Savage Bay

by Christopher Forrest

  The foyer was spacious, its floor marble. Paintings by the Old Masters lined the walls. A male servant took the overcoats of the midnight visitors since a light rain fell on the grounds of the estate.

  Before being admitted beyond the foyer, a strange ritual was then enacted. Each man briefly removed his suit coat and rolled up the right sleeve of his dress shirt. Each visitor held out his arm to be inspected by a tall man, who stood with solemnity and uttered not a word.

  The tattoo of two entwined serpents was visible on the forearm of all visitors. Upon seeing the tattoo, the tall man simply bowed and motioned for the visitor to enter the inner rooms of the chateau.

  TITAN SIX, SAVAGE BAY

  The Titan Six team moved swiftly through the woods toward the entrance to the Savage Bay complex. Soon they were within sight of the South Portal.

  A gravel roadway led from the South Portal through the woods to the south. An arched tunnel big enough to drive a truck through was carved into the side of the mountain. A steel door sealed the tunnel. To one side of the entrance was an empty security checkpoint. On the other was a bank of metal ventilation grates. The South Portal was surrounded by a chain link fence topped with razor wire.

  “The South Portal is sealed,” said Hawkeye. “No sign of Savage Bay security personnel or hostile forces. Gator, open up a hole in that fence.”

  Gator edged out of the cover of the woods and ran in a low crouch to the fence perimeter. He paused, watching and listening for movement. There was none.

  In short order, Gator cut a man-sized hole through the fence with a pair of bolt cutters.

  “Tank, you’re up.”

  Tank and Pyro joined Gator and the fence. They climbed through opening and sprinted across the open area to the ventilation shafts adjacent to the South Portal entrance. Tank pulled off a glove and stuck his hand near one.

  “Definitely an air intake,” he said, feeling the air rush over his fingers.

  “Let’s do this,” said Pyro.

  Hawkeye unlocked the clamps on the package airdropped at Quiz’s suggestion.

  Quiz’s plan was brilliant in its simplicity. An extensive array of sensors connected to Savage Bay’s security system continuously sampled the air quality throughout the facility for any signs of a nuclear, chemical, or biological event. Similar systems were used at airports, ports, and government buildings in the United States by the Department of Homeland Security to detect terrorist attacks.

  The sophisticated central computer system at Savage Bay was called Manticore. By introducing a biological agent into the ventilation system, Titan Six could trigger a biohazard warning from the computer system.

  The logic of it was simple: if the occupants of Savage Bay were exposed to a biological agent, they could not be trusted to keep themselves in lockdown. The human survival instinct would override logic in at least some of the residents. Any decision to release the quarantine and reverse the present lockdown would be made by rational decision-makers who were not trapped inside Savage Bay.

  Tank removed a metal grate from its housing, and Gator carefully dropped a small glass vial into the shaft. In the vial was a minute quantity of weaponized anthrax.

  OPS CENTER, ABOARD THE ALAMIRANTA

  “We’re in,” said Touchdown. “Someone has reversed the lockdown protocols. Not only are the doors opening, but I can read Manticore again.”

  On the display wall in the Ops Center aboard the Alamiranta, Manticore was suddenly visible. Control of the security system at Savage Bay was automatically transferred to the Ops Center.

  “There are a few Dragons standing at the entrance,” proclaimed Hawkeye. “They seem to be more puzzled than anything else.”

  “How many hostiles do you see?” asked Caine.

  “A dozen, give or take,” answered Hawkeye.

  All members of Titan Six momentarily tensed. Their hands grasped their weapons a bit tighter.

  Chapter 12

  TITAN SIX, SAVAGE BAY

  “Listen up,” said Hawkeye. “This is the main entrance and is likely to be the most heavily guarded. But I don’t see anyone evacuating. Something is very wrong here. We’re going in through the North Portal entrance. Since the dock there is seldom used according to intel, we stand a better chance of gaining access.”

  “I want you to head to the habitat area first,” said Caine. “Based on the time we lost contact, that’s the most likely place my daughter would be.”

  “Negative,” said Hawkeye. “We will enter through North Portal.”

  “Hawkeye, my daughter -- ”

  “I understand,” said Hawkeye. “Believe me, I understand.”

  Hawkeye and Tank’s father had died the previous year. Both brothers had lost friends in combat, but the death of a father to an invisible, incurable disease was something else entirely. Their father had been a kind man with a gentle disposition. Hawkeye and Tank were still struggling, trying to find a way to cope with the loss.

  “But we’re going to do this right,” said Hawkeye. “Titan Six is my team. Tactical decisions are mine, and mine alone. That’s the only way this goes.”

  TITAN SIX, SAVAGE BAY

  To access the North Portal entrance, Titan Six had to cross the central mountain ridge and rappel down a cliff face on the north side of Es Vedra Island. The North Portal was cut into the vertical rock wall at sea level. A floating dock outside the North Portal provided anchorage for ships that ferried supplies to the island under the cover of darkness. The dock was empty, and there were no boats or ships in sight.

  “Gator, you and I are going first,” Hawkeye said. “Two ropes. Here and there.” Hawkeye pointed to two different spots at the edge of the cliff.

  Gator and Pyro set two rappel anchors at the top of the cliff. They each fixed the end of a hundred-meter BlueWater Assault Line static rope with a double-eight knot into the carabiners at the end of the anchors.

  “Hawkeye, I can take point on this,” said Tank.

  “I said I’m going first,” said Hawkeye. “Do you have a problem with that?”

  “Nope,” said Tank. “It’s your call.”

  Hawkeye attached his rappel device to the rope and connected the Prusik loop to the leg loop of his climbing harness. Gator completed his preparations just as Hawkeye clicked his last carabiner into place.

  “See you at the bottom,” said Gator.

  Hawkeye and Gator turned around with their backs facing the edge of the cliff. Each gripped the rope coming from the bottom of their rappel devices with their right hands, then leaped backwards off the edge.

  OPS CENTER, ABOARD THE ALAMIRANTA

  In the Ops Center, Touchdown watched Hawkeye and Gator drop off the edge of the cliff on the holographic display.

  “Just over one hundred vertical meters from the the edge of the cliff to the bottom,” said Touchdown.

  “Understood,” replied Hawkeye.

  On the video feed from Hawkeye’s helmet cam, they watched the face of the rock wall race by at dizzying speeds as Hawkeye descended uncontrolled down the side of the mountain.

  TITAN SIX, SAVAGE BAY

  Gator’s climbing ropes whined as they slid through the rappel device secured to his harness. Twenty meters to his left, Hawkeye matched Gator’s blistering speed as they dropped down the cliff face.

  “One,” said Hawkeye.

  Ninety meters below, the waves threw salt spray against the floating dock. In the moonless night, it was difficult to see all the way to the bottom. The heat from the friction of his rope burned against Gator’s gloved hand.

  “Two.”

  Tank, Shooter, and Pyro watched from above as Gator and Hawkeye dropped down into the darkness.

  “Three!”

  About a third of the way down the cliff face, Gator and Hawkeye tightened the tension on the climbing ropes. Their descents abruptly halted, and the two men started to swing toward the rock wall.

  Hawkeye let out a grunt as his rope snapped tight. His climbing harness bit pa
infully into his legs. He tightened the muscles in thighs, keeping his feet between his body and the looming cliff face.

  With a crash, Hawkeye slammed into the rock feet-first, absorbing the blow with his legs. A quick pain lanced up his right calf. The impact threw off a shower of small rocks. To Hawkeye’s left, Gator struck the cliff wall with his boots. A hail of debris rained down onto the dock below.

  It took only minutes to rappel the remaining distance to the bottom. But instead of landing on the floating dock, they remained suspended several meters from the bottom, each on one side of the door.

  “Ops, we’re at the North Portal now,” said Hawkeye.

  “Acknowledged,” said Touchdown over the Com system.

  Hawkeye and Gator were each armed with an assault rifle suspended from a shoulder sling. They crab-walked across the vertical cliff face away from the tunnel opening in opposite directions, hanging from their climbing ropes. When they had reached about fifteen degrees off center from their ropes’ anchor points above, they stopped.

  “Ops, the door is indeed open,” said Hawkeye. “But we don’t see any evacuees here either. Something damn strange is going on here. No one is standing on the dock. We’re moving in.”

  Hawkeye gave the signal.

  “Go!”

  Gator pushed off the rock wall with his legs, swinging like a pendulum toward the open entrance. His angular momentum carried him past the edge of the door, and he swung out across the opening.

  Four armed commandos stood less than thirty meters inside.

  OPS CENTER, ABOARD THE ALAMIRANTA

  The Ops Center was silent as everyone in the room watched the scene unfold. The video feed pitched wildly as Gator swung through the air.

  The graphic display showing Gator’s vital signs jumped as his heart raced and adrenaline coursed through his bloodstream. The adrenaline rush caused by the human body’s fight-or-flight response can be a useful biological tool in many situations, but not when precision and calm, critical thinking are required.

  “Give him a little boost,” said Caine.

  Touchdown triggered Gator’s BioMEMS system to release a small quantity of nootropic drugs, designed to sharply increase focus and concentration, into his system.

  On the video feed, as Gator swung through the air and cleared the edge of the opening, the four armed intruders were clearly visible not far inside the tunnel.

  Chapter 13

  TITAN SIX, SAVAGE BAY

  Gator gave a savage yell as he swung out into the open air. He squeezed the trigger of his assault rifle, unleashing a deadly spray of steel into the tunnel.

  The Dragons inside were taken completely by surprise as Gator seemed to materialize out of thin air. Before they could react, two were cut down by his machine gun fire.

  The remaining two raised their weapons just as Gator started to swing back in the opposite direction. The Dragons fired, but the bursts from their assault rifles missed the mark. Gator yelled at the top of his lungs, taunting them as he swung back toward safety behind the cliff face.

  TITAN SIX, SAVAGE BAY

  With the attention of the two remaining Dragons fully focused on Gator, Hawkeye pushed off from the rock wall, swinging fast at the end of his climbing rope toward the tunnel opening. He allowed the momentum to carry him past the edge of the doorway. The air rushed past his body.

  “Two down,” said Touchdown. “Two hostiles remaining, about twenty meters inside the opening.”

  Time seemed to slow almost to a stop. Hanging in mid-air, Hawkeye’s vision focused with incredible acuity on the two remaining Dragons. He took in a deep breath and then opened fire: two quick bursts from his assault rifle.

  All three rounds from the first burst hit one Dragon dead center in the chest. The titanium-coated rounds shredded his body armor as if it were made of cardboard. His body jerked backward and he fell hard onto the concrete, dead before he hit the floor.

  Hawkeye’s second burst slammed into the second Dragon’s midsection. He jerked and flailed his arms before collapsing in a heap on the floor.

  As Hawkeye began to swing back in the opposite direction, he cut his climbing rope and dropped ten meters to the floating dock below. His legs nearly buckled upon impact, but his enhanced musculature was able to absorb the force of the fall.

  Gator joined him seconds later.

  Inside, the tunnel was quiet.

  “Targets eliminated,” said Hawkeye. “We’re in.”

  Chapter 14

  TITAN SIX, SAVAGE BAY

  Pyro, Shooter, and Tank completed the rappel down the cliff face and joined Hawkeye and Gator inside the North Portal entrance. The wide tunnel was carved from the rock inside the mountain ridge. Overhead, color-coded pipes and utility conduits ran along the arched stone ceiling.

  The floor of the tunnel was covered with concrete, painted with yellow and white stripes like a roadway. The air was warm and humid.

  “Ops,” said Hawkeye, “close the North Portal entrance.”

  “Acknowledged,” came the reply.

  The steel door slowly lowered into place. When it reached the floor, it made a resounding boom.

  “Titan Six, let’s move,” said Hawkeye. “They know we’re here, and they aren’t waiting for an invitation to greet us.”

  Hawkeye led the team down the tunnel into the heart of the mountain ridge. It took them only seconds to reach the huge steel door at the entrance to the cargo bay.

  “What the f-- ”

  The blast door was only partially closed. Wedged between the twenty-five ton steel door and the door frame was a grimy yellow forklift.

  “Ops, the cargo bay door is blocked,” Hawkeye said.

  “I see that,” said Touchdown, watching the video feed from Hawkeye’s helmet cam. “That forklift must have prevented the door from closing.”

  “Open it up,” said Hawkeye.

  The blast door began to slowly swing open. Released from the pressure of the hydraulic door, the forklift dropped back onto all four tires.

  From the tunnel, Hawkeye surveyed the room beyond the blast door. It was a dimly-lit cargo bay, the size of two football fields. Around the perimeter of the room were rows of cargo containers and stacks of equipment and supplies. Two other forklifts sat in service bays on the east side of the room. A flatbed truck was parked askew near the center of the room.

  Overhead, a Rail Lift System, or RLS, stretched from one end of the cargo bay to the other. The RLS’s curving metal tracks, hoists, and chains were used to move heavy loads around the vast room. Two enormous cargo containers hung from the track, suspended twenty meters above the floor.

  There was no sign of movement in the room. Titan Six silently entered the cargo bay, watching for any sign of hostile forces.

  “I don’t see anyone,” said Gator.

  “Spread out,” said Hawkeye.

  Titan Six fanned out across the cargo bay, sweeping the area for hostile forces. On the east side of the room, a wide metal platform covered a large square hole in the concrete floor. Hawkeye zeroed in on the cargo elevator.

  “Ops, confirm this platform elevator connects to the subterranean submarine station underneath the complex,” said Hawkeye.

  OPS CENTER, ABOARD THE ALAMIRANTA

  Cruz studied the image from Hawkeye’s helmet cam on the display in the Ops Center. She then consulted the holographic projection of the Savage Bay complex.

  “Affirmative,” said Cruz. “It’s a cargo elevator to transport supplies and munitions to the submarine service areas about forty meters down. When the base was operational, submarines would enter the facility through subterranean waterways and a lock system for repair and re-supply.”

  TITAN SIX, SAVAGE BAY

  From the far side of the cargo bay, a burst of automatic weapons fire erupted. A line of bullets peppered the ground just centimeters from Hawkeye’s feet.

  Gator was the first to react. He dropped to one knee behind a steel column supporting the ceiling above and
returned fire, shooting blindly toward the source of the attack.

  Hawkeye dove for cover behind a pile of crates. The machine gunner followed his movements, and the wooden crates threw splinters into the air as bullets slammed into them.

  “Flank to the north,” yelled Hawkeye.

  Pyro was already moving, circling around behind a row of cargo containers.

  “I see at least three hostiles,” said Tank. He darted out from behind cover across an open area between two rows of shipping containers.

  A single gunshot echoed through the cargo bay.

  A sniper round slammed into Tank’s chest, lifting his feet off the floor and throwing him violently to the ground.

  “Tank!” cried Shooter.

  OPS CENTER, ABOARD THE ALAMIRANTA

  On Tank’s display in the Ops Center, his vital signs went haywire. Emergency alarms sounded on Touchdown’s computer console.

  “Oh my God,” said Cruz. She covered her mouth with her hands and watched in horror.

  Tank’s video feed blurred as he fell backwards to the ground. Then it became still, facing upward toward the ceiling.

  The shrill alarms continued their frantic alert, echoing in the otherwise silent Ops Center.

  TITAN SIX, SAVAGE BAY

  Only the body armor covering Tank’s torso saved him from instant death. Known as Dragon Skin, the ballistic vest was made of overlapping silicon carbide discs capable of stopping multiple rounds from a high-powered weapon.

  Tank crawled across the concrete, gasping for breath. Searing pain lanced through his chest. He rolled behind a row of crates and out of the field of fire.

  Three more Dragons appeared, firing from behind densely packed stacks of wooden boxes.

  OPS CENTER, ABOARD THE ALAMIRANTA

  Touchdown’s fingers were a blur on his keyboard as he activated Tank’s BioMEMS system. He flooded Tank’s bloodstream with endorphins to diminish his pain, and synthetic compounds to keep his body from going into shock from the trauma of the impact.