COH Story # 19 Old Feuds New Consequences part 2

  The spot was well hidden. Even with the nanites helping to enhance her memory over a decade had passed and a lot had changed. It took the three of them over two hours to find the spot. Finally she recognized a gray rock sticking up out of the sandy ground. A few minutes of digging revealed a metal hatch set in a small square of concrete.

  Tadas ran his hand along the edge of the hatch. "It's been welded shut." From a pocket he took out a small, power saw. "I can fix that."

  It took a good ten minutes to cut through the welds. It took considerable effort to pry open the hatch. It squealed loudly. The rusted hinges complaining as it was pulled open. It revealed a dark hole.

  Strela examined the hole for a long time without touching the sides or going inside. It smelled of stagnant water, rust, decay and a faint whiff of ammonia. A metal ladder descended down into the darkness. She ignored the ladder and using her ability to fly she slowly lowered herself down inside. After a moment her feet were plunged into water and she was standing in a round, concrete tunnel ankle deep in water.

  Tadas followed her, moving slowly down the ladder one rung at a time. Testing each before putting his full weight onto it. "Where are we?"

  Strela pointed down the dark tunnel. "The base itself is that way about a kilometer."

  "Was anyone stationed there besides the team?" Tadas asked.

  "A special infantry squad guarded the place. There were also a dozen technicians who ran the computers and maintained the generators."

  "And the pumps," Tadas added sarcastically.

  "And speaking of that. We're testing the water now," the nanites commented.

  "GET OUT OF THE WATER! GET OUT OF THE WATER! GET OUT OF THE WATER!"

  "NOW!!"

  Almost instinctively Strela leapt upward propelled by her powerful legs. But she didn't come down. She floated a few centimeter above the water, held there by the mutant ability she had been born with. "Stay out of the water!"

  "What's in it?" The officer asked. He was only halfway down the ladder.

  A long string of chemical symbols raced across her vision. She didn't understand most of them but she did recognize the trefoil of radiation. Svetlana muttered a curse in several languages.

  "The water is contaminated." she answered. "I'm not sure of exactly what but there seems to be some low level radiation."

  She was about to speak when a small object slowly descended into view. It was some sort of plastic/metal device about the size of her thumb. It was attached to a string. She followed the string to its source and saw the officer on the other end.

  The small item descended till it reached the water.  He dunked the end in the dirty water a few times. Like someone dunking a teabag in hot water. After several dips into the murky liquid the string with its high tech cargo was withdrawn upwards. The officer held the sample small item for a moment.

  "High levels of rust, calcium, limestone," the officer commented out loud. "Higher than expected levels of lead. Higher than expected levels of radiation. Small amounts of uranium, plutonium and cesium. But only in trace amounts. We should be safe so long as we do not consume it and limit skin contact."

  "What about asbestos?" Strela asked nervously.

  The officer examined his device for a long moment. Hhe reached into a pocket and produced three small objects. He handed one to Tadas who took it. "Put that on."

  The small item was one of the cloth, medical masks that were held on with a small rubber band around the back of the head. Reluctantly Tadas put the mask on.

  "I have one for you," the army officer said and offered one to Strela.

  She shook her head and pointed to her neck. "My filters are built in."

  The officers eyes narrowed. "I see," he said in a cold voice.

  "And no," she said with a soft smile. "I'm not going to explain that."

  The lieutenant stood there for a moment and scowled at Strela who refused to say anything in response.

  Tadas stepped between the two. "You tease!" he joked. "Now can we please get moving. I'm tired of standing here in ankle deep water.

  Slowly the small group made its way through the ankle deep water. The tunnel seemed to stretch on forever but eventually they came to a large, steel door that blocked the passage ahead. Tadas examined it for a moment. "They welded this one too!"

  It took half an hour to cut the welds and pry open the door. It revealed what lay beyond.

  The tunnel was three meters tall and was cylindrical like a water pipe. The walls around them and the floor underfoot were of a rough looking concrete. Water dripped down hitting the ankle deep water or splashing onto their heads with unnerving regularity. The ceiling was covered with countless small stalactites, each no wider or longer than a pencil, dangling down.

  "Stalactites?" Tadas said, surprised as he looked at the ceiling. "What caused them?"

  "Same thing that creates them in natural caves. The water seeping through the concrete causes minerals in it to dissolve out. It also tells me that there are cracks and that the concrete is starting to weaken. "Be careful of where you walk," the officer said. "There is no telling how dangerous it is."

  Strela looked at one wall and saw that the concrete was rough and pockmarked with countless holes. "The walls used to be lined with corrugated metal panels and there were pipes and ducting  hanging from the walls and ceiling."

  "They took all the pipes and wiring and the brackets that held them up," Tadas said. "They even pried the panels off the walls."

  "That explains the bad shape the walls are in and all the water," Strela said.

  "Be very careful," the nanites commented. "The walls have some serious structural flaws."

  "And we're not too happy with the floors either."

  "Is it safe to continue?" Svetlana asked the nanites with a thought.

  "Yes but go carefully."

  Eventually the tunnel ahead of them opened up into a good sized room. The remains of brackets on the walls and ceiling told of where cabling and equipment had once been. While holes in the walls told of where cabling and wiring had once run to other places.

  "This was the main command center," Strela said as she looked around.

  "Was," Tadas said. "There's nothing left here but a big hole in the ground."

  Strela laughed. "And this surprises you?" Suddenly something small and alive zipped past her face. She ducked and drew out her bow. "What was that?"

  A pair of small objects flew past the Lithuanian hero twisting to avoid hitting the man. "WHAT?" Tadas shouted as he drew both of his high powered pistols.

  The air seemed to be alive with small things zipping about them. After a few moments she realized that in spite of all the aerial activity they weren't being attacked.

  "Identified!" the nanites said into her mind. "Eptesicus serotinus - common name is the Serotine Bat."

  Strela unnocked the arrow and lowered her bow. "Relax," she said with a laugh. "They're bats! Common, ordinary bats."

  "Bats?" The officer ducked reflexively as a small, brown object zipped past his head. "They must have gotten in through some of the ventilators."

  "We've already identified over a hundred of three separate species."

  She looked around and her cybernetic infrared red vision saw small, hot spots all over. In groups on the ceiling and the walls. Each spot was a live bat. "There must be over a hundred in here. They're all over the walls."

  "Makes sense," Tadas commented as he holstered his guns. "Bats like caves and this whole complex is one giant cave. It just happens to be manmade."

  "I've heard of bats using bunkers and tunnels left from the two world wars," the officer said as he looked around. "But I never expected them to move in so soon."

  "Hey," Tadas joked. "Everyone likes to live in a good neighborhood."

  Strela laughed. "With a force field and a 30mm autoturret it's certainly the most well protected." She looked to her left and there at eye level was a group of bats hanging from the rough, concrete walls. Some were looking at her but others were ignoring the intruders.

  "Phooey on Batman! This is the REAL Bat Cave!"

  "Let's not disturb them," Strela said softly. "It seems they own this place now."

  "Contacting Professor Petkus of the Lithuanian University of Health Sciences," the nanites commented. "He's written several excellent articles and papers on bats."

  "This is good," the officer said smiling for the first time. "If the bats are here it means no one else has been."

  "Now that is an excellent point!" The Lithuanian hero nodded in agreement. "Let's leave this room to them. I don't see anything else in there."

  "Professor Parkus has warned us that if they are in such numbers in this room there are sure to be a lot more bats in the other rooms. He's also wants us to remind you that the bats are a protected species. He wants all of you out right now. Before you cause irreparable harm."

  "He's also asking for a map and as accurate a census count as possible."

  "Be careful," Strela commented as yet another bat flew past. "There are sure to be more bats here."

  They stood in the main corridor for a moment in the dirty, knee deep water.

  "The main entrance is that way," Strela said and pointed up the corridor. Then she pointed off to the right at about a 45 degree angle. "But the power plant was in that direction."

  "Power plant first," the officer ordered. "Shut down the power to those guns and see if there is any leak there."

  A short walk took them to the entrance to a side tunnel. The trio walked up a few steps and were glad to be out of the dirty water. The small corridor opened up into a good sized room. An empty room. In the middle of the room were two large shallow pits. Strela walked up to one of the pits and looked down at it. "The generators were here."

  "The reactor?" The officer asked.

  Strela pointed deeper into the room "Further back. But I never got too close to it."

  Where the reactor had been was just a large, dark mass that filled the entire room.

  "Well," Tadas said slowly. "That explains the radiation. They just left the thing here."

  "Confirmed," the nanites added. "The reactor is leaking low level radiation. Not at dangerous levels but don't get too close."

  "Keep your distance," The officer said. He was holding a device the size of a small computer tablet and waving it about. "I am picking up low levels of radiation."

  The officer slowly walked around the massive shape and examined it both with his eyes and a battery of equipment he took from his backpack.

  Strela and Tadas waited patiently at a distance. Finally the man came over to them. He we was packing away the last of his equipment.

  "Good or bad news?" Strela asked.

  "Mostly good," the man answered. "The reactor core was emptied of all fuel after it was shut down. But the reactor itself is contaminated. Thankfully the contamination levels are low. It will have to be removed eventually but not right away."

  "How did you get it in here in the first place?" Tadas asked.

  "They cut a hole in the roof and lowered it in with a crane," Strela answered.

  "That explains why they didn't remove it," the officer commented.

  A blinking light off to one side caught her attention. Looking at it she saw a small light attached to something on the floor. The object was square and about a meter wide and meter tall. Several green and red lights blinked on the top and a soft hum emanated from it. A cable ran from the box and up the wall to a small control panel attached to one wall.

  "This is why the guns and force field still have power," the officer explained. "They're connected to a small power cell. All we have to do is shut the cell down."

  "WAIT!" Strela said suddenly. "The force field actually runs through the walls. If we shut it off what effect will it have on the walls? Will they hold up?"

  "VERY GOOD QUESTION!" The nanites commented. A long string of numbers and figures danced across her vision. She recognized them as the nanites testing the concrete and trying to come to a decision. "We're not able to answer that as some sections are weaker than others. But the field is most certainly reinforcing the structure."

  "Like in Star Trek when the Enterprise had a structural integrity field to support the hull when moving at warp."

  "That was just a plot device to explain how that weird looking ship didn't fly apart when they went to warp."

  "True but the basic concept is sound enough."

  The officer slowly nodded his head.  "Good point but we cannot leave those auto cannon turrets active."

  "WAIT!" Strela said. "If they were petty enough to leave the gun turret loaded and the force field active they are sure to have left some other surprises."

  "Agreed," the officer removed his hand from the box. "There is no telling what other sabotage they've done."

  "If the bats are in the tunnels whatever is still there cannot be too deadly!" Tadas commented.

  "Yes, but we need to go carefully until we are sure we've removed all the booby traps," Strela said calmly.

  The excitement soon wore off and the rest of the trip degenerated down to walking through ankle high dirty water in cold, dark tunnels. It was only enlivened when one of the small residents flew past squeaking their annoyance at being disturbed.

  Eventually the trio of explorers found themselves back at the entrance by the old airfield. They were quiet as Tadas welded the hatch shut.

  "For the moment it is best we keep this locked up," the officer said calmly, without looking up from his computer tablet. "At least till we can find a way to remove the guns and the reactor safely."

  "The bats?" Strela asked. "It's their home now."

  "They present an interesting complication," the officer said slowly. "As an endangered species that forces certain rules and regulations."

  Strela smiled. "I like the idea of the old base being a home for the bats. It's probably the best use the place ever had."

  "It is certainly an unexpected complication," the officer commented. "The matter will need to be handled carefully."

  "The commander is calling," The nanites suddenly said. "And Colonel Van De Velde is calling.."

  "Who is Van De Velde?" Strela asked.

  "Second in command, NSOC - NATO Special Operations Command," the nanites explained. "He sounds desperate. He's already offered you 250,000 Euros."

  She shook her head. "If they're throwing around money like that it can't be good. Tell the colonel I'm talking to Longbow now. I'll be with him in a minute. And put the Commander through."

  "I'll be blunt," Commander Carlisle of the Longbow organization said in way of greeting. "Gelezinis Vilkas and Snegurochka are at it again. Screaming yelling and about one step away from an open fight."

  "So?" Strela asked. "They've hated each other for decades. Those two have been fighting since 1971."

  "Let me rephrase it," the man said in clipped tones. "Gelezinis Vilkas an official member and representative of NATO is about to get into a very public fight with Snegurochka a member of the Official Russian Federation Super team. That makes it a NATO issue. Things are already tense between NATO and Moscow over that whole mess in the Ukraine. And the last time they fought it took months to calm things down. This could literally push things over the edge. I don't care how you do it but stop those idiots before they start World War 3."

  "He's correct," the nanites commented. "NATO has just ordered a level two alert. And the colonel has just upped the offer to 300,000 Euros."

  Svetlana muttered several curses and shook her head. "I thought I was done dealing with that woman back in 1991. All right commander I'll do what I can."

  The connection to the Longbow Commander dropped.

  "Put the Belgian on," she snapped to the Nanites.

  This is Colonel Van De Velde," the voice said. "This is escalating. The Russians are claiming someone attacked a convoy of the 18th Guards Motor Rifle Division. The assailants fled into Lithuania. They've ordered a sector wide alert."

  "Confirmed," the nanites added. "There is s 545% increase in radio traffic and they just alerted everything west of Moscow. And quite a bit of the stuff east of Moscow too."

  "NATO is also on alert," the nanites commented. "The Americans are dispatching one of their power suit units."

  "This is escalating with frightening speed," the colonel commented nervously.

  "Can you slow it down? Stop it?" Strela asked.

  "No," came the strained answer. "It was a major attack. At least forty dead. They're calling it an attack on national sovereignty."

  "Where is the NATO team?" She asked.

  "Busy in Spain with an attack on ROTA," came the answer. "The English are retasking their own team but they will take two to three hours to get there."

  "The French?"

  "Busy as well."

  "The Germans?"

  "Helping the French. There was a major Knives of Artemis raid on the nuclear reactor in Sarclay. They are having a difficult time containing the damage and the Knives."

  "They're ALL busy? Now that is interesting," she said, surprised.

  "I have been studying the confrontations between Iron Wolf and Snow Maiden over the last six months," the Belgian officer commented. "My analysts have noted a pattern. Not only have they increased in frequency but each time one of these confrontations occurred the on call NATO team was occupied elsewhere."

  "What does that mean?" She asked.

  "I believe someone is deliberately provoking a fight between the two," he answered. "Your orders are to stop this confrontation and find the ones responsible before it escalates into a full war."

  "Who would want another world war?" She asked.

  "That is secondary at the moment. First defuse the situation between those two immediately."

  "How am I supposed to do that?" Strela asked. "I'm not a diplomat."

  "You've worked with Snow Maiden." the NATO officer responded. "Try and reason with her. Tell her to back off."

  Strela scowled and shook her head. "Are you joking? No one tells Irisa what to do. And in the ten years I was on the team with her we were never able to reason with her. And don't even bother with threats. They only make her madder."

  "I don't care how you do it but stop THEM!" the Belgian officer countered over the radio. "You are the only Super asset nearby. Stop them at all costs before they start a war."