The Omega Sanction - Andrew Scorah (best way to read ebooks txt) 📗

tablet and consulted the screen.

“Just as it appears, a storage area. We need to travel up three levels to reach the vault. There’s an elevator we can take or a flight of stairs.”

At the far end of the room a two tiered mezzanine overlooked the room.

Weapons up, they slowly moved towards a central walkway. The sound of elevator doors opening from up in the mezzanine froze them.

“We can’t afford a contact yet,” Morgan said, “hide up in the racking.”

Bane shouldered his weapon before climbing up to the second level and secreting himself amidst the boxes. The others did the same. Within seconds, they were all out of view of the walkway below.

Several minutes passed before ten black clad men marched into view. Grouped in two columns, all heavily armed. At the head of the column was a big bald headed man. He held up a hand halting them. His head swept back and forth, then up and down. When he was reassured, there was no threat he signalled the men to move out.

Bane's heart was pounding and a cold sweat broke out all over him. He listened as the pounding of boots receded into the distance.

He waited a beat before peering out from behind the large crate he was using to hide behind. Across the way, Morgan appeared from behind his own. He slid to the edge of the pallet, and scanned the walkway below. He signalled to Bane all clear before beginning his descent from the racking. The others also emerged from their hides.

“Why didn't we take them out, why hide?” Bane asked once he joined Morgan on the walkway.

“We need to keep our presence here a secret as long as possible.”

“They’ll know we are here when they find the hole in the wall though, and what if they find the hub?”

“Unless they’ve got heavy cutting gear the hub will be secure, sure they’ll know someone’s here but not how many, but we’ll have to move fast now.”

Bane held his tongue, he knew he was the new boy and should not be questioning Morgan, even though it felt tactically wrong to him.

“Trot, leave them a surprise.”

A grin spreads across Trotsky's face. He removed the small backpack he had been carrying and retrieved two small black boxes from within. He attached one to the metal stanchion on one side of the walkway then placed the second on the opposite side.

Morgan turned to Bane, “We’re not going to leave them unharmed. An infra red beam connects the boxes, when tripped...kaboom.”

Bane grinned, understanding now. A modern version of a tripwire bomb. Once triggered it would bring down the racking on their heads.

They moved out, heading towards the mezzanine, and whatever waited for them above.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

CHAPTER ONE

Chapter 16

 

The phalanx of black clad troops came to attention when Koenig and Hoffman accompanied by the ever present hulking figure of Wilhelm Mauser. Otherwise known as 'Bad Willy', stepped out of the elevator. He and his brother Gunther had been personal guards to Koenig for over ten years, both had a fearsome reputation, making lesser men tremble in their jackboots. Rumour had it that Bad Willy once ate part of a dead prisoner in front of other prisoners just to gain information.

The trio walked past the men, and into the corridor where work was carried out on opening the vault. One man was operating a plasma torch. He was being supervised by Koenig's chief engineer, Leo Brandt.

"How goes it?"

Brandt jumped at the sound of Koenig's voice. He stepped forward, delivering a half salute.

"We are working on the second locking flange, Mein Fuhrer, another fifteen minutes and we will be in."

"Gut, gut."

Bad Willy's radio crackled. He stepped away to respond to the call. Koenig noticed his body guard frown.

"Do we have a problem?"

"My brother has found the emergency exit guards dead, and a breach in the corridor. We have intruders it seems."

"Am I surrounded by idiots!" Koenig's face was red, his eyes wild.

"Tell your brother to find them and eat their eyes, put the whole base on alert. Hunt them down, put every available man on it. Nothing can stop what we are doing here. It is too important to our cause."

Bad Willy nodded, and spoke once more into his radio.

"Brandt, your fifteen turned into ten. Mauser, contact the cells, have our two little scientist guests brought here as well as Fairfax, and assemble the advance team-the time is at hand."

 

Morgan crashed open the double doors to the stairwell leading up into the complex. Bane was the last one through, and before the doors swung shut behind him, he heard a dull boom behind him. The booby trap had been tripped.

They all froze for a few seconds.

"C'mon, let's move, they won't be following us now."

They flew up the stairs, taking them four at a time, hurling themselves around every turn. Bane counted off one hundred and fifty steps before they reached a landing with a double set of fire-doors leading off.

Dr Connelly and Billy were panting for breath so Morgan held up his hand to stop them.

"We'll stop here for five, but no more."

He had finished speaking when a volley of bullets sizzled off the walls and floor. Bane jumped back. Bullets pounded the floor where he had been standing.

"Contact, contact, contact!" Trotsky raised his weapon and fired up the stairwell. Kukri and Cyclops joined him.

Bane rammed his shoulder against the fire-door, crashing it open. With Kukri and Trotsky covering them, they all stumbled through the doors. They found themselves in a cavernous chamber. Dominating the center, sitting on a raised platform was a large black delta winged aircraft. All sleek angles. Looking like a futuristic bird of prey.

"Putin's piles, that's the Aurora," Cyclops voice was hushed as if he had seen the face of God.

"No, you Russian Klutz, that's the next generation Aurora, armoured to the teeth and capable of MACH 12,” Trotsky said.

Cyclops sniffed, shrugging his shoulders, "Close enough my little friend, it's beautiful."

Assembled around the edges of the chamber several additional smaller craft were stowed, some in various stages of construction. On the left side of the chamber was a raised gantry, thirty feet above the chamber, reached by a flight of metal steps. Several glass-walled offices lined the north wall of the chamber.

An opening between the offices appeared to be the only exit out of the place. But that would be a problem. Fifteen black clad troops were emerging out of the opening. They took cover behind boxes and pieces of machinery.

"Shit, we're trapped!" Billy raised his weapon. Morgan pushed it down.

"Not until I say we are," Morgan said. "Omega, let's take it to them."

As one, they broke into a run full tilt towards the central platform. The air around them came alive with hissing fireflies.

Bane, Trotsky, Dr Connelly and Cyclops broke right. The others headed to the left corner of the platform.

Gunfire echoed out all around them.

The troops from the stairwell burst into the chamber. Kukri, and Morgan spun towards them. Unleashed a brutal wave of gunfire. The troops were forced back through the doors. Two of their number lay dead on the floor.

Bane dropped down beside Trotsky who had taken cover behind an electric buggy. Dr Connelly and Cyclops had taken cover behind a metal workbench and were returning fire. Morgan and the others had edged up on the platform, and were using some wooden crates as cover.

"Find us another way out of here," Morgan called down to Trotsky. He alternated between firing at the troops across the chamber, and back at the fire-door.

"On it."

Trotsky took off his bergen and retrieved his tablet.

Bane took a peek over the top of the cart. Four men were trying to edge along the side of the platform. He raised his M16. On full auto, he sprayed off a volley of shots. Bullets pinged all around them. One went down, a burst of red spraying out from his neck. The others pulled back.

"Hustle, Trot, more will be on us any moment!"

It was a stand-off. Whenever they tried to edge forward, Omega team pushed them back with targeted shots.

"Found anything?" Bane asked.

"Yeah, but it ain't gonna be easy," he looked at the platform then at the roof, "we're gonna have to take a ride with big bird...up."

"Sounds like a plan."

"Yeah, but the platforms operated from up on the gantry. We'd need someone up there, but they'd be left behind."

Bane looked up at the gantry. Three Staat troopers had reached the platform. One held a predator hand held rocket launcher.

"Oh Shit!"

He grabbed Trotsky. Pulling him away from the cart. The missile hit. Blowing the cart into a million pieces. Bane and Trotsky were hurled into the air by the force. Their fall was broken by a table covered with files and other bits of flotsam.

Over at the opening, more men were streaming into the chamber. A shit storm of bullets assailed their positions.

Bane pulled himself free of the wrecked table. Trotsky sat up looking dazed and confused. He realised the force of the blast had taken them close to the steps up to the gantry, and out of sight of the team above.

"Everyone, onto the platform, it's an elevator to take planes up to the surface," Bane called out, "I'm going up to the gantry to set it off, give me some cover."

He pulled Trotsky to his feet, and pushed him towards the others.

"Don't it'll be suicide!"

"Go, I'll be fine."

He watched as Cyclops, Dr Connelly and Trotsky broke for the platform. Firing at the fire-doors and the other side of the room. So far, the troops behind the doors had remained there.

Bane ran the last few metres to the steps. He shouldered his M16, and drew his Biretta from his hip holster. He much preferred hand guns for close up work. The others opened up on the gantry above him. Forcing the team there to keep their heads down. He hoped the noise of gunfire would mask his assent up the stairs.

Two minutes after he started his assent he gained the platform. The three troopers were ducked under the cover of of the metal wall which circled the gantry. One of them noticed Bane. He raised his weapon. Bane shot him between the eyes. The bullet exiting above his right ear. The man with the predator dropped the launcher. Reached for his sidearm. Bane double tapped him. Two in the chest, one in the head as he stepped forward. The third who was closer, launched himself at Bane. Because of the angle, the man was on him before he could draw down.

 

Down on the elevator platform, Morgan and the rest of the team were taking fire now from three sides. Staat troopers had managed to advance around the sides. They were assailing the elevator with withering bursts of gunfire. Nevertheless, for the moment Morgan and his team were holding their own, returning as fierce a wall of fire at the Staat troops.

"Cyclops had enough of this!"

The big Russian jumped up from behind the cover of the boxes. Opened up with his GPMG. Spraying a lethal wall of lead. He sprinted for the aircraft.

"What the hell is the crazy kook think he's doing," Trotsky said as he ducked to avoid another spray of bullets.

"Think he's gonna try and fly out," Billy said.

Cyclops ducked under the body of the craft. Two troopers climbed up on the elevator to his left. He sent them back to join their friends, body's riddled with heavy gauge slugs. Within seconds, he had opened the underside hatch and disappeared inside.

Nothing happened for a heartbeat.

Whoosh!

The VTOL rockets, vertical take off and landing, fired. The sleek black beast rose into the air.

Brraarp!

The twin machine guns under the nose of the craft emitted streams of death. Staat troopers scattered as their ranks were chewed up.

Trotsky and Billy Lee pumped the air, whooping with delight.

 

Bane fell back against the railing as the man crashed into him. The trooper had one hand on