Boots On The Ground

Posted on Tue Aug 7, 2018 @ 9:38pm by Major Kasia S'er'in'e & Commodore Michael Aravan & Lieutenant Colonel S'er'in'e

Mission: Falling Star
Location: Planetside: Turu Site
Timeline: MD 34 || 1200 Hours

S'er'in'e stepped off the shuttle after the first teams had secured them a landing zone at the Turu site. It felt strange to feel something other than carpet and deck under his feet but in some way it reminded him of the Homeworld. It was no surprise to see ruined buildings, typical of panic, looting and chaos spawned by the desperate mob that was one by one dying. Thankfully the LZ was next to a three story building, mostly intact which S'er'in'e felt that would make for an ideal CP position.

"Major." He spoke to Kasia which he had to stop himself from calling her 'Mate'. "CP 2nd floor that building, communications up top, lookouts also and there, there and over there." Pointing out three locations forming a triangle pattern of overlaying visual sight.

"You heard him," Kasia said, gesturing to certain members of their teams and giving them their orders, watching as they broke off to carry out what the Colonel wanted done. She had no plans to sit idle and not do anything herself, and moved toward the final spot for visual. She was a leader, and because of that, the Major always did the dirty work just like those that served beneath her. It was just the Marine way. Thankfully, though, she was able to stay in constant communication with everyone.

"2nd and 3rd squads, lets clear some debris. Make room for additional shuttles. If were to hold this location then I don't want to be tripping over everything to do it in the middle of a firefight." S'er'in'e ordered knowing that with 500 marines detailed to be on the ground, most of which still on board the ship awaiting transit, he had the man power to spare for a little clean up operation.

A Sargent reported to S'er'in'e handing him a overview of the surroundings, key notes like choke points, passable and unassailable terrain. "Sergeant, I'd like sensor relays planted at these..." Tapping each one. "Locations. If we are attacked I want as much warning as possible. It doesn't have to be far but we don't know what we are up against down here, hide them well."

Already he could see two locations being set up for the heavy weaponry. Considering the sheer lack of information they had to go on there was no harm in coming down heavy. Better to have a weapon and not need it, then need it and not have it. Taking one last look around S'er'in'e walked in to what would become his CP.

"So, Colonel, what's our current plan?" Kasia asked as she looked through the sight of her phaser rifle.

"Secure the immediate area, establish sensor overlays, forward look outs, weapon emplacements and fortify our position using whats around us." S'er'in'e replied. "Once that is done I want patrols, regular distant intervals searching for anything that could help us."

Once the orders were given, many of the Marines moved to carry them out, working on securing the area first before working on everything else.

The few Romulans who had chosen to ignore the warnings about the possibility of getting sick from the chemicals wandered the streets but gave the Federation personnel a wide berth. A small group of them wearing face masks were farther up the street from where the Marines were, but they seemed to be waiting and watching to see what was going to happen.

Kasia looked at the group of Marines through the sight of her rifle, though she wasn't going to be firing upon them. "Colonel, we've got a few individuals..." she gave their coordinates. "watching what's going on. I'm not so sure if they're hostiles or friendlies."

"Take a team and flank, they could be non-coms or forward spotters acting as such, if they are armed, stun and detail of possible, otherwise...." The next few words didn't need saying, marines knew what came next. As he looked around he saw three teams preparing the sensor overlay posts while others went about turning the location into a proper defend able LZ.

"Acknowledged," Kasia said, gesturing for three others to follow her. They kept out of sight and made their way toward the small group of Romulans to assess their reason for being there and watching. If they were hostile, she'd know soon enough and be able to take care of the situation.

The Romulans, meanwhile, continued to stand and watch the Starfleet Marines and didn't seem to be concerned when the female and several others left the immediate area.

S'er'in'e observed the setting up of his CP, command table, power, even some of the windows had been blocked off. With his teams setting up advanced sensor points it would give them some warning if anyone was coming but they were still setting up, which would take time. One thing he did have on hand however was a topographical map of the area, an area he intended to search.

Mindful not to deplete his defence perimeter he tasked several squads to begin a building by building search of the area, sensor readings, life signs, anything that might give them something.

Kasia, and her small group, watched the Romulans, listening for anything that could prove or disprove their involvement in what was going on. If they were guilty, she'd take the necessary steps to take them into custody, but if they weren't, she'd send them on their way.

"...hope they don't cause more trouble." "Why would they? I heard they're here to help." "It's the Federation. They can't be trusted." "The Governor seems to think they can be and send the Ambassador." "Yeah, like we should trust a former Tal Shiar. We went independent to get away from them." "Let them waste their lives as long as no more of our own people die." Came back in random conversation from the gathered Romulans, but they weren't getting any closer to where S'er'in'e and the other Marines were.

Kasia arched an eyebrow. This certainly was an interesting development, as well as one that she hadn't really expected. Were the Governor and Ambassador both former Tal Shiar? Just one of them? The Major didn't know, but it was important enough that she felt the need to report it. She tapped her combadge and spoke, waiting for a response while she kept her eyes and ears on the three people in front of her.

One by one sensor posts because active and feeding live information back to the CP. A mix of information came through, he could see the defensive line around the base, the teams that placed the sensor posts returning. "Very well, now that we can see, let's get some eyes out there."

Seeing that he had 4 shuttles available doing nothing he thought to use them. Having divided the local area into quadrants he wanted them as fast, mobile eyes that could get from point to point quickly, provide support if required or rapid transit reaction if needed. On the map he plotted 4 routes, with sensors active they should be able to scour an area far wider than the sensor posts the teams put up.

It was his hope that being able to see the wider area more information could be gleamed and with it, a course of action that would lead to an objective. Within 2 minutes of his orders 3 of the shuttles had taken off, the last waiting until the final supplies were carried off before a minute or two later itself took off on its assigned patrol route.

Petrova to S'er'in'e, came the Russian woman's voice over the Colonel's combadge.

Yes Major, what is it? S'er'in'e spoke hoping to hear some good news about the group of individuals off the defensive line.

Kasia kept her eyes trained on the three people, still listening for anything that might be useful. "It doesn't appear that our friends are hostile, she began, knowing she was a safe distance away so they wouldn't be able to hear her. "But... it does appear that Ambassador Caenala is former Tal Shiar. I don't buy the former bit, and I think that's worth looking into. She could have had something to with all of this, which means Triumphant is harboring a fugitive."

Understood Major, standby and wait one for tasking, I have air units scouting the area. If that information was true then he needed to warn the Triumphant. He wrote a message to Triumphant Actual, encoded. Relaying the information the Major had given him. "Send this, priority one." Handing the message off to his communications rating.

"Colonel, Shuttle 3 is detecting faint readings from sector 9."

"On the table." He saw the readings were faint, there were readings from other sectors but this one looked out of place, his military training kicked in and told him something was not as it seemed. "I want a team ready and set to go in 3 minutes." He called over his shoulder to his assistant.

Major, S'er'in'e. New tasking. We are getting strange readings, out of place readings in sector 9, move to location from the East, I will move from the south. Will meet and investigate.

I'm on it, Colonel. Kasia said, though she would have preferred to question the Romulans further. There was more there than she knew, but given their current mission, there wasn't any time for her to do so. With that in mind, she and the small group with her moved to their new location, keeping themselves obscured from view.

Within minutes S'er'in'e and a team were outside the defence perimeter and heading along the route he outlined which would position him to the south of the strange readings picked up by the shuttle. Taking cover in a devastated shop on an intersection using stripped shelves, counters and stone pillars for cover. The source of the readings were a little up the road and somewhere to his right was the major's team. Major, S'er'in'e, are you in position?

Three metallic balls about half the size of a baseball flew towards the Marines from different angles and exploded in a plumes of some type of gas that rapidly spread out.

If Kasia was going to respond to S'er'in'e or not was interrupted by the three metallic balls that were releasing some sort of gas in the area. This definitely wasn't good, and she could only assume this was responsible for countless deaths. "Incoming!" she called, over the comm to her people after switching it to communicate with everyone. This was unlikely to end well. "Unknown gas filling the area! Protective gear now!" She reached for her own mask as she held her breath to keep from inhaling the quick spreading gas, but didn't feel it. Oh, this definitely wasn't going to end well.

From his equipment S'er'in'e pulled out his anti chem protection. It was different from usual due to species but someone else carried his spare just in case. He looked around to see the others following suit. A gas would spread quickly with even a gentle breeze, a small cloud could spread to infect millions if placed in a population centre. If this didn't scream hostile S'er'in'e was not sure what else could. With a series of hand gestures he instructed his team to set up overwatch. If who ever launched this attack its was possible to do so down wind. He could only hope that the Major and her team was alright. "Major. We are en route to you." Being separated now was dangerous.

A barrage of disruptor fire prevented the big Marine from whatever he had planned and his men opened fire on the position that it came from, destroying a part of an abandoned buildings window frame. "Negative lifesigns, Colonel!" the Marine called as he checked the tricorder.

It came as no surprise they were not welcome, at least now they were open about it. Hand gestures to the team said that he wanted to flank right, circle to link up with the Major's team. They needed to investigate those readings and considering they had just been attacked, that told him who ever or what ever was there, was protected and didn't want to be found. Major, S'er'in'e....report.

A few moments later and still no reply. Major, S'er'in'e....respond.

Maybe she was too busy to reply, maybe they had been attacked too. That only added to the urgency that they move to support and find out what was going on.


***

Panic was beginning to set in. Had she dropped her respirator somewhere? Did she forget to bring it with everything going on? Kasia couldn't remember, but there wasn't much she could recall considering the burning sensation surging through her body. There was no way she could respond to the Colonel when he spoke, and the only thing she could think to do was run. Run past the plume of gas and hope to make it to safety.

Kasia took off, running in a direction she thought would be safe. The need for fresh air was great and drove her forward. Her heart raced, her lungs burned and her her spun. Was she even going to make it? That wasn't a question she could answer as she urged her legs to carry her further away from the chaos behind her. Just up ahead things were clear. She could make it. She would make it.

Her boots thumped against the ground, but the exertion she was putting herself through was beginning to get the better of her. Kasia staggered, wavering from the lack of oxygen. Just a few more steps, that's all it would take. But, sadly, the Major would never know if she'd made it or not as the darkness began to consume her, causing the Marine to collapse against the ground.

One of the Marines on Kasia's team took off in the direction she'd ran in and searched for it. A minute later, he'd come across her lying on the ground and tapped his combadge. Colonel, Major Petrova is down. I repeat, Major Petrova is down. Request permission to get her out of here.

Granted. S'er'in'e replied as he now felt that which Kasia no doubt felt when he was injured and lost his sight. Dread, fear, worry, the unknown gnawed at him but it would do him or Kasia little if he let that distract him too much. More hand gestures followed as they moved, slowly, carefully, not knowing if there were more foes laying in wait for them from another window.

Silence greeted the Marines as the gas dissipated. In fact, it was a heavy silence that covered more than just their area; it was like the entire section of the city they were in had gone completely silent.

The silence was deafening, not even birds chirped, it was almost eerie. Knowing that a whole team would not be needed to extract the Major especially with the use of a scouting shuttle he directed the rest of her squad to meet up with his and press on to the source of the strange readings that they had picked up earlier. Weapons fire, chemical attack, something was here, something had to be here for that kind of defence, and a risky one at that.

Once the word was given, the same Marine that called to the Colonel scooped Kasia's limp body up and requested beam back. He'd likely be berated by her at a later date, but he'd gladly take it as it meant she'd be alive. It wasn't long before they two disappeared in a wave of shimmering blue light, leaving the spot empty.

Having linked up with the remains of the Major's unit S'er'in'e headed to the location that was indicated by the shuttle fly over. The move was slow, cautious following the attack as another could happen at any moment. When they got to the location all that greeted them was a destroyed, partially collapsed building that still smelt of fire and ash. A look around revealed a false wall section, it would have gone unnoticed were it not for one of the marines accidentally tripping on some debris and feeling that the wall had a slight give to it when he landed against it.

Behind it a set of steps some 10 down before a 180 and another set, slowly and steadily the marines ventured down to see what was being so carefully hidden.

Everything just seemed too easy and it would be enough to raise the hackles on a house cat, let alone a Caitian. Who sets off a chemical attack, proves they have defenses and then lets the enemy just waltz right in? It seemed too easy because it was too easy and a moment after the Marines got down the bottom step, a massive rumbling was heard and the stairs and ceiling behind them started to collapse. In front of them was a massive duranum plated door with no apparent way in and certain death behind them.

There was now only one way to go, forward. With the staircase behind them now filled with debris S'er'in'e had to get past the large metal door. With a look to his Sapper, nothing was said but the request known. "Take what cover you can." Which was easier for most, not so much for the large feline. Even though the charge was shaped, it still made some debris and so with little option he hid behind a vertical support beam. It wouldn't hide all, but most of him at least. The Sapper gave him a nod when he was ready, moving away to find his own cover.

S'er'in'e placed his hands over his ears as the noise would be painful even to his sensitive ears. He heard the muffled age old saying of "Fire in the hole."

Seconds later the shaped charge went off, its energy focused, a hole made, the way forward presented itself.

In tandem with the hole being blown in the door, a barrage of disruptor fire. Fortunately for the Marines pressing forward, their uniforms were the new ones and absorbed much of the initial blasts. It was clear that there were not only Romulans on the other side of the wall, but they were prepared for a siege.

Moving up under fire was always risky. S'er'in'e decided to even the odds a little with a choice smoke grenade. Smoke was one of those entities that didn't care who threw it, it effected both sides equally. Now accuracy was sacrificed for cover allowing for movement under concealment, this worked for the Romalans but the Marines were well trained in weaponry and CQB.

S'er'in'e switched his visual implants to thermal and with the need to get inside and security the facility he knew several things, they were on the enemy's home turf, they knew the lay out and he did not. They were in a funnelled entryway so they had to effect entry quickly.

Within half a dozen steps, a laser grid popped up in the corridor and more disruptor shots came from around the end of the far corner. "Leave, Federation, or we'll blow this bomb right here and now!" a male Romulan voice called out.

"You attacked us, you trapped us, we are here to help you people with a cure. If you detonate the bomb not only will you be killing yourselves but everyone will know that you attacked the help, will others come to your aid once they find out you attack those who come to help?" S'er'in'e replied through the smoke.

"This is your last chance!" The Romulan shouted. "Leave or die with us!"

"In case you had not noticed, the stairwell behind us collapsed, why do you think we came through this way?" S'er'in'e replied. With a series of hand gestures S'er'in'e wanted a hole through the wall, near the ceiling, hoping that it would lead to the surface once the hole allowed some of the dirt and soil to fall into it providing them a way out.

The sapper checked his tricorder, then gave a slight shake of his head. "It's not stable, Colonel," he said. "The entire place might come down on us. Only stable way is forward."

One of the specialized Marines stepped forward with a PADD. "Colonel, those lasers aren't lethal. They aren't getting enough power and the corridor isn't trapped. We may get some sunburn, but that's about all."

With the smoke still in the corridor though within a few minutes it would start to fade and with backs to a wall the way forward was the only way to go. "Push up by squads quickly, stun only, we will take them prisoner and hand them over to the regional authorities."

The Marines grouped into squads of eight, side by side and advanced up the corridor laying down heavy support fire. When they got the other side, one waved down the corridor. "Clear, Colonel. There's nothing but a speaker in a room here and a sealed door."

"What is it with Romulans and sealed doors?" S'er'in'e replied. "Scan the door, find a way to open it otherwise we will use a charge on this door as well." S'er'in'e didn't want to go back empty handed, all this trouble and effort had to be protecting something.

One of the Marines that had been scanning the room stopped by a blank portion of wall. "Colonel, this wall is fake. There's a corridor behind it leading three meters to a larger room. I'm picking up six Romulan life signs."

"Enough of this fakery." Irritation clear in his voice as he tried to focus on the job at hand knowing his Mate was injured. "Scan for life support, ventilation shafts." S'er'in'e spoke as his marines exposed the fake door and the corridor before them. He turned to the speaker in the room and wondered if it was two way. He pressed a button to give it a try. "This is Colonel S'er'in'e."

While not strictly the Starfleet way, in his mind if getting in there would be a problem then it would be easier to get them to come out to him.

"Always persistent, like a nasty hairball," the same male Romulan's voice came back from the speaker. "And just as useless."

"We are here to help you, we have a cure that will help treat your people, why have you trapped and then attacked us?" S'er'in'e spoke, he ignored the remarks of a petty individual, he'd suffered worse in his time in captivity.

Instead of a response, a hail of disruptor fire came down the now exposed corridor and struck a couple Marines.

"Return fire." S'er'in'e spoke. They didn't want to talk, that's fine. "Stun grenade, 3 second fuse followed by another seconds later." It seemed the art of diplomacy was not getting them anywhere. S'er'in'e signalled for a shuttle to attend their location, he suspected they would need it and with the more powerful sensors, he hoped would come more information.

A couple screams were heard, then the sound of bodies hitting the floor a minute later.

Seeing the opening S'er'in'e had his team rush in and secure the room and its incapacitated occupants having searched and scanned them lining each along one wall. His men searched the room. "There is something to be said about persistence." S'er'in'e remarked looking at the gathered men. "Search everything."

"Sir!" One of the Marines called out as he checked one of the Romulans. "This Romulan is dying and has some kind of implant in his chest!"

"Can you determine the purpose?" S'er'in'e asked as that little report caught his attention mid packing the room for the taking.

"it looks like a transmitter, but I can't trace where the signal is going," came the response.

It wasn't difficult for her to determine where the team was, and after being taken care of, the Major found herself approaching S'er'in'e and the rest of his Marines. There wasn't much that could keep her down, and if people tried, they found out fast that she had no intentions of staying that way. "Restrain and stabilize him. We want to know what that thing is, and why he has it."

"Bring him with us, call for a shuttle." Taking back to the base was a risk but the locals knew where they were, a locator beacon wouldn't reveal what was obvious to anyone looking. He was glad that Kasia was alright but wondered how she got in considering the stairwell behind them filled with debris. "How did you get in?" He asked her.

"Let's just say I was a monkey in a past life," she replied, referring to how she'd managed to get inside. "No need to call a shuttle. I kind of commandeered one when they wouldn't let me leave. It's outside with a few loyal Marines guarding it. Colonel, you and the others get him out of here. I'll join you all as soon as I can. And before anyone protests, I'll be fine. I've definitely been through much worse in the past."

"You heard her, wrap up and dust off in 3." There were questions to be answered and a group of Romulans that would be providing them. One way or another.

"I'll return shortly," the Russian woman said, looking toward the other Marines present. "Move out."

The other Marines evacuated with the Romulan prisoners.

Once the area was clear, Kasia looked around the area, trying to make heads or tails of the situation. It was clear there was an explosion of some sort, which meant there was a possibility for another one to go off. That meant she needed to search, which left her with only one thing to do, and that was to secure what was left of the area. She shouldered her weapon and reached for the tricorder at her hip, then began to scan her surroundings for life signs, dangers and everything in between.

The tricorder in her hand didn't pick up any life signs, which she was grateful for, but it did pick up something she could have done without discovering. It was a transmission she'd encountered only once before. A transmission that nearly cost her her life. It belonged to none other than a bomb, and it was set to go off very soon. She'd survived a bombing once before, and they said lightning didn't strike the same place twice. That was the same in this case, wasn't it?

There was another dilemma to face. It was in an area she wasn't able to get to, which made this an even touchier situation. Definitely not an impossible one, but still touchy. Not wanting to take any chances, the Major held the tricorder in her hand and reached onto her tactical belt to remove a device. If she couldn't disarm it, the next best thing to do would be to jam the signal. It wouldn't detonate, but that meant she'd still need to disable it. This was going to be fun.

Kasia began removing as much of her gear as she was able to, keeping only what was necessary on her person to get the job done, then began the tedious task and maneuvering herself through the rubble. In a lot of places, it was a tight fit, and there were moments where she didn't think she'd make it through, but somehow she managed to get to where she needed to be.

Covered in sweat and stressed out beyond the normal means, the Marine scanned the area the bomb was supposed to be located and so that it was coming from a body not too far from where she was standing. This day was just getting better and better. Now, she was tasked with disarming people, though, she could say it was definitely a first during her career.

The Russian woman made her way toward the body and reached down to her boot to produce a bowie knife, then wrinkled her nose. It was now or never. As she wasn't a doctor, Kasia began to cut into the corpse and found herself covered in more of the poor bastards insides than she wanted to be as fished around inside the body until her hand came into contact with what she was looking for. "Someone will owe me big time for this," she muttered, carefully pulling the device out to set it on the ground. With her tricorder, she scanned the bomb again to find the point where it would need to be disarmed. After a few tense and extremely nerve-wracking moments, the job was done. This particular explosive wouldn't be hurting anyone, but just to be safe, she ran her tricorder one last time. The final sweep proved what she already knew. Her the job was done, and now she was able to vacate the area with the rest of her team.