English Folio – Short Story

“Airspace”
by Jack Millar

“Mayday, Mayday, I am under heavy fire. This is Five Charlie Niner requesting
immediate backup”.
Silence for a heartbeat then the voice again, “I repeat, requesting immediate backup.
They're too strong”. The panicked voice issuing from the console was suddenly replaced
with static after one last strangled scream!
“Connection Lost”, intoned the computer in an emotionless voice.
“Sir, I've just lost contact with another ship from Gamma Company”, called one of
the techs at the console. He played the tape of the pilots last words and desperate cry for
help. Commander Fowl grimaced as it ended.
“When was this?”, he asked the tech.
“It just happened”. The tech paused for a moment. “Sir?”, he asked as the
Commander turned away, “What does this mean?”. Commander Fowl did not answer but
moved across the vast space of the communication post towards the Director's office.
“This means war”, he said quietly to himself as he neared the door. He raised a
clenched fist to knock and heard raised voices from inside.
“What would you recommend, Commander?” asked a captain sitting across from him at
the large oval table in the crisis room. The meeting had been relocated from the Director's
office after the head of Earth had demanded to participate, bringing his entourage of body
guards with him.
“What would I recommend?” repeated Commander Fowl, “I think there is only one
thing left to recommend. We need to send in Beta Squadron “. His suggestion was met with
equal numbers of confused looks and sharp intakes of breath. He sighed as one of the
captains a few places down the table said in an incredulous tone,
“They exist? I thought they were just a myth”.
“Yes, Captain, they do. Now, can we continue?” he addressed everyone at the table.
An officer slowly raised his hand,
“This isn't school, put your hand down and speak what's on your mind” Commander
Fowl said slowly to the now flustered Lieutenant.
“What exactly is Beta Squadron?”, “Sir”, he added quickly to the end of his question.
Commander Fowl looked at him,
“That is a very good question, although it is more 'who' rather that 'what'”. The
Lieutenant looked even more confused at this but kept his mouth shut as the commander
continued. “To answer your question, Beta Squadron are an elite team of soldiers, specially
trained to deal with this type of problem”.
“But, Sir, we don't know what the problem is”,
“Exactly”, replied Fowl, a slight smile pulling at the corners of his mouth.
“Director”, he addressed the slight man still seated at the head of the table, “You know what
to do”. The Director replied with a small nod of his head, and spoke into the intercom on
his desk,
“Thaw out Beta Squadron, It's time”. A look of confusion appeared on many of the
faces of the assembled officers.
“Sir, Do you mean that they're in Cryo?” piped up the curious private, “But I thought
that people couldn't be revived from the Cryo chambers?”,
“Ah, but I think you find I didn't say that they were ordinary people” replied
Commander Fowl, the smile twinkling at the sides of his mouth again.
“Troops, meet Beta Squadron”, announced Fowl theatrically. He gestured to the far end
of the room, where five people were standing to attention. At first glance, they appeared to
be normal, maybe a little over six feet tall and powerfully built, though normal in every
other respect. It was only as everyone drew closer that there was a collective intake of
breath, while they were at about eye level with most people there, it was due to the fact that
they were standing on an area of the floor that was sunken roughly two feet into the ground.
These 'soldiers' had to be pushing on eight feet tall. The assembled officers and dignitaries
stood, awestruck.
“What are they?” whispered someone from the back of the crowd.
“They are humans, albeit genetically enhanced ones” replied Fowl from the front of
the group. A hushed silence followed his words. “They are stronger and fitter than you or
me, have more endurance than ordinary people and can also utilise our new modular armour
system, 'Darkstar', due to their strength enhancements and bone augmentation, Any
questions?”, everyone just stared back at him with their mouths slightly agape. “Good, lets
continue then. Beta Squadron have been a closely guarded secret for quite a few years.
They finally have a chance to prove themselves”, he looked around at the everyone gathered
around him and sighed, they still looked slightly dazed as they had when they noticed the
Squadron's height. “People”, said Commander Fowl, clapping his hands. That was enough
to snap everyone out of their dazed state. “Now, time for you to get suited up”, he said over
his shoulder to the members of Beta Company standing in the recessed area of floor. A
chorus of “Sir, Yes, Sir”s and curt nods from the assembled super-soldiers. There was a
collective gasp as panels in the walls and ceiling retracted, revealing many robotic arms
clutching different shaped pieces of matte-black metal. The arms went about their work
quickly, attaching the sections together until five eight-feet tall black-metal encased soldiers
stood in the recessed pit. A shiver snaked through the crowd gathered around them.
“All right then”, he addressed Beta Squadron, “We don't know what's out there” an
odd look passed over his face, “but we do know that it's already taken out Gamma
Company”. He paused for a moment, “Good Luck”.
As he watched the cruiser carrying Beta Squadron into the fight grow smaller in the
distance, Commander Fowl prayed that Beta Squadron could match their adversary, and,
above all, that Beta Squadron wouldn't turn against the fleet, his fleet, like their enemies,
their predecessors , Alpha Squadron.