Futuristic EDENSEED - The Genesian War IC

[Petroshka]

Nyala was walking down the hallway only to be surprised by an certain unexpected but familiar face, Conner James Mckinley, or more importantly, 'Jotun.' "hm? oh its you, morning." She smiled at him and went to go sit down and sat down. She attempted to look away from Eurica as much as possible until she talked, the trickle of fellow knights made the wait bearable as she tried to recall their names and codenames, some were successful and others were just completely wrong. She attempted to look as inviting as possible as to not make a tense situation more tense but she doubted it worked, when everyone finally got there she looked around counting how many were present. "a decent number" she mummured to herself before the briefing quickly started.

Listening to Eurica's voice once again made her genuinely smile again but she shook the feeling away instead focusing on the words at hand which were making her quite excited, they were finally going on the offensive. Listening to the rest of the briefing made her consider the tactical options that could be had, it would be unusual to send in NARCS or EVE's without infantry support or any other kind of support but she had a feeling it was political move rather than a military one which made her frown at the thought. Although she stayed quiet about it, after conner asked his questions she started with her own concerns

"Do we know about the enemy presence there? how many Atacs, emplacements, anti vehicle weapons?"
Lekiel Soviet Panda

 

[Lekiel]

"Ah yes, Jotun. Valid questions." Eurica acknowledged the knight with a nod. "As I have stated, the primary objective is the Edenseed Retrieval. Accounts on research data integrity is sketchy at best. We're told that in the event of an emergency, the researchers are able to initiate a Deep Dive protocol. In simple terms, bury, encrypt and preserve only a select pattern of the original data for future retrieval. It may have been lost during the Confederation's occupation of Ardenguard." Eurica clasped her hands and paced methodically by the holotable.

"As for your second question... As you're well aware, we currently only have two Large Edenseeds. One is being studied at the Miranda Institute, and the other was used to develop your EVEs. Due to the covert nature of this operation, if we were given a choice, I doubt that we would deploy the MI4287 for this operation, Jotun." She gave Jotun a friendly wink at that. "With that being said, for Operation Genesis Strike, we will all be dropping in as we are. No EVEs. The general thinks this is a good test of our capabilities as a functioning unit; without compromising the surprise element we would have when unveiling our EVEs." Eurica briefly gestured to the gathered knights around the room. "Of course, you will be issued an exosuit, if you don't already have a custom one. Though many of you have never served in the frontlines as infantry, we trust that the training you received during the term at the Academy should be sufficient. We will also have several days before we ship out, to... have a brief warm up." It had been a contentious point. One which she had debated with the General when he had first suggested their plan. Sure, there were those among them who would have no trouble feeling at home behind enemy lines. But there were the others. Untested. However, Odenheim had been adamant. It was then that Eurica began to realize most of the others often quipped that the General's tactics were often unpopular and unorthodox. Talk about being dropped in the deep end before learning how to swim.

"As to your query Mordred..." Eurica met her emerald gaze, careful to keep her face impassive. "Union forces will be staging a long range bombardment of the Confederation Ardenguard defense lines just as we drop in. We're counting on them to draw most of the heavy ATACs out. This, coupled with the fact that our sources say the Confederation has been steadily being stretched thin, should mean that we should not expect much ATAC resistance. There is a sizable group troop force, but the point is not to engage them in a direct firefight. If all else fails, we will have to abort and then the Union assault force will move in a day early."

"Is there anything else?" She turned to the rest of the group.

 

[Soulmuse]

Aquilla listened in silence, on and off scowling at the lack of information provided to them. This entire missions struck her as something of a gamble, both on the grounds of lacking intelligence and on a highly untested combat unit. While Aquilla herself could certainly appreciate the effectiveness of the methodology, it also tended to produce casualties, and this was hardly a situation in which they could afford to keep losing soldiers. Hopefully, the next week would prove to be fruitful on turning them into something approaching an effective fighting force. Lacking intelligence presented less of a bother, from Aquilla perspective. In the field, they could compensate for quite a bit, and getting accurate intel could be argued as impossible.

“Will more conventional forces be doing anything to draw attention away from out infiltration? Bombarding the city, and then not immediately following up with an attack or other distraction, is waving all sorts of red flags for the Confederates.” She frowned. “And, at what point do we consider this a failure? Do we evacuate immediately on detection, or should we attempt to fight through a certain level of resistance?”

 

[KhazTheGiraffe]

Dominic had intently listened to the General's speech. It was not particularly inspiring considering the amount of times he had mentioned that the people funding the program had no faith in the program; however, this was not a surprising revelation as most politicians were faithless doorknobs. While the speech was disheartening at times, Dominic was struck by the magnitude of his situation. He was sitting in a room with several war heroes, where he would be considered their equal; General Odenheim, the proven and accomplished military expert, believed in each and every member in the room despite everyone telling him that this entire program; and he was about to embark on his first mission in the field. This was no small feat.

Next came the mission brewing led by Eurica. She detailed the groups mission and split them into their teams. On his team he had Connor Mckinley, Janson Terrano, and Aquilla Vaughn who were all very familiar with live combat. Calista Mintz was also a member of his team. He had not heard of her, however she was familiar to him. Perhaps they had passed each other at the academy a few times. Dominic hoped that she had just as little live-combat as he did so he wouldn't be trying to navigate this process alone.

He listened to the questions that the others around the table posed, trying to absorb as much information as possible. Most of them were inquiring for more informtion, but Aquilla seemed to be asking skeptical questions. Her questions seemed valid to Dom, who is not one for giving up a fight. Knowing when they must abandon the mission is important information for someone who would run straight into a suicidal situation without hesitation unless otherwise instructed not to.

"Those are good questions," he added, "Will they not be expecting the NEU to make an attempt to recover the edenseeds? This seems like a perfect time for them to set a trap for us."

 

[CkSmalling]

Robert looked at the file with a serious face. The first mission was pretty straightforward. Get the Eden seed no matter what. At least they had to get their hands dirty at some point when things go straight to hell. Honestly a little firefight was good for a trigger finger. His, however, required a bit more finesse. Getting data from a Research Lab was actually hardest of the two. The lab by itself is heavily fortified so going in loud and dumb was not an option. Stealth was required. Or become invisible. Hiding in plain sight was the better option. Pretending to be someone else. A smile formed on his face. His mission was going to get interesting.

"Commander if i may," Robert said as he placed the file on the table. " I suppose you have a plan for sneaking into the lab. I assume the lab will be heavily fortified and numerous personnel located within its wall so going in gun's blazing is not a good idea. So do you have cover stories, maybe like a ruse to get us in with minimal suspicion? Would it be better if our team were to infiltrate the facility undetected and when the attack comes, we will be able to prevent Deep Dive protocol being activated, having assuming that it's only the scientists who can initiate the protocol."

 

[Lekiel]

January 4, AD 2206 Local Time 0336 hours

"Guinevere to Blue and Red teams. Head's up, we're ahead of time. Half an hour to Genesis Strike..."

A dull gleam of matte crimson moved to the edge of a four story building. The heavens was it has always been, a thin shimmer of the veil glimmering with its red hues; a constant reminder that despite their technological advancement, mankind was still very much trapped on their tiny homeworld in the vastness of space. Dark looming shapes rose in the background, providing a shadowy backdrop for the shrouded knights. The remains of Ardenguard. Though the Confederation had pretty much abandoned much of Ardenguard, they had nevertheless dropped in by light transport several kilometers on the outskirts of the ghost of city. It had taken them just over an hour to carefully make their way inwards. Patrols were scarce, which was to be expected in recent times. As far as the Confederation was concerned, the Union forces had been pushing straight west. To detour slightly northeast, would be to act contrary to their gaining momentum. But that would also make it ideal as a proving grounds.

The barely perceptible click of her armored boot against the cement rooftop seemed almost to loud against the backdrop deafening silence. Suddenly self aware, Eurica glanced around her to make out the rest of Red Team. She had to hand it to them, a week's worth of final intense training had all but confirmed her speculations. Despite their various backgrounds, the experimental subjects that they had chosen were indeed of the best. Reaching the edge of the rooftop, she propped her rifle against the low guardrail and peered through its sights. The scene before her stood in stark contrast to the darkness at her back. A couple of blocks ahead was the Confederation Facility, the many searchlights and powerful lamps illuminating almost every corner of the place as guards and the occasional Vulcan light ATAC patrolled the grounds. It was a squarish nondescript building. Mostly comprised of large warehouses, engineering bays and administration blocks. Eurica's eyes shifted to the northern perimeter, as if her eyes saw something against the draping darkness.

"On the hour, Union forces will commence bombardment of the confederation outpost several clicks away..." Eurica began briefing the team. Not that they had not run through the plan a thousand times before. "Hopefully it'll warrant enough attention for them to send at least their heavy ATACS away, but not severe enough for them to expect us to completely overrun them anytime soon. We can't have them think to move the Edenseeds. Their attention will have to be diverted from it, not towards it. Remember, take the covert approach as much as you can. We know they commonly patrol in pairs, so if you see one Confederate, be sure that there is another close by. If you take one out, we will have a full minute before others will come to investigate. Unless you access their comms and report back. A layout of the facility during our time has been uploaded to each of your HUDs. Use it only as a rough reference as there will likely be significant changes. Remember, priority is the extraction of the Edenseeds. If a fight breaks out. do your best to return fire. If you get separated, head to the south where the transport bays are. In the worse case scenario... each team leader will have their flares. Even then, it'll take about ten minutes before the NARCs rescue us... so try your best to stay ahead guys. Guinevere out."

Eurica glanced at the clock on her HUD. They had about ten minutes to kill. Should be enough time for their respective teams to figure out a means of entry into the facility. Turning back, she slung her MYRIAD Predator Rifle over a shoulder and turned to the rest of Red Team.

"Any ideas?"

Spoiler

Confederate Light Infantry

 

[Soviet Panda]

Connor really did not like the skin tight pilot suits that they had to wear. Not to mention he was encased in a thick liquid with a high enough oxygen concentration that he could breath it safely, if a bit uncomfortably. But it was all in the name of safety, because if he got hurt doing this his mom would kill him. Or bring him back just to kill him herself, she was a determined woman so he wouldn't be surprised if she found a way to do that.

It was cool in the thick liquid that somehow didn't seem to drag on his limbs as he moved. In fact, his limbs felt like they were flowing through air still. Perhaps that was because he was also securely hooked up to Rook. It was almost as if he were Rook. Almost, there was enough of a difference for him to know better. Least of which being the obvious size difference and his rather metallic make up.

He was brought out of his thoughts by Eurica, excuse me, Guinevere going through the plan once more. He understood the reasoning behind it all. Stay quite so they can't and don't do anything until it's to late. That was good and all, but easier said than done. Especially for a 55ft, several ton war machine that carried a couple extra tons of ordinance as well as a massive wall. He had discussed it with them in length, and apparently they trusted him enough to not make to much noise. But he still didn't believe them, and managed to convince them to have him take up a position of overwatch. Can't make any noise if you don't move. He just needed to find and get to a good spot. Which he'd do before they got to close to the enemy base. Hopefully a place with clear line of site and some cover for him to try and blend into. Not protect him, he could do that himself if need be, just hide him.

 

[CkSmalling]

The crisp cold air bitch-slapped Robert with no mercy. He hated standing outside, especially alone. He looked at the sky, the stars still shone, bright as usual. He lifted his hands to the sky at to touch them and bring them close to him, to embrace the warmth they radiated. But alas. A dream so far away. He looked at the city below, desolate, abandoned and cold. The signs of war were very evident. The big holes on buildings caused by explosive shells, the charred buildings caused by fire and the half buildings caused by whatever it is that caused them. Suddenly, he felt hungry. What a time to be hungry. He closed his eyes until Guinevere's voice came through the intercom. The mission was simple, sneak in, steal the data and sneak out. There was only one problem. The light infantry. Guess they figured out Man is to error and deployed droids. One does not kill a droid without the rest knowing. That was a challenge.

"I guess we have no other choice. We have to sneak around them. Use buildings for cover. If i am correct, which i hope i am, the droids have a designated route to patrol set into their systems. We have to navigate around them, cause one minute is a very narrow window and if one is found dead, they will be on high alert, possibly send more droids to patrol. We have to sneak into that building with minimum noise. Or maybe...No that is a dumb plan. We have to sneak around"

Lekiel