Climbing Mt. Selene By J.P. Part 1: The Base The Commander cleared his throat, calling for silence. The assembled mass of Jumptroopers faced forward, giving him their attention. "As you are all no doubt aware of, we have invaded and effectively retaken Venus. The job, however, is far from finished. There are numerous Neo bases that still need to be taken before we can safely proclaim the planet ours again." The commander motioned to the viewscreen behind him. "Presented here is one such location. This is Mount Selene. Located two miles from the Twin Spires of the same name, it is the most heavily fortified Neo base left on the planet. It is for that reason that a direct assault with e-frames would be suicidal. As you can see, the entire summit is littered with anti-aircraft cannons. Although not all that dangerous by themselves, the truly nasty surprise is that the base appears to have limited GraF technology. Combined with Venus' heavy cloud cover, it makes an assault from orbit equally impractical. And so it falls to the Jumpcorps to destroy the base." A few whispered comments followed the announcement, none of them seemed optimistic. "I'm not going to lie to you." stated the Commander. "Even thought the base is designed with an obvious emphasis on aerial defense, it is still quite impregnable from the ground. Resistance will be extreme and losses will no doubt be heavy. But we have to do this, because it's there, and we can't win the war if it stays there." A few more pessimistic comments circulated after the commanders assessment of the situation. The Commander waited for them to pass before he finished. "The following platoons will comprise the primary strike force: Box Five, Charlie Nine, Bravo Three, Defender Two, and Sierra Three. Omega Four, Hammer Eight, and Skull One will act as reserves." * * * "Keep moving!" ordered Sergeant Jesse Powers. She and her unit were required to take one of the lower cliffs of Mount Selene. The moment they arrived at the foot of the mountain, they feel under enemy fire. "Capalski, Young, Anderson! Go wide right and see if you can flank them! And stay low dammit!" The Neos had set up a heavy blaster station on the edge of the cliff. It continuously rained laser fire down on her position. All in all, Powers had determined that roughly twenty Neos held the cliff in question, excluding the two needed to operate the heavy blaster. "Pfizer, Henderson, Johnson! Go wide left! Fuji, you're with me!" As her men departed, Powers pointed her weapon out from behind the boulder that served as cover and fired a number of shots. Fuji did the same from the other side of the boulder. "I don't think they're buying it." commented Fuji. "Of course not, why be concerned about a couple of Jumptroops while a whole mess are trying to get behind them." "A distraction?" asked Fugi. "Designed to draw attention away from us, so they won't see this coming." Powers extended her rocket launcher and pulled it over her left shoulder. She popped out from behind the boulder to line up her shot. The heavy blaster was pulled far to the left, tracking Pfizer's group. She hit the trigger. The rocket collided perfectly with the cannon, destroying it. Powers opened her comm, "All groups move in." "Come on, Fugi." Fugi had a little trouble catching up with Powers as she bolted up the hill, intent on reaching the cliff summit before the smoke settled. Fugi and she activated their boosters and bounded onto the cliff's edge. Pfizer's and Capalski's group arrived at the same time. The remaining Neos opened fire. Powers leapt to the left, landing on her side while firing off shots from her repeater rifle. Fugi did the same to the right. Pfizer ordered his men forward, as did Capalski. Their barrage of laser fire felled a number of Neos. One ducked the initial volley, and returned fire from his own rifle. Powers saw one of her men go down, she wasn't sure who. "Distance scope." A small scope popped out of the top of her rifle. Powers rolled onto her stomach and landed the crosshairs on the Neo's head. A moment later he was dead. Powers stood up. "Report." "Capalski here, everyone accounted for." "Pfizer here, we lost Johnson. Henderson and I are okay. Orders?" "Secure the area, Fuji get me the Captain." Fugi extended the antenna of his backpack and patched into Power's comm system. "Ready, Sarge." "Captain Jose, this is Sargent Powers. We have secured our objective. What are your orders? ...Retreat, sir?" questioned Powers. "You heard me, Sergeant. Intel says your position isn't safe, pull back now." replied Captain Jose. "But sir, if you could spare some men I'm sure I could..." "Negative, Sergeant. I need all the men I have and so does everyone else. Pull back now!" "Yes, sir." hissed Powers. Fuji shut down the transmission. "Pack it up! We're leaving!" ordered Powers. "But Sarge" protested Pfizer. "I know what you're going to say Pfizer, and I don't like it any more than you. Prep Johnson, we're taking him with us." * * * "Captain Jose?" Jose looked up from his field report. "Go ahead Sergeant." "Sir, would it be out of line to ask why I was ordered to give up ground to the enemy?" "You lost a man taking your objective, correct?" "Yes, Sir." "If it makes you feel any better, Sergeant, were the situation reversed we'd still be having this conversation." Powers waited patiently for Captain Jose to continue. "Sergeant, taking this base means we have to break down each line of defense as we head up the mountain. There are three main resistance areas as we go up and then the base itself on the summit. In order to take one area, we have to secure the one below it. While you were taking out that heavy munitions station, 28 other units were hitting similar targets. Only 12 units, including yours, succeeded. The Neos were quick to reinforce the remaining stations and launch a counter offensive on those 12 captured areas. In another minute, you and your squad would have been up to your eyeballs in Neos." "I see, Sir. What happens now?" Jose flipped open a notebook. "Now I add Johnson's name to the list of casualties and later I begin drafting a letter to his next of kin." "Sir, I mean, what happens now for me?" Jose finished penning the name into his notebook, underneath a list of many others. "Now, you go to the mess hall and get some food, then get some rest." Powers shifted her stance slightly. "Then what? Sir." "Then you go back to Mount Selene, to retake that gun emplacement." * * * The mess was set up half a mile from the base of the mountain. The open tent and prefab tables and chairs offered little comfort but were better than sitting on the ground. Most of the platoons from that afternoon's assault were there, in addition to a few exosquads. "Jessie!" Powers looked to her left and saw Lt. Mengele approaching. "Crow." replied Powers. Crow got in the mess line behind her. "How'd it go today?" "We took the objective but lost a man." Crow sighed. "That figures, we all came out of it alive but failed to get the emplacement. At least you pulled it off." "And then had to abandon it." replied Powers. "You'll get another chance." countered Crow. "Johnson won't." Crow let the comment go and decided to change the subject. "You gonna eat with the platoon?" "No, I want to be alone." Crow simply nodded. He'd seen her in this mood before and knew it was just easier to let her have her way. Powers got her dinner, which resembled some type of brown slop, and looked for an empty table. She spied one near the edge of the tent and headed toward it. Her path of travel brought her near the Sierra Three table. Crow had somehow beaten her there and was engaged in a lively conversation with Corporal Preston. Ahead of her walked two individuals Jessie knew as Amy Haitt and Nikki Montgomery. As they walked past Sierra Three's table, various cat-calls could be heard. A particularly loud one was made by Crow toward Montgomery. "Hey Nikki-baby, why don't you set those sweet buns down over here!" Montgomery flashed an angry look at him and was about to start yelling when Haitt pull her to a nearby table. Powers noted the whole scene with impartiality. As she walked past, the normally loud table became the model of politeness as the troopers suddenly paid more attention to their meals and talked quietly amongst themselves. As soon as Powers had cleared the table, it immediately became rowdy again. Montgomery flagged Jessie down as she walked past. "Yes, trooper?" "Uh, hi, Sergeant Powers." Jessie patiently nodded and prompted her to continue. "I was wondering if you'd like to sit with us?" Powers stood silent a moment, not sure what to say. Montgomery and her had exchanged words numerous times in the past and had eaten together as well, but she wasn't sure if she was in the mood for company today. Haitt pulled out the chair next to her. "Have a seat." Jessie placed her tray on the table and sat down. She quietly began to consume her food. She shifted her gaze over the table and took note of the other diners, Second Lieutenant O'Connor and Dr. Rhodes. "You're a long way from the Normandy sick bay, Doctor." Karen stopped fiddling with her food and muttered to herself, "Where's Cookie when I need him? I'm sorry, Sergeant. Did you say something?" "What are you doing here?" "Oh, the casualties were heavy today. They needed extra medical personnel and the Normandy is in orbit, so..." "Here you are." stated Jessie flatly. She looked to O'Connor. "What's your story?" "Gamma squad is doing maneuvers. Trying to flush out any pockets of resistance in the area." Jessie spooned more of the slop into her mouth before continuing. "And the Chief Engineer?" Amy smiled, "Fixing shuttles, including the good Doctor's." "So is there a particular reason you're all sitting together?" asked Jessie. Nikki looked shocked, as if the answer was obvious. "We are surrounded by Jumptroops." "They do have a rep for being a bit rude, present company excepted of course." added Amy. "Of course. Though, I hadn't noticed." replied Powers flatly. "Of course not, they never cat-call you." said Haitt. "Speaking of which," interjected Nikki, "What is your secret?" "Secret?" asked Jessie. "They're like whipped puppies when your around, even troopers from other platoons." noted Nikki. "They do seem to calm down when you're near." added Kristin. Jessie said nothing and spooned more food into her mouth. "How can you eat that?" asked Dr. Rhodes. "Don't change the subject, Doc!" snapped Nikki. "Come on Powers, spill!" "You really want to know my secret?" asked Powers. A very slight hint of a smile appeared on her face, then disappeared again. "Yes!" said Nikki. "I slept with every member of the platoon." Nikki's mouth hung open, the most visible sign of the shock the rest of the women felt. "You're kidding, right?" asked Haitt. "Nope. You sleep with them and they lose interest. They need the thrill of the hunt, take that away, and the fun is no longer there for them." "You have to be kidding." stated Nikki. "Why is it so hard to believe? I've been with the platoon a long time. Is it all that inconceivable that I could have had my way with an entire squad of sex-deprived men by now?" "Uh, well, I, suppose its possible, maybe, kinda, sorta." replied O'Connor. "Or you could have kicked the snot out the first trooper that made a pass at you and now the entire platoon is afraid to try." commented Dr. Rhodes. Jessie cocked an eyebrow at her. "I treated Private Dagger for his sore neck that day." "Good memory, Doctor." replied Jessie. "I knew you were kidding." said Haitt. "How did you not get in trouble for that?" asked Nikki. "It was my first day, Captain Jose let it slide because I was new." "Got any tips for someone who's been here a while?" asked Nikki. Jessie took a sip of juice. "Look, Montgomery, if you want my advice, just ignore it. The main reason they bother you is because you react so strongly to them. Acknowledgment from the opposite sex is very important to both the male and female ego. And while the type of interaction you experience is not in the least meaningful, in a pinch, it makes a suitable substitute for something that is." Nikki digested the new information for a bit, playing with her hair as she did so. "Cute look, no wonder Crow likes you so much." Nikki snapped out of her reverie. "Excuse me?" Haitt offered a recap. "She said Crow likes you a lot." Nikki leaned over her tray to whisper to Jessie. "He talks about me?" "Yup." "What's he say?" asked Amy. "Can't tell." "Why not?" demanded Nikki. "I promised him I wouldn't." "So you're his friend then?" asked O'Connor. "Yup." "And he never hit on you?" asked Amy. "Crow would never do anything so blatantly foolish." "Too afraid of losing a limb, huh?" asked Nikki. "No, he respects me, that's all." replied Jessie. "What makes you so special?" asked Nikki. "Don't really know. Jealous?" "What? No way!" said Nikki. "Uh-huh, sure." "I'm serious." stated Nikki, still leaning over her tray. "I'm sure you think you are. But I find that difficult to believe with you leaning over like that to hear." "That has nothing to do with it. I just don't want anyone to overhear us." replied Nikki. "Whatever. By the way, your hair is half soaked in your food." Nikki pulled back from her tray. "Oh yuck!" Amy handed her some napkins and she began to dry off. "I don't know, Nikki, I think I'd find it a little flattering that a guy like Crow was interested. I mean have you taken a good look at his body?" "A better look than anyone else here, I'm willing to wager." stated Dr. Rhodes. "And let me tell you, the eyes are a bit freaky and the hair is weird, but when he takes his shirt off..." she paused reveling in the memory. "Well, lets just say it gets a girl's heart pumping." Everyone, including Powers, simply stared at her for several seconds. "What?" asked Dr. Rhodes. "I'm as human as the next woman." Powers got up from her seat, "Well, I think I've learned more about you people than I wanted to know. See you around." * * * The night brought little sleep to Sergeant Jessie Powers. She tossed and turned for most of it. Unable to stay in bed any longer, Jessie went outside her tent. Mount Selene loomed in the distance. Its jagged, enemy-ridden profile seemed almost peaceful. She thought of the previous day's mission - thought of Johnson. "Because it's there - what a crock." To be continued...