Page 25 of Silent Dust
12 - BEAR
Bear steppedout of his bunk, determination fueling his steps as he made his way to the conference room. Warden had scouted for the debrief and mission planning. The ship hummed with activity around him, the atmosphere charged with anticipation and the lingering adrenaline from their recent operation.
As he entered the room, Bear was greeted by the sight of his teammates from Alpha and Charlie Team, along with Samir, who looked surprisingly sharp in the clean clothes Link had managed to scrounge up for him. The boy had cleaned up nicely, his wide eyes filled with curiosity as he took in the surroundings. Behind the conference table, a buffet bar was laden with snacks and coffee, a welcome sight to keep everyone fueled for the discussions ahead.
Bear took his seat at the table, glancing up at the screen where Commander Michaels and Admiral Grayson joined the meeting via video conference. Their serious expressions underscored the gravity of the situation.
Michaels opened the briefing. “Alright, everyone, let’s get started.”
Bear nodded and began his report. “We successfully destroyed the chemicals remaining in the warehouse. However,one pallet of barrels was missing. Our tracking shows it’s moving toward the Indian Ocean.”
He paused briefly before continuing. “Al-Harb evaded capture during the operation. We had no casualties, just some minor injuries.”
Looking at Michaels’ face on the screen, Bear added, “Overall, the mission met its primary objectives, but the missing barrels and Al-Harb’s escape highlight areas we need to improve.”
A murmur of frustration rippled through the room. Everyone understood how critical it was to keep Al-Harb contained; his escape was a serious setback.
Link and Banshee exchanged looks before Link spoke up. “We need to focus on the shipments. During recon, we tagged three shipments of chemical weapons. But when we returned to demolish the building, only two were there. One shipment got away.”
Banshee nodded. “We can’t let that slide. We have to find out where it went and make sure it’s destroyed.”
“Fortunately,” Link added, “we slipped tracking devices on all three shipments before they left. We’re currently tracking the missing shipment and should be able to pinpoint its location soon.”
Bear felt a surge of pride for his team. “Good work. We need to move fast. If Al-Harb is behind this shipment’s escape, we can’t let him regroup and use those weapons against us or anyone else.”
Michaels’ voice came through the video feed, steady and commanding. “I want updates on that tracking device and a plan in place to intercept the shipment. We can’t afford to lose any more ground. Bear and Raven, I want you and your teams to develop a dual plan and report back to us in… say, three hours? Charlie Team, I want you to track down Al-Harb and eithercapture or terminate him. Alpha Team, your focus is on the shipment—find it and destroy it!”
“Understood, Commander,” Bear replied, feeling the weight of responsibility settle heavily on his shoulders. The stakes were high, and the pressure was intense. “We’ll get on it immediately.” He glanced at the clock on the wall. “We’ll touch base at 1900 and present you with the plans.”
As the call ended, Bear turned to his team. “Alright, everyone, you heard the Commander. We have three hours to put together a solid plan. Raven, do you want to take your team to that side of the room to strategize how to track and catch Al-Harb? I’ll take my team on this side to focus on the shipment.”
Raven nodded. “Sounds good! OK, Charlie Team, let’s get cracking.”
“Great,” Bear said, then turned to the rest of Alpha Team. “The rest of us need to concentrate on the shipment. Link, I want you to analyze the data from the tracking device. Find out where it’s headed and how we can intercept it.”
“On it,” Link replied, already pulling up the information on his tablet. “I’m tracking the shipment right now, and it looks like the best place to intercept will be in the international waters of the Indian Ocean. Give me some time to calculate their rate of travel and determine where we can best intercept.”
“That’s great. While you plot that out, the rest of us will work on a plan to destroy the chemicals without spreading the contagion.”
As everyone began to break off into their respective tasks, Bear felt a sense of urgency. They were in a race against time, and every second counted. He pulled out a whiteboard and started jotting down key points from the meeting, organizing their thoughts and strategies.
Alpha Team huddled around Link, quietly discussing options and weighing the best approaches. Bear glanced over at Warden,who was already scanning the room for his next move. “Looks like we’ll be staying on the carrier for a few days,” Bear said. “Can you go let the captain know that both teams will be here? As soon as the plans come together for each mission, we’ll loop him in.”
“Absolutely,” Warden replied.
“Thanks. We can’t afford any miscommunication, especially with the stakes this high,” Bear said, watching him head out of the conference room.
Once Warden was gone, Bear turned back to his team, feeling the weight of responsibility settle on his shoulders. They had a clear mission ahead, but he knew that Charlie Team would be operating independently, focused on Al-Harb. Unless an emergency arose, their paths wouldn’t cross, and he had to ensure that both teams were prepared for whatever lay ahead.
“Alright, let’s get to work,” Bear said, rallying his team. “We’ve got a lot to cover, and we need to be ready to act the moment we have the intel we need.”
With renewed determination, they dove into their planning, each of them focused on their roles in this critical mission. The dim lights of the operations room flickered softly as Bear leaned over the digital map, the blue pinpoints marking the vessel’s course zigzagging across the Indian Ocean. The tracking data confirmed what they knew—this vessel, hauling chemicals, was their target. Time was fleeting.
Nova, standing beside him, pointed out “They’re still steady on course. We’ve got maybe a couple of hours before they hit Chinese waters.”
Bear turned to address the team, deliberately locking eyes with each of them. “Alright. Here’s the plan—silent, fast, and clean. We’re launching two RIBs at first light. Nova, you’re on sniper watch—if anything looks suspicious at long range, you’re alerting us immediately.”
Nova nodded silently, checking her rifle scope.
