Weekly Articles (Delta Pistol)/Keep Moving

Delta Pistol's Week #127 Entry for The Weekly: Let's Get Tactical

Characters

 * Daniel Contreras - ORION Operator, Force Recon Marine
 * Mason - Force Recon Lieutenant
 * Bowman - Force Recon Sergeant
 * Weber - Force Recon Demolitions Expert
 * Braddock - Force Recon Marine
 * Pereda - Force Recon Marine

Story
June 16, 2522 - 0100 Hours

Arcadia

Keep moving, keep moving

Daniel Contreras quickly loaded a fresh clip for his silenced M7, and he stepped over the bodies of two rebels that were on guard. Contreras sprinted hard through the Arcadian jungle, and took cover behind a rock formation to catch his breathe.

Daniel made a quick glance, and spotted two rebels, who probably heard his burst of AR rifle. Daniel let the two pass by, and emerged from the rocks. Pulling his combat knife and waiting for them to separate to move in, Daniel silently dispatched the smoking rebel with a quick stab to the back, and he dispatched his unaware compatriot with the same method.

After finishing his handy work, Contreras quickly moved through the jungles, and tracked the footprints of his kills. He soon spotted his main objective, and took a hidden position in the bushes.

Using his binoculars, Daniel peered over the rocks and took a quick scan of his objective: a rebel outpost, with MG and sniper nests guarding the perimeter, and he spotted Warthogs that were hidden inside the outpost’s makeshift garages. Upon further inspection, Daniel located concrete structures that seemed to house the command and communication centers for the Innies.

This concrete compound, hidden in the Arcadian jungles, was a CMA outpost that was captured during the Insurrectionist retreat into Arcadia, and was used as a staging zone for their insurgent operations in the region. Air Recon was able to pinpoint the location of the rebel base, and the Marines from Force Reconnaissance were sent in to neutralize the base, and gather any important intelligence found on site. Contreras, a former ORION operator, had just been reassigned to Force Reconnaissance after his special assignments for TREBUCHET.

Daniel tapped his comms, “Yankee One, this is Whiskey Two, do you read?”

“Whiskey Two, this is Yankee, what’s your status? Over”, replied the Fireteam leader, Sergeant Bowman.

“I’ve got eyes on the compound, MGs, Sniper nests, and possible M12s”

“The enemy patrols? OPs?”

“Knocked out, they won’t see us coming, over”

Contreras took another peer to look for the strike team, and located his squad at the other end of the compound, hiding in the jungle trees.

“Whiskey, we’ve also spotted a bunker, which is the access point to armory. Yankee team will focus our efforts on the bunker”.

Contreras spotted the bunker, and came to the same conclusion as Bowman. “Whiskey Two, link up with the rest of Whiskey team. They should have already set the explosives” “Roger, see you on the other side”, Contreras replied. Daniel, readying his M7S, made his way to Whiskey’s rally point. He flanked around the front entrance of the compound, and carefully made his way to higher ground on the right flank. Daniel noticed that the rebel garrison were not as alert as they should be.

“They’re going to learn what happens when you put weekend warriors on guard duty”, thought Contreras.

Within minutes, Contreras found Whiskey team, hiding along a trench line on the right side of the base. Lieutenant Mason, the lead of this op, motioned for Daniel to report. “Sergeant, how was your stroll?”, Mason sarcastically asked.

“Lovely, sir. You should try it, sir, it’ll do wonders for your high blood pressure”, replied Contreras.

Mason smirked.

“Alright, Whiskey, gather ‘round”, Mason whispered.

“Yankee is in position, and Sniper Team X-Ray is set. Once Contreras detonates our explosives, we blow through the perimeter defense, destroy the MAATs, and take care of the remaining Innies. Oorah?”

“Oorah”, replied the rest of Whiskey.

Whiskey took positions, and Contreras was handed the trigger.

“On your mark, Contreras”.

Daniel, counted to 5 in his mind, and squeezed.

''Boom. Another Boom. Several more followed.''

Pieces of fencing and concrete chunks flew past Whiskey, but several rebels could be seen flying several feet in the air, or, at least, what was left of them.

Sniper shots could be heard, and stunned MG gunners and panicked snipers were easily picked off from their perches. Whiskey and Yankee blew past the blown open concrete walls and fencing, and picked off rebels still in a daze from the initial shock. Soon, Whiskey found the MAATs and they placed their C-7 foaming explosives on the vehicles, detonating them, and putting the rebel MAATs out of commission. Soon, surviving rebels retreated into the concrete command and communication bunkers, sealing the doors.

“Shit. Webber! Use your satchel charge to blow through the door”, yelled Mason.

Comm chatter came in, “Whiskey, do you read?”

Mason responded, “Go ahead, Yankee”.

“Sir, Sergeant Bowman is KIA, and were dealing with some unexpected resistance at the armory bunker”.

“Sonuvabi---, Hold your position. I’m on my way right now”.

Mason locked his eyes with Daniel’s.

“Contreras, I trust you can handle this. Take Webber, Pereda, and Braddock. You four clear out the bunker system, and find whatever intel there is in the command and communications centers”.

“Yes sir”, replied Contreras.

Mason took the remaining Marines, and Contreras and his team moved towards the bunker doors. “How are we doing, Webber?”

“Satchel set, Sergeant” “Breaching positions, NOW”, Daniel barked.

Boom.

Contreras, taking the lead, moved quickly into the entrance, firing bursts from his M7S into the rebels hiding in the corridors. The others followed in tow.

Daniel and his team carefully moved through the underground bunker complex, scanning the rooms and eliminating hiding Innies that failed in their ambush attempts.

As they moved in, Daniel and his team encountered their first real obstacle when a rebel threw a flashbang in their path.

While Contreras was able to avert his eyes, his team got caught. Soon, three rebels engaged in close-quarters combat. One of them fired a shotgun round, wounding and incapacitating Pereda. Braddock and Weber were caught in hand-to-hand combat with two others. Contreras engaged the shotgun-wielding Innie, disarming him quickly and placed his knife into his heart. Contreras helped Weber in neutralizing his attacker, with an M7S burst, while Braddock handled her opponent with crunching blow to the jaw and a pistol round to the head.

Contreras and Weber rushed to Pereda’s aid. A quick examination revealed a serious, but survivable injury.

“Weber take him to the medic, now, it’s his only his chance right now. Braddock, you’re with me”.

Throwing his M7S to Braddock, whose M7S was damaged by pellets from the shotgun round, Daniel took a MA5B, and both moved deeper into the hallways, dispatching any rebels in their way. Soon, Contreras and Braddock found the command center, where the leaders of the rebel garrison where in a mad rush to destroy documents, software, and other forms of record. Both operators entered the room, demanding surrender. When one of them pulled his sidearm, they mowed down everyone in the room.

Braddock noticed a rebel groaning on the floor, and approached him. When she turned him around, she saw a grenade. It was too late, and she knew it. The explosion rocked Contreras off his feet. After a few minutes, he found his center and assessed what happened. He found Braddock’s body, her face scarred with shrapnel, and took her IFF tags. Contreras made his way out of the bunker, covered in blood and a splitting headache.

Mason was the first thing Daniel saw when came out of the bunker entrance.

“Anything, Sergeant?”

“Just dead Innies and the loss of an excellent Marine, sir”, Contreras said as he handed Braddock’s tags.

“I was off my game, sir”

“Don’t pull that perfectionist nonsense with me. Shit Happens, Contreras”.

“Yes sir”

Contreras walked past Mason, seeing the ruins of the base, littered with the remains of dead rebels and flaming M12s and MAATs. He saw Weber staring off into the horizons, with his hands covered in blood.

“Pereda didn’t make it”.

Contreras could only pat his shoulder.

“Contreras!” yelled Mason.

“Command wants you”.

Contreras tapped his ear.

“Go Ahead”

A long silence filled the ruined outpost, as the flames continue to light the base in an orange glow.

By 0300, Pelican dropships arrived to extract the Force Recon team, taking 5 dead Marines and 25 survivors with them.

Mason shook Contreras hand.

“You are one crazy bastard to take another mission immediately. You have nothing to prove, you know that, right?”

“Sir, I’m afraid that is where you’re wrong.”

Mason boarded the Pelican, and left the site with his unit. Contreras watched them leave, and he took quick inventory, as he scavenged MA5B ammunition and fragmentation grenades. He quickly left the outpost, hoping to move quickly towards his next objective 0400 Hours.

Daniel, trekking through the jungle, moves quietly and swiftly. He a found river to wash off the blood on his face and hands. While most of it washed it off, Contreras still felt covered in blood. He stood up and looked at his hands, trying to stop the trembling. It eventually stopped.

As dawn drew ever closer, Daniel took a glance back, in the direction of the outpost, and disappeared into the jungles of Arcadia.

Keep moving, keep moving.