by Tom Jones
When the MAV-29 was fully hooked up, one King Stallion was latched to the front compartment, two were hooked on to the middle compartment, and one was attached to the rear compartment. Since the MTG Phi-8 did not use any of the other weapons beyond the ACLS, they would be able to keep the remaining ammunition loaded in the MAV-29 for the Majestic 12 to study and use in the future. Though it would be a great deal of time before the Illuminati would be able to muster the means of production to the likes of the former Omega Foundation, reverse-engineering the MAV-29 would be a great place to start. With all four King Stallions successfully latched to the Arvak, all that needed to happen now was just for the aircraft to leave with the captured Arvak. One of the ground units radioed for the AH-280 pilot to pick up the operatives, and the Valor soon decreased its altitude once more for the Mobile Task Group units to board the helicopter. The helicopter opened the side door, and all twelve MTG operatives hopped inside the AH-280.
“We’re good, let’s get out of here,” Phi-8-1 spoke over the radio to the MJ12 helicopters. One of the pilots replied, “Solid copy. Hold on to something.” The AH-280s flew away from the King Stallions to give them more room to maneuver, and the CH-53Ks soon lifted the MAV-29 as they all simultaneously increased throttle. A crew member spoke as he witnessed the successful lift, “All looks good. We got it.” Phi-8-1 smiled and nodded, “I think we did it.” The human turned around in the vehicle’s seat, and he looked over to his three colleagues, “We got it!” Phi-8-4 gave a solid nod, “Mission accomplished, then.” As the cargo helicopters stabilized, the two AH-280s took their positions in the formation to proceed with the escort. All the while, Phi-8-2 was looking at the radar and watching the viewfinder to see if there were any CDI vehicles approaching the convoy. As the group moved further and further away from the CDI base, there did not seem to be any further vehicles on their way to engage the convoy. The MJ12 black site was quite far from the group’s current location, and they would even have to land and refuel a few times before arriving at their destination. They planned on disassembling the MAV-29 as much as they could and hooking up each compartment to an individual helicopter to make the flight more efficient, but they would have to gain enough ground on CDI before they would be able to do so. CDI would surely be looking for their vehicle.
“There they go… It’s a shame we couldn’t stop them,” the gunner of Rattlesnake spoke as he watched the convoy fade into the distance as they flew through a few faraway clouds. The pilot sighed, “We just had that thing combat operational as well. At least CDI still has the schematics. We would be able to make another, but it would probably be a while until that happens. Besides, the whole point of testing it was to make sure it was ready for real combat operations.” The gunner replied when he could no longer see the stolen vehicle anymore, “Well, it made short work of our aircraft. I’m pretty sure that the thing’s combat operational enough.” The pilot looked at the fuel gauge; the helicopter still had plenty of fuel to spare since it was not flying for terribly long. The pilot debated on following the convoy, but he did not want to risk getting shot down himself. After all, it would be hard to take down two AH-280 Valors and one MAV-29 using only a Mi-35 Super Hind Mk. VII.
“I’d say we’d better come on back home,” the pilot spoke to the gunner. The gunner did not have any disagreement towards the pilot’s suggestion, “Yeah, I’m with you. Let’s see how the base looks now.” Before the pilot yawed the aircraft to turn it back around, he looked at the last known direction the convoy flew in. They were heading northwest, but the pilot had no way to know if that was the true direction of the convoy’s intended destination. After all, CDI still had no idea who their mysterious attackers were. The pilot turned the Super Hind back around after mentally noting the bearing traveled by the convoy, and he proceeded to fly back towards the base. While the pilot flew and lowered the altitude of the aircraft, the gunner was beginning to see the wreckage of the downed helicopters still burning on the ground, “I guess it’s better that we don’t join them, right?” The pilot replied, “Yeah. These things don’t have ejection seats. We would’ve been fucked if they shot us down. I don’t think those guys made it out alive. Bunch of poor sons of bitches they are.”
The gunner had a question, “Do you think we would’ve been able to take on the Arvak if it didn’t have a laser weapon system on it?” The pilot considered the thought, but he still knew that it would not have been the easiest task in the world, “That would be a maybe. It would also not really be best for a helicopter to do that. After all, I saw the third compartment, and they swapped out the troop carrying capacity for a vertically-mounted surface-to-air missile launching system. I’m not sure what guidance system those use, but we’d be going up against that as well as the same gun that those Havocs have. I tell ya, they’ll put a 2A42 cannon on just about anything. We’ve got those on helicopters, APCs, and now the MAV-29.” The gunner questioned the Arvak, “Why did CDI even bother making the thing in the first place? What’s the point of it?” The pilot spoke, “If I remember correctly, it’s supposed to be a heavier duty troop carrier. Being split into compartments, it allows for each segment of the thing to have a specific function. Only the third compartment has space to carry troops. The first compartment is just for the crew, and the second compartment has that laser system on it.”
The gunner continued to look at the black smoke rising from the downed helicopters as he continued the conversation, “But that one didn’t have that rear compartment like you said. What is that variant supposed to be used for instead?” The pilot said, “Well, it doesn’t always have to be a troop carrier. It can also be a combat vehicle as well. That’s why its official name is the Articulated Tracked Armored Combat Vehicle. I’d say Arvak is a bit easier to say when compared to ATACV.” The gunner thought about the design of the vehicle, “Why is it split into compartments?” The pilot replied, “Two reasons: It makes it more modular, and it also makes it so that it can traverse more terrain. There were some similar designs in the past that were smaller, but they weren’t really made for combat purposes. I’d say the reason why we had that one is because of CDI’s developments into laser technology. In the past, those lasers would’ve only been found on ships. Nowadays, they’re small enough to be mounted on something like the Arvak, but they’re still too big for a tank or an APC. Those lasers eat up a lot of power, and you have to have a power supply that’s big enough for it. That’s why the entire middle compartment is dedicated to the laser.”
By the time the pilot finished his brief lecture on the MAV-29, he had just about returned to the CDI base. The gunner looked at the damage caused by the collapsed control tower, and he also saw just how bad the runway looked from the attack, “Do you think those guys will be back? They did quite the number on the base.” The pilot decreased the helicopter’s altitude, and he checked his surroundings to make sure that he would not have an aerial collision with any other airborne vehicles on his way down. CDI definitely did not need anymore damage to their infrastructure or vehicles. The MiG-35Es were still sitting outside of the hangars where the ground crew left them, and there were plenty of ground vehicles still driving around the base. Even from an elevated position, multiple tanks and APCs were seen driving around the base looking for more potential hostiles. Some trucks were even already being used to try and move larger pieces of control tower rubble so it would not continue to block the runway, but it was too late for the Super Fulcrums to scramble . The pilot spoke as he looked at the runway, “I don’t think they’re going to be launching any jets for the time being. I hope we won’t need the runway in the near future.” The gunner examined the runway for himself and gave his own verdict, “I mean, I’d say it’d be technically possible to launch a Super Fulcrum or a Super Flanker from there, but landing it would be the issue.”
The pilot agreed, “Yeah. You’d have to either get a perfect landing, or you’d fuck up the landing gear at the very least. At the worst, you’d fuck up the whole plane try
ing to land that shit on that runway. Damn. The runway got fucked up this time. I don’t think I’ve seen it this bad from my time at this CDI base.” The gunner shook his head, “Me neither. Those guys who attacked us: They were human, right? They weren’t anthro?” The pilot had not seen the attackers for himself, “I didn’t get a chance to see them, but I don’t remember anybody saying they were anthros. I’m pretty sure they were human.” The gunner said, “I was about to ask as to why they would come here in the first place, but then again, I guess they wanted the Arvak, huh?” The pilot deployed the landing gear of the Mi-35, and he began lining up the aircraft to land on one of the helipads. Since there was no control tower directing air traffic, the pilot had to make sure that his surroundings were completely clear before attempting the landing.
After concentrating on what he needed to make sure that he would be able to safely land the Super Hind, the pilot realized that the gunner had asked him a question he was not paying attention to, “What was that?” The gunner rephrased his earlier sentence, “I’m saying why would anthros not want to take that Arvak with them? Why were they human?” The pilot lowered the throttle of the Super Hind, and he prepared to make contact with the ground. While the helicopter descended, the pilot said, “Do you think a group of anthros would even have those types of helicopters? Besides, they wouldn’t have been able to even get in the Arvak in the first place. CDI doesn’t employ any anthros. We only hire humans.” The gunner felt the aircraft make contact with the ground, and he heard the pilot flip a couple switches in order to begin the process that would shut down the helicopter’s engines and controls. As the engines began shutting down, they started making less and less noise. The gunner removed his helmet, and he held it in front of him as he saw his reflection in the lens of the integrated visor, “So, who do you think was behind the attack?” The pilot removed his own helmet, but he did wait a good moment before speaking, “I think if anyone knew, then we’d probably know where to go and get the Arvak back, but until that happens, we’re kinda in the dark here.” The gunner looked out the window and watched as several CDI vehicles drove by to assist with the cleanup of the base. The gunner went to open the Super Hind’s cockpit, “Well… I guess we should go and see what we can do to help them out. The sooner we clean up this mess, the sooner we can resume normal operations, and you know I need my paycheck.” The pilot opened the cockpit of the Super Hind as well, “I’m with you. Let’s go.”
Chapter 11
Take Me Away
Arcades opened his eyes, and he looked around the place he was in. The fox had just woken up, and he found himself in the same hotel room that he had been staying in for the past couple of days. Arcades blinked a few times, and he could see some morning light entering through the closed curtains. The fox laid in silence, yawned, and he looked to his left to see that
Jason appeared to still be asleep, though he was not exactly sure if the wolf was really still sleeping or not. Not wanting to wake the wolf in case he was still sleeping, Arcades tried not to make any sudden movements as he tried to adjust himself to get into a more comfortable position. From his current position, Arcades was able to see the digital clock on the small table separating the two beds, and he could see that it was nine o’clock in the morning. Looking past the clock, the fox looked at the second bed, and he could see that Jackie was sleeping as well. The vixen was not facing the fox’s direction, but Arcades was able to see the orange-red fur on Jackie’s back.
Before the fox could shift back around, he heard the familiar voice of Jason whispering in his ear, “Kurt?” Arcades rolled to his left, and he was met with the wolf looking directly at him. The fox whispered back, “Yes, Jason?” Jason replied while still keeping a quiet voice, “When’d you wake up, mate?” Arcades quietly said, “Just now. What about you?” The wolf yawned and spoke after he finished, “Ah, I think I’ve been awake for just a few minutes or so. How about Jackie? Is she up yet?” Arcades rolled to look back at the vixen, but she did not appear to be stirring. The fox replied to the wolf when he turned back around, “I don’t think so. We shouldn’t wake her.” The wolf became curious about the time, but he could not see the clock since all he could see was Arcades lying next to him, “What’s the time, mate?” The fox had already made a mental note of the time, so he did not need to turn back around to check again, “It’s nine in the morning.”
The wolf wiped his eyes with his forearm before he said, “Well… What do we’ve for today?” Arcades replied, “We’ll try and take another one of those parts kits to a different gun store and see if they’ll buy it.” The wolf thought back to the Ford Mustang which still had all of the fox’s automatic firearms, “So, we’re going to go back to the car?” Arcades nodded, “Yep. We’ll stop by there after getting breakfast. Have any ideas in mind?” Jason thought for a quick moment, but he was unable to come up with a suggestion, “Uhh… I’m not quite sure, mate.” Arcades said, “We’ll ask Jackie when she wakes up.” The wolf commented on the vixen, “She seems to be doing fine with us so far; even though we had a bit of a rough start with the Foundation showing up and running us out. I think it scared her.” The fox sighed when he thought about his former home, “Yeah… At least Jackie’s been alright. She may have been a bit shaken, but she seems to be doing alright. I doubt they’d be looking for her, though.” The wolf shrugged, “Yeah, nah. I don’t think there’s a way to say that for sure. She was in the Foundation longer than we were.”
Seconds after Jason finished his last statement, both anthros heard some movement coming from the next bed. Arcades rolled back over, and he could see that the vixen was now waking up. Jackie sat up in the bed, and she stretched her arms outwards while Arcades and Jason both laid in their bed in silence. When the vixen finished stretching, she pulled down her white t-shirt that had partially come up while she was sleeping. Arcades waited until Jackie looked in his direction before saying anything, “Did you have a good night?” The vixen yawned before replying to the fox, “Yes.” Arcades sat up in the bed, and he directed his head towards the wolf who was still lying in the bed with him, “How about you, Jason. Did you have a good night as well?” The wolf looked at the fox who was now looking down at him, “I’ve nothin’ bad to say about it.”
Arcades pulled his tail from under his leg before he spoke, “That’s nice to hear. We should only be staying here for probably a few more days until we can find a better place for us to stay. The more parts kits we can sell, the faster that’ll come.” The fox removed the sheets from off of his body, and he stepped out of the bed. Arcades was only wearing his white nightshirt and his high-cut night shorts. The fox grabbed his tail and held it as he exited the bed. When the fox reached the point where the two beds ended, he turned around to face his companions and released his tail as well, “So, the plan for the morning is to go get breakfast, and then we’re going to go try and see if we can’t sell another parts kit or two to a different local dealer. After that, I suppose it won’t hurt us to look around and see if there’s a place we’d like to stay. For the time being, we’re probably going to live in this town. I can’t tell you how long that’ll be, but it’ll do as long as neither of you don’t have any issues with that.” Arcades gave Jackie and Jason a chance to speak, but neither of them had anything to add.
“No problems?” Arcades asked. The fox assumed that neither of his companions did not feel as if he was asking for input. Jason finally sat up in the bed and replied first, “Nothin’ from me, mate.” Arcades then turned to Jackie and directed his next question for her, “How about you?” The vixen shook her head, “I’m fine, Kurt.” Arcades gave a slow nod in return, “Yeah? Well I guess it’s settled. We still have plenty of guns we can go through before we run out. You know, maybe we can still sell some of those full-auto lowers as well while Fox Armaments still exists as a legal entity. However, I’d rather wait a bit on that since it’s quite a bit of paperwork to make that happen. After all, those parts kits for those guns still rake us in eno
ugh cash. We should be fine for a good while just selling those to various dealers.” After the fox finished speaking, he simply stood in silence as both the wolf and the vixen looked at him. Arcades wondered if it was too early in the morning for a conversation, so he decided that it would be best for him to start getting ready for the day, “Well… If you guys don’t have any issues, then I’ll go ahead and get ready for the day. Do you guys mind if I shower first?” Neither Jason nor Jackie said anything in response. Arcades gave one last nod before going to fetch the clothes he planned to wear for the day, “Alright. I’ll see you guys when I’m done.”
Jason yawned again, and he turned to his right to view the vixen. Jackie was also looking at the wolf, and she spoke, “Hey, Jason.” The wolf finally sat up in the bed when he replied, “G’mornin’, mate.” Jackie shifted her body so that she would be facing the wolf a bit more than she already was, “We’ve been doing good so far; haven’t seen anybody out to get us.” Jason took in a deep breath before speaking, “It would’ve still been better if they didn’t come for us in the first place.” Jackie looked around the hotel room, “This is still better than what my life would be like if I never came with you guys. I had nowhere to go.” Jason looked down at the sheets which still covered his lower torso and legs, “We’d prolly be in the same situation if Kurt didn’t bring all of those guns with us. Right now, that’s our only source of income.” Jackie said, “At least we have those guns. What do you think we’ll do once we find a more permanent place to stay?” Jason replied, “Well, Kurt and I will probably end up finding jobs. We’ve to pay the bills one way or ‘another, and we don’t have an infinite supply of guns.” Jackie remembered all of the weapons that she saw in the Mustang, and she wondered just how long they would be able to last selling the guns.
