*We have no report of hostiles, Mesas Negras. Stand by.*

A maddeningly long pause, then:

*Request communication with Captain Verrill, Mesas Negras. Over.*

From what he hears, it sounds like the base personnel never even got a call out.

"Yes sir! He's in The Pit. I'll get him. Please hold."

Semo switches to his comm. "Captain? I've raised command from the security station. They wanna speak with you. Can you come up?"

It may be possible to patch the call from here down to The Pit, but Semo has no idea how.

Hugh stares down the rifle's iron sights, safely ducked behind cover while the freight elevator moves down.

"Can't do, Sarge. Just stick your headset to the speakers and hope for the best."

(assuming this works)

"Command, this is Captain Hubert Verrill, Deputy SO of Mesas Negras. You better get something to write this down on.

We're working our way up from the bottom - we have multiple intruders still wild in the installation, and possible friendly survivors holed up in the Sublevel 2 Armory. Request that all exits from the underground installation be surrounded by additional forces at once. Tactical data: Intruders are equipped with armored suits with Class IV-equivalent protection on torso and extremities. We have successfully engaged them using concentrated automatic fire and aimed shots for the weaker undersuit. Intruders also deploy flying robotic drones. These drones are armed and operate autonomously. Again, sustained automatic fire works. SitRep: We have multiple wounded, all stable for now. Prepare for triage. Also, we are currently in possession of two live prisoners. Both are also injured and stable."

"Captain, I recommend we just call the freight elevator down to the Pit level, clear it out, and proceed accordingly. Sgt. Putupu can give them the play-the-play until you get up there and file a formal report. Sarge is a Delta NCO, if they can't take his assessment for face-value, then...well...fuck them. The Pentagon isn't here and as it stands right now, you're in charge and we've got a fuckload of problems more urgent than following SOP." says Max, matter-of-factly.

Hugh rolls his eyes and steps off the transmit button. Really, what else can he do?

"Well, if this shit went according to plan, it would be me up there on the radio and the Sarge down here ready to blow everything in that elevator to smithereens. The thing is, we have no reason to clear the whole facility by ourselves when we can get reinforcements. And if you think for a second that there ain't a difference between a Staff Sargeant and a Captain sayin' the same thing, you need more Army time. The only thing I'm vaguely worried about is the Armory on Sublevel 2, but even that's not exactly my problem right now. My job is to keep the lot of you alive. You can be a hero on your own goddamn time."

After letting that stand for a few seconds, he gets back on the radio.

"Command, this is Captain Verrill. SitRep continues..."

Hugh calmly radios in further details - of the sort that can be broadcasted on a channel of unknown security. No names, no mentions of alien tech, no detailed descriptions of who's wounded and where each of them is.

It takes Semo several seconds to figure how to smoosh the equipment together as the captain requested. Once he's done the best he can, he gives the go-ahead, then goes back to watching the monitors as he holds the pieces together.

Hopefully, if he watches the monitors long enough, he'll get some idea where the other 4 Turai are, as well as the rest of the flying drones.

*Copy that, Captain. Stand by for orders.*

Knowing he's linked back into the chain of command puts Semo back in his momma's lap. He scans the remaining monitors for hostiles, but with the scattered coverage and the Turais' formidable stealth capabilities, he's not completely surprised when he doesn't spot any more.

*Captain, units are enroute and will establish a perimeter. We are assembling a response team of sufficient clearance to sweep the facility. Hold your position and maintain radio contact.*

The freight elevator groans as it moves down the eight stories. Steel grinds against steel, and Hugh is painfully aware of just how loud that thing is.

The flatbed elevator car hammers into place after an eternity. It's clear, and there's nothing but darkness above.

Angel bends over the Turai and contemptuously yanks off several of the trophies, pocketing the dog tags and leaving everything else laying on the floor. Having done so, he falls back to Semo's position and covers him while he relays the report to the surface.

"Wilco, Command. What's the ETA on those units? If they're going to be a while, my men and I would prefer to engage the remaining intruders ourselves."

Gatac wrote:

"Wilco, Command. What's the ETA on those units? If they're going to be a while, my men and I would prefer to engage the remaining intruders ourselves."

"Orders, Captain?" asks Max, taking off the Turai helmet.

"We're holding for now. Get that elevator locked down, I don't want any nasty surprises coming down."

Gatac wrote:

"Wilco, Command. What's the ETA on those units? If they're going to be a while, my men and I would prefer to engage the remaining intruders ourselves."

*Be advised, ETA is currently unknown. You are clear to engage hostiles.*

Good news to Angel's ears.

"Copy that, Command. Mesas Negras out."

Hugh gets off the radio and turns to Max.

"Like I said, Doc, get the elevator secured. I'm heading back up - if we take it slow and steady, we should be able to outfox the remaining turai and clear the way to the Armory."

Luis turns from his monitoring of his assorted patients, standing up from a crouch, "Captain, things are pretty stable here. The folks in the Armory sound pretty bad. You want me to come up with you?"

Max nods.

"Roger that. Andy and I will work on locking down the elevator then we'll start getting power back to vital systems."

"Sounds like a plan, Stanhill. Let's move out."

Hugh and Luis head up the stairwell to sublevel 4. The eerie battle-strewn levels are the same as the Delta team left them. The dead Turai in the landing is as still as the facility itself.

Max and Andy see to the freight elevator. It's a simple matter to rig a keypad to interrupt the primary circuit. Even if the Turai knew the Mesas Negras access code, they wouldn't know 7768, the last four digits of Smokey Joe's in Redfield.

"Who do you think knows about this place, Max?" Andy asks. "I mean, really knows about it? I'd bet most of 'em are dead at this point. What are they gonna do with us?"

---

Luis' boots crunch the scattered pieces of safety glass as they enter sublevel 4. They soon rejoin Semo and Angel, still finding no contacts via the spotty surveillance cameras.