Suddenly the lights inside the office begin to flicker, until they stay out. And the laptop screens are now dark as well. 

The General picks up his landline phone receiver, and puts it down again. 
"Also out. It seems the EM pulse got to us. Give it a minute." He calmly said. And surprisingly nobody except for me seems worried about the statement.

Hayes notices my confused expression and walks over to me, while I'm still sitting on the chair.
"Essie, we are running out of options. Many Phantoms have landed in Boston, and are wreaking havoc there as we speak."

"What? They're on land already?!" I seriously need a sitrep! I should have focused on their movements while I still could, but now the Queen is jamming me again.

"Yes, now calm down. I will bring you up to speed now. The EM surge which just hit us, was caused by our own attack. You see, while you were still on BETA, they ordered a nuclear assault on her location deep below the North Atlantic. Our systems shut down automatically to protect the equipment, but power will be restored within a few minutes. Give it some time, then we'll see if she can withstand a direct nuclear attack."

"Oh my god, Hayes. I can tell you right now. She's still there!"

"Shit." I heard someone else say. "Sorry, sir." Everyone looked at him for a moment. Well, I can't blame him.

"Tell me more, Essie." The General said with a raised voice after joining Hayes and me.

I stand up and speak in a loud voice "Sir, ALPHA Queen is still very much alive. She's absolutely pissed right now, that's why I can occasionally sense her. She knows we killed her sister on BETA and she knows about the nuclear attack. It surprised her, yes, but she's now even more resolved to end our existence. I see many Phantoms gathering for an attack on the east coast. Ahhhhh shit....Hayes..em..Colonel?"

"What, Essie? Spit it out!"

"The Phantoms are pounding fault lines! Earthquake incoming from the Gulf of Mexico!" I said. This must be the Queen's revenge for nuking her.

"Fuck no, we need to evacuate them!" Hayes shouted, looking at the phone, but then realizing it's not working now.

"It's too late for that, sir. The earthquake is about to start." I said, knowing what was about to happen. Thank god that some Phantoms are sending me updates, somehow circumventing the Queen's jamming efforts.

 

And sure enough the office starts shaking like crazy, and stuff is falling on the floor around us. Within a few seconds, everyone is standing outside. Rushing outside while the ground is shaking is pretty difficult, but we made it. 

When the quake finally stops, the General commands "tell me more, Essie!"

"Yes, sir. I see a tsunami approaching the southern states, Florida and Mexico. There is nothing I can do about that."

"Tell me more, tell me everything you know."

"I also see them attacking Boston, sir. At least I think it is.....yeah, definitely Boston. Fighter jets are following the Phantoms, but it seems we're losing the city, sir. It's completely in flames and smoke. 

Three Tripods are walking through Boston right now. They are shielding what looks like Snails moving through the city. They are spraying acid everywhere."

"Dear god, please have mercy." Someone just said.

The General looks at him, then nods. "Yes, what he said. Essie, more."

"Yes, sir, but I keep losing contact with the ALPHA Phantoms, she's jamming me again. But I know for a fact that the Queen is planning to make landfall near Boston within half an hour. Then she will be coming straight for us, sir."

Finally we hear the power-outage sirens inside the offices.

"We're back in business!" The General shouted and everyone but me rushed back inside. I waited for them to first kill that annoying alarm.

 

These containers must be pretty sturdy, since everyone can go back to work pretty quickly after the earthquake. The General ordered one of his aides to speak to the soldiers outside in the park, so that they know of the current situation, but more importantly that they should return to their duties.

I hear orders being shouted and the telephone is ringing non-stop. The Pentagon is now aware of the reason for the earthquake and the following tsunami. Whatever happens there, it is out of our hands.

They also confirmed the no-joy on the nuclear strike.

 

I poured myself some coffee, because I need to stay focused. Thankfully they have sandwiches available for us, so I helped myself. But already after taking my first sip, Hayes shouts for my attention.

"Essie!!!! Now would be the time to pull a rabbit out of your hat!"

"Sir, sorry, I'm fresh out of rabbits. Or.....maybe not? Wait! The EM from the nuclear attack disrupted her link for a minute! She was basically blind! So THAT's the reason I could understand her plans so easily!"

"That's very good news, but we can't do that a second time. She's now too close to the coast. It would cause wide-spread radiation."

"Of course. But we have satellites, don't we? Just transmit everything you got to her coordinates!"

"We're already doing that, Essie. Any other ideas?"

Everyone is staring at me, expecting to have the magical solution to our problems. I'm feeling frustrated. "No, sir! I don't know! I'm sorry!" I raised my hands.

Hayes knows that I'm under a lot of stress, and says "relax. Take a deep breath. Drink a gallon of coffee if you have to, but I know that you are the key to this. I will hear it in five minutes." And just like that he returned to speak with the General.

Is he serious? How the heck am I supposed to come up with a plan to kill that bitch, when even nukes won't work? 

 

 

"Sir! The President is addressing the nation!" One of the other officers said with a raised voice, drawing my attention.

I join them in front of the meeting room TV and see a nation-wide broadcast from the President in the Oval Office. The image is continuously interrupted by many visual glitches. We then hear the President speaking, while sitting at his desk.

"My fellow Americans.

At this moment, all of humanity is under attack by many Phantoms. A world-wide war against humanity is currently threatening our very existence.

Every nation able to defend itself is already doing so. But so far, it is not enough.

With great sadness and pain in my heart, I must tell you that we have lost the city of Boston on the east coast of the continental United States. The Queen so far has even withstood a direct nuclear attack.

The states bordering the Gulf of Mexico have been hit by a devastating earthquake of 10 on the Richter scale, followed by an even deadlier tsunami. We can confirm that this earthquake was Phantom-induced and we cannot even begin to comprehend the many lives we have lost already. 

We are doing everything we can to save as many lives as humanly possible.

Bear with me. Hold on just a bit longer. Will we surrender to her? Never! But at times like this, it wouldn't hurt if you could join me for a prayer.

Pray to whatever deity you believe in. Oh almighty god, may you have mercy on your children. Give us the strength to.....pshhhhhhhhhhhhhhh."

And just like that the transmission was gone.

 

 

I look at Hayes and say "I'm outside, brainstorming."

He nods and says "go!"

I rush outside and take a few deep breaths. We still have about an hour or so before darkness will add another layer of complexity to our plans. At least the air raid sirens have gone quiet for now.

In my mind I'm reviewing what happened back on BETA, trying to see a few images shared by the attacking Phantoms, but none of them are eager to share those. I can understand that they want to put it behind them, but we're fighting another Queen! Well, I think I have a few ideas now at least.

But before I had finished converting the ideas to something which might actually be useful, Hayes found me outside, leaning against the office, with my arms crossed. His arrival coincided with the air raid sirens starting far away again. Bad omen. Definitely bad.

"Essie....you won't believe it, but we just saw footage from an F18. A Tripod and what looks like a Snail are being airlifted by flying Phantoms."

"What the fuck? Did we give her that idea?" I stand straight, while shaking my head.

"Wouldn't surprise me. The pilot confirmed that his weapons failed to kill the targets. To make matters worse, they just touched down 10 miles north of Purcellville."

"No shit! How are our defenses?" I'm scratching my head, not even knowing what to reply.

"I don't have the time to explain. We are well-prepared, but not for a Tripod. It seems that Purcellville will be a total write-off soon. Remember when I said that your fox-fire was reserved as a last resort?"

'Whaaaaaa? You want me to shoot them?"

"Yes, Essie. Relax, it's just like blowing up a few tanks."

"No, it's not! I'll need to be within 200 feet to shoot them!"

"Exactly. An M113 APC is standing by to take you, Bravo team and supporting marines to the city limit where you'll have a clear shot. The marines have stingers and mortars besides the usual rifles. We don't have the time to chat. I want you to go. Are you ready?"

I turn away from him, look up at the sky and shout really loudly "FUCK!" Then I look at Hayes again and say loudly "Just tell me where to go."

He points at what looks like another tank, but this one has a ramp opened up at the back for us to walk into. "That's your ride over there."

"Understood, wish me luck, sir."

"Good luck, Airman! Show them who's the boss!" He saluted.

I saluted as well, but didn't add another word. 

 

Moments later I entered the M113 and the ramp closed behind me. It seems they were ready to leave, waiting only for me. Great, now I'm further reduced, from being radar equipment to a mere disposable weapon. Fuck, I hate squids!

Riding this thing was all but comfortable, but I managed. Everyone leaves the APC, and we're taking a look at the surrounding area, trying to prepare. I'm staring into the distance, where some farmlands are between Purcellville and the next city. This won't be pretty, no question about it.

 

I don't see the enemy yet, but it's also awfully quiet around me. When I look at their expressions, they almost seem to be waiting for me to say something. The marines are standing near the APC, and Bravo team is standing right next to me. 

Wait....could they be waiting for my orders? You've gotta be kidding me?! Okay, why the heck not.

"Does anyone have binoculars? I can't see the enemy approaching." I said.

Hurst offers me his binoculars, and I can soon confirm the things that seem to have escaped from a horror movie. A Tripod and a Snail...they're actually here. I returned the binoculars, having finally found the targets. Now that I see them, they're pretty hard to miss....they're big.

I raise my voice. "Okay, we have a confirmed Tripod and a Snail. The Tripod acts as a shield to the Snail. Kill the Tripod.....and the Snail is a sitting duck. I don't see any other Phantoms, so we might actually have a chance. Can you guys prepare the stingers?" I pointed at the marines.

Major Rodriguez shouts "follow her orders!"

"Yes, ma'am!" A few marines shout, and then take the stingers from the APC. 

I guess they are really taking orders from me now. Hayes should have told me that!

"Everyone, beware. The Snail will start spraying acid soon enough, so it's imperative to kill it a.s.a.p. But....that fucking Tripod is preventing us from doing that. As soon as they are approaching those fields, I will start firing on the Tripod with my fox-fire. As soon as it is disabled, use those stingers and aim for the Snail. If it's still moving after that, get the hell away from this place and regroup. That acid wiped out most of the city of Boston, so don't underestimate it. Questions?"

"What is fox-fire, ma'am?" One of the marines asked.

"My fox-fire is like an anti-tank weapon, but with lights. Other questions?"

"No ma'am, good to go!" Major Rodriguez, Bravo team's leader said.

"Nice! Can someone tell me the distance to the Tripod?"

"Yes, ma'am....437 feet, heading straight for us." Hurst said.

"Understood. Give me a moment to prepare. Bravo team, prepare to use your rifles and shoot on anything flying around us. The Queen is jamming me, but something tells me that those Phantoms who got them here, didn't really leave us."

"Copy that!"

"Alright. Preparing now." I said. Then I asked Oscar for a mana transfer, but I'm having difficulties hearing him. But after half a minute we connected as usual.

"Oscar, what happened?"

"The Queen is near you, she's strong. I'm now directly touching a mana vein, and that makes communication with you much easier."

"Em...okay? So....could you please send me lots of mana? I'll be in serious danger soon. Look through my eyes if you want."

"Already have. One Onara and one Suya, bad news. They are strong."

"Exactly, and so far your family in this world is incapable of fighting. That bitch apparently didn't feed them for a while." 

"Understood. Do you want me to join you?"

"Not yet, I need to ask Hayes first, or they will kill you. There are weapons on both sides of the portal now. It's too late for that. I'll ask Hayes later. Besides, I need as many of you as I can get. Please try to find more who want to fight on Earth."

"Of course. Just tell me when you want the mana. We have lots of that now."

"I'll need it soon. Almost....wait just a bit longer."

When I heard trees snapping in the distance, I knew that they were close enough.

"Everyone, stand back! I'm preparing to fire. I will shout the word GO in a minute, but it will not be an order for anyone. Do you understand?"

"Yes, ma'am!" They all shout.

"Good! Fox-fire!" And luckily my 7 lights are still happy to help me.

I focus on them until they merge into a single yellow ball of energy, while ignoring the comments around me.

"Oscar, now!" 

And once more I feel an enormous boost of energy flowing through my right arm, making the energy ball grow even bigger than last time. 

I'm now aiming for the Tripod's main body, since its thin legs are hard to target. To my surprise the energy ball is still growing, now slowly changing colors from yellow, to green, to red. I instinctively feel that this is my limit, so I fire my weapon. "GO!"

The energy ball's size resembles a basketball this time, and it immediately leaves my right hand to fly towards the Tripod.

"Take cover!" I shout, and see everyone doing exactly that. 

A very bright red flash appears in the distance, followed by an incredibly loud sound resembling thunder.  BABOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM

Once more I see a mushroom-shaped cloud forming and strong winds are knocking some of us over, including me.

"Fox-fire!" "Fox-fire!"  I tried to call my fox-fire twice, but it didn't work. This means that those stingers had better work.

"Marines! Take your positions!!" I shouted, while trying to see any sign of the two lethal Phantoms.

"Yes, ma'am!" 

As soon as the smoke started to disappear, we could see flames covering a wide area, including some buildings. Well, that was to be expected, hence the air raid alarms. The Tripod is down, engulfed in flames, so it won't be going anywhere anymore. I can't believe it! I really worked!

The Snail stopped moving as well, but it's now spraying acid. Lucky for us we're still out of range.

"3 stingers....aim for the Snail....FIRE!!!!" I showed them my hand, where three fingers emphasized the needed stingers, then pointed at their target.

And sure enough, 3 stingers are launched at the Snail, resulting in the most satisfying sound of a shell breaking. Not even a second later the whole Snail exploded like the Phantom I shot on my first day in the park. It has been reduced to nothing but greenish goo. I can see it clearly, even now dusk has arrived.

"Yihaaaaa!" I shouted. "We did it!" Victory shouts can be heard all around me.

 

But our happiness ended prematurely when we heard an Apache flying low over our heads, and pretty fast too. It circled the Snail a few times, then I heard our radio.

"Red-1 for Merlin, over."

"Merlin here, over."

"Mission successful. Relaying new orders from Viking. We have 5 incoming standard Phantoms, seek cover immediately. ETA 3 minutes, over."

"Red-1, acknowledged, over."

"Roger. Red-1 out." 

The pilot then increases altitude and repositions, probably to face the approaching enemy.

Why doesn't Hayes simply call us on the radio? We're not that far from base. Maybe it's a military thing? Whatever.

"How many stingers do we have left?" I shouted towards the APC.

"15 stingers remaining!" Was the answer I got. Wow....Hayes was generous this time.

"Nice! Everyone who can fire that thing, prepare to use it!"

"Yes, ma'am!" 

I see literally everyone, except for myself of course, grabbing a stinger missile and preparing it to launch.

I now see 10 people standing ready to fire a stinger. I can't resist complimenting them in my own way by giving them a thumbs up and saying "excellent!" 

I take the radio, trying to contact the pilot. "Red-1, this is Merlin, over."

"Merlin, Red-1, proceed, over."

"Red-1, we have 10 people ready to fire a stinger. We will keep them from your six. Draw them here, over."

"Merlin, wilco. ETA 1 minute."

"Roger, Merlin, out." The helicopter then flies towards the Phantoms, turns left towards us, and then increases speed significantly.

"Merlin, Red-1, they are on our six!" The pilot shouted while we could see him make a run for it.

I don't have the time to reply. The moment I see Red-1 approaching us, almost flying over us, I shout "Stingers, fire at will!" Immediately everyone launches their stingers. Don't ask me how they work, but it didn't take much time for some nice fireworks to appear in the skies. 

The marines are taking the few remaining stingers from the APC, without me even ordering it.

 

The only thing we can do right now is wait. We don't see any Phantoms, and the Apache is still flying in the distance, so that's a good sign. 

Suddenly the pilot contacts me again.

"Merlin, Red-1, one Phantom remaining. Radar contact, ETA 1 minute. Hold your fire. Acknowledge, over."

"Red-1, acknowledged. Holding fire. You're on your own, over."

"Roger, Red-1 out." 

The Apache then flies over our heads again, flying really fast to intercept the Phantom. It fires something similar to a stinger and soon enough we see more fireworks. 

 

The helicopter slowly returns to our position and the pilot contacts me again.

"Merlin, Red-1, over."

"Red-1, proceed, over."

"Merlin, thanks for the assist. We're RTB, over."

"Red-1, nice flying. Merlin, out."

 

 

After we had returned to Vanguard Base in the M113 APC, I shook hands with each and everyone. 

"Well done, everyone! Mission complete! On behalf of every citizen in Purcellville, thanks for saving their lives. You're dismissed!" I saluted them with a smile and sure enough they returned the salute.

 

When I knocked on the General's door, Hayes almost pulled me inside, shaking hands.

"Who's the boss? Who's the boss? Well? Who's the boss?" Hayes asked, sounding very excited.

"We are!" I shouted with a smile, while saluting the General. Don't ask me why, it was just a reflex.

"Hell yes we are!" The General shouted, then continued in a normal tone of voice. "Red-1 relayed our orders, due to EM interference. They tried that EM pulse thing again, but we know how to deal with it now. We saw Red-1's footage. Impressive, Essie!"

"It was teamwork, sir. But those things were way too close for comfort."

"True. But why did you take command of the operation, Essie?" Hayes asked, suddenly looking serious.

"Excuse me? How did you even know that?" Did I miss something? "Sir, it seemed like they were waiting for me to tell them what to do. The enemy was too close already, I couldn't wait anymore!"

"Relax, Essie, you did well. Major Rodriguez sent me an update before you all returned here. He was in charge of the mission and you must have made one hell of an impression, for him to accept your orders. Seeing you destroy a tank might have something to do with that. In any case, I'll let you join the debriefing. But not now, we have more important things to worry about."