The Recruitment: Rise of the Free Fleet (29 page)

“Secure them.” I said the team behind me doing so as another took their place.

They announced their presence with an under arm tap to me. As I tapped Yasu as we moved from the wall now with enough people to cover both sides.

“Corridor running left to right.” She called on the close channel that would reach those within ten metres.

Again the tap was passed up as they signalled their acceptance of the news and what they had to do.

Another team of two couples moved up on the right.

“One, two, THREE.” We burst around the corner not finding anything the teams moved down their corridors now as another went straight.

“Where do you want the prisoners?” The team that had bound the Natives asked.

“Hold them in the corridor until we can find a room to leave them in.”

“Yes sir.”

We were moving down the corridor again as we came across a room to our right. We lined up again ready to take the door as Yasu moved past to cover straight ahead and I checked the door.

“It’s unlocked, entry in three, two, one.” I pulled the door with me as the person behind me charged into the left another to the right Yasu following them and me following as the team behind us covered the hallway past us now coming to the door I incase we needed immediate help.

The room was filled with machinery. “Left all clear.” Yasu and her partner said.

“Right all clear.” I said as I lowered my rifle and pulled out my universal jack inserting it into a port on the machinery.

The other teams were moving to the next room in the hall already as me and the others started pulling any information we could get from the confusing machines.

We ran queries against the information not finding anything that we needed immediately we tacked onto the end of the advancing teams.

“Sir we have enemy forces approaching.” The gunner team’s leader said as I pulled his sensor readings seeing the advancing vehicles and their dirt plume.

“Alright disable the vehicles, no damage to the drivers and such. Then I want you to fire a secure radio to them.”

“Yes sir.” He sounded confused, but he had his orders.

“We’ve found the control centre sir.” The teams that had gone straight reported as the support weapons on the shuttle began firing, the people around me and no doubt the rest of them moving to face the fire.

“Good, Jack in and make sure everything’s kosher.”

“On it commander.”

The greatest thing with command is having people obey you, even if you were throwing around orders which sounded strange to yourself.

“Right side point here. Cleared our section of the building, seven beings all stunned.”

“Has any got a suitable collection point for the beings?” I asked.

“Yes sir we’ve got a storage closet on the straight path in to the command centre.” The team leader for left side said.

“Good work.” My HUD showed I had an incoming communication from the support weapons Commander I quickly changed over as I noticed the firing had stopped.

Vehicles are disabled and we launched a comm. unit to them as close as possible. It’s amongst the disabled vehicles but the remaining vehicles have pulled back.”

“Understood, start moving your people to the roof of the plant to cover the entire area.”

“Sir.”

“This is left side, we are clear, entire power plant is cleared and secured.”

“Good, get in defensive positions Squad Commanders over watch it.”

I connected to the comm. unit that the support group had launched via special launcher to the convoy.

“Hello I want to talk about the release of the operators of this power plant.” I said my translator still set on translating the language I found on the machines; hopefully it was the same as these reaction forces spoke.

“This is Major Luret, what are your demands and what is your name?” He said gruffly, it was a fifty/fifty if someone was going to pick up the comm. unit.

“My name is Commander Salchar,” Well I had to look somewhat official feeling a little guilty at using not only my gamer name but the given ‘rank’ by the others I knew. Though it had nothing behind it but bluster I doubted he could figure that out on the other end of a comm. unit.

“I wish to discuss the release of the power plant personnel into your care.”

“What do you want in return pirate?” He said in a disgusted tone.

“Information.”

“What kind of information.”

I needed to go out on a limb and if he reported higher I could have the support squad in over watch kill him before he did anything.

I pulled up the sensors on the shuttle and the Mechas making an image of the Major. He looked humanoid like every alien I’d seen but with scaly skin like that of the shuttle pilot but with a larger snouted head. These aliens looked similar to standing crocodiles without tails and much smaller heads.

“Sensor reports on the ships in orbit as well as shuttle ones. I will also need a complete training cycle for all positions. Also any news articles pertaining to us.”

“Want to show off the slaughtering scum you are.” He spat.

“Good, then you can send it to us, you have five minutes. I have a short period here between where they’re alive and they might be dead.” I didn’t expand why this might happen as I changed channels to one called holding team.

“Have you got the personnel?”

“Yes Commander.”

“Alright get them to the door closest to the disabled vehicles.”

“We don’t have gravity carts to move them and they’re heavy bastards.”

“Well wake them up but keep a guard on them so they don’t get any ideas.”

“We can do that sir, could I get some more people to assist.”

“I’ll send what I can.” I switched channels.

“Organize a party to assist the right raiding squad in moving the prisoners.”

“Sir.” I changed back to the channel with the Major on it.

“Once I give you back your people there will be a perimetre of fifty kilometres around this power plant. Anyone coming inside will be killed. Air traffic is to be kept back two hundred kilometres and not above us. If you bring in artillery we will destroy it. Understood?”

“Yes.”

“Do you have my data?”

“Transmitting.”

“Holding team, point them in the direction of the disable vehicles and let them go.”

“Prisoners will be released momentarily.” I said as I confirmed them transmitting data I collected.

The flow suddenly stopped as I received all of the information. At the same time I saw the still bound group of fifteen aliens running for the vehicles for all they were worth.

“Alright team leaders work out shifts.” I said on the general push as I accessed the command chat.

“So anyone new in here?” Rick answered as I felt a little bit of stress come off my shoulders.

“We’ve got into contact with eighty percent of the human battalion and gaining more connections. Though some people are isolated like you in power stations with no interaction with other Commandos. We’ll gain contact with them when we get back on our ships. Though we’ve been able to make a better roster for all of the people we have.” Min Hae supplied leaving out the assumption that we were leaving Chaleel.

“Good, and it’s good to hear you two again, the straight text messages just aren’t the same. I have a personal favor; have we found the members of MT?” I asked nervously, knowing that I was putting my people ahead of the others as I promised to myself that I wouldn’t.

“Yes we have.”

Bok Sook spoke up. “We also found that all of SR is here too. As we’ve found with our own crews everyone is between ten and twenty in decent shape, mostly MAT players, military, or physically inclined in some fashion. We were mostly taken from Korea, Japan and the coast of Canada and America. It also seems we have a smattering of Australians. Loud bastards though.” Bok Sook said with feeling.

“Do we know whose individual ship leaders, commanders and the like are?”

“Not yet. There are a lot of competitive groups among the ships humans vying for power.” Rick said.

“Great.” I knew that they were going to pick the biggest and baddest groups to lead their ships. Though it made my position more insecure as they’d have their eyes on my position, wanting to gain more power. When I could I needed to set up a real chain of command in the other ships. Though without physically being there, it was going to be problematic.

“What’s the status of our disablers?” Bok Sook asked.

“There’s heavy fighting in the city and not all of the other ships got stun rounds. There’s been bloodshed but there’s nothing we can do about that now.” Rick answered, he was jacked into what was going on way more than me and Bok Sook were.

I felt guilt sweep through me, I quelled it there would be time for that later, now I had to keep my people alive. I’d find out later how bad it had been.

“Alright just tell him to get what we need as fast as possible and then bug out. I’ve gotten the information I requested from the natives of the planet. I’m transmitting it to you, spread it out, we’ll want copies. Also seeing how long we’re here we’ll begin training.” I saw another channel was open.

“Have to go, Officer’s calling.” I cut their channel opening the requesting channel.

“Yes officer Turek?”

“I see on sensors that the personnel of the facility have been released.”

“Yes sir the major was adamant when I requested that we get a perimetre fifty kilometres wide in all directions and clear airspace.”

“You should have sent a few to show good faith, not all of them!”

“I’m sorry sir I didn’t think of that.” He sighed annoyed but expectantly.

“You’ve just come out of basic its expected you’ll be nothing more than a moron.”

“Yes sir. The men are wondering how long we’ll be staying here.”

“It was dependent on how long it would take us to hold these power plants. Now with them in our hands we’ll just have to wait for a smaller fleet to arrive and take custody of the planet. They’ll be able to eradicate any terrorist activity and help the authorities turn this planet back into a contributing free planet.” He said proudly as I winced inside. While I knew it wasn’t the Sarenmenti’s fault for their current position. I didn’t want to include them in my plan, due to their devotion to the PDF. If I added them, then there was that many more people who could potential tell the ship’s crew, stopping us before we’d begun.

I just hoped that if we did get ourselves free that the Sarenmenti would see the truth, and listen, instead of becoming closer to the Syndicate even more. I needed every soul I could get behind me, if it was human, Sarenmenti, Kuruvian or otherwise.

“Yes sir. I will let them know, should we set up shifts. My species require frequent feeding and regular sleep periods as well as periods of activity.”

“Alright you know your own species better than I do—continue on. I’ll be around to keep an eye on you and drop in at random times to make sure people aren’t slacking that should be working.”

“Yes sir.” I changed to a general channel to every human connected to the network we’d created.