special Ops Teams to handle the situation. The question was how to get the teams to the area in time.

Task Force One was too far from the area to launch an air insertion because the vehicles that would be required were special-purpose-built models like the Direct Action Penetrator Black Hawks and Pave Lows. They simply did not have the range and Alma did not want to use her abilities to supply the birds with infinite fuel because, again, the Law(s) of Conservation dictated that she would have to get the fuel from somewhere and we needed to conserve the precious amount of fuel reserves that we currently had. Even if she did, Akira's forces had established air superiority in the area and the Black Hawks or Pave Lows would be sitting ducks without F-22 Raptor fighter escorts.

The nearest combat team that was not already engaged with Akira's forces was a United States Marine Corps Expeditionary Force based from the America-class amphibious assault ship U.S.S. America. However, they would face the same reasons why it was tactically unwise for us to send a traditional insertion. Moreover, I did not want to waste an entire Expeditionary Force on a mission that was unsound from the get-go. That left me with few options however.

I began to grow frustrated as I continued to strike out on options. No task or adversary is insurmountable: my mentor had taught me that. There is always a solution or at least a course of action that will lead to a resolution. I had to be overlooking something. Land and air vehicles were out of the question. I quietly scoffed as I decided that the only way that I was getting near Casteau was if I fell from the fucking…

Nearly face palming, I realized what I had to do. I looked over at Athena 1 and asked, "Poseidon would not happen to have any VL-O (for the record, readers, I-as in M10m gas mask soldier, made this piece of technology up) vehicles, would she?"

He looked at me for a moment before he replied, "Yes, sir. She does. May I inquire as to why you need to go into orbit?"

"Ishimura." I responded with a flat tone.

Foxtrot 813 commented, "You can't be serious, sir."

I assured him, "I am."

The Ishimura was the Replica controlled orbiting facility that housed the Power Armor Orbital Drop units. Closely resembling a warship and at nearly a mile long, it is still the single largest orbiting man-made object in existence. With its own on-board life support systems and hydroponics deck, ATC had designed it to be self-sustaining like Titan Station had been before it had been destroyed in the ensuing battle between us and the Queen.

The replenished Foxtrot Company is still garrisoned at the facility, hence why Foxtrot 813 was the trooper that had been piloting the EPA that was sent to reinforce the other planet-side members of Foxtrot Company at Command Post Sigma. Only a company could be garrisoned at the facility because, despite its large size, the facility was largely devoted to the launch systems and the facility's life-sustaining systems. The habitable area of the facility is small, approximately the size of an apartment building and that is divided amongst its various decks.

The War Pigs, what we called the EPA units, and the REV6 units are actually members of Foxtrot Company. After deployment, we use VL-O, or Vertical Launch-Orbit, vehicles to send the units back up to Ishimura so that they can be deployed from orbit once again. Foxtrot 813, as a member of Dark Signal, is the only one of the Foxtrots that does not return to the orbiting facility after deployment.

I explained my plan, "Dark Signal and Wolf Pack goes up into orbit via VL-O vehicles from Poseidon. From Ishimura, we go planet-side to Casteau and deal with the leaders of SHAPE and NATO. Then, we make sure that all of the sensitive information is either destroyed or transferred to F.E.A.R. Afterwards, we fight our way back to the front lines with the remaining NATO defenders if there are any. Betters and F.E.A.R. will lead the non-Replica Armed Forces as we had planned in our contingencies. We move on with our lives."

Alpha 1 commented, "It will take time to destroy the information, so we should take equipment to set up a perimeter. Proximity mines, claymores, and a few machine guns wouldn't hurt either."

Foxtrot 813 said, "Some power armor would be nice too."

I replied, "Agreed. I recommend that we bring along a few EPA units as well. Alright, let's get everyone rounded up and get to Poseidon."

About fifteen minutes later, we had boarded one of the Sea Knight helicopters on-board Athena. After I sat down, I looked back out of the helicopter to see Stokes, Holiday, Passalaqua, and Morales looking at me. I nodded reassuringly to try to ease their worry. Due to the extreme danger that would be encountered on the mission, I informed them to stay on Athena. Only Foxtrot 813, Bravo 2, Juggernaut, Point Man, Alpha 1, and I would make up Dark Signal for the operation. Meanwhile, Wolf Pack: Delta 1-8, would be the second team that would be joining Dark Signal for the mission. The ramp rose back up into place and we took off.

As we traveled the short distance to Poseidon, my com link activated as the image of Morales entered my HUD. He said, "Becket, we both know that this mission is all but suicidal. If wasn't, you would have taken us with you. We are all OD certified after all."

I replied, "I know. I don't want to get you guys killed for something that is not worth it. Is not that I don't think that you guys aren't capable...please understand."

He said, "Becket, you have been throwing yourself into harm's way to protect us since the incident at Mogadishu. It is okay man. We are soldiers too. We don't mind facing death with you."

I smiled slightly before I replied, "Manny, there will be a time when your bravery will be needed, but it is not today. If I don't make it back, you know what to do."

He said, "Don't talk like that man. It freaks us out when you do. Get back to us in one piece."

I replied, "I will try. Becket, out."

I deactivated my com link and, by that time, we had reached the aircraft carrier of Task Force One. Upon landing on the flight deck, the ramp lowered and we departed the Sea Knight. A Replica pilot was waiting for us and, after we had all exited the helicopter, led us over to the awaiting VL-O vehicle. Looking more like a subway car that had a rocket engine strapped to it, the VL-O vehicle was deceptively complex. Along with Ishimura, they were the most complex vehicles ever built by human beings. Their advanced systems were the pinnacle of technology then and even now.

For a launch from the carrier's deck, the vehicle was mounted atop a rail-mounted rocket sled on a hydraulic ramp. As we boarded the vehicle, Poseidon's captain stopped me. As we leaned in close to be able to hear each other, he informed me, "We sent a transmission to Ishimura, but if they are on the other side of the horizon, they might not be able to adjust their course to be able to meet up with you. If that is the case, the pilot will have to adjust the course manually to get to her. I hope that you have not eaten anything for a few hours."

I replied, "Don't worry Captain, I know better."

He nodded and then added, "God speed, sir."

I assured him, "Don't worry, Captain. Ours is watching my back."

He nodded again and then headed back towards the carrier's island. I turned and took the EVA suit from the awaiting Replica sailor. The suit was similar in function to the suits used by NASA, but these suits had the extra distinction of being combat certified. Upon receiving damage that pierced the outer layer of fabric, the suits would self-seal to prevent the wearer's death from depressurization. With the distinctive Replica green coloring and looking like bulkier variants of the standard Replica Trooper armor, the suits were specifically designed by ATC for the Replica Orbital Drop Troopers (RODT).

A flash came over my body and, almost instantly, my Dark Signal armor had been replaced by the RODT armor. Being the only non-Replica Trooper currently on the team, I was the only one that needed the suit.

Amara said, "But big brother isn't a Replica, Daddy."

I groaned before I replied, "Hey, who is telling the story? I was getting to that."

A flash came over my body and, almost instantly, my Dark Signal armor had been replaced by the RODT armor. Being the only non-Replica Trooper currently on the team, I was the only one that needed the suit. The rest of my team were biologically engineered to be able to withstand the forces that we were about to endure. Point Man was not a Replica, but, being an Origin Prototype, he also did not require the suit. After entering the cabin, which again looked like the inside of a subway car minus the human waste typically found in one and the fact that the seats were positioned so that the occupants faced forward, I located Alpha 1 and sat down next to him. I strapped myself into the seat as I prepared myself mentally for the coming ride. My brother looked at me for a moment before he commented, "You look good in that armor, brother."

I smirked beneath my armored helmet before I replied with a voice that was modified by the built-in voice modifier to sound like the standard Replica voice, "Are you kidding, I make any armor look badass."

He shook his head just in time for the hydraulic ramp to begin to elevate to approximately ninety-degrees in relation to the ship's deck. I heard the pilot say, "Running through pre-launch checklist. Cabin pressure, check. On-board oxygen mixture reading, check. Fuel system, check. Rocket-sled mooring clamps, check. Personnel locks..." At that moment, what looked similar to rollercoaster seat locks lowered down over us and locked us into place. The pilot continued, "Check. Navigation system, check. Flight controls, check. Checklist cleared. Poseidon, this is VL-O vehicle Saturn 1. Requesting permission to launch, over."

I heard the Replica sailor on the other end reply, "Permission granted Saturn 1."

The pilot said, "Poseidon, confirm declaration of permission granted for Saturn 1 to launch."

The Replica from the carrier replied, "Saturn 1, Poseidon confirms declaration of permission granted to launch."

The pilot said, "Confirmation received. Beginning launch sequence."

From outside, a loud siren began to sound and moments later, the vehicle began to vibrate as the sound of the rocket boosters on the sled as they prepared to ignite began to fill the air. The pilot announced, "Launch countdown commencing. Launching in...3...2...1...mark."

My stomach dropped as I was forced back into the specially designed seat. The rocket sled shot forward faster than a bullet fired from a gun and at the end of the ramp, the VL-O vehicle detached form the sled. As the clamps detached, the vehicle continued flying upwards until it was a safe distance from the carrier. Then, the rocket engine ignited and the VL-O shook as it powered its way upwards. Through the pilot's viewing port, I saw us pass through the white clouds of the atmosphere and then, seconds later, the blue hue turned into the pitch black background of space that was interrupted by the pattern of stars.

The shaking ceased as the pilot righted the vehicle to be horizontal with the Earth's surface and then began to navigate towards the Ishimura. Despite its huge size, it was still like metaphorically looking for a needle in a haystack. The large facility had its own locator beacon just because of that fact. Of course, it only transmitted the signal on a secure channel that only the Replicas and F.E.A.R. knew about. The rollercoaster-like locks raised up and we were free to move our arms. Sensing him sleeping, I said to Bravo 2, "Bravo 2, wake up Foxtrot 813."

I heard an elbow impact the trooper's armored chest and then the complaints of the awakened Replica Trooper as he claimed, "Hey, I was awake!"

Within a minute, the giant shape of Ishimura came into view was the Sun cast enough of a shadow against her olive green hull for her to be visible against the darkness of space. Not having personally seen the facility before, I was immediately overcome by a feeling of awe. The immense vehicle looked like a large, uppercase "L" that was orbiting the Earth horizontally with the bent end of the "L" pointed out into space and with the front end tapering to a rounded point. Beneath the long section of the vessel, what looked like metal supporting struts for the inner skeleton of a skyscraper ran along her hull at what looked like forty-five degrees with four on each rounded edge of her flat hull bottom. Meanwhile, starting from just aft of her front and continuing until just before her raised stern, what looked almost like protective buffers in the shape of fins extended out from her hull with six on either side. Just before her raised stern, what looked like large boxes were mounted to the side of her hull with one on each side. That must have been her oxygen processing/hydroponics deck.

As we neared the vehicle, I could see the bridge at the front of the long section of her hull. Its specially designed translucent viewing panels reflected the unfiltered ultraviolet rays to protect the commanding officers of Foxtrot Company. Bright blue running lights were shinning proudly in a universal pattern along her hull. As we got closer, I could make out the solar sails that were moored out in front of the vehicle by tethering cables. The sails allowed the vehicle to glide lazily around the Earth on the energy waves of the Sun to maintain its orbit and prevent decay. This way, the vehicle did not have to expend the massive on-board fuel tanks for the giant booster rockets that exited the exterior of the tall, rear, section of her hull.

As I took in the sheer visual impact of the magnificent vehicle, I had to admit, when Armacham was not treating people's lives like expendable lab rats, they had been capable of amazing feats of human achievement. It was no wonder why the Earth's governments had allowed Armacham to get away with the horrific crimes against nature and humanity for so long, since they had been capable of building something like this for no more reason than to allow their prototype Replica Army to perform orbital drops onto a battlefield.

Upon our approach, I heard the Commanding Replica for Foxtrot, Foxtrot 1, contact us. Foxtrot 1 said, "Saturn 1, we are tracking your approach. Proceed to Loading Bay Platform Three. How copy?"

Our pilot replied, "Solid copy, Ishimura. Beginning docking procedures."

Foxtrot 1 said, "Copy that, Saturn 1."

Slowly, we approached the giant vessel as we navigated towards the large loading bay located in a box looking rise out of the top of her hull about a quarter of the way down from her command bridge. As we neared the bay, the sealing hatch covers retracted to allow us access into the airlock. We entered the airlock and the hatch covers closed behind us. After a moment, the pressure was equalized and we were allowed access into the bay itself.

The interior of the bay was about the size of a football field. Unloading/loading platforms ran parallel from one end of the bay to the other. Our pilot navigated Saturn 1 over to the third one and, with a loud clang, we docked alongside it. I unbuckled myself from the seat and stood. After grabbing my gear bag from the cargo hold, I exited the vehicle with Alpha 1 behind me carrying his own bag. At the end of the gangplank, a Replica Trooper was waiting for us. Upon nearing him, the Trooper saluted me and then said, "Foxtrot 631, sir. On behalf of Foxtrot Company, welcome aboard the Ishimura, Commander Becket."

Despite the strange and unexpected chill that ran down my spine from the statement, I saluted back and then asked, "Pleased to be aboard, Foxtrot 631. Did Poseidon inform you about the nature of our visit?"

We began to walk towards the monorail system that allowed the crew to move quickly about the vessel. Foxtrot 631 said, "Yes sir. The OD systems are being calibrated as we speak."

I replied, "Very good."

As we continued towards the tram, I heard Foxtrot 813 call out to one of the crew, "Hey 812, you still trying to beat my high score in the simulator?"

I heard Foxtrot 812 reply, "Get stuffed 813, not everyone can be the prodigal son like you."

Foxtrot laughed briefly and then said, "I'm popular around here; you can probably tell."

By then, we had reached the monorail. We all piled into the monorail tramcar and began to make our way to the middle of the vessel where the orbital drop systems were located. As we traveled, I silently continued to marvel at the facility. It had its own gravity due to the on-board Gravity Centrifuge. It produced its own power due to the on-board generator that used what was called a gravity wheel, which was similar to a water wheel found on Earth, that caught the energy waves of the Sun like the solar sails out in front to turn the shaft of the electric generator that then supplied the vessel with power while also storing it in battery banks for use in emergency situations.

We reached the platform for the OD deck and disembarked. With Foxtrot 631 as our guide, we made our way to the heart of the vessel. Almost like a facility within a facility, the OD deck was devoted to the primary function of the orbiting platform. It was dominated by a large, open space that reminded me of a warehouse. Eight large, vertical, tube-like structures extended out to the exterior of the hull. These tubes were the launching devices from which the Drop Pods, which I had been told resembled the pods that Armacham had used in Paris, were sent planet-side. Pods that contained Power Armor units were loaded into the tube and then, using kinetic energy delivered by massive spring coils, the pods were launched from the tubes and towards the planet. Upon launching from the vessel, the pod's on-board guidance system ensured that the cargo landed within acceptable distance of the drop point.

In the middle of the space was a holographic emitter that was similar to the one on the bridge of Athena. As we neared it, I saw six standard Replica Troopers except they had green light coming from their visors, which signified that they were commando units. One of them approached me and saluted before he said, "Sir, Lieutenant Stokes requested that you would receive additional support." He motioned at himself and then at the other five troopers as he continued, "Six commando units: Foxtrot 1101, Foxtrot 1105, Foxtrot 1107, Foxtrot 1109, Foxtrot 1115, and Foxtrot 1120 awaiting your orders, sir."

I replied, "Glad to have you and your men with us Foxtrot 1101." Then, I asked, "So, are we all set?" He nodded and led me over to the emitter. There, I saw the layout of SHAPE headquarters. Surrounded by forests and with a road running between the buildings of the site, the area was smaller than the Auburn district of Fairport had been. At the end of the road that ran through the site was an old church that was a historical landmark. Three distinct landing zones had been marked on the layout. Dark Signal would land in the woods to the south of the site, Wolf Pack would land to the north, and the commando team would land near the church.

As I looked over the layout, Foxtrot 1101 informed me, "According to our sensors, enemy forces have backed off slightly in a possible temporary withdraw to regroup."

Alma materialized next to me in her child form as she suggested, "Or because Akira has already gotten to the commanders of NATO and SHAPE."

Foxtrot 1101 nodded at her in response. Next to me on the other side, Alpha 1 said, "Speaking of NATO, brother, we have to eliminate the defenders as well. They will contradict our official report and potentially cause the same problem that we are trying to eliminate. They all have to die."

I nodded my head in agreement before I said, "Agreed. Alright, mission is to proceed from the DZs to the site itself. Dark Signal will clear the buildings in the south, Foxtrot Team will clear the buildings in the west, and Wolf Pack will clear the buildings from the north. We will link up at the main building and Dark Signal will clear it while Wolf Pack and Foxtrot will set up a perimeter. After Dark Signal clears the building, transmission of the sensitive data or a purge of the data will commence. We will hold the area until it is complete. Then, we will fight our way to the front line for transport to Task Force One. We will need to travel light but strike hard gentlemen. Hooah?"

The troopers replied, "Hooah!"

As we all made our way to the tubes, Alma asked, "I thought it was ooah?"

I explained, "Jarheads say ooah. Army rats like me say hooah."

There was a cluster of four pods inside each tube that would detach from each other upon entry into Earth's atmosphere. I entered mine and closed the translucent pod hatch cover. After securing my gear in their respective slot, I pressed the button to indicate that I was ready. The end of the tube opened to reveal the blue light and white cloud atmosphere of Earth. However, a blood red cloud was noticeably spreading over the planet's surface and swallowing up the blue and white cloud cover. In a way, that reinforced my resolve. After a minute, a message appeared on the translucent pod hatch.

It said, "Launch countdown commencing."

Alpha 1 contacted me from one of the pods near mine, "Never done this outside a simulator. This should be interesting."

The message on the hatch became the number three.

Then, it became the number two.

Then, it became the number one.

Foxtrot 813 said, "Express elevator to Hell, going down!"

As he finished, I was forced back into the cushioned section of the pod as we were thrust out of the tube and towards the planet surface. After a moment, we detached from the temporary dock and as it fell away, our pods independently ignited their on-board rocket. Shaking so violently that I knew that if I had made the mistake of eating anything shortly beforehand, I would have vomited it all over the hatch, I watched as the blue of the atmosphere overtook my view. Shortly afterwards, my vision was overwhelmed by flames that had started to surround my pod as it punched its way through Earth's protective atmosphere.

Unable to see what I was falling towards, I watched the altitude indicator. Alma materialized beside me in her child form with a bored expression on her heart-shaped face. She sighed and then commented, "Humans...can spilt an atom but have to go to such extremes to be able to go to a specific spot on the planet that they have lived on for their entire existence." I gave her a questioning expression, which she sensed beneath my armored helmet. She said, "Just saying, not judging."

I shot her a look and she responded by giggling loudly in her creepy manner as she dissolved into a cloud of ash. My pod gave off a warning tone. Looking back at the altitude indicator, I saw that I was approaching the DZ. My training kicked in and I announced through my com link, "Replica Command, this is Commander Becket. Preparing for touchdown." Seconds later, my pod slammed into the ground.