“Go ahead, commander,” announced Alpha Two through his microphone. It was midday, and the sun beat down relentlessly on the surface of this desolate world.
“I’ll take Flame One and Two to secure the hills thirteen clicks away at two o’clock, and you can take Three and Four to secure our rendezvous point. Once you arrive at our designated position, conduct long range multi-phase scans continuously until my unit arrives.”
“Acknowledged. Three and Four, let’s go.”
The Cerberus Reconnaissance Squadron was the best force recon squad the Confederacy had. Composed of the cream of the Confederate military, these men never lost a single member, nor failed to execute any mission. Each individual in this elite squad dedicated themselves to protect their government and their worlds, preserving order and eliminating potential threats before they become a problem. This particular mission was like any other: scour the area, secure a strategic point, and conduct a clandestine objective. The usual goals of these missions was to either spy on a target, raze a rebel encampment, or to rescue a particularly important hostage. Even though the Confederacy had a large number of Ghost agents whose training focused exclusively on these missions, the spotless performance and the specialized tactics that was typical of the squad earned them a place in the top ranks of the Confederate military, and gave them missions that would prove impossible for any lesser squads. Each member was given a code name, with Goliath pilots being Alphas and Firebats coded as Flames. It was ritual that noone referred to their brothers in combat by name, for it was best to be kept a secret.
Alpha One was the squadron commander, a ruthless and efficient killer. He was once a Ghost agent, but his skills at Goliath piloting in the training simulators did not go unnoticed by his superiors, and soon became the most highly trained and proficient member of Cerberus. After the last commander retired from the squad to take a position as a Rear Admiral, he was unanimously voted to be the new commander.
“Flames One and Two, guard my rear. I’ll take point and get ahead of you to run long range scans on the terrain in front of us. I’m picking up elevated energy levels amongst that large clump of trees seven clicks away. Heat up your flamethrowers and keep an eye out,” ordered Alpha One.
As Alpha One’s Goliath sped forward, Flame Two opened a private channel to speak. “One of these days, I’m gonna kick that muthafucker’s face in for being such a smartass,” declared Flame Two. He was once a hardened criminal turned Marine, but was later placed in a Firebat suit and only recently joined Cerebrus Squad due to his finely honed close-quarters battle skills.
“Damn, man, the man’s just doing what he’s supposed to do. Besides, after you get to know him a bit better, I think you’ll see him in a different light. Word is that he was one of them Ghosts, so he can’t help the way he’s talking.”
“Flame One and Two, cut the chatter,” the stern voice of Alpha One interrupted. The word “cut” was stressed just a bit. “We can discuss personal details later. Right now, focus on the mission.”
“Sorry sir,” whispered Flame Two. He was actually mortally terrified of his commander, whose lethality he had observed more than enough times when dealing with enemies. As the newest member of the team, he definitely did not want to incur the wrath of such a mysterious yet deadly character.
“Flame Two, run up ahead and do a focused sensor sweep from sixty to four hundred megahertz,” ordered the commander. He ignored the consternation in Flame Two’s voice.
“Ye-e-sir. I’m on it. Flame Two out.”
Flame One and Two caught up with the Goliath, and Flame Two ran ahead with the glowing tip of his flamethrower emanating thin wisps of noxious gasses. After a few minutes and reaching within five kilometers of the energy signature, Flame Two excited announced his readings through his communicator.
“Sir, are you reading this? It looks like one of those late-model X3 Power Generators is operating at full capacity up ahead. That’s what my sensors are saying, but the thing should already be visible through my optical sensors. I bet it’s some new kind of mobile power generator that the Bitches of Korhal are hauling around. Should we go check it out?”
“No. I’m going to go straight towards it, while you can circle around the left. Flame One, do the same thing on the right, and you two will raze the base and ambush any opposition that remains while I draw the fire away. Remember to make a wide circle and maintain communications silence during your operations to avoid unwanted attention. You guys have five minutes. Alpha One out.”
“Acknowledged,” both Flames One and Two responded simultaneously.
The group split up, and the two Firebats carefully slid around the energy source. The commander, Alpha One, calmly glanced at his HUD, stopped the Goliath walker, and powered up his secondary weapons systems. A specialized Fragmentation Grenade launcher that was attached to the primary autocannons popped out and loaded a grenade the size of a basketball.
That was about the only resemblance between it and the basketball; its surface was actually composed of multiple layers of criss-crossed Tritainium shards, and its core was made with a small pack of high explosives and a simple pressure sensor designed to detonate the charge when the grenade comes in contact with something other than the launcher itself.
After the countdown timer dwindled down to a couple of seconds, he powered up all combat systems and resumed course. His raptor-like eyes darted around, piercing every possible hiding place displayed on his viewscreen in search of prey. Finally, when he closed in within a few hundred meters, his HUD lit up like a Christmas tree. Numerous red squares showed dozens of enemy Marines popping up like daisies from foxholes and heaps of camouflaging vegetation, while two lime boxes highlighted the positions of his two comrades who were ready to ambush the ambushers. A punch to a glowing button on his control pad popped the armed grenade into the midst of the largest cluster of Marines, and chaos ensued. The grenade exploded, its shards piercing the armored bodies of the Marines. Their faces turned into expressions of surprise, pain, anguish, and suffering as they let out silent howls through open mouths, their voices unable to be heard due to the soundproof face plates. Other Marines that sprung up in different locations aimed and opened fire. Countless anti-armor spikes spewed out of their Gauss Rifles, with the occasional tracer round painting the scene with bright tails of fluorescent orange gas. The Gauss slugs bit and sank into Alpha One’s Goliath, but the reinforced plating and force field matrices held them at bay from the core systems. Alpha One opened a channel and announced that he was going to back off.
“Copy that, commander,” announced Flame Two. “One, let’s go!”
“Not so fast, Two. Let them go after the commander for a bit, then we’ll burn the base down.”
“Did you see how many spikes they punched into that Goliath? I’ll be damned if he doesn’t blow in the next five seconds!” exclaimed Two.
“Nah. Command patched our two Goliaths with triple-reinforced Titanium plating the day before. We shouldn’t worry about him for now. Our objective is to take out the base, and exterminate the Korhali afterwards while the commander leads them away.”
“Alright, dammit. Let’s go and start a bonfire!” declared Flame two excitedly.
“Patience is a virtue, my friend-”
“And I don’t have any right now! C’mon!”
“Copy that,” responded Flame one with a chuckle.
The two Firebats jogged over to the encampment, and was surprised with what they saw: a partially assembled stolen Armageddon-class nuclear missile was hidden insidiously under a pile of Phylon rubble, and made to look like a pre-assembled Vulture. However, the high energy signature of its core was instantly recognized by the scanning equipment of the Firebats’, and both halted before the missile, each standing opposite of each other with the volatile explosive between them.
“Holy shit,” said Flame Two with a nervous laugh. “Lucky I heeded part of your ‘wise words’; else we’d be blown to bits!”
“Actually, my sensors indicate that it is not armed, so we wouldn’t have triggered an explosion if we lit the place up. However, there would be severe environmental damage that would attract unwanted attention from environmentalists and their scum, thus compromising the mission,” explained Flame One.
“So what should we do?”
“Good question. I don’t know. Hmmm...”
“How about we pop and take the core out of here, then nape this place?”
“No. We would waste time doing so and risk it being recaptured.”
“We’re wasting time right now, dammit!” screamed Flame Two.
“Remember to address your superiors with respect, Two. But you do have a point; I can’t think of anything else right now, so here’s the plan: you take the core out and cover my ass while I pump some fuel, then when I give the signal, get out of here.”
The two pyrotechnic specialists set about their work, and were soon finished. They scrambled out of the base just in time to see an empty Bunker erupt in a huge fireball, and setting off a chain reaction with blew several other buildings nearby and setting the rest on fire. Just as they evacuated the area, the commander’s voice was patched through the comm. A lone rebel fled from a burning shack with his pants of, obviously busy in the bathroom. Before he could escape the conflagration however, the shack’s power circuits overloaded and blew up, enveloping the unsuspecting man in a ball of liquid inferno. The Flames caught up with each other as they ran from the scene and watched their creation unleashing its power on the Sons of Korhal base.
“Excellent job, soldiers. However, I request some immediate assistance as they’re launching grenades now, and it’s stressing my defense systems too much.”
“Copy that, Alpha One,” responded Flame One. “Two, take the left and I’ll go right. We’ll take these bastards from the sides.”
“Slammin’.”
The two split up and carefully maneuvered around the raging marines. As they approached the firefight, several red dots appeared on Alpha One’s radar, and were closing in fast.
“Flame One and Two, I’m detecting four Wraiths coming in at full throttle. Finish these Marines so I can target the Wraiths.”
“What about the core?” asked Flame Two.
“Clarify,” requested Alpha One. Long bursts of automatic rifle fire could be heard in the background.
“Ok, here’s the quick version,” explained Flame One. “Flame Two’s carrying the core of an Armageddon-class nuke, and we have to find a way to get rid of it without irradiating this place.
“I have been trained to-” said Alpha One as he was cut short by a storm of Gauss spikes thudding into his Goliath’s armor. He replied in kind by popping another grenade at the Marines that were chasing him, taking two of them out. “Sorry for the interruption. Here are the instructions: the radioactive compound is inside the core, in a compartment with the label “5G”. Do not be mistakenly open “SG”, or else the core will lock and arm the detonation explosives. After you open the 5G compartment, carefully pull out the three small teal canisters. There will be two buttons on each canister, one that says “Alpha”, and one that says “Omega”. Press them in the order of Alpha, Omega, Alpha, Alpha. This will cause the canisters to lock themselves and oxidize the nuclear compounds inside, rendering them much less radioactive and destructive. Afterwards, you can throw them away and help me.”
“Ok...now what’s the code again?” asked Flame Two as he grabbed the three small cylinders.
Flame One crouched next to him and gulped, then whispered, “Alpha, Omega, Alpha, Alpha. Be careful, dammit!”
“Alpha, Alpha, Omega, Alpha...done,” announced Flame Two. After a few seconds, the nuclear warhead’s central computer beeped an affirmative. “Commander, we’ve disarmed the nuke core, and will be joining you now.”
“Split up and flank the Marines for me,” ordered the commander.
“Already on it,” replied Flame One.
The two Firebats came from the sides of loosely scattered group of Marines, and lit their torches. Liquid fire spewed out of their flamethrowers, scorching several enemy Marines that were too preoccupied on attacking the Goliath.
“Fire it up, baby!” yelled Two.
A few Marines with their faceplates open experienced gruesome deaths as the fire cooked their unprotected faces. Several others’ armor was drenched with the flamethrower fuel, and were literally roasted alive inside their heavy armor.
“Flame Two, take out the bogie at your four o’clock; he’s aiming at you. Flame One, cover him,” advised the commander.
“No worries, I’ve got it,” replied One.
“I’m hit! I’m hit!” screamed Two as he attempted to dodge a hail of rifle fire, but was unsuccessful as dozens of spikes embedded themselves into his suit.
“Shut up, Two. I don’t see you leaking anything except bullshit,” One coolly said as he covered his counterpart by lighting the ground near the Marines, gaining precious seconds for Two to escape.
“Owe you one, no pun intended.”
“Just get the job done, boy.”
“Cut the chatter and cover for me,” interrupted Alpha One. “I’ll drop a Spider Mine while you distract them.”
“Acknowledged, commander,” responded Flame One.
The two elite Firebats shot bursts of concentrated pyromania toward the Marines, then hastily fell back. The Marines shot back, and then went back to the Goliath. As they pursued the retreating Goliath, the armed Spider Mine that the commander dropped activated and scurried towards the Marines. Before they had a chance to realize what was coming, the mine positioned itself next to the running Marines and detonated.
The Firebats were still running when they heard the explosion. As they turned, a large flash followed by the shredding of the Marines spewed blood, gore, and bits and pieces of armor across the area.
“Mission complete,” announced Flame Two.
“Not yet,” said his partner as he pointed to the sky.
A small group of Wraiths with clear Sons of Korhal markings zipped towards the Cerberus detachment, and opened fire as the three took cover. The commander skillfully zigzagged his Goliath, then fired a salvo of missiles at an incoming Wraith. The Wraith pilot engaged his afterburners, and just as the missiles closed in, he banked the Wraith hard to the right. Three of the missiles missed completely and went askew, but a forth one followed the Wraith. As the Wraith slowed just a bit to fully turn around, the onboard computer in the missile readjusted course to compensate for the deviation, and successfully hit the Wraith below the right wing. The Wraith erupted into a pseudo-meteor, and slammed into the ground some miles away with smoke outlining its course to oblivion.
Meanwhile, the doomed Wraith’s wingmen sought to avenge their fallen comrade, and rocketed toward the offending Goliath. A concentrated rain of ruby-red lasers were fired at Alpha One, and several hit the aft sections. Smoke billowed out of the left knee joint of the Goliath, it was not patched with the heavy plating because of mobility issues. The crippled Goliath hobbled on its limp leg for a few seconds, then collapsed and crashed hard to the ground.
“Commander!” screamed Flame One. “You still there?”
There was silence on the other line as the Wraiths wheeled around for a third round in the sky above. The two Firebats huddled below a tree, which provided visible cover for the two defenseless soldiers.
“Come on, dammit! Say something!”
There was static, then the hatch of the commander’s Goliath opened. The commander himself, a lean figure donning a Goliath pilot’s suit and a modified Ghost mask hopped out and limped behind the smoking Goliath, hauling a huge C-10 Canister Rifle with him. A horrifically long gash on the side of his left leg was bleeding badly as a result of being cut by the shattered Pylon glass on a display panel, but he seemed not to notice as he aimed carefully at the lead Wraith and fired.
“Commander, watch out!” warned both Firebats simultaneously.
There was no need for immediate concern, however, as the fallen Goliath provided good protection against the barrage of laser fire. As the Wraiths passed overhead, the commander launched a small missile from his rifle, which locked onto the closest Wraith and hit it. Instead of exploding, it merely grazed the surface and seemingly bounced off harmlessly. Yet looks could be deceiving, the missile was a Lockdown round, designed to disable all electronic systems aboard a vehicle or ship. The Wraith’s engines were still roaring, but the pilot has lost all control. The wild Wraith did a loop and zoomed upwards towards the sky, then disappeared as it went above the cloud cover and headed towards space.
The two surviving aircrafts realized that they have just lost half their squad, and broke off their attack. Flame Two gave a whistle of relief before sprinting with Flame One to check on the commander and the condition of the Goliath.
Commander Alpha One was able to patch his wound, and was already on repairs when his two units arrived. After mending the holes created by the laser hits, and rewiring the circuitry of the knee joint, the Goliath was as good as new. However, lifting it upright was a whole other deal; a typical Goliath weighs two metric tons, and with the addition of specialized weaponry as in the case of the commander’s Goliath, it weighed even more. However, the team came up with an ingenious solution: take apart the leg units of the specialized Goliath, then tow the body upright and reattach the legs afterwards. The Cerberus detachment was able to repair their Goliath in no time under the superior supervision of their able commander, and moved onto the rendezvous point after a quick check of the razed base to make sure that no enemies survived.
“Hey Two, hold on a minute!” ordered Flame One.
“What’s the problem, sir?” Flame Two responded smartly.
“This,” Flame One said as he scraped off charred guts from a Korhalian Marine who exploded during the battle that splattered all over Flame Two.
“Oh. Thanks.”
“Anytime.”
“My long range multi-spectrum sensors are down, but from the bursts of microwave radiation thats coming from the direction of the rendezvous point that I’m detecting on the radiation monitors, I believe our teammates have reached there, secured the area, and planted a beacon. Let’s move it!” declared Alpha One.
“Acknowledged, commander,” replied Flame One for both the Firebats as all three turned and went into the direction of the beacon.
