Jethro spotted the predicted ambush before it happened and called it in. There were two dozen of them by his count. He left Kovu and Fonz as over watch with his gear and then headed out hunting. The dropship pulled back to secondary recovery LZ.
His real task was to draw the hounds into chasing him. For this he was the hare, and Kovu and Fonzarelli would slip past the hounds and hunters when he distracted them. He'd draw the hunters off buying time for the others to meet up hopefully.
“There is no secondary LZ! This is it!” The retreating Lieutenant snarled. He was thoroughly confused. This was supposed to be a simple shoot and scoot, get to the LZ and then pack it in. He didn't know why they bothered with such scenarios, they should just do the basic op and then quit. Doing an insert, op, and then extract may be realistic but it was damn tiring. Now throw in Valenko's little monkey wrench... What the hell was going on? What was the bear playing at?
“Trust me, the selected LZ is too hot. No go. Repeat, No go,” Valenko rumbled. He closed his eyes for a moment. He didn't want to remain on the radio for much longer, it would draw the attention of the hunters. “Little eyes and ears are involved.”
“Roger,” the Lieutenant replied, feeling a little put out but suddenly relieved. He didn't want to be the one to screw the pooch, walk into an ambush all fat dumb and tired. Sure Valenko was responsible for LZ security but his people would get caught up in the works if things went south. Valenko shot him a set of coordinates embedded in an encrypted message. Myers opened the file and checked them. The indicated coordinates were west of the first LZ, about two clicks off his course. “That's in the deep forest. That's no clearing!” he snarled back.
“It will be when my people get done. They'll rappel down and clear a zone,” Valenko replied soothingly, praying that the other team hadn't hacked their communications. If they had this asshole would blow it for all of them.
“Roger.” There was a brief pause and then, “smart,” the Lieutenant said grudgingly.
“I figure the Major has the other clearings covered. Do the unexpected,” Valenko rumbled. Myers double clicked in response to that.
Myers turned to his people and waved. Sergeant Minachelli shot him a look. Myers was still new to the hand signal thing. Quietly Minachelli made his way over to his boss and leaned close. Myers whispered his changed orders in the Sergeant's ear and then waited for a response.
Minachelli straightened and then looked him in the eye. After a moment the heavyworlder just shrugged and made hand signs to the others to stop. He pointed the blade of his hand in the new direction and then waited for the point to adjust. Then he signaled to move out.
The retreating squad was pissed but humped the extra clicks. They were never aware they were being stalked by enemy squads. Not until nearly to extraction when a rear guard blew a floating sensor pod away to keep them from knowing they were being followed. After that Myers changed direction and double times it out of the area.
Sergei, Valenko, Asazi, and Ox rappel down to the newly designated landing zone and cut down trees. The dropship moved off to the western sun to keep their location a secret. Valenko watched the two heavy weapons Marines take on the virtual trees and winced. Ox had no finesse, he was all business. When one metric ton of enhanced Tauren at full charge met a virtual poplar the tree didn't just break it shattered. The word 'Timber' didn't even cover it.
Sergei's technique was a bit more varied. With smaller trees the Liger ripped them out of the ground and then threw them aside. With larger trees he either climbed them until they bent and then snapped them or he gripped them with gloved hand paws, digging his claws in to the bark and his toe claws into the ground and just ripped them in half. No explosives necessary.
“Damn!”
“What?” Valenko asked, looking at Sergei as he shook a paw and then tried to pick something out of it.
“Got a splinter!”
“How the hell could you get a splinter here?” the bear demanded. He wasn't sure if the liger was pulling his leg or not.
“Don't ask me!”
“Sometimes this place is a little too real if you ask me,” Asazi said. She went over and used her slightly smaller fingers to pull the splinter out of the Liger's paw and then flicked it away.
Valenko looked over to Asazi. The Terran woman just shrugged and went back to watching her zone. He snorted looking at the other two. Damn it looked like fun. He made a mental note to figure out something faster before he pulled on virtual gloves to get his paws dirty. He couldn't let the others have all the fun after all.
They used the trees as cover for the outer perimeter. Stacked in piles the trees and their tops made a good screen. Not that wood would stand up for more than a half second against rail guns and plasma weapons, that wasn't their intended purpose.
The spotter and co sniper made the perimeter just before they picked up the flashed IFF of the incoming retreating squad. Good, Valenko thought in approval. He waved to the sniper team to set up and then sent a burst signal for the dropship to return. The snipers nodded and kept moving, not even slowing their pace. They had made good time to make it here ahead of the storm. He listened, turning his head as the birds and animal life quieted. Yes, the dropship was incoming.
The dropship's engines screamed as it came in, kicking up dust and leaves while making the virtual plant life dance as it came down to land. It's boarding ramp in the rear dropped. The pilot had been smart, he'd come in and positioned himself facing his extraction course with his door facing the incoming squad and the enemy. The door gunner was set up. Valenko smiled. If he was right the gunner wouldn't be needed for more than show.
At the secondary LZ the dropship picked up the injured squad and the officers consulted as the rear guard warily came in. They reported the incoming squads were less than five minutes behind them.
Myers, their first Lieutenant wasn't happy. He was a normally by the book guy who just didn't get into this humping across the dirt crap. He wanted bigger and better things, but he'd grudgingly admitted he needed this experience if he was ever going to get above Lieutenant rank.
He was gruff, taking on a no nonsense personality. As human's go he pulled it off okay, not as well as someone seasoned could, but not bad for a bald former spacer turned Marine. He marched up to Valenko, aware of the bear's mighty frame but reminding himself that the bear was on his side. The bear was also only a second Lieutenant so he outranked the grizzly by a pay grade.
The LT started to ball out Valenko but Valenko quietly explained to him to be ready for ambush. His team was deployed around the secondary LZ before the squad had arrived. “Payback's a bitch right?” Valenko growled, giving the other Lt a challenging look.
The Lieutenant looked around, pursed his lips as his crew stood near fighting positions. His hazel eyes locked onto his Sergeant's. Sergeant Minachelli was more than happy to finally get some of their own back, he was grinning savagely as he locked and loaded.
Myers turned, lips turning into a tight lipped smile. He'd been hassled the whole way, getting sniped, strafed, mortared, and he was thoroughly tired of being chased all over virtual creation. He had to admit getting some of his own back was worth the chance of getting their asses chewed later. Latrine duty sounded good if he could get some of his own back.
He snorted. “Damn straight,” he said with a grin as his hand smacked into the bear's paw. “Let's do it,” he growled as they shook hands. He checked to make sure he was locked and loaded as Valenko sent him the battle plan. He grunted as he looked it over and then nodded curtly. It was a little tricky on the timing but simple and brutal. He loved it already. He left at a trot, pointing to his troops and quietly positioning them where he wanted them.
Valenko watched him go, updating his plan as the other officer added his own quirks. This would get interesting he thought with a savage smile. The best defense was always a good offense, and they were about to prove it.
As the squads settled down for a nervous but eager wait he li
stened. Just has he had expected the animals started chirping and making noise once more. He raised his muzzle to the wind. It was blowing just right, from the north west almost directly behind the incoming opposition force. He could just catch the scent of aftershave and deodorant in the wind. Would they ever learn?
He heard the brush rustling about one hundred and fifty meters out after a few minutes. The simulated local wildlife was dead quiet now, so it made picking out the sounds incredibly easy even without enhanced hearing. There was the occasional crackle of breaking branches and soft cursing. The enemy squads were coming in hot, not really focusing on stealth doctrine as they ran to catch up with the retreating squad. That was a strategic mistake.
When the enemy squads got to the clearing at a run they were ambushed. The dropship took off with the wounded to clear the area just before the op force exited the tree line and come through the gap in the tree barrier that had been left for them. Their entire focus is on the retreating ship, not on the hunkered down Marines waiting for them on the other side of the clearing and it's flanks.
The Lieutenant swore softly and then laughed as Valenko turned the tables. Mortar fire ripped into the opposing tree line. Valenko had been precise when he'd laid his people out, and his people were the gods of war it seemed. Rounds tore into the opposition force from behind, shocking them and tearing them apart with their savagery. Claymore mines lovingly sown went off as the squads turned to run. Snipers got in early savage rounds under the cover of the explosions and retreating dropship. Chaos ensued as the opposition forces were cut down like wheat. Some of the opposition force dropped to the virtual ground and tried to find cover but he knew they were just delaying the inevitable. The LT laughed as sim ended abruptly.
“Anyone tell you the op order was to cover the extraction and get out?” he asked as they pull off their helmets. “Not that I'm complaining or anything.” He stretched grinning. Damn that felt good. It felt great to win like that, to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat. He was pretty sure the Major had been leading the op, with virtual forces near every conceivable extraction point. The bastards could probably respawn too. From the look on the opposition squad leader's faces they were certainly pissed at being cheated out of the kill. Just about everyone had probably wanted in on taking Valenko down a peg.
“The best defense is a good offense,” Valenko said with a shrug. He stretched as he looked over to Jethro. The panther's rack was depressed, he could see the goggles hovering in the air, but the panther was cloaked still. He had his uniform on of course but it looked like an empty shell. That was still too cool for words.
“Damn that's wild,” a Private said coming over to get a better view at the rack. “Ghost man,” he said softly. He whistled.
“Something like that,” the bear said.
“What's he doing?” Myers asked.
“Cleaning up. Or he was.”
“I thought the sim had ended?”
“Probably did but he's not through. Apparently someone left it up for him to try to frag his ass,” Valenko said. He'd have to talk to the Major about that. It wasn't fair to pull him and his squad out but leave the panther in. If it had been a real op his squad would have come to the panther's in support. He'd had a plan for Jethro to fall back into the sniper's range of fire if needed.
“Glad he's on our side,” a woman said fervently.
“Wasn't this op,” the first Private said in disgust. He scowled at the panther's rack.
“You know what I mean,” the woman said, grabbing a towel. “I so want a shower,” she said.
Jethro faded into being panting. Valenko nodded as the panther sat up and then swooned a little. “You all right?” He rumbled, suddenly concerned.
“Tired. Cloak takes a lot of energy,” Jethro said between pants. His eyes were closed. Sergei handed him a water bottle with the cap off. Jethro took it but his hands were trembling.
“Why'd they leave you in?” Valenko asked, crossing his arms.
Jethro took another ragged breath. “They thought they had me, I was on the run. I got away clean though it was close sir,” he panted, eyes closed.
“I see it's not all fun and games for you,” Lieutenant Myers said kneeling next to Jethro.
“Metabolic rate is returning to normal sir. Low blood sugar and well...” Jethro shrugged.
“It takes it out of you. Yeah, I see that.”
“Yeah,” he said between pants. “But it was worth it. Got the job done,” Jethro replied, flicking his ears.
“That it did son. Good work,” the Lieutenant said with a nod and pat on the shoulder. “Carry on,” he said gruffly as he turned and left.
“Better?” Valenko asked.
“Electrolytes are low. I think I need to refuel.”
“Shit shower and shave. Hot wash on the exercise can wait,” Valenko replied with a nod. “Good job people,” he said to the bay at large. His team looked up and nodded. The noob's exchanged high fives. A few of the ambush team looked put out. More than one looked shook up.
“Damn man, going to have nightmares for weeks,” one Private muttered, shaking. “He just came out of nowhere! First thing I knew was when he ripped my throat out!” He shook, hand going to his throat. He kept touching it with his fingertips, making sure it was still there and intact.
“Just a sim man. But I suggest you learn from it,” his partner said resting a hand on his shoulder. “Sim. Still here, still bitching and whining. Suck it up. Tomorrow is another day,” he said.
“Damn straight.”
...*...*...*...*...
The Major shook his head as he disconnected from the sim. How the hell had they pulled that off? He'd had it covered. At least he'd thought he had... had he been hacked? He checked the sim records and snorted. He watched from the bear's perspective and then from the panther's.
Valenko... the son of a bruin... damn. He had to admit it, they were good, damn good. If you can't land where you need to, do the unexpected. His lips thinned in a grudging smile. He'd half expected them to try to rappel the retreating team up into the dropship. He hadn't expected the counter attack. “Damn they really are that good,” he sighed. He made a note of the tactic and another commending Valenko and his team for their initiative. Then he turned his attention to the growing mountain of paperwork. He hated paperwork.
...*...*...*...*...
Jethro and the others ate in the ship's galley. Jethro was ravenous, tearing at the meat like it was a real kill. The other Marines in and out of his squad looked at him nervously. He shrugged it off, too focused on getting the much needed protein. When he was done he drank nearly a gallon of water and then blew off a class to sleep. He needed it. He set his implants to audit the class before he drifted off.
...*...*...*...*...
Hurranna nodded politely to the Selkie pilot Deja as they entered the massive boat bay together. She was excited about being here. Together they went through the introduction lecture for the Prejudice dropship. They were in San Diego, having caught a flight out to the base.
The base wasn't finished but it did have plenty of space and life support now that beamed power from the solar farm was getting through. There was the dome for the Ssilli, and another dome nearby for the academy. It looked to be about half finished. Until it was the new crop of students were using supply rooms as improvised class rooms, or so Fonz and Kovu had said. Most of the Marine side of the base was currently designated as storage until they could figure out what to do with all their gear. A lot of the Marine gear and vehicles would end up heading out to Agnosta.
There were 4 Marine Warhawks, 2 navy Skyhawks, 1 Warhorse, 1 Aurelie, 1 Cirrus, 1 Nimbus, and 4 squadrons of Prejudice dropships scheduled to go to Agnosta. The hawks and Prejudice dropships were new built. All the others were salvaged from the various ships in the fleet or bought from the colonies and restored to their former glory.
The Warhawks and Skyhawks were the same craft frame with different roles and different paint jobs. The navy
battleship gray Skyhawk was a basic transport, designed to bring naval personnel up and down from orbit. The olive drab Warhawk was a weaponized platform with a similar mission. Both had forward swept wings and an inwardly canted double rudder. They lacked VTOL capabilities so they needed a long runway to take off and land. They were primarily aircraft with limited space use. They were an older design, about a century prior to the Xeno war, but well used. They were simple vehicles, easy to repair since they shared a common frame and 90 percent of the same parts. Since they were so popular they had been updated but kept in service production for the century prior to the Xeno war.
The Warhorse had been adapted to the strike role out of desperation during the second AI war. Her wings had been modified to carry munitions pods. She was like flying an elephant, cumbersome and tricky but She had the most weapons of any shuttle in the fleet.
The Aurelie was their oldest craft, recently rebuilt after Commander Logan negotiated it's purchase. It was nearly two thousand years old. Ancient beyond belief, but still flying.
The Cirrus was a civilian design adapted to military use during the Xeno war, or just prior to it. It was forty meters long and twenty meters wide, able to carry up to a hundred troops. It had an aerodynamic body and wing, with four engines in pods. The outermost pods were on the tips of the wings and could swivel down to give the craft VTOL or STOL ability. It was well liked for it's clean aerodynamics... it's an honest craft, but like the Aurelie and Warhorse it was a bitch to stick in a boat bay. That was why she was going to Agnosta.
The Nimbus was a bit different, she was a modified old fighter with engines in the main body and on her wing tips. She was heavily adapted to space but was extremely stealthy even for her age. She had been used to carry small groups of Marines in boarding actions and special ops, or had been used to launch torpedoes or recon probes.
The Prejudice was the only Marine craft they had in limited production. Currently the TOE had eight squadrons on file, each a squadron of 12 craft. Four of those squadrons would be going to Agnosta, another two were currently in working up phases and would follow as shipping permitted. The last two squadrons would be held in Pyrax for use here.
Jethro: First to Fight Page 35
