Ours Are The Furies

The Citadel, Barracks

"What the hell were they thinking?" Creed said in disbelief as they watched the news. Normally Patricia doubted that this was what couples did to relax, although she did enjoy leaning up against him on the barracks couch. But oftentimes these days, keeping up with current events was as necessary as it was entertaining.

Less of the latter today, and she echoed his sentiments. "I don't know."

And she really didn't. No more than the Commander, who'd briefed her on the situation. The working theory was that these were alien agents working to cause chaos before the invasion…but then one of the captives was identified as a full human, so that threw a wrench into that. She'd immediately suspected psionics, which the aliens would have utilized if they were smart.

He looked down at her with concern. "Do you really think any of the Middle East would think this was a good idea?"

"I guess it depends on their priorities," Patricia sighed against him. "Again, I don't know. They might not care as much about the aliens, or simply hate Israel more. But it isn't good regardless. The last thing the world needs is another war."

Creed pursed his lips and looked back to the screen. "Well, if they wanted a war, they are getting a war."

That they most certainly were. Nowinski hadn't made an official declaration of war, but he'd stated that the perpetrators would be brought to justice, as would those who commanded them. Which told her that he wanted to make the case as airtight as possible before making any major decisions. Which was smart and should be commended.

"His whole family was killed," she muttered sadly, noting that the Prime Minister had visibly kept his composure several times. He looked awful, though not unexpected for a man in his situation. "I'm almost surprised he's showing this much restraint."

"Maybe he doesn't have a choice," Creed suggested with the same gravity. "If he wasn't in charge of a nation, it might be different. He can't look like he wants this fight if he hopes to get international support."

Patricia snorted. "He'll have no problem with that. He's already secured American and Russian support. Anything else is just a bonus. But you do have a point."

They both were silent for a few minutes, still watching, with several of the other soldiers also paying attention from the back. "So what do you think is going to happen?" He asked quietly. "What you can tell me, I mean."

She felt some echo of frustration from him not knowing everything she did, but she deeply appreciated how he'd done his best to work with it. It wasn't fair to him, but she had to keep secrets, but he knew that, so it made it easier for both of them. Fortunate he wasn't a psion as well, else this would be a little more difficult.

"Israel will probably control the Middle East by summer," she said, since that was just speculation. "Depending on how much Brazil pushes…and how the other countries respond…I don't know."

But what she didn't mention was that ADVENT would likely be established sometime in the middle of the conflicts. And since both nations were ADVENT members, they would be receiving official ADVENT support, which would hopefully put an end to both wars swiftly so they could focus on the aliens. In the unlikely event that the aliens hadn't invaded, it would give them precious little time to put a unified defense in place.

Creed sighed. "I guess my other question is what we are going to do. How long can XCOM stay out of it? Especially since we're allied with both countries."

"XCOM is for fighting the aliens," Patricia answered firmly. "The Commander doesn't seem to want us to get involved in terrestrial conflicts." That was probably a reason why he wanted ADVENT. She finished in her mind. "Unless we receive proof of alien involvement, I doubt we're going to intervene. Support, yes, maybe, but not send troops."

"Probably the smartest move," Creed nodded. "I really don't know the best solution. I find it hard to believe that this many countries would make an attack like this now…but it's clearly happened. There needs to be something done. I just wish a war wasn't the solution."

"I think everyone here thinks that," Patricia agreed. "But there's not much we can do now except wait and see what happens."

Her wristband buzzed and she reluctantly straightened up, reaching for the remote to shut off the TV. "Sounds like the Commander is ready."

Creed nodded and stood, moving to his locker as did several other soldiers. "Do we know much about this base?"

"Not really," Patricia admitted as she got armored up. "But considering the other base, I'm guessing they'll likely be another commander, and it'll be heavily guarded."

"How many is he bringing?" Creed asked as she helped him with his chest armor.

"A skyranger, plus one MEC," she answered while she strapped him up and tightened his armor. "This is as much retaliation as seizing the opportunity."

"They hit our base, we hit theirs," Creed noted with a smile. "Sounds good to me."

"Agreed, now help me with this," she ordered, lifting her own armor which he helped place over her shoulders. The Aegis armor definitely was much easier to put on when two people helped each other out. She did find it a little funny how happy he was just helping her out like this. A true gentleman, he.

"That good?" He asked as he finished tightening her armor up.

"Perfect," she complimented, reaching to her gauntlets, pulling them up until she heard a click as they snapped into place. "Ready?"

"Ready," he confirmed as he placed his helmet on and grabbed his rifle. She did the same, swinging her own weapon over her shoulder.

"Let's move out," she said, moving towards the exit, already sensing the Commander there. "I don't think we should keep him waiting too long."

The Citadel, Hangar

"May I ask a personal question, Commander?"

The Commander turned to the operative decked out in dark green Aegis armor, her pulse rifle professionally at the ready. Even if he hadn't known she was a Marine, he would have definitely placed her as American special forces. He'd been around enough to them to know each group had their own unique presence, that was simply a reassurance that these people knew what they were doing. Sierra Morrow was no exception.

"Certainly," he answered, turning to her. "What do you want to know?"

He definitely sensed her hesitation, since she wasn't used to talking this casually with her direct superior. But still, she continued. "You served in the military, right? Which branch, if you don't mind me asking."

He smiled under his helmet. "Not quite. CIA, doing mostly classified field work."

"An agent?" She asked, or more reacted. "I…didn't think of that."

"Huh," Carmelita commented, walking up. "I wouldn't have guessed either. You don't seem the type."

He snorted. "The CIA needed more than just spooks, and it happened that I was good at infiltration and special operations. That's probably why you haven't heard of me."

"Ah," Sierra nodded. "That makes sense, sir."

"I also had a comment," the Indian MARCOS operative, Meru Paras asked, finally taking part in the conversation. "Is it an American thing to refer to titles only?"

"No," he answered. "But it's how I do it. 'Commander' is sufficient as far as I'm concerned. You wouldn't know my name even if I revealed it."

"Does anyone?" Carmelita asked, more as a joke than anything.

The Commander kept his voice neutral as he answered. "Only a few."

"So what were you a part of?" Meru asked Sierra. "United States military, I assume?"

"Marine RECON," she answered proudly, straightening up some more. "Special forces, like you, I assume. Not quite as famous as the SEALS, but we're fine with that."

"Don't let Creed know," Carmelita chuckled. "He'll probably take it as a challenge. You guys like to compete with each other."

"Maybe he does," Sierra shrugged. "But I don't. Don't really care about competitions after New York. I just want to fight the aliens."

"You knew people there?" The Commander asked, since he hadn't been aware that she'd known anyone in the city.

"Several of my friends moved a while ago," she answered nonchalantly, an act since he could sense she didn't want to talk about it. "Wasn't able to contact them after the attack. Just assuming the worst at this point."

"My condolences," Meru said, inclining his head.

"Thanks,"

The door to the Hangar hissed open and Patricia finally walked through, with Creed, Seok and Shun behind her. The Commander nodded to Riley who quickly ran into the skyranger to prepare it. "Ready to go, Commander," Patricia said, stopping right before him and saluted.

"Good," he answered. "Load up! Time to give the aliens some payback."

"Ho-rah," Sierra said in response. "Let's go!"

Skyranger, En Route to Alien Base

They were all ready to extract some vengeance on this mission as they had all lost friends in the attack, not counting others the aliens had killed before. No fear for what they might find here, the presence of the Commander and…her…were clearly some of the reasons for that, which she'd just gotten used to.

Patricia rested against the skyranger back, her hands clasped together and resting on her legs. The others weren't quite as relaxed, but they were definitely calm, and she was fairly sure part of that was an aftereffect of her own relaxation. It was clearly possible to affect people psionically just being around them, as the Ethereal had shown, though she wasn't exactly sure that should be a skill to cultivate.

It was already questionable enough she could sense their emotions without them knowing, but affecting their minds was not something she wanted to do unless absolutely necessary. But the thing she was realizing with psionics was that it couldn't just be turned off. It seemed the more powerful she became, the more invasive her powers were. Perhaps it was a bit different for her since she was a telepath as opposed to a telekinetic like the Commander, but still, there was probably some overlap.

"So what do we know about the base?" Carmelita finally asked.

"Just the immediate terrain and location," the Commander answered, addressing all of them. "The base is almost completely exposed, and is vulnerable to all sides since there is no natural terrain defenses."

"Which may be a problem for us," Shun noted slowly, messing with her gauss pistol. "We'll be completely exposed charging forward."

"We will," the Commander nodded. "But we do have several people to mitigate that. Patricia and Sanya can cause enough problems for the rest of us to get into a good position."

Patricia nodded. "I doubt their defenses will be completely automated. Any alien they have can be controlled by me."

"Unless they have something new," Meru noted. "They seemed to have some reserve units in the attack."

"Which is a concern," Patricia conceded. "But I doubt all of them will be. I will also be able to defend against hostile psions if they have a Hive Commander in charge."

"Which we need to be aware of as well," the Commander added. "It's reasonable to assume the aliens have placed some kind of overseer in charge. It might not be a Hive Commander, but at the very least we should expect an intelligent opponent."

"Who else would it be?" Sierra asked. "Besides an Ethereal, what other species has the intelligence besides a Hive Commander?"

"The Vitakara?" Creed suggested. "Perhaps those suited aliens? They seemed smarter than the mutons."

"The Vitakara are fairly important to the Ethereals," the Commander nodded. "It depends on what kind of base this is. I'd expect a Hive Commander at a primarily scientific base, and perhaps a Vitakara in a more administrative role."

"Or intelligence," Shun pointed out. "They do run the Ethereal spy network, right?"

Shun did have a good point. "Let's hope it's a Vitakara," Seok said cheerily. "Makes for an easy fight for Patricia. Boom, mind control."

"I have to locate him first," Patricia amended. "And being that overconfident is…preemptive? I would be surprised if the Vitakara hadn't developed some form of anti-psionic defenses."

"If that were the case, then why not use them before?" Creed pointed out. "That would have taken care of the biggest threat to them, you."

She ironically found it flattering that she would be considered the biggest threat, but she did see his point. "Good question, but it seems odd that they wouldn't develop something especially since we're psionically capable."

"I'd imagine it's a form of control," Shun suggested. "Giving a species the ability to negate your greatest strength is a massive risk. Given that the Ethereals are powerful psionics and are supposedly rare, I don't think it'd be a stretch to be concerned that a much more numerous species might decide to turn on them if they could negate their biggest advantage."

She and the Commander exchanged a helmeted look, and she could tell he'd been thinking the same thing. Shun was right, and that matched up with what Nartha had said about the Vitakara who'd felt helpless in rebelling. They had no reliable way to negate psionics, and if that was given to them….

He gave a single, silent nod. Yes, he was definitely getting some ideas. She had no doubt he'd be having a long conversation with Vahlen later, another project to add to her massive list. Vahlen really needed a second scientist as brilliant as her, since there was so much to develop and so little time.

Something to deal with later.

"Commander, this is Burning Sky," Riley said over the intercom, sounding very puzzled. "We're coming up on the LZ now, but there's a complication."

"What is it?"

"It appears that the aliens are already engaged with a hostile force," she explained. "I'm going to circle around to get another visual. Gray Sky, hold and prepare to drop."

"Copy that, Burning Sky."

All of them looked at each other. Patricia wasn't quite sure who it could be-

Oh.

Could that really be?

"You're not going to believe this," Riley told them in disbelief. "But it appears EXALT forces are also assaulting the base."

Even the Commander was surprised. "Really," he stated slowly. "And you're positive they're fighting the aliens?"

"Positive, Commander. Orders?"

"Set us down and we proceed as planned," he answered. "Gray Sky, drop Sanya closer to give them some assistance."

"Understood, Commander. Moving in now."

"We're going to help EXALT?" Creed demanded incredulously. Yeah, he wasn't up to speed on the whole truce thing. He remembered all too clearly the Mexico ambush.

She rested a hand on his shoulder. "Don't worry," she assured him. "If they attack us, we'll take them out. Humans aren't difficult to control. But otherwise we should use them."

"Until they shoot us in the back," Carmelita muttered.

"We have a MEC, two psions, two skyrangers and far more advanced armor and weapons," the Commander rattled off. "We'll know if they betray us, and I doubt it because they aren't complete idiots. Patricia is right. If they want to help us, then we'll take it. Do not shoot any EXALT soldiers unless fired on first. Am I clear?"

There was quite a bit of uncertainty, but all of them confirmed with a "Yes, Commander."

The skyranger lights flashed red. The Commander stood as did all of them, forming into rows of two behind him and Carmelita as the skyranger went into a sharp dip. Now Patricia could sense the fight much more clearly, alien and human minds all focused on killing each other. Fear. Joy. Pain. Horror. All that from both sides.

The skyranger set down softly and the ramp lowered and they were immediately assaulted with a barrage of fresh snow, as it seemed a blizzard or snowstorm was getting started. Patricia grinned. Nothing really like charging to take an alien base in the middle of dangerous weather.

"Deploy!" The Commander ordered, and they charged out into the ever-growing snowstorm.

The Arctic

The Commander paused for a moment as he took a moment to survey the scene in front of him, as the aliens had not really noticed them yet. There was a vast expanse of snow in front of them, and with the snowstorm giving them some cover, it would give them a chance to get closer unnoticed. Unfortunately, that also meant that their own view of the situation was blurred a bit.

"Forward, weapons up!" He ordered as they marched towards the battle.

"Engaging hostiles," Sanya informed, and he heard some surprised shouts and alien screams as the massive MEC made his entrance.

They were close enough now that he could see the base pretty well, and it seemed like there was more cover than he'd initially thought. Several walls of alloy barriers had been deployed in front of the base and he could see at least ten figures shooting plasma at the EXALT soldiers who had taken cover behind the farthest alloy barrier, as well as their own deployable cover.

He adjusted his voice projection so that the EXALT soldiers could hear him. "Shun, Meru! Take the left! Seok, Sierra, the right! Carmelita, Patricia, take the aliens out, Creed, with me!"

"Acknowledged!" They all more or less answered before dashing out, adding their own fire to the aliens opposite them.

"Take out the gunners!" One of the EXALT soldier roared, pointing to one of the aliens to the left laying down suppressive plasma fire on that position. She might have been in charge, since she was wielding a plasma rifle for some reason, but it drew his attention to the fact that these weren't the regular aliens they'd seen before.

First off, there were a lot more than he'd thought. At least twenty now that the base doors had opened and more had come out. The majority were primarily Borelians, completely armored similarly to the ones recovered from the UFO transport. They were holding out well, too. He only saw three dead, and they were holding the line for the others to advance.

Three of the aliens seemed to be…different. They wielded massive plasma cannons, even though they weren't as tall as the Borelians, they were definitely bulkier. Their bodies were completely covered in a bulky black armor, and their faces were completely obscured by eyeless helmets. They were placed strategically as well, only one in the left, right and middle respectively.

The final aliens were humanoid, wearing their own armor, though considerably less bulky than the gunner aliens. It was similar to XCOM armor in its sleekness, though their faces were also covered up by helmets with clouded visors. They appeared to be more specialized. Snipers and support, since he saw two in the back, and one forward treating a wounded Borelian.

All of them were probably Vitakara then. Borelians obviously, the humanoid ones were likely Vitakarian and the gunners…he couldn't recall the name at the moment, but he suspected they were the underground Vitakara, since the only ones left didn't fit. Either way, the battle was going to turn.

"Grenade!" Shun yelled and dove to the side, tackling one of the nearby EXALT soldiers as the green blast nearly killed her.

One of the Borelians from the back yelled something, pointing at Sanya who was firing several micro-missiles on the left flank. None of them were hitting, as the aliens were wisely scattering, but it was allowing the XCOM and EXALT soldiers to advance that flank. The alien gunners turned away from their positions and turned to focus on the MEC, while they were supplemented by the Vitakara reinforcing their position.

"Clever," he muttered as he watched them move, effectively shielding each other with suppressive fire, preventing much return from them. Tactical aliens, something he hadn't seen for a while.

"These xenos are smarter," the EXALT woman muttered, sliding into cover. "Any of your people have explosives?"

"Seok," he answered. "And Sanya, of course."

"Don't waste them on the gunners," she advised going back up to fire off a few more shots. "Damn things seem to be immune."

"Noted," he said, firing at several Borelians. "Patricia?"

"Working!" She yelled, letting her weapon drop to the ground as she drew upon her power. He lowered his own weapon and nodded towards Creed.

"Toss a grenade there!" He ordered, lifting his hand in preparation. Creed got the message and tossed it towards a group of three Borelians. The Commander focused on the smaller metallic object and since Creed would have just been a little short normally, an extra telekinetic boost ensured that it hit the aliens at a much faster speed.

They roared as the grenade hit one dead center, while wounded the two closest to it. "Require assistance," Sanya called, retreating as his armor was becoming scorched and broken by sustained plasma fire.

"Don't fight it," he heard Patricia mutter. "It will all be over soon."

One EXALT soldier screamed as he was shot by Borelian plasma fire, though was quickly avenged by those around him concentrating their laser fire on the offending alien, while Sierra and Seok kept the others busy.

"The hell?" The EXALT woman said, directing him to look at the alien gunners, as one had suddenly turned on the others, seemingly killing one instantly and the other was engaging in close combat. Several Borelians were falling as well, seemingly from snipers in the back. Now was the change.

"Forward!" he yelled as the forward Vitakara scrambled back, trying to take stock of the new threats. He saw one of the Borelians charge one of the snipers, getting both their attention. The XCOM soldiers took the opportunity to charge to the next barrier line, with EXALT following close behind. Sanya was focusing on the gunner alien which had killed the mind-controlled one and returning its attention to Sanya.

One of the Vitakarian noticed him coming and raised his weapon, though not before the Commander telekinetically grabbed him and lifted, hoisting the humanoid several feet into the air. He concentrated the grasp around the neck, then sharply twisted his wrist, and after seeing the neck snap irreparably, tossed the corpse back towards the retreating Borelians.

The rush of power still in him, he raised his left hand towards two more Borelians and yanked back, seeing them stumble forward and drop their weapons, making it easy for the EXALT soldiers to execute them. "Target eliminated," Sanya stated, stepping over the corpse of the alien gunner. "Firing barrage."

"Hold position!" The Commander yelled, crouching behind the barrier as did every other soldier as Sanya planted himself, raised both arms, and fired six missiles in quick succession towards the final pod of Borelians who had nowhere left to run. To their credit, they did try, but the ones that attempted to escape the blast were quickly cut down by a hail of lead and lasers.

The Commander lifted one into the air, and simply watched it get shot several times before letting the body drop. Creed and Sierra killed another straggler and several EXALT soldiers took out a Vitakarian, while the EXALT leader executed another fleeing Borelian. It took several minutes to clear the stragglers, but once it was done, relative silence fell over the battlefield, barring the howl of the wind.

And now that it was over, none of them were quite sure what to do. The Commander definitely felt suspicion from the soldiers, but the woman in front of his seemed very focused and not at all disturbed he was here. "XCOM, I assume," she said, motioning to her soldiers to keep their weapons lowered. She definitely was the leader, then. "I wasn't expecting you to be here."

"I can say the same about you," he answered evenly, taking stock of the almost comically short woman. But despite her stature, she had an intensity around her that reminded him of Mira. The orange bandanna around her lower face didn't hide her piercing eyes, which where most of it seemed to be. Very laser-focused on the objective at hand. "What are you doing here?"

"Same as you, I imagine," she answered slowly. "We're going to take the base."

She was definitely telling the truth about that, and he started to nod before Patricia walked up. "Finish that thought," she said quietly. "That isn't everything. What else are you here for?"

Several of the EXALT soldiers clearly didn't like her tone and raised their weapons, at her. She simply looked at them and they gasped a few seconds later, clutching their heads. "Your soldiers should follow your directions better," she warned, looking back at the woman. "Answer the question."

The woman clearly knew when she was outdone. "Fine then. The aliens took several psions away from us. We're going to retrieve them."

"The Furies?" He asked, surprised.

"You know about them?" She demanded, narrowing her eyes. "How-ah, Subject Four is with you. Of course. How is she?"

"Dead," he answered curtly. "Died defending XCOM when the Ethereal attacked."

"Unfortunate," she mused. "She was a powerful asset."

The Commander ignored that line of dialogue, as they had more important things to worry about. "Who are you?"

"Zara Venator," she answered with a nod. "Leader of EXALT's military and Head of the Venator Family. And you are?"

The pride he felt from those words was interesting. Hmm. "I am the Commander of XCOM."

"Is that right?" She said slowly. "Well, interesting." She motioned towards the base. "We're both here, and the aliens are our enemies. We can either fight each other pointlessly, or take the base together."

Carmelita chuckled behind him. "That wouldn't even be a fair fight, us and you."

"Quiet," the Commander ordered, raising a hand. "I agree. Better to work together, provided you don't shoot us in the back."

Zara clearly found that amusing. "You have two psions and a MEC, besides, I know when I'm outmatched, Commander. Besides, I have no wish to bring XCOM down on us."

"Good," he stated. "Because when we recover the Furies, you are not taking them. Understand?"

She was silent for a few moments. "You are not the type to negotiate on this. Fine. But we keep whatever is in the base."

"The corpses, and any MELD or unidentifiable artifacts are ours," the Commander amended. "But EXALT can keep the alloys and base itself. Is that sufficient."

"It will have to be," she muttered. "Shall we get to work?"

"Yes," he said, motioning towards the entrance. "Let's see what's inside."

The Arctic, Fury Base

To her credit, Zara actually seemed as straightforward as Patricia had sensed. There was a bluntness to her that seemed odd for a supposed head of a family. Not like the secretive EXALT figures she'd come to expect at all. It actually made her a better liar than someone who was a little mellower because she had a laser focus and conviction that was evident in every movement. Had she not been reading deeper, the true reason for why EXALT was here wouldn't have surfaced.

"You were in Mexico, weren't you?" Creed commented as they walked through the entrance, which was slanting down. Creed didn't look at her when he said it, but she sensed his discomfort with the situation.

Zara glanced over to the SEAL who comically dwarfed her, but she clearly wasn't intimidated in the least. Patricia did have to respect that. "Yes, I was. I assume you were one of the survivors?"

She could imagine Creed's face as he answered, even from his tight tone. "One of them, yes. You caught us by surprise."

Patricia heard Zara snort. "That was the plan. I hope you're not expecting an apology. You killed many of my soldiers as well."

"Not an apology," Creed said neutrally, moving ahead. "Just don't do anything you'll regret."

Zara was thoroughly unimpressed, which anyone could have seen even if Patricia hadn't been able to sense emotions. She shook her head, and returned to focusing forward, searching for more alien minds.

The architecture here was slightly different from the Sectoid Hive. Everything here was more angular, and slanted up by the roof. The supporting beams were all the same way, slanted, not straight up. The initial entrance was also pretty large, enough for the fifteen or so EXALT soldiers as well as everyone from XCOM.

There was pretty much no cover, but she knew she would sense problems well before they showed up. Unless they used cyberdisks or drones, but they would hear those coming, and there was enough firepower to take anything out that entered this room. Sanya led the group too, and would take the brunt of any surprises.

Patricia was somewhat amused by the EXALT soldiers glancing apprehensively at the mechanical giant, as well as her and the Commander. There was definitely concern, and a healthy amount of fear. Good. Fear was useful here and might prevent them from doing something stupid.

"Looks like its opening up ahead," Sierra said, pointing forward. Patricia looked ahead and saw it. Definitely an open room, but she could see very little beyond it.

"Hold," the Commander ordered, raising a fist. Even the EXALT soldiers came to a stop and she walked up to where the Commander and Zara were standing. He glanced at her. "Do you sense anything?"

She closed her eyes and focused exclusively on the area and front of her. "Nothing alive," she answered, opening her eyes. "They might have drones or cyberdisks, though."

"Good to know," the Commander nodded, raising his rifle. "Advance, slowly. Sanya, take the lead. Be ready for an ambush."

They moved forward cautiously, all weapons at the ready as they entered the room. Once inside, Patricia saw that she'd been correct, there wasn't anything alive here. But there was a lot of other interesting stuff.

One of the EXALT soldiers whistled. "Wow."

A good a word as any. They were all standing in what appeared to be a mix between a barracks and armory. In the center were several metal benches in a square, with several articles of clothing, components and containers scattered around. The walls were all segmented, with several open and empty. From what she could see, they appeared to have held weapons and armor.

"Do you think there's anything left?" Carmelita asked, walking up to an unopened container and reaching toward it.

"Stop!" Zara yelled and Carmelita instinctively froze and turned to the irate woman.

"Don't do that again," she growled. "I don't answer to EXALT."

"Use your brain," Zara hissed back. "You ever think these could be trapped for guests? What if it explodes if the wrong person opens it?"

"She has a point," the Commander agreed, looking towards a couple doors at the end. "Don't touch anything until its confirmed safe."

To her credit, Carmelita took it well, even if inside she was definitely embarrassed by the reprimand. "Which one do you want to take?" Patricia asked, walking up to the Commander and indicated one of the two doors on the far side of the wall, both evenly spaced apart.

"Don't know yet," he answered. "Both will have to be taken soon, but I'd rather take the one to the Command center. Do you have an idea?"

"Give me a-"

"Lights!" Seok shouted and four while lights from the corners of the room flashed on all focused at one spot directly in front of the Commander.

"Hold fire!" He yelled before any shots were fired at the sources. The light was definitely forming into something, and Patricia now suspected she knew what it was.

"What is that?" One of the EXALT soldiers asked.

But Patricia knew, and once more it seemed Nartha had been correct in his description. The Vitakarian before her stood at least as tall as the Commander, had an interestingly human face, in terms of simple shape. The dark gray skin seemed metallically smooth and shiny, even through the hologram. No hair covered his head, or any sign of facial hair or eyebrows from what she could see. But what attracted her immediate attention were the dark blue eyes, solid orbs with no pupils that almost seemed to be glowing, though that might have been because of the hologram.

He was wearing what she assumed as an officer's uniform, with some kind of badge pinned to the gray armor. Only his chest and front of his legs had any sort of protection, while the rest of him was just protected by what looked like a light gray fabric. Gloves covered his hands and he wore some heavy boots with them. Said hand were clasped behind his back as he observed them neutrally.

"XCOM," he greeted with a slight inclination of his head. His voice had a distinct thrum to it, combined with a melodic accent. So this was what they sounded like normally. "Welcome, I did not expect a retaliation so soon."

"A Vitakarian," the Commander commented, lowering his weapon. "I see. Are you in charge of this base?"

The alien didn't seem that surprised they knew what he was. "I am. And I suspect I know why you're here."

"And why is that?"

"Retaliation, to begin with," he began neutrally, his eyes never leaving the Commander. "Your profile highlights several traits. Sending a message, avenging the fallen, logistics, an extra base. The possibilities are many, but they do not matter. You are here for the psions, the ones these traitors call the Furies."

"Traitors, huh," the Commander commented, glancing at Zara who was also glaring at the alien. "I'm not aware what exactly pushed them away, but you probably should have picked more reliable allies."

"EXALT was always at risk," the alien stated calmly. "The setback will be dealt with later."

"I'd pick your words a little more carefully," Zara suggested. "XCOM killed an Ethereal. Your Elders aren't invincible."

The alien's lips twitched, which was all the surprise he betrayed. "That doesn't matter at the moment, Zara Venator." He looked back to the Commander. "I have an ultimatum for you, Commander. I know you have the cyborg and the psion Patricia Trask with you. My soldiers and I will fight to the death, but I know we will lose but before that, we will deny you your prize." He paused. "But this can be avoided, Commander. You want to save these psions? Then leave, or I will kill the Furies."

She could imagine the Commander raising an eyebrow. "You are not in a position to be making demands…" He paused. "What is your name?"

"Runi'baranth'yalsar of the Runianarch," he answered without any pride. "And no, I am not. But I can ensure more of your people die."

So he was part of the Vitakara military proper. An officer, apparently. Interesting, but this tactic was not going to work on the Commander. If there was one person who wouldn't be affected by the possibility of a hostage situation, it was him. Sure enough, the Commander shook his head. "Good try, but we're not going to leave. Besides, I don't think you'll risk killing some of your greatest assets."

"Are you willing to take that chance?" The alien…Baranth, if he followed similar naming patterns to Nartha, said.

"I have a counter-offer," the Commander stated. "Surrender now, and I will ensure you live and are kept in good condition. Otherwise your soldiers will die and you will be taken in for interrogation and experimentation."

"No," he responded flatly.

The Commander nodded. "Very well then," he nodded towards the soldiers aiming at the lights. "Terminate."

They fired and the cameras sparked and the alien vanished. The Commander immediately turned to her. "We have to assume that he was telling the truth and intends to kill the Furies. You need to locate them and prevent anyone else in the area from killing them. Can you do it?"

"Yes," she said. "But I'll need to concentrate fully. Creed…?"

"I'll guide you," he nodded, understanding immediately, walking behind her and placing a hand on her shoulder and hip while she closed her eyes and concentrated. The base must be made for suppressing psionics, since she seriously had to concentrate to get any indication of life within the base that wasn't immediately beside her.

But three psions would stand out, even if they were likely in some kind of sleep or stasis. Just a little more….and there. Yes, they were sleeping at the moment, unconscious, unafraid, blissful. She mentally nodded, lost in the darkness around her. Brighter spots became more apparent and she expanded her senses around the Furies.

Now what would be the best way to neutralize them? Sleep? Could work, but making it last for any length of time would be draining, and it wouldn't allow her to maintain a field of sleep around the area. What else? Ah…

The Hive Commander in the Sectoid Hive had been able to make several soldiers temporarily blind. At the time she'd not been sure how he'd done that, but now she knew that it was likely only a simple matter of just telling the brain that it was blind. Brains were funny that way, control that, and the person was controlled.

So that's what she did.

You are blind.

You see nothing.

There is only black.

She spread that out to all the nearby minds, forcing into their alien psyches, repeating the words over and over until it took root. And she soon got indication that she was achieving it. The tenseness and calm that the minds possessed first turned to confusion, then concern, and it would soon be driven to panic.

Panic. Yes, that would be a fine addition.

You will die. Alone and afraid.

No one is coming.

You were left to die.

You are worth nothing.

The repeating of the mantra over and over turned the black calmness around her into a purple maelstrom of rage, terror, helplessness and despair.

She smiled in her mind's expanse. It was satisfying to exert such control, knowing that her physical body would always be protected.

She suspected the Commander was going to be pleased with what he saw.

The Commander couldn't help but gain a little bit of satisfaction from how all of the EXALT soldiers were keeping a healthy distance from Patricia as she seemingly unconsciously led them through the base. There were doors to the side, but supported by Creed, she simply bypassed them all and kept striding forward. She must have been deep in her mind, since her entire figure was blurred, as if trapped within a purple-tinged heat wave.

Even Zara was keeping her distance, eyeing the psion with…not quite fear, but definitely concern and discomfort. Good. It would definitely prevent her from making any stupid mistakes. Though to be honest, he didn't expect any, at least from her. She struck him as a very direct person, not a backstabber.

Now they could hear sounds coming up, some frantic shouting in another language, some firearm discharges and screaming.

All very promising.

"Hold her," he told Creed as his soldiers lined up before the closed door where presumably the Furies were in. He nodded and kept Patricia from proceeding further, while motioning some of the EXALT soldiers to stand in front of her, since it wasn't going to be possible to get her into cover. Neither of them looked particularly happy, but they likely worried that refusal would result in some horrible death from her.

Whatever worked.

With all the soldiers in position, he nodded to Zara on the other side of the door, and pressed the switch which opened the door. The metal slid open soundlessly and they looked into a room of chaos.

Vitakara soldier, scientists and pretty much everyone was stumbling around, as if blind. The soldiers were staring sightlessly in all directions, their weapons raised in all directions, some even pointed at each other. The scientists were clawing around, stumbling into desks, pods and other equipment. Several had hurt themselves from various instruments around the room, and he took a second to get a look at it.

It was definitely a science room of some kind. The back wall had several elerium power stations, and the center was filled with various alien equipment, tables and within a small depression in the middle of the room, three transparent pods.

Within them were the Furies.

They appeared to be suspended in some kind of gel, naked and with dozens of wires running into their body and brain, seemingly via cybernetic implant. They appeared to be unconscious, though not in pain from what he could tell. Surrounding the pods was a very faint psionic field, though if that was from the Furies themselves or another source, he couldn't tell.

Either way, the Vitakara here needed to be dealt with.

"I want one of each kind alive," he ordered, holstering his rifle, thinking it was a good time to train his telekinetic abilities.

"And the rest?" Carmelita asked.

"Kill them."

At that, all of the soldiers who had a shot fired and five fell to the ground, dead. Pandemonium broke out as the soldiers started firing, instantly killing some of their own. The Commander telekinetically picked up a cowering scientist, and brought him closer, while the rest of them moved in. The scientists started shouting in his language, though not directly at him. It really did seem he was blind, though with a Vitakarian, he couldn't really tell from the eyes.

He tossed him to several EXALT soldiers behind him. "Tie him up!" He ordered, and they complied immediately, clearly not wanting to argue with the telekinetic psion. One down. He had a live Vitakarian, now for one of the gunners…

He entered the lab and witnessed the carnage before him. It was a massacre and nowhere close to a fair fight. Whatever Patricia had done had debilitated the Vitakara completely, turning them from professional soldiers into shaken blind rookies. What Vitakara weren't instantly killed were wrestled to the ground and then knocked out or executed. Even if he'd ordered the rest killed, several XCOM soldiers were taking the opportunity to capture as many as possible.

Good thinking ahead. If they wanted to capture more, he wouldn't stop them.

Sanya had picked up one of the gunners, and was pinning it to the floor, restraining it as it thrashed and roared around. The air was permeated with fear and terror as the EXALT soldiers hunted down the cowering Vitakara and executed them without mercy and with a deadly efficiency. Zara definitely became more alive in the fight, gaining an enthusiasm he hadn't sensed in her before now.

Carmelita and Seok ran over to help Sanya restrain the thrashing Vitakara gunner, while he moved to help Zara deal with the last one which was already wounded from friendly and hostile fire. The gunner was on its knees, yellow blood seeping from gaps in its armor. Zara walked up causally and blasted it in the face, throwing it back onto its back, and proceeded to fire several more times.

Job done, she turned sharply on her heel to him. "Good shot," he said.

"This was pathetically easy," she answered, walking past him down to where the Furies were contained. "Your other psion did her job a little too well. I don't like shooting defenseless enemies, and these seemed to qualify."

"Tough luck," he commented, frowning as she seemed to be serious. "But I don't take chances when I don't have to."

"Yeah, smart," she said. "But it's not nearly as invigorating this way." She sighed and shook her head. "Anyway, let's look at this."

He stood in front of one of the tanks, contained within seemed to be an Arabic man, age unknown. The Commander looked down at the console in front of him. He waved his hand over it and an interface popped up, and to his relief, it was in the same language as the other alien tech they'd recovered.

Right, this shouldn't take long.

"Ah," Zara's eyebrows furrowed. "I should have realized it would be in their language."

"Not a problem," he dismissed, already going through the available options. "I can read their language. It shouldn't be a problem."

That seemed to surprise her. "Really? How?"

"Long story," he answered as he located the pod controls. "Let's just say that the Ethereals like to make interesting decisions."

She clearly wanted to ask about that, but refrained and moved to look at another pod. He continued and finally found several commands that should release the man inside. He executed them and watched as the fluid drained out. "The glass pod should open once the fluid is gone," he told Sierra beside him. "Disconnect the sensors and get them immediate first aid."

She nodded, and waved Carmelita and Shun over. "Got it."

That out of the way, he went and repeated the same procedure with the other two pods. One of the EXALT soldiers had found some clothes, and were assisting the XCOM soldiers in getting the Furies in some kind of attire, even if they were still unconscious. He suspected that they would still be out for a while yet. Unfortunate he hadn't known ahead of time, otherwise he'd have brought Blake along to ensure they were fine.

He sensed Patricia walking up, under her own power, but clearly drained. "Good job," he told her. "Not completely sure what you did, but well…" he indicated the room with a nod. "It wasn't a fair fight."

"Blindness," she answered exhaustedly. "Combined with a bit of fear. Not as difficult as I'd feared. Self-preservation is a cross-species phenomenon, apparently."

"You can probably apply that to every species," he muttered, looking down at the female Fury. "Do you sense any problems with them? How powerful are they?"

"I don't sense anything wrong," she answered, looking down at the Fury. "But I might be wrong. That took…more out of my than I thought. But she is very powerful, all of them are. If they're anything like Annette, I think they'll be extremely valuable."

"Do you think the Vitakarian tried to kill them?" He asked Patricia.

"Probably," Patricia shrugged. "But it's hard to follow orders when you're blind and terrified."

She had a point.

"We should leave some here to make sure there are no surprises," Zara stated, walking up. "Then we deal with this alien permanently."

The Commander fixed his gaze on her. "I want him alive. Do not kill him."

"If you want," she shrugged. "But only if he isn't about to kill one of my soldiers."

"Fair enough," he conceded. "But I doubt it will come to that."

"Not if your psion pulls the same trick off," she said, nodding to Patricia. "Nice job."

"Thanks," Patricia muttered, glancing at the EXALT warrior warily. "But don't expect that again. I need to rest before trying something similar."

"Fine," Zara stated, moving on. "I'm sure we can deal with the rest of the aliens still alive."

"I agree," the Commander nodded. "I found schematics for the base. I know where the Commander center is, and that is where I assume our Vitakarian friend is."

"Where did you get that name?" Zara asked, probably frowning if he could see her obscured mouth.

"From one of their species," he answered wryly. "That one was a fount of interesting information."

"What we should have been doing from the beginning," Zara muttered, turning towards the exit. "It feels good to end that pointless charade."

The Commander raising an eyebrow. "You didn't approve of the alliance?"

"I had a bad feeling about it from the start," Zara shrugged. "But I trusted the Director to know what she was doing. Besides, I'm biased. I'm a soldier and have little patience for schemes and diplomacy. Sometimes the best solutions are the simplest."

He wondered if all the Venators were like her. To some extent they must, because she was apparently their leader. It really was interesting how EXALT could breed people with such personalities.

They would definitely be useful.

"Have some of your soldiers stay back," he instructed Zara. "I'll have Sierra and Shun stay back with them."

"Will do," she agreed with a nod, probably grinning as they prepared to move out. "Time to see if this alien has any more tricks for us."

Everything seemed a little fuzzier now that she was back in the real world. Likely due to her being physically exhausted. It was strange, her body was telling her it needed a rest, but strangely enough, she didn't actually feel tired or worn out. She wouldn't be able to do that again…but she could still make enough of a difference in the coming fight.

The Commander took the lead as usual, with her and Zara by his sides, Sanya behind them followed by the remainder of the EXALT and XCOM soldiers. They were definitely going up now, slowly but surely. Patricia didn't even know if they were underground or not anymore, such was how this place was constructed. The only thing she knew for sure was that it was smaller than the Sectoid Hive, and seemed to disrupt psionic sensing to a degree.

No, disrupt was the wrong word.

Obscure.

That was better, since it hadn't done anything to stop her from turning the Vitakara soldiers into sightless, terrified, aliens. She hadn't been aware much of the fight, as it was easy to make sure her aura wasn't affecting humans, but it had been interesting to witness the minds around her suddenly vanish, one by one as they were executed.

With the exception of a few, who she suspected the Commander was first going to interrogate, then give to Vahlen for test subjects. It was a shame Nartha was gone, since he would have been useful in this case. But they didn't need him, not with her. If they tried to hide anything, she would be ready to extract whatever was in its mind.

At the Commander's discretion, of course.

"They should have attacked by now," Carmelita muttered as they approached a large metal door. "Do they have no one left?"

"Wait," Patricia said, raising a hand as she finally sensed something new.

"Are there Vitakara in there?" Zara asked.

"Give me a moment," she answered, closing her eyes and sensing forward into the room. Yes, there were definitely Vitakara in there, though no other alien species from what she could sense. "Twelve inside," she continued dreamily. "All Vitakara, from what I can sense."

"Only twelve?" Zara snorted. "Pathetic. This won't take long."

"Remember," the Commander reminded her. "I want the leader alive."

"You don't have to remind me," Zara chided, raising her plasma rifle. "Believe me, I'm aware of the value of high-ranking enemy personnel."

"I'm pretty sure they locked it," Creed commented, looking at the door. "It'll probably take some time to cut through."

"We have time," the Commander said, stepping forward, motioning Sanya to follow. "They do not."

"Wait."

A similar hologram to the first one materialized in front of the door, showing the same alien as before. The Runianarch Commander, who appeared a little more defeated than before. The Commander preemptively held up his hand to prevent any instinctual fire, though likely more for EXALT's benefit than the XCOM soldiers.

"You've lost," the Commander said, holstering his rifle and stepping forward. "The Furies are under our control and you're trapped inside there."

The alien's lips hardened into a thin line. "I know. Fighting you would achieve nothing except getting my remaining soldiers killed. I'm willing to negotiate a surrender."

Patricia blinked and exchanged a helmeted look with Creed. Everyone seemed to feel the same way.

Surprised.

It occurred to her that the idea of the aliens surrendering had never really existed as a possibility in her mind. No others had done it before, instead fighting to the last, even if it was suicide. Perhaps it was because the Vitakara valued life a little more, and saw no point in wasting it. Nartha had said his species was less inclined to violence, and were supposedly rational. Following that….them surrendering then made perfect sense.

"You are not in any position to dictate terms," Zara stated, also stepping forward. "The-"

"Quiet," the Commander interrupted, cutting her off. "If they want to negotiate, we will do that."

Zara was clearly ready to debate this, but she seemed to realize that she was also not exactly in a position to make demands. "Then do it," she practically spat. "But they are owed nothing."

"Duly noted," the Commander said dryly. Looking back at the Vitakarian, he continued "In that case, what terms are fair to you?"

The Vitakarian nodded. "Assurance that my soldiers will be treated well, in return for our unconditional surrender."

The Commander was silent.

Patricia knew why. While that might have been an easy thing to promise, she knew that the Commander wouldn't make it. They didn't have the luxury of holding prisoners of war; every alien in captivity was another resource they could use to combat the Ethereals. That involved experimentation, which most of the time was not defined as 'treated well.'

But at the same time, she knew the Commander wouldn't force a fight, nor would he lie. So what ultimately happened would likely come down to what the alien decided. "I can't promise that," the Commander finally said.

The Vitakarian didn't seem surprised. "May I ask why?"

"Because we are at war," he answered slowly, honestly. "We require every resource we can, and that includes doing tests no doubt similar to the ones that were being performed on the Furies. Your species is allied with the Ethereals, and by extension, are also at war with us."

"I see," he answered slowly. "And what if we would prove more useful functional than as…test subjects?"

"Then they would be used in that capacity," the Commander answered slowly. "But that would be for us to decide. Not you."

"So your counter-offer is simply unconditional surrender?" the alien stated neutrally.

"Essentially," the Commander confirmed. "I would prefer not to fight, and can guarantee that fewer will die if you surrender. I can promise that if your people can prove themselves more valuable unaltered than as contributions to XCOM's Research and Development, then that is where they will be used."

"And how do I know you'll even follow through with that?"

"You don't," the Commander admitted. "But at least now you know the possibilities. If I didn't care about my word, I would have just lied to you when you first asked."

"You have a point," the Runianarch officer admitted, his eyes unblinking. "Our choices essentially are die now, or potentially die later."

"Yes."

"And if we accept, what else should we be aware of?" He continued.

"You will cooperate fully with us, and answer any questions we have," the Commander stated, indicating Patricia. "Psion Trask will be ensuring you don't lie about anything. Pass that and then we will move on to what to do with you and your soldiers personally."

The Commander paused for a moment. "In more immediate actions, if you decide to surrender, you will come out, one at a time, hands raised and no weapons on your body. One bad move and you will be executed. Understand?"

"Completely," he stated quietly. "I need to confer with my subordinates."

The hologram blinked off.

"Do you think he'll do it?" Creed asked no one in particular.

"Likely," Patricia answered, looking in the spot the hologram had been. "I don't think he would have kept asking questions if surrender wasn't an option anymore."

"More to the point, do you really think they'll be useful without being test subjects?" Zara demanded. "What could they possibly provide?"

"This is not your affair," the Commander stated coldly. "This is an XCOM matter, and to answer your question, what they could provide is exactly what I want to find out. If they fail to be adequate, then they will be utilized."

"And please refrain from asking questions related to our operations," Carmelita added, taking a step forward, making her warning clear.

"You do not order me around, soldier," Zara shot back, unconcerned. "The Commander isn't some inept puppy that actually needs your ridiculous attempts at intimidation."

Carmelita straightened instantly and raised her weapon at the short woman who paid her no mind. Perhaps Patricia had been slightly wrong about her; the woman did have a subtler side to her, or at least could read people enough to bait others like Carmelita. "Lower your weapon," the Commander ordered. "If Zara crosses a line, I will deal with her, understood?"

Carmelita reluctantly lowered her weapon, embarrassment clear in her voice. "Yes, Commander."

"Good," the Commander looked to Zara. "Don't provoke my soldiers unnecessarily."

"She threatened me," Zara defended calmly. "I don't take threats to me lightly."

"Quiet, both of you," Patricia interrupted. "I think someone's coming."

The all raised their weapons at the door, all business once more. "Do not fire unless they try to attack," the Commander ordered. "Carmelita, Meru, take each one into custody and bind them individually. Zara, have your soldiers take them down to the Fury lab. Creed, be sure to accompany them."

"Yes, Commander," they all answered.

The door slid open soundlessly and the apparently named Runi'baranth'yalsar walked out, hands raised, face seemingly unchanged. "We accept you conditions," he said. "The rest will come out on your command. We are all unarmed."

"Move forward," the Commander ordered and he complied. Carmelita and Meru bound him and turned him over to Zara's soldiers who took him down to the lab with Creed accompanying them.

"Next!" The Commander called, and another walked out. It appeared to be another Vitakarian, though this one seemed to be a female. The same procedure was repeated and she was taken down with the others.

"Next!" The Commander ordered again, and did so twelve more times until there were no new Vitakara coming out.

"That's the last of them," Patricia said, after quickly confirming that the room was empty.

"Let's see if there's anything inside," the Commander said. "Secure the area!"

The remaining soldiers all entered the Commander room, and fanned out to look at all the alien computers and screens. The Commander walked up to a window that showed the outside, where the first fight had taken place, in fact. The snow was already beginning to cover up the corpses, and all the bloodstained snow was gone.

"And the base is ours," Zara stated, satisfaction clear in her voice. "Not bad."

"On that we agree," Patricia nodded. "The Furies are recovered and we have nearly twenty prisoners."

"EXALT did help," the Commander added. "Something I wasn't expecting, but you did assist us and I will recognize that."

"And you'll hold up your end," Zara said, turning to him. "We keep the base, you get the aliens and Furies."

"Of course I will," the Commander confirmed. "You can have this, for what little good it'll do you. Although I suspect the Director won't be happy."

Zara snorted. "Of course not. But she'll at least agree that it's better that the Furies are out of the aliens hands. But she's not unreasonable, and will understand why I agreed to it."

"Oddly reasonable of her," Patricia commented.

"There is a reason she's in charge," Zara shrugged. "So what happens now? You gather your corpses and prisoners and leave?"

"Yes and no," the Commander answered slowly, removing his helmet and turning his unshielded gaze to her. "EXALT is in this war now, and I need to know just how much. It's time I met Director Vyandar in person, Lady Venator. When you return, tell her to expect a visit within a few days."

"Then you know where we…" Zara trailed off. "Never mind. I'll be sure to tell her. And should we expect an escort?"

"No," the Commander answered. "I'll be coming alone."

"Understood," Zara answered, giving a firm nod. "Your soldiers are well trained, it was an honor to fight beside them." She extended a hand to the Commander, who took it a few seconds later, never breaking eye contact.

"Your soldiers were useful as well," the Commander answered. "I hope EXALT will continue contributing to the fight."

"We will," Zara assured him. "You can be sure of that." With that, she turned at walked away to speak with her own soldiers.

"Unfortunately she's with EXALT," the Commander mused, looking at Patricia. "She would have made an excellent XCOM soldier."

"Who knows?" Patricia shrugged. "If things go according to your plan, she might be."

He raised an eyebrow. "Reading my mind?"

"Deductive reasoning," she answered. "Something I've had in the back of my mind ever since you agreed to a truce with EXALT. There are only several reasons I can think of, and with ADVENT and the Demeter Contingency on the horizon, I think I know what you intend to use them for."

The ghost of a smile played on his lips. "And if your hypothesis is right?"

"Then I'm looking forward to the reaction of the rest when you tell them."

"You won't have to wait long," he promised, looking out into the frozen wasteland. "It's time everyone knew my true plans for EXALT."

After-Action Report

Operation: Sounds and Furies

Note: You and Bradford apparently shared the same type of wit – The Commander

Personnel:

Timberwolf 1 (Squad Overseer): The Commander

Status: Active

Kills: 5

Timberwolf 2: Psion Patricia Trask

Status: Active

Kills: 3

Timberwolf 3: Specialist Carmelita Alba

Status: Active

Kills: 6

Timberwolf 4: Specialist Anius Creed

Status: Active

Kills: 6

Timberwolf 5: Specialist Shun Anwei

Status: Active

Kills: 2

Timberwolf 6: Specialist Sierra Morrow

Status: Active

Kills: 3

Timberwolf 7: Specialist Seok Myeong

Status: Active

Kills: 2

Timberwolf 8: Specialist Meru Paras

Status: Active

Kills: 1

Timberwolf 9: MEC Soldier Sanya Olga

Status: Active

Kills: 8

Artifacts Recovered

-35 Vitakara Corpses (Moderate Damage)

-17x Vitakara Captives

-67x Weapon Fragments

-26x Assorted Alien Equipment

-6x MELD Canisters

-10x Vitakara Computers

Personnel Recovered:

-Matthew Hawkins – Fury Designation: Alecto

-Said Tariq – Fury Designation: Megaera

-Fatima Tariq – Fury Designation: Tisiphone