Shadow of the Spectres(Old)

[Haktiva]

Please post on the OOC before posting here http://forum.nationstates.net/viewtopic.php?f=5&t=145880&p=7341200#p7341200

Floridian Coast, 2100 Hours
A nigh time camouflaged Barn Owl helicopter flew along the border area of the country, a large city in view. The five men inside were dressed in digital multicam, their faces covered by camouflaged masks and their eyes hidden by goggles. The chopper was experimental, a pilotless insertion vehicle for special forces operators. The idea was to test the new bird with a new country on the recon hit list. Aside from the megacity population, it was viewed as another socialist country. The Barn Owl landed on a remote sector of a rural are, the Spectres running out. "Clear", one of them said.
"Okay, get the tarp over the bird and we'll see what we can find out about this place", another said.
"Yes Sir", two of them said. The leader was Captain Isaac Qelvk. Lieutenant Max Brovinski was the communication officer. Gunnery Sergeant Travis Borrish was the team's sharpshooter. Master Gunnery Sergeant Benjamin Froid was the squad support gunner. The Second in Command was Lieutenant Brian Menshavink.
The Spectres huddled in a ditch near a busy road, when a large explosion was heard. The group looked to see the Barn Owl destroyed, the fuel line had been cut mid air, resulting in an explosion from leaked fuel that caught fire from an overheated piece of metal.
"Command this is Spectre group Noveria, the Bird has splashed in the pond, please advise over"", Qelvk said into the radio.
"Does this mean the mission is over Sir?", Borrish asked.
"Command said they would inform us if the plan changed, so we just watch these people until we hear from them"

[The Floridian Coast]

"There's a fire out in the distance, I'm by the Green Haven outpost, farming area 4377." Arlen, an elderly foreman of a tobacco farm reported to the Floridian Fire Department. Remembering times of antiquity before the Floridian Coast was largely an urban sprawl, Arlen was not the type to usually report things, the propaganda posters aimed at encouraging civilian counter-terrorism action did not move him. As much as he disliked the idea of his quiet night being infringed upon, he couldn't risk the flames spreading on to his fields. After all, it was only a fire, probably some accident.

Four power hoses showered the wreckage at once, having a hard time dousing it, they dispersed a special agent over it. They knew it would mark all the nearby tobacco for annihilation, but, it would burn regardless if the fire was not put out. A half hour from first contact, the local magistrate was inspecting the wreckage. "This is military grade, and it is not Floridian." he said to his deputies. Riley, the ranking fireman asked the magistrate "How can you tell?"

Smirking, the magistrate said "Because I flew Floridian birds during my service, and because my son flies one now." Riley took a deep breath and said quietly "I suppose we are going to have to call in Homeland Defense. Tape it off, we can't let anyone touch it 'til they get here."

[Haktiva]

"Your orders are to destroy the wreckage and get back home by whatever means you can. Try to avoid fatalities as well as you can, use your non lethal techniques to dispose of anybody who might get in your way, we cannot allow anyone to discover these activities", a voice over the radio said.
"Yes Mam", the Captain replied, putting the radio back into Brovinski's pack.
"They already got a guard team set up Sir, how are we gonna scuttle it?", Borrish asked.
"High grade explosives would do the trick, got a few on me in case we needed a to move a mountain", Menshavink said.
"We'll have to wait until the guard is down, in the meantime watch the perimeter, make sure we aren't seen", Qelvk said. The Spectres hid between a hill and the rest of the tobacco field, no camo spread was set up, less the farmers noticed a strange bend in the crops.

[The Floridian Coast]

"A helicopter for FWWN has crashed after observing waterspouts. The pilot and passenger are both in stable condition at a hospital, the helicopter caught fire after they got a safe distance away from it." an on scene reporter spoke to a rolling camera, repeating the official statement given to them. The population was on high alert about terrorism and espionage since radical Islamists and Christians collaborated to commit subway bombings and attempted to assassinate the Secretary of State just a month ago. The mass arrest placated a nervous people, but the media, while state controlled, was still curious for a good story to push.

In order to not cause panic, the Lightning Force agents arrived in plainclothes and subtly made their way through the police lines. Captain Cortez led this investigation, one below his paygrade, but a duty he was asked to fulfill regardless. "There will be no mistakes this time." the Defense Chancellor reminded him before he left. In jeans and a thin leather jacket for the cool front that was currently overhead, he looked wholly unremarkable and much like any Floridian civilian. But he was a trained killer and a war hero.

"The wreckage is almost cooled enough, we'll get some special transports to load it up for inspection, we can't just do it out in this field." the captain told his men.

[Haktiva]

"Sir they're getting ready to move the bird", Borrish said, observing the scene through his scope.
"Shit...We need a distraction so we can move in. Menshavink, set fire to the other end of the field, we'll take care of the bird", Qelvk said, tossing him a lighter.
"Aye Sir", Menshavink said. He swung his SCARAB carbine over his shoulder and ran through the field as fast as he could.

[The Floridian Coast]

"What the hell is that?" Anton asked Corban pointing a long distance across the field. A fire had appeared out of nowhere. "My crops!" Arlen exclaimed. "So much for meeting the quota this year." he said bitterly.

"Stay right here." Anton said to the farmer, and then to his commanding officer "I'll have a look, Captain Cortez.", and broke into a fast but sustainable run. As the young Lightning Force agent closed in on three quarters of the distance, the small fire ignited more and turned into a wall.

The third Lightning Force agent, Daniel, also left the wreckage to meet up with his comrades and help them, but instructed the magistrate and his police officers to remain with the helicopter. The news cameras turned direction.

[Haktiva]

"Move!", Qelvk said, him and his men breaking into a full sprint towards the wreckage. Qelvk tossed a smoke grenade towards the wreck that would render all lighting useless.

[The Floridian Coast]

"Captain Cortez, can you hear me?" Daniel asked Corban, his voice sounding metallic and echoing in Corban's ears. "Captain Cortez, are you alright, sir?" Corban grunted and raised himself into a sitting position, after noticing he was laying on his back in the field. His ears rang. "What..... what just happened Corporal?"

Daniel shook his head and told Corban "There was a detonation, after the smoke grenade went off-" He was interrupted by Corban asking as he tried to stand up "What fucking smoke grenade?" he asked, in pain, but coming back to his senses. "Shit." Daniel said. "Sir, what's the last thing you remember?"

Thinking back, Corban said "There was a fire that broke out, must have been a burning piece, some fuel from the helicopter scattered on the field." Some police officers were gathering a circle, Daniel glared at him and said "This is classified, get back to your posts." A new initiate to the police force, a young man fresh out of his mandatory service in the military said "With all due respect sir, we all saw it." Daniel nodded and said "The fire was set intentionally, as a distraction. Then a smoke grenade was thrown, and the helicopter was detonated."

Remembering his other man, Corban asked "Anton?"
"Dead, sir. Along with a police officer. Magistrate Piers was badly burned."

Finally standing upright, Corban asked "How much time passed since the detonation?"
"20 minutes sir, give or take."

"Alright. Citria is 137km North of here along Highway 9. There are 5 off-roads between here and there. They need to be blocked off, prioritizing South to North. If we start now, we'll have established a road block 10 minutes before the reach the first off-road, assuming they stole a vehicle and are moving reasonably fast. Order a Lightning Force team of 24 to Citria, with full authority to requisition their police as needed. That covers if they are going North." Corban said, speaking as fast as he could think.

Daniel dialed Homeland Defense's channel and began repeating Captain Cortez's orders to them.

"We need armed coastal patrols along the shoreline, have police watches established on all marinas." He continued. Daniel then asked "And if they go to New Clearwater? It's an easy place to blend into, and a likely area for any contacts they may have."

"I'll figure it out." Corban said. "Listen, these people must be assumed to be professionals, with sophisticated technology and well trained. Their tactics mark a short term infiltration for a high valued objective. Chances are they will abort their mission and flee. We cannot let them escape. Domestic terrorism has been enough, foreign operatives attacking us would be destabilizing and dangerous."

"So we will be taking them alive sir?" Daniel asked.
"So long as it is possible, yes, but it's better they die than escape." Corban said to him, and then said "We'll fly back to New Clearwater. We need to get Dimitri."

[Haktiva]

"Yes mam, the bird was destroyed", Qelvk said in to the radio.
"What about the local forces?", the voice asked.
"Two dead, one in self defense by the second in command, the other was possibly killed by a piece of shrapnel", Qelvk replied.
"Not the bloodless escape we wanted but that's not dreadfully terrible. Your orders still stand to escape the country. You will not recieve any support from Haktiva aside from radio contact, we can't have anyone think we're supporting acts of terror in foreign lands", the voice said.
"Understood, Noveria out", Qelvk said. The Spectres hid in an irrigation ditch on the farm, the second in command covered in soot.

[The Floridian Coast]

"Sector 7 clear, sir." one of the cops told Corban over the phone, who had called for an update after landing at the Homeland Defense building. "You swept every building?" he asked. "Affirmative."
"What's Sector 8?" Corban asked about the last arbitrarily drawn square for searching the tobacco farm. The cop replied "The irrigation system's main route and a dirt road to the highway." Almost dropping his phone in disgust, Corban simply clenched it tighter and yelled "You didn't prioritize sweeping the area that provided the best escape! They're long gone by now."

"It's being swept now, sir.", Corban heard, and then said "Stay on the line." as he walked down the inner halls of the Homeland Defense building. He allowed a laser activated lock to scan his iris, and a large metal door swung open. As soon as relative silence returned as the door stilled, Corban lifted the phone to his ear again, and before he could say anything, he heard a shout of "CONTACT!" and four shots from an automatic pistol.

"What the hell is going on?!"
He listened to the inaudible exchange of words from those still at the farm.
"We were checking the ditches, sir. Tyson saw a raccoon, panicked and shot it up." a cop said.
"Well calm your trigger fingers, we want them alive. Search the rest of the ditches, NOW."

[Haktiva]

"Aw that poor little raccoon", Borrish said, looking through his scope.
"Shut up, they're lookin for us, we have to move now", Menshavink said.
"There's a vehicle over there, we could take it", Borrish suggested, pointing in the direction he indicated.
"They could track it", Brovinski said. "We could take the sewers", he suggested.
"Good thinking, I saw a hatch close to the farm house, we can enter from there and leave any time", Qelvk said.
"It's probably toxic in there sir", Borrish said.
"We'll have to manage. Our masks should help", Qelvk said. "Move", he said.. The Spectres ran at full speed to the farm house. About five minutes later they arrived at the farm house.
"So how do we open it?", Qelvk asked.
"Bust it down, looks rusty enough", Menshavink said.
"Can't we blow it open", Froid asked.
"It's full of methane, we'd blow up half the city that way", Brovinski said.
"Get to work boys", Qelvk said.
"Aye Sir", Menshavink and Froid said together. They started banging on the bars as hard as they could with their feet, their boots dampening the sound a bit, but not by much.

[The Floridian Coast]

"We're at a dead end. Captain Cortez is going to be enraged." Tyson said to Brandt.
"Well your gunshots certainly gave them warning to flee if they didn't already, what the hell were you thinking?"
"You saw what they did to their own bird! They'd probably soon shoot us as look at us. Why are we out here, Lightning Force should be dealing with this, I didn't sign up for -" He was interrupted by Brandt saying "Shhh... listen" Repeating sounds rang out in the darkness, and then suddenly one very loud sound was audible to all, as the gate broke free and crashed underground 10 ft. below.
"That's the sewers!" Arlen, the old farmer, exclaimed, having been once again pulled from his room for the searches.
"Got you now!" Brandt exclaimed, and sprinted toward the destination.

The two cops enthusiastically jumped down it, and Tyson felt a sharp pain his leg, but regained his composure right after landing. Arlen looked down at the them. "I can't come down there, I got bad knees." he said.
"We didn't ask you to come down." Brandt said, and then Tyson interjected, saying "Listen to what the man has to say!"

Arlen spit a wad off tobacco out of his mouth and said "Damn right. Now listen up. To the left of you is a one way line all the way to Citria. If they went that way, they gotta a dead end. To the right of you one of the major cross sections up ahead. There's too many pipelines to count, but they almost all lead back to New Clearwater. It's easy to get lost down there."

The two cops ran up to a locked and bolted gate on the North side. Out of breath, Tyson said "They weren't through here, they must have gone South. What do we do?"
"We call Lightning Force, and we go home. They got the thermal imaging tech, that's the only way I reckon they can find them."
"Who are these guys anyway?"
"Don't know, and I'm sure it's above my clearance level to find out. Come on, we'll radio Cortez and get out of this place."

[Haktiva]

The Spectres ran as fast as they could, they used the natural night vision humans develop if left in the dark long enough. They ran for half an hour, their pants soaked through. "So where are we heading anyways?", Borrish asked.
"Well, judging by the flow, I'd say we were pretty close to the city streets", Brovinski said.
"Well we better get out soon, God knows what we can catch down here", Froid said.
"We'll go up the first latter we find, hopefully we can ditch these shit stained fatigues when we do", Qelvk said.

[The Floridian Coast]

"Alright sir, the two mainlines are sealed. They have no choice but to surface somewhere within city limits." Daniel told Corban, confirming the reports from Homeland Defense.

"That means they'll have to blend in instead of hide. There are 9 million residents here and 1 million more tourists. We'll have to think of a way to hunt them down." Corban said as he paced around the lobby floor of the Homeland Defense building. "We should put embassies on alert. These operatives are obviously foreigners."

"If they're enemies they won't have an embassy to go to, sir." Daniel said, but Corban corrected him "Enemies would send operatives under less conspicuous circumstances, they wouldn't want to start a war. I'd more than likely say this is a neutral nation with an intelligence agency their government can't keep on a leash. Explains the high tech but lack of any evident support. We'll send our alerts to all the embassies in New Clearwater that we're looking for terrorists. Either they'll cooperate, and that'll take away one of their way outs, or they'll refuse, and that'll narrow down the list for us."

Meanwhile as Lightning Force planned their next moves, propaganda rang through the sewer system. Corban thought it futile, knowing what being an elite operative in a foreign land meant, but Homeland Defense insisted on trying everything.

"Attention fugitives. You have no way out, you will not escape. Surrender now and cooperate in full, and you will be showed leniency. Continue to run and you risk death at the hands of Lightning Force.

[Haktiva]

"Lightening Force, oooooh scary", Froid said sarcastically.
"Guess we'll have company soon", Borrish said.
"They wont start a firefight in here, too much methane to blow up the city", Brovinski said.
"We'll looks like this ladder is the only way out", Menshavink said.
"Twenty Credits says they'll have it covered", Froid said.
"Of coarse, we could toss a smoke grenade or a concussion grenade up there first. Any body got any?",Brovinski asked.
"I got a concussion grenade here, my only one but it's better than nothing", Froid said.
"I'll drop a smoke grenade as soon as we get topside to cover our tracks", Borrish said.
"Wouldn't they notice out shitty foot prints?", Brovinski asked.
"Hey there's a flaw in every plan, so let's do this", Qelvk said. The Spectres lined up on the ladder, Qelvk slipping Froid's concussion grenade out the cover.

[The Floridian Coast]

The explosion in the Chinatown district of North New Clearwater should have been an immediate red flag, but its detonation of a gas line of the apartment in the alley caused a cause and effect confusion. That was until, as the Homeland Defense Agents were about to leave the scene, an assault rifle was found at the bottom of the sewer.

Its straps were burnt. "They must have thrown a grenade, the man highest up the ladder couldn't duck out of the way in time." said one of the HDA's, as sirens rang out and the block was blocked off. "You think he got burnt?" the other asked.
"Not if he had decent gear. Probably didn't even notice he dropped the gun."
"Can we trace it?"
"Doubt it. Even if we could find the maker, I'm not sure if that would be proof of another nation's involvement."
"There are millions of people, if they're going to attack..."

"They aren't terrorists." Corban said as he walked up to the scene, his eyes wide from a dose of the Lightning Force issue amphetamines he took to stay awake. The sun was rising and it was now 0824 hours, nearly half a day passed since the first report of the fugitives' landing. "They were attempting deep infiltration. I've done it myself, but Lightning Force used U-Boats, not helicopters."

"How do you know, sir?" one of the agents asked the young but battle hardened Lightning Force captain who cast an ominous presence over the crime scene.
"We analyzed the remnants of the wreckage. We found pieces of a Floridian passport. A fake, but a perfect duplicate, only a deep forensic scan could tell the difference. A charred card that looks like a train pass citizens of this city carry. They were here to blend in, to report back."
"Seems like overkill to fly that kind of bird in. We have hundreds of thousands of undocumented people walking around." the agent replied skeptically.
"They would have infiltrated high level positions. Potentially military, maybe even Lightning Force, not that I think they could. But they'd try. Look our military and government up and down. Probably not to sabotage, but to assess usefulness, as I said, I've done it myself. Spent damn near all of my 20's abroad." Corban told the agents, something they already knew about him.
"So they just want to escape now, why Alert Level 5, Captain?

"The sovereignty and peace of our borders have been infringed upon, and we will take retribution. Not to mention, they've eluded our radar and Coastal Watch upon entry, they had a powerful but concentrated explosives, they have things we can take. The arms race continues, just in the shadows, never forget that. And never forget my comrade Anton was murdered by these bastards. We'll find them, and we'll take them alive. And then I'll break them."

Having said that, Corban made his way into the back of an armored truck, and pulled a military grade laptop from a metal briefcase, closing the doors. After a few minutes of codebreaking, Corban was back inside the Network, which could only be described as a loose alliance of spies which of course, officially did not exist. The man he was looking for now spent some time behind a desk, though Corban knew he was as much a trained killer as he was.

"Spartan." Corban spoke, the codename of a man he had once known.
A few seconds of dead air, and then some static, and finally, a reply.
"Centaur." Corban had not been called that for 8 years, but he knew he found who he needed.
"Spartan, remember I got that sniper who had you pinned, and you said 'I owe you one.'"
"Didn't think you'd ever cash in your favor." the man replied.
"Are you still with SWORD?"
"You're not in Elipida are you? Nation comes first, I can't help you if you've gone behind my back."
"You know Lightning Force and SWORD have both kept each others' honor, Spartan. I'm home."
"Ah, no luck with the terrorists you're hunting?"
"They're not quite terrorists, but yeah, we could really use some help."
"This is off the books?"
"The High Premier will sign off. Can you get some elites flown in?"
"Yeah, give us 4 hours, plus some time to organize. If your Homeland Defense has a free helicopter pad, we'll land around 1300 hours."
"Thanks Spartan. You should join the party too, I know you're not content off the field."

And with that, Corban ended the call, with hopes some allies would soon arrive.

[Haktiva]

"Shit! What the hell just happened?", Borrish yelled?
"Just keep moving, no casualties understood?!", Qelvk shuoted.
"Aye Sir", the rest of the Spectres shouted. They crawled out of the sewers and dropped a smoke grenade, the orange smoke blending into the dark and light of the city. They ran down the street passed panicked civilians.
"C'mon let's go let's go!", Qelvk shouted, pushing a man that attempted to play hero to the ground.

[Elipida]

900h - SWORD base

Spartan wasn't a petty sniper anymore. After participating in so many black operations after another, he was promoted to lieutenant and assigned his own squad. He had been sitting on front of the SWORD chairman's office, waiting for them to authorize a counter-intelligence operation. "To thing old Centaur was having trouble" he muttered.

The door opened and out came the Chairman with a bundle of paper in his hand. "Spartan" he said, "Normally we wouldn't go off onto missions just for out soldiers sake, but The government has some special interest on The Floridian Coast. We have began negotiations with The Floridian government to deploy Peacekeepers (OOC: Peacekeepers are like military police, not soldiers) around the boarder. In the meantime, we will authorize the deployment of one squad to investigate" Spartan stood up and saluted before running off into the barracks.

When he arrived his men were already changing into their uniform. Raven, the hotshot sniper was loading rounds into her sniper. Phantom, the hacker, played with his helmet, shifting the multi-vision visor on and off. Hades, the infiltrator, sat on a bench trying to get his vest on. Crimson and Archangel, the commandos, were cleaning their rifles with a piece of cloth. The room was silent. Just the way he liked it.

"Lieutenant" called Hades, still trying to get the vest over his helmet. "Do we know what we're up against?"
"An intelligence agency of unknown origin. I figure that it's most likely from an ally for a number of reasons" Spartan said. he walked to the front of the room "You know the drill! get to the airfield and get on the transport. We leave one hour from now, So get going!"
"Yessir!" they all saluted and marched off into the hallway. "They said some of them will be new, but i didn't expect all but two of them being fresh out of the academy!" Spartan took a deep breath. "May God help us all"

[Haktiva]

Citadel, 0930 Hours
Mam, it's been confirmed, Spectre Group Noveria has been compromised in their recon operation of the Floridian Coast", an tech sergeant said, struggling with her stack of papers as she walked into the communications center.
"I see. We can't afford to get them out like we normally would without risking a war. But there may be other forces at work here", the Head of Intelligence said, a young woman barely into her 20s said, playing with her platinum blond ponytail. "Get the Representative on the horn, now", she said.
"Yes Mam", the tech sergeant said, still fumbling with her papers as she walked off.
0935 Hours
"Are you absolutely sure Kiname?", Alexander Mendrovski, the Haktivan leader asked over the video screen, dressed in his white tee shirt and black camouflage boxers, for he was asleep when he was called.
"Yes Sir, even if the Spectres escape there is a chance for war. Even if the Spectres make a clean getaway somebody will spill the beans in one way or another, and even if we were to offer some sort of compensation, I doubt the Floridian government would listen if they have something through war", Kiname, the Head of Intelligence said, ignoring the Representatives relaxed disposition.
"What do you mean? are you talking about the Bar Owl?", Mendrovski asked.
"Yes Sir, there is a chance they'll want to get our military technology for themselves, compromising. the security of the nation and that of many other", Kiname said.
"Well we can't exactly blame them for being pissed off, we were conducting voyeurism on an international level", Mendrovski said.
"Many nations do that Sir, but they all deny it. Us getting caught means we become a target for many nations", Kiname said.
"We've caught other foreign recon units here before, but we usually just sign a treaty with the government that allows us both to openly look at each other", Mendrovski said.
"Yes Sir, but they were usually close trade partners or they understood right away, this is an all new government. On top of that they may not like the prospect of a largely Jewish nation encroaching in on them", Kiname said.
"I see your point. I guess we have no choice then, Thank you for the update Kiname", Mendrovski said.
"Your welcome Sir", Kiname said, saluting as the screen flipped off.
"So what does this mean Mam?", a man with a thick Yiddish accent and thinning hair asked.
"We're getting ready for war Captain", Kiname said, playing with her ponytail again.

[The Floridian Coast]

Clinic #37-A, 1108 Hours

"What did they look like?" asked the Homeland Defense Agent, to a university student in a hospital bed. They were at the Denarti District, in a small clinic for minor injuries. Shay had told the agents his story that as he was walking into a coffee shop before his catching the train to his classes, he saw a group of men in no uniform he had ever seen before sprinting down the streets. He attempted to tackle the last one to pass, but was overpowered and thrown to the ground. Security camera tapes confirmed his story, though only offered an aerial view, and not a frontal look at the suspects.

"They were covered completely, they had masks on. They looked like, uhh, shit, well their uniforms looked sort of like those Ghostraven guys." he said, and then gritted his teeth in pain. He had only a sprained ankle but the medicine the nurse gave him hadn't kick in yet.

"Ghostraven?" the agent asked with confusion. A doctor passing by said "You don't get out much, do you? Sandstalker 2 was out in cinemas last week. It wasn't better than the original but it came damn close, that Harn guy is a genius when it comes to-"
"Okay thanks, you can shut up now." the agent said impatiently; the doctor rolled his eyes and walked away.

"I'll get a sketch artist in here in a minute. Look, did you see any flag logo on them?"
Shay thought for a minute and said "Some kind of star."
"You need to be detailed, for fuck's sake, Lightning Force wears stars! Have you seen our flag? Half the world uses stars!" the agent yelled, and then said "I'm sorry. You did a courageous thing by trying to stop them. We appreciate you. But please, try to think."
"A hexagram. It was a hexagram, I'm pretty sure."
"Color?"
"Don't know, it all went hazy man. I'm not good before I have my coffee, you know? I hope you find them though."

Homeland Defense Building 1252 Hours

"You don't think they're still in uniform, do you Captain? Surely they've found a change of clothes by now, they're in the middle of the biggest city for a thousand miles." Daniel asked.
Corban was sucking down his third cigarette since waiting on the roof.
"Don't know. So long as they're in uniform, international law keeps us from blowing their brains out on the spot. They have 'rights' then. We have to be diplomatic with their home country and all that. Then again, blending in is a much better chance of them escaping. Their government might figure we already know who they are and want them to just blow their way out of there. Or maybe they'll claim them as rogues and disown them, who the hell knows?"
He took a long, angry drag and then stomped it beneath his feet, a helicopter appeared in the distance. "That's SWORD." He called in to the control room and ask "Have you cleared them?"

"Just did, sir, they will be landing shortly."

"Do I call you Captain Cortez in front of them?" Daniel asked, half seriously.
"Why wouldn't you?"
"Because you're only known as Centaur to him. Didn't know if there was a risk in him knowing your name."
"No risk, Lightning Force and SWORD are on cordial terms. Honestly I'd like to know Spartan's name too." Corban said, as the sound of the approaching helicopter's blades grew louder.
"Only cordial, not good?"

"Used to be good. Spartan and I were taking down some fascists on the other side of the world along time ago. It was a co-op mission between agencies. Lately though, Elipida have overstepped their boundaries. Ever since we put down the Flagsted insurrection, we've had to reject repeated offers from them to police the island with soldiers. They want to annex it, given its strategic location between continents, near the deep sea oil shelves. They aren't getting it though, it's ours."

"That's all?" Daniel asked. Corban shook his head "I've heard from Aaron that his father has been in negotiation with their leader for some time over the northern outlands. Our internationally recognized borders end at the Mesopeaka River, but we have traditional claims over the intracoastal above it. It protects the native lands there from annexation. Because of tribal warfare though, they've wanted to deploy peacekeepers. Their leader says if we won't do it ourselves, why should we object to them doing it? Politics aren't much my thing, but I don't like the Elipidans disregarding our sovereignty. They may call themselves socialists but they are true imperialists at heart."

"Then why did you invite SWORD here?" Daniel asked, having to shout his question over the spinning blades.
"Because Lightning Force stalks its prey with patience. We need predators with a keen eye and a swift attack." Corban replied.
"Are you sure we can trust them?" Daniel yelled.
"I trust Spartan with my life. I can't believe I'm about to lay eyes on him again."

[Haktiva]

The Spectres hid in the back ally of a large shopping center. "I see. Rescue? Where? I See. Understood. Yes Mam. over and out", Qelvk said into the radio.
"So what now Captain?", Froid asked.
"Haktiva is bracing for war. They don't blame us, they blame the faulty bird. But command thinks the government here wouldn't be so quick to forgive", Qelvk said.
"So we're goin to war?", Borrish asked.
"If we get caught, unless we make it to an airport, a plane flown by none other than our own flyboys will be there to pick us up, provided we get past security", Qelvk said.
"So where's the airport?", Brominski asked.
"About ten klicks from here, we'll have to secure a vehicle", Qelvk said.

[Elipida]

Homeland Defense Building - 1300 Hours

The Reaper (OOC: Reaper=modified combat Osprey)flew causiously towards the Homeland Defence Building.
"Don't land and keep your distance from the building until they give us clearance," Spartan yelled over the dual propeller's roar. "unless you want this bird turned to swiss cheese, pilot" The co-pilot shook his head and flicked several switches on the dashboard.
"This is Reaper two dash six nine, requesting landing clearance, over" the co-pilot said into the microphone. no response. "Say it again"
"This is Reaper two-"
"This is control, you're clear for landing"
"This is Reaper two dash six nine, understood, over and out" The Reaper flew close to the ground before coming to a halt over the airfield and landing. the side doors swung open and out marched Spartan's six men team. They lined up next to the bird as Corban and his men came to greet them. "It's good to see you again, Centaur" Spartan greeted as he removed his helmet. his hair was beginning to gray. An old scar from his battles alongside with centaur was clearly visible, spanning accross his face over his left eye. "do you want to hang out for old time sakes or do you want to go strait to business?"

[The Floridian Coast]

"I'm afraid time isn't on our side, but as soon as they bastards are sitting in some cells a few floors below us, you and I can head down to the Nightbreeze and the drinks will be on me." Corban said, laughing. "You look good, Spartan." he added.

The men made their way into an elevator and then into a conference room. Their guns were readied and they were in their respective uniforms, Lightning Force and SWORD men looked each other up and down with keen interest.

"The trail has gone cold, unfortunately, but we can narrow their location down to 20 city blocks in District 4. We need to move fast. If they get of New Clearwater, we'll have lost the chance to take them down." Corban said, as a technician displayed a map of the central parts of the city on a massive monitor. "We are joined by our friends in SWORD, who are here to assist both with combat, and logistics. They have been briefed en route and so far know everything we do. The key now is to waste no more time."

And after Corban spoke those words, a breathless man Homeland Defense Agent ran into the room as soon as the large security doors opened enough for him to enter through them. "Captain Cortez, we have an update. An unmarked plane, unresponsive, just landed at a closed runway of New Clearwater airport. We believe from the speed at which we tracked it that it is neither a cargo plane nor civilian's, but of military grade. We are awaiting orders!"

"Surround it and arrest them! If they refuse to exit, or if the plane tries to escape, destroy it." Corban said. "That's the intruders' ride out. We got them now."

Daniel chimed in and said "The people we are hunting are armed and dangerous. They will surely fight Homeland Defense Agents again, shoot them all and then leave in the plane."

One of the SWORD agents turned to Corban and said "A standoff gives the enemy time to prepare. If you order your agents to storm the plane, we force their hand. We leave right now, and we can be there in 12 minutes or less."

"I agree." Corban said, and told the messenger "Call in the men on the field, tell them not to wait. Board the plane and shoot whoever is there unless they surrender immediately." Then turning to Spartan, he said "We need to go. Are you ready for a firefight?" Spartan smiled and nodded, replying "Always ready."

"Good. Listen up everyone, we still want these men alive, but not at the cost of any of your lives. Do what you must."

[Elipida]

Spartan examined his men, all clad in dark blue battle dresses from head to toe with the nation's emblem on their shoulders. He than looked at Corban and his men with their rifles already in their hands. "Looks like a lot has changed" Spartan whispered to himself. "Excuse me, lieutenant?" Archangel asked. Archangel was the only member of his team whose name is classified. He was sent strait from the officials at the top of the chain of command about a year ago and is impossible to find out of a mission. "Nothing, Archangel" Spartan answered.

"So Centaur, what's the plan?" Spartan asked. "From the looks of the airstrip from a spy satilite picture taken about an hour ago, they have full view over our only entrances. barging in would be suicide, and flying over would be just as dangerous with so much open space. since we are dealing with most-likely an intelligence agency, they would have taken the precaution of boobytrapping the vents inside the main building" Spartan smilled. "So, since you invited us, care to come up with a plan?"

[Haktiva]

The Spectres drove down the road at top speed, Brominski at the wheel. The Spectres had commandeered a pink convertable from a group of young women and headed straight to the airport. "Reminds me of my high school graduation!", Borrish yelled happily.
"Yeah well we'll have something to celebrate when we get out of here, Haktiva's bracing for war", Qelvk said. Borrish looked through his scope and saw much of the area blocked off.
"Spectre group Noveria this is your baby carriage, we are found out and taking small arms fire. The security operator is hit, we are in danger of being captured", the pilot said through the radio over the sound of impacting bullets and gunfire.
"Shit. Okay Lt., you see those boards, go as fast as you can and we should clear the fence", Qelvk said, pointing at two heavy duty strips of metal placed over a concrete barrier by the fence.
"Aye Sir", Brominski said. He floored the accelerator and drove towards the makeshift ramp, the rest of the Spectres screaming as they hit the ramp and flew over the fence. The Spectres were tossed out of the car as it bounced after hitting the runway strip, but tumbled out of the fall unharmed.
"Damn, that was fun", Froid said, looking at the now totaled car.
"There's the plane, let's go!", Qelvk said, pointing at the plane about 100 meters away. The Spectres sprinted towards the plane at full speed, Froid laying down suppressing fire as they ran, aiming above the enemy's head, hoping to avoid further deaths that might sour an possible talks, aside from the destroyed windows and many many holes in the wall.