Chapter Ten: Infiltration
Misaki's breath seemed to pound in his ears as he stared at the lit military base in the valley below. He clasped his hands together as he watched the others pile out of the helicopter, though in the shadow of the night he could barely make out the forms of Alpha and the rest because of the cloaking mechanism on their suits. The white material had turned almost completely black and vision was only possible through night goggles. Everyone had been given a pair along with a portable scrambler, and all except Hiroki and Nowaki had tasers for defense. The second hardly needed a weapon with his massive strength and Hiroki preferred something with more bang, and had a shotgun and semi automatic rifle slung over each shoulder as well as a ka bar knife strapped to his thigh. He seemed to bear the weight easily and was taking the mission much more smoothly than anyone else. He was casual as he gathered his auburn hair and bound it up into a short ponytail, watching Shinobu help Miyagi out of the helicopter.
Once the group was gathered, Alpha turned to the blond teen and gave him a nod. Shinobu took a shaky breath, clasping Miyagi's hand tightly. But when he hesitated, Alpha sighed grimly.
"If you're unable to transform, I'm going to have to reformulate the plan."
"He can do it." Miyagi said, squeezing the teen's hand. "Just concentrate. Like we practiced."
His words seemed to give a tiny bolster to the fifth, and he let go of Miyagi's hand and sat on the ground, closing his eyes. All of a sudden, his body gave a jerk and began to morph right in front of their eyes, shrinking and changing into a tiny golden form. And several members of the group couldn't help but smile as they saw the little hamster scurry over to Miyagi's boot. The third crouched down and held out his hand, all the while whispering something into the hamster's ear.
"Shut up," came a tiny squeak from the animal as he was carefully placed in Miyagi's breast pocket.
"All right," Alpha said, regaining everyone's attention. "Let's go."
The group began to descend into the valley via a rocky slope on the north side, the darkness effectively hiding their presence. Hiroki was at the front of the group, gun cocked, with Alpha at his side, followed by Misaki, Miyagi, and Nowaki covering the rear. The teen was very glad for the organization, feeling safe in the middle of the group despite where they were going. And even though Alpha had gone over their directive with him dozens of times, he refreshed the plan in his mind as he quietly followed, hoping his quickening breath wasn't audible to the others.
Once they had made their way through the aqueducts and gotten into the actual building, they would head to the control room and insert a thumb drive into the computer mainframe that would instantly hack the system. It would gather information about the FMA's primary base, as well as disable all operative weapons that could hinder them on their departure.
Misaki's hand involuntary went to his left pocket, where a tiny black device was hidden. Oddly enough, only Alpha, Shinobu, and he had been given them. In case they went under fire, Hiroki and Nowaki would be their main cover, and Miyagi would anticipate any moves the enemy made. Since Misaki and Shinobu had powers of avoidance, Alpha reasoned they would be the most likely to actually get into the control room and had equipped them for such.
However, the responsibility of the task weighed heavily on the teen's mind, and a shudder crept through his body as he saw the base before them. Even with Hiroki's training and Alpha's confidence in his developed powers, Misaki was wary, and he hoped that no one would detect their presence. If they infiltrated successfully, Alpha would be able to handle the hacking. Above all, the teen didn't want to weigh their unit down, and he reasoned that the best way for him to do that would be to follow silently and stay out of the way.
Luckily for the super humans, there was a small manhole that accessed the sewer system just outside the fenced perimeter. Naturally it was bolted shut with steel and an intricate locking system, but the designers hadn't counted on Nowaki's super strength as well as Hiroki's heat and a good knowledge of puzzles.
The fourth started by placing his palms on either side of the metal plate and the steel flushed red as Hiroki's heat drove into it. After only thirty seconds, he raised his hands and Nowaki carefully gripped the smoldering edges. The metal bent easily under the heat and pressure and the second ripped it off without much exertion. Underneath was a lighter grate with a several key holes.
"Hold on," Alpha said, digging in his tool belt. "I have a pry bar that should work."
Beta and Delta exchanged a slight eye roll and Nowaki gave one sharp kick to the metal, dislodging it and sending it clanking down into the tunnel. Hiroki snorted musingly at Alpha's perturbed expression and lowered himself into the manhole, climbing down the metal rungs that served as a ladder. With Nowaki's help, Miyagi followed next and the second held out his hand to Misaki, but dropped it as Alpha placed a hand on the teen's shoulder and helped him down instead.
As soon as he reached the end the ladder, Misaki stepped into ankle deep water and the overwhelming stench of sewage. He coughed a couple times and pressed his sleeve to his smell as he saw the outlines of his companions flicker into a glow. The teen quickly tugged at a small zipper on his sleeve and his suit began to glow in the dark as well. Even though their faces weren't illuminated, it was interesting how Misaki could distinguish everyone just by their physique. Nowaki all bulk and height, Hiroki sleight and quick, Miyagi long and lean, and Alpha's prowess as well as the definite purpose in his step as he lead the group into the labyrinth. Hiroki was at Akihiko's right for defense, and Miyagi took up his left, the map of the aqueducts spread before his mind clear as day.
In nearly half an hour they were climbing up a grimy concrete staircase that traveled up to the main floor. This time the rusted cover was silently unscrewed and pulled off with Nowaki's careful fingers. The rectangular hole went into a small utility room was barely large enough for all of them to get through, especially considering the cast iron pipes connected to the walls in all directions.
"The immediate hallways are empty." Miyagi murmured.
"I suspected them to be." Alpha replied. "We're in the service part of the building. It should be the left corridor that takes us to the main floor."
"Second left," Miyagi corrected as Alpha skillfully picked the door's lock and opened it. Hiroki stepped out with his back against the wall, his eyes and the barrel of his shotgun skimming everything within sight. He gave a nod that the coast was clear and the group carefully filed out into the dimly lit corridor, their pace quick and quiet as they passed up through the hallways and up a secluded stairway. At the top was a set of metal double doors with overlaid steel bars and a keypad.
With a quiet hum, Miyagi reached into his breast pocket and pulled out Shinobu, setting him gently on the floor.
"All right Shi-bu," The third murmured. "Time to shine."
The golden hamster gave a definite scoff as it skittered over to the door and climbed through a hole in the grating. As his sharp ears caught the sound of tiny hamster feet inside the walls, Miyagi spoke.
"Alpha, you made sure he knows which wires right?"
"Yes."
"And you took into account that hamsters are colorblind?"
Alpha sighed and crossed his arms, glaring at no one in particular.
"Naturally Gamma." He replied.
Not a few minutes later, his point was proved by the keypad disengaging and the steel grating creaking open. The human Shinobu stood haughtily inside the passageway, a healthy amount of spark lighting his grey eyes.
"Good," Alpha nodded to the teen as Hiroki took a spot check inside. The first then turned to the rest of the group. "All right, this is our last main obstacle before reaching the control room. This corridor does have surveillance just around the first corner, so aim your scramblers at the cameras as we go and move your asses doing it."
"Clear," Hiroki said from the doorway.
"Let's go," Alpha commanded, but just as the group started forward, Miyagi stumbled, falling to one knee. Shinobu's face contorted in horror and he rushed forward to help the third, who was pressing his knuckles to his forehead.
"Miyagi!" Shinobu cried. "What's wrong?"
"Are you having a vision?" Nowaki asked. But within a couple seconds, the third stood back up and smiled mellowly.
"Sorry, just a fluke."
"Can you go on?" Shinobu pressed worriedly.
"He's fine." Alpha replied. "Now let's go."
The six men crept fluidly through the white washed hallway, and once they turned the corner, they broke into a full on run, their scramblers aimed at the cameras, reducing their feed to blank static.
Misaki gritted his teeth together as he ran behind Alpha and Hiroki, his first impulse to click the switch in his molar and accelerate. The first had been adamant about staying together and he did feel well protected in the group, but Misaki somehow couldn't shake the feeling that something was wrong.
"There!" Alpha communicated to them mentally. "Break through that door in the center and keep going straight!"
Hiroki hoisted his gun and fired a shot through the keyhole, breaking the lock instantly. The group raced through the door and into a square room with four exits. But when they were just yards from their exit, a giant slab of steel slammed down in front of it. Reacting fast, the group instantly turned towards the exit on their right, only to have it instantly blocked as well. Two more quaking jars and everyone's eyes went wide in sheer horror.
They were trapped.
Hope you enjoyed! Dangers and suprises ahead...and not all of them good.
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With Love,
TBF101