Mobius Squadron: Operation Katina

Chapter 25: Close the Valve

Bravo 1

The six members of the 12th SOC gathered around the table. This was to be the final briefing for the operation. "Alright, we've found the guy who produces the Free Erusean chemical weapon, Orion. His name is Professor Rupert. No first name, records don't show one. Photo-recon and pattern of life surveillance by the Farbanti Law Enforcement Corps have given us three primary locations associated with the man. He has an apartment in downtown Farbanti, just off the Central Park. Secondly, he works at Erusean National University, in the Voslage Chemistry Building. Finally, he has a separate, private lab on the outskirts of the city. Working with the FLEC, we will be raiding all three of these locations. We will be split into pairs. Samson, you and I will be going to the apartment. Wilson, Paulson, you take the Chemistry Building. Finally, Walters and Jameson will search the private lab. ROE as follows: engage if fired upon. Non-lethal if possible, but lethal allowed if necessary. We're weeding out a large network of Free Erusean assets and sympathisers in this operation. Apparently the ISAF Erusean Command has been onto this since it kicked off. We'll be shuttled over by our friends from S.O.A.R and will be gearing up in proper CBRN kit on location. Oh, and we want Rupert alive. Any questions?". There were none. All the troops grabbed duffel bags and headed to the two waiting MH-6Ms. Within minutes of the end of the brief, they were on route for Erusea.

They arrived just as the sun was setting. The two Little Birds touched down swiftly onto the marked out pads. Andrews was first off, his duffel bag coming with him. As the Little Birds spooled down, a man walked out to Andrews. He wore the navy blue uniform and insignia of the FLEC, along with a bright white 'POLICE' stencilled on the front of the vest. "Captain Andrews?" the man asked. Andrews nodded. The man stood at attention and pulled a sharp salute. "Lieutenant Rogier, Farbanti Law Enforcement Corps, Special Weapons And Tactics Command, Chemical Warfare Team Leader". Andrews returned the salute. The FLEC, S.W.A.T Command, Chemical Warfare Team were to be their partner unit on the raid. They had been brought in as soon as what Professor Rupert was working on had become clear. "Which way to the briefing and change room Lt?" Andrews inquired. Rogier led the way. Inside, his men all snapped to attention, to be dismissed by the lieutenant. The Bravo members geared up the same as the S.W.A.T members. They both wore the same design of CBRN oversuit that would keep out almost all threats. Each man donned a full sized filtration unit backpack, and connected it to their APR. Each man had his seals checked by multiple people. Other than that, helmets were the same for both. While the bright stencilling on the S.W.A.T vests and oversuits was the same, the 12th SOC wore special oversuits and vests with the triple arrow symbol and 'ISAF' stencilled on them for identification as members of the overseeing ISAF Erusean Command. "All set? Ok, let's move" Rogier announced with his thick Erusean accent. They moved through hallways to a motor pool. There were three S.W.A.T versions of MRAPs present there. Rogier showed which one would be going to which site. Into the passenger bay of each went the two ISAF troopers, followed by six Chemical Warfare Team members. Once each MRAP was ready, and radio nets had been established and tested, they rolled out into the night streets of Farbanti. Their lights and sirens were off, but the standard headlights and lettering made sure that they got very favourable traffic conditions that night.

Bravo 2

Samson looked across at Lieutenant Rogier during the long ride. The man was young, but an officer. Yet another reminder of his age. Despite the rank disparity, Rogier deferred to Samson with respect for the Sergeant Major's massive pool of experience. While Samson and Andrews both had HK416s, albeit Andrews having an M320 underbarrel grenade launcher, Rogier and his men mainly used the MP5SD submachine gun. Sure, they had long rifles at their disposal but it seemed the FLEC members liked the little thing. "One minute!" the driver called back. This caused all eight men inside to check their equipment one last time. The MRAP pulled up to the entrance of an apartment complex. One of the S.W.A.T people opened the door and they piled out. No lasers or NVGs for this operation, instead each one of them had a headlamp on their helmet and flashlight on their gun. Rogier and Andrews led the way, with Samson leading the rest of the group. Rogier opened the door and went in. At the entrance was what looked to be the landlord and some assistants. The landlord's eyes went wide at the sight of the men. Rogier started talking. "Farbanti Law Enforcement Corps, Special Weapons And Tactics Command. We've got a warrant for the arrest of one of your occupants, a Professor Rupert. Which room?". The lieutenant knew how to handle things, Samson had to hand it to him. The landlord was still in shock, so one of the assistants answered for him. "2nd floor, Apartment 243". Rogier nodded. "Thank you Madam. I'll be leaving a pair of my men here to secure the entrance. Apologies for the interruption. Have a good evening". Rogier then beckoned to two of the troops, who took up sentry positions in the foyer. "Stairs" Andrews ordered when Rogier moved for the elevator. The policeman nodded. Andrews was still in command and instinct was obviously telling the captain to take the stairs. Andrews led up, Rogier following. Samson was third. Each man moved slowly, and each covered their respective angles well. They got to the second floor, and moved to the door with the marker 243. Andrews and Samson took up positions on either side, with Rogier delivering a very violent knock. "FLEC, OPEN UP!" he shouted. There was no response. "Emmanuel, you're up" Rogier announced while backing away from the door. One of the men moved over, retrieving a battering ram from where it was slung over his shoulder. The man heaved back, then swung the battering ram forward. The door came off its hinges, landing flat on the floor. Andrews and Samson moved in quickly, securing the initial entrance. "Lights!" Samson ordered. One of the men went and flipped the necessary switches. Soon, most of the apartment was alight. "Spread and secure" Andrews said. They had gone over the floor plans for the apartment a million times since they had gotten them. All the apartments were identical. Andrews and Samson immediately moved towards where the bedrooms were. Just as they got there, Andrews held up his fist. Samson heard it too. There was definitely noise coming from within the room. <<Bravo 1 to Bunsen 1-1. Audible noise in the master bedroom. Bravo 1 and 2 investigating>> Andrews informed Rogier over radio before Samson opened the door. He moved in and sweeped the area. Andrews found the light switch for the room, and turned it on. The room was a dishevelled mess. There were signs of panicked movement, and in the corner of the room was a woman hugging a small boy. "Did the files say Rupert had a family?" Samson asked. Andrews nodded. "Hands!" Andrews shouted at them. The woman slowly raised her hands. <<Bravo 2 to Bunsen 1-1. Two civilians located in the bedroom, send some men to guard>> Samson transmitted. Within seconds, two FLEC members were there and handling things. <<Bunsen 1-1 to all stations, SSE commence>> Rogier informed the team that the apartment was secure. Andrews and Samson moved and started examining the office area of Rupert. The place was disorganised. Papers and files strewn all over the place, no discernable pattern. "How's your organisational skills?" Andrews asked Samson. "Not good" the Sergeant Major responded as the pair started moving through the piles. Anything that seemed to relate to Orion, Free Erusea, or any other illegal activities Rupert was suspected of partaking in was noted and filed away. Personally, Samson had hoped for a more exciting evening. But the work was important and had to be done.