Chapter Two
Luke Air Force Base, Arizona
10:00AM
"Well here comes her plane, little sis, Sandra said as she and her sister, Agent Ashley Hayes of the FBI watched as the Gulfstream touched down on the runway.
"I hope Selina isn't jetlagged because we got a very serious situation on our hands," Ashley replied then adjusted her sunglasses.
"Oh I'm sure she's primed for action, Ashley."
"Yeah. And thanks for saving her from that situation in the alley last night. But did your men really have to shoot the club manager too.
"He was willing to stand by and watch Selina get her head blown off, so he was just as bad as the rest of them."
"If I was in your place on the comms last night, I would've ordered the team to drop the fatass holding the gun to her head and the two guys holding her down. I bet the manager would've bolted back into the club if you gave him the chance."
"You know how my guys are, once they get a bead on you, lights out forever."
"Our shooters are top notch too. Some of them are even former military. I bet a shooting match between our guys and yours would probably end in a tie."
"Hmm, hard to say since with the exception of your director and the other federal agents like yourself assigned to this unit under dual employment status, the rest of the FBI doesn't even know we exist."
A few seconds later, the plane came to a stop on the tarmac in front of them.
"Showtime," Ashley said as the cabin door opened. Selina stepped out dressed in full tactical gear and carrying a duffle bag. She looked down the ladder and smiled at the two individuals waiting for her.
"Ashley, Sandra."
"Hey, Selina," they replied in unison.
"Instead of walking, Selina opted to hop the railing and slide down hoping it would make her arrival more stylish. Ashley was just to compliment her on her landing, but she was cut off when Selina rushed her for a hug.
"It's been quite a while, Ashley. How have you been?"
"Pretty good, my number one cat. Pretty good, and Agent George Anderson is now Special Agent George Anderson. Selina took a step back to absorb the news.
"Wait a minute, my step-brother got promoted and he didn't even tell me. Okay, once we're done with the business in this… what state am I in anyway?"
"Arizona, Selina and welcome to Luke Air Force Base. Notice anything new about me?"
Selina studied Sandra for a moment. She was still wearing the same Army multicam uniform when she Ashley, and Bruce joined her for lunch at the Pentagon during their vacation in DC, and judging by the unit badge below her American flag patch, she was still assigned to the Military District of Washington DC. Then she noticed the new rank tab that was now in place of the eagle insignia. It consisted of a single star.
"Well, well, Brigadier General Sandra Hayes. Congrats."
"Thank you, Selina. Now we got to head over to the ops center because we got some serious work to do."
"To the SUV then," Selina said then the trio headed towards the waiting Chevy suburban. Ashley, is George still at the Minneapolis field office?"
"Yes."
"After this op, I am going to call him and have a word about this indiscretion."
"Go easy on him when you do, Cat. He probably forgot to send you the memo before he got caught up the party Team M threw to celebrate."
"Yet he found the time to tell you," Selina replied before hopping into the vehicle. Ashely took the wheel and Sandra choose shotgun.
"So do u want to be briefed now or at the spot?" Sandra asked.
"I'll wait till we get to the spot. Tell me a little about this base."
"This is the primary training ground for F-16 and F-35 pilots. Though it's starting to become more F-35 centric since they'll be replacing the F-16s as they become more available. There's a nice big row of them on your left. Have a look."
Selina looked out her window and saw dozens of fighters parked under a set of awnings.
"Cool looking planes."
"That would be understatement, Selina. The F-35 is the pinnacle of strike fighters. So how are things between you and Bruce?"
"We've had our ups and downs, but we're still cool. As in together if that's what you're wondering. He's out of the country right now, globetrotting with Alfred. Whatever that means."
"It's just a fancy word for traveling, Selina. The latest satellite feeds puts them in the Himalayas. I also got guys on the ground watching over them from the shadows and in place at the other stops on Bruce's travel log."
"I got a pretty good idea on how you got that, but I am not going to ask."
"It was a really no brainer. By the way, you took a big risk trying to rob that club last night."
"Surplus income, General."
"If you get through this op, you will be rewarded with a hefty check I assure you."
"A rich cat is a happy cat," Selina replied then Ashley made a sharp left before coming to a stop in front of the HQ building. A guard was already holding the door open for them.
A few minutes later, they walked into the operations room. Selina noticed that half of the consoles were already being manned by Sandra's people while the rest were manned by Air Force officers dressed in either Air Battle Uniforms or green flight suits. One of the ABU wearing officers, a Major General by the looks of it and a Division Nineteen operative approached them.
"General Hayes. All personnel not authorized for this operation have cleared the room."
"Thank you, sir. Selina Kyle this is Major General Duggan, the base commander."
"So you're the new operative she has told me about?"
"Yep and this my first assignment," Selina replied after shaking his hand.
"Well happy hunting once you get into the field."
"Thanks," Selina replied then Duggan turned back to Sandra. "This room along with all assets on this base are now yours."
"Thank you," Sandra said then Duggan turned and left the room.
"Why did he just relinquish control of this base to you, Sandra?" Agent Hayes asked.
"As the head of Division Nineteen, I operate under presidential authority. Any base we happen to run an operation out of becomes our base. I told Selina that on the last day of her training. I saved this little piece of info as a surprise for you, little sis."
"Well consider me surprised."
"Colonel Calvin, are we set?"
"Yes, ma'am."
"Right this way, Selina," Sandra said then they headed over to one of the flatscreens where Selina hopped into one of the chairs. Ashley sat in the one next to her. Sandra picked up the clicker and brought up the Image of what appeared to be a desolate airport for small planes.
"This is Facility Forty-Five. A top secret research facility located forty miles east of Glendale. Wayne Enterprises and the DOD conduct many secret joint projects here, but last night at approximately twenty-two thirty local time, something went wrong." Sandra moved the mouse over to an audio file at the bottom of the screen and pressed play.
"The specimens are lose, the specimens are lose. Security teams are getting slaughtered. The things are spreading like wildfire. Lockdown protocol initiated. I repeat, lockdown protocol initi-."
"That was all we got. When attempts to reestablish communications with the facility failed, we sent in a team of Army Rangers to investigate the incident and rescue any survivors. They never made it back to the surface."
"Wayne Enterprises, secret projects. This sounds a lot like Indian Hill, with the creepy factor upped by twenty," Selina commented.
"But this time, you will be going in much more prepared," Ashley said.
"Agent Kyle, your mission is to get in there and find out what the hell happened and rescue any survivors. We will be monitoring your progress VIA helmet cam."
"Got it, Sandra. But didn't the Rangers have headcams too?"
"They did, but there was some mysterious interference with the feeds before we lost them."
"Hmm, this is definitely going to be more creepier than Indian Hill. But nothing I can't handle."
"That's the spirt, Selina," Ashley said.
"So how will I be getting in there?"
"You'll hitch a ride on the Pave Hawk waiting outside. Once you're on the ground, I'll guide you to the entry point where you'll enter the access code."
"Got it. Just out of curiosity Ashley, why aren't you coming along for the fun? You're part of this unit too."
"True, but Director Grey wanted me in a supervisory role for this op. Whenever the U.S. military conducts an op on home soil, somebody from a domestic agency has to be around to verify that everything was done by the book. Even units that don't exist need supervision."
"Humph, like hell we do," Sandra replied.
"Interesting. Well, time to gear up."
With that, Selina set her bag on a nearby table and unzipped it. She pulled out her M9 Beretta, checked it, loaded it than stuffed into the holster on her thigh then she pulled out her two favorite guns. A FN-P90 personal defense weapon and an F-2000 assault rifle.
"Since I am once again dropping into the super unknown, the F-2000 will be weapon of choice for this mission," Selina said then proceeded to take it apart to inspect its parts. She checked all of her weapons on the plane twice, but Sandra taught her to always check her weapons three times before a mission.
Satisfied, she put it back together then stuffed a magazine in the chamber and eight more in her lower vest pockets. Next up was the thirty millimeter grenade rounds for the underbarrel launcher. She pulled out six of them and put one of them in the launcher and the rest in her upper vest pockets. She also had a couple of nine-bangers too.
After checking her helmet cam and making sure her knee and elbow pads were on tight, she put her helmet on and said she was good to go.
"Before you set out Selina, I have one more thing to give you." Sandra said then told Calvin to bring the bag over.
"What is it?"
"Remember that thing you test fired at Aberden?"
"You mean that Black Lancer Railgun?"
"Yep, and today's your lucky day," Sandra replied as she unzipped it. All of your recommendations were included in the final product. Just keep it in the case until you need it. Hopefully you won't have to use it."
"We shall see."
With the Black Lancer case on her back, Selina picked up her rifle and headed out to the chopper.
AN. If you're wondering how Selina ended up with a step-brother, look back to the Rightful Wayne Heir by Fanwriter83.
