RP: 4th Fleet (NSN) [Mission 5 Side Story] Preparing for the Storm

[Sigma]

Troop Transport NSS Hulk, 3rd Fleet, En route to Mwigflukbajik

The four platoons of Flotilment 16, 242nd Heavy Infantry Division gathered around Senior Chief Mario Di Vitoria. All four hundred Marines were in the ship's cargo hold, crammed as tight as they and straining to hear what the Chief had to say.

So far, the 3rd Fleet Marines had been kept in total secrecy about the mission. Normally, it was just a platoon here or there on some raid. This wasn't just a platoon, it was the whole blinking 3rd Fleet and its Marine shaik. Everyone, from Patterson downwards, was on this op. Everyone knew it was big but no one knew where.

The gamblers had placed the best odds on Rok'Veru. After all, it was the only real important Nepleslian world under the NMX hold. Others said that it was Xyainbor since it would make a good border post between Nepland and the Cats.

Being crowded together as the Chief strode up to a covered board caused loud and prolific murmurings amongst the Marines.

"The Fleet is attacking SC-4, also known as Mwigflukbajik," the Nepleslian man said without preamble. Groans from Marines who had lost their money echoed before being stamped out by their NCOs. "4th Fleet is the tip of the spear on this one. By the time we get there, they should have cracked open the hole and we're gonna flood through it. They don't have many Marines so we're the muscle of this op. We're the ones taking that planet."

He lifted the sheet covering the large whiteboard on the wall. It had some drawings that were only visible to the Marines near the front. There is a single terrestrial rock in the system. Was used for mining before the war. We're not sure what's going on down there right but you can bet that the squids have fortified it and continued the mining. We're the first wave. Whatever the squids have, it'll be our job to find it and smash it over their heads while stomping on the claws, paws and tentacles!"

One Marine asked, "So what are those goons in 4th Fleet gonna do? Watch us?"

The Chief glared at the insult to 4th Fleet and its Marines. Despite the rumors and reputation they had acquired, they were still brother Marines. "The 4th's Marines are tasked with commando raids since that is what they have been optimized for. They find the soft bits and make them bleed. We find the hard bits and smash them to pieces. As I understand it, the 4th's Marines are also tasked with boarding and securing derelict NMX warships. They're pulling the weight they can considering that they only have a platoon of Marines in the entire Fleet."

A trio of burly ID-SOLs rose to leave. "Hardman, don't go anywhere. Got something special for you and your... squad." The leader of the group turned and snarled before taking his seat again.

"For our new Jiyuuian comrades, I have to say that your reputation as Peacekeepers precede you. Welcome to the mean, green Marines. I look forward to fighting alongside you." A number of Marines with Oriental features nodded or murmured something. "More details about the landing zone and target when we get to the system in three hours. Any questions about the mission otherwise?"

 

[Kevyn]

Munching quietly on a ration bar, one of the Marines with oriental features sitting away from the Jiyuuians wordlessly added her fifty DS into the pot for the grinning corporal that had gone with the long shot. Ice hadn’t expected to win anything, hadn’t even planned on betting really. But from the looks on her fellow Marine’s faces, it had seemed like it was easier to toss in her fiver and mutter whatever unpronounceable name was at the top of the odds. It still felt weird to toss out that sort of money like it was nothing. But she had more money than she had ever even thought of in her life sitting in her account right now. The signing bonus for joining up during wartime she’d been told.

Finishing off the rat bar surreptitiously, Ice added her voice to the course of “Sir, no Sirs” rising from around the room. She didn’t have any particular interest in the politics or the strategy. If the guys with the fancy hats thought that it was important to take Mig… Migwig… SC-4, then it was important. She only really cared about who she’d have to kill and what sort of fight it was going to be. And since that info was coming up, she wasn’t going to jump the gun.

Instead she looked around at the crowd of Marines. It still felt odd to be in a crowd of people in uniform and not be about to get collared. Or in a crowd of this many people and not be in danger of getting shanked. It was still as loud and boisterous as the streets had been. Or at least, it was before Chief De Vitoria had spoken up and everyone had shut the hell up. Better than she had expected, in an obscure way. Well, this was apparently what she was stuck with until the end of her hitch, so she'd have to like it.

 

[waylan16]

Francis sat quietly on his chair, just taking in the general scene. Everyone was abuzz with the news that they were going into combat. He could see that some were obviously excited and ready to kill something; best to stay away from them. A few others were white-faced and not too happy about this latest announcement. And then there was Francis, just doing what he does: sitting there without saying a word. "So this is why I don't have any friends," he thought.

Francis didn't know what to think of this mission. He didn't mind getting into a fight, but a planetary assault straight out of basic? That may be asking a bit too much. "I signed up for this, so I've got to deal with whatever they throw my way," he assured himself. "Besides, we've got 400 Marines going in, how hard could it be?"

 

[Sigma]

"None of you know this but now I'm telling you," the Chief continued, "Vanderhuge and 1st Fleet are on Rok'Veru right now, taking it back from the squids." Cheering erupted loudly from the Marines. It was about time someone started the offensive to take back their planet.

Di Vitoria held up his hands for quiet, "What we're doing is giving the squids someone else to play with so they don't all gang up on poor old Flint. Plus, more systems we grab, more we can expand the Imperium. The following Marines need to stay behind cos I got some stuff to tell them." He ran off a short list of a half a dozen or so names, including Francis and Ice.

"Rest of you, dismissed!"

-----------

"Four hundred? Bud, it's whole blinkin' Shaik! Hundred and ten thousand Marines." A Marine laughed at Francis as he joined the crowd leaving. The eight Marines named remained, including the trio of ID-SOLs who had tried to leave earlier. Besides Ice and Francis, the other three were obviously Jiyuuian women from their short black hair that seemed to always look good, no matter the style.

Each trio seemed to glare at each other before moving to the front to see what Chief Di Vitoria had to say.

 

[waylan16]

Francis sat and listened attentively as the Chief told the Marines about the 1st Fleet and Rok'Veru. He was glad that Nepleslia was brining the fight to the NMX. Francis kept listening as the Chief spoke, but he also began to think about being in his first combat situation. He started to remember the stories his dad had told him about combat. Francis doubted they were completely accurate, but the romanticized vision of the Nepleslian Marine crushing his enemy underfoot didn't pass lightly.

Then Chief Di Vitoria started to call off the names of the Marines told to wait behind. Francis doubted his name would be called. "This is probably some sort of spec ops assignment. There gonna need all the cannon fodder like me on Mwigflukbajik that they can get." The list of names kept coming. "...Francis Lasalle..." When Francis heard his name, he became suspect of what the group was really doing. "Now that I'm in, it's probably a detail to babysit something," he thought.

As the rest of the Marines got up and left one came over to Francis.

"Four hundred? Bud, it's whole blinkin' Shaik! Hundred and ten thousand Marines." A Marine laughed at Francis as he joined the crowd leaving.

"Oh great, just what I needed," he thought,"people making fun of me. At least some things havent changed. Could've sworn I didn't say that out loud. Whatever. Let's just see what the Chief wants me to do."

 

[Kevyn]

Special mission? Ice thought as her name came up on the Chief's list. That was probably either good, bad or more likely both. Either the ones called were expendable, had special skills or had special skills that were easily retrainable. Considering the numbers they were up against, and the numbers they were fielding, she was leaning more towards that last one. Things were off to a cracking start on this woman's army, weren't they. Still, objectively, her odds of dying hadn't really improved any. Things were more dangerous, but at least she had a Crew to watch her back for a change, made up of the biggest badasses in the known galaxy. Or at least so she'd be told. For now I'll put my trust in my armour and my weapons she thought, lightly touching the worn and much mended hilt of her trusty old Type 22 knife. 

One of the Marines, a giant of a man almost as big as the clutch of ID-SOLs that had left, seemed surprised to hear about their numbers. As she moved through the tide of soldiers she paused for a half second in the giant's lee. "Just doesn't seem fair, does it? Think we should let 'em all line up and take a free shot first?" Ice asked, quiet but pitched to carry. Bravado and swagger. If you could convince yourself you were invincible, everyone else just might believe you too. Leaving him to follow, she fell in with the rest of Marines called and came to attention. 

 

[Sigma]

The trio of giant ID-SOLs gazed back at Ice like she was a zoo animal, wordlessly appraising her. A Jiyuuian woman, the one Di Vitoria had named as Suzuki, was more direct. She stepped forward and backhanded Ice across the face and would have struck again if the other two Jiyuuian women hadn't held her back and an ID-SOL stepped between them.

"Our homes were destroyed by an invasion force of millions, our nation and its ideals but a memory and our friends and family scattered across the stars! And you can treat this invasion like a flower watching picnic?" Suzuki growled, not fighting against her two comrades.

But before Ice had a chance, Di Vitoria stepped in. "Enough, Middy. She's not going to be in your squad so she's not your problem. Sergeant Hardman, I suggest you and Mid-Corporal Suzuki spend some time working out the issues between of your new unit structure." The largest ID-SOL with Sergeant's stripes scowled, as if he wanted to say something but bit it back.

Di Vitoria turned his attention to Ice and spoke with a paternal air. "Plainsview, you may be new but I was led to believe you were hardly naive. This system is a gateway to the NMX space farther south and a good, safe staging area for further invasions into Yamatai and Nepleslia. Do you really think the squids would leave such a strategic location unguarded? I'm expecting the first wave to get torn up, even with the bombardment promised by the Grand Admirals. Bluster won't work here. You and LaSalle are the two most junior Marines and frankly, none of us give a damn about what you did in your last life. Here and now, you're both untried, untested Marines and you've no right to underestimate the enemy because that'll get you and, most likely, some of your more experienced squadmates killed because you were cocky."

"Get to your point, Chief," Hardman demanded.

"You're all being transferred to 4th. You six," he pointed to the ID-SOLs and Jiyuuians, "remain as a squad. Apparently, their bigwigs wanted you for some special ops. LaSalle and Plainsview, you're just filling in whatever empty spots the 4th has. They seem to be expecting holes and, frankly, losing you doesn't mean much. Your squad leaders knew this before the meeting. You'll be transferring to the NSS Dauntless once we arrive in system, with your armors and gear. We arrive in ..." Di Vitoria checked his watch, an antique-looking thing with a worn leather strap, "two hours. And probably take another couple to figure out where the 4th is and get to them. So you've got three hours to pack your gear, get into armor and collect any outstanding cash. This isn't negotiable. Questions before I dismiss you?"

Hardman was livid and spoke first. "Why the goddamn 4th? They're a pathetic excuse of a Fleet! Sixty Marines, less than a hundred warships? Name one thing that they've done right and why that old man, Valken, deserves to be ranked with Vanderhuge, Corcyra and Coast!"

Suzuki retaliated, "4th Fleet pulled us out of Tange and saved us when we were abandoned by our government and Yamatai! They saved almost three hundred thousand of us that day! While you did nothing! Your vaunted "real" Fleets did nothing while a hodge-podge of antiquated warships, transports and Marines rescued 260,000 of us! Serving in the 4th Fleet is the greatest honor to all expat Jiyuuians here!" The two other women nodded, adding their support.

 

[Kevyn]

Ice took her punch like a Marine, barely flinching. She'd taken worse before on any given Friday night, as the scars hidden by her uniform could attest. But she didn't fight back against Suzuki. Fighting in the ranks wasn't a capital offense, but it was still the sort of offense that came with an exciting tour to an isolation cell. Not that Ice didn't spit a bit of blood at the Yammie bitch. Wow, she lost some friends to the squids. Maybe if they hadn't made the damn things, Suzuki would have been just fine. They had run crying to Nepleslia to pull their asses out of the fire, so the bitch could shut her mouth as far as Ice was concerned.

She resisted the urge to defend her case to DeVitora. If he wanted her opinion, he would have given it to her. But her face said that if Suzuki had a problem, she was wearing the wrong colour uniform. Like she was the only one who'd had the squids up close an personal on their home world. Ice had still been a street kid in  Nepleslia when the NMX had dropped. At least Suzuki had had the chance to do something meaningful. 

Instead, Ice did something more productive than alternate bitch about and sing the praises of the 4th Fleet. "Sir, what's the most up to date intel about the 4th's dispo? If we're going to be dropped into combat, I want to be useful to them, Sir."

 

[Sigma]

Di Vitoria frowned. How should he know? It's not like 4th Fleet shared that information with him. Admiral Coast would know. All he knew was what everyone else knew. Less than a hundred warships and sixty Marines. And that they'd pulled off an op on Tange that a bigger fleet would have been troubled with. So they had luck and skill going for them as well.

"Like hell if I know what's up with them, Private. I don't even know who their officer is. You'll find out when you join your squad. Though, I expect they'll have holes which you're going to be filling."

 

[Kevyn]

Ice frowned a bit at that revelation. You'd think that the brass would pass at least something along. Her estimation of her command structure, exalted metric that was, dropped a little bit at that. But she didn't say anything. Chief De Vitoria was probably still pissed from her encounter with the Yammie still trying to glare a hole in her back. She delt with that the usual way, marking where Suzuki was and letting her glare pass right through, and sounded off with a "Sir, yes Sir!"

 

[waylan16]

As the Chief spoke, Francis' thoughts were proven correct. "I knew they were going to need some meat shields. Could've been worse though." Being the new kid on the block was certainly predictable, if nothing else. "At least I don't have to be with those other ID-SOLs. Saves me a few headaches."

Now Francis began to wonder what exactly he was going to be doing with the 4th Fleet. Just then, the Jiyuuian that was going with him to "fill in the holes" spoke up.

"Sir, what's the most up to date intel about the 4th's dispo? If we're going to be dropped into combat, I want to be useful to them, Sir."

Maybe they would get some answers. Then Chief Di Vitoria replied

"Like hell if I know what's up with them, Private. I don't even know who their officer is. You'll find out when you join your squad. Though, I expect they'll have holes which you're going to be filling."

Apparently not, so he waited to be dissmissed to collect his gear and get ready for what was certainly going to be an intresting, and most likely dangerous, series of events.

 

[Sigma]

Di Vitoria looked at Hardman and Suzuki, but the pair seemed more intent on seeing who could glare harder at the other. Those two ought to just get in bed and resolve their differences there, Di Vitoria sighed.

"Right, get lost. You've got packing to do. If you need more info, ask Drei."

 

[Kevyn]

Ice saluted and turned to leave with the rest of the small gaggle of Marines. She did her best to avoid Suzuki and her countrymen. She thought she could take at least some of them in a no holds barred fight. But if she didn't want to spend the rest of her time on this ship in the brig, that wasn't really an option for her.

Instead, she hurried to her bunk to begin turning out her foot locker. That wasn't a hard task, since other than the knife at her belt her possessions began and ended with the equipment she had been issued. She packed away the contents of the foot locker into her kit bag, and made sure that her bunk was up to snuff before she abandoned it for the next poor schmo.

Her clothing accounted for, she shouldered her bag and headed for the weapon lockers to pick up her rifle, sidearm and environment suit.

 

[Sigma]

"Don't bother with your IAW, Plainsview. Apparently, 4th Fleet has a better gun in stock for its Marines. Custom ordered for them, too." The speaker was Sergeant Hardman, the ID-SOL from earlier. "And if you want to lug around that useless suit, go ahead. Sailors do EVA work, not Marines. If we have to go outside, its in Power Armor and with intent to kill! I sold mine before we left port for a nice 600 DA." He grinned at the profit he had made.

"The Chief won't say nothing about 4th because he's not gonna say bad things about fellow Marines. But it's no secret that they fluffed their last combat mission, badly. 40% casualties and objective failed. Apparently, their Admiral isn't too good with Marine ops so everything's in the hands of one Chief from Vanderhuge's glory boys. So, I'm not expecting too much. Nor should you. Though, I do hear they're outfitted more like a commando unit than a front line combat unit so maybe they'll have new toys."

 

[Kevyn]

"Hell Sergeant, so long as I don't get ventilated day one it's still a step up from life before the Corps." She said, still collecting up her rifle and suit. If it wasn't going to be used, or replaced, she'd hand it into the quartermaster. The idea of making some cash off it sounded attractive, but she still didn't know what she was going to do with the five grand sitting in her account as it was. And besides, she was close enough to basic to still treat her equipment like detachable limbs.

She was about to get headed, but paused. Hardman seemed to have his head screwed onto his massive shoulders. And if the Chief wasn't going to give her the skinny, then maybe she could get a bit more now. Anything to keep her hide intact one more day. "Sir, if you don't mind me asking, you got any idea of what the track record of the 4th was before the last mission?"

 

[Sigma]

Hardman grinned, "Oh it was splotchy. Started off when Admiral Wazu made it in 32 as a pet project for his techno-babble. Used nothing but robot ships and a single squad of Marines. From the grapevine, Wazu was using it like a personal army to do whatever he wanted. Visiting the Blacks, hiring mercenaries and Nekos. So HQ pulled the plug and sent in Old Man Valken to replace that loser. Seems like he went and ran off to the Garts before the IPG could grab 'im. I guess they did alright at Tange, last year, pulled off just under 300k civvies and military. Only mistake might have been letting that bitch, Suzuki, aboard a transport. Then they went and hit some random NMX border system and bit off more than they could chew. Scuttlebutt says that it was an underground training facility that they hit so they were boned from the start. But way i hear it from the sailors who hear it from the 4th's sailors, the Marines were running around like headless chickens cos they had no one to organize 'em so afterwards, the Admiral brought in that Chief."

Hardman simply drew more rounds for his sidearm and grinned down at the smaller woman. "I got my squad and I know we rock. Good luck to you since you're ending up in one of the shit squads."

 

[waylan16]

Now that the briefing was over, Frnacis headed back to his room to pack up his gear and get ready to leave. He only had standard issue equipment, so packing didn't take too long. "That didnt take too long," he said to himself. Then he started to think of what kind of "special operation" he would be invovled with. With his luck, the 4th's Marines would be secretly invading the NMX homeworld. "I really hope not," he said, almost believing himself for a second. "To be honest," he thought,"they've only got a platoon of Marines, so they can't be doing too much. Porbably boarding some ship. I heard that they do that."

 

[Kevyn]

Pride of fucking Nepleslia it sounded like, though Ice didn't say anything. After all, it was just one person saying it so far. She belted on her HHG, a bit big for someone with her build, but she prefered blades for close work. The accessories she'd picked up would make the massive handgun more useful as a carbine. She slid her tomahawk and knives onto the belt as well, before pulling out her suit and the box holding her IAW.

With Hardman's last words, Ice shrugged. "Eh, we're all going to die sooner or later, Sergeant. And there ain't nothing new about folks dealing me a dick hand. I'll live through it. Or get eaten by a fuck'n squid. You know. One of the two." She said, deadpan.

 

[ShotJon]

A certain presence waked up Francis from his thoughts. When he looked, one of the Id-Sols in Sgt. Hardman's squad was watching him. P1C ranked ID-SOl stood very close and it seemed he was almost... measuring him. P1C looked at his shoulders, arms and legs.

"Hey" he said as one of his hands ran through his long beard. "Aren't ya little short for Id-Sol kid?" He asked and chuckled. This man had almost 8 feet and towered above Francis.

__
__

"Sure," Sgt. Hardman replied and holstered his gun. He sat on one of the benches and took out large cigar, lighting it with lit match that suddenly appeared in his hand. "Everyone dies. Later the better I think. Don't rush to your dead so fast girley. As for Squids?" He said and looked her up form her toes to her forehead and smirked. "Squids don't eat little girls like you. They do much worse things to them."

Meanwhile Suzuki and her two friends came in the room. Mid-Corporal gave Ice and sergeant a mean look, but before she could say anything, her two friend dragged her to the side and away.

 

[Kevyn]

Ice marked where Suzuki had gone, though she didn't worry too much about it. The woman would have to be an idiot to pick a fight with her while she was carrying enough weapons to clank when she walked. At least her friends seemed to realize that.

She glanced back to Hardman at his comment. Ice'd heard rumours about what the Squids did with their 'POWs'. She somehow doubted that the experience would compare with anything she'd had to do before. her lips twitched down at the thought, and she said. "Well, in that case I guess I'll have to live through it then, won't I Sarge?"