Operation Pacifica: Pacifica by Admiral J-Rock, aka Slider the Feral (NYAR!) "So I have a slightly independent nature. What's wrong with that?" - J.E.B. Stuart, c. 1863 "The best-laid plans of mice and men oft gang agly." - ancient Gaelic saying DOBERMAN TRANSPORT _DTT DEATHTONGUE_ OFF NORTHERN COAST OF PACIFICA ISLAND, 0525 HRS. FLEET TIME DAY TEN OF OPERATION PACIFICA # Dire Straits "Ride Across The River" _Brothers In Arms_ A small launch pulled up to the side of the boat, allowing a passenger to disembark before it sped back towards the beat-up aircraft carrier from whence it came. The passenger took stock of his surroundings, noting with clinical detachment the metal slab used to patch a hole in the hull. Rear Admiral Yearnshaw came up to the guest and said, "Welcome aboard. Can't believe we're finally here." J-Rock just nodded and replied, "And the strangest thing is, I wouldn't be here if it weren't for that layover in Frisco. How soon do we land?" "Fifteen minutes. We're just loading up the helos now. The hovercraft are ready to leave, but I'll hold them if you want to come along." "No thanks," J-Rock said, tossing the Wildmon Plasma Shotgun into the passenger seat of his Badlander. "I'm a mechajock. I can't hit the beach without my horse." He gave the door a couple of quick pats after he closed it. "By the way, a package came for you just as we were about to leave." J-Rock arched an eyebrow. "Why didn't you just deliver it to me on the _Freedom_?" "It was quite large," Yearnshaw said, gesturing to a box about the size of a mid-sized refrigerator. It laid lengthwise on the ground, and J-R thought he could make out the letters "M.A.D.O.X." on the top end. "How'd you get my MADOX-03 here?" he asked, his eyes wide open. "Federal Express," Yearnshaw offered as J-R walked over to the box. "Actually, CP had it sent over from HQ when he saw you had checked into the guest hostel. He thought you might like to have it." "He was not wrong, mein Admiral," J-R said, already breaking out the T-shaped lug wrench from its place on the box. "He was not wrong." The MADOX-03 was a heavy battlesuit of J-Rock's design, built to "do most things a Wrath of Arioch can do, plus a few things it can't." On the left forearm was a two-shot plasma mini-missile launcher, and a 40mm recoilless rifle was clutched in the left gauntlet. The right arm ended in a three-fingered heavy manipulator, with an assault cannon nestled in the forearm housing. J-R had taken this suit into the latter stages of the TRES Corps HQ defense, and managed to keep the X'hirjq from taking DownBelow Command before CP could get the power back online. He finished loosening the nuts, and hit the Big Red Button (tm) on the box. Within seconds, the battlesuit emerged from the box in a billowing cloud of escaping compressed air. "There should be room on the hovercraft for one more," jry noted. J-Rock loaded his ER PPC into a shoulder holster and Da Sawblade into a recessed compartment on the MADOX-03's leg before stepping into it. "I've got my own way of getting onto the island," he said. Satisfied that everything was working right, he faced the wide-open vehicle door before crouching. "Don't worry," he said as the wings rose to stablize the suit, "I'll show myself out." # Queen "Headlong" _Innuendo_ The MADOX flew out the door on a cushion of air, throwing large wakes into the air as it moved over the ocean's surface. "I'll plow the road for you," J-Rock radioed to the _Deathtongue_. "Just make sure the troops are there to set up the beach-head." "Roger that," the transport replied. "Good luck, sir." J-Rock looked out over the darkened expanse of water and lost himself in the pure adrenalin of a speed run of over 60 mph over terrain that would swallow him up under normal circumstances. Up ahead in the distance, small explosions dotted the landscape where Spongin artillery batteries used to be. CP was right about wanting the Big-Ass Guns (tm) for this one, and they were paying dividends already. 'Now _this_ is where it's at,' he thought as he shot over the water. 'Plenty of speed, and next to nothing to weigh you down, except what you bring with you.' He thought of the island and its vultures for a brief second before he pushed it aside. "I am an armor-plated motherf**ker," he muttered. "I've got a couple thousand screaming Dobermans behind me, and there's nothing to worry about. I'm gonna hit that island, and I'm gonna conquer and kick some. I will hit that beach and get some." Inside, his nerves were squealing higher than a dog whistle. But the beach was coming up fast. There was no time for that now. ... Meanwhile, two Sponge-Minions were tossing a beach ball around, giggling in the sweetly retarded fashion particular to Spongin everywhere. The girl was about to toss the ball to her partner before she dropped it, pointing toward the ocean and asking, "What's that?" "What?" the other Spounge asked, turning just in time to see the MADOX skim onto the beach and stop approximately twenty yards inland. As it turned its head from side to side, the first Spounge said, "Eww! A Jihaddi!" The second one grabbed his partner's hand and said, "Let's tell the lifeguards!" But before they could so much as run a few feet towards the guard station, the MADOX raised the rec-rifle at the building. "Mama don't like tattletales," J-Rock said as he fired a single round into it. The station disappeared in a glorious blossom of fire and broken, singed boards, tossing both Minions to the sandy ground. Looking up, they saw a whole fleet of hovercraft run up onto the beach, with Doberman Empire marines spilling out of them. TRES Corps battlearmored platoons swarmed from helicopters landing on the beach minutes behind the assault transports. In the middle of all this, the MADOX waved an arm while its pilot was laughing and asking, "What took you so long?" But that was all they saw as they were spotted by the Dobermenschen and herded toward a not-too-important section of beach at gunpoint... Jry walked up to where J-R had popped the swing-back helmet on his MADOX. "Nice to see you got the beach secured with only the _minimal_ amount of noise," he said, injecting a great deal of sarcasm into that word. "Well, the word ain't gonna get around anytime soon," J-Rock retorted. "I know the B'Harnate fleet may have already warned the island. And it doesn't look like it helped much if they did. Besides, if there's nothing but Spounge on this island, taking it's gonna be a piece of ca--" # Sugar Ray "Ten Seconds Down" _"Escape From L.A." soundtrack_ J-R was interrupted by the sounds of a massive explosion and a fhuge fireball mushrooming off in the distance, near the lagoon spotted on the island by the Corps' Space Fleet. "You were saying, Admiral?" Yearnshaw asked at length. A Dobermensch Signal Corpsman ran breathlessly toward the two Admirals. "Sir!" he panted, saluting. "I think you'd better check out channel eight." J-Rock lowered his helmet in time to hear, "They're everywhere!... Lyrans spott... Correction: I now count over 40 Wyrm Bots..." "My God," he intoned over the external speakers. "Whoever's leading the Spongin knows how to set a trap. You think it's Lyrans, Jim?" "Who else?" jry shrugged. Everywhere, the faces of Dobermenschen and TRES Corps personnel hardened in grim determination. There was no way they were going to leave fellow Jihaddi in the lurch. "Jim, stay here and make sure the beach-head is adequately set-up and defended. Malcalypse, be ready to lead a relief force in case we get into trouble." "Where are you going?" Malcalypse asked. "Guess," J-R replied. Punching on the amplifiers, he turned toward the assorted troopers and asked, "Who'll follow ol' J-Rock into Spounge Central?" A number of Dobermenschen and Corps armored troopers shouted their approval. "Hop on the TARAVs and move out!" J-R said, waving his right arm towards the lagoon. "There isn't a moment to lose!" Four TARAVs followed the MADOX-03 into the city proper. To be continued in "The Coming of Shadows"...