“Sure this is a good idea, Mitch? You’ve been a little…wired recently.”
“So my faith in humanity has been rocked a little, what’s the issue?”
“That maybe taking God knows how many of us on a suicide mission when you aren’t a hundred percent isn’t smart?”
“Oh, come on. If you wanted me at a hundred percent, you should have come to me before the first invasion.”
Parker appeared at his side and took his arm to lead him away. She gave him a glass that looked like it was filled with beer, but as he drank it was hit by fizz and a lack of alcohol.
“You okay, Mitch?”
“Yeah, why does everyone keep fucking asking?”
“You know you’ve been through a lot.”
“Oh, don’t give me this shit, nothing has changed here. Shit is the same as it always has been. I haven’t changed a single bit.”
“All right, okay. I just don’t want you biting off more than you can chew.”
Taylor shook his head in disbelief.
“Don’t you lose faith in me, not now, not after all we have been through.”
“I just don’t want to see you get hurt.”
“Then believe in me, like you always used to.”
He looked into her eyes and could see there was still doubt deep down.
“Please, if we’re gonna make it through any of this, I need to know you have my back every step of the way.”
She nodded in agreement, and he could see her expression change.
“Okay, I will,” she said sincerely.
He took a step back and looked at her carefully, seeing she truly meant it. He knew he had lost his stride with the sniper incident, and it was time to get back on track.
“Seriously, the whole World is in trouble. They need us at our very peak, the best we can be. We need to set aside all other shit in our lives and be what we are famous for. We are the Immortals, and that is what the World needs right now.”
She accepted all that he had said, and they sat down to enjoy whatever non-alcoholic drink she had given him. But their peaceful time didn’t last long. Just twenty minutes after laying down to rest, Dupont arrived at the hangar with a number of his staff.
“Taylor!”
The room fell silent. Mitch got up; noting the obnoxious American officer who had tried to destroy him earlier that day accompanied the General.
“Oh, please,” he said.
“It’s okay, Colonel. I have been in contact with my counterparts in the US, and despite their reservations, they have accepted you are the right man for the job.”
Taylor smiled in response and looked past the General to the female officer who tried not to make contact.
“I’ll do it…”
“Excellent.”
“However! I want an assurance from the US President himself that no charges will be made against myself or any who serve with me.”
“For what exactly?” the woman asked.
“Anything, everything,” he replied. “No charges of going AWOL, insubordination, tax evasion, whatever. I want a guarantee that we are safe from prosecution from any shit that might be levied against us. I think we deserve it.”
Dupont looked back to the American officer and expected a response. She looked pissed off but finally agreed.
“I want that documented before we leave, and then we’re good to go. I need every piece of intel we have on this defence grid. I want an EMP set to go. I want the fastest small transports available on Earth, and I want it all in the next thirty minutes. We have a job to do, a big job, and I want every chance of making it work.”
“You’ve got every resource you need, Colonel. We’re on a tight schedule here, and you know what’s at stake. Do whatever you need to.”
“Then we’re in business. Inter-Allied is at your service and good to go!”
Chapter 9
The officers and senior NCOs sat about a briefing room looking at the blue prints of the German battleship, Nassau. There was utter silence as they stared at it and clearly wracked their brains for a solution to the behemoth they were facing. The air was thick, as none of them had even had a moment to wash since returning from their last mission. Taylor wiped the sweat from his brow as he felt the salt on his mouth from where it was seeping down his face. Eventually Silva broke the silence.
"Sure we can't send the fleet against them?"
Taylor nodded. "The EA fleet would have a better than average chance of victory against everything they have, but not quick enough to stop that grid from firing. If those weapons fire on Earth, it's all over. The EA and any allies we still have will be smashed."
"So we have about a thirty-second window to get past this thing and get to the defence grid before we're blown to shit?" Jones asked.
"Hey, I'm all for saving the planet and all, but this is crazy!" added Rains.
The room was silenced once again and all looked to Taylor.
"Look, I didn't order any of you to be here. I volunteered, and I am not asking any one of you to follow me. That is your choice."
"We want to follow you," said Grey. "We just want to know we're risking our lives with at least a chance of success, and not just being blown out of the sky without a hope in hell."
Taylor nodded. "Most of the ships in the area will be out of action for some time, both ours and theirs, so the Nassau is our primary concern. Thirty seconds of being without power is enough to make her vulnerable."
"You're not thinking what I think you're thinking?"
He nodded. "Yeah, Jones, we have to board her and the defence grid simultaneously."
Silva shook his head. "And with how many men?"
"There are only a handful of ships fast enough to get from beyond the EMP range into action before that thirty seconds is up. I figure we could get maybe a hundred and fifty or so."
"A hundred and fifty to take on a battleship and the defence grid?" asked King. "The Nassau alone probably has a couple of hundred marines aboard."
"Yes, but scattered throughout the vessel and without the combat experience and skills of this Regiment."
"That's a big assumption to make," muttered Jones.
"At this point we are gonna have to make the best of a bad choice of options and go with it. We're leaving within the hour, so we better have a damn good idea of what we're doing," Taylor replied.
They all knew there was little else to be considered.
"Say we can pull this off and stop the defence grid, what happens to us then?" asked Grey.
"We hope the EA fleet can get to us in time to assist and hope for the best. Right now, our main concern must be deactivating those weapons, or it's all over."
They all knew their lives meant nothing compared to the importance of the operation’s success. None of them wanted to say it, but they knew it was true.
"Captain King, I want you and your Company on standby for this. If we can succeed in disabling both targets, you will come to our aid, because trust me, we'll need it. Dupont wants me to take on the defence grid personally, so I'll need a volunteer to lead the Nassau element of this operation."
It was a big thing to ask, and he knew who he wanted for the job.
"Nice to know I'm wanted," said Jones. "Yes, I'll do it."
Taylor nodded in appreciation. He still wasn't certain Jones was quite the man he used to be, but he certainly was still the right soldier for the job.
"Has the US declared war yet?" asked King.
Taylor shook his head.
"As far as I understand it, they recognise the threat the defence grid poses and condemn its use against Earth."
"Well that's a big fucking help."