It had been three months since James started training Alexis, Blake, and Marie and the trio were showing some signs of promise. They'd got a good handle on their powers and were learning to work together. It helped that Blake's military experience (however minor) made it easier to teach the group.
While James spent his days training the trio then starting his own training, Saint Louis was training a regiment of human soldiers. They were working as a well-oiled unit and to most instructors, that would be enough to pass them. However, Saint Louis had high standards and until they reached her expectations, she'd continue putting them through their arduous training. (It didn't help them that the bar set in her mind was one set by James, the only human to have lasted ten minutes against her in a sparring session).
After a while, the team decided that enough progress was made. Now, it was time to move forward with the campaign i.e., taking down Omega's second anchor. Taking down the first anchor was easy, as James utilized the timing of his appearance to the fullest and prevented Omega from forming a defensive line. Now however, the enemy had ample time to fortify her position and was sure to pose a threat.
With that in mind, he gathered the faction leaders in the meeting room and began discussing plans. It quickly dawned on them that they were simply speculating and it was dangerous to enter any battle based on pure speculations. To first take down this anchor, they would have to gather some intel on the location, the ships stationed there as well as the defensive measures.
James considered sending the ninjas, given that this mission played to their strengths. As he pondered the idea, Alex came through the door. They noticed that he was holding a folder in his hands and he was looking out of breath.
"First," said James, getting up from his chair "sit down and drink some water. Then tell us why you ran all the way here."
"No time for that," he said in-between pants "I've got information on the second anchor you're gonna want to see."
James raised his eyebrow and turned to the others, who were equally surprised. It seemed as though fate was on their side today. Rather than having to go out and search for answers, the answers presented itself to them.
With a press of a button, the central of the table opened up, from which rose a projector. Alex then stumbled his way to the projector, all the while arranging the files in the folder into a coherent string.
"Alright, here's what we know," said Alec, showing a picture of the anchor on screen for the girls to see. Immediately, everyone in the room grew concerned as the design of the anchor was significantly different from what they'd seen.
The first thing they noticed were the several solar panels that surrounded the anchor. Based on their position and angle, it could be said that they were using the sun's heat into some form of weapon. It also meant that if they were to attack, then the best time would be at night, when the weapon could not harness the sun's power.
As the girls went through the pictures, there were two questions that emerged in everyone's mind. The first was obvious: if the panels were gathering the suns energy, how was the energy being dispersed? Was it being used as a ray gun to fire long-range attacks or an energy burst that destroyed everything around it? The second question was what kind of defences the weapon had around it.
Though they had no immediate answer to the first question, the second one presented itself when James noticed something odd in one of the pictures.
"Hold on a second," said James to Alec, "show me that last one."
Alec nodded and put back the last time. When he did, the girls and Alec all noticed a strange shimmer present in a section of the sky around the anchor.
"Is there any way we can zoom in on that picture?" asked James and Yorktown immediately got up from her chair.
"I'll go speak to the research division and see if we can get any pictures from the satellite," she said and left the room.
"For now though, we should work under the assumption that that shimmer is part of an invisible barrier surrounding the anchor," said James and the girls nodded in agreement.
"If that's true, then how do we get in?" asked Alec "we can't just sneak right in like usual and if we hit the barrier, they'll notice it right away."
"Hornet," said James, turning to her "head to the research division and ask them to get a two-hour video of the sky around that area instead of any pictures."
Hornet nodded and left the room soon afterwards.
"James," said Queen Elizabeth turning to him "why did you ask for a video?"
"Just confirming a hunch I have," he replied and the others remained silent. They had known James long enough that if he had a hunch about something, he's more or less right. This was simply his way of confirming his suspicions.
Soon enough, Hornet and Yorktown returned from the research building. Yorktown passed a thumb drive to Alec, who inserted it into the projector. Once inside, he played the video and raised the speed a little.
While everyone watched the video, none of them knew what to look for. Instead, they all waited in silence for James to find what he was looking for.
"Go back a little," said James and Alec paused the video. Then slowly, he moved the video back frame by frame. As he did, the girls saw the sky above the anchor and understood what James was looking for.
"James," said Tirpitz, turning to him and his nod confirmed their suspicions. Alec too caught on by now and paused the video exactly as a small flock of birds flew directly over the anchor.
"That's our way in," he said "the shield protects the anchor from the front but not from the top. We'll be entering the location from there."
"It also confirms the type of weapon they're using," added Friedrich "given the way the shield is formed around the anchor, it looks like they're using it to fire long-range energy beams at their targets."
"It seems that for now, it is in the testing phase," said Richelieu "or else they would have attacked us by now. All the more reason we strike first before it is fully operational."
"Wait hold on a second here," said Tirpitz, as everyone seemingly glossed over an important fact.
"Commander," she said, turning to him "how exactly do you intend to enter that area from such a height?"
"We'll be performing a High Altitude Low Opening jump," he replied "It's called a HALO jump for short and it's a move I've performed several times for recon missions."
"That aside," he said, looking at everyone "given the height, the wind speed and the type of mission, the best approach is to go in with a small team."
"As such I am only taking Friedrich, Warspite and San Diego for this."
On hearing this, the room feel silent, Alec understood why. Typically, the idea of having a group of six or more is that they could protect each other and cover up in case one was knocked out. However, a smaller group meant more risks.
Alec noticed how Friedrich and Warspite remained calm on hearing the announcement. He was unconscious when the two and San Diego showed off their powers. But, from what Bremerton and the gang told him, there was a reason these girls were unofficially called The Big Three.
"Very well son," said Friedrich, tapping her fingers against her elbow "but, let me point out that while you may have experience performing such daring moves, none of us do."
"Not a problem," said James "we'll begin training tomorrow. But first, we'll need the right equipment."
"After this meeting, we'll take San Diego with us to meet Sara and Lexington. There, we'll get your measurements for a modified wingsuit."
"Alec," he said, turning to the fleet strategist "these images were brought to us by a division of the human resistance. Can we expect any assistance when we land?"
"Don't know," said Alec, rubbing his chin and trying to remember what Lakshmi and Ingrid were saying. He'd gotten so used to hearing them belch out hot air, he'd learned to tune them out.
"I'll head there and ask about the situation," he said, pushing the chair back and standing up "with any luck, we'll get some additional support."
"Wait," said James, raising a hand to stop Alec before he left the room "before you go, here's how the plan for this mission will be."
James proceeded to lay out the plan to everyone in the room. In typical fashion, the operation took place in two stages. The first stage required infiltration and disabling the barrier surrounding the anchor. If the first stage is successful, then the second stage is an all-out assault on the anchor.
Considering what Richelieu said, it won't be long before they completed the weapon, which meant that time was of the essence. They had to take down the anchor before the laser could fire or else.
With that in mind, the meeting was dismissed and everyone set off on their own missions. James, Friedrich, and Warspite went to Neptune's bar to retrieve San Diego. Once done, they headed to tailor shop that Sara and Lexington ran and James detailed the suit he wanted to make. After several jokes from Sara about Friedrich's well-endowed figure, the two tailors began their work in earnest.
Meanwhile, Yorktown, Queen Elizabeth, Tirpitz, Rossiya, Richelieu, Akagi, and Yat Sen started informing others about the upcoming mission. The message spread quickly and by mid-day, the girls were busy going over plans, mapping out routes and estimating the time.
Per James' request, Alec went to see the leaders of the human resistance and asked about assistance.
"Well, we do have some people there," said Damien "but we've lost contact with them ever since receiving the pictures."
"However," said Lakshmi "we will do our best to re-establish contact with them," said Lakshmi.
"James," said Whitney, staring at Alec "is James making his next move?"
Alec said nothing. He didn't want to say or do anything that could cause them trouble later on. His only form of reply was slowly opening and closing his eyes before turning around and leaving. However, he knew that even the act of not saying anything was saying something.
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In the next few days, the girls divided their time between their daily activities and preparing for the upcoming mission. The infiltration group had to wait for Sara to stitch out the suits.
"Um, Miss. SL," said one of the soldiers that was part of Saint Louis' group "is something the matter?"
"Whatever do you mean?" she asked.
"Well, we noticed that you look a little down these past few days. Did you have an argument with the Commander or something?"
On hearing this, Saint Louis immediately looked away and tried to hide her embarrassment.
"Was it… that obvious?"
"Well only to the people that know you," replied another soldier.
"Truth is we're getting ready for an upcoming mission and unfortunately I cannot fight alongside my liege," she replied "when we first came to this world, during our assault on the first anchor, my liege and I were the first two to make contact with the enemy. I always thought that it was good luck to fight alongside him during important missions like the upcoming one."
"This time though, I will not be participating during the initial strike," she said, slumping her head.
"Um, there, there?" said the first soldier as he and the remaining members of the unit thought of ways to help their leader out of her slump.
"Thank you, but I will overcome this," said Saint Louis.
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In another part of the base, James summoned Alec and the two began walking down a cobblestone path. Alec noted how it was the two of them and decided to ask a question weighing on his mind.
"James, how do you plan on performing the jump?" he asked "there aren't any planes around for miles that can perform the feat."
"That's why I brought you with me," said James "we're going to see progress on a side project a few of the girls are working on."
Alec and James soon came to a halt. Before them was an aircraft hangar, whose existence Alec had no idea about. He watched as James calmly headed for the door, opened it and went inside. Curious, he too went inside and saw Essex, Intrepid, Shangri-La and Bunker Hill who were all working on a transport plane.
"Ah James," said the oldest of the Essex siblings "how did you know we were here?"
"I noticed that you weren't going to your training matches against Enterprise like you normally would," he replied, looking at her and then to the plane "I figured it was something important and definitely something related to air travel."
"Sorry James," said Shangri-La apologizing on behalf of her eldest "this began as something of a side project but after all four of us got involved, we'd accidentally spend whole days here without even noticing."
"May I ask why this started in the first place?" asked Alec.
"I started this with the idea of getting it ready so we can cure Intrepid's fear of flying," said Essex and Intrepid immediately looked away.
"Unfortunately, I don't think we'll have time for curing Intrepid," said James while Intrepid sighed in relief. "Essex, if I got the research division backing you up, how long will it take to get this thing ready?"
"A day, two at most," replied Shangri-La.
"Make it a day and a half," said James "we're launching an operation against the Siren forces and this is the only way for the insertion team to enter without being detected."
The first part of the sentence caught their attention. They had expected the Commander to make a move against the Sirens sooner or later and now the time had come.
"Alright, do you have any requirements for the plane?" asked Essex.
"It should have enough space to accommodate four of us and reach a height of forty thousand feet," replied James.
Bunker Hill repeated the words forty thousand feet while the remaining siblings all raised their eyebrows in surprise.
"James, what exactly are you planning to do with this?" asked Essex.
"Alec will fill you in on the details," he replied "I have to start briefing the team on what to expect with HALO jumping."
After he said that, he left the room while Alec explained the mission.
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Two hours after meeting the Essex siblings, James met with Sara and Lexington who had their gear ready. James knew well not to question the craftsmanship these two had and so brought them to the others. One after another, Friedrich, Warspite, San Diego and James put on the suits and learned about them.
James' experience in performing these jumps on five occasions meant that he knew what to do and what not to do. Till the plan was complete, he taught the girls about the mechanics of the maneuver as well as the procedure and steps to follow in case of a malfunction.
Once the plane was ready, James took the trio in it and performed several high-altitude jumps. Essex also requested to be the one to take them up. He made sure he was the last one to jump as that way, he could help out the others in case they ran into trouble.
It didn't surprise him that they had difficulty during the first three attempts. Going that high up and then falling down, it was a terrifying experience for anyone. Friedrich was scared yet tried to hide it with a mask of calm. San Diego however wore no such mask and flailed about till James caught her and managed to calm her down. Warspite practically held onto him for the first few minutes.
On the fourth try, the girls showed considerable improvement. They performed the maneuver without James' assistance and successfully landed on the ground.
"Well James," said Tirpitz, helping him take off his parachute, "are they ready?"
His response was a simple nod.
The next day, the team gathered in the briefing room along with Essex. There, James laid out the plan and what they were to do. The girls cleared whatever doubts they had and left. The plane was fueled and ready for takeoff.
Before leaving, they said their goodbyes and made their way to the plane.
"WAIT," shouted a voice from behind, stopping them and the rest. James was the first to turn around as he immediately recognized his voice. In truth, he was hoping to complete this mission with as little interference as he could but that voice meant it wasn't going to happen.
"Byron," said James, trying to hide the annoyance in his voice as he and the remaining leaders of the resistance barged in. The thing that everyone noticed after that were Alexis, Blake and Marie dressed in military gear, almost similar to what infiltration team were wearing.
"What is going on?" asked Alec.
"What does it look like?" asked Byron with a condescending tone "the Valkyrie Squad will be joining this mission."
"The what now?" asked James.
"That is the official designation we've given to Alexis, Blake and Marie," said Ingrid.
"Names aside," said Whitney "we know you're about to launch a big operation against Omega and we want in."
"And before you say that they can't move," warned Byron "don't forget that the only reason this operations taking place is thanks to the intel our soldiers risked their lives to get to you."
James wanted to point out that the operation would take place regardless of any info they gathered. He wanted to point out that the trio had no training whatsoever and that they had zero experience in a real combat scenario (aside from Blake).
Instead, he said
"We're postponing the trip by two days."
The statement understandably caught everyone by surprise as the leaders immediately voiced their disagreement with the decision.
Unlike Alec who acted out in ways to show his displeasure, James simply ignored their existence. Instead of listening to them, he turned to Friedrich, Warspite and San Diego and said "change out of those clothes and do a few sparring matches."
"James…" barked Damien.
"Essex," he said, turning to the aircraft carrier "prep the plane."
"You three," he said, pointing to the newly dubbed Valkyrie squad "get in the plane. We'll be performing practice jumps from now till sunrise so I hope you haven't eaten anything."
"James you can't just…" stated Byron.
"If you expect me to launch an op with an inexperienced team then you're dumber than you look," countered James, interrupting him and making no effort to hide the anger in his voice.
Immediately Byron took a step back and his expression shifted.
"You really should leave before he does something drastic," suggested Yorktown "like bury you to your head and dump a bunch of red ants on you."
Although she meant it as a joke in order to lighten the mood, James' tone and his current demeanor suggested otherwise. Rather than press their luck, the leaders immediately went back to their base.
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Three days, several blackouts and vomiting sessions later, the team were assembled once again. This time, they were taking off under the cover of night so that the enemy (and more importantly the leaders of the human resistance) did not see them.
The team said their goodbyes once again and got onto the plane. After getting the all clear, Essex took off.
Inside the plane, everyone remained silent. James noticed how the two groups were silent for different reasons. Friedrich, Warspite and San Diego were silent as this was the first time, they were performing the move and wanted to focus on that. Alexis, Blake and Marie were silent as this was their first real mission and they wanted to focus on that.
This kind of nervousness was to be expected. If he were being honest, even he was feeling nervous. There was a lot riding on this mission and there were so many ways it could all go wrong.
'No, no stop overthinking things,' he thought and dismissed any pointless musings. He remembered how his mentor told him to remain calm. Overthinking leads to questioning each decision which makes it easy for the enemy to hit you. Underthinking meant underestimating the enemy and getting a bullet in the head.
He had to reach a middle ground. To do that, he recalled the times when he massaged Akagi's feet, the times he told her not to stare at him while he slept and that one disastrous time, they tried to take a shower together.
Soon enough, they saw the lights in the cargo bay come on and knew it was time. Essex lowered the door and the wind immediately got sucked out of the area. While the others were unfazed, James had to hold onto something or risk getting sucked out.
"Alright remember the plan and stay in formation," he said through the communicator and everyone nodded.
"Commence the operation," he said and one by one, they all leapt out of the plane.
"Stay safe out there Commander," said Essex and he leapt off.
He made sure that he was the last one to leave in the event of any problems. Warspite went first, followed by Friedrich, San Diego, Blake, Marie and Alexis.
The Commander remained silent, kept his breathing to a minimum and watched as the group descended. As they continued their descent, Warspite was the first to notice the anchor. Compared to the ones they took down before, this was significantly taller and wider.
It soon became apparent as to why Omega made this one bigger than the rest. The team saw a large projection atop the anchor. That was the weapon they were developing, the long-range laser. Perhaps it was due to them conducting this mission at night, but the way the moonlight shone on that sleek, tall piece of metal gave it an ominous appearance.
The Commander resolved himself to ensuring that this was as close as the thing got to completion. The group reached the appropriate height that it was time to open their parachutes. They did so and significantly reduced their descent speed.
While half the team were gawking at the ominous spire, Warspite noticed a black floating object approaching them. She did not have time to react and draw out her sword and so she moved her body a little to avoid getting hit by it.
As it passed by, she was able to quickly discern the object and its reason for being here.
"Be careful everyone, there's a drone," she said through the communicator.
Her words reached almost everyone in time as they saw the approaching machine and moved aside. I say almost as Marie was the only one who didn't register Warspite's warning and summarily paid for it. The drone hit her right in the jaw, sending it barreling out of control and tearing into her parachute. This resulted in Marie falling faster than the others and moving away from the group.
"Damn it," hissed the Commander as the others quickly tired to reach out to her.
"No, don't," he stated "stick to the formation. I'll get her."
Tucking his arms closer, the Commander increased his descent speed and slowly positioned himself to falling on Marie. The human-Siren did not prepare for this outcome and was understandably flailing her arms around, crying in fear.
The Commander tried calling out to her to get her to calm down, but the sound of her loud voice drowned him out. As he neared, he grabbed her back and turned her around to him.
"Marie, Marie listen to me, listen to my voice," he called out, grabbing her arms and trying to assure her that she wasn't in trouble.
The question of whether his voice or his actions reached her did not matter. The fact that Marie stopped crying and opened her eyes was enough to the Commander.
"Listen very carefully to me," he said.
"You have a secondary parachute equipped on your front," he said, and she nodded "I'm going to pull it now."
The Commander did as he said and pulled the chords hanging on Marie's front. This action released the secondary parachute stored in her suit and reduced her speed.
"Thank you. Commander," said Marie.
The Commander also opened his second parachute and returned to the group. As he drew nearer, he was glad that the plan was moving accordingly.
"ALERT! ALERT! INTRUDERS DETECTED! INTRUDERS DETECTED!"
In that moment, several lights on and around the structure came to life, illuminating the black sky with bright, white beams. All the Commander could do right now was curse himself for jinxing the mission.