as written by Tiko and Lobos
Meanwhile, elsewhere in the Midlands...
Rhea stepped out of a shimmering portal into an underground complex situated within Midlands, safely removed from the chaos of Westeria City. Several others had been ushered in behind her along with the TAF soldiers that had escorted them through.
The brunt of the parliament had been evacuated to bunkers within Gonthar, but the Prime Minister and the Minister of Defense now found themselves in what was intended as an emergency war room in the event of an attack upon the government.
Medical and military personnel alike rushed Rhea the moment the portal closed behind her, but whatever episode had struck her back in the Government Center had passed and she waved off the former.
"I need reports," Rhea instructed. "What is the situation in Westeria City?"
“Fubar,” muttered Max as he ran a hand through his hair, rubbing at his temples.
"We're receiving mixed reports," someone answered. "The NPA HQ was hit as well, but some reports claim friendly fire."
"By whom?" Rhea asked.
"Tech Con."
"The WCPD HQ and Hagan Avenue have both sustained heavy damages as well," someone else interjected.
“Solid intel points at the initial terrorists are either fleeing the city, or gone altogether. Nero’s Fiddle is in pursuit of Rogue Alpha.”
“Early damage assessments are estimating double digit millions already. Preliminary casualty estimates are actually pointing at the terrorists causing...less deaths than friendly fire?! The hell is that possible?”
"Apparently a Lieutenant Ashlyn MacDugg has ordered the detainment and arrest of Tech Con Chief, Callandra Henderson, in response to the damages. Along with ordering the lockdown of the Tech Con Quarter, and the arrests of dozens of employees."
"Under whose authority?" Rhea asked.
"No one's."
“Her ass is going in a fire when this is over.” Dirge growled. “This isn’t good. How the fuck could the Lieutenant think that was a wise decision, given we almost know how the Aschen are going to react to this?”
"This is a disaster," Rhea grimaced. "Get orders to that Lieutenant. Martial law has not been declared, and the TAF are to hold. Instruct them to contain the situation, but they are not clear to move on Tech Con." There was no denying the worry etched into her brow as she looked to Dirge. “Thirty Triremes?”
“Not enough.” The Minister of Defense’s face was etched with lines of shadows as he critically studied the screens. “If the reaction is a warfleet, that’s going to barely be a speed bump when they come knocking. If I had to make a call, I’d be on the horn with the Shintenchi Embassies requesting temporary orbital positioning to try and keep the Triremes in territory the Aschen would be loathe to fire into. Close enough to jump back in, if they absolutely had to, but in the way?”
Max shook his head. “Better to keep them grounded though. Leave them planetside. Get on the phone with the shipyards, though. I want bare essentials on site, they might be considered a target.”
"If the Empire retaliates, we won't win a confrontation in open battle," Rhea remarked as she agreed with Max's desire to keep their remaining Triremes grounded. "But as long as we hold Hagan Avenue we have some leverage to try and keep this from turning into an all-out bloodbath. What can you get me on the situation there?" she asked of the gathered personnel.
"Tech Con has stood down, and the TAF are on scene," someone answered. "Callandra Henderson has already been taken into custody, along with several individuals directly involved in the skirmishing that have been since transferred to the NPA."
“Hold a corridor around Hagan Avenue, and get the TAF presence dug in. We hold what we have, and see where we stand to execute negotiations in a best case scenario. Anything that’s TAF and not in Westeria City, I want it under cover and or as far away from there as humanly possible.” Max barked.
"I want the names of every Tech Con employee that was taken into custody," Rhea added. "Find out which ones are Aschen citizens. We need to clear the streets as well. Get the civilians indoors and start evacuations of the buildings within half a mile of Hagan Avenue."
Glancing at Rhea, Dirge sighed heavily. “Elevate to High Alert status. Mechanized units are not to move, infantry level action only, and only in the vicinity of Westeria City.”
“I hope we’re wrong about the Empire,” Rhea answered grimly.
But from what she knew of the Aschen, they weren’t wrong.