Chapter Seventeen
Kimberly had been wrong. It only took the black military SUV with tinted windows and government plates fifteen minutes to pull up outside Angela's home. That had barely been enough time for either of them to pack up everything they had brought and get outside before the horn was honked in impatience. Normally such an action that late at night would be met with annoyance from the people living on the street, but not this time. Either the neighbours were already fast asleep or they were stuck looking out their windows at where the UNE Hive had been visible a few minutes ago.
Angela barely had any time to say goodbye to her parents as Alexander hurried her out of the house and to the waiting vehicle, his military dress uniform still on and not done up properly. He did however offer to load up all their bags to give her a few moments of privacy, and Angela was extremely grateful for that. Still, it allowed her to say the word goodbye and hug both her parents quickly before hopping into the dark interior of the SUV behind Alex. It was hard watching her parents concerned faces slip past the tinted windows and Angela had to fight back tears. She had no idea when or if she would ever see them again.
With a UNE Hive barrelling down towards the Earth nothing was certain, and that thought was reflected in both Angela and Alexander as they sat in silence. Even the driver and navigator in the front seats seemed tense and not a single word was spoken. Hell, Angela didn't even know where they were being taken. They simply sped down the highway and away from the small town of Lake Crystal. Considering the world seemed to be falling apart at the seams she guessed they were headed back to the front lines.
The journey was long, and that was really saying something considering she figured that the SUV was travelling at over one hundred miles per hour through the dark and slightly bumpy highways. Whenever they got near another small town or had to cross through a busy part of the highway the driver would flip on the police lights attached to the vehicle and continue on, not even slowing down for a second. It was quite impressive and for a few moments Angela felt like some big time military VIP. It actually even took her a second to realize that was probably exactly what she and Alexander were.
Being home for a week had dulled the true importance of their job and their Mechs a little, and only once Angela was back inside a military vehicle did she suddenly realize it again. The X-04 squadron and the Aegis were the most advanced fighting unit in the world at the moment, and with a new UNE Hive appearing it was only natural that they would be called back into action. It was such a sad end to the vacation though. There was just too much to think about, so much worry and fear running through Angela's mind that it was hard to reflect on it. She had almost completely forgotten about the almost kiss she nearly shared with Alexander. It also seemed like he had forgotten as well as he wasn't even so much as looking at her as they shot through the night.
After an unknown period of time passed Angela gazed back out the tinted windows to find that they were in a large city. Street lights flickered past as their light shone on them for barely a second and in the distance she began to make out a large building with a massive tower ahead. It didn't take a genius to figure out that they were approaching an airport.
Instead of pulling up to one of the front entrances like Angela first thought they might, the black SUV pulled off onto a small service road that led towards the interior of the airport. They pulled up to a security checkpoint where a thin man in a police uniform asked for the drivers ID and then waved them on, opening a large and heavy looking gate that lead towards the runway. A few moments later the vehicle came to a stop and Angela peered out the window to find a massive passenger plane already sitting on the runway, it's engines roaring and ready to go. Which was strange considering there was a large portable staircase sitting next to an open door near the front, a person standing at the top and waving them on.
Not sure what to make of this, Angela followed Alexander out of the SUV and watched as he grabbed their luggage. Without a single word he quickly led them both up the staircase and together they walked into the cabin of the massive plane, the stewardess quickly closing and locking the door behind them. They were then told to quickly take any open seat and prepare for takeoff. It didn't take long for them to find out that the flight had been delayed for nearly forty minutes just so they could get on it.
Normally Angela was excited to be flying, even if it was in a normal and run of the mill passenger airline; but this time was different. She didn't feel that sense of excitement as they roared down the runway and shot up into the sky, and she definitely didn't enjoy it when they got to their cruising altitude. There was just too much on her mind for her to really pay attention. Kimberly still hadn't contacted them and they really had no idea about what the state of the world was. Where had the Hive landed? Had the attack already begun? Where were the other pilots? Were they safe and on their own flights to wherever it was they were being deployed?
She wanted to voice some of her questions to Alexander but couldn't bring herself to break the silence. It wasn't like he was trying to sleep or anything; in fact his eyes were open and alert. She just didn't know where to begin or even if she should try. The last time something like this had happened he had still been in the Second Battalion with his sister, so she figured that he must be thinking about that time. Then again she really didn't know what was going through his mind, and even trying to guess at it was a stab in the dark. Even though they had just spent the better part of a week together she realized that he was still very much a mystery to her. She had come to know him a little bit better, but it was just the tip of the iceberg.
Angela hoped that the television screens built into the back of each chair would have access to live news channels, but when she flicked hers on she found that it was just a bunch of prerecorded stations with a variety of subjects to choose from. Stuck at thirty nine thousand feet in the air it was like being stuck in a social vacuum and there was no way to get any information on what was going on. She just had to hope that once they arrived wherever it was they were going, she would be able to get some kind of information out of someone. Hell, if she had to ask a random stranger to borrow their personal computer or smart-phone she would. She hated no knowing.
That plan didn't pan out though. As they began their descent a little over three hours later it quickly became apparent that Angela and Alex were going to be treated different than the other passengers on the plane. Just before the captain came over the PA system to announce their plan to land, a stewardess approached them and quickly told them that once they landed they were to be ready to disembark and make sure they had everything they had brought with them. That alone had Angela confused and she looked to Alexander to see if he was in the same boat, but he only shrugged his shoulders and then went back to staring at nothing.
Ten minutes later the plane landed and came to a complete stop, the captain now advising everyone to remain seated until the sign for the seat belts had been turned off. It was then that she and Alex stood up and grabbed their bags. Other passengers looked at them curiously and even some had an annoyed expression in their eyes, but seeing that Alexander was in a military uniform no one raised any problems and they were allowed to quickly exit the cabin as another set of moveable stairs was moved into position.
The night air was cold and had a salty edge to it, like they were near the ocean. As they climbed down the stairs and began to move away from the plane, a middle aged man driving a small open vehicle that reminded Angela of a golf cart approached and honked the funny sounding horn twice. He quickly cut them off as they headed towards the terminal and motioned for them to get on, but even Alex seemed a little hesitant. This had to be the weirdest way to travel.
“Captain Woods and Lieutenant Baker?” he asked and they both nodded at their names. “Get on! I'm to take you to your next flight!”
At this point the massive plane behind them began to move as the stairs were moved out of the way and the roar of the powerful jet engines made it nearly impossible to hear anything. Still, Angela spoke knowing that a man who worked on the runway of a major airport would be used to it and should be able to hear her question anyways.
“Where are we?”
“Vancouver, Canada, ma'am,” the man responded and tipped his black hat with the letters YVR stitched into it. It was nice to finally know where they were, but it still raised another question.
“Don't we need to pass through customs?”
“I don't think we're staying here,” Alexander answered for the man, speaking for the first time in a number of hours. His voice was a little hoarse and there was no mistaking the tension in his words.
“Hurry up and get on! Air Traffic Control has stopped all incoming and outgoing flights so you can leave as soon as you board, but it's causing a lot of congestion!”
Alexander quickly tossed their bags into the back seat of the small and almost comical vehicle and then climbed into the front, motioning for Angela to squeeze in beside him on the same seat. Angela's normal reaction to this would have been straight up refusal, and the new attitude she had just picked up that night would be to climb in and snuggle up to him with a happy smile on her face, however that was not the way she saw it right now. Instead she simply took the seat offered and didn't even blush or growl. There was no room in her heart for that sort of emotion right now. Confusion and concern were the only things there.
“What's going on?” Angela found herself asking as they sped down the well light runway. Planes of varying sizes sat ready to take off on the side of the runway and now that Angela looked around she did notice that all activity seemed to have been halted at this airport. Even the planes in the sky were in a holding pattern above.
“Like I said, all flights have been delayed until yours takes off!” the man barked back and it was easy to tell he wasn't pleased. This would probably force him and everyone else working tonight into a lot over time just trying to catch up again.
“No, I meant with the Hive! You know, the aliens sending more troops!”
“I ain't got a clue! The only thing that I've been told was that a more of them crash landed a few hours ago! I don't know any more than that! I've been working all night!”
Now Angela did find herself growling at the man who had none of the answers she both wanted and needed. For all she knew the UNE's could have landed in the middle of the United States and she would have no clue! And why wasn't Alexander trying to ask his own questions? Why was he just sitting there staring off into space like that? Wasn't he concerned with everything that was going on?
No, she was sure he was concerned. This was just the face of a soldier who had been in this position before. Perhaps he even knew that this was going to happen. He had talked with Thomas and Commander Roberts about the strange UNE behaviour on the front lines, and he had admitted that he had seen it before. What did he say again? That the last time he had seen it had been a few weeks before the Fall of London?
“We're here!” the driver suddenly called out loudly and slowed the little golf cart like vehicle to a stop.
Looking out Angela found a small and sleek looking private jet idling on the runway, the cabin lights on and the hatch open. At first she wondered if the man had brought them to the wrong plane and that he was actually looking for another large passenger jet, just like the one they had used before. When she saw the name on the side of the jet she quickly realized that no, this was indeed the plane waiting for them. Who else would get to fly in the private jet of Sir Dyson, the founder and CEO of Dynamo Weapons?
“Thanks,” she said lamely as she climbed out of the vehicle and grabbed her own bag out of the back, still not very happy with their drivers lack of answers.
She and Alexander climbed the small staircase up and into the private jet and met a young and pretty stewardess that offered to take their bags and stow them away. They quickly handed the large green duffel bags to her and then entered the main cabin ahead of her. Angela hadn't even made it two steps before her eyes landed on three young women in military fatigues sitting at a large table off to the left side of the plane, all of their eyes quickly landing on her.
“Took you long enough!” Sarah quickly commented. Even though her voice said she was annoyed there was still a small smile playing at the sides of her thin lips. “We thought we'd have to leave without you guys.”
“Sarah...” Angela breathed.
“Hey!” Michelle quickly yelled out, “we're here too! By the way... what's with the dress? And why is Alexander in his DU's?”
“W... what?” Angela stuttered, just now realizing that she also hadn't changed before they left her parent's house. “O... oh... we were at a wedding.”
“A wedding?” both Michelle and Sarah asked in unison.
“It's a long story!” Angela quickly stepped in and tried to steer the conversation in the right direction. It was nice to see all of her friends again, but there were a million other things that she wanted to know in that moment. She just hoped that one of them had the answers that no one else seemed to have. “What's going on?”
“That should be pretty obvious,” Michelle sighed and leaned back against the white leather chair she sat on with the two other girls, “we're going back to the front lines. It really sucks! We still had a week left before we were supposed to report for duty!”
“K... Kimberly called and said... she said that our leave was being revoked,” Lisa squeaked and her best friend Michelle huffed angrily.
“Don't even bother asking us any more than that though,” Sarah now stepped in, standing from the seat, “we've already exhausted most of the pressing questions waiting for you guys to arrive. I've been here for an hour and I think Lisa said she was here about half an hour before me.”
“I live in this city, so I've been here the longest,” Michelle sighed. “What about you? You guys got any information?”
“No,” Angela answered and she found a seat across from her friends. She dove into the story of how they had gotten the call, making sure to leave that little romantic moment by the lake out of it. Her friends listened and sighed when they realized that she seemed to know even less than they did. Through this entire time Alexander didn't say a word though, and each and every member of the squad now looked over at him. If anyone who have any idea on what was going on it would be him. This was the kind of world he had been living in long before they had entered it.
“We should wait for Kimberly to contact us again,” he answered before any of the girls could so much as open their mouths to ask him a question. He now sat off to the side of the group of girls and had pulled off his jacket and tie, tossing them into another empty seat in a pile like he really didn't care for them. “We can speculate all we want and never get close to the truth. Just wait until we get briefed.”
“But...” Lisa began, but as was normal for her she quickly clammed up and turned a bright shade of red. Thankfully Michelle stepped in for her and spared her the pain of having to try and speak again.
“But what's going to happen to us? Don't you think we should know so we can be prepared for it?”
“It's like what you said a moment ago: we're going back to the battlefield. Figuring out where that is isn't even really guessing. All the clues are in front of us.”
“They are?” Angela asked and now he looked up at her for a long moment. His steely blue eyes pierced straight through her and gripped her heart like a vice, causing her to look away from him as quickly as she could. Now that she was back with her friends and she knew that they were all headed to the same place, a small amount of peace had seeped into her brain. It was a nice feeling, but sadly it also allowed the other feelings that she had felt only a few hours ago to once more take root in her mind. She didn't think she'd ever forget what it felt like to feel his lips brush against hers for the briefest of moments.
“Think about it. We were all flown out to the West Coast and are now aboard another plane. The fact that this jet can cross the ocean at high speeds it's only logical to assume that we are headed back to Europe. Also, factor in the fact that a UNE Hive landed a few hours ago and you can see why we are being flown West into Europe, and not going East like we did when we came back. The whole Eastern portion of Europe would be a no fly zone at this moment.”
“So we're going back to France?” Sarah asked and out of the corner of Angela's eye she could see their captain nod once at her. However it still felt like his eyes were on her, and not the one who had asked the question.
“This plane is probably going to Germany where our Mechs are being stored right now. From there I can only guess that we will be deployed to the front lines for when the UNE invasion force makes its move.”
Steeling her nerves, Angela forced herself to turn her head back towards Alex and look at him for a long moment. Thankfully he was now looking out the window as the jet began to taxi into a take off position and she was able to stare at him without him staring back. She didn't think her heart could take one more gaze from him like that.
It was amazing just how fast he could change though. For the last week he had been a little more meek and acted more his age than Angela ever thought would be possible. But in less than five hours that had entirely changed. His shoulders were set now and he held his normal dead gaze that Angela was used to seeing on him. He was back to being the capable and extremely skilled commanding officer of the X-04 project. Hell, he probably wasn't even thinking about that almost kiss anymore; if he even had before.
“This is your pilot speaking,” a masculine voice called out over the PA system and grabbed everyone's attention; even Alexanders. “Please buckle up and prepare for takeoff! We'll be climbing to our cruising altitude quickly and I am sorry in advance for any turbulence. I've been notified that we need to reach our destination as fast as possible.”
Angela quickly fished the seat belt out from the space between the back and bottom of the seat and pulled it over her waist. No sooner had she felt it click into place did the plane suddenly roar to life and leap into the sky like it was nothing at all. The pilot hadn't been joking when he said that they were in a hurry, and Angela actually had to hold onto her seat as the plane nearly went vertical for a few minutes while they climbed to the altitude they would be staying at for the flight. When it finally levelled out the seat belt sign dinged and flashed, notifying them that they were allowed to move about once again. How long that would last was anyone's guess though, considering how fast they were travelling.
Unlike the flight Angela had just come from, this one was in no way quiet. Michelle chatted away with anyone and everyone in a long nervous stream that she herself had to keep going multiple times. Angela had never really seen her like this before, but figured it had to do something with the situation they were in. She was nervous, just like everyone else and Angela couldn't bring herself to tell the girl to shut up. The biggest reason for that was the fact that it felt good to hear her voice again, and even if she was talking about useless crap like what her first day home was like didn't seem to bother her that much. The same couldn't be said for Sarah though.
Angela mostly tuned out Michelle's voice and focused on her own thoughts. Her brain felt muddled and it was hard to string together anything for more than a second before another thought came crashing down on her and grabbed all of her attention. She really hadn't been this confused in a very long time and she just didn't understand why. She had seen combat, she knew how chaotic this was was and could get, and she knew she should have been prepared for the arrival of another UNE Hive. Yet for some reason she still couldn't seem to deal with it. It didn't help that just a few hours ago she had been having a great time and couldn't imagine things turning out like this.
“Would you shut up!” Sarah suddenly yelled, getting to the end of her rope at listening to Michelle go on and on about some guy she had met while back home. “No one wants to hear about your stupid little flings! This isn't the time to be thinking about romance, you idiot! The world could literally be ending!”
“Don't you think I know that! I just—” Michelle spat back before either Lisa or Angela could step in and stop the fight before it had a chance to get going. It was Alexander who stopped it a second later though, cutting of Michelle's words with a savage stomp of his booted foot on the ground. They had all been in the military long enough to know that now was the time to shut up.
“Calm down! All of you!” he growled and Angela felt a shiver run through the group of pilots. She herself even shivered slightly at his scathing words, and for good reason; the last time she had heard him talk like this he had been directing his words to her. It had been when she tried to confront him his first day with the squadron.
“Sorry, Captain,” Michelle sighed and leaned back in her seat. It seemed that even Michelle wasn't immune to this version of Alexander and she rarely spoke to him in anything other than a familiar tone.
“Get it together, you guys! You're all in shock right now! Remember that you're pilots in the NATO Armed Forces and not just a bunch of women who don't know any better! I feel like I'm dealing with a bunch of children! If you don't have anything nice to say than don't say anything at all!”
“He's right, you know,” came the familiar voice of Captain Richards from the front of the plane. As Angela looked out over where the voice had come from she couldn't find her though. Instead there was just a wall with a large television screen on it. A second later the television flickered and came on, showing an image of Kimberly standing somewhere dark with shadows of people moving behind her. To say that Kimberly looked stressed would be an understatement. She looked absolutely frayed and at the end of her wits.
“Kim?” Alexander asked and he himself seemed just as surprised by finding her on the screen like that. “You can hear us?”
“Of course I can,” the beautiful young woman smiled and her voice rang through the cabin of the plane with crystal clarity. “I can also see you guys. Sir Rupert's private jet is set up for video conferences so he can still do business even when in the air. That's one of the reason he had it sent out to pick you all up; so I could brief you all before we met up.”
“Is it that bad?” Angela found herself asking and sliding forward in her chair so she could see the screen better. “We're not going to get a briefing before we're deployed?”
“Right, I suppose we should get down to business and not spare too much time on trivial things. Before we start though I will tell you that this is a preliminary briefing, just to get you the information I'm sure you're dying for right now.”
“Yeah, no one seems to know anything,” Michelle spoke and her voice was back to her tone that she usually used, even when speaking to a superior officer. Alexander glared at her from his seat off to the side, but said nothing. Angela actually felt a little comfort in his heated glare, but that could wait until later.
“I am sorry for that. Not much information has been leaked to the press either. As of right now everything is being kept within the military’s around the world and we would like to keep it that way for a little while longer. Three and a half hours ago a new UNE Hive splashed down in the English Channel. There is no reported loss of life from the crash landing as all the cities and towns close to the coast have been under UNE control for the last six months and have been abandoned.”
“What about the early warning system?” Alexander asked and now Angela remembered the UNE Detection System they had in place to warn of any further UNE Hives coming towards Earth. She couldn't believe she had forgotten something like that. If the system was tracking any incoming threats they never would have been allowed to go on leave like they had.
“It seems the system failed this time,” Kimberly answered and her voice was a little strained now. “We'll get to that in a moment. For now I would like to issue your orders. As of this moment the X-04 project has been placed on Ready One status and you are on standby until any further orders are given. During this time you will be sent to—”
“Wait!” Sarah suddenly exclaimed and cut Kimberly off mid sentence. “Why are we being placed on Ready One status? Shouldn't we be on the front lines for when the UNE's attack? I mean that's what's going to happen right? The last time a Hive showed up we lost London a little while later!”
“She has a point, Kim,” Alexander agreed and now his body was rigid and his eyes shone with a fire that Angela had never seen in them before. He looked... well he looked ready to do something stupid and Angela realized that he was itching to get back into the battle. This was probably the moment he had been waiting for since he was released from the hospital.
“Captain Richards, if I may,” another voice broke though the television and Kimberly turned her head to the side and looked at someone just outside of the camera's range. She seemed to frown for a second but then nodded, stepping aside.
A moment later a young and tall man stepped in front of the camera and Angela wondered just who the hell he was to be in the middle of a military operations room like that. He didn't appear to be from the military himself as he wore a blue and red plaid shirt and had thick glasses over his small brown eyes. His hair was also fairly long and pretty messy, something that would never stand for any soldier.
“Wow... hello there,” the man smiled and waved to the camera like an idiot. “Um, where was I? Right! My name is Eddie Powers and I head up the U.N.E. Intelligence and Research facility in Mannheim, Germany.”
“Doctor Powers, get on with it!” Kimberly's voice barked from beside the man and he jumped in response. He quickly adjusted his large ugly glasses and chuckled softly before continuing.
“Right, well, let's get on with it then, shall we? The reason the detection system didn't pick out this Hive is actually an interesting reason. You see the system picks up any unknown registered celestial traffic and reports it, however there is so much junk up there in space that it can be a little finicky. Not to mention that this time was a very unique situation! Now normally the UNE Hives travel through our Solar System avoiding any of the planets, moons, or asteroid belts that might otherwise slow them down. However this time they seemed to have opted for a longer and more dangerous route, directly through the asteroid belt. This is why the systems in place to track them didn't see it until it was already bearing down on us.”
“You make it sound like they have some kind of intelligence,” Michelle quickly pointed out. At her words the man on the screen suddenly smiled and his eyes glinted at the challenge to his assessment and Angela felt her chest tighten at what he might say next.
“They are an intelligent species, my dear girl. They would have to be to devote themselves to interstellar travel and come here. I fear they are more intelligent than most people would give them credit for, and the sooner they realize that the better off we will be. Some colleagues and myself believe that there is a command structure back on their home world, or wherever they come from, giving out orders and analyzing us as this war drags on. If this proved to be true then the implications are grave and I fear that people need to start thinking in the same way as us. If we don't then we will not be prepared for whatever they might throw at us next.”
“That's all very interesting,” Alexander suddenly spoke up and his voice seemed a little sarcastic, “but please get back onto the question, Doctor. Why are we not being deployed to the front as we should?”
“Ah, right... um... sorry,” Doctor Powers coughed and shifted nervously in front of the camera. “Anyways, as I was saying, the U.N.E.'s came to Earth through the asteroid belt and hid their approach until the last moment. Now while we are prepared for another Hive's appearance, we were not prepared for what else we found. When they began to track the Hive a few hours ago NASA decided to locate where it had come from and see what else was out there. They positioned their Halo Telescope in orbit of Mars and began to take images of the path they had taken; and that's when they found something very disturbing. They located a second Hive passing through the asteroid belt.”
A profound silence rang out through the plane and no one said a word as this new information hit them like a cement truck. What they were hearing shouldn't be possible. Nothing like this had ever happened before. The UNE's had only ever sent one Hive at a time. For there to be two out there, one already landed and another still on its way, was just not something anyone wanted to hear. All of Britain had fallen with the arrival of just one and Angela couldn't imagine what the combined strength of two would do to the world.
“A... are you sure?” Lisa squeaked and it was strange for her to be the first one to pull out of her thoughts long enough to ask the question they were all thinking about.
“Sadly yes, I am very certain. I've gone over the data personally and this threat is very real. In eighty two hours time the second Hive will enter our atmosphere.”
At this point Kimberly pushed her way back in front of the camera and nudged the serious looking Doctor out of the way. Her face was even more grim than it had been a few moments before and Angela had trouble looking at her right now. What other earth shattering information did she know that they hadn't been told yet?
Well, at least we know why everything was being kept from the public, Angela thought to herself.
“This is just one reason why you are not being deployed immediately,” she spoke and her voice was tight. “I'm afraid the true reason is even worse than what you might already think. The second Hive which will be on is four days has a different trajectory than the first one did, and we do not expect it to land off the coast of France. Instead analysts project this one will land somewhere near the island of Japan.”
“What?!” Angela found herself suddenly standing, her voice panicked and loud. There was no way she had just heard the captain right.
“I see now,” Alexander said softly a moment after her outburst, and all eyes were suddenly on him. “We can't afford for this war to be fought on two fronts. It makes sense. If the UNE's were to take hold of the East Coast it would only be a matter of months before we lost all of Europe and Asia. So we're being directed to Japan I take it?”
“Yes, but not right away. This brings me to the second part of your orders. You and your machines are being sent to Moscow to link up with a joint task force that will be helping the Japanese Defence Forces.”
This was even more impossible information. Russia and China had closed their borders to the other nations nearly three years ago and had formed their own coalition in defence of their lands. They neither sent troops or weaponry to the front line anymore and instead squandered it all for themselves. So for a NATO outfit to suddenly enter the country of Russia was strange, not to mention the fact that they would be fighting with Russian forces to help protect the country of Japan. None of this made sense.
“Please tell me you are joking, Kimberly,” Alexander blanched and now he was standing with Angela. Looking over she noticed that his eyes were cold and his hands were clenched into tight fists, his knuckles turning white with the pressure. Apparently this news sounded even worse to him.
“I'm afraid not, Alex. These are your orders. When you arrive in Moscow the Major, Doctor Powers, Sir Rupert, and myself will be there waiting and we will then be introduced to the Russian Officer in charge of the troops being sent to Japan. Any further information and updated mission parameters will be given to you at a later time. So for now I suggest you all get as much rest as you can and I will see you soon. Captain Richards, out.”
With that the screen suddenly went blank and then clicked off a second later. Alexander didn't seem to take that lying down though and he quickly spun around and kicked his chair in anger, an emotion that didn't suit him at all. His face was twisted in rage and he growled deep in his throat, forcing Angela and the others to move away from him in fear. No one had seem him quite like this before and Angela really wondered what was going on. She felt like asking him, but found that she was too afraid of him turning his anger on her. So she remained quiet while he stood there and steamed.
After a few long and tense moments he turned back to his pilots and took a deep breath, collecting his thoughts before he spoke. “Get some rest. Don't bother me for anything other than emergency!” he ordered and then stalked off towards the cockpit. A second later he disappeared behind the door and it clicked closed, leaving the four women to sit there and wonder just what in the world was going on.
Angela turned and flashed her friends a worried look, only to find it reflected back at her from Lisa. With a heavy sigh she sat back down once more and kicked her legs up on the small and sleek black table in front of them. Even though she had just gotten most of the information she had been looking for, she felt more lost now than she had before. There was just so much going on that she didn't know what to make of even half of it.
First of all there was the appearance of a new Hive that crashed just West of the front lines. That spelled trouble, but it wasn't even half of their worries. The second Hive that was heading towards Japan was even worse. Alexander was right, they could not survive a war on two fronts and the second Hive needed to be dealt with before the UNE troops ever got a chance to dig in. She understood that, and she even understood why they were being sent to Japan to help out. The JSDF was mostly a defence force and were technically considered to be nothing more than an extension of the police force, so they would need all the help they could get.
What she didn't understand was the fact that the Russians were now willing to stick their heads outside their own borders and go to battle as well. It might have had something to do with the fact that their closest ally, China, would probably be the next target for the UNE's once they held Japan. But still, it was strange. And what was with Alexander's reaction to learning that they were going to Moscow? It seemed to be the worst news he had heard all night and Angela really had no idea why.
“So...” Michelle whispered after an hour or so of silence. It appeared that she had had enough of being quiet. “You gonna tell us why you're in that dress?”
The question was directed at Angela and she suddenly felt a little awkward. Before answering she stood up and tracked down where her bags had been stored, pulling out her combat fatigues. She quickly stripped in the middle of the cabin, not ashamed in front of her friends, and pulled the uniform on. She didn't like being out of uniform when everyone else was wearing theirs. When she had finally stored her bags where she had found them she turned and answered the question, keeping her voice as calm and even as possible. Michelle would be able to sniff out a lie if she gave her any reason.
“Like I said, we went to a wedding,” she answered and then sat down in the seat that Alexander had left open. “A couple of my friends were getting married and I was invited at the last second.”
The answer didn't seem to sate the girls curiosity though and she pushed herself forward in her chair, eyeing Angela suspiciously. “And you took Alexander with you?”
“Didn't have much of a choice. I was told by Kimberly that I was supposed to keep an eye on him, and he had also made friends with someone who was going to the wedding as well. Where are you going with this, Michelle?”
“Me? No where. I was just curious. And also a little envious. You got to hang out with him all day when he was dressed in that snazzy little dress uniform of his. Must have been fun,” Michelle smiled and now Lisa elbowed her softly in the ribs. “What? You can't tell me that he didn't look good in it!”
“Don't you think there's more important things to worry about?” Lisa asked in a soft whisper and her friend shrugged her shoulders. “You should sleep, considering you said you didn't... that you didn't get much last night.”
“Good point! I am beat! Wake me up when we get to Moscow.”
Michelle leaned back in her chair and rested her head against it, closing her eyes a moment later. In a few minutes time she was snoring softly and Angela really had the urge to find something to record it with. So much for Michelle saying how she never snored and it was such an ungodly sound that they needed to find a cure for it in the world. Even Lisa was amused by it and giggled softly to herself as she got comfortable and tried to get some rest.
Sarah on the other hand paid no attention to the two Canadian pilots, and instead focused her attention on Angela. She stared at her with a small amount of confusion in her brown eyes and Angela wondered what had piqued her interest. Neither of them spoke though and after a little while longer, Sarah decided she needed to get some sleep as well. In less than half an hour the cabin was full of the soft sighs and snores of her friends.
She wished she could sleep like that, but every time she closed her eyes she found that her mind wouldn't shut off long enough for her to find any peace. If it wasn't the image of Alexander's face in the shining moonlight by the beach then it was the thought of having to go into battle against a UNE Hive in Japan that kept her up. Either way she didn't see herself getting any sleep and she settled in for the long haul, wondering how long it would be before Alex decided to leave the cockpit.
When they landed at Monino airfield, a military airport in Moscow, it was still dark out and there was a light drizzle on the runway. Angela woke her friends up and together they climbed out of the jet and onto the dark and slick runway. Alexander quickly followed after them as he exited the cockpit and the sour look on his face only seemed to have worsened while he had been away from them. He slung his duffel bag over his shoulder and stared straight ahead of him with a large chip on his shoulder. Now she really wanted to know why he hated the prospect of being in Russia. Angela wasn't that thrilled either, but she also saw it as a big deal. For all they knew they might be the first Western military personnel that had been in Moscow in the last couple of years.
Walking towards a large building that looked to be the center of the base, they quickly found Kimberly, Major Ingles, Sir Rupert Dyson, and the tall and lanky Doctor Powers standing in front of open doors and waiting for them. They quickly caught up to them and dropped their bags, saluting and reporting back to duty as was required when coming off leave. It felt a little strange doing something like in the middle of a Russian military base though.
“Get your passports out and be ready to go through customs,” Major Ingles informed them and everyone fished around in their bags for their documents. Once they had produced them the Major led them into the well lit building and Angela suddenly found herself standing in line behind her friends as they waited for their passports to be checked and then allowed into the country.
There was a single booth with two men in Russian military uniforms going over each one of their passports, but even with so few people it still took a while. When it came time for Angela to move forward and hand her documents over she found that she wasn't asked a single question. The young man with cold eyes and a slightly pudgy face looked over her passport and then typed something into the computer before him. For a long while he just stared at the computer and blinked; it didn't even look like he was reading anything from it. However he finally nodded, stamped her passport and then handed it back to her, pointing to the other side of the booth where her friends were already gathered.
The last person to go through was Alex, and as he stood at the booth he refused to look at the man going over his passport. It honestly looked like he disliked Russians and Angela was a little shocked. She didn't think he would be able to think like that. He was a soldier that knew all to well what it was like to fight for the human race as a whole. So why would he dislike certain nations like that?
When it came time for the Russian soldier/border guard to type information into his computer time seemed to stretch on. He continued to look at the screen and now even Alexander looked towards him, a hard and cold look in his eyes. It was definitely taking a lot longer for him to get through than it had the rest of them.
Kimberly quickly took notice and walked back towards the booth, making sure not to cross the white line that Alexander stood behind. “Is there a problem?” she asked and the man looked up at her, his eyebrows knitting into a single line across his furrowed brow.
“Otstupat!” the solider quickly growled in Russian and motioned for Kimberly to back off.
Without even glancing back at her, he went back to staring at his computer screen and suddenly he began to type more commands into it. Now Alexander seemed to heave a long and heavy sigh and turned his eyes to both Kim and Major Ingles, a gleam of understanding mixed into the vibrant blue. “Make sure no one moves.”
“What's going on?” the Major asked in a bark but Kimberly quickly retreated to him and whispered something into his ear. He seemed to glare at her for a long moment but then nodded. “Attention!”
Immediately the girls snapped to attention, dropping their bags from their shoulders and staring straight ahead of them. It was entirely out of reflex and Angela was sure the others were just as confused as she was in that moment. Why did they need to stand still? And why was it so important that the Major was going to force them to attention to make sure it was done?
That question was answered a minute later as suddenly doors on either side of the terminal flew open and Russian soldiers in full combat gear rushed in, large assault rifles in their hands. They quickly converged on the booth and brought their weapons up to Alexander, the click of safeties being turned off echoing through the stunned silence.
Now Alexander dropped his own bag and raised his hands into the air, spreading his legs and taking a nonthreatening stance. He seemed just as stunned by this turn of events, but Angela saw through it mostly. He wasn't stunned by the sudden appearance of all these Russian soldiers, but instead stunned by how many of them had just popped up. This was why he didn't want anyone to move.
“Lieutenant Voods?” the man at the booth suddenly spoke and Alexander turned his head slowly to look at him.
“Captain,” he corrected.
“Forgive mistake, Captain Voods. Captain Alexander Humphrey Voods?”
“Yes.”
“These men will escort you to accommodations. Leave bag behind for search!”
“Am I under arrest?” Alex now asked and the Major growled at it. Why the hell would they want to arrest Alex? Just what in the world was going on here?
“No. This is precaution. We will hold passport until you leave.”
The soldiers with the guns yelled something out in Russian and Alexander sighed once more and then stepped towards them. He was quickly surrounded and they led him out of the building, Kimberly hot on his heels. A moment later the Major let them go and they picked up their own bags, all rushing out after their detained captain as he was led out into the light and slightly cold drizzle and towards an unmarked black car.
There were three black cars in total waiting and Alexander was led to the first one. All Angela and the other pilots could do was watch as he was roughly pushed in and then a couple of soldiers slid in next to him. The remaining soldiers pointed everyone else to one of the other two cars and they all climbed in, a sense of dread filling the silence. It almost felt like they really had been arrested and Angela was more than a little stunned. She had heard the Russians were a very serious people when it came to their military and the safety of their country, but wasn't this pushing it a little bit?
Angela, Sarah, Michelle, and Lisa climbed into the back of one of the cars while their superiors and the strange doctor climbed into the back of the last one. The windows were tinted so dark that it was impossible to see out of, and Angela figured that it had been done for a reason. Just so they wouldn't see something they weren't supposed to. Still, it kind of sucked. This was the first time to Moscow for any of the pilots and she was sure that they all wanted to see what it looked like at least once.
The four pilots were stuck in the back of the vehicle for what felt like a long time, but in reality was probably more along the lines of half an hour at the most. When the cars finally came to a stop they found that the doors were opened by someone outside and they climbed out to find that they had been brought to a large and well maintained white building somewhere in the city. The Russian flag flapped through the darkness and the rain had now intensified, falling down on them and nearly soaking them to the bone instantly.
Alexander was also escorted out of the lead car and with his armed military escort they were all led through a large set of doors and into the interior of the building. They found themselves inside a large main hall with tiled floors, a vaulted ceiling, and crystal chandeliers hanging down from above and swathing everything in a gentle yet bright light. A group of men and women in various military uniforms stood just inside the entrance and saluted, snapping to attention the second they saw the NATO personnel. The man in front of this group of soldiers smiled but did not salute.
As Angela looked at him more she began to see why he hadn't saluted. His uniform was perfectly pressed and the medals on his chest sparkled in the light, yet his right arm hung at his side and swayed at the slightest movement. He also held a black wooden cane in his left hand and it seemed that most of his weight was actually on his left leg. He was too young to need the use of a cane and couldn't be more than thirty years old at most, with short brown hair and piercing blue eyes that almost rivalled Alexander's in beauty. Only his weren't cold or hard; until they fell across Alex at least.
“Welcome, honoured guests!” the man smiled and spoke in perfect English. Even through a heavy Russian accent Angela still knew exactly what he had said.
“Vasily!” Alexander suddenly roared and took a step forward, only to be pushed back by a large soldier with a gun. “What are you doing here?”
“Oh my, is that you, Alexander,” the man named Vasily sneered. “Please call me Major Zuyev. It's not like you to be so impolite. And as for why I am here... well that's simple: this is my country. Why wouldn't I be here?”
“Alex, stop it,” Kimberly warned and tried to get closer to him. With the soldiers still surrounding him she couldn't even get close though and had to settle for staring at him angrily.
“It's alright, Captain Richards. I expected such a reception from the young lieutenant,” the Russian officer shook his head softly and then took a step away from his soldiers that still saluted.
“Your intelligence is outdated, I'm a captain!”
“Really? Well that is joyous news! I suppose congratulations are in order! But I'm afraid they will have to wait until later. I understand that you all had a long journey and are probably eager for a good and comfortable bed to rest in.”
At the thought of having an actual bed to climb into, Angela's legs almost gave out. That had been the one thing she had wanted on the plane and now it looked like she was finally going to get it. Still, it bothered her the way Alexander and this Vasily guy talked to one another. It was almost like they hated one another and she began to wonder where they had met and what possibly could have happened.
“That would be greatly appreciated,” Kimberly smiled back at the man with the injured right arm and leg, “however if it isn't a problem, Major Ingles and I thought it would be better if we went over the plans for what's to happen in the next few days.”
“Very well. You two can follow me and I will take you to our operations center. The doctor may also join if he wishes. Do not worry about your pilots. They will be looked after, you have my word,” he assured them all and then turned to talk specifically to the pilots, his eyes lingering on Michelle in a very creepy and inappropriate way. “After you rest up for a few hours there will be a demonstration for you all to view. I hope you enjoy our hospitality.”
With that he nodded his head and then turned to walk way, Major Ingles and Kimberly quickly following him. However they didn't even make it ten steps when the sound of combat books smacking into the hard tiled floor caught everyone’s attention and someone broke through the line of soldiers who were still saluting. Seriously, what was with that?
The woman who stepped forward and came to attention in front of Major Zuyev was short and thin. She wore combat fatigues like the X-04 pilots and had her short golden blonde hair tied back in a neat bun. She was very pale with a smattering of dark freckles over her cheeks and her bright green eyes stood out in contrast. For some reason the first thing Angela could think was that this woman was normal looking. She wasn't very pretty but she also wasn't ugly. She looked like someone you might pass on the streets and never take a second look at. Plain.
“Leytenant Zuyev, pribyl po komande!” she announced in Russian and Angela had no idea what she had just said. Judging by the fact she was standing at attention and saluting the Major she figured that she was reporting in.
“A... Anya...” Alexander stuttered. Looking back Angela found him stepping towards the girl in question, a shocked and almost scared look on his face. The girl, Anya as he had just called her, shifted her eyes over to the young captain and then quickly snapped them back, instead looking at her superior officer. Neither Alexander or the Major seemed to miss the twitch of the girls lips though.
“Stay put!” one of the soldiers escorting Alex barked and roughly shoved him back.
“Ah, Lieutenant Zuyev, I am glad you could join us. Please speak English when in front of our guests. We wouldn't want them thinking that we are speaking ill of them,” Vasily smiled and quickly nodded his head, his form of a return salute. “I had been hoping you would be here to receive them, however it is of no consequence. You may return to your duties if you wish.”
“Yes, sir!”
With that, the short and young looking girl saluted once more and then spun on her heel. She didn't waste another second standing there and retreated behind the line of saluting soldiers, disappearing from sight less than ten seconds later. At this point, Vasily looked towards Alex and plastered a sneer on his face, winking once before chuckling to himself like some kind of evil genius. It was the strangest thing and Angela really had no idea what was going on.
“Anya!” Alexander suddenly yelled, his voice echoing through the large main hall. Before any of the guards could stop him, he quickly leapt aside and tried to take off after the girl who had left them behind only moments before. He didn't even make it a dozen feet before Kimberly quickly grabbed hold of him and roughly held him in place, a furious snarl on her lips.
“Captain Woods! Just what in the hell do you think you're doing?!”
“Move, Kimberly!” he snapped back and then seemed to quickly realize what he had just done. He immediately stopped fighting back and took a step away from Kimberly. “I... I'm sorry. This will not happen again.”
“You're damn right it won't! Now return to your pilots and go and get some rest! I will come and deal with you later! Is that understood?” Kimberly demanded and Alexander nodded. A moment later he turned back towards Angela and the others and slowly walked back, his eyes looking every where but at them.
He looked mad, confused, embarrassed, and a little depressed all at once. Whatever was going on here was no small thing and Angela noticed the look of sheer happiness on Vasily's face as he watched Alex stalk away. The man quickly hid it behind a mask of indifference and then turned back in the direction he had been leaving. Together with the other Major and Captain Richards they walked off until they were out of sight behind a door.
As Angela watched Alex join up with the rest of them she couldn't help but stare at him in confusion. She desperately wanted to know what that had all been about but she didn't dare ask him. All she knew was that it looked like not only he and Vasily knew each other, but he and this girl, Anya as well. That had Angela a little depressed as well. Just who was this mysterious girl and what did she mean to Alexander?