XCOM: Omega Six
Chapter Two
The noise of the fighting had subdued leaving only the gushing wind but Patrick hardly paid attention to it while his mind was wondering on the chemical cocktail running through him.
What are we doing here?
Someone had asked that question at one point during the first briefing we got when we arrived at HQ. After arriving at the base after two days of traveling they immediately frisked us to the Situation Room and the Commander explained the whole deal to us. What we had been told so far when we had signed up was that we'd be a part of a top secret combat team to deal with 'special missions'. None of the recruiters explained me what that really meant and I didn't ask – target elimination, sabotage, hostage rescue, direct action, the list of ops merely depends on how much on the imagination of who's giving the orders – as well as their determination. I didn't ask either about which organization I'd be working to. Officially I'd still be attached and operating under my current unit but in reality I'd disappear from sight for the duration of the assignment – again standard procedure and the whole thing sounded more like a special task force that no one would heard about unless there was a major screw up or our target was big enough to appear on the media.
There were three others on the executive jet that flew us from the continental US to Lagos with a stop over on Hawaii – the crew only told us our destination halfway into the Pacific. We all met together on the Denver airport and despite being both in civilian dress Master Sergeant Rollins and myself had immediately recognized one another with a mutual nod at the private gate since we had operated together before but the other two passengers were obviously civilians. They presented themselves but everyone kept quiet during most of the flight until I heard the Lagos announcement and curiosity kicked in enough for me to spy on their desktops while they were working. One seemed to be mostly concerned with playing computer games during the travel but became clear that he was some sort of computer engineer. The second one was a scientist of some sort – probably biotechnology from the documents displayed on her laptop, which made me even more curious... and also a bit afraid.
Too many things starting to sound bad: it was obvious Rollins had gone completely 'black' – until I had seen him he had been reported and listed as KIA. Then Africa as our destination. And finally the bio tech stuff – most likely there was a situation going bad over there and related with biological weapons, either theirs or ours, or worse, another epidemic about to turn into a global pandemic. Why else? Well, as the Commander had pointed out to us after presenting himself on the briefing, apparently to investigate and fight alien invaders from outer space. Not with this precise words but with the same meaning.
After landing on Lagos we had to wait for several hours as more personnel arrived, apparently also in transit to the operation until we boarded a helicopter with blue U.N. markings. With the exception of the two civilians it quickly became clear that all the other arrivals were combat personnel, either by their words or the way that they moved and acted while on the terminal or boarding the helicopter. And from literally everywhere: not only from NATO and other US allies and friends but also from China, Russia, India, South America and Africa.
Dora was the first to talk during the flight. She got bored with the long helicopter journey and at one point decided to introduce himself personally and try to start a conversation in the middle of all the cabin noise – most of us didn't reply to her, some like Quang clearly ignoring her, since it became clear she was the rookie in this sort of missions. Usually everyone prefers to stick to themselves until they know who to trust and the situation was clearly strange and uneasy to everyone. The only one who talked back to her was Gunnar. The rest were left wondering about our final destination like myself or worried about something else.
The helicopter had quickly flew away from the military airbase where we had landed and eastwards into the Nigerian interior, overflying settlements until the delta of the Niger river was replaced by hilly terrain until at one point the helicopter stopped and landed on a valley where we were told to get out with our bags and wait. After it flew off a truck came by, only this time the military personnel was wearing green jumpsuits with a shield shaped insignia with an X crossed over a globe and stars and the words "VIGILO CONFIDO" on top.
Again, no explanations, no names, be driven off to whatever surprise was ahead. We were lead to a elevator accessible through an concealed entrance close to the hilltop and while descending I suddenly realized that the entire hill had been probably dug up, most likely already using natural caves.
A hidden subterranean base on the middle of Africa being run by a secret international unit? By then everyone was feeling a bit uneasy, although looking at both civilians I realized they actually seemed satisfied and unsurprised unlike all the soldiers present. Most likely they knew more than use since they'd be harder to leave all their work and move to here – after all, for us, it was merely more leg work, for them it meant their academic careers.
By then we soldiers had spent the time mostly trying to figure out the group. Mostly males and senior NCOs but also including some officers, and all seemed active combat personnel judging from their fitness and previous assignments. We had about enough personnel to form a squad so we'd be looking at small unit operations, most likely smash and grab, kill, etc. But to what propose it was the question on my head on the way down.
After a few seconds the large lift stopped and after the doors were open we were lead through a massive empty hangar and through the non-functional yet Mission Control, then up a flight of metal stairs with rubber coating and into a large room which had been furnished with cafeteria chairs while the base's senior personnel were waiting for our arrival by a large table.
A world projection was displayed on the central monitor, with two lit rows of country names on its sides grouped by continents. The shield insignia was present over central Africa and I assumed it marked the location of this facility. We were ordered to sit on the chairs deployed in rows and then the CO started gave his name and started to explain what was happening using the projection displays installed on the Situation Room.
Last year a secret Council made of of sixteen of the world's nations had decided to update and activate a covert U.N. project designed to covertly investigate and stop any possible or current extraterrestrial incursion on Earth. According to him a number of 'incidents' had happened in the past that had alarmed enough the U.N. to come up with such a plan and while there was no real evidence documented the threat had recently become considered serious enough for the activation of the XCOM project, although it would take some time before we'd be operational. At this point he asked for questions and Dora was the first to raise her voice: "Sir, what we'll be doing exactly?"
Well, according to him, the Council didn't want to admit to the public that UFOs actually may be real since no one had any idea of who they are and what they want, it would be the job of XCOM, and us, to find out about the 'aliens' and determine and stop their intentions since so far there had been no attempt on the part of the occupants of those craft for peaceful communication. And if we detected any aliens on Earth then we'd deploy a small squad ahead of any national or local military and law enforcement forces to locate and evaluate the threat and engage it if necessary.
The barrage of questions started a moment after our brains had digested most of what we had heard.
"Commander, how are you so sure of the aliens' existence, sir?"
The Commander asked Dr. Vahlen to answer that question and she led us through a brief presentation of the available evidence. I had never paid any attention to UFO reports before or thought about alien life and quite honestly they should all go to hell or elsewhere and I don't think any of us was much convinced: images of radar tracks, footage of flying craft that can't be traced to any country of Earth.
There were questions about the stories of people being abducted by aliens or what they might look like but on that matter she simply discarded any possibilities considering those reports unreliable or from people wanting to get attention. As she finished off saying that if there were real alien abductions it was also more likely that none of the abductees ever escaped and came back, and if anyone had missed her expression turning dark to get the meaning, the Commander spell it out quite clearly after her: "And if they aren't trying friendly then we need to prepare for the worst."
"But have we tried contacting them, yes?" Ichikawa's voice had risen slightly above the others. The paratrooper from Japan towered over nearly everyone present in the room even though he was seated like the others.
"They are clearly not interested, soldier". Dr. Vahlen had taken the lead in answering many of the questions. "The conclusion reached by the scientific group advising the Council was that a superior extraterrestrial civilization will act according to its designs but those might not be beneficial for us. And the fact that they have not made any contact is a sign that they intend to keep their motives hidden. And throughout History we have numerous examples of how the contact with an advanced civilization brings an enormous stress to the social and cultural fabric of less developed ones, we just need to look at the history of our own countries. The best way to prepare ourselves for what might be coming is to research his new reality in order to evaluate and prepare the world for what might be coming."
"And what exactly might be coming, Doctor?" There was apprehension on Dora's voice. Hell, the whole room stank of doubt and fear amongst the weapon lockers and the steel walls – the senior personnel had more time than us to accept and learn their roles and were fulfilling their jobs but it was also clear that they were as lost as we.
The scientist struggled with words and as she was going to answer, Shen's voice spoke for the first time. He was sitting at one edge of the table and Vahlen at the other end. "If Dr. Vahlen's assumptions are correct, these phenomena are the result of intelligent entities then we are watching and participating in an event that will determine the future of this planet and our species."
He paused and his eyes swept around the room, giving me the impression that he was measuring the group. "And few people on Earth are currently able to take the leap forward in conscience that will be required. That's why we are here: it will be easier to unlearn old patterns and relearn new ones by creating a new organization".
Vahlen looked miffed by his intervention and the last part had made her turn her attention to the data pad on the table in front of her, something that the Commander had also noticed but he merely but down his hands on the table and crossed his fingers. "Both Doctor Shen and Vahlen pointed reasons for why we'll be leaving a light footprint – we'll need to learn to work as a team first and our job on the ground will be to respond to any threats but always with the bigger objectives of determining the intentions of these entities and keeping them out of public sight while collaborating with national authorities. We'll deploy fast and light and be back at the base the minute the situation is solved. More questions?"
There were still quite a few questions but after it was finished and from the look on most of us as we were heading towards the barracks section to get settled it was clear that most were still skeptic of what we had just heard, either the situation or how we would be deployed. They didn't add much else besides saying that it was the time for everyone to decide if they were inside or not. I guess I figured that either way there wasn't much of a choice: either stay and find out that the whole thing was a bust made by politicians and scientists freaking out for mistaking fart gas for UFOs or... the other possibility was both intriguing and disturbing.
In the end we all decided to sign in. Some immediately said yes, like Gunnar and Dora, while others asked to speak first with a representative from their country's government. I didn't hear anyone asking to speak with their families despite the Commander stressing that there was no way of telling how long they would have to remain secluded at HQ for security reasons. Most likely they didn't had any dependents or attachments, myself included.
After the necessary paperwork and bureaucracy we got assigned sleeping quarters and ordered by Bradford to get installed before being leading us on a base tour later on the afternoon, followed by the initial briefing. After being guided through one of the base's main corridors towards the Barracks, I found my sleeping quarter: a two bed room with individual shower, with a small alcove with a desk. A bit spartan but daily warm food and showers were a lot more comfortable that any field assignment.
Rollins stepped up by my side with his military issue duffel bag over his shoulder and asked: "Captain, can I ask you a question?"I looked around to see who might be overhearing before nodding him to go ahead. We had been ordered by the Commander to drop our former military ranks since we would be facing a completely new threat and our past experience might be useless – since we would need to learn from the start we had all been demoted to basic rank although we would keep our former ranks if we decided to come back to our militaries. I picked one of the beds and dropped my personal bag over it, starting to unzip it and store it away on compartments under the bed – we'd later be assigned with proper uniforms. "Go ahead".
"Do you believe in that alien story, Cap?" Rollins had sat on his bed and was watching me closely.
"You can drop the rank, Rollins, I'd probably be the one calling you sir soon once we are assigned to squads". Since we had worked together we had been assigned to the same two bed quarters that we'd be using while on base. "Does it matter anyhow if these things are really from space?"
"Well sir... Patrick, I've seen a lot of stuff around but this... this is the craziest story I've heard without being drunk. And I've heard a lot of good ones. Aliens? Space invaders?"
The doubt on his voice surprised me. "What's ticking you with this story? You've been around longer than me. We could be hunting terrorists or doing something else as dangerous".
"Think about it, Pat. If these aliens true exist and if they are hostile, how do you think this will end? Just look how long it took us to realize that they were even out there – I thought I was deep into black ops but this is the ultimate black op - if this whole thing fails we might not even survive, as they implied".
I remember I almost stopped storing my items but I just replied that dying may not be one's worst fate - it all depends on your own personal hell – sometimes it may be worst to live.
I regretted remembering these words but to my relief he didn't continue the conversation afterwards. I also still remembered his advice once to me - too much thinking can mess your mind too much.
But later in the afternoon, things just got creepier during the detailed briefing by Vahlen– the more we knew , the more unbelievable it sounded.
There had been 'incidents' before.
Some had resulted in human casualties and/or the loss/damage of civilian/military property as a result of the UFO's actions as well as a clear interest by those entities on our military facilities, including those housing nuclear weapons. Eventualy it the number and nature of the 'incidents' had piled up until enough people started taking the matter more seriously.
Eventually they created a top secret panel of scientific and military experts that was collected to determine the nature of the UFO issue and propose future measures. The study indicated that many UFO reports had a natural or man-made origin, but the amount of cases with 'unknown' causes or explanations made it clear that there was a global unknown phenomena taking place on the planet and the most probable explanation was it being due to the presence of unknown intelligent entities.
It was probably at this moment that a few of us started taking the matter more seriously, since me and Rollins never discussed again the matter after our previou conversation. You don't go checking someone's nukes or other of their nasty secrets unless you are interested in where they'll use them, specially if you're worrying that they may be used at you. Whomever was behind this most likely meant serious business.
"While these unfortunate incidents can be explained by accidents or a cautious attitude by the part of those entities they also demonstrate the abysmal difference in technology between our human civilization and the one behind the UFOs. And if the presence of extraterrestrial life on Earth is confirmed we can't assume that their impact will be beneficial for our civilization even if they see their own intentions to be benevolent. History has shown us the results of contact between cultures with disparate technological levels tend not to be kind to the civilization less developed."
Despite this, it was also clear that a few of us still believed up to the combat drop in Germany that we still might be able to establish contact with the aliens without need to engage. Dora and Gunnar were among them and from some looks from the scientists at the galley we could also tell that they privately questioned the need for combat soldiers on the project despite the report's warning.
"Furthermore, if the existence of extraterrestrial life is confirmed and publicly revealed, it should bring political, social and economic stresses at a global scale, since the emergence of a new reality will cause many to question their personal beliefs. This may also limit the ability of national governments to respond to the new reality posed by the existence of these unknown craft, whose armed forces have admitted to be powerless to detect or stop UFOs from entering their airspace with our current state of technology."
Several actions were proposed and later implemented by the Council of nations interested in cooperating on the UFO issue, which grew over the years. But the most important was the elaboration of a plan to create a global unified defense response to deal with a potential alien threat. And now things had gone literally south again and someone had decided that it was time to activate it. It sounded either too bad or too crazy to deal with so we either kept quiet or joked about the issue.
For all we knew we might be heading into something literally out of this world or into the biggest flop ever heard.
If only things were that simple.
Most of the crew stations were now empty on Mission Control – after Alpha Four had killed the last alien and made another sweep of the Red Zone, the Commander declared it clear and ordered the crew to pack the bodies of both the fallen soldiers and the Sectoids, along with any remains of their weapons and leave quickly while giving the go ahead to the police and emergency services to move to the area and attend to the abductees who had just been spared an unknown fate.
Big Sky was on its way back to HQ, its icon fying over the Indian Ocean on the world representation that had replaced the virtual 3D battlefield on the central area of Mission Control, heading towards Africa, where another box icon represented the location of the XCOM base. Standing close to one of the stations a man dressed in green pants and pullover with the shield insignia on his chest finished listening to his comlink and turned to Bradford, who was standing across the room. "Sir, RAAF reports their radar screens have been clear for the past hour".
Officer Bradford then turned to Commander Gray and Dr. Shen who were looking at media footage on a secondary display that occupied most of one of the chamber's walls. "The unidentified airborne contact seems gone, Commander."
Dr. Shen's brow slightly rose. "Should we fear or hope for its return?" Commander Gray glanced back at Shen without replying. The screen was showing live footage of ambulances being escorted by police cruisers and driven away from the abduction site. The national news channels were already linking it to the attack on China on the previous week and the Prime-Minister was expected to issue a public statement in two hours. "It will be also officialy denied as the government of my country did?"
"Yes doctor. I already discussed it with the Council". Commander Gray was standing next to Bradford, who was holding a datapad and typing commands with his fingers on its screen. His face showed suddenly shock and Commander Gray's eyes also narrowed as he glanced at the datapad. "Sir, we may have a problem. Switching feed to the secondary display Alpha".
The live footage was replaced by the grainer stream of a movie made by a cell phone. Someone had slipped or remained behind on the abduction site and had managed to film a pair of the Sectoids as they were moving around one of the abductees.
"Some one had a pair of balls there". Shen considered that Bradford's comments were rather vulgar and unappropriate but the Commander didn't seem to pay any attention to them. "But what happened... ah".
One of the Sectoids had somehow noticed the person filming them and the last thing the digital camera had captured was a green flash and then the image twisted from one side to the other as it felt down and afterwards merely showed an empty and lit street.
Commander Gray turned away from the secondary screen and faced the Holo Globe which now displayed the Earth-Moon system as seen a higher orbit. Then he looked down his right arm and noticed that his pinky finger was extended sticking out from the rest of his closed protestic hand. Grabbing it with his live hand he quickly snapped it back into pace. "The cat is out of the bag, gentlemen. We managed to keep a lid on Germany but was just a matter of time before the story was out". Commander Gray turned to the other officers. "The question is, what will the aliens do now?"
"It seems likely they are also keeping their attention on the ground, Commander." Dr. Shen had crossed his arms in front of him and was looking through his glasses at the soldier. "If the trajectories of the pods that were launched can be traced to that airborne contact then most likely it was watching our actions after we defeated their ground force."
"So now they know that we know about them" Using his left hand Gray pushed back his short white hair.
"But that doesn't tell us how they will react. They might just ignore us".
Bradford was calling the Commander's attention to another item on his datapad .After examining it, Gray answered the engineer. "We may have other pressing problems doctor. This footage was posted on Argentinian networks and comes from one of the other abduction sites on Buenos Aires. Apparently they failed completely to stop the aliens and as a result there's a wave of panic starting to rise across the country as news of the incident are being spread".
With a flip of Bradford's fingers the image on the secondary display switched again to an Indian news channel showing the image of a Sectoid with a purple glow on its gray head, crouched behind a blasted and darkened wall and with discharging a green bream from its wrist pistol. The oracle at the bottom of the screen had the title: "INVASIÓN EXTRATERRESTRE?"