COMBAT OUTPOST BYHILL, 2 KILOMETERS WEST OF KDARSAC, ORHLEAN ARCHIPELAGO, FARRACKGE - DAY 184, 0221 HOURS LOCAL TIME
"Unload! Get moving!"
Fox Company arrived two hours after midnight to their new base, and after a short formation, they hurriedly moved their duffel bags onto a pile before moving towards their supply trucks following behind.
The faster we finish this, the more time we'll get to rest. I bet our first patrol goes out tomorrow morning.
The lifter droids were the first one to take the supplies and the Marines followed the droids with anything they could put their hands and arms on. After they put the supplies down, they went back for another run. And another. And another. And another. And another.
By the time they had finished lifting, unpacking and setting up their heavy equipment and stowed their vehicles, it was past sunrise.
Not good. That means we have to go outside the wire with no sleep.
The transpo Marines had already left with their repulsortrucks. Now it's just them. 1LT Fletcher stood out in the middle of the Marines sitting down near their vehicles, flanked by two other Marines that Kat didn't recognize. "Alright, Marines! Get your gear and follow these Marines," he gestured to the two, "They will be leading you towards your barracks. Within ten minutes, they will be leading you to the briefing room. Further information will be available then. Dismissed." He waved everyone off.
Everyone made their way to the duffel pile. The first ones arriving that didn't already find theirs picked up the top bags and called out their owners names before setting it down off the pile and continued the search.
Kat looked through the bags. "Xand!". She picked up another one. "CPL Wolverton!" She picked up another one. "Caford!" Where is mine?" "Rhyss!" Please let this be the last one…. Got it!
She picked up one, and thankfully her other duffel was next to it. She slung both on her shoulders and started to gather with her platoon. 2LT Cavell was at the head, almost fully healed from his injuries earlier. Rumour has it that he had been put in for a medal for the leadership and courage under fire during the action that wounded him, but that was only scuttlebutt. GYSGT Wojhee was beside him, talking about things that she was sure she isn't privy to.
After a short wait, they were escorted to their new barracks. Kat took a look around their new base. It was similar to their old one, except a lot smaller.
"Not a lot of room to escape if anything happens. Seems like this place could only fit a couple of companies and then some. It's not FOB Apalis. I don't see a PX, or holocall or mailing center. If things are already bare back then, imagine how it's like here…"
The door opened on their new home. Thankfully, it was a squad to a room,and the size didn't differ from their last place - thankfully.
They quickly stowed their gear and waited outside their rooms. Finally, the host Marines led them to the briefing room - which could only fit a couple of platoons on a good day, so they all sat down on the deck, with officers up front.
CPT Vlogel stepped onto the small podium. Close by is 1LT Fletcher and the company first sergeant, 1SGT Alfer Bohn.
"Huh. Now that's a face you rarely get to see."
A company first sergeant is supposed to be the leader of the enlisted Marines in the company and serve as a gateway between the platoon leader and the enlisted. Unfortunately for Fox Company, it seems that their first sergeant seems to delegate her duties to the company master gunnery sergeant, MGYSGT Nahasi Tyree.
"I miss 1SGT Hayko. But he's not coming back, is he? And MGYSGT Tyree isn't of much help either. If anyone were to ask me, I think GYSGT Wojhee should be the company's master guns. But that's above my pay grade…"
"Attention Marines! Good morning!" "They all straightened up. "Good morning, sir!" "We're here because command has put us here in COP Byhill for a special role. First of all, let's talk about our fellow inhabitants. It's no Apalis, but we're not alone. We'll be sharing our outpost here with a company-sized Army unit, Grek Company of the 198424nd Force Assistance Brigade alongside two detachments of Army Special Forces."
The word "Special Forces" kick-started murmurs of conversation. Everyone has heard of Havoc Squad and their exploits, but everyone in the Republic military knew there were sent on some of the most high-profile missions available as special forces. Even then, they knew there was a lot of black lines on their operational records.
The scariest ones are the units they didn't even know existed.
"Alright now, don't get excited!" boomed CPT Vlogel as he slammed his right fist into the podium. "They have a section of the outpost all for their own. That place is OFF LIMITS for all Fox Company Marines! If my words won't scare you, perhaps the auto turrets and guard droids will… And I won't shed a tear if you get ganked near their territory." He knife-handed all of them.
"Don't talk to or interact with them unless they do so first, and we'll be just fine with them." he growled.
"Next up - let's talk about our roles in the AO. It will still be the same as always. Patrolling, getting to know the local population, root out any anti-Republic activity, provide a bit of stability, help our allies, the usual,"
Vlogel rubbed his chin. "However, now that we're closer, we are to also act as a quick reaction force for any major incidents in our AO. We are the closest infantry unit to Kdarsac. So our shift rotation will be as follows - One platoon on patrol, one platoon on Quick Reaction Force standby, one platoon on preventive checks and maintenance (PMCS) duties or guard duty, and one at rest at all times. Shifts are 8 standard hours except for rest, which will be nine hours. All of this is subject to change based on conditions and missions." He took a look at Fox Company before continuing.
"Now that we've got that out of the way, Weapons Company, you'll be first out the wire." Kat heard whispers of protest. "Weapons, gear and vecs ready in one standard hour from the end of this briefing. I'll be conducting weapons and uniform inspection." The whispers turned into silent groans. "Follow the previous patrol route to start. 1st Platoon, half to PMCS, the other half to guard duty. 2nd Platoon, QRF. 3rd Platoon, rest for 9 hours. That is all Marines, dismissed."
Kat was relieved. She sluggishly got up and tried to make a beeline towards her squad hooch. All she wanted right now was to collapse on her bunk and recharge.
8 HOURS AND 45 MINUTES LATER - 1810 HOURS LOCAL TIME
That sleep was one of the best Kat had in a long, long time. Sure, the hooch smelled stank and the prefabricated building somehow didn't have a lot of flowing air, bit it didn't matter. She woke feeling as fresh as a spring field.
The first person she saw after sitting up in her bunk was PFC Caford. He was sitting cross-legged on the floor, cleaning his weapon. "Excited to go outside the wire, huh?" "No, just wanted to avoid the ire of Captain Vlogel. I don't need that trash before going out on patrol." "Bit of a hound, Vlogel, ain't hl?"he drawled. "Yeah. Seemed pretty uptight for someone who rarely does any actual work. Barely good for a soldier, let alone an officer." "You think he's going to get someone directly killed?" Kat bristled at the thought.
She didn't dare to push the subject. "You know what let's not talk about him." Yeah, not wasting my energy on him either." An awkward silence followed for a moment. "You're from Hutt Space, am I right, Caford?" "Yes. Hutta - the brain of it all," "Brain?" Kat raised an eyebrow. "Yeah. Nar Shaadaa is where the fun and frantic stuff is, so that's the heart. But the smartest and most powerful Hutt lords lead their clans and businesses there." he explained passionately, though she detected a hint of bitterness.
"Your parents were in the… no offense- underworld business, right?" Caford laughed heartily. "None taken! I've been called worse growing up! But yes, my father was a mid-level muscle for some Hutt called Karjo Turrgosh and my mother was a bartender at one of the cantinas she owned."
"How did you end up in the Republic? I don't believe it's easy to escape… such as life." Hunter's eyes moistened, with a sudden flash of anger. " I was twelve, doing work inside Karjo's palace one day. One of his mid-level lieutenants came up to me and offered me one of those nectar sweets from Alderaan. Being from Hutta we don't get a lot of that, so I jumped at it," He closed his eyes, clenched his jaw and took a deep breath.
Oh no. I think I made a big mistake.
"She whispered 'Don't tell you parents or anyone else about this, or I'll kill them all', and put her hands on me. It was revolting and I tried to get away. I head-butted her in the face and ran off. I yelled back 'You're done!' She laughed and said 'Only in your dreams!' It was the most evil laugh I ever heard,"
Kat felt like punching herself in throat for opening his old wounds. That must've hurt to even remember again. Dammit! "Hunter, I'm sorry for what happened to you. You didn't deserve that." Kat put a hand on his shoulder. "Oh, no worries about it, Kat, but SHE got what she deserved. My father beat her to within an inch of her life, then shot her between her eyes and strung her up for all to see." He grinned, his shining white teeth constrasted between his dark skin and brown eyes.
"But we knew we were in trouble then, and we got ourselves smuggled into Republic space. My father turned himself into the nearest Enforcement Corps station. T'was a rough few weeks of detaining, but after he spilled everything he knew, he was able to stay out of prison. He got a job with the Enforcement Corps, and we moved to Coruscant to combat the Black Sun. He had a hand in a lot of the operations. My mother went and got herself educated, something she never got to do."
"Sounds like a decent ending." "Decent enough. My father always thought his past would catch up with him, and he was right. He was assassinated at the edge of Black Sun turf. I was angry at first, but my father always said, "We're alive and as safe as we could be after what we went through. Let's make the best of it.' And so that's why I'm trying to do right now, even in the middle of all this. Keep my head up, you see?"
"That explains your attitude. I bet your father is very proud of you." "I know he is. Thanks for the talk, Kat… Never talked to another Marine about this… Feels good," "Isn't that what friends are for?" They grinned at each other." "Come on, let's get some chow before they call us up for something." He roughly nudged her shoulder as he got up to take his gear.
They made their way to the mess hall, with Xand in tow. They took a look of the base - combat outposts (COPs) are designed to hold two companies maximum and some, compared to forward operating bases (FOBs) that could hold at least a battalion at minimum.
At FOB Apalis they had an Aerospace Force gunship squadron, a couple of Marine attack flights and a Marine mechanized battalion. At COP Byhill, they had a non-combat company and a couple of Army Special Forces squads. Fox Company had bought mortars for their weapons platoon, but they knew most of the time, the weapons would sit gathering dust, covered in their pits.
Worst of all was that they were in indirect fire range, and with their rules of engagement, they can't just fire back at will. Their best chance was to call in air support. But air support was ten minutes away. In heavy, all out combat, ten minutes could be too long for them.
We're supposed to hunker down and take it? Ridiculous.
They heard the distance rapid pops of gunfire. Someone could have fired shots in celebration. Or shot target practice. Or got into a gunfight. Or killed a pro-Republic local milita member. Or murdered an innocent civilian.
"I don't feel good about this." "You're starting to feel it now?" asked Caford. "I mean, I don't feel safe, even within the walls of this outpost. Back at the FOB, at least there's distance between us and the… enemy. Here, we'd be lucky if we got shot at once a day," she scowled. "We just got here, Xand. We've got the whole tour to see for ourselves." replied Kat.
WATCHTOWER 1, COMBAT OUTPOST BYHILL, 2410 HOURS LOCAL TIME
Kat was struggling to stay awake as she kept watch in the tower. There is a mini autoturret on the roof, and a guard droid with her, but she didn't trust them. Not one bit. The only thing she could trust was herself and her gear.
She was well rested, but staring into the small clearing and the forest that lay beyond it was numbing her out. The enemy could just put snipers and rockets in the treetops, but I think we'll see them with our optics before then.
Her fellow platoon members Rhyss, Caford, Argyll, Ferhal, Xand Ekari, Ioper'tamle Ceanlabeag, Jar'kal'lu, all were in similar towers, watching out for enemies. The rest were either in the platoon command post or resting before their shift.
She checked her chrono. 1 hour to go. Let this hour pass by as quick as a storm… Her mind started to wander as she took a swig from her back-mounted hydration system, eyes never looking down.
Maybe I should write to my boot camp and academy friends. I wonder how C'alee and Aikern are doing? I think they should be long at their first unit right now. And how about Izzac, Beeral and Jorvy? Have they also been in combat? Have they killed anyone? Have they been wounded, or God of Gods forbid, dead? It's been too long since I communicated with them. Too damn busy, but it's funny how I start remembering now, during this time. This damn watch-
She found herself on the ground before she realized why. The shot's echo rang through the forest. "Falcon 3-Concord, this is Fauwcon - I think I'm taking sniper fire, over," "Falcon 3-Concord, solid copy - can you identify where it came from, over?" Dammit Cavell. I'd be dead if I rose my head up again. The droid with her readied its weapon, scanning it's surroundings to search the offending adversary.
She rose her head up slowly, taking care to make sure she is in a slightly different position than before. Another shot rang out again. She felt the slightest knock on her back, and let herself fall down with an "oof!".
I'm dead, I'm gone. Nothing I could do about it now-
Wait, I'm not in pain or in shock… Why does my back feel wet? Is it my own blood?
She reluctantly opened her eyes and looked at her lower half. There was no blood or wound to be seen. She started feeling around her body, running her fingers above the gear pouches, just in case. Her fingers could feel wetness on her back. It finally clicked.
Damn scum hit my water pouch! I'm staying down. I don't think I'll be lucky if I go up again.
She laid herself against the tower wall as the droid next to her fell down. Its lights flickered and sparks flew out of the bullet holes. Yes… I made a good decision. Then she heard the sound of energy weapons. Someone was returning fire. "All Falcon-3 callsigns, this is Outlander. Returning fire on suspected enemy sniper, over," the radio chirped. Get them, Bea!
She rose and followed Argyll and her allies' shots. Kat was right, the enemy was in the treetops, this one about 300 meters away. She had emptied half a magazine when two explosions rocked the enemy position. The blast polluted the starred night sky.
Trees shattered, with one falling over, and splinters and shrapnel flying through the air, lodging itself in the ground, tree trunks and roots and any solid it found itself in. Thankfully, none reached their relatively faraway position.
"Falcon 3,this is Falcon 4-Concord. Hope you enjoyed our delivery, over," radioed 1LT Sioc gleefully. Kat grinned widely - Looks like Weapons Platoon will get to use their big guns after all.
"Falcon 4, this is Falcon 3-Concord. It's a hell of a present."
The members of 3rd Platoon who weren't already on watch were sent out to do battle damage assessment and confirm their newest kill.
The adrenaline flowing through her body subsided, and she collapsed on her back, spilt water be damned.
That… was a close call.
ROUTE "OPRAONA", NORTH KDARSAC, - DAY 185, 1307 HOURS LOCAL TIME
Kat took glances at the multiple buttons of the steering wheel, but mostly, she kept her eyes on the road. She preferred having potshots taken at her than drive - but thankfully, that day she rode shotgun with CPL Lee Gavenairgd, the reserved and studious squad slicer. They had never taken this route while on patrol before.
Then, a long-waited order came over the radio from CPT Vlogel… "Halt the convoy, we're dismounting, out." "Well, enjoy your time with the skipper," Gavenaigrd drily remarked as the occupants exited. Everyone from every vehicle, minus the driver and turret gunner got out and took up columns on the flanks of the vehicles.
They all knew the drill by now - knock on doors politely, ask the civilians politely about suspicious activity, and if the Marines suspected them of being suspicious, they were to not-so-politely search every person, every being and everything in their house. It was more police duty than a warfighter's duty, but orders are orders.
SGT Lovell signalled his squad to move up to CPT Vlogel. Almost everyone in 3rd Platoon had silently whined and groaned when he told them that he would be accompanying them on that patrol shift, but no one dared to even suggest to him to not follow along - his ensuing rage wasn't worth it.
They were also joined by a group of six Republic Army soldiers - led by a Captain, with a Master Sergeant, Staff Sergeant and two Specialists in tow. Kat looked at their full-bodied plastoid armor,a mix of T-visored full-face and low-cut open-faced helmets and overloaded battle belts. She always thought Army Soldiers, with its often clashing mix of uniforms and lack of plate carriers, looked comical.
Hey, if it works for… three quadrillion soldiers, who am I to say anything? It's not the Marines.
3rd Platoon was briefed that they were to survey the civilian population for "any information that could advance the counter-insurgency operation". Kat thought that was all vague nonsense.
The rest of the platoon set up a security cordon around the convoy. 3rd Squad got themselves ready to search the house. As breacher, Kat was usually first or second in the door. The door whooshed open and they entered. CPT Vlogel and the army soldiers moved up front alongside Kat. The building was run down, with no signs of recent maintenance. Small pieces of garbage lined the floor. Tiny, illegible cribblings in Aurebesh and foreign scripts decorated the walls.
They reached the first dwelling in the building. They rang the door annunciator, and waited, weapons down. A male Chagrian stood in the doorway, his face turning into shock as he saw the fully armored Soldiers and Marines. "We are Galactic Republic forces - we would like to ask you a few questions. May we come in?" asked the Army CPT. "Of course," his voice had the slightest hint of shakiness.
They slowly entered the room, the Marines fanning out, just in case. The Army Captain took his helmet, his high-regulation cut blue hair popping against his deep brown skin. He gestured the Chagrian to sit down opposite him on a couche. "My name is Captain Blaogu Sgoddeier from the Republic Army, and I would like to ask you a few questions… Firstly, what is your name?" "Nouke," he hesitantly trembled his lips.
The Marines started scanning the dwelling. They were not to search further unless the scans indicated it is needed - a method of not escalating and keeping the peace between the Republic forces and the native civilians. It was better than ransacking someone's home, furniture nd belongings.
The scans showed nothing. Not on Kat's optics, and neither on others. Kat returned to the living room.
"Can you tell me what you need?" she heard Captain Sgoddeier ask soothingly. "We need peace. An end to the violence. A good leader." "We are trying to give this planet that," reasoned Sgoddeier. "Then you Pubs should leave," "I don't think that's possible, but is there anything else you we could help you with? Did you see any violent armed men recently?" "No, no… They all live in the next building." he gestured down the street.
Kat silently scoffed. She'd heard of that answer before.
"Is this true?" "I… I think...so… Captain," the Captain stroked his goatee in thought. "Thank you for telling us. I assure you, you'll be kept anonymous and confidential. We stop at many houses as we can - you'll be safe." he assured. "That's what the previous soldiers said. I hope it's true." Sgoddeier ignored him, put on his helmet and started moving towards the door.
They repeated the process, on random houses of every block and on every street on their patrol route. And on every being. There were a diversity of reactions to the sight of the troopers.
"Get off our planet!"
"My sister is an informant! Go arrest her!"
"My house doesn't have any clean water pipes."
"They blew up the network tower last week!"
"My son got shot at last week! Was it you?"
"The previous soldiers murdered my husband! You're all savages!"
"We had armed beings murder my friends cousin! Why didn't you 'Pubs stop them?"
"My neighbor hates Republic, I see him talkin' to dangerous men, see?"
They reached the final dwelling and knocked. Kat took a deep breath. She was already too tired, drenched in sweat and hungry - all she ate was a ration pack. She wanted to go back and take a short nap.
The door opened, and they entered. A Ubdurian female greeted them. She beckoned them in, as if she had done it a thousand times before. As Kat stood guard, she saw an Ubdurian man and three Ubdurian younglings in the kitchen. The man glared at her, then spoke to the younglings in a foreign language before joining the female in the living room.
"What do you want?" the female asked in Basic. "We just want to know if you have seen anything out of the ordinary around here," CPT Sgoddeier gestured. "I suggest you tell us the truth if you want things to be better for you." CPT Vlogel interjected irritably, arms crossed.
Way to go, Captain. Make these people hate us even more.
"Captain, I suggest you let me handle this… My apologies, we're all a bit tired here. But my partner is right - we are here to help you to the best of our abilities," "Last night, we did see… something strange," said the man. "Which is…?" Vlogel asked, slightly toning down his condescendance. He and the female squirmed for a while, then spoke up.
"Me and my wife were… how do you say this… getting ready for bed, when I saw this red glow from the window. I stopped what I was doing and ran over. I saw the glow move, then disappear behind a building. Seconds later, I heard a scream," he darted his eyes around in fear.
Kat tensed up. She felt her heart palpitating again. She started to breathe in slowly, count to four, then exhaled. She settled into the routine as the questions continued.
"Can you show me where you saw this from?" asked CPT Vlogel. "Of course. Right this way," said the female. "Merrick, please accompany me," called Vlogel. "Aye, Captain," Kat and Vlogel followed the female into the dwelling's main bedroom. It was a typical Farrackgean couple's bedroom. There was one window. "That's where my husband saw it. I also saw the glow, but only for a moment. At that building over there." She pointed to a building half a kilometer away.
The distance and height of the dwelling from the bulding meant that anything that could be seen must've meant whatever was emitting the glow must be decently large. Larger than a blaster bolt, at least. "Did you hear the scream, too?" "Yes, but it sounded far away," "I see… Thank you," They returned to the living room.
After CPT Vlogel discussed his findings with CPT Sgoddeier, the latter turned to the couple and assured, "Thank you, so much, for being so brave to share this information with us. We'll ensure your anonymity and safety. We'll be leaving now. Take care," he signalled for everyone to leave.
They stepped out of the building and into the vehicles, and punched in the coordinates to their newfound lead. When they arrived, they set a security cordon, 3rd Squad being among them. 1st Squad scoured and scanned the building and its surroundings for any clues.
Kat took the opportunity to hydrate herself, and waited, hoping that nothing will happen and they could go home. Home! A hot musty bunk where I have to sleep with fourteen others in the same room with weapons and gear. Some home!
1st Squad returned. She asked LCPL Ourgrei Coohass, the platoon medic, "Did you find anything?"
He drew in closer to her. "No dead body, but we got a lightsaber mark on one of the walls. I think we got a Sith in our AO."
It was a miracle Kat didn't pass out right there and then.
AUTHOR'S NOTES
Well, this is a looooongggg one! It's to make up for the past shorter chapters, I guess.
Anyways, as always, constructive comments and criticism is appreciated! :DD
