Bubblegum Crisis Fan Fiction ❯ Black Knights, Steel Hearts ❯ Chapter 36

[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]

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Bubble Gum Crisis is copyrighted by Artmic Inc. and Youmex, Inc. I am
just borrowing the characters for a little while, and promise not to
bend, fold, or staple them - unless I can come up with a good reason to
do so. I can be contacted at the Email address above. C&C will be
accepted, out and out flames will result in a Boomer or two being sent
after you, once they get around to inventing them.

Please, enjoy my take on the Bubble Gum Crisis universe.....
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Chapter 36

Gulf and Bradley - Japan Headquarters
Sunday, December 23, 2035
4:35am

"WHAT?"

Ozu wasn't the type of man to flinch, but he made an exception this time. They were in Bradley's office and neither man looked rested or happy. The tension in the room was unmistakable, having shot up at the security man's news.

Carlton Bradley was white with anger and his eyes burned with an intense fire. After several seconds, he said in a still, cold voice. "How bad is the damage at the refinery?"

The security man shook his head. "We don't know. Things are too fucked up right this second to even guess."

"What went wrong?' asked Cora, her voice low and hard. She was sitting on the sofa, watching the two men face off against each other over Carlton's desk. "Security was suppose to be tight, damn it!"

Ozu looked at her. "Against human, or a small number of rogue Boomers, yes. But this was a deliberate, planned strike using military Boomers working in concert with each other."

"What about the other locations?" hissed Carlton. "How bad have they been hit?"

"Those reports range from minor damage to complete loss of the building and contents. The reports are scattered and several of the places are still under attack. Should we send out reinforcements from out security here?"

"No," said Carlton, his voice cold and still. "That's what these attacks are designed to do -- dilute our defenses here, then strike where were too weak to stop them."

"Who's behind this?" Cora snarled. "MALCORP?"

"GEMON." Ozu let the word hang in the air before he continued. "There was an incident at the GLAS complex about two and a half hours ago. Several Boomers went on a rampage, destroying one of the towers. At least eighty are dead, over a hundred injured and several dozen missing."

"So?" snapped Cora.

"One of the missing is Mr. Azamizu."

Carlton's fist slammed down onto the desk. "Damn it! That bastard Quincy knows --he KNOWS!"

"And he'll be coming after us," said Cora, her expression one of fury.

"What do we do now?" asked Ozu.

"Get out to Alpha Star One and take control," said Carson. " Use one of the helicopters - I want you there ASAP and I want a
preliminary report by seven o'clock."

"Right," replied the security man. "I'm on my way."

After the security man darted out, Carson turned to look at Cora. "Get ready to move the girl."

Cora frowned. "Doctor Kyso said the move could kill her."

"I don't care. Quincy's coming and I'm not going to leave her dangling for him to pluck from us."

"All right. Where are we going?"

"We have a small research lab on an island about three hundred kilometers to the southwest of here. We'll move the girl and our operations there for the time being."

Cora rose from the sofa. "We should be ready to move in fifteen minutes."

"Fine," snapped Carlton. "Keep the security detail to a minium. If we take too many, Quincy might get suspicious. Also, make sure the Boomers are operating under Zeta protocols."

"Is that wise? Those protocols can't tell the difference between our men and the enemy. We could loose all of them!"

Carlton straightened. "The longer Quincy is focused on this fight, the better chance we have of getting away. Besides, he'll spend time wondering why we had suicidal Boomers guarding an empty nest."

"I don't like running," said Cora coldly.

"It's not running, it's a 'strategic retreat'."

"It's still running."

Carlton shook his head. "Once we get situated, we'll launch our own attack against GENOM."

"What about Mclaren and his team? If GENOM gets a hold of them...."

"I'll make sure that loose end is taken care of. Their necessity to this operation is almost complete."

"Pity we don't have time to do the job right," said Cora, almost wistfully. "I would have love to hear that bastard scream and plead for his life."

"Get going," said Carlton sternly. "We're running out of time."

**********

Near Gulf and Bradley - Japan Headquarters
Sunday, December 23, 2035
4:43am

The tractor-trailer was ten blocks from the Gulf and Bradley headquarters building, parked in an empty lot. The few early morning denizens of the district gave the unusual sight a once over, but move on hurriedly at the trio of men carrying machine pistols who seemed to be guarding the vehicle.

Inside, a small command center had been built that took up the first third of the trailer. Several techs, dressed in black jumpsuits, sat at consoles, tasked with coordinating a multi-pronged attack against Gulf and Bradley. Around a table in the center of the trailer, a final conference was being held. There were fifteen people there, seven in hardsuits, the rest in black jumpsuits. All were armed in one form or another, and there was a grim purpose in the air.

"Any objections?' asked Knight One.

Leon shook his head. He was dressed in a black jumpsuit over which a combat harness had been put over. He cradled a nasty-looking rifle in his arms. "What about the twins?' he asked. "Are they considered targets?"

Knight One shook his head. "As much as I want to pay those two back for their actions, those two dead would be more trouble then alive. The last thing MALCORP needs is a feud with Gulf and Bradley."

Sylia looked at Linna and Nene. "Are you ready?" she asked them over their private channel. As an unspoken agreement, neither side had opened their visors in the presence of the other hardsuit group, so with the exception of Greg, Sylia had no idea who the other members of Red Team looked like. On the other hand, only Greg knew who she was, and he didn't know the identity of her teammates. A trust that was not exactly trust, an alliance that was only held together by a common enemy.

Linna nodded, while Nene said. "I-I think so."

"Nervous?"

"Yes," replied the redhead. "We've never done anything this big before."

"Or this openly against a target," added Linna.

"I know," replied Sylia softly. "But it has to be done." She looked up at Knight One, who was in conference with a fellow Black Knight. He turned to look at her, and for a moment, she wondered what Greg was thinking about. She put that thought aside; Their relationship, if there was one, would have to wait.

"All right," Knight One said. "The other teams are moving into place now. We move out in exactly six minutes." He looked at the White Saber. "Any last minute changes?"

Sylia shook her head. "I'm just worried about the ADP getting involved."

"I don't think that'll happen," said Leon. "There's a nasty Boomer incident at that monster refinery G&B has on the outskirts of the city. The preliminary reports don't make it look good. Also, several other Boomer incidents are occurring all over the city. The ADP is going to tied down for a while."

"GENOM," said Sylia softly.

"With the firepower that being reported, it can't be anyone else."

"We're running out of time," said Knight One. "GENOM is probably readying an attack against the headquarters building right now."

"Do we change anything?" asked Sylia.

"It's too late to do so. We're just going to have to be faster and luckier then the other side."

Sylia frowned, quickly reviewing the plan in her mind. There were four teams attacking three targets. Team Gawaine, half of Skeeter's troops, backed by a Black Knight team and a Rattlesnake, was now moving against a G&B Boomer research laboratory which MALCORP intelligence asserts had identified as a possible source of the modified Boomers.

A warehouse complex several kilometers north of the lab was the target of Team Galahad, the other half of Skeeter's troops, another Black Knight team, and another Rattlesnake. The area was thought to be the ideal place to store deactivated Boomers, with enough evidence gleamed from Gulf and Bradley's computer system to make it a goal.

The last two teams were getting ready to strike at the G&B headquarters building itself. Team Tristram, consisting of two Black Knight teams backed up by two Rattlesnakes, would make a frontal assult to attract and pin down as much of the defenders as possible. The last team, Team Lancelot, consisting of Knight One, Red Team, the Knight Sabers and a half dozen MALCORP troopers, would approach via the Knightwing, land on the roof and strike down from there. Because of the tight quarters on the KnightWing, the motoslaves were left behind at the warehouse base.

Sylia was distracted by the sound of static, and a voice saying, //Galahad is in position.// coming from a speaker over her head.

//Gawaine is in position,// the radio crackled several seconds later. Sylia recognized the voice as Skeeter's. The giant was leading the attack against the lab himself.

//Tristram is ready,// said a third voice.

Knight One nodded. "All units, this is Arthur," he said, his suit's radio patched into the common command frequency. "Operation Dragonslayer is green. I say again, Operation Dragonslayer is green. Good luck and good hunting. Arthur out." He looked at Sylia. "Time to board your craft."

The white saber nodded. "Mackie," she said over the secure channel, "it's time."

**********

GENOM Tower
Sunday, December 23, 2035
4:45am

Despite the earliness of the hour, Quincy still looked rested and relaxed. Madigan, on the other hand, felt tired and listless. She glanced at the clock on the chairman's desk, and suppressed a shudder at the time it displayed.

"What is the latest on our attacks on Gulf And Bradley's assets?" the Chairman asked, his voice still strong and soft.

Madigan glanced down at the report in front of her, willing herself to remember the facts printed there. "The early reports indicate that the corporation has suffered damage and losses of at least one hundred and fifty million US dollars," she said, trying to sound businesslike.

Quincy raised an eyebrow. "That much?"

"Yes sir. At least three of the target buildings are complete losses, and four others are going to need major repair work before they can be used again. Also, the damage to Alpha Star One will keep the refinery off-line for at least two weeks."

"Ah." Quincy leaned back in his chair and steepled his fingers so the index fingers touched his chin. "Is the boomers tasked with attacking the Gulf and Bradley-Japan headquarters ready to be activated?"

"Yes sir."

"Then do so. It's time to show the Bradley twins why their obsession with GENOM isn't healthy."

"Yes Sir." Madigan turn and walked away from the Chairman.

Before she reached the door, the Chairman said, "Wait."

She turned and looked at him "Sir?"

"Do we have a picture of this Janie VanDell?"

"I believe we do sir."

Despite the darkness of the room, Madigan saw her boss smile. "Download the girl's description into the memory of the attacking Boomers. She is to be given a grade 2 priority -- 'live capture only'"

"You believe Mr. Mallory?"

"Not completely."

"Then why -"

"I find it hard to believe that the only reason Mr. Mallory is concerned about this girl purely because she is her goddaughter. Let's see what he's willing to trade for her safe return."

"Is that wise, Sir?" Madigan asked carefully. "While MALCORP does not have a lot of assets here, they are not without resources elsewhere."

"True. But MALCORP's influence in several markets has been rising, and I'm curious to see how Mr. Mallory will react to the new situation."

"I'm make the necessary arrangements."

Quincy nodded. "What about Mr. Azamizu?"

"The specialists feel that he won't last more then two day if they use Rabject-7, and doubt he'll be sane for half that time."

"Who said anything about allowing Mr. Azamizu to continue after his betrayal?" The Chairman leaned forward. "Order the specialists to use Rabject-7. There are a few 'side-effects' that need to be worked out before we can ship the drug to out clients. Tell then they can considered this a 'field test', and I expect a detail report as soon as possible. We need to know all the details of his operation, and now."

"Understood, Sir. What about the body afterwards?"

"I expect there will be work on the GLAS condominium damage starting in the next couple of days?"

"One of our companies is already beginning the surveying."

"There's a lot of unfortunates who are currently buried in the rubble, isn't there?"

Madigan bowed. "I understand, sir."

"Go." After Madigan had left the office, Quincy turned his chair to face the window. There were several placed in the city were he could see fire and smoke that vanished into the night air. He leaned back and watched in silence.

**********