The Phoenix Fallacy Book I: Janus (18 page)

Chapter 22: The Mission

The next day Wouris wore a much grimmer look.

“Your advanced training is over.” 

The cadets looked around at each other in confusion.

“This morning, I was informed that the Praetor, under advisement of the officer’s council, has elected to move forward with a large contract.  Due to the size of the operation, all available personnel have been made active for duty, even the cadets,” Wouris struggled to keep her face calm, her teeth grinding.  “This operation will be your first mission, and as such, it will determine whether you become full-fledged Adepts.  The Praetor and the majority of officers feel that you are well prepared for this mission and can make a meaningful contribution to it.  Anyone who does not agree may step out now, as we neither want you nor need you to become a liability.  You will be returned to your former corporation as soon as possible.”

Many of the cadets looked around at each other, but none moved.  Janus remained still. 
I can’t believe they’re sending us out,
he thought.

“Good.
Briefing is at 0600 hours.”

When Janus arrived at 0550, the mess hall had been converted into a meeting chamber, with the seats lined up towards the far end of the room.  At one end a MuDi was already running, lowering from the ceiling.  Adepts crowded into the room, and excitement filled the air.  Wouris leaned against a wall and stared stonily at the display. 

Janus, Celes, Lyn, Ramirez and Marcus sat off to one side, by the windows.  Praetor Jennings entered the room swiftly, sporting a grim look.  Wouris stood at attention as he passed, but her expression did not change.  The Praetor’s appearance silenced the buzz.

“As you are all aware,” he began, “ODIN has agreed to a new contract.”

There were cheers all around.  The Praetor raised a hand for quiet, “Yes, this is a boon for us.  Many of you are aware of the decline in the number of jobs we have had in recent years.  The Corporations have been – apathetic, at best.  This is a critical opportunity for us – a chance to replenish our coffers beyond what trading has been able to do.  What is unique about this operation is that it falls outside standard Adept missions: this is a full-fledged assault upon a Titan
Corporation outpost.”

The murmuring began again.

“Silence, please,” the Praetor commanded.  “I realize that such a job hasn’t been undertaken in years, and that it is much more dangerous than a standard infiltration operation.  I also realize there has been some dissension among the officers concerning my decision to include the cadets in this mission.  However, those of you who know me,” he glanced at Wouris and Keats, who looked away, “should realize that I would not send out cadets who I do not feel are ready for the task. I consider the safety of my fellow Adepts paramount.”

“Unfortunately, we cannot pass up a job of such exceptional pay
, and let me assure you that the pay is exceptional.”

Marcus blurted o
ut before he could stop himself, “How much is exceptional?”

Col. Keats stood up and addressed Marcus, “That is none of your concern.  If the Praetor gives the order, it doesn’t matter how much money ODIN is receiving for a job.”

Jennings smiled at Keats, “Thank you Colonel.  However, in this case I find it to be a perfectly valid question.  To answer your question, Cadet: seventy cross-ingots of Immutium alloy, of which, we have already received half.”

There was a collective intake of breath from the Adepts.  The officers
wore grim looks, and the cadets stared at their fellow Adepts in confusion.  Janus studied the officers, ignoring the excitement of the Adepts.

Celes whispered to Janus, “That’s a huge sum.  That’s more Immutium than
a Corporation produces in a year.  I don’t know how much Adepts usually receive for their services, but that’s unbelievable.”

Lyn popped her head in and interjected, “How do you know that?  I didn’t even know what Immutium was until we came to ODIN.”

Celes blushed and looked as though she had said too much.  She was saved by the Praetor.

“Yes, this is a large payment,” the Praetor acknowledged,
“but this is also a special job. There hasn’t been an open assault like this in years.  Our employer no doubt feels such a large sum is necessary.”

Col. Hawkes snorted loudly and
Col. Keats shot him an angry look, but Jennings acted as if he hadn’t heard.  “Major Northcott will now outline the assault and its objectives,” the Praetor concluded.

“All right, listen up.  Our intelligence shows that the target is a small, isolated Titan colony to the north.
We understand it is the primary processing outpost for raw materials mined in the Northern Reaches.”

The MuDi lit up and displayed a large map with a flashing dot giving the current position of Valhalla.  The map moved a thousand kilometers north to display the position of the colony.

“The colony is based on a small promontory with the Siren Sea bordering on two sides.”  The MuDi zoomed in to show a three dimensional model of the outpost, with two beaches on the south and east of the colony.

The Major clasped his hands behind his back.  “We have been contracted for two main objectives
:  First, disable the primary processing center at the center of the colony, including the six Hades launchers protecting it.”

The MuDi zoomed in to highlight a
large factory occupying the middle of the outpost.

“Second,
we are to destroy a research and communications facility at the northernmost tip of the colony.  We can only presume our attack is a precursor to another invasion.”

The MuDi moved its focus to
a tall, tri-cornered armored facility at the north end of the colony.  Three huge legs supported the wide base of the structure, its concave walls rising upward to a flat top covered with dishes and antennas.

“
One full detachment of Adepts will be deployed to disable the mining facility, and another will sweep the outpost and disable the six Hades’ Missile systems that are scattered throughout.”

The MuDi zoomed out to highlight the six smaller Hades sites on the map. 

An Adept raised his hand, “But why so many of us, Major?”

The Major nodded to Keats,
who stepped forward to explain, “Our intelligence indicates that most of the personnel at the facility are non-military, making it seem unnecessary to deploy so many Adepts.  Due to the nature of this mission and the limited timeframe provided by our employer, however, we decided it would be prudent to eliminate the largest threats from the outpost as quickly as possible.  When we make our assault, two squadrons of Valkyrie fighters will strike the East and South beaches right before our Longboat Personnel Carriers land.  Until the six Hades’ launchers are eliminated, we will be limited in the amount of air support we can offer.  The Valks will only be safe due to their speed and the element of surprise.  After the initial attack, most of our air force will be vulnerable and largely useless.”

The MuDi zoomed out further, highlighting two squadrons of Valkyries, one from the South, another from the East, sweeping across the beaches.  Right behind them, a squadron of longboats appeared, taking the same route as the Eastern squad of Valks.

She raised a hand, pointing at the beach, “After the Longboats land on the East beach, our forces will sweep North and West, eliminating the targets along the way, and then circle to meet the Longboats again on the South Beach.  If things get out of hand, we can offer air support and emergency evac to the West after we take out the missile systems.”

The Major stepped forward, again.  “
Thank you, Colonel.”  He paused, “Most of you will consider this unnecessary, as always.  If, God forbid, the mission goes totally awry, our final evac point will be due North of the outpost.”

The MuDi zoomed out again and showed the evac
uation point many kilometers to the North.

“Don’t worry, Major, we’re not going to need an evac point,” an Adept spoke confidently.

The Major smiled.

“What’s that area between the outpost and the evac point?”  Celes asked, looking at the strange
grey and black mass that was just a few kilometers north of edge of the outpost.

Many veteran Adepts looked at her, surprised, while others muttered to each other.  Celes blushed slightly at the attention.  A mustached Adept behind her leaned in, “No one asks about the evac point, they research it on their own time. 
Bad luck, you see.”

The Major, however, just nodded his head, “Actually, the outpost is close to the
ruins of Phoenix Corporation.  You will have 36 hours from the start of the mission to get there should anything happen.”

More muttering sounded around the hall.

“Who is responsible for the comm. center?” another Sergeant asked.

Northcott
turned to Wouris, “The comm. center is less heavily guarded than the mining facility, so the cadets, under Sergeant Wouris, will be responsible for its destruction.  A sweeper team of Adepts will follow behind and make sure the job gets done properly.  All other Adepts not directly involved in the mission will remain here on high alert.”

Janus searched around the room.  Many of the Adepts around him were older veterans, and all were unsurprised by the move to keep a large complement of ODIN’s forces at Valhalla.  Janus was disturbed.

Do they fear an attack here?
             

Praetor Jennings stepped forward again, “Any questions?”  He waited a beat before saying, “Good.  You will receive further briefing from your respective officers.  The cadets will be briefed by Sergeant Wouris.  Be ready to deploy at 0400 tomorrow morning.  Dismissed.”

The Cadets walked back together as a group.  Janus was lost in thought as they made their way back to Sigma 3, his mind wandering from the furtive looks between the officers to the
strange nature of the mission, and its huge reward.  But eventually it settled on thoughts of Clara, and what she would say about the situation.

Watch your back…

Celes cleared her throat, and Janus nearly jumped. 

“Is anyone else bothered as much as I am about this mission?”  Celes
asked.

“Prob’bly just nerves,
” Ramirez grunted.

Lyn smiled at him, “Of course, if y
ou were bothered by anything, we’d never know, would we?”

“Prob’bly not,” Ramirez said simply.

The cadets chuckled, and Janus couldn’t help but grin.  Celes laughed, “Thanks, Ramirez.”

“No problem.”

“Hey Ramirez,” Marcus chuckled, “How’d you get to be so insightful?”

“Well, he certainly didn’t get it from us,” Celes
said.

“Speak for yourself,” Janus said with a smirk.

Celes gave him a grin, her voice dripping with sarcasm, “Of course, mighty Janus.  I would
never, ever
think of insulting you.”  She stopped in front of him and gave a mock bow.  “I hope you won’t take offense at my discourtesy.  Whatever was I thinking?”

Janus stopped and put on a hurt look.

Celes winked at him, “Just because you’re a shoo-in to be one of the squad leaders in this mission doesn’t mean that people will be foolish enough to follow you.  But you do have potential,” she smiled and turned away.  Lyn and Ramirez followed after her.