That very same night Case Officer Ryan Phillips received a call from his Field Commander; now he walked briskly through his apartment gathering the necessary items he needed, his identification, his notepad and pen, his cigarettes, and his gun.

On any normal call from any of his superiors, his job was to assess and direct fellow Officers and Agents towards whatever objective was predetermined by a Field Commander. Yet only moments ago he received a call that made him shiver; a terrorist attack happened within the capital, and a neurological agent was released. Though the neuro-agent was contained and eliminated by decontamination teams, it was clear that the damage was done, and the Federation was now left to lick its new wounds.

Now standing outside of a large command tent, he looked upon the entrance that was guarded by two members of the Military Police. They eyed him quietly and nodded to each other when they confirmed his identity after cross-referencing with a list of personnel allowed to enter.

Adjusting and straightening his tie, Ryan stepped forward with a calm expression. One of the men moved the green tarp allowing him to enter the busy, office like interior hastily set up by the OMFS. As he moved into the tent, several civilians were being moved away from the site, many of whom watched him silently hoping that he would say something to the soldiers and officers moving them away.

“—I don’t care what you want, there are still people in there trapped in that fucking mess!” Over the crowd a single voice stuck out to him as he walked forward. Field Commander Osho stood at the front as he held a phone against the side of his head. All around soldiers wearing different levels of gear moved in and out of the tent with rifles in their hands, and gas masks on their faces. “Are you fucking kidding! I have thirty men ready to storm the building and get those people out! Give the order!”

Noticing the Case Officer out of the corner of his eye, Commander Osho cursed under his breath as he slammed the phone down and turned around while a man, he was working with to sort several documents, stepped aside.

“Commander Osho.” Ryan said in a calm voice.

Shaking his head and motion his hand to a nearby blueprint that showed the interior of the hall that was attacked, the commander sighed, “We’ve got two teams confirmed killed in action. Another ten civilians were found in the hall, no chance of them making it out.”

Taking a ruler and tapping it against several colored zones on the blueprints, Osho breathed quickly, “Decon units have already cleared the building, but trace residue can still be found throughout the venue.” He explained while turning his gaze to-and-from several sheets of paper of the desk next to him.

“Have you been able to send in any ERTs?” Ryan questioned making the commander give a slightly confused look.

“Gold Team 1 from your office was the first to enter after the internal security was effectively wiped out. They’re now KIA.” Osho said with a conflicted expression.

“Is it possible that one of the surviving guards might hold information on the attacker?” Ryan pressed trying to gather more information to assemble a proper response to the situation.

Letting out a loud grunt the Field Commander walked up to Officer Ryan as he poked his shoulder, “All that matters is getting those people out!” He barked in a hushed voice, “Either you get in there, or I raise hell for the people stalling me in that damn office of yours!”

Taking a deep breath, the man stepped away as he picked up the landline on the table. With no other option, Ryan turned towards the second entrance of the tent and walked out only to be greeted by a fireteam’s worth of soldiers wearing protective gear.

With waves of law enforcement personnel, first responders, and military members running setting up blocking positions all around the hall, Ryan readied himself as he approached the fireteam that was having their final check before they were cleared to enter the “hot zone” within the large building. Spotting several medical tents nearby, the sharp-witted Case Officer spotted several nurses in Level 5 protective gear being escorted inside by armed Military Police members.

It was clear that the situation was worse than a simple terrorist attack.

“Sir.” Being approached by a wide-eyed Lieutenant, Ryan turned around with a steeled gaze as he looked at the closed entrance to the hall. “My team is ready for immediate breach, just give the order.”

“With me.”

Walking towards the staging zone much to the surprise of the Lieutenant and other men within his squadron, they were quick to voice their concerns as they reached the last gate before the large wooden doors. “Sir, I recommend you sit back, you don’t even have protective gear!” Ignoring his warning and bringing his two fingers to the side of his head, Ryan smirked.

“Level 5 protection from a simple spell.” Two casting circles formed on his fingertips, and a small amount of energy flowed over his entire body creating a tight seal to protect him from any environmental or human made hazards for as long as the “passive” spell was active. Withdrawing his handgun as the men around him all looked at him with skeptical gazes, Ryan crossed the gate and marched up to the doorway.

Moving to the side of the door and giving a curt nod, the Lieutenant stepped forward and readied his rifle. Beside him, his teammate violently kicked the wooden door open and stepped aside allowing the rest of the four-man fireteam to enter the room with their respective weapons drawn.

Being the last man through, Ryan side-stepped the bile and dried blood on the floor. The smell remained, but most of the bodies that rested near the entrance of the hall were recovered by decontamination teams.

“We’re still looking at additional hostiles throughout the building.” The Lieutenant explained, “We would’ve set up shop here, but the nature of the attack prevented us from getting far as unknown being attacked us. His voice was muffled by the full gas mask he wore, and his movements were telegraphed by the baggy hazard suit he wore.

“Unknown beings?” Ryan parroted.

“Basically, spheres that used any nearby object as a weapon. Something similar to telekinesis.” One of the men chirped as he fanned out to the right side of the hall avoiding stepping on the ten bodies that laid at the center of the room.

“Should be able to neutralize the threats with your light magic, sir.” The man holding the shotgun said as he approached the first set of side halls. Keeping his words at the back of his mind, Ryan proceeded forward keeping his pistol in the low-ready as he waited for the other men to enter the hall.

“First room.” The Lieutenant said as he prepared to kick open the door. With the go ahead from Ryan, the wooden doors slammed open and the five rushed in sweeping every corner and every hiding place within the office space. Clearing the room was the easy part, seeing the dead bodies that scattered the entire office was another problem in its entirety.

“Fuck me…”

Holstering his pistol and walking up to a corpse lying against the wall, Case Officer Phillips began his inspection as the men accompanying him kept watch on all entrances and exits.

Kneeling and taking a look at the man’s face, Ryan looked at the name tag on the man’s shirt identifying him instantly, Police Administrator, Anthony Wars. Noticing that compared to the other corpses within the room, the Police Admin. Had several injuries other than the symptoms of being affected by the neurotoxin released within the building.

Two crevasses were visible in the man’s chest, and by a simple glance whatever had cut him open perforated his heart and caused massive internal bleeding; shock and blood loss killed him instantly, thus this room was attacked prior to the release of the neurotoxin.

Looking beside the man’s body, it was clear that the Administrator had attempted to resist whatever attacked him. A silver revolver laid by his body, yet it was smashed to pieces as if the attacker had targeted the weapon first. That alone raised many questions within the Case Officer, primarily regarding to who would be capable of out moving bullets that broke the sound barrier.

Moving to a corpse sitting against a desk chair, Ryan observed that unlike the Police Administrator, this normal patron to the ball had died due to the neurotoxin that was released; her bile and blood remained splattered against the wooden table, yet she had no external wounds that was unassociated with the gas released. Examining several other bodies, it was clear that the situation had escalated beyond a normal terrorist attack. Whoever was responsible targeted high-value-individuals and used the neurotoxin as a way to cover their escape; all available resources available to homeland defense had been activated, but the primary response was directed towards the clean-up and rescue efforts at the ball.

That meant a large window to escape the Federation was still open…

The Office of Military and Federal Security had made a mistake, a crucial one…

Stepping from his place on the ground, Ryan adjusted his suit as he directed the men to move to the next room within the side-hall. Entering with a more subtle approach, it was clear that a similar scenario had played out no matter where he looked. A minor detail to touch upon was the consistency of the shattered windows throughout the venue; whoever had attacked used the windows as their primary infiltration and exfiltration, and they used it to great effect.

Examining all the bodies throughout the hall, a picture began to emerge. A possible motive that the attackers held was to cut off the leadership of the Federation and her sister nations to pave the way for a greater invasion. To hit such a high-profile event with diplomatic and foreign leaders present was no mistake, and was no simple choice made by the primary suspects that now clouded Ryan’s mind.

Feeling a vibration in his pocket, Ryan pulled out a slim card that held a single mana-crystal in the center. Unlike the other more “modern” technology that was being invented by the day, mana crystals for now held the dominant position in telecommunications and video photography. As he played the message he had received, three dots and two parallel lines were displayed.

Critical Intelligence Based.

The message was as clear as it could get, the OMFS had found information that was critical to the next step in the response to the terror attack. Whatever he would find now would only supplement the plan that either the Chief Commander, or the Commander of Operations was setting up.

“What’s that about?” Walking over from his post in a slightly relaxed manner, the Lieutenant held a curious gaze below the gas mask that covered his face.

“Command has found something to combat these son’s a bitches.” Ryan said pocketing the device he had. “We need to finish looking for survivors…”

“Yeah, I get the feeling…” Looking over his shoulder at the pile of corpses by the doorway, the young man sighed as he stated his mind, “Though… I don’t know if we will find anyone here…”

Sharing the same sentiment, Ryan had to consider his words carefully, “We’re not quite done here.” He ordered being the first out of the room, “C’mon, we have a job to do.” He said storming out of the first side-hall and towards the second on the other side of the grand-tainted hall.

As he stepped through the empty rooms, the residue left by the neurotoxin covered everything. The gas was nothing more than a powder that was airborne for a short time; after the chaos had ended, it settled onto just about everything leaving a green-yellow powder. The larger amounts of the powder were collected by the decontamination units, but some spots remained heavily contaminated based on the abnormal coloration of some of the rooms left unchecked.

“The anomaly was just ahead.” One of the men stated as the five approached the end of the second hall.

“It’s in there?” Ryan questioned as he readied his handgun.

“Was making a shit ton of noise earlier… All quiet now.” The Lieutenant said as he moved his hand onto the door handle.

“Open the door. I want to see what’s inside.”

Hesitantly nodding and turning the handle, a solid “click” escape the door as it began to move inwards. Stepping back, the men allowed the Lieutenant to move out of their line of fire; no one moved as they assessed the situation from the outside of the room.

Scanning the dark interior, the men waited as their team leader pulled out a small gem from his vest. “Sync to me.” He ordered making the men use their support hands to release small amounts of their mana. A small pulse emerged from the gem and scanned the room highlighting lifeforms present. At the back right-side corner of the room a small girl was highlighted by the gold pulse.

“Possible survivor located!”

“Get inside!”

Marching through the door, Ryan swept his handgun over the darkened corners of the room. The air within felt dry, and the surrounding area looked to clean considering the building just went through a neurological attack. Calling the status of the room, the men waited at each corner of the room as the Lieutenant joined the Case Officer.

Using his hand as a beacon of light, the magic Ryan released brightened the room revealing a body in the corner of the room. “Child.” He whispered to the soldier next to him making the other men tense as they watched the covered windows and brightened hallway. Moving slowly with his handgun staying low, Ryan reached out his hand as he brushed it against the child’s neck.

“Holy shit…” He whispered.

“Status! Get me an air check!” The Lieutenant barked seeing the quiet state of the Case Officer.

“Check air! She’s breathing, but unconscious!” Ryan shouted gaining a sigh of relief from the young Lieutenant. “Casting Level 5!” He said proceeding to cover the girl in the same protective barrier he did for himself. “We need to get the fuck out of here!”

Taking the young girl into his arms, the men quickly began to move out of the room with their weapons at the ready. Their fears were relegated to the being they never encountered, but upon closer examination it was clear what had happened. In Ryan’s arms was a magician capable of unparallel power; she had used that power to defend herself and perhaps that was one of the few reasons why she was still alive.

“Gold 2, Command! We have a survivor that needs immediate medical attention!”

“Copy Gold 2. What’s the status on the rest of building?”

“All others are confirmed KIA, this is the only one!”

Looking at the girl in his arms, Ryan’s eyes widened as her skin remained a deathly white, and her lips were covered in dried blood. “She’s used up her mana stores! It possible she’s in shock!” His voice began to break as they broke through the main entrance and revealed themselves to the outside world.

Rushing up, police officers, and other first responders wearing light protective gear rolled up a stretcher as they took the girl out of Ryan’s arm. All around, medics from the military sprinted from tent-to-tent bussing supplies to those both fortunate, and unfortunate to survive such an attack. Looking towards the decontamination stations, other teams of soldiers and federal agents waited in line, each covered in some degree by the neurotoxin.

“God dammit! Two more are dead! Bring them to the truck!” Shouting over the chaos, a head medic ordered a group of soldiers to transport two bodies out of the tent he over saw. Tears threatened to escape his eyes as he slammed his fist into the nearest wall.

“Someone, get me a blood pack!”

“Got another five in critical condition.”

“Set those fucking blocking positions, let go!”

With the girl out of his custody, Ryan and the others were directed to three decontamination tents set up. Unholstering his weapon and placing it in a bin, the now disgruntled Case Officer took all of his loose items and placed them within the container. Being escorted by several men in hazard-suits, he was directed alone inside the tent where a man waited for him with a hose.

Pulling a lever, a shower of water fell from above as Ryan lifted his arms into the air and spread his feet shoulder-width apart. Even with the spell he casted on himself being of Level 5 protection, he still needed to be decontaminated as it had been proven during the reunification war that biological and neurological agents stuck to protective barriers no matter how powerful the mage that casted them was.

Seeing several specks of yellow and green powder getting caught in the water and falling through the collection grates below his feet, the younger man took a quiet breath as his mind began to calm from the hectic situation, he was forced into in the early morning hours.

“Where the fuck is Officer Phillips!?” Coming out of the command tent, Field Commander Osho stepped out with a frustrated look on his face. Hearing his name, Ryan received a curt nod from the man that washed him and allowed him to exit the decontamination tent.

“Here sir!” Exiting and picking up his loose items, the Case Officer nodded at him as he holstered his handgun and swiftly walked over to the older man that was waiting for him.

“Good, get the fuck over here!” He said turning back to the tent he had exited seconds before. “Oh and, good work getting that girl out of that shithole.” Nodding his head, Osho entered the tent leaving Ryan to smile by himself as the fireteam he worked with moved to their next post on the other side of the staging area around the hall.

Walking over with a lightened mood, the man entered the tent where it had been organized during the fifteen-minute mission he was deployed on not long ago. “What’s the situation sir? Got a message for a CIB during the mission.”

“Simple.” Taking his ruler and smacking it against a map of the Federation, the older man looked upon the areas that were now displayed. “We have possible intel on a stronghold being used by our attackers in the sticks.” Osho said firmly as he moved to pick up a document from the table beside him.

“The southern border?” Ryan said noticing several highlighted zones, “Could we be expecting more people from the Kingdom?”

“High Command is considering the possibility; two response battalions have been deployed to the border, and the Navy is on standby with their fucking fingers itching on the trigger of their guns.” Osho chuckled as he passed the document to Officer Phillips. “What you’re looking at is orders that were supposed to be given to our foreign friends.”

“Foreign, sir?”

“Those people from the frontier, the ones from the kingdom.”

“Right…” Ryan bit his tongue trying not to feel nervous as he read the paper in his hand. “So, you want a task force to be assembled to take down this terrorist cell?” He said reading over the lines printed.

“Correct. I asked the Commander of Operations, and he received authority from the Director himself to launch this response. The orders come from the top.” Scanning his eyes at the bottom of the paper, Ryan’s eyes widened as he spotted the Director’s stamp.

“Shit…”

“Two platoons from the Navy, the finest sailors they have to offer: The IS corps, intelligence and sabotage, the commandos we need for an operation like this.” Closing the gap between himself and the silent Case Officer, the older man hugged his shoulder as he whispered in his ear, “This will be the first time that a unit from Project Blackbird will be revealed to the public. Alongside Army SMUs, the world will change with the inception and deployment of special operation units.”

“What will they do?” Was all Ryan could muster as a folder was shoved into his hands. His hands brushed the flat surface as he only saw five documents inside.

“Direct action. Sabotage. Hostage rescue. Intelligence gathering.” Stating those words, the older man chuckled to himself as he stepped away. “This is our one chance to get these bastards that did this…” Osho said taking out a cigar and lighting it with a silver lighter. “And whoever is supporting them… May God have mercy on their souls.”

Taking a puff, Osho smiled to himself, “You my friend will be overseeing this mission.” He said waving his cigar in the air. “Congratulations Case Officer Ryan Phillips Rate Five, you have been promoted to a SMU operator.”

“W-What…?” Swallowing his fear and trying to mull over what was just said, Ryan lowered the paper as he looked directly into his now former CO’s eyes.

“You’re not a liaison this time. You’ve been selected to transfer to SMU 1, “The Silent Pigs.”

“Pigs?”

“Don’t laugh at it, those are some mean bitches you’ll be rolling with.”

“Yeah, when do I start?”

“This evening.”

“Let’s get started.”

Publicly Available Information: Naval Special Operations:

Though conducted by specialist within the Federation’s Navy, NSOs are specially trained sailors that specialize in clandestine, direct action, and special reconnaissance mission behind enemy lines. Being drawn from the Navy, these “operators” have access to the naval prowess that is the 3rd and 5th Fleets.

With Project Blackbird establishing SMUs, the NSOs have been temporarily withdraw from all deployments and have been integrated into this new “organization”.