This took place in the same universe as Singularity.651Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrb8GYu0wjl
8th June 3504, 1029 hours
United Republic of Sephera space
Seph System, Planet Sephera
Capital city of New Sephera, Neptune Citadel, level 73
The Neptune Citadel rose one hundred meters into the clouded sky of Sephera. The dark grey-black tower was one of the highest buildings in the capital beside the Pillar of History and a few corporate skyscrapers.
It was precisely reached one-hundred and twenty-three meters into the sky. It was surrounded by high walls and was sealed off from civilians since it was a military base. It was the headquarters of the famous Sephrim commandos and some of the Republic’s top military brass had offices inside, near the top. As if that wasn’t enough for military security the Citadel contained a mass of classified data that more than one foreign government and organization would love to put their dirty hands or tentacles on them.
The top floors was used by the Sephrim Commandos and had its own hangar built in. for others there was the small airfield at the bottom of the Citadel, on the inside of the walls. The hangar was only used by the Sephrim.
“Hey, how was your leave?” A soldier asked another.
“It was good. Visited my family,” the other answered. “My son had caught a cold, poor little guy.
“Least it wasn’t a plague from behind the Dark Rim,” the first joked.
The two soldiers walked through a well-lit corridor. They had a holster with a handgun holstered on their hips. They had the standard armor for soldiers of the URS Army.
“Hey not funny,” the second man proclaimed and glared through his visor with disapproval.
The first raised his hands.
“Oh okay! Sorry. Didn’t mean nothin’ by it buddy.”
The other let it go.
“Anyway Thomas. My next leave will be just perfectly timed. It’ll be on my youngest son’s birthday.”
Thomas stopped and nodded forward.
“Oh man, look,” he whispered.
The other man stopped and looked. He saw a woman clad in titanium and ceramic composite plated armor. It was beige camouflaged, like the armor of any Sephrim.
“What? Major Wolfbane?” He put his arms on his hips, avoiding the wish to sigh. “It’s been a month now. Are you ever going to get over your awe phase?”
Thomas looked at him.
“How are you not amazed every time you see them?” Thomas inquired, still whispering.
“I know it’s extraordinary to work so close to commandos but it’s not that big a deal.”
Thomas stared through his silver visor at the twenty-six year old Sephrim.
She held her beige camo helmet under her right arm. He could see the circular red glowing visor.
Sakiko Wolfbane focused her amber eyes on a single strand of red hair in her field of view. She swapped it aside and forced it back with the rest of her wavy red hair using her left gloved hand.
She looked at the two soldiers she met and nodded.
One of them snapped off a salute in a fraction of a second. The other followed at a more normal speed.
“Major,” he acknowledged.
She saluted back.
Sakiko felt a tingle of joy over the awe displayed in the man’s salute. Whenever she saw someone that didn’t outright despised Sephrim on sight. The majority of Sepherans thought of the Sephrim Commandos as freaks and monsters. That was how many saw them amongst their own people. That didn’t extend to the people outside their borders. For the six years the program had operated-after they finished ten years of training-the Sephrim was known as one of the most effective Special Forces Programs in known space. A lot of people loved them, but that didn’t include their own people. It didn’t-mostly-extend to the military, least not those that worked with them. They were often professional enough to ignore their feelings on duty.
Sakiko put her helmet as she continued walking until she reached a door. A guard outside it keyed the wall panel and the door slid open.
The room behind the door was slightly dimly lit with dozens of terminals and screens and twice as many techies to use them. Her focus went to a glassed in briefing room. There was more guards outside that door and they opened the door when she approached. As she walked across the room to the room she spotted a handful of familiar looks. Looks of those that saw her like a freak because of the enhancements.
Inside the briefing room was a few terminals with a large screen on the wall and a holographic table in the center. There was twelve Sephrim in the same kind of armor as she had surrounding the table. There was also three others present. The Projects Director, the semi-creepy Counselor and the military commander. Brigadier General Hargrove.
The commandos present was her people. The other members of Batch 001. The first batch of Sephrim Commandos the program ever produced.
“Glad you could join us Major,” the Director said in her stern emotionless voice.
She was dressed in a grey pantsuit with grey-blonde hair fixed into a ponytail.
Sakiko checked the timer on the heads-up-display in her helmet. Two minutes over 1030 hours.
“Sorry Director,” she said as she joined them around the table. Her voice came out through her helmet audio as a synthesized robotic voice. It added to the fear the Sephrim already displayed with their red circular visors.
“That’s fine,” Hargrove told her with a warm smile.
Sakiko felt warm and happy every time he smiled at her. The old soldier was a father figure for every one of her Sephrim brothers and sisters in her batch. He had personally been there and trained them since they was forced into the program at the age of six.
The Director glanced at Hargrove with emotionless eyes.
“Our friends in the Ministry of Intelligence has made us aware of data recovered from your raid last month,” she started explaining.
Sakiko’s second in command put his gloved hands on the holotable.
“Have they finally decrypted the data discs?” John inquired with peaked interest.
“Partially,” the Director said. “They have decrypted seven percent of the data. However the Minster assures me that the rest will soon follow.”
Her second in command, and lover, squeaked, “Fantastic.”
“Finally,” the robotic voice of Prism came out.
His robotic voice was the only one that wasn’t synthesized. He was an Exxon, a sentient machine race. His voice and body was masculine and had a one decimeter horn on his metallic forehead. His jaw section was red and his optics glowed with a blue color. The rest of him was grey and silver colored. He didn’t wear Sephrim Combat Armor like the others, just a beige robe.
“That was about damn time!” Prism proclaimed steadily.
He was a bit annoyed by how long it had taken. It wasn’t obvious on his voice but Sakiko knew him and knew he had been very irritated by the length it had taken the Ministry of Intelligence to return the proverbial ball to them.
“PFC Prism,” Hargrove told him firmly.
The glowing optics looked at the Brigadier General.
“Sorry. It’s just been so long and I, we, don’t like sitting on our hands with terrorists out there,” Prism explained apologetically.
“It’s okay. We understand Prism,” the Counselor assured him in his calm British accent. His ancestors had come to Sephera from Earth, the British Isles specifically. The accent had survived on the continent on Ardae.
“The data provided to us show a location in New Sephera that the terrorists use as a data hub and supply post for all operations in this region.” The Director looked at Sakiko, causing everyone’s eyes to follow,
“Major Wolfbane have looked over the data and drew up a plan of attack together with General Hargrove.”
“Sakiko,” Counselor Loki Price said with a small smile. “Would you please walk us through your plan?”
She nodded.
She walked over between Prism and Hachiro and keyed the terminal. She brought up a blue holographic map of New Sephera on the holotable. It was a map of the city’s main spaceport.
“Nú Diveras Space Port,” John noted.
“Correct,” Sakiko said. “Our terrorist friends in the Moonlight own three docking bays here. Under false identities off course. They bring supplies and operatives in and out of New Sephera. They also own a warehouse in district 27, five kilometers from the port.”
“We’re spreading pretty thin, going after both targets,” Hachiro pointed out his concern.
Sakiko didn’t appreciate the interruption but didn’t show any disapproval.
“The warehouse will be assaulted by the Batch 002 and 003,” she explained.
Although she and Hargrove didn’t expect too heavy resistance at the warehouse the 002 Batch was down to five commandos. The other nine out of their fourteen had been killed in the two years they had been in service. Batch 003 had lost five, making them the perfect reinforcements. They had been combined into one single Squad. Savage Squad. Sakiko’s batch brothers and sisters was Terminus Squad.
It was a sad fact that the other Batches didn’t get as good training as her batch did. They got the same length. From six-twenty years old, but with another batch every year it stretched out the programs training resources. Between her batch and her sisters and brothers in the 002 there was four years. Now the project stretched the resources too much. They were still the best commandos in known space, they just died more often now. Her own batch had only lost two siblings.
She suppressed the memory and focused on the task at hand.
“We go in by gunship in three teams. Alpha led by me, Bravo by Hachiro and Charlie by Vanessa as usual. We strike the three docking bays simultaneously. Bay one will be my teams target, bay two is Bravo’s and bay three is yours Vanessa.” She looked around at the red visors of her closest family and pointed out which docking bay had what number,
“We go in hard, shoot to kill unless they surrender, only one warning. We require Intel, but taking these sons of bitches alive isn’t a primary objective. Shutting them down is. We won’t cooperate with local law enforcements on this, we’ll call them in ones we’re done.”
“They won’t like that,” Prism chuckled lightly.
“We keep them in the dark?” John asked.
She nodded. “Most importantly of all,” Sakiko continued.
“Nú Diveras is a civilian port and there will be a lot of civilians around when we carry out this operation.” She put her hands down on the edge of the holotable for emphasis. “No civilian casualties. Understood?”
Everyone nodded in affirmation.
“Good because you’re preforming this operation at 1100 hours,” Hargrove said. “Thirty minutes from now. The 2nd and 3rd Batches was briefed before you and is preparing for their mission as we brief you.”
1st Lieutenant Vanessa looked to Hargrove.
“Sir, is Vadam Shu at any of the locations?” The CO of Team Charlie asked.
It was a question everyone wanted to hear the answer too.
Sakiko noticed a few of her fellow commandos clenching their fists at the mere mention of the name. they all felt a deep hatred towards the heartless terrorist son of a bitch.
“Intelligence thinks he is expected, but he hasn’t been seen by Intelligence agents,” the Director said. “It is possibly he has already arrived before agents scouted out the locations or he hasn’t arrived yet. Either way we cannot way for the agents to spot him. If he is here, he is probably planning an attack so we need to strike first,”
She paused.
“I want this operation to be clean and quick. And if, if, Mr Shu is there he must be taken alive. Is that clear to you all?”
“Yes Director!” Sakiko answered for the others.
An order they all already regretted, she was certain of that.
“Good,” the older woman nodded. “You are all dismissed.”
They all snapped to attention before relaxing and disappearing out the door.
“Before you leave Sakiko…” Counselor Price said in a cautious and pleasant voice.
She halted before she could turn around.
“Yes Counselor?”
“…could I have a word with you in private please?”
She sighed, but kept it inside her helmet.
“Sure.”
“We’ll give you the room,” Hargrove offered since the briefing was over.
Sakiko stood in silence until Director Carlstadt and Hargrove left after her fellow commandos filed out. The Counselor stood a mere two meters from her with a datapad in his hands. The dark skinned man had his usual calm and friendly smile on his face.
Sakiko wasn’t alone in her discomfort in speaking with the bald Counselor. Every batch had a Counselor to deal with certain situations.
“This won’t take long, Sakiko. You will be able to join your friends soon,” he assured her.
“What’s this about?” As if she couldn’t guess.
“When this mission is over I would like us to have a session in my office.”
She folded her arms over her chest.
“Is this about Orin?”
He nodded slightly.
“His death is one of the things I would like to discuss in our session, correct.”
“One of them? He’s been dead for months and we already had a session where we spoke about his death, about losing him. Wasn’t that enough?” She had to hold back her frustration.
He was quiet for a moment, keying something on his pad.
“Our session made me think that you require another. Sakiko, you have done nothing wrong. You are not in trouble. Do not worry.” He paused. “When you return I will let you know of our set up time. It won’t disrupt your training or missions.”
She slowly nodded.
“Yes Counselor.”
God damn she hated this crap. What was this shit? What had she said that made him think she needed another talk?
She walked out of the briefing room and passed by the Director and Hargrove on her way out of the Command and Information Center. The Counselor joined the two and they exchanged a few words with them. She presumed they talked about her and it gave her a worried feeling.
She saw John leaning against a wall near the elevator.
“What did he want?” He asked on a private channel in their helmet comms.
“Talk.”
He shoved himself off the wall and followed her into the elevator.
“Oh come on. It’s usually not good or fun when the Counselor wants to talk.”
She shrugged.
“Just wanted to have a session, like I said. To talk. Okay? Leave it be.”
She really didn’t want to talk about it. John could tell, however he didn’t back off. Sakiko keyed the panel to take them to the 75 floor where there was an armory and the hangar. As the elevator started moving up he leaned closer to her and put a hand on her armored shoulder.
“Hey sweetie,” he said in a gentle voice. “I’m just trying to help.”
She sighed and looked down at the floor.
“He want to talk about Orin, okay. Don’t ask why because I don’t know or care. I have a mission and I’m going to focus on that now, so, leave it be John,” she told him in a flat but stern voice.
John was silent for the remainder of the elevator ride. He thought about Orin. It had been two months since their friend and brother had died.651Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHZOyn2YdMb
