15 minutes after the success of Operation Clockwork, Sicilia and her team are inside Bluegill's submarine, underwater. Said ship girl leads the four Commanders to a small office within her submarine.

  Inside the office is Major Freya, who's looking over some files while she sits at a desk.

  "Ma'am, they're on board." Bluegill calls out.

  Freya looks up and nods to Bluegill, who then walks off.

  Arndt steps forward. "Did the data give us anything?"

  Freya nods. "Yes. David believes the Separatists brought one of the three missiles to a factory near the port of Rio."

  Arndt's singur red eye hardens. "That coastline is locked down by the Sep's 3rd fleet. What what about the other two?"

  "That's why we're headed south to make a diversionary attack on their Ats Ptform, in the heart of the Drake Passage. And we're hopping that once we get to the Factory, we'll find the location of of the other."

  Freya brings out a map of Antarctica and points near the South Shetnd Isnds, where their target is.

  Stait looks confused. "That's pretty far behind the line. What's the advantage of taking it now?"

  Freya flips around a ptop on her desk, which shows images of the ATLAS Ptform. "The ATLAS provides enough fuel to keep the Sep running for years. And they don't want us to take the Ats..." Freya smiles. "They want us to sink it."

  Sicilia looks nervous as she slightly fidgets with her hands. Osami pushes up her gsses and speaks.

  "I never did like the cold."

  Freya leans back in her chair and lights up a cigar. "I'll be joining you girls on this mission, and David will be our eyes."

  Sicilia smiles and nods. "It'll be good to have you with us!"

  .

  .

  .

  "Ats Falls"

  Jul 21st - 06:37:14Drake Passage, AntarticaAlice Sicilia

  "We're in position." Arndt says over radio.

  "Likewise." Stait replies over the radio.

  "Eye's coming up."

  A camera turns on and it shows an outpost on the ice below the Ats Ptform. Several soldiers are moving on the outskirts of the outpost.

  "Last patrol is inbound." Stait informs.

  "Copy." Arndt replies.

  Several snowmobiles and a couple trucks drive past the camera.

  "Is that all of them?" Arndt asks.

  "Roger. It's a full house. See you topside."

  A truck parks right above the camera.

  "Sicilia, pull the cam." Arndt orders. "Let's go."

  The camera suddenly starts to get pulled under the ice and turns off as Sicilia turns off the camera. The Commanders are all underwater wearing scuba gear. Blinking red lights of several C4 stuck to the ice fsh.

  Arndt swims up to Sicilia as Osami swims past her. "Charges are set and everyone's home. Let's introduce ourselves. On you."

  Sicilia pulls out a detonator. "Kaboom." She pulls the trigger, detonating all the charges.

  Several vehicles and a dozen soldiers fall into the water as all five girls take out their APS Underwater rifles.

  "Take 'em out." Arndt orders.

  The girls open fire onto the soldiers as they try to swim up.

  "We're clear. let's move." Arndt calls out.

  Blood soaks the waters as bodies and random objects float towards the ocean floor. The girls all swim to the edge of the destroyed ice and onto nd.

  Osami and Arndt are the first up and open fire onto any retreating soldiers. Osami helps Sicilia up and out of the water. Arndt helps Freya out of the water.

  "Let's go girls!" Freya orders as she takes out a Bren LMG. "We need to move, don't let them regroup!"

  Sicilia loads her CAR-15 and spots down a couple soldiers retreating.

  "Drop them!" Arndt yells as she takes cover and reloads her STG-44

  The group moves forward, taking down the soldiers in the outpost below the Ats Ptform. Major Freya takes down a helicopter by throwing a grenade into the inside of it, causing it to get stuck and blow up.

  The five girls regroup under the ptform as arms ring out. They all take out some grappling guns.

  "Line out!" Arndt shouts and they all fire onto the catwalks above them.

  "Line out!" Freya yells.

  "Osami and I, we'll find us a way off this ptform." Freya calls out.

  "Then I'm taking to the Tea Drinker and Freedom lover with me." Arndt Snickers to herself.

  "Haha..." Stait dryly ughs.

  "Following you." Sicilia chuckles.

  The five girls use rope ascenders to swiftly make their way up the rope and towards the catwalks.

  Arndt speaks into her radio. "Step one! Disable the pressure regutors! Step two! Overload the fire suppression and blow this thing sky high!"

  "Osami! Right above you!" Stait calls out as she notices some hostiles on the catwalk above her and Freya.

  "Ger ready. Weapons free at the top."

  Sicilia, Stait and Arndt reach the top and climb onto the catwalks as Freya and Osami take a catwalk one level above them.

  All the girls immediately encounter resistance, but they swiftly deal with them, Sicilia nearly fumbling a reload as they move on.

  "Move up!" Arndt orders as she, Stait and Sicilia head up some stairs.

  But then they encounter some hostiles on a catwalk a level up, taking cover behind some metal covered railings.

  "They have the high ground." Arndt points out. "Our rounds will rip through that metal."

  They swiftly take out their opposition, as arms continue to bre out.

  "We're clear!" Sicilia calls out.

  "Moving to deck two." Ardnt informs.

  The three then come to a bulk door that's closed and locked. Arndt looks it over with a smile, then gnces at Stait.

  "Det tape."

  Stait nods and pulls out some thin pstic explosive. "Copy. Setting charges." She puts the tape around the edges of the door. "Fire in the hole."

  The three girls take cover as the charges go off, blowing the door open, letting the girls insides the ptform.

  "Freya, we're internal and movin' on the East side." Arndt says into comes.

  "Check." Freya replies.

  "You girls stay safe." Osami calls out over the radio.

  "You too, Osami." Sicilia replies.

  Arndt takes the lead as the girls move deeper inside. "Pressure regutors are up ahead, let's move."

  They stop at a doorway and see some bedrooms. Arndt motions down the hallway.

  "Move." Arndt orders and Sicilia takes the lead.

  A door opens up beside Sicilia.

  "Tango, watch out!" Stait shouts.

  Sicilia turns to the side as a weapon's pointed in her face. She grabs the barrel of the gun and points it up as a round goes off from it. She pulls the gun forward, yanking it out of the soldiers grasp, then smming the stock of the gun into his face, making him stumble back.

  Sicilia drops the gun and brings her own up, putting a couple rounds into his chest, and one more into his head. Stait moves up keeping her gun trained in front of Sicilia as Arndt follows.

  Arndt looks around. "Hallway clear. Let's move. Someone had to hear that."

  Sicilia takes a nervous breath as Stait puts a hand on her shoulder. "You good." The Royal Navy Commander asks.

  "Y-Yeah." Sicilia responds with a smile.

  Arndt rolls her one eye as she pushes the two forward. "Make out ter, we need to move."

  Stait huffs and Sicilia blushes. The three come up to a locked double door and they hear the yelling of several voices on the other side.

  "Get a breacher on that door, Sicilia." Arndt orders.

  Sicilia pulls a breach charge out of her pack and sets it on the door. Then some Russian yelling is heard.

  "Get down!" Arndt yells and pushes Sicilia to the ground as bullets rip through the door and the charge, causing it to go off and blow open the doors.

  Sicilia pulls herself off the ground and readies her weapon.

  "Doors down, fsh now!" Arndt shouts as Stait tosses a fsh through the door.

  The fsh goes off and several yells of pain are heard. The three girls move it and take cover as they deal with the hostiles in the room.

  "Clear!" Sicilia shouts.

  "That was a close call." Stait sighs in relief.

  Arndt moves on. "Pressure regutors are through here." The two other girls follow her." The three stack up on the door. "Watch your fire. We need the foreman alive."

  The three girls nod to each other, then Arndt kicks open the door, starling a man. Arndt rushes in and grabs the Foreman as the other two Commanders sweep the Pressure room.

  Arndt sms the foreman into the console. "What are you doing?!" He shouts.

  Arndt kicks the back of his right knee. "Ruhig!" She grabs the mans hand and sms it on the biometric scanner. Suddenly a panel opens up revealing a red button, Arndt looks at Sicilia. "Shit it down, Kid."

  "No, no, no!" The Foreman yells. "Don't do it! You'll blow the stack! Stop!"

  Sicilia sms her fist into the button. Warning signs fsh all over the consoles as the ptform shakes.

  "What are you doing?!" The Foreman yells. "This pce is going to..." Arndt pulls out a Muaser C96 and blows his brains out.

  Arndt puts a hand up to her headset. "Freya, fre stack's off. Stay clear of the derrick. It's about to get nasty up there."

  "Roger that. We're clear." Freya replies over the radio.

  The three girls stack up at a bulk head door. Arndt starts to open the door.

  "Alright, let's head topside." Arndt pushes the door open. "Stay frosty. Do not fire until my command."

  The girls head outside as the ptform shakes a couple times. They head up to the top of the ptform and Arndt holds up her fist as she kneels down. Soldiers and Workers run about, panicking.

  "Wait for it..." Arndt orders as Stait and Sicilia kneel behind her, weapons at the ready.

  The ptform shakes and several small explosions go off, triggering several others, then a massive explosion goes off at a rge tower. The three Commanders nearly fall over from the force of the explosion.

  Debris go flying and crash nearby.

  "Get down!" Arndt yells as the commanders get lower as more debris come down and smash into parts of the deck.

  Arndt then gets up and starts to run. "Weapons free! Go hot!"

  The three Commanders make a beeline for the fire suppression system control center. Taking down many hostiles as they go. Avoiding fire spreading from nearby buildings.

  The Ptform shakes as Freya speaks over the radio.

  "Arndt, we've secured a helo for exfil. Spooling up now."

  Arndt ducks under some falling debris as Silica and Stait dive to the side. "Check. We're two miles from the command room. Coming up on the north side."

  "We'll be waiting for ya!"

  The girls come to the end of a cat walk and a door bursts open, smoke pouring out. A pair of soldiers fall out coughing from all the smoke, Arndt quickly puts them out of their misery.

  "Keep low." Arndt enters the burning interior, keeping low. "The command center's through here."

  Stait and Sicilia follow the older Iron Blood Commander. Sicilia coughs a couple times as they move on, taking down enemies that get in their path.

  The girls get back on topside and duck under some sliding debris as Freya speaks over the radio.

  "Arndt, we're on station. Ready for targets."

  A helicopter hovers a little ways from the ptform, and Arndt waves to them as she speaks into her radio.

  "Copy that. Just keep an eye on us." Arndt and the other two keep running. "Command center is up ahead. Move it!"

  The girls go up a set of stairs and see soldiers and Workers trying to get into some life boats, but Freya hovers over them as Osami opens up the side door and mows them down with an attached mini-gun.

  "Keep your head down girls!" Osami shouts to the three as the helicopter moves away.

  The three move on, keeping their distance from the spreading fire that slowly being put out. But they get stopped in their tracks by a pair of heavy machine guns lighting them up from a ptform a level above them in front of the Command Center.

  Silica slides into cover and swiftly fire onto the two machine gunners, and takes them down. But the soldiers next to them keep firing onto her.

  Silica puts a hand up to her headset. "Freya! A little help here!"

  "On it!" Freya shouts as the helicopter hovers become the girls and its machine guns light up the balcony, leaving nothing alive.

  Arndt leads the charge up the stairs to the Command Center. "Freya, we're about to shut down the fire suppression." She gnces back to Silica. "Silica, I'll over load the pumps, you maintain the water pressure."

  Arndt and Silica stand outside the Commander Center door, reloading their weapons, while Stait keeps posted on the stairs. Arndt and Silica nod to each other and Arndt opens the door.

  They head inside and sweep the room. Seeing nothing but bodies and destroyed computers. They head over to the main console, which is luckily not damaged, but does have a couple bodies hanging over it.

  Arndt grabs one of the bodies and throws it to the ground. "Get that body off the console. let's finish the job." She starts to tap away at her console.

  Silica walks over to the second console and grabs the body, sliding it. She cringes a little as it thuds to the ground beside her.

  Arndt puts a hand up to her headset. "Freya, can you pick up Stait at the exfil? We'll be there soon."

  "On it!" Freya replies over COMS.

  "You girls be safe." Stait says over the radio.

  Arndt and Silica flip a few switches and a screen slides up, showing the water pressure.

  Arndt turns to Silica. "Keep the pressure in the green while I overload the pumps."

  "Got it!" Silica grabs a lever as she starts to manage the water pressure, while Arndt taps away on another screen.

  "Ok, here we go. Just keep us out of the red. This won't take long." Arndt shuts down the first pump and a bit of the ptform shakes. "First pump down. Keep it steady." She shuts down the second pump and several explosions go off around the ptform.

  "Almost there!" Arndt yells as she shuts down the third pump, causing several more explosions to go off, shaking the ptform heavily. "Last one! Hit it!"

  Silica shoves the lever forward as Arndt shuts down the st pump. The entire ptform starts to shake as new arms ring out and red lights fsh.

  An explosion goes off near the Command Center, nearly throwing the two Commanders off their feat.

  Arndt grabs Silica. "Move it!"

  The two start to run out of the Commander Center as the entire ptform is constantly shaking.

  "Freya! We're on our way to the pipe deck!" Arndt shouts into her radio.

  "Copy. We'll stay as low as we can." Freya responds.

  Silica ducks as a metal beam nearly hits her head. Arndt stumbles slightly as she gets bsted with steam. The two run onto the pipe deck and the helicopter is hover onto eh other side.

  "There they are! Move it!" Arndt shouts as explosions go off below them, throwing up metal beams and pipes.

  Suddenly a rge explosion goes off beside them, nearly throwing Arndt and Silica off the catwalks, and forcing the helicopter to move away.

  "Shit! Arndt yells.

  "Freya!" Silica calls out.

  The helicopter hovers off the side of the ptform as smaller explosions keep going off around them. Arndt helps Silica up and they keep running.

  "GO! GO! GO!" Arndt screams. "We got to get off this thing!"

  They two see Osami and Stait hanging out the side of the helicopter, a rope hanging out of it too. The helicopter starts to pull away as the two Commanders reach the edge.

  Silica screams in fear as she and Arndt jump off the side of the Ptform and barely grab onto the rope dder hanging out the helicopter. The dder hangs lower and Silica nearly sms into the side of a life boat as the helicopter swiftly flies away from the Ptform.

  The Eagle Union Commander looks back at the ptform as it goes up in one massive explosion and colpses in on itself, falling into the cold waters that will forever be its grave.

  "Bluegill, we're inbound, ETA 15 minutes." Freya says over the radio as Arndt and Silica climb up the ter.

  "See then, Major!" Bluegill says over the radio.

  Osami and Stait help Arndt and Silica into the helicopter. Arndt falls into a seat and takes a deep breath, Silica colpses onto the floor, taking several deep breaths.

  "Th-that was close." Silica mutters.

  "A little too close." Osami states.

  "Alice." Freya calls out over the radio. "You got a call!"

  Silica wipes some sweat from her brow and calms her beating heart. "Patch me through."

  "On it!"

  After a few seconds a new voices speaks over the radio.

  "Commander..." Yorktown's solemn voice is heard.

  "Yorktown?" Silica questions. "What's wrong?"

  "...Operation Ironcd was a failure."

  Silica frowns. "...fuck. What happened?"

  Yorktown takes a deep breath. "The Convoy and Escort, including the QRF were ambushed. The cargo was destroyed."

  "Any causalities?" Silica asks in concern, but Yorktown doesn't respond. "Yorktown."

  Yorktown then shakily speaks. "Three Kansens were killed, four are heavily injured."

  Silica and the other Commanders all are taken aback.

  "No..." Silica mutters, before punching the floor below her. "Fuck! Who, Yorktown."

  "..."

  --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

  08-01-2024

  2800 words