Rainbow Six: November Sun

32: "LUCKY CHAIR"

RAINBOW HEADQUARTERS
HEREFORD, ENGLAND
SITUATION ROOM

10:54

The Situation Room was buzzing with activity like countless times before. Kate Harvell was syncing navigation systems and prioritizing comms channels. Agent Douglas Lilly was on the phone with one of his nameless CIA handlers. Intel Chief Vince Vion was preparing media displays and overseeing the automated pull of key Twitter feeds.

The entrance opened and four operators filed in. Meghan "Valkyrie" Castellano, Masaru "Echo" Enatsu, and Dr. Elena "Mira" Álvarez strode in briskly. On their heels was Recruit Nadolski, a promising young operator who specialized in fast-action breach-and-clear maneuvers.

Vince waved at them from the other side of the room. "Another day at the office?" he called with a grin.

Mira flashed a smile. "You know it."

Echo sank into the middle seat at the Guardian Support station. He felt someone tapping on his shoulder, and the man looked up to see Valkyrie standing indignantly over him. "Yes?"

"That's my seat, man."

Echo frowned. He looked down at the glass top table, swiped at the embedded digital screens a few times, looked under the table, and then made a show of inspecting the chair he'd sat down in. "Interesting. I don't see your name here anywhere."

Valkyrie folded her arms across her chest. "Seriously, Masaru?"

"Seriously. I really don't see your name anywhere."

Mira snorted as she tried to suppress a laugh. Valkyrie glared at the woman before slumping into an adjoining seat.

Echo stood, pulled his chair out, and gestured for Valkyrie to sit. "You know I'm fucking with you, Meghan."

The woman studied him for a moment before relenting. She sank into the center seat with a sigh of satisfaction. "Thanks. You know how I am with this seat."

"I know."

"It's my lucky chair, dude."

"I know."

Valkyrie clapped the man hard on the shoulder, jarring him so much that his elbows glided across his table screen, accidentally opening multiple unnecessary tabs. "You're a good man, Masaru. I don't care what Yumiko says about you."

Echo rubbed his shoulder gingerly. "Jesus," he protested. "Maybe hit the gym a little less often?"

"Maybe you should hit the gym more."

"Everyone ready?" called Kate.

Mira was situating her tabletop displays, and she projected a hologram of the Washington Convention Center into the middle of her table. "Ready to establish comms with teams on-site."

Kate pulled her headset on snugly and flashed a thumbs-up. "Roger. Six Actual; Three-One; Four-One; how copy?"

"Loud and clear," answered Harry.

"Team 3 copies," came Warden.

"Team 4 reads you," Tachanka replied.

Valkyrie cleared her throat before turning on her mic. "Guardian Two copies."

Mira adjusted her frequency. "Guardian Three copies."

"Guardian Four acknowledges," chimed Echo.

Kate Harvell's fingers glided over her keyboard, and her eyes danced between both of her computer monitors. "Comms are green all the way around, Harry. We're ready."

"Roger," Director Six answered, his voice crackling slightly over the radio. "Stand by for further updates. We're five minutes to AO. Six Actual, out."

"Can someone clean up Harry's frequency?" Kate called, not averting her eyes from her screens. "Little more static than I'd like."

"Already on it," responded Mira. She craned her neck over her shoulder. "Where's the recruit?"

"Here!" Recruit Nodalski was walking quickly for the Guardian Station, a tray of drinks in his arms. "I brought coffee."

"Impressive, Cameron." Valkyrie winked at the young man. "You might be Rainbow material, after all."

The recruit handed a cup to each of his peers. "Yes, ma'am. That's the idea."

Mira swiveled about in her chair to face the recruit. "Gracias," she said, taking her coffee. "Just like last time, Recruit. Sit back and watch us. Take it all in."

"Yes, ma'am."

"Pay attention to the flow of things. Pay attention to what we're doing, and what Kate and her people are doing," Mira continued, pointing across the room. "Guardian is like two arms of one being. Kate and Vince and their analysts are focused on logistics, overview. We are focused on specifics - mission parameters."

Nodalksi bit his lip. "Yes, ma'am."

Mira smiled faintly, detecting the recruit's apprehension. "Meghan, Masaru and I are focused on our operators on the ground. We're watching drone cams when they're not - we're making sure their comms signals aren't disrupted - we're watching their six, we're evaluating layout and floor plans when they might not have time to. We'll ping locations for them, listen to their call-outs."

"Yes, ma'am."

Valkyrie snorted. "You sound like a broken record, Recruit."

"Yes, m-... affirmative."

The Rainbow operators at the Guardian station shared a laugh, and Echo beckoned for Recruit Nodalski to sit.

"All elements," came Kate, "be advised: merging comms with Secret Service elements on-site. Callsigns only from this point on. Secure channel on standby if required."

"We're two minutes from the AO," informed Warden. "Guardian, stand by."

Mira took a deep breath and exhaled mightily. "Here we go. Seatbelts on, ladies and gentlemen."