1.26.1

Captain’s Convictions

“Hey, Astrid,” Dell changed the subject. “For our next tour, I was thinking… Maybe we should invest in some recyclable batteries? We can charge them between ops. They’d probably pay for themselves in a matter of months.”

The fact that Dell easily spoke of a scenario where they would continue to work together brought Astrid a lot more elation than she expected.

“Depends on how much they retain,” Astrid answered. “I don’t see why we shouldn’t try!”

“Let’s just get through the next few days first,” Tenya diverted. “I want to make sure this isn’t our last tour together.”

Romo nodded. “Let’s run through what we need one more time…”

~~~

A sense of quiet tension fell over the ship when they drew closer to Tetris. Astrid spent more time in her armor, and practiced how to move, take cover, and maneuver inside the added bulk until it felt more natural.

Dell and Romo made no secret of the fact her abilities in the S.O. hive would only make her a prime target in the eyes of the enemy. So, they took special care to emphasize defense and endurance.

With their small squad, they anticipated a hard fight, and a narrow victory should they succeed. Their concerns sank in when the team gathered for a thorough briefing the night before they were to be deployed.

“Anderson, you were successful?” Captain inquired while the team gathered around the War table.

“I was,” Anders informed. “It’s going to cost us, though. The Tetrians demanded triple their usual pay to hand over their employers. They argued we’re providing a one-time collaboration, while their current arrangement runs indefinitely.”

“Do they know who they’re working for?” London asked next.

“I don’t think so. They’re only referred to as ‘the clients’. The Tetrians have been facilitating the smuggling and transport of supplies through the port to a location kilometers from the trade center. Without the knowledge of the Governorship. They’ll take us there themselves.”

“What do we know about this base?” the captain directed to Romo. “Intel have anything?”

“Only that Governor Dara doesn’t suspect anything. Tetris is a comparatively small colony, so development on the outskirts is typically seen as progress. And there’s already plenty of companies trying to establish a foothold as it grows.”

Romo presented a report atop the table, should anyone wish to see it.

“I did, however, manage to hire a freelance investigator to scout from a distance. We’re looking at a single-access compound in the tundra. There’s not enough foliage to provide cover, so they’re employing color camo and tarps to obscure the entrance. It’s carved into an outcropping of rock, so it’s likely larger than it looks from the outside.”

“It’s going to be hard to get a jump on them, too, if they have superior sight lines,” Dell surmised.

“Maybe we can get in with the next delivery from the Tetrians,” Romo suggested.

“Not bad. If we can trust them.” Tenya scoffed.

“We could use Astrid as bait? They’ve already expressed an interest in wanting us to turn her over. We could act as though we’re considering the deal?” Dell proffered.

Captain London shook his head. “They’ll have figured out by now we’re onto them. They won’t believe it. Not after what we did to Graves and his company.”

“The point of this mission isn’t to fool them, it’s to debilitate them,” Anders insisted. “It has to be known this kind of sedition won’t be tolerated. How we handle this determines how this will be discussed later. We don’t negotiate with terrorists, and we don’t play games with people who kill civilians.

“We need access to their contacts, their supply lines, their allies, and a lot of that data could be in there. We need to hit them so fast and hard they can’t do anything with that information before we can get to it. No one gets away to weave their own narrative for anyone who will listen.”

The captain’s mouth twitched in pride.

“You’ll be in command, Lieutenant. I’d say that sounds like a decisive strategy.”

“So, we’re looking for the heart of operations, not the weapons anymore,” Tenya clarified.

“Correct,” London nodded.

“Then we follow the biggest flux of power,” Dell deduced. “They’re not a station or ship port, so there should be no engines other than whatever is powering their base. Which means it should be quiet enough for Astrid to feel out where it’s being drawn. We can follow the flow of energy to the main hub.”

“Think you can manage that, Hale?” the captain asked.

“It’s a very specific implementation of what I can do,” Astrid waffled. “It makes sense, in theory, but until I feel it for myself, I can’t know.”

“It’s an idea, at least,” Tenya reassured. “I doubt we’re going to know what we’re in for before we get there. Not in this case.”

“Now we just need to keep them from escaping while we lock the place down,” Romo stroked his cheek. “I don’t suppose the Third-Fleet wants in on this?”

“They’re not willing to send a ship into a civilian settlement like this for something so relatively small,” the captain rebuffed. “It’s too directly involved and makes the delegates on the ground squeamish. We don’t need to solve this by kicking off a new Independence rebellion. Remember we’re trying to avoid civil war.”

“We need someone to watch the perimeter for stragglers,” Anders argued.

“The Tetrians?” Dell asked.

“We’re putting a lot on a merc gang,” Tenya shifted her weight as if the thought made her uncomfortable.

Romo sighed. “This is still our operation. We’re still doing everything on the inside. This is just situational control. They can’t mess up too much from the outside.”

“This is going to get expensive,” Anders warned.

“And then we’ve just empowered a street gang.”

“One problem at a time,” Captain reminded them. “We have departments to deal with that if it becomes an issue later. For now, we have to meet the larger threat.”

“Is that really making you feel better, Captain?” Tenya pressed.

“No, Chief, it’s not. But I won’t sit here in indecision while the Static Opposition gains influence. Right now, they are unchallenged and indirectly empowering the Tetrians anyway. Getting them on our payroll instead is still a coup, however sick it makes us feel.”

The room fell quiet at that, as the team considered his words.

“So, this is it?” Dell finally submitted. “Go in, kick down the door, and take out anyone between us and the hub of operations?”

Romo shrugged. “I like it. Simple. Easy to remember.”

“Too bad Rue’s in lockup. She’s the best at this shit,” Tenya sighed.

“You can do it, I know you can,” the captain insisted. “And I’m going to need all of you to pull it off.

“If we do this, the Static Opposition takes a major hit,” he concluded. “It may even deter those left from attempting the same thing again. At this point I believe it safe to assume plans yet lay in wait to be executed. And we must act awhile we can still stop them.

“Beyond what’s happened to the Channelers, or the threat the S.O. still poses to them, this movement will divide us. It has already torn people from our side. It has already fractured our trust.

“In another ten years, in another hundred years, thousands more like Hale will be born into our race. This is the first step in making sure they remain a part of us. That we stay whole, united. We show the people, right now, we will not tolerate the division, or the devastation, of our own people.”