Mission Origin View (Final Days Trilogy)

by Knox, Barry

  When Commander Steward took off his CTU helmet, Xia and Neubauer looked at each other and smiled.

  “Glad to see you, Commander. You haven’t joined the CTU, have you, sir?” Captain Neubauer asked.

  “No, Captain,” Commander Steward said and returned their smiles. “Lieutenant Klaxton thought we should acquire it and use it to get out of here.”

  “Glad to see you too, Lieutenant,” Neubauer said as he faced Gideon. “I see you have an extra in your group.”

  “Yes, sir. This is Sergeant Thompson. She helped us escape,” Gideon said.

  Carrie took off her helmet and saluted Neubauer. “Nice to meet you, sir.”

  “Thanks for assisting my team,” Neubauer said.

  “I should be thanking you, sir. This is my way out of the CTU Army and into the resistance,” Carrie said.

  Captain Neubauer looked confused but didn’t say anything.

  Gideon knew Captain Neubauer was more concerned with getting both the extract and envoy teams off Gliese, than talking with her.

  “Anna, has Kindle returned yet?” Neubauer asked aloud.

  “He just arrived,” his Anna responded.

  “Have him place the environmental suit in the breach,” Neubauer requested.

  A few seconds later, Anna told Neubauer, “The environmental suit is in the breach, Captain.”

  “Gunny, get Doctor Jones in the environmental suit and back to Bernice first. We’ll have to take the envoy team out one at a time,” Neubauer said.

  “Captain, we can also use Commander Steward’s CTU armor,” Gideon interjected.

  “Right,” Neubauer said. “Commander, go with Doctor Jones to Bernice.”

  “I think we should have Doctor Harper go before me,” Steward said as he began taking off the CTU armor.

  “Very well, sir,” Neubauer responded, then looked at Xia. “Gunny, get both doctors back.”

  “Yes, sir,” Xia answered, then passed the orders to Kindle. “Kindle, take both doctors back to Bernice after we have them suited up. Put them in the passenger cabin with Doctor Kastriva and come back with the environmental suit and CTU armor.”

  “Will do, Gunny,” Kindle responded.

  Minutes later Kindle escorted Dr. Jones and Dr. Harper to Bernice. Sipes stood by the external breached hatch, waiting for orders.

  ***

  The sirens stopped, and then weapons’ fire erupted.

  Here we go, Captain Neubauer thought, and then readied his weapon.

  “I have about fifty CTU advancing toward the breach,” Gault reported over the team channel. “Their weapons are laser and projectile. I’ve taken out about ten and have the others pinned down. They have no idea where my fire is coming from.”

  “About thirty coming in from this direction,” Manelly added after Gault had finished his report. Then Manelly began firing.

  “Stay where you are, switch your weapon to magnetic rail gun mode, and stay behind cover,” Neubauer said over the platoon channel. “Remember, their standard projectiles won’t penetrate your armor, but the laser will. The laser will burn a hole faster than the armor can self-seal.”

  Both men acknowledged the transmission.

  “Sir, I suggest we take up positions at both ends of the block,” Xia said as he pointed out both locations. “We’ll be in position to provide covering fire when we withdraw Manelly and Gault and still be able to cover the breach if the CTU flanks us.”

  “Good idea, Gunny. I’ll back up Gault, and you back up Manelly,” Neubauer answered and then turned to Gideon, Sergeant Thompson, and Commander Steward. “Stay here and keep low.”

  “Captain, I’d like to go with you or Gunny,” Gideon requested.

  “Negative, Lieutenant. You don’t have armor or a weapon,” Neubauer responded.

  “I’m sure Sergeant Thompson would let me borrow her weapon,” Gideon said.

  Carrie agreed with a nod.

  “Not without armor, and you can’t fit into her armor,” Neubauer said.

  “Yes, sir,” Gideon said disappointed.

  Neubauer and Xia put their helmets on and enabled their camouflage. Seconds later they were in a position to support Gault and Manelly and keep an eye on the breach.

  “I have a lot more CTU reinforcements coming up,” Manelly said calmly over the platoon channel as the firefight increased in volume. “I’m taking a lot of ‘em out, but their numbers will overwhelm me in a few minutes.”

  “Same here!” Gault added in an excited voice, showing his lack of combat experience.

  “Hold where you’re at as long as you can. Withdraw when you have to, and we’ll give you covering fire,” Neubauer responded.

  “Kindle, what’s your status?” Neubauer asked over a private channel to Kindle.

  “Just left Bernice and headed your way; be there in ten minutes,” Sergeant Kindle responded.

  Magnetic rail projectiles from Gault and Manelly were annihilating everything the CTU tried to hide behind. The CTU were taking heavy casualties, but more and more CTU poured in as reinforcements. Some CTU were without armor! It was obvious to Captain Neubauer that the CTU commander cared nothing about his troops, only the objective. Sheer numbers of CTU forces made it logistically impossible for Gault and Manelly to hold their positions, even though they were camouflaged. They had to pull back before they were overrun.

  “Withdraw, back to our locations,” Neubauer ordered.

  Manelly and Gault stopped firing and slowly withdrew down the street. Xia and Neubauer started providing covering fire as they withdrew. The CTU forces advance slowed to a halt as fire from two different positions farther down the streets opened up. As soon as Gault and Manelly linked up with Xia and Neubauer, all four started firing magnetic rail (mag rail) rounds, destroying chunks of buildings, walls, vehicles, and streets.

  A few minutes later the CTU forces zeroed in on the fire coming from both marine positions and concentrated their fire there. Xia and Manelly were positioned behind a four-foot-high wall made of rock that paralleled a street, while Neubauer and Gault lay firing from behind both sides of a plasteel garbage dumpster.

  Rounds from CTU projectile weapons were impacting the wall and dumpster. The projectiles were chipping away at the wall and denting the dumpster. CTU laser fire was burning small holes into the stone and plasteel but wasn’t able to burn through.

  “Captain, I’ve got a problem,” Kindle reported as the firefight inside the biosphere intensified.

  “What is it?” Neubauer asked as he kept firing his weapon.

  “A six-man CTU patrol has me pinned down. I’m going to leave the spare environmental and CTU armor suits here, enable my armor camo, and try and flank them. It’s going to take time,” Kindle reported.

  “Do what you have to, Sergeant, but hurry. We’ll hold here as long as we can. Neubauer out,” Neubauer responded.

  As he continued to fire his weapon, Neubauer formulated a plan. Time was running out, so he decided to give Commander Steward his armor and order everyone back to Bernice. Without armor or environmental suits, he and Lieutenant Klaxton would just have to stay in the biosphere and attempt to escape and evade capture until they could be picked up later…if they could be picked up later.

  Neubauer transmitted over the platoon channel, “I’m falling back to the breach. I’m going to give my armor to Commander Steward. When he’s suited up and ready to go, I’ll let you know, and I want you to fall back to the breach. Lieutenant Klaxton and I will provide you with as much covering fire as we can until you’re back at the breach and you’re out of the biosphere. Everyone understand?”

  “Affirmative!” each team member responded.

  Neubauer pushed himself back from his position, stood, and ran to the breach point. He jumped over a bush and landed between Gideon and Commander Steward. He appeared, took off his helmet and looked at the commander.

  “Commander, Kindle is having problems getting back, so I want you to put my armor on so you can go with the rest of t
he extract team to Bernice,” Neubauer said as he handed his weapon to Gideon and began taking off his armor. “The lieutenant and I will make sure the team gets out of the biosphere. Then we’ll escape and evade until we can be picked up later.”

  As Neubauer stood to take off the bottom part of his armor, he suddenly fell to the ground as if he had passed out.

  ***

  Gideon reached over to Captain Neubauer and shook him by the shoulder, “Captain, you all right?”

  Neubauer didn’t respond. Gideon crawled closer and saw the captain’s face. His eyes were wide open but weren’t moving. Gideon quickly checked for a pulse by placing his fingers on the captain’s carotid artery. No pulse.

  “Something’s wrong!” Gideon yelled to Commander Steward as he checked to see if the captain was breathing. He wasn’t. As Commander Steward moved closer to help out, Gideon saw a small spot just above the captain’s left ear; he’d been hit by a laser shot. Gideon turned Neubauer’s head over and saw a similar spot just behind his right ear. The laser had burned through his head and cauterized the blood vessels, preventing the wound from bleeding. The captain was dead.

  Gideon’s training kicked in, and without hesitation he took command; there would be time to grieve later. “We may be flanked, Commander. Watch our right flank,” Gideon said as he handed him Neubauer’s weapon. “Thompson, guard our left flank. Fire at anything that moves!”

  Gideon had to crawl over Neubauer’s body to retrieve the captain’s helmet and then put it on. “The captain has been hit. I think we’ve been flanked,” Gideon transmitted over the platoon channel. “Manelly, get back here on the double. We’ll have to provide covering fire for Xia and Gault. I’m getting everyone out of here now!”

  Without hesitation, Manelly raced back to the breach and took up a position behind some small trees by Carrie.

  “Here they come,” Carrie yelled as CTU forces on the right and left flanks began flooding in.

  “Fire!” Gideon yelled.

  Commander Steward and Manelly fired mag rail projectiles, blowing apart CTU armored soldiers and unarmed policemen. Carrie was using her weapon’s laser to pick off individual soldiers or policemen the mag rails hadn’t stopped. The CTU surge slowed but continued.

  “Gunny, Gault, get back here now. We’ve got to get out of here!” Gideon transmitted, then took the helmet off. “Commander, hand me your weapon and get in the captain’s armor.” Gideon had to yell over the weapons’ fire.

  Commander Steward reluctantly handed his weapon back to Gideon and began putting on the armor. Gideon took the weapon and continued firing in hopes of slowing the CTU surge to give the team enough time to get out. He’d already decided to stay and keep fighting until his team was out, even if it meant he would be killed.

  Moments later Gideon noted the weapons’ fire from the oncoming CTU ceased and they were withdrawing.

  “Up there!” Carrie yelled through her helmet’s speaker and pointed to the roofs of several nearby buildings.

  Along the rooflines, CTU citizens dressed in standard gray jumpsuits were firing weapons down at the CTU soldiers and policemen. “It’s the GFF!” Carrie cried out, then stood and took off her helmet.

  Gideon, surprised by the event, didn’t hesitate. He didn’t know how long the GFF could keep the CTU busy, so he needed to take advantage of the situation and get his team out.

  “Ready, Commander?” Gideon asked as Commander Steward placed his helmet on and sealed it to his upper body armor.

  “Yes, Lieutenant,” Commander Steward said slowly as he looked down at Captain Neubauer’s body. “I don’t know what to say.”

  “There’s nothing to say right now, sir. I have to get you and the rest of the team out of here,” Gideon responded.

  Gunny Xia materialized several yards away from the breach. He was dragging his right leg as he approached.

  “Manelly, help Gunny,” Gideon ordered. “Looks like he’s been hit.”

  Manelly materialized and immediately ran to assist Xia.

  “We have company,” Commander Steward said, using his helmet’s speaker, and pointed down an adjacent street littered with CTU bodies, debris, patches of fire, and mangled burning vehicles. A CTU citizen dressed in a gray jumpsuit walked toward them through the obstacles, holding his weapon above his head.

  Manelly and Xia arrived, and Xia took off his helmet.

  “How bad?” Gideon asked Xia.

  “Laser through the thigh, sir,” Xia said with pain. He paused to catch his breath, then asked, “How’s the captain?”

  “Sorry, Gunny, the captain’s dead,” Gideon replied and looked over toward Neubauer’s body.

  Xia looked shocked as he stared at the body. A moment later his hardened expression returned.

  “Gunny, I want everyone out now! Including the captain’s body,” Gideon said.

  “With your permission, Lieutenant, I’ll carry the captain,” Commander Steward requested.

  “Thank you, sir,” Gideon responded and then remembered he hadn’t seen or heard from Gault.

  “Where’s Gault?” Gideon asked.

  “On his way, sir,” Manelly reported, using his helmet speaker.

  “Tell him to get here on the double!” Gideon said.

  “Yes, sir,” Manelly replied.

  The CTU citizen who had approached the team with his weapon held over his head now stood in front of Gideon as GFF and CTU weapons’ fire could now be heard blocks away.

  “I am GFF,” the CTU citizen said. “May I lower my weapon?”

  “Yes,” Gideon answered. “And thanks for assisting us.”

  “You’re welcome. I’m Colonel Zuesna, Canton Mie GFF commander. I assume you’re from the United States ship I’ve heard about. I decided to use this opportunity to show the CTU how well the GFF is organized,” Zuesna stated.

  “Yes, we’re from the ship. I’m Lieutenant Klaxton, US Marines. We’ve completed our mission and are on our way back to our ship,” Gideon said.

  “Please let your government know the resistance movement on Gliese is very well organized and would like any assistance that can be provided to our movement to free the peoples of this planet,” Zuesna requested.

  “I will, Colonel. I also have a new recruit for you,” Gideon said as he motioned Carrie to join them.

  “Sergeant Carrie Thompson, reporting for duty, sir,” she said as she saluted Zuesna.

  Zuesna returned her salute and asked, “You wouldn’t happen to be related to Captain Anton Thompson, would you?”

  “Yes, Colonel, he was my father,” Carrie responded with pride.

  “I served with the captain. Excellent officer,” Zuesna commented.

  “Sir, I wish I had more time to talk with you, but I have a wounded man here and another man under fire outside the sphere. I have to get my team to safety,” Gideon said.

  “Of course, Lieutenant,” Zuesna replied, then looked at Carrie. “You still have family?”

  “My mother, a brother, and four cousins,” she answered.

  “We have to falsify your death, or your family will be in danger,” Zuesna said.

  “Yes, sir. Lieutenant Klaxton said he’d help me with that if I helped him and his team escape,” she replied.

  Gideon knew he needed to get his people out and had to hurry and fulfill his promise. He thought for a second and said, “Thompson, give me your knife and get out of your armor.”

  She reached behind her neck and took out her concealed knife, handed it to Gideon, and began taking off her armor. Moments later she stood wearing only her armor liner, and her armor lay on the ground.

  “Gunny, have everyone ready to leave in two minutes. I’ll be right back,” Gideon ordered

  “Carrie, grab your armor and come with me,” Gideon said as he began to walk away, carrying a weapon in one hand and a knife in the other.

  Carrie picked up her armor and followed. Zuesna also followed.

  Gideon stopped a few meters from some burning debris,
which was laced with bodies of CTU armored soldiers.

  “Keep your helmet and throw your armor in the fire,” Gideon requested.

  Not questioning Gideon, Carrie laid her helmet on the ground, walked to the fire, threw her armor in, and walked back to stand by Gideon.

  “Here,” Gideon said and gave Carrie the knife. “I’m going to need some of your blood to put in the helmet.”

  Carrie used the knife and made a shallow three-inch cut just above her hairline. Blood began to flow. Gideon knew she had cut herself there so her hair would cover any scarring; also there was generally a lot of blood associated with head wounds.

  Gideon picked up her helmet. “Smear blood in your helmet and drop it.”

  Carrie complied, and Zuesna nodded approval.

  Gideon set his weapon’s mag rail setting to its lowest velocity setting, aimed at the helmet, and shot off just a very small section of the right top part of the helmet. Anyone examining the helmet would conclude that the wearer had been hit by a mag rail projectile. The remaining helmet rolled away. Next Gideon, set his weapon selector to particle beam, then to wide beam continual fire. He pointed the weapon at the fire, which was consuming Carrie’s armor and other armored bodies, and pulled the trigger. He fired a constant green particle beam until the material in the fire was reduced to a blob of fused ground, rock, armor, and anything else that was in the fire. The particle beam would completely disintegrate body flesh in the blob.

  “If the CTU does any identity checking, they’ll ID you with the blood in your helmet and assume you’re dead,” Gideon said as he lowered his weapon. “They won’t get any DNA in that fused blob, but they might find enough of your armor’s id number to identify you.”

  “Excellent idea, Lieutenant.” Zuesna commented.

  “Let’s stop that bleeding, Sergeant,” Gideon said to Carrie as they hurried back to the breach. The GFF and CTU battle was beginning to get closer. He was out of time; the team had to leave know.

  “Gunny, toss Sergeant Thompson a nano bandage and get everyone back to Bernice,” Gideon said and then turned to Commander Steward. “Commander, contact Captain Bowser when you get to Bernice, advise her of the situation, and tell her I recommend that she leave me and continue the mission.”