Welcome To The Wolfpack

by Toby Neighbors

  Enemy approaching final check post, one of the guards was reporting over their communications channel.

  You are the last guardians, said another voice. Do not let the unholy invaders pass.

  We will die before that, Commander. The charges are set. We will collapse the tunnel if we must.

  The generators will be fueled soon. Once the electric lift is ready, we will take his holiness to secure site B. Wait for further instructions.

  Dean wanted to curse, but instead he contacted the three soldiers charging toward the final defensive position of the Swiss Guard. He had to stop them before the guards set off their charges and collapsed the tunnel.

  “Ghost, D’Vris, Adkins,” Dean said. “Return to my position. I repeat, halt your progress and return to my position.”

  “The pope is there, Captain,” Tallgrass said. “We can’t stop now.”

  “You heard them, the guards will collapse the tunnel. I have no desire to send men to their deaths with no chance of success.”

  “Yes sir,” she said, a note of hesitation in her voice.

  “Sergeant Harper,” Dean called on the platoon comlink.

  The reply was filled with static, but the signal was getting through.

  “We need you down here with MSV’s.”

  “Yes Captain,” Harper said.

  “You have a plan?” Tallgrass asked.

  “I don’t think we can get through the tunnel without the guards destroying it. But we may have just enough time to get one of Harper’s little spies past them. We don’t need to stop the Pope if we can discover where he’s going.”

  “That won’t be easy,” Tallgrass said.

  “We didn’t sign up for Recon because we thought it would be easy.”

  As soon as Adkins, D’Vris, and Ghost got back to Dean’s position he set them to work gathering weapons. He had no idea how long the tranquilizers would work on the fallen guardsmen, but he didn’t want his people trapped in the tunnel when the enemy came around.

  Dean was listening to the communications of the Swiss Guard via the ear pieces Tallgrass had procured when Harper arrived.

  “How’s Cat?”

  “She’s sustained significant injuries Captain,” Harper said with a note of desperation in her voice. “We need to get her back to the Charlemagne as soon as possible.”

  “Or get her to a trauma center here on the ground,” Tallgrass volunteered.

  “That’s an excellent idea,” Dean said. “One we may have to utilize once we wrap things up here. Sergeant, do you think you can get a MSV past the guards at the end of this tunnel without being seen?”

  “I should be able to,” Harper said. “As long as there aren’t any steps or obstacles in the way.”

  “Do it! Adkins, D’Vris, you stay with her and stand guard until she’s done. Harper, our goal is to find out where the Pope’s lift will come out.”

  “He’s down here?” she asked in surprise.

  “That’s what we’ve heard over their comms channel,” Dean said. “They’re fueling generators to power the lift. My guess is we’re a hundred feet underground, and the Pope has an emergency exit somewhere in the city outside his compound. It’ll be someplace nondescript, where he and his guards can slip away unnoticed.”

  “I’ll get it done, Captain.”

  “Good, Tallgrass you’re with me. We’re going back up. Hopefully we’ll get some help down here.”

  They moved more quickly out of the tunnel than they had gone in, but Dean didn’t push it. The pain in his shoulder was returning with a vengeance, and he couldn’t afford to get clumsy and make the injury worse.

  When they reached the elevator Dean sighed in relief, leaning against the wall of the compartment. Tallgrass helped him out and they found Wilson with Cat on one of the ornate couches. He was holding fabric from one of the wall hangings against her wounds to slow the bleeding. Dean tried not to think about the value of the hanging, or how old and important it might have been. Cat’s life was worth more to Dean than all the treasures in the compound and he would happily destroy them all to get his platoon home safely.

  On the landing overlooking the reception room, Carver and Kliner had joined Chancy standing guard. Staff Sergeant Chavez was still in his seat, rifle in his lap, struggling to breathe.

  “Tallgrass, take Chancy and find us a vehicle. We need wheels to get Cat and Chavez to a medical facility if that becomes necessary.”

  “Yes sir,” she said.

  “Time is of the essence, Sergeant,” Dean reminded her, before slowing returning to the elevator and pressing the button for the second floor.

  He came out on the landing and made his way to Chavez who was wheezing audibly by that point. He didn’t say a word to the big Staff Sergeant, just held out his free hand to help Chavez to his feet. He had to clench his teeth to stifle the groan the exertion caused. He wasn’t accustomed to taking things easy, but he would have to or else end up just as bad as Chavez was.

  “Gotta get you downstairs,” Dean said. “We may have to move you to an emergency medical facility here in the city.”

  “Sir… I can make it back to the ship.”

  “I know you can, Staff Sergeant. Unfortunately, Valosky can’t. Get moving big guy.”

  Dean switched his comlink to the command channel.

  “Command, this Wolfpack, do you read me, over?”

  “We have you five by five, Wolfpack. Standby for Major McDowell, over.”

  Dean was relieved to hear that the Major had help. He wasn’t certain, but he thought that the response he’d gotten had come from one of the Naval ships in orbit.

  “Blaze! Tell me you have the compound secured, over,” McDowell growled.

  “We have the Pope’s palace under our control, Major. The rest of the compound appears to be empty,” Dean said, as he checked the vid feed from the drones overhead. “The Pope is fleeing, but we’re working on that. I have two injured and in need of emergency evac, over.”

  There was a pause before the Major responded. “Captain, get me the Pope. I want him alive, is that clear, over?”

  “Yes sir, we will exhaust all resources getting the Pope. Should I have my wounded moved up to the landing pad on top of the palace, sir, over?”

  “Negative, Captain. We have every other resource available in the field at the moment. Do what you can for your wounded, but getting the Pope is your top priority. Major McDowell, over and out.”

  Dean switch off his comms completely and screamed his frustration. The battle armor kept him from being heard, but Chavez looked at him. Dean switched his comms back online.

  “Not good news from command, I take it,” Chavez wheezed.

  “They aren’t sending help,” Dean said.

  “We all signed on knowing that was a possibility, Captain.”

  “It is unacceptable,” Dean replied. “Tallgrass, tell me you have something.”

  “Sir, we’ve located a van, but it needs fuel. With the power out we’re having to pump the gas by hand. We should be back at your position in five minutes.”

  “Excellent, Sergeant.” Dean said. “Harper, what have you got?”

  “I’m past the guards sir. Looks like a a garage of some type. I’ve located the emergency generators. We got lucky. They haven’t been maintained and the guards are trying to get them started.”

  Dean brought up the vid feed from the MSV, but the picture wasn’t clear. There was too much interference for Dean to make out what he was seeing.

  “Do you have eyes on the Pope?” Dean asked.

  “I do sir. He’s in the emergency elevator. Getting close will be difficult. They have flood lights turned on.

  Don’t worry about the elevator, Harper. New orders. I want you to detonate the MSV near the generators.”

  “Sir, that will injure if not kill the guards.”

  “I don’t give a damn,” Dean said. “I take full responsibility. I don’t know what is happening outside of this compound, but we can’t
take a chance on letting him get away.”

  “Yes sir,” Harper said. “Stand by.”

  Dean waited, wishing he could be in two places at once. Part of him wanted to be inside the tunnel with his Specialists, but he also wanted to ensure that he got Cat and Chavez moving toward the help they needed.

  “Harper, send in more MSVs before you detonate,” Dean instructed.

  “Already on it sir. There is a bank of generators on racks several inches off the floor. The MSVs can get under them and detonate.”

  “Perfect. I want the timing perfect, Sergeant. Once the elevator doors close, blow the generators. That should protect the Pope, and possibly his guards. Keep at least one MSV clear to monitor the guards near the check post. They have ordinance that could bring the tunnel down. If they leave that post, you attack. Is that clear?”

  “Yes Captain.”

  “Does everyone down there read me?”

  Ghost, D’Vris, and Adkins all acknowledged the order. Dean waved the last two Triplets down from their watch position.

  Carry Cat out on that sofa,” he ordered them. “Come on Chavez, time to get you some help.”

  “No objections there, Captain. That’s a damn good plan to catch the Pope. You don’t think they’ll run out of air in that elevator, do you?”

  “I hope not,” Dean said, realizing he might have just ordered the leader of Rome Three’s death.

  Chapter 26

  The big HA Specialists lifted the antique sofa, along with Corporal Katherine Valosky quite easily. Dean and Chavez led the way, holding open the big entrance doors just as the Demo team arrived in a passenger van. Dean settled Chavez into the passenger seat, then stood back studying the map of the city in hopes of finding the medical facility. Nothing on the map was labeled, but Dean was lucky enough to find an Emergency Response Vehicle parked near a large building.

  He illuminated the route from the compound’s main entrance to what he hoped was the hospital, and sent the image to Chancy.

  “Corporal, get them both to the hospital, ASAP. If the locals give you grief, you have permission to use non-lethal force. Is that clear?”

  “Yes,” Chancy said, still refraining from using standard military discipline as he responded to Dean.

  “Tell them we have the Pope and we’ll do whatever we need to do to make sure our people get the best care.” Then Dean turned to the Triplets, “You three follow the van to the main entrance. I want this compound secure. No one in or out without my specific command.”

  “Yes sir,” the three privates said in unison.

  “Move out,” Dean ordered.

  Tallgrass followed Dean back into the palace and they moved quickly to the elevator. Dean was tense, his plan hinged on the explosions trapping the Pope, along with his guard. If they set off the charges, the Pope could be trapped for days. And even if the guards didn’t detonate the charges, the MSV’s could trigger them when they were detonated under the generators which were fueled with old fashioned fossil fuels.

  Tallgrass was silent as she waited beside Dean in the elevator.

  “Something is bothering you, Sergeant?” Dean asked on a private channel.

  “It’s nothing, Captain.”

  “Might as well speak your mind, Tallgrass. Am I missing something?”

  “Chancy sir,” she said in a low voice. “He’s dangerous.”

  “I know that,” Dean said regretfully. “I should have benched him before this mission. I thought being in the mud and blood together might change his attitude.”

  “It isn’t just his attitude that worries me, sir.”

  “You think he’ll go to his father after this mission?”

  “That’s always a possibility, but I’m more concerned with what he might do on this mission. He’s unstable. I heard him talking to himself when we went for the transport.”

  Dean felt a stab of panic. The last thing he wanted was for Chancy to go rogue and not get Chavez and Cat the help they needed. Still, he couldn’t really spare anyone else for the mission. He would have sent Tallgrass but he needed a demolitions expert to ensure that the charges in the tunnel were safely deactivated and disposed of.

  They were just stepping off the elevator when they heard the explosion at the far end of the tunnel. The emergency lights flickered off and stayed off. Dean and Tallgrass hurried past the dead man’s corridor and started down the tunnel.

  “Report, Sergeant Harper,” Dean said.

  “Good news Captain,” she said. “The last remaining guards were called to the elevator once the generators were brought online. We made the blast just as you ordered. We’re waiting for the smoke to clear before going in.”

  “I doubt it will clear,” Tallgrass said. “The ventilation system this far underground will be worthless without power.”

  “Move in now, Sergeant,” Dean said. “We’re on our way. We have to get the Pope out of that elevator.”

  “Yes sir, we’re on it,” Harper said.

  Dean leaned on Tallgrass, his strength ebbing more and more every minute. He needed rest, food, and medical attention. His body was beginning to fail him and he cursed himself as weak, but didn’t stop. Nothing could make him stop short of death. Securing the Pope would give him all the leverage he needed to make sure his platoon got what they needed, and that was the most important thing to Dean.

  “We’re in the escape room now,” Ghost informed Dean. “This place is in bad shape, but the elevator seems undamaged.”

  “Remember what happened when we opened the tunnel,” Dean warned them. “They’ll come out shooting.”

  “Yes sir,” Harper said.

  Dean was just entering the large, garage like maintenance area as Adkins and D’Vris pulled open the sliding elevator doors. The outer doors squealed as metal gouged against metal. The elevator car was halfway up the opening and Dean moved over beside Harper. They could hear activity inside the elevator.

  “Well, we know they aren’t dead,” Adkins said.

  “We have to get that car open safely,” Dean insisted.

  “They would be insane to shoot at us,” D’Vris said. “It would endanger the Pope.”

  “Only if we fired back live ammo,” Dean said. “They know we’re using non-lethal munitions.”

  “What do they hope to gain?” Adkins asked. “We’ve beaten everything they’ve thrown at us so far.”

  “The Swiss Guard will never quit,” Dean said. “And they know something we don’t. So get that damn door open!”

  Dean and Tallgrass moved to one side, along with Ghost who had his sidearm ready. Harper was on the other side. The two big HA Specialists used a piece of metal from the ruined generators to pry the door open enough to get a grip on the sliding panels. Then they pulled them apart. A barrage of gunfire erupted, but the angles of fire were narrow. Ghost and Harper held their guns out away from their bodies and fired into the elevator. There were shouts, the shooting slowed, but didn’t stop. It took three volleys from the non lethal ammo before the shooting inside the elevator ceased.

  Harper tossed in a MSV and Dean saw from the feed nearly a dozen bodies. The guards were all wearing dark suits. The Pope was nowhere among the casualties.

  “What the hell?” Harper said.

  “Pan up,” Dean ordered.

  He had a sinking feeling their ordeal wasn’t over. Sure enough, when the MSV’s camera rotated up they could see that a maintenance panel had been removed in the ceiling of the elevator car. There was even movement visible through the opening.

  “Ghost, get up there,” Dean ordered. “Watch out for return fire. We have to take the Pope into custody or this is all for naught.”

  “Understood,” said the lanky sniper.

  His rifle was already slung over one shoulder, but he moved to the door of the elevator and sighted up through the opening, sending several rounds into the access panel before diving into the elevator car. More shooting. The Swiss Guard didn’t mind killing their own, it appeared. Ghost retu
rned fire, moving around the interior of the elevator, stepping on bodies, but somehow keeping his balance.

  “Toss the MSV up,” Harper told him.

  Dean watched as the little, matchbox sized surveillance vehicle flipped through the hole. On Dean’s TCU he was monitoring the feed, and saw three men climbing the metal rungs on a steep ladder that was built into the elevator shaft. Two were in dark suits, the third wore ecclesiastical robes.

  “That’s him!” Harper shouted.

  “Pan round the top of the elevator,” Dean ordered. “We can’t send Ghost up until we’re sure the shaft is clear of danger.”

  The MSV began turning and was suddenly smashed by a hard stomp. Harper cursed and Ghost laughed, before jumping to one side and firing his weapon again. Another thump followed, the sound of a body falling.

  “Toss me another of your gadgets,” Ghost called.

  Harper activated another MSV and tossed it to Ghost, who tossed up through the hole in the roof. This time when it panned around there were no guards visible that were still conscious, save for those flanking the Pope.

  “Hurry,” Dean ordered. “Before they get out of range.”

  Ghost jumped for the opening and pulled himself up. Gunshots rained down, but they were wild, desperate shots, fired from a poor angle as the lower guard swung away from the ladder and tried to shoot Ghost. The Sniper returned fire with his rifle, which had the greater range. Three tranq-darts hit the guard, one in the leg, one in the abdomen, and one in the chest. He fell almost as soon as the flechettes struck home, hitting the ladder on his way down, his body flipping terribly before crashing into the elevator. The impact knocked the elevator down nearly two feet.

  “Go help him,” Dean told Harper.

  She climbed up into the elevator and D’Vris leaned in to boost her up through the opening. Ghost was already climbing up the ladder and the Pope hugged the rungs as the guard leaned out to fire over his body. But Harper shot first, the guard was at maximum range for the non-lethal ammo. Dean knew if Chancy had been in the elevator shaft trying to make a shot at that distance he would have missed, but Harper’s aim was true. The flechette impacted the guard just under his arm, causing him to pull back toward the rungs. For an instant Dean feared that the guard would collapse and knock the Pope off the ladder, but the guard selflessly flung himself away from the wall, diving like a swimmer before crashing head first into the elevator, knocking it down again so that it was almost level with the door.