URS Midsummer Night — ICE combined slavery interception task force — Undisclosed Location
1202 hours local time
1202 hours local time
The task force eased through the ocean, the deep blue ocean waves lapping softly against the hulls of its various ships, almost each one waving a different flag above the ICE banner which unified them under a single cause. It was another hot, sunny day in this area of the world, the clear, baby-blue sky doing little to interfere with the sun's fierce rays shining down on the glistening ocean below. A steady, slow, cool breeze served to provide relief to the many sailors and marines aboard the ships, the dull gray hulls of which were the only thing aside from the water for as far as the eye could see. Periodic flights of F-36B STOVL fighter jets for combat air patrols from the Phonencian amphibious assault ship—the central ship of the task force—punctuated the seemingly motionless nature of the ships themselves.
The ships on the inside, however, were very lively; each nation that contributed a ship had its sailors moving to and fro within, performing maintenance and engineering tasks, simulated combat roles, bridge operations, and the like. The task force had come fresh from joint military exercises designed to enhance interoperability between ICE member nations, particularly for operations such as those the task force was designed for—slavery interception.
Slavery interception—also often referred to as slavery interdiction—was not a new concept, but modern tactics for intercepting slave ships were just evolving with the advent of modern warfare. The level of technologies falling into the hands of military leaders and slavers alike had significantly spiked a revolution in VBSS doctrines for special forces, and the slavery interception subset of this was even more unique in and of itself. Modern views of collateral damage and the death of innocents, particularly due to World Assembly resolutions and multinational conferences such as Geneva, had led to a more careful application of force, yet deadlier weapons used by the slavers forced those intercepting them to become more and more precise and lethal. It was this reason why such high-level forces as the U.R. Naval Special Warfare Development Group (DEVGRU) and DHEP Navy Slavery/Smuggling Interdiction (SSI)—among the top forces of their kind in the world—were stationed aboard the ships.
One of these ships, the URS Midsummer Night, one of twenty-seven Jacob Keyes class frigates operated by the United Republic Navy, was the main representative of the United Republic of Emmeria within the task force. She was a relatively new ship in the U.R. Navy, having been constructed in the United Republic under license from Lyran Arms. At only 185 meters in length she was hardly an intimidating behemoth, but her contingent of SEALs and her vast array of sophisticated technological systems certainly made her a respectable opponent. She held, above the ICE flag, a large red, white, and blue banner, which valiantly waved in the breeze as a symbol of her entire country.
As a modular warship with interchangeable fore and aft modules, the Midsummer Night was capable of performing many different roles. Her bow contained a 12-bed medical facility module, while her aft held a hangar and helipad; the medical facility would be able to provide treatment to injured slaves while the helicopter and helipad would be used for general purpose transportation and deployment of personnel, materiel, and supplies.
Inside the ship's crew quarters, two Navy SEALs carried a conversation in a small room that was dominated by two bunks on the right side.
"I mean it's great that it's multinational, but we have like no cover," said one of the SEALs, sitting on his lower bunk. "The Phonies have a fucking AAS with some kick-ass Emmerian fighters, but it can't hold as many as an Ark Royal."
"It's not fair to compare an amphibious assault ship with one of the largest supercarrier classes of the modern world. We'll be fine, I mean officially we mean no trouble to anyone right? Oh and Nawaz, don't call them Phonies. They're our friends," replied the other SEAL, who was sitting on a stool across the small room.
"Oh shut the fuck up Roberts, who told you nicknames have to be politically correct?" He paused. "What else do we call 'em? Demmies? Holies? Supreme Commander of ICE-ies?" When Roberts didn't reply, Nawaz paused again, looking at his Spec Ops watch—the expensive item had been a gift from his girlfriend back home; she'd given it to him the night before his deployment to remember her by, and it was one of the saddest, yet most memorable, moments of his life.
"I wonder when command's gonna find something. Supposedly large-scale pirate and slaver ops in this part of the world," Roberts said, breaking the short silence and snapping Nawaz out of his contemplation.
"That depends on when those fucking Phonencians—" he took the moment to let the politically-correct name sink in—"find a ship for VBSS."
A voice on the intercom interrupted their conversation. "Charlie Company of SEAL Team Four and DEVGRU, please report to the mission debriefing room ASAP."
"Right on cue."
Bridge — URS Midsummer Night
"Sir, radar contact detected at 300 klicks to the southeast, bearing 1-2-0. It's Ralkovian-flagged, looks to be an L-type transport," said a young naval officer at his radar station. "Phonencian pilots are reporting its detection in the same general location."
"If it's Ralkovian flagged, it's not likely to be a pirate ship. Barbarians are normally stateless," responded another naval officer.
He was interrupted by the ship's captain. "Ralkovia's one of the largest slave states in the world—definitely barbarians. Don't they often use the L-type as their slaver transport?"
"Affirm, they do."
"Very well. Contact the ship, and tell the rest of the task force that we're contacting them. Tell the ICE task force to set its special VBSS forces on standby."
"Yes, sir."
"Unidentified ship, this is the URS Midsummer Night. Your ship has been selected for a complete and thorough examination to prevent the transport of slavery or pirate materiel, break. Please halt your ship for boarding in order to facilitate a smooth, rapid search. Failure to comply may result in seizure of your assets. How copy?"
