Thanks for the posts, everyone. Smart Alec and Vanya Mia are right, this post and what followed really did change the mood of the campaign.
* * *
Interlude: Reactions (September 19-20, 2008)
During the alien attack, the leaders of X-COM were busy, very busy, but for the members of Alpha Team, there was little more that they could do than watch.
"Oh my God," Catalina said. Watching with horror she winced at the sight of New York, but then the news switched to London. Catalina’s mouth dropped open and all the color drained from her face. After a few moments of stunned silence she mouthed two words faintly. "Mom. Dad."
Drawing a ragged breath she stood up unsteadily. Pulling her xPhone out of her pocket she wandered away from the others slightly. Pushing buttons, trying to dial one number after another, pacing out small circles in the center of the room, with increasing frustration. Eventually she threw the xPhone against the nearest wall and ran out of the room. Jane followed her, tried to offer some consolation. "My parents worked in Tower One the day the airplane hit one floor below their office,” she said. “I hope you find your parents. If you ever feel like talking, I'm a good listener..." But Catalina showed no sign of having heard Jane at all as she continued to half run, half walk down the corridor. Glancing around angrily and obviously looking for someone as she did so.
"Where's Garrett? Wagner? Anybody, even Drake," she snapped at the first guard she encountered, all trace of the flirt gone and the flash and fire of part Mediterranean heritage very obvious. "I want to speak to someone who can authorize communications now."
Back in the lounge, Hadrian and Vasily remained, watching the unfolding news reports stone-faced, waiting for a summons that never came. The size and the blatant power of the massive alien ship was mind-numbing. How could they ever hope to counter something like that?
Hadrian felt a chill as he watched the reports on the progress of the alien ship. New York, London and Frankfurt gone; was there any rhyme or reason to the targets? New York... well, it was the location of the UN HQ, so one potential global center of coordination, and the largest global financial center. London... in addition to being the UK's capital, was the second largest global financial center. The Marine wondered how much of the Brit leadership had managed to evacuated before the attack. With the few hours notice, he figured most of the key leaders had likely been able to escape.
Frankfurt... hmm, the second largest European continental financial center behind Paris—which obviously wasn't going to be a target—and the largest transportation hub in central Europe.
At first glance it seemed the aliens were bent on causing the economic collapse of the West. The resulting unrest and chaos in democratic states would bring extreme public pressure to bear on allied Western governments to seek terms with the intruders.
What was equally disturbing was the fact the aliens had not completed their sweep by targeting Tokyo, the third largest global financial center. Had the Japanese secretly sold out already, or had the aliens been advised by their human allies that the Japanese—and other Asians—would cravenly fall into line once they saw the devastation wreaked on the West?
Well these were all issues outside of his pay grade, so all he could do was carry out his role in the missions handed down.
Hopefully, the guys in charge knew what they were doing.
He glanced over at Vasily; the Russian hadn’t so much as blinked, merely stared at the display screen in an expression that Hadrian recognized by now as pure, impotent rage. Vasily seemed to sense his attention, for he suddenly shot up, and without so much as a word headed off toward the outer door.
* * *
Everywhere in the base, display units were tuned to the news feed coming in from the major international news networks. Vasily could not escape them.
"... relief efforts have emergency services on both sides of the Atlantic overwhelmed...
He didn't even understand why. Oh, he grasped the why. It could be a coincidence, but then they'd fought alien attacks and stolen technology, ships and more and the aliens had only sent token forces their way, yet as soon as one of the 'Ethereals' was in their cells, this monster had come and called fire down upon the human race. It wasn’t hard to riddle out the meaning of that. There was a very good chance that X-COM had finally found out just how far the aliens could be pushed.
No, what he didn't see was why New York, why London, and why not X-COM HQ. If the aliens had such massive power... why was X-COM still alive? Were the aliens unwilling to destroy one of their own with the base? But then, why had they not unleashed this giant earlier, and terrified the Earth into submission?
It was a grim thought, but a detached one, he knew. Even watching the television, the footage of the smoldering wastelands that had been three cities, he knew it was not truly sinking in. There were quite a few team members who would be reeling now, and mourning later. And more than a few who would be thanking God that it was not their people who'd suffered.
Which gave rise to the other question that nagged him, as he looked around at the other faces; the shocked, the angry, the terrified.
How could they even continue, now? Or, how, without open revolt from the staff?
He heard familiar voices ahead, and paused.
"What do you mean, I can't?" Catalina yelled. The voice came from around the corner ahead, and Vasily couldn’t see her, but he could clearly imagine the way she stood, fists clenched at her sides, the hard fire burning in her eyes. "These are my parents I am talking about."
The other voice, even now controlled, though Vasily could sense the strain that underlay that rigid edge. "Exactly what I say, you cannot attempt to contact them," Garrett said. "It's simply not possible. General lines into Britain are jammed. We've received a report from GCHQ Cheltenham but it's brief. They had 45 minutes warning of the heading and reported that evacuation procedures were initialized for all key personnel."
"You have to be able to find out more now!" Catalina returned. "It's been nearly an hour since the attack. What of the Service, does the Director know nothing? There must be more."
"Nothing. A state of martial law has been declared, that much we know, and the Armed Forces mobilized in anticipation of any assault by French forces. Lines are clogged with localized traffic concerning deployment of troops and aid. GCHQ reported the Prime Minister and Cabinet reached safety, but that was before London was hit. There's a list of staff but neither the Director or the General Officer Commanding of London District are amongst them. Until they contact us there is nothing we can do."
Vasily could hear Garret’s footsteps as he walked away, then the growl from Catalina, and a thump that had to be her hitting the wall. He almost went forward then, but he didn’t have the words, didn’t have anything but his own unfocused rage. What could he tell her, what could he do for her?
He heard something else, a deep sob that hit him like a knife, then her own footsteps, heading in the opposite direction, away from where he stood. He lingered a moment longer, then turned and headed back to the barracks.
.
