Artificial

Firestarter

Operators Phoenix/Lazarus

I follow Evo and Velox through the trees, and find myself staring at a sprawling forward base, the perimeter wall covered in patrolling guards. I take a step forward.
"I could bomb 'em back to the Stone Age."
Evo looks back at me.
"That's definitely an option," he replies, then turns to Reach. "You want to send a few of your guys to check it out before we start raising hell?"
"Yeah, that's a good idea." Then, without looking over his shoulder, he adds, "Wraith, Apex," and follows up with a whistle. The young Operator grabs the slim infiltrator by the arm and begins guiding him toward the base.
"Come on, babe."
The duo begin to move toward the base, disappearing as they do.
I turn to Velox.
"Are they..."
"Together? I think so."
"Haven't they only been in the same team for a few hours?"
"Yeah. Girl moves fast."
"That she does. Takes after her 'big sister'."
I smirk at her, and she blushes, but is able to keep it controlled.
Wraith's voice comes over the comm channel.
"Place is heavily fortified. Looks like they've been planning an attack on FOB Ayala for a while."
"Definitely," Apex adds. "They've got armor, aircraft, and the heavy troopers out in the yard. Whatever's going down, it's going down soon."
"Excellent work, you two," Reach congratulates. "Now get out of there. Wait in the tree line and start hunting VIPs when the attack starts.
"Can do, sir," Wraith immediately reports. "Give us two mikes then start raising hell."
"Gotcha."

The two minutes pass like an hour, all of us anxious to get vengeance for those who fell during the raid.

Finally, they pass, and Reach confirms his recon team is clear.
"Alright, Phoenix," Evo begins, stepping to my side. "Show us what you got."
I crack a smile, step forward, and plant my boots solidly into the earth. I relinquish my rifle to my right hand, letting the weapon drift by my side, and extend my left arm, palm facing outward. As I slowly drift my palm over the base, small hexagons appear over the wall, indicating impact points. Once my hand finishes its pass over the fortifications, I pull it back to face me, hand tightened into a fist.
"TARGETS LOCKED" appears at the top of my HUD, and I hear the launchers on my back rise up to my shoulders in preparation.
Ready to fire, Phoenix.
I turn to the team leaders.
"Is everyone ready?"
They nod without hesitation.
"Let loose some hellfire," Evo orders, and my smile widens just a bit more.
"This base is nothing but kindling. Let's see how well it burns."
I extend my arm back toward the stronghold, opening my fist as I do, and stand in firm determination as a volley of guided incendiary grenades bursts forth from my shoulders.

They look like little more than flares at first, the little orange dots in the sky. What the naked eye can't perceive is the little fins that guide each and every explosive to its precise impact point, covering as much area as possible and dealing maximum damage. Finally, the grenades strike the base, lighting it up like a grim fireworks show. Thermite melts through the walls of the facility and the armor of tanks and dropships, and incinerates any personnel unlucky enough to be caught in the blast.
"Holy shit," Evo comments, barely audible. The rest of the Operators are stunned silent.
"Well, we've no time to waste! What's next, Evo?" I ask, bringing the squad back to attention.
"Now, we move in, and soften up this place as much as we can for the Marines."
"Let's do it!" Reach yells.
Riot whoops in the back, and the girls nod in approval.
Evo faces the whole group, ready to deliver a rallying speech.
"Alright, I'm not gonna tell you how to fight. Ayala took care of that in spades. But I will remind you to look out for each other and never underestimate the enemy. Work together, we're outgunned here."
Velox approaches Evo and slides her arm around him, every motion fluid, smooth, and confident.
"As long as we're together, we're never outgunned," she whispers, barely audible to the rest of us.
Shockwave suddenly slams into Reach, her arms wrapping around his back.
"Ditto," she comments as Reach desperately tries to regain his breath while returning the hug.