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  “It’s okay Miss, these three won’t harm you, they’ll be leaving soon anyway,” Mack told her.

  “You can’t know that,” she cried.

  “I can,” he confirmed.

  Tattoo looked from Mack to the girl then back to Mack during the exchange. “Are we done here?” he said his voice rising in anger.

  “No, but you are,” Mack said, winking an eye at the large man.

  The gesture was timed to perfection and intended to garner a reaction, which it did.

  Tattoo snarled and threw a heavy punch at Mack’s head, which he deftly swayed away from.

  Stepping nearer after the punch had sailed past, Mack slammed a roundhouse elbow into the unprotected ribs of Tattoo who crumpled to his knees.

  Unibrow came at Mack next with a haymaker swing, which was immediately blocked and countered with a right cross that sent him off his feet.

  That just left Mohican. Mack looked at him with raised eyebrows asking if he too wanted some of the same. Seeing his friends put down with such ease he held up his hands in surrender.

  “Hey man, we’re sorry,” he said backing off to where his friends lay on the ground. As he started to help them up Mack just stared at them to make sure they were good for their word.

  As he watched them limp off together Mack went to the young woman’s table and smiled, “I told you things would be okay, enjoy your drink.” He turned to walk back to the bar but stopped as the young woman spoke.

  “Can I buy you a drink, you know to say thanks?” she said to his back.

  He turned around but a familiar tingle wiped the smile from his face, a call was coming through.

  “Great timing guys,” he said, then held up a hand to the girl as he turned his head to listen.

  “Mack, shore leave has been cancelled, something’s come up. I’m on my way to pick you up in the Pulsar,” Jake said, his voice coming through loud and clear to Mack.

  “Copy that boss,” he said.

  He looked at the young woman and shrugged, “I’m sorry Miss but I have to go, it’s a work thing. Can I take a rain check though?” he said.

  “Work thing, are you serious?” she said in disbelief.

  “You have no idea,” he replied.

  Just then the high-pitched sound of an engine cut through the air and everyone looked to see what the noise was.

  Landing just outside the bar was a slim, single-seat stealth glider known as a Switchblade.

  Mack left the bar and walked over to it. The canopy slid open to allow him to get in. He tossed a leg over the slim seat and the canopy slid closed over him. The thrusters lifted the craft off the ground and the rear engines kicked in powering it through the air and into the sky leaving everyone in the bar astonished at the sight.

  “Thanks Jake, you just ruined what could’ve been a good night,” Mack mumbled to himself.

  “Sorry buddy, I’ll try to make it up to you later,” Jake said through the comm link Mack had forgotten was still open.

  He gripped the throttles and set himself for what he knew would be a wild ride.

  “No need boss, this will probably turn out to be even wilder,” he said with a smile.

  He found himself looking forward to getting back to work with eager anticipation.

  II

  Col Sec HQ, Nellis Base

  Angelina Torres had been on the firing range most of the morning honing her skills.

  She replaced the weapons she had used in the weapons rack and left the armoury.

  “Lieutenant Torres report to the gate,” a voice said in her ear. She walked out of the building where the armoury was situated towards the main gate.

  The closer she got to the gate she could see a figure pacing outside, the guards refusing to admit him. A chill went through her as she recognised him. He was old, slim build and wearing an old jacket with his hands thrust into the pockets as he paced up and down the fence in front of the gate. When he caught sight of her approaching he stopped pacing and stood facing the interior of the base.

  “Gina,” he shouted.

  “Dad, what’re you doin’ here?” she asked as she stopped at the gate. She nodded a greeting at the officer on duty at the gate who stood watching the old man. A smile crossed his lips momentarily when he heard her greet him.

  “Your mum’s worried about you. We’ve not heard from you since you last came round and...”

  “Not true Dad, I call Mum whenever I can. She never mentioned being worried,” Gina stopped him short with her retort.

  He looked down at the floor, embarrassed at being caught out by his lie in front of the guard, a man he regarded as a real soldier, which was the real problem between him and his daughter.

  Torres had grown up in a household where the man was important and the women were second-class citizens. An extremely old fashioned principle that still existed in a few homes and the reason she had joined the military, to prove not only to her father but to herself her true worth as an individual.

  “Can’t we go someplace private, your dorm or anywhere?” he asked as he looked up glancing first at the guard who caught his eye with a scornful glance then at his daughter’s face.

  Gina was furious; she had reached the point a few weeks ago on her last visit when she had finally fought back. Without telling him what she really did she stood up to her father for the first time ever. Even though she was a member of an elite group she always reverted back to the little girl who was never quite good enough for her father when she returned home. Since that day, after she had told him she didn't care what he thought of her, that she was comfortable with who she was, she had not spoken to him. The unfortunate thing was that he still did not see what the trouble between them was. He still refused to see it had been his fault.

  “No Dad, we can’t. You don’t have clearance to be on this base so why are you really here? Tell me then go,” she said sternly. She gave the guard a quick glance because she knew she could give her father the clearance to enter the base as long as she stayed with him and stayed away from sensitive areas. It was easier this way and the look in the guard’s eyes told her he understood.

  “Okay,” he said standing up straight and squaring his thin shoulders before speaking again. “I don’t understand why you went off like you did the last time you were home, so seeing as you haven’t been back since I thought I’d come here and see you.” He looked her squarely in the eyes and attempted to stare her out.

  Gina was not intimidated, not this time. She was on her own turf here and her confidence was high.

  “That’s the problem right there, Dad, you never could see it.”

  “Wait, are you sayin’, this is my fault?”

  Before she could reply the sound of a high-pitched engine assailed all their ears. She turned to the side to hear the voice coming through her NI.

  “Go ahead,” she said.

  “Gina, shore leave has been cancelled, we have a mission. Get on the Switchblade, we have to go now.”

  A smile crossed her full lips as she recognised Cooper’s voice. Looking up she saw the slim craft coming in to land just inside the fence. No alarms had been raised as the sensors surrounding and covering the base had recognised it as one of their own.

  “Gotta go Dad, give my love to Mum when you get home,” she said above the noise of the Switchblade’s engines as they spooled down once it was on the ground.

  “Wait, where are you going? You can’t just walk off, I haven’t finished talkin’ to you yet,” her father shouted as she jogged off towards the craft. He went to push past the guard standing at the side of the gate but he stepped in front of him staring down at him.

  “You heard the lady, sir, you don’t have clearance for this base. If I were you, sir, I’d leave right now,” he said which brought a pained expression to the old man’s face.

  “But where’s she goin’?” he asked as he watched her climb aboard the slim, frail-looking craft.

  “I’m afraid that’s classified, sir.”<
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  “Classified? She’s just a woman, an MP at that, what can be so classified about that?” he said the confusion clear in his eyes.

  “Is that what she told you, sir?”

  “Why, what does she do then?

  “I cannot comment, sir, you should leave now, sir.”

  Gina straddled the Switchblade and turned to see the two men talking at the gate through the clear Plexiglas cover. She wondered what they were talking about. Most personnel on the base knew of the Wildfire Team but the details of their work were classified so all they really knew was that they were high flyers and were important. She knew the guard would not divulge any details of what she did because he was not privy to that information, but seeing the look of confusion on her father’s face as she took off made her smile. Perhaps now he would think differently about her, she thought.

  “On my way Mack, is the team assembled on board?” she said putting all thoughts of her father to the back of her mind for the moment, those particular thoughts could wait until after the present mission. Now she had to focus on what lay ahead.

  “We’re just off to pick Joe up then we’ll be fully assembled,” Mack told her.

  Down on the ground Mister Torres turned from the gate to wander off back home glancing up at the retreating Switchblade. Gina just had time to see her father’s bemused expression.

  “That’ll give him something to think about,” she thought as she turned her attention back to the task in hand.

  The Switchblade was soon docking with the Pulsar in orbit over the base.

  As she climbed off the craft she saw her friend and team mate.

  “Hi Mack,” she said smiling.

  “Travelling light again I see,” Mack said.

  “You didn’t give me much time to collect any things,” she said as she walked away from the Switchblade.

  “Most’ve your stuff is on board anyway same as all of us,” Mack added smiling.

  “Where’s Jake?” she asked.

  “He’s in his quarters, sorting through details of the op I presume. We’ll know more once we’ve picked Joe up and he can let us into what we’re doing,” Mack said and turned to head out of the hold.

  “Let’s go get Joe then,” Gina said as she fell in behind Mack.

  3

  Canto

  Lieutenant Joseph Vance looked out over the forest at the base of the mountain. This was a location he had been to on numerous occasions. He loved to camp out under the sky and this planet with its huge mountain range that towered over the forest below was one of his favourite places.

  The mountain range was called the Quad because there were four main peaks in the range simply called Q1 through to Q4. At the moment he was at the base of Q2, and he was planning on climbing it early the next day.

  He was about to prepare his evening meal when the familiar tingle told him an incoming call was being routed through his NI, “Go ahead,” he said.

  “Be prepared to leave immediately, shore leave has been cancelled and we have a mission,” the voice in his ear said. It was Jake Riley, his commanding officer on the Wildfire Team and one of his closest friends.

  There was never any need to question this edict; it went without saying that if Jake had orders to assemble the team then he would follow.

  “Copy that,” was all he needed to say in reply and he began to gather his kit together. He had his tent down in moments, packed away in his rucksack and ready to go. Any rubbish he had accumulated over his time there was also stowed away for disposal at the proper time and location.

  Within seconds of his breaking camp he heard the wine of an engine coming in from overhead. He looked up and saw something small and sleek swooping in from high in the upper atmosphere.

  “Oh you have got to be kidding me,” he said when he saw just what it was.

  A stealth glider, commonly known as a Switchblade, was coming in to land. It was basically a thin board that the flyer lay upon with control fins at the side and handles to control the glide at the front and small engines at the rear.

  It came to rest on the ground a few feet from where he was standing. The cover slid back to reveal the seat and he went and threw a leg over to straddle it. He placed his bag on the seat behind him and the cover slid back over his head. He leant forward to grip the handlebar control grips and the engines kicked in. Thrusters lifted the Switchblade off the ground and all he had to do was hold on. Whoever brought it down was clearly in control.

  “Good afternoon Lieutenant Vance, hold on tight please and we’ll have you on board in a moment,” a voice said in his ear.

  The Switchblade took off accelerating to escape velocity, the Slimline afterburners kicking in as the sleek sliver of a craft became airborne. Vance felt the ‘G’ force on his body flattening him because there was no room on the craft for anything other than the engines, not even the inertia compensators.

  “Copy that,” he replied through gritted teeth.

  The Switchblade exited the planet’s atmosphere and headed straight for a starship positioned in orbit. It entered the hold and as soon as the hatch closed the ship moved out of orbit away from the planet in preparation for making the jump to hyperspace.

  Once the Switchblade had been secured, Vance dismounted the craft and stood up. Standing watching him was the figure of a tall muscular man with his hands on his hips.

  “Welcome aboard, Joe,” Mack Cooper said.

  The two soldiers clasped their right hands and pulled themselves into a short hug, slapping each other on the back with their free hands.

  “What’s the deal man?” Joe asked when they parted.

  “Waiting for Jake to brief us. All I know is we got the call from the General to assemble. I was already on board the Pulsar when I got the call from Jake so we picked up Gina then came straight here to pick you up.”

  “Any idea what this is about?”

  “Not a clue, but you know it’s bad if we’ve been called in.”

  Joe looked at his friend, his brows knitting together.

  “Yea, the Wildfire Event theory, an event so bad if it continued it would spread throughout the galaxy like a wildfire. Have Kurt and Zara been notified?”

  “Not sure, Artie, but you can let Jake know we’re all on board now,” Mack said. He looked at his friend and said, “You just have time to stow your gear before we get to the bridge for our briefing.”

  4

  I

  Pulsar

  Jake was standing on the bridge of the Pulsar as Mack, Joe and Gina entered. He was facing the viewscreen that showed an image of Research Station Nine orbiting Genotia.

  “Now we’re all here I’ll tell you what I know, which isn’t much,” he said as he turned. His enhanced hearing had alerted him to their approach long before they entered the bridge of the huge starship that was their base as well as their home from home. They actually spent more time aboard the Pulsar than they did planetside. Each team member had their own quarters, large enough to afford them privacy should they require it.

  “Is this a solo gig for us or are we picking up Kurt and Zara too?” asked Gina. Kurt Stryder and Zara Hardy were the other two members of the Wildfire Initiative who sometimes worked with Jake and the team but also alone. They were possibly the two most powerful members of this new group Sinclair had set up, being able to fully regenerate from seemingly impossible injuries.

  “No, they’re off on shore leave at the moment, but if we need them the General says he’ll get them to us. Until that happens, it’s just us this time,” Jake replied.

  Gina shared a glance with the other two members of the team and then returned her gaze to Jake who waited patiently.

  “General Sinclair received a report of an incident at Research Station Nine earlier today,” Jake started once the questions had stopped. “The report was delivered personally by Doctor Baxter. It seems all contact has been lost with the station. All comms are down so he wants us to check it out. Baxter was concerned because Doctor Garris
on was apparently running something up there that has Baxter spooked.”

  “Doesn’t Garrison work for Genotia, that’s not our purview surely?” Joe asked.

  Jake looked at all of his friends before he spoke again. “It seems that Baxter went beyond his remit and gave Garrison a failed batch of the serum to help in the civil war that was raging at that time.”

  “When you say failed, how do you mean?” Gina asked.

  “Apparently it caused increased aggression to the point where it was uncontrollable according to the official data uploaded from General Sinclair. He added that Baxter sent it to Garrison hoping he would have better luck with it than he had.”

  “Wait, the civil war was over months ago, so presumably Garrison had some success then?” Mack said.

  “Again we’re not sure, all we know is that Garrison was grateful for the assist. It had definitely helped but he also told Baxter there was a downside which he had taken care of.”

  “Is that it?” Gina asked her eyes going wide as she stood before Jake, her hands on her hips.

  “I’m afraid so people.”

  “That’s pretty fuckin’ thin Jake,” Mack said looking at their leader hoping for something more... anything.

  “Look, I know you don’t like going into a mission blind or with your hands tied but I’m afraid that’s how it has to be with this one. Until we know more there’s nothing we can do,” Jake said hoping to placate his troops.

  “And when we know more, what happens then?” Joe asked the question on all their lips.

  Jake looked at them, keeping his gaze unwavering, he knew a good leader must be able to make decisions fast, but more importantly, be able to stand by them. “I’ll make that decision when the time comes.”

  “What are your thoughts on this Jake? What do you think happened up there?” Gina asked looking deep into the eyes of her commander.

  “I think Garrison was dealing with the downside, trying either to correct it or eradicate it and something went wrong.”

  He could see from their expressions they had come to the same conclusion as he had.