NationStates Jolt Archive

Foxtrot News
Nearly three months after the terrorist attack on HALO Island that destroyed the port there, CDC officials have confirmed that a strange hemmoragic virus has appeared on the island. It appears to be contained, they say, and that there is no need for alarm as the Port has been closed and there has been no air traffic except for the routine airdrop. Some officials are concerned that the current administration knew of this threat and did not tell the public. On this, President Kowalski said only that it would take the sick mind of a secessionist to say such a thing against the Commander-in-Chief right after a war. Others believe that this will lead to a possible Civil War.

President Kowalski appeared behind a podium on his Alabama estate. He was wearing just a normal pair of shop clothes with a flannel shirt on and some dirt all over him, having just come from the fields. His look was grim, and the shotgun under his arm looked none too promising to the reporters. He began.

"Today, we have a threat off of HALO Island. It is a strain of what is called the Motaba Valley virus. It originated in Africa and was brought here by the actions of the terrorists who destroyed the port a few months ago. Up until now, there has been a usable syrum for this virus similar to Ebola. However, the virus has mutated and we know of no cure. I am hereby ordering the Marine Corps to full alert to contain this virus. There is now a 50 mile containment zone around the island. Do not worry about any possible contamination to the rest of the Country as it does not appear to be airborne and the whole island has been under quarrantine for two months now. Now for questions."

"Mr. President. Joanne Sommers from CMN. Senator Norinko claims that the virus is from our own cruise missiles and states that he will have you impeached if you do not tell the truth within three days. What do you have to say to that."

"I say that those cruise missiles were full of salt and he could face serious charges if he is doing this for political gain. Next."

"Don Quincy from Teuful. Senator Norinko also claims that you are willing to sacrifice the 30,000 men on that Island to contain a bioweapon we developed to kill the Farminans. He also states that if provoked, Iwo Jima will secceed from CM."

"Well, if he seceeds, than I can not promise him protection from the Marines. And most people there know about the first battle there. Also, Motaba was created by the US Army back in 1975 and we never used it against the Farminans. Good day to you all." President Kowalski then left the podium and continued target practice against some crows.

CMN News Spolier

Senator Norinko and Iwo Jima have just declared independence! A Civil War will ensue is President Kowalski keeps his current course!

I will release my tanks @ noon.
You haVe 5(five) hours to comply

OOC: sweeps the newb off the table and says, "Let the big boys handle the big toys."
OOC2: Sorry for the uberlame post--had to go
IC:
President Kowalski was pacing about in his office. He had ordered the capture or assassination of the rogue Senator, and now dictator. Also, the First Air-Mobile Infantry was ordered into Iwo Jima. The National Guartd units stationed there were ordered to move to Alabama. The new nation of Iwo Jima and the large nation of Crazed Marines were now at war.

President Kowalski was pacing about in his office. He had ordered the capture or assassination of the rogue Senator, and now dictator.

OOC: Reminds CM that Kowalski is married to someone who could have the entire ICI Black Operations devision in action within moments of a telephone call...

Foxtrot News
Today, President Kowalski has ordered the First Division to invade Iwo Jima as well as activate Delta Force. The First Tank and First Mech divisions are also on standby while Task Force 44 and SAC on alert. There are also rumors of foreign intervention on both sides.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
President Kowalski paced in his living room, a small indent in the well worn carpet from when he has done this before. His new wife, Lauren Lutz Kowalski strode in and saw his anguish over this situation. He looked at her and she could see the deep nature of this anguish. She came over to him and his rage showed for the first time she had ever seen. She knew something bad was about to happen, and she didn't know who or what was going to get hurt.

We offer President Kowalski our full support, for now.

Emperor Justinian


"Find out everything you can," Justinian ordered to his aide, "We can never let good times go to waste."

"As you wish," said his aide.

"Good. Now about that pesky Orphelia...

Location: 1500 feet over Mt. Suribachi, Iwo Jima
Time: 0015H Local

Aboard a PC-5 parajumper plane, 350 men were huddled aboard the plane about to jump. There were ten of these such planes prepared to drop men within a five mile radius of the famous mount. Other such operations were lined up along the coast.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Location: Dictator Norinko's mansion
Ex-Senator Norinko had his personal militia protecting his home when the first reports of the paratroop landings at Suribachi. His foreign aid was promised and he hoped it would arrive before the Marines arrived. If all else failed, suicide was always an option.

Operation Thor's Hammer
Location: Mt. Suribachi
The 3500 men of the 1st I/D were engaged in a firefight as bad as what had happened on that same spot nearly 90 years earlier. Losses against the NeoMilitia were just over 50 dead and 100 wounded. However, tahnks to the 200 snipers who dropped in as part of Force Recon and Delta, over 200 enemies had been killed and confirmed. Orders limited the Division to within five clicks of the mountain base. Rumors had it that the rebels would soon recieve foreign aid.

The crackling noise of the gravel subsided as the black Audi RS 4 came to a stop. The door opened, and out stepped a woman dressed conservatively in a black dress suit. Her stride was purposefull, and she moved briskley towards the almost obvious nonchaulant building. A simple key card was waved, and two blacked out doors opened in front of her. She bypassed the security desk, and stepped up to a metal detector. She removed a UMAC Beretta copy from a hip holster and a small revolver out from under her jacket, and handed it to an armed gaurd. She stepped through the detector, and was handed the weapons.

She continued down a hall, where xrays displayed her image, void of any weapons other than the two she had checked, on video screens. She continued down another set of halls, where a man in a suit was standing. She didn't acknowledge him beyond a simple nod as he turned, and began to walk with her. "We have the info you requested Miss Lutz. The government forces have already started movements against the rebels, para drops mostly. Its not looking to bang up, the numbers are disapearing pretty fast. We've activated a few cells, but its up to you to give the go code."

Holly Lutz, ICI director, nodded. "What have we already got going?"

"Well, at the moment a few of the black ops guys are good to go. I think we have 15 or 16 up and armed, ready to move in. We also have a few of the double action teams, 10 to be exact. However, we cant pull up any of the joint operations units, not without a written order from the First Speaker. However, we have already asked that at least we get a few units from INSWG, and maybe a recon platoon or two."

"Has Fratelli contacted the CM government yet?"

"Not to or knowledge, no. However, I'm sure the State Department is getting something written up for her."

Holly nodded again. "What about Lauren, will she be ok?"

"Well, our best bet says she'll be fine. However, we dont have any positives."

Holly just nodded. She turned down another hall, and came upon her office. "Call me if we have any more updates."

The aide nodded, and left as she closed the door to her own office.

OOC: Imitora, I still want you to RP Lauren at least some
IC:
Mike Kowalski was pacing the floor of his living room at his ranch. Lauren was still with him, but she had fallen asleep on the couch. Mike's aide entered with a messge from his Intel sources. He woke up Lauren rather abruptly.

"Wha' is it?" she asked, groggily.

"Lauren........Listen to me."

"I'm listening honey. What is bothering you?"

"Lauren. I need you to pack up and get out of the country. Go to your Mother's. We have no cells within your country. Crystal Ireland and New Exodus are not safe because of the large CM population. I want you to only pack an overnight bag, keep it with you every moment, and keep a pistol with you as well. I know you don't exactly like the idea of this one, but it is the most powerful one with very the lowest recoil." Mike then handed her a CMDC railgun pistol with exploding tip ammunition. "I will send some Blood Rangers as your escort. They are loyal to the Commander-in-Chief and the Corps first. No harm shall come from them."

OOC: Imitora, basic expect an attack on Mike--ninjas (lol, he'll survive)--and a complete Civil War with Lauren as the Target or Norinko's kidnapping plots

OOC: Sorry for lack of a response, been busy with school and all, I'll get a good IC post in tommorow.

Lauren quickly packed as she was told, and put the pistol on top of her clothes, zipping up the bag. However, she wasn't going tojust show up, she wasn't that kind of girl. She pulled a phone out of a purse, and placed a qucik call to Holly to let her know she was comming home. It was of no concern to Lauren that Holly's reply was "I know." That kinda creeped her out that her sister knew just about everything, but it would also help.

She grabbed the red duffle bag, and pulled on a light jacket. She walked out into the main room, and over to Mike, hugging him. "Stay safe hun, ok?" She stepped back, and looked him in the eyes. "Please."

Mike replied with a simple, "I will honey. Now you must do the same." With that, the driver led Lauren to the limo and the airport. Unbeknownst to everybody around, the driver was actually an IJ agent who took Lauren to the wrong plane at the airport, one headed for Farmina and then to Iwo Jima from there. the IJA had its first hostage.


OOC: sorry for the lameness, but I needed to get IJ's Operation Ninja off the ground.

OOC: Its gravy, I know how ya feel.

IC:

"So, the flight never came in?" the man, wearing the ever fashionable tactical black, asked. He sat back, reclining in the desk chair. The woman sitting across from him nodded.

"Right. We think its a shaddow op, got her on hte wrong plane, and now shes picked. You would think a country run by a soldier would have some better operational security. Figures. So what did we decide with Fratelli?"

"She wouldn't give us any open option. Comming out of this Fultonia shit, she doesn't want to dedicate any sincere combat forces. Shit, I couldn't even talk an SO fleet out of her. If we do get more involved its gotta be black."

The female, ICIA Director Holly Lutz, sighed. "Ya know, I'm not suprised. She doesn't want this to be a family thing. No one likes going off to war to die for someone else's sister. What do you recomend?"

"What about your boy Fortier?"

She chuckled. "He hasn't been operational since, shit, oh two? What do you think he's gonna do, ask nicely?"

The man, Gen. David Garrison, head of ISOC, laughed. "You dont read the breifs that come across your desk, do ya? He went re op about five months ago. I guess making millions upon millions just got boring. Him and some other seargent, Gibbson, I think, are heading up a new operations unit from ICMC. Similar to WRITE teams, but a little more organized. Took some of my best operatives from Recon, a couple from the AFSOC, and a few from the 22nd. They went on their frist combat op about a month ago."

"Where?"

"Libya."

"Libya? Whats in Libya?"

"Rag heads, skinnes, fultonians. Who knows. They have complete access to ICIA and INSA intell. Another one of Fortier's connections. Nothing beats a military man with connections. You'll love this though, he decided to leave out rank." He noticed Lutz's confused look. "When he left Recon, he was a full ell tee. Hell, he was on his way to LtCol. Hes listed here," he said, holding up a folder, "as a Master Seargent. And everyone in his little operation is seargent or gunny."

"What they callin' themselves?"

"Dunno. We're just callin them the 2nd-SOFD. Or Recon Plus. The ICMC, in all its buerocratic wisdom, hasn't gotten around to designating them yet."

She nodded. "Well, when they're done in Libya, I wanna be on the bird that brings em home."
__

Lauren, sat quietly in her seat. She didn't try to make a move for the gun in her bag, she wouldn't be able to get it in time. If they were able to get her on to the wrong plane, and they were this deep in Mikes chain of command, then they obviously knew what they were doing. She couldn't afford to take the risk, she promised Mike she would be careful.

She looked around, and noticed she was pretty much alone on the flight. Damnit, she wanted to talk to someone, figure out what was going on. She sighed, and looked out the window.
__

Libya

The eight man assault team was split into four groups, staying low behind the dunes. Fortier looked ten feet away, hes friend and second in command, moved slowly, adjusting his grip on his SSA-308. He nodded, using hand signals to point over the dune, and to signal two trucks, a bike, and three cars. Fortier nodded, and moved towards the end of the dune, swinging his own CAR-48 behind him, the sling holding it to his back. He pressed his hands against the throat mic, and began to issue orders.

"Ok, we got two trucks, three cars, and a motorcycle. The claymores are set, so we wait till the first truck crosses. It has the gold. Second truck and the cars are probably shooters. Bike should be easy. Savy?"

He got eight 'savies' in return, and looked back at Hoot. He used hand signals, telling him to pop the guy on the bike as soon as the first mine went off. He nodded again in return, and slowly moved up the dune. Fortier moved to teh end of the dune, and looked around the edge. The first truck passed the small stone he used to mark the mine, and depressed the detonator. The second truck was sprayed with a hail of metal ball bearings.

Hoot tossed himself over the edge of the dune, and fired a single shot into the head of the biker, dropping him. The other 6 men moved as well over the and around the dunes, and quickly began fire short controlled bursts into the cars and second trucks. One man got out of the second truck, but was quickly cut down by a burst from a squad weapon, his chest erupting in blood.

Fortier fired a singal shot from his rifle through the window of the first truck, and saw the splash of red that signaled a head shot. He moved around the side, keeping his rifle trained on the back of the truck, as the rest of the unit moved forward. In the back were 12 men, mixed of Arabians and Fultonians. He smiled. "Gentlemen, you are now all prisoners of the Imitoran Governement. If you step out please, Im sure we can make this quick."

It was three hours later, after a two hour march back to the coast, when a black MH-60I slowly came to a hover, and two crew chiefs began to help load the new prisoners onto the bird. The eight man unit, covered in sand and dust, boarded last, Fortier pulling himself on the helicopter last. He looked around, counting to make sure he still had the seven men under him, and then saw a familar face. A female, wearing a black tshirt and BDU pants, was looking back at him. He sighed. "Holly."

"Rob. Good to see your back in action. We need to talk."

"Fuck," he swore. Of course, thats what he always said whenever a female said 'we need to talk.'

Hoot just chuckled.

Mike was pacing the floor. He had sent his adopted children out of the country already. In fact, those werewolves should have been in New Exodus already.
"Kowalski here. Patch me to Commander Haase.....Hey Mike, its Mike. Uh, have my kids arrived yet?"

"You sent your kids here without telling me?" an astonished Commmaner Hasse exclaimed hundreds and thousands of miles away in New Exodus space.

"I sent a FLASH ALPHA message to you. It was the most encrypted message ever sent and you're telling me you never got it?!?!"

"Nope."

"Crap. Do you know what this means?"

"Operation Ninjitsu?"

"Yeah. Norinko has my wife and my kids. He expects me to surrender on account of this. What do you suggest?"

"Some New Exodus commandos use PEP rifles and pistols to recapture them and Norinko."

"Good thinking Haase. When can you shuttle them over?"

"Within a week, I think. What about other units in the area?"

"Only 1st Blood Ranger Company. That's Colonel Sam Fischer's group. They have control of Sector 4's destruction. That's 150 kilometers in and 250 from the Capital."

"Ok, thanks. I'll see about those commandos."

"Thanks Commander. I owe you one."

"Men, we're 150 kilometers behind enemy lines and the only friendly unit in the sector. If anything moves, I expect to see nothing but gratitous violence from the lot of you!" Colonel Sam Fischer screamed into his intercom's microphone, facing his troopers. "You are the best of the best. All of you were selected from Recon to Delta to the Blood Rangers. Now, we have a mission ahead of us. Some of you are from Iwo Jima, and I can understand your patriotism for your home. However, remember that we are not here to destroy Iwo Jima. We are here to end the reign of a man who wishes to split his country for his perverse power trip. He is the one killing Iwo Jima and betrayed the oath he took to protect, defend, and preserve the Constitution of his country. I know all of you have taken that vow, and are you really willing to help a traitor who broke the very vow you are here to uphold?" Silence for a few moments and then, "All right, the plan is to destroy the enemy RADAR and SAM sites along the entire western coast. That will give the IJ Army, or the IJA, the false sense of security thinking all of our Spec Ops insertions and extractions will be from the West. Now, our A-10s and A-20s will constantly strafe the area to make them think that while our other Spec Ops insert via sea on the North and East sides. Our final mission is to find intel on the whereabouts of the First Lady and the Presidents children."

"Women and Children? You mean to tell me those bastards would stoop so low as to kidnap women and children?"

"Not just any women and children, but the Presidents wife and kids, as well as those of the SecNav, Secretary of State, Commandant of the Corps, and the Senate Majority Leader. They've infiltrated us deep, and our job is to expose those traitors and get intel necessary for a rescue. Our orders are to sit out if we see any hostages as to not reveal our presence until the threat can be assesed and then new rders will come down. Understand?"

"OOH-RAH!" All hundred men in mech-like armor said at once. The Colonel smiled at his fortune of having the five best platoons History had ever offered a commander. The Captains and Majors then saluted and led their four platoons off in different directions while Fischer took his and went towards Norinko's HQ near Mosul.

OOC: Iwo Jima actually consists of Iwo Jima, Iraq, and Afghanistan combined, so it is pretty vast with treacherous terrain.

bump fo NE

Illan Ramon Colony, Heinlein Cluster, New Exodus:

Paladin Oburo, clad in his dress uniform, double-timed down the main avenue, before finding a maglev station and hopping in. As the transport coasted along, he found his thoughts drifting back to the Kowalski family. It burned in his blood to think of innocents being used as tools in such cruel political maneuverings. He would do all in his power to bring them back alive, and then he would try to deliver their captors to the Crazed Marines authorities. A grim smile threatened to cover his face as he remembered the Crazed Marines style of justice for such vile creatures. But, it would not be in keeping with New Exodus values to wish such things upon anyone, so he instead focused on planning for the operation.

All the Brothers (and Sisters) Battle were assembled in the briefing room when he arrived. He strode to the podium and uploaded the preliminary data. Without preamble, he began:

"As you know, the Kowalski family has been abducted. Normally, CM forces would locate and rescue them, but it seems that the current political turmoil has left them suspicious. We have been called upon to make an orbital insertion, land, and rapidly secure the President's family. It seems we will have some assistance from the Bloodrangers," a few subdued cheers went up, "but the securing of the objective falls to us. We will be taking a theurgist along, Rabbi Grossman, to help subdue the enemy. The Bloodrangers are in the field right now attempting to locate the objective. Until then, we will be waiting in orbit for the drop order."

The Samaritans dispersed to their ready rooms, then reassembled at one of the colony's hangars. Illan Ramon was the primary hub for New Exodus military transport, and as such, the toroidal colony had numerous hangars and docking facilities at the end of its long manufacturing boom. The troops filed into a waiting Salamis-class vessel that had been modified for the purpose, and departed.

Colonel Fischer took out the satellite radio and said, "November Echo Papa One, this is Bulldog. Papa One, insertion point marked with orbital UV Flare. Drop in a five meter spread and prepare. This is One Two Klicks from objective. Repeat, twelve kilometers from objective. If possible, capture all Hotel Tangos and bring them to Charlie Mike mainland for trial. We will covr infil and exfil. Your new designation is Two Niner Savoy (29 Savoy). Over and out!"

OOC: This is pretty much on hold until New Exodus returns from Virginia helping his girlfriend move
IC:
Mike didn't like the idea that his personal driver was a damn rebel. The second he heard of the trechery, he ordered the driver to die a shameful death at the hands of a starved gorilla (only the third person to be killed that way)...of course, in war times things were more wierd....His 20 year old son, Kaylan, appeared i nthe doorway.

"Dad," Kaylan started, "Cononel Fischer has asked me to join the First Blood Ranger Batallion. He says my ability to transform at will to a werewolf will be useful and we have found out that normal bullets don't affect werewolves. I'm asking your permission to go to Iwo Jima and personally kill Norinko...for Lauren... especially for her."

"Kaylan, that means a lot to your old man. You realise I'm over forty years old, and I've only now found a wife. Of course, these nanites I took make me seem like a regular thirty-year-old male. Me and David both were in the Soldat I program and stayed until version 1.2.1 where they pretty much had to infuse us with some other things....but thank you. Hopefully, she'll be back soon. Take care and watch for mines. That place is bad about them because of the soil."

"Thanks Dad..." Kaylan said, leaving the house. He transformed and left to tell his girlfriend 'goodbye'.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Status Report: Operation Thor's Hammer
All units have advanced to within fifty miles of Capital Kabul. Iraq and Afghanistan areas secure except for sparse, isolated resistance. All that is left is Kabul and Mosul. Cities expected to fall within forty-eight hours. NE Extract teams inbound and ready. Armies to stay put until extract teams exfiltrate. Casualities light, only 250 killed compared to over 2500 enemies killed, along with 30000 wounded and/or captured. More to come when it is available. Captured intel suggests Miss Kowalski, the Kowalski children, families of the Kowalski brothers, and VIP/families are safe for the moment and there are two main sites for holding them. Families of/and Congressmen are in one area with captured Military personnel and a second area for the Kowalski's.
XX
Field-Marshall Rhimel
Commander-in-Chief Iwo Jima Expedition.

“Drop in one minute. Stand by.”
In forty metal cocoons, forty men and women began to pray. Arabic, Hebrew, English, and Latin words painted a picture of righteous battle, requests for victory and succor, and pleas for the safety of their comrades and the innocent objectives of the mission. In the specially designed command pod, Paladin Oburo sat opposite Rabbi Grossman, their armored knees touching in the cramped space.

“I understand this will be an unpleasant experience, yes?”

Oburo smiled reassuringly, “Yes, Rabbi, but only a little, and the landing mechanisms on this pod will make the ride much smoother. The rest of the Brothers and Sisters will have a rougher time, but we are accustomed to such treatment.”

“You wish to go in with your charges, do you not?” the Rabbi asked.
Oburo stifled a grimace. “Yes, I would wish to, but commanders are asked to sacrifice such indulgences. Admittedly, the younger ones are faster than I, but it goes against the grain, so to speak, to let others fight while one sits back and gives orders.”

The Rabbi gave a knowing smile. “All things considered, I am glad to have you with me, Brother.”

The pods were launched from the spacecraft, streaking down towards the landing sites on the planet below. Jamming systems struggled to minimize the signatures of the descending pods, while young Brother Lucas chanted a litany meant to lull the enemy into a false sense of security. Though he was not as great a theurgist as the Rabbi, the youthful Samaritan held enough skill to be trusted with the initial operations. Once the command pod landed, Grossman would take over, and begin weakening the wills of the enemy around the hostages. The cocoons burned through the atmosphere, slowing down to terminal velocity before deploying their small parachutes. At nearly ten kilometers altitude, the pods burst open, and the Brothers Battle coasted to Earth on the flames of their disposable jump packs.

The Samaritans set down in the forests surrounding the compound, quickly and efficiently securing the perimeter and establishing a field HQ, a secluded thicket where Rabbi Grossman, Brother Lucas, and Paladin Oburo crouched in prayer. Though of different religions, all three were monotheistic, and most importantly, committed to the task at hand.

The Brothers and Sisters advanced at full speed, dodging between the trees and landing flawlessly on rocks and roots to minimize noise. The light-weight exoskeletons enhanced the Samaritans' inherent agility, but even the padded soles of the armored boots could not disguise the sound of a twig cracking or leaf rustling. In the fading light of dusk, the first of the six-member squads reached one of the outer buildings, and assisted one another in vaulting up to the second-story balcony. The other squads were forced to hold back when they spotted guards around part of the perimeter, but were able to subdue the enemy with minimal fuss, if one can call concussive blasts minimal.

Squad one, having used their heartbeat sensors and lock picks to stealthily breach the balcony door, had taken up positions around the stairwell, waiting for the order to go in. Squads two through five closed in on the main building, the disorientation effects of the theurgists and lengthening shadows allowing them to slip by patrols and guards. Squad six, however, had managed to reach the side of the main building, and was using heartbeat sensors, sonar imagers, and fiber optics to try to spot the hostages. Several more unfortunate guards stumbled across them, and were shot with PEP blasters (http://s6.invisionfree.com/International_Mall/index.php?showtopic=1933). The Pulsed Energy Projectile weapons slammed the hapless stooges into a nearby wall, sending them to join their comrades in the bliss of unconsciousness. Ten minutes had passed since the Samaritans arrived.

Colonel Fischer was observing the Paladins operate. They were pretty good, but still unrefined in the art of killing. Orders went to use PEP blasters only on the immediate Hostage Takers so as not to kill a hostage, but the rest were to be killed on the field of battle.


The radioman chimed in, "Colonel...Two Niner Savoy is to be referred to as P.B.R Street Gang as soon as they enter the compound, and we are now Almighty. Savoy has also gotten word of this change ahead of time."

"Thanks." The Colonel muttered through his armor.


P.B.R. Street Gang...P.B.R. Street Gang....This is Almighty. We observe your approach. We spot three guards with AK-192s approaching your position from the East. You are ordered to attack and kill, use a knife here. Orders demand these be fatal. Good work with the PEPs, but you are reminded to use them only against Hotel Tangos only. Thirty meters to enemy and closing...Twenty Five...Moving one meter per second. They're yours...just make it silent. Almighty Out.

Squad Three was the closest to the targets, but paused to radio back to their CO. "Confirm?"
Oburo was not pleased to have his authority challenged, but he recognized that not only was this CM territory, the three enemy soldiers would surely be killed eventually. If his men carried out the orders, the enemy would die more peacefully than at the hands of the CM SpecForces. "Yes, that order is confirmed. Make it painless."
The squad took up concealed positions along the edges, making sure that as the soldiers approached from the East, the setting sun in the West would help to blind them. It worked well, and when two shadows appeared before the separatists, they were too surprised to notice the four Samaritans coming up behind them. "Who goes th--."
"Tangos down."

Meanwhile, Squad Six had located all the hostages, and also importantly, figured out the arrangement of the guards. Four guards were sitting with the hostages, one in each room, and would conceivably open fire if threatened. Two more sat outside, keeping watch on the lone hallway that led into that portion of the complex. A stairwell at the far end provided access.

Squad Six pulled out the special gear they had brought along for such an eventuality. Anti-tank rifles, designed for maximum penetration with minimal fragmentation, were deployed and braced. The trick was to find angles of fire that would not endanger the hostages.

Squad One readied their weapons, increasing the PEP blasters' output to maximum. At full power, the targets would suffer mild burns and broken bones, as well as immediate unconsciousness.

Colonel Fischer was watching.

*PBR, Almighty confirms Tangos down. Good job. Also, good use of our CM99a's. We'll trade you a CM99b model for a PEP pistol or two after this is over. We need them for interrogation of the prisoners without them getting killed. Oburo...I just want you to know the orders came down from the President himself or I wouldn't have told you that....Nice job handelling that part. Almighty out.*