Hey, everybody. Back with another chapter. Sorry it took so long, but my wife had surgery and I've been busy caring for her. But, I'm finally able to start writing again.
Let's get to the chapter.
Chapter 5- Fort Bragg
Harry finishes taking a sip from his soda. After the meeting with President Clinton and President Smithson, Harry and the others had been escorted by Agent Barton and another wizard from the American Auror office to the Magical Mall, which was America's version of Diagon Alley, only bigger. They had been shopping for a while, getting various things that Harry and Hermione would need for school, including books, potion supplies, new robes, as well as several other items they were going to need for life in the States. Barton had then offered to treat them to lunch. The Magical Mall had a number of Muggle restaurants, and they had come to one called Subway, a sandwich shop.
Harry shovels the last of his sandwich into his mouth as he looks over at Agent Barton. "Thanks for paying for lunch, Agent Barton," he says gratefully.
"My pleasure, Mr. Potter," Barton says. He looks around the table and says to all of his guests, "I hope you all enjoyed our little trip here today. We'll drop off your items at the UPS store here in the mall to have them sent back to your homes in Richmond. We still have one more stop on our agenda for today, and we're due there soon."
"Alright," Harry responds simply.
The group quickly finishes eating before standing up and grabbing all of the bags holding their purchases. Agent Barton escorts them to a UPS store that serves the magical community, and they drop off the multitude of bags and sign off on the shipping order, then leave the store.
Auror Halverson then steps forward, holding out an old shoe. "Where we're going now is heavily protected with anti-apparition wards and various other defenses designed to keep out magical intruders. We'll have to take a Portkey close to the location," Barton explains.
Harry, Hermione, and her parents all nod and take hold of the shoe. Seconds later, the Portkey activates, and the group is sucked away. A few seconds later, they emerge in a small parking lot, right next to a large van. Barton then raises a set of keys and says, "Hop in."
Everyone clambers into the van. Once everyone is strapped in, Barton starts up the van and starts driving.
Soon enough, they pull up to a set of gates with large trees on either side. In front of the gate is a sign with the words, "Fort Bragg. Home of the Airborne and Special Operations Forces."
"Harry Potter. Granger family. Welcome to Fort Bragg," Agent Barton says.
"What is this place?" Hermione asks.
"Fort Bragg is one of the biggest military bases in the world. Some of the US military's best units are stationed here. The main unit is the 82nd Airborne Division, which is a collection of upwards of 20,000 of America's paratroopers. Also stationed at Fort Bragg are the US Army Special Operations command, which oversees US Army commando units, and the Joint Special Operations Command, or JSOC, which oversees all US commando units and has direct command over the most skilled commando teams in America. The Delta Force, the US Army's most dangerous commandos, are directly stationed here at Fort Bragg," Barton explains.
"Well, why are we here?" Hermione asks in confusion.
"Because, Fort Bragg is not only used by Muggles. MACUSA has some presence here. In fact, Fort Bragg is probably home to the majority of Muggles in America who know about magic. And President Smithson wants you to meet a few people," Barton explains.
Barton drives the van up to the entrance, where guards holding assault rifles are standing guard. One walks up to the van as it slows to a stop, and as Barton rolls down the window, the guard asks, "ID."
Barton holds out his CIA ID. The guard looks at it, then back up at Barton and asks, "Agent Barton. What brings a CIA agent to Fort Bragg?"
Barton grins and gestures behind him as he rolls down the window behind him, revealing Harry. The soldier looks at Harry, and a look of recognition comes over his face. "I see. You're clear to proceed," the soldier says to Barton as he hands back his ID. The soldier then signals a man in the gatehouse, who opens the gate.
"Thank you," Barton thanks the guard, then drives onto the base.
"He knew who I was," Harry says as they drive onto the base.
"Like I said. A lot of people here know you. In case you ever showed up, most guards here know your face and at least somewhat about why you're important," Barton explains.
"How many people do you think are here that know about Harry?" Hermione asks.
"At least a thousand. From highest ranking officers in JSOC all the way down to paratroopers in the 82nd. Some people in the Harry Potter Task Force jokingly call this place Fort Harry Potter," Barton jokes.
Barton drives across Fort Bragg, eventually reaching a section of the base that is marked with signs identifying it as Pope Field. Barton drives up to one of the large buildings there and parks.
"Alright. Everyone out," Barton orders.
Everyone climbs out of the van. "What is this place?" Dan Granger asks.
"This is one of the buildings assigned to JSOC. There's something here we've come to see," Barton says.
Barton leads the group into the building. More guards stop them and run their IDs before allowing them into the building. Barton leads them straight to an elevator that itself has a guard stationed outside. The guard again clears them, and allows them into the elevator.
As the elevator doors close and the elevator starts down, Harry asks, "What are we here to see?"
Barton smiles a bit. "We are here to see one of the most classified things in the United States of America," he says. Then, a moment later, the bell dings, and the door opens.
Barton leads the group out of the elevator and down the hall straight out of it, leading towards a set of double doors. Reaching the doors, Barton opens the doors and leads them out onto a balcony of sorts.
Harry, Hermione, and her parents, can hear sounds coming out of the room ahead. Following Barton out on the balcony, they stop in shock at the sight before them.
Spread out below them is a room almost the size of a Quidditch Pitch. It's set up like a training facility of some kind. And all across the room, several dozen individuals are training with an intensity Harry and Hermione have never seen.
Harry and Hermione look down in shock at the individuals below them. All of them are wearing black T-shirts and military camouflage trousers. A number of them are standing in front of a target range, firing various weapons including pistols, assault rifles, and marksman rifles. About a dozen others are fighting hand to hand with each other. Although its clearly training, its almost intense enough to not seem like training. To the surprise of the rest of the group, many of the rest are actually duelling with wands. Several of the individuals, however, are doing stuff that just seems strange. One of the men is deflecting balls being shot at him using his wand. Another is trying to hit targets with a gun and a wand simultaneously. Two more are actually duelling with wands right next to a Dementor being held in a cage. And as they watch, one of the men jumps into a cage that holds a leopard, and, to their shock, turns into a leopard himself and begins fighting with the real one.
For several moments, they stand there in silence. Then, they hear a voice asking, "Agent Barton. Been a while."
Everyone turns and sees a man standing a few feet away from them. He's wearing full military camouflage, and he has an insignia of two stars on his collar. Barton smiles before turning to his guests. "Ladies and gentlemen, may I introduce to you the commander of the Joint Special Operations Command. Major General Peter Schoomaker."
Schoomaker walks forward to greet them. "It's a pleasure to have you all here," he says before focusing on Harry and extending his hand. "Harry Potter. At last we meet," he says.
"Nice to meet you, General," Harry says, shaking Schoomaker's hand. He then gestures down to the people below and says, "What's going on here, General?"
"I'm glad you asked," Schoomaker responds. He then gestures down to the men below and says, "Harry Potter, Grangers, may I introduce you to the 1st Magical Special Operations Squadron. More commonly known as the Phoenix Force."
"The Phoenix Force?" Hermione asks curiously.
"Yes. They are the ultimate commando unit, and MACUSA's biggest asset against any threat, magical or Muggle," Schoomaker explains.
"What do you mean by that?" Harry asks.
Schoomaker smiles before he begins to explain, "In the 1950s, people within MACUSA pushed for the creation of an elite Auror unit. This was due mostly to the decades long struggle with Gellert Grindelwald. The idea was to create a force of highly trained Aurors able to take on any wizard in the world, track any wizard in the world, and bring them to justice. The Phoenix Force was officially created in 1956. It's primary specialty was in fact operating outside American borders, but was also used to hunt down the most dangerous magical criminals in America.
"Following the Korean War, people within MACUSA began proposing that Magical America needed to develop its own combat capability, especially given the possibility of war with the USSR. This movement at first spawned the Magical Weapons Research Program, but there were people who pushed further. After the Cuban Missile Crisis, which almost brought the US and USSR to war, this idea gathered momentum. When Rappaport's Law was repealed in 1965, coinciding with the beginning of US involvement in the Vietnam War, the head of the American Auror Office, in a meeting with a general at the Pentagon, proposed the idea of training Aurors in Muggle combat, but with commando level standards. Essentially making them a magical commando team."
"After this proposal was passed on to the rest of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and head officials at MACUSA, it was agreed upon. The Phoenix Force was chosen for conversion into this unit, and was officially designated as the 1st Magical Special Operations Squadron, though almost nobody calls it that."
"So, the government created a group of wizard soldiers?" Dan asks.
"More than that," Schoomaker says. He pauses, then says, "Selection for the Phoenix Force is one of the most difficult selection processes in the magical world. The FOrce comprises sixty individuals. Any new applicant to fill an opening on the Force must be between the ages of 20 and 35. If initial background checks are passed, a new applicant attends US Army Basic Training at Fort Benning in Georgia. They then attend the Infantry School at Fort Benning, followed by the Airborne School where they train as paratroopers. All of this training typically takes 6 months."
"Once they have finished airborne school, applicants will spend the next six months with the 82nd Airborne here at Fort Bragg, gaining further training as paratroopers and elite soldiers. At the one year mark of entering Basic Training, the next phase of training begins. The applicants attend Ranger School, the initial training for people going into the US Army Rangers, one of the Army's special forces units. It's a 62 day course for teaching special combat skills. After Ranger School, they spend an additional 7 weeks training with the Rangers themselves. After that, they go to the final phase of their training. They spend three months undergoing training with the US Navy SEALs, one of the top commando forces in the US military. The training is extremely gruelling, but not quite as severe as the training that the SEALs themselves go through when becoming SEALs. This training lasts 9 months. After all of this 2 years of training, an applicant is accepted into the Phoenix Force as an active, deployable soldier."
"After their Muggle training is complete and they are inducted into the Phoenix Force, they spend 6 more months in the most intensive Auror training they can get. Training with the best duelists possible, learning potions most people don't know exist, getting the greatest knowledge of spells possible, and all kinds of other magical training. Trainees are even encouraged to become Animagi to help with the mission. At present, 12 of our people are Animagi. They continue this training, as well as training with the Delta Force, our top Muggle commando unit."
Schoomaker again gestures down to the people training below and says, "You are looking right now at the 60 most lethal and dangerous people on the planet Earth. One of these guys could break into a bank vault in Baghdad. A squad could sneak into North Korea, kill their leader, and fight their way out."
Harry, Hermione, and her parents stare in awe down at the people still training. Hermione then notices a woman engaging in duelling practice with one of the men. "Women are accepted too?" she asks.
"Yes, maam. Unlike the Muggle side of things, we've accepted witches almost since the beginning of the unit. Magic sure helps them in that regard. Female candidates aren't common, but not unheard of. We currently have two women on the Force," Schoomaker asks.
"What would happen if you sent them after Voldemort?" Harry asks, thinking this may be why they're being shown the Force.
Schoomaker smiles. "Once they found him, just one of our guys would not only beat him, he would either have a bullet through his head in seconds, or, if her preferred the slower route, have Voldemort disarmed of his wand, pinned to the ground, and in the process of being disemboweled with a pocketknife within a few minutes. They are beyond well trained, merciless when they need to be, and will not let anything stop them from achieving their mission. While finding him would be the hard part, once we set the Phoenix Force on Voldemort, he doesn't stand a chance."
Schoomaker pauses, then says, "That's why we're showing you this. Like it or not, Mr. Potter, a war is coming to Magical Britain. And like it or not, you're a commander of sorts in one those factions. And this will be your unit. When the time comes, and you've been prepared, you will work alongside the Phoenix Force to take the fight directly to Voldemort. And after that, if necessary, they will help you bring down Albus Dumbledore."
Harry looks at General Schoomaker, then down at the Phoenix Force. He notices now that multiple individuals have noticed him and have stopped training to look up at him. Harry stares back down at them, trying to digest the idea of him going alongside these men and women into battle against Voldemort. He thinks ahead to the struggles looming in his future, and realizing that with the Phoenix Force, things are going to go a lot different than he expected.
And, I'll end the chapter there.
I hope you like the concept of the Phoenix Force. For those still confused, they are Aurors who have not just been put through Army basic training, but basically received SEAL training, and are meant for use against both Muggle and Magical threats.
Next chapter will be up soon. Until then, please leave a review, and stay tuned!