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[i]“This is the…- We have been-… we’ve been boarded! Strange-! We need-… please! Somewhere out-… Hess or Shatsky Rise! Please! We are-… Please send help! Some-…!”[/i]

Reynaldo Damirón listened with intent as the broken transmission was played for a second time since it was received less than fifteen minutes ago. The Commander of Minerva Force was leaned over the railing of the observation platform, a grim look on his wisened face as his mind worked.

“That was final contact, sir,” came the voice of the nearest communications officer, accented heavily with an Australian accent, “no further communication.”

The Commander nodded, half grumbling “Understood.” to the lieutenant.

Just over an hour ago a cargo vessel in the Pacific Ocean on it’s way to Japan had sent out a distress call that they were being harassed by an unknown aircraft. Radars showed no craft on screen however the captain of the vessel was insistent, mentioning that the alleged aircraft was fast moving and had been circling them at low altitude for almost thirty minutes and that it was “banded with a ring of neon orange light”. Twenty minutes later another transmission came through, broken with static but the captains’ voice was clearly loud and frantic claiming they had been boarded and begging for help to come. As the US Air Force and Navy prepared for a response the transmission and the situation at hand had been passed along to Commander Damirón who likewise were expected to respond; at least by those “in the know”.

“Commander, weather radar is showing a severe storm moving up from the southeast,” came the voice of a separate communications officer, “it will be on the site in under twenty minutes.”

“Dammit.” Damiròn hissed. [i]They will just have to manage.[/i] The Commander did not like the idea of sending an Osprey into a storm but they had to act on this. [i]This was what it is all about after all, and if this proved to be what was believed to be...[/i] Ignoring the pick up of his heartbeat Commander Damirón stood up straight and put on his most authoritative voice.
“Alright people, this is what we were meant for,” Damirón wound himself up and started firing off orders, “prepare an Osprey for immediate takeoff. I want Nemesis Team geared and loaded up and inbound for those coordinates in the next twenty minutes maximum!”

“Sync up with Hawai’i for an unscheduled stop,” the Commander barked on, “the return flight to base will require a refuel! Have a strike team on standby! Keep all channels open and under constant monitor, I want updates on every element and situational shift! Make sure that our marks are delaying the Navy and Air Force as best they can! We need to be on this first!”

The whole base lit up with activity as everyone scrambled to act on their orders. Footsteps echoed off of every corridor, alarms blared away, and shouting filled the base interior in a chaotic cacophony. Nemesis Team, the most elite of Minerva Force’s ground units, were prepared for immediate deployment and rushed to the hangar where a V-22 Osprey was waiting for them, engines roaring away as the massive double doors out into the cold Alaska air came grinding open. The team crammed into the Osprey which rolled out the moment the interior was sealed and lifted off with a triumphant whoosh into the dark sky above  - Minerva Force’s first real mission now afoot.

[hr]

[b]MAY 1, 2250 HOURS, 2016
PACIFIC OCEAN, NORTHEAST OF THE HESS RISE
[i]OPERATION BLACK VEIL[/i]
“FIRST CONTACT”[/b]

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[url=https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=rlgtvQ-7Tzo&pp=ygUmd2luZGhzaXdscyB3aXBlcnMgYW5kIGF0b2VtIGFvdW5kdHJhY2s%3D]Rain beat down on the windshield of the cockpit, the wipers frantically lashing away in vain as lightning flashed through the sinister storm clouds that shrouded the Pacific Ocean.[/url] Both pilots were nervous suffice to say but holding to their duty and performing as they had been trained to do. The Osprey aside from small bouts of turbulence was handling the storm well as it raced through the skies inbound to the objective. And the tanks had plenty of fuel for the duration of the operation and still make the flight to the Hawaiian islands for a refuel. The Osprey was also fast, maneuverable, and sturdy and if the situation arose for such it was armed with two heavy caliber machine guns for air-to-ground engagements. Of course the uneasy feeling that was hanging in the cockpit between the two men was not just because of the weather but the mission itself and the greater implications of it. A possible [i]alien[/i] attack on a civilian cargo vessel, who knows what they would find [i]if[/i] they found anything. But this was what they had signed on for and it was up to them to get Nemesis Team to the last location of the missing ship so they could investigate. The copilot glanced around towards the back of the craft at the figures slouched together on the foldout seats of the passenger area then turned his eyes back front and focused on what was ahead. They were a motley-looking bunch and from a variety of walks of life, like all of Minerva Force really, and were meant to be the best of the best. They definitely stood out.

“Estimated ten minutes out from destination.” the pilot said. He, the copilot, Nemesis Team, and Command were on a designated frequency.

“Nemesis Team, listen up,” Commander Damirón’s stern voice came sharply over the radio, “your primary mission objective is to locate the missing cargo vessel, a civil model container ship loaded with crates of exported goods. We triangulated the last communication from hours ago along with the planned route for the ship and have a confident estimated location for it. Locate the ship and relay the situation back to command.”

“We provided you with portable cameras with a direct feed back to command,” the Commander reminded them, “go ahead now and equip them.”

The cameras provided were small, easily fitted into the palm of one’s hand, and attached to them was a slim black band for strapping them around the head. They were waterproof, sturdy, and as the Commander had stated maintained a continuous feed back to command. Ideally they would be used to record the investigation the ship - should they find it.

“Eight minutes out,” the pilot said over comms, “going into hover.” 

The Osprey shifted slightly and came to a noticeable slow as the rotors outside peeled back and upward and the pilot eased off on the speed.