National Security Operations Center (NSOC), Location: Classified
2240 hours
...
A dark room, brightened by computer screens and dim blue lights. A digital timer, counting to four minutes and twenty seconds. Hushed tones, murmurs, and a TV at the corner providing some ambience. The day was not yet over.
...
"...erupted with gunshots and explosions, not long after SWAT officers stormed the bank a second time. We have no word as to the casualties from this... bloody confrontation in Downtown, though some sources claim that at least seven from the LAPD have been killed. There are also rumors that-"
...
An unnamed staffer pressed the mute button, cutting the news segment short. It was game time.
While most of the country slept soundly, a handful of analysts from the National Security Agency remained wide awake, business as usual. They had been following the hunt for Leonard Fausse with grim determination since Langley shared them the intel this morning. The sun had set hours ago. Fausse was confirmed dead before lunchtime, but his last few goons were still on the loose. NSOC had to work around the clock, coordinating resources and assets to put an end to the threat once and for all. A whole lot of mucking about while the good guys fought and bled.
But at long last, the denouement was near. 'Six', the Deputy Director of the Rainbow Program, was given a frontrow seat to witness the end. She was here at her behest, even if her body much preferred to be in bed at this hour. The day had been long and exhausting in equal parts, but she promised herself that she'd see it through.
"Coffee, ma'am?", her aide asked.
The young man in the suit was offering her a steaming cup.
"No need, Ryan. I'm fine."
The high-level pass pinned to her coat gave her unparalleled access behind the scenes. She observed the sleep-deprived analysts type into their keyboards and speak into their headsets. The large monitors showed a live feed from a couple of MQ-1 drones hovering above a quaint, coast side neighborhood in San Pedro, Los Angeles. The time zone difference meant it was seven o'clock in the evening over there, as shown by the timestamp. At least one monitor kept a bird's eye view of a two-story house, surrounded by what looked to be police vehicles and dozens of armed cops. According to the CIA, this particularly innocuous building was actually a hideout, occupied by the remaining members of America's True Patriots. LAPD's finest were given the honor of seizing it from the terrorists.
A last stand, in other words. It was a pity that Team Rainbow decided to sit this one out, but they've already had their fill of the fighting for today. It was time for the locals to carry on.
"Green light, green light. All units move in.", Six overheard the radio chatter.
The action unfolded in the monitors. Within seconds, dozens of silhouettes stormed the house from all directions- the construction site, the river docks, the side street, and the backyard. Their maneuvers were well-drilled, their discipline unflinching. A company's worth of highly-trained shooters versus a handful of murderers, cornered like rats. It looked like a one-sided encounter, but the ATP had it coming. They marked themselves for death when they turned Downtown into a warzone this morning, to say nothing of their hand in the massacre at Bartlett five days ago. There would be no escape for them, and they knew it. Another vicious battle was all but inevitable...
"Holy shit!", one of the analysts exclaimed.
...And the prediction quickly proved to be right on the money.
YOU ARE READING
Freedom Day
Action(Originally published in FF.net) After recovering from a botched mission in the Middle East, a new recruit joins Team Rainbow eager for a chance at redemption. But the attack on Bartlett proved that his failure had more consequences than he thought...
