Following a gentle click, the door leading to the mess hall slid open. As soon as the door was open, Athena and Adrianna advanced into the open space and scanned the room with their weapons ready. The Defender-89 automatic rifles they got from the trio of rebels at the living quarters had been replaced by the smaller Defender-71s that they retrieved from a pair of dead unarmored rebels they later encountered. Both Athena and Adrianna were more than happy to make the switch. Defender-89s were much better at punching through targets, but their weight and recoil made them almost impossible to effectively use for unarmored troops regardless of their experience.
As the two of them moved through the hall, it quickly became apparent that there was no one else alive here. Of course, Athena knew that before entering. Her roaches had scouted this area from underground already.
Scattered across the mess hall were almost 20 bodies. They seemed to be the victims of this betrayal. Most likely they were loyalists who were eating when they were suddenly turned on by the traitors. None of them was armed, and the Guard fighters simply executed them all. Cruel, yet from the perspective of the Guards, necessary. They didn't have the manpower or the time to take prisoners.
"Fuck." Adrianna quietly cursed as she recognized a few familiar faces among the dead. She was no stranger to death, but seeing her friends gunned down in such a manner still took her back a little.
Athena nodded solemnly as well. As Adrianna was distracted, Athena quickly linked to some of her roaches and checked their location and status.
A few minutes ago, she had sent out 11 of her 13 roaches to purge as many rebels in the outpost as possible to clear a way for herself and weaken the presence of the rebels in the base. The roaches did their jobs well, slaughtering most of the humans they came across. As a response, the rest of the surviving rebels had gathered in the shuttle bay. One of the roaches that had made its way to the shuttle bay from underground reported sensing around two dozen rebels there.
Athena bit her lips. It was unfortunate this was the decision made by the rebels. She knew the Republic reinforcements were on the way. If she and the loyalists wanted to flee this world, they had to do it as soon as possible. The shuttle bay, the same shuttle bay that the rebels were holding up in, was also her only way out. If the rebels decided to hide in some remote part of the base, she might be fine with leaving them alone, but as of now, she had no choice but to take the shuttle bay by force.
With the shuttle bay under her control, if the Republic forces took too long to get here, she and the other loyalists would be out of there by the time they arrive. Even if the Republic forces arrived in time, Athena could destroy the infrastructure of the shuttle bay and buy more time to figure out what to do next. Either way, the shuttle bay had to be under their control.
Athena sighed and switched to a squad of roaches that had been following a squad of rebel troops moving from the armory to the shuttle bay. This squad, unlike most of the loyalists and the rebels in the base, was fully armed and armored. Aside from Guardian-class power armors and Defender-89 rifles, they also had a pair of rocket launchers and plenty of explosives. These heavy weapons helped them repel one of the roaches when it tried to kill them.
While small arms were almost useless against roaches, these heavy weapons were more than sufficient to threaten the armored Zerg units. In other words, Athena couldn't allow this squad to reach the shuttle bay. After this squad beat back one of her roaches, she ordered most of her remaining roaches to advance to that squad's location. She could produce more roaches if necessary, but the ones she already had should be more than enough for this job.
"Athena?" In the mess hall, having quickly recovered from the sight, Adrianna turned to Athena. "Should we keep moving?"
"Yes." Athena nodded to Adrianna while simultaneously giving a silent command to the roaches. "Do it. Attack. Kill them all."
In the same way that the Guard rebels couldn't afford to show mercy to the loyalists in the mess hall, Athena couldn't afford to spare these Guard rebels. Not if she wanted to live, which she did.
As the roaches dug their way out of the ground and pounced on the surprised rebels, Athena shifted her attention back to the matters at hand.
The two of them left the mess hall and continued to move toward Doctor Payton's lab. They didn't encounter anyone alive on the way. The rebels had little presence near this area, and whatever rebels should be stationed near here were either dead or recalled to the shuttle bay. The very few loyalists that survived the initial betrayal have barricaded themselves in various rooms, having no idea what the hell was going on. Most of the loyalists who tried to leave their rooms and find out what happened were dead already, slain by the rebels or the Zerg roaches.
As the two of them moved, Athena received a sudden message from a roach she had sent toward the lab as a forward scout. Having received the message, Athena quietly sped up her steps. Adrianna simply followed without thinking much of it.
Finally, Athena and Adrianna reached the hallway leading to Doctor Payton's lab. Two figures were on the other end of the hallway, standing in front of a freshly unlocked blast door. Instigator Kendrick and another legionnaire in the combat squad he led. They were just about to enter the lab.
"Instigator!" Athena raised her hands to show she wasn't a threat. "This is Athena! Private Athena Dane! We talked a few days ago, remember?" She really hoped the Instigator did. Most of her plan relied on that.
The Instigator was a little startled at first. Almost as soon as Athena called out, he snapped around and had his weapon ready, his actions mirrored by the legionnaires beside him. Luckily, as Athena knew, both he and his legionnaire were veterans with quite the trigger discipline. They would only fire upon her if they chose to, and Athena had done all she could to make sure they would never make that choice.
"Athena." Much to Athena's relief, the Instigator immediately recognized the young woman who he talked to a few days ago and whose warning was the only reason he was still alive. He scanned Athena and then Adrianna before giving a simple order. "Drop your weapons now."
Athena quickly obeyed. She knew there was always the risk the Instigator would still decide to execute her, but that would be highly unlikely and incredibly stupid on his part. Plus, her whole plan needed the Instigator to trust her. Refusing now would only raise more suspicion. She had taken all the precautions she could. If the man just decided to randomly shoot her even after he knew she was a loyalist, then so be it.
Seeing her lead, Adrianna dropped her weapon as well, not that she had any intention to take on the Instigator.
Luckily, Athena's previous warning to the Instigator worked, and it also helped protect Adrianna. After the two of them rested their rifles on the ground, Instigator Kendrick allowed them to enter the lab and then shut the blast door behind them.
For the first time, Athena found herself within Section R of the research outpost. This section was where Doctor Payton stayed in and likely kept her experiments and specimen. Usually, this part was off-limits to infantry troopers like her. Only legionnaires of the Imperial Security Corps, and occasionally officers of the 432nd Company, were allowed in.
There were several rooms in the section. Athena looked around and saw a number of seats and desks. This was likely the resting area. There were a few men here, but she didn't see anyone resembling the doctor.
"Sir." A number of men in black and red power armor quickly greeted Instigator Kendrick. Athena recognized their armor as the Champion class, a class of armor almost exclusively used to equip operatives of the Imperial Security Corps. They were renowned for their high cost, as well as additional communication capabilities, protection, and strength enhancement. It was rumored one of these armors was worth as much as a dozen Guardian-class. The wolf sigils on their armor identified them as legionnaires of the Imperial Security Corps. All of them had dark face shields that hid their faces from the outside world, adding a sense of mysteriousness and intimidation to these warriors.
These men belonged to the half of the combat squad that was by the doctor's side when the mutiny first occurred.
Athena could see the Defender-102 rifles of these legionnaires were distinctly aimed in their direction. If an order was given, these legionnaires would gun them down immediately. Unsurprising, given the mutiny that just occurred. The Corps was partly built to root out threats to the Imperium, and now the entire 432nd Company had become a threat.
Instigator Kendrick nodded at them before turning back to face Athena. He first gestured at Adrianna, his tone cold and stoic. "Who is she?" He asked right in front of the redhead.
"Her name is Adrianna, sir. She's a riflewoman in my squad. We were in our living quarters when the shooting started." Athena explained, doing her best to keep Adrianna from being gunned down as a possible traitor. "We made our way here to try to protect Doctor Payton from the rebels. We thought that's likely who they are after, but for some reason, that doesn't seem to be the case. Otherwise, there should be rebels present here." Athena added, playing dumb.
Instigator Kendrick nodded and glanced at Adrianna again. "Holt. Keep an eye on her. If she does anything suspicious, shoot her."
"Yes sir." One of the legionnaires nodded and gestured at a seat on the other side of the room.
Adrianna didn't say anything. She knew something like this was to be expected after a mutiny. Being closely guarded by a legionnaire was one of the best outcomes she could hope for. Honestly, a part of her thought she could be shot on sight, but she still came here to the lab. If she came to the lab and managed to help, she still stood a chance of escaping and not getting shot afterward. If she simply hid in this base, her chances of surviving would almost be nonexistent. As she left, she glanced at Athena, a little surprised how differently Instigator Kendrick treated Athena. Clearly, there were things she didn't know, but she had no intention of asking questions now.
As Adrianna was led away, Instigator Kendrick asked Athena a few quick questions about how she got to the lab and what she saw on the way. Athena answered him, telling the truth in some cases and carefully crafted lies in others. In the end, the Instigator had no reason to suspect foul play. Satisfied, the man was ready to dismiss Athena. This was when Athena presented her own questions.
"Sir," Athena looked to Instigator Kendrick, knowing he had some trust for her now. "If I may speak freely?"
"Go ahead."
"Shouldn't we try to leave this world as soon as we can, sir?"
Instigator Kendrick tilted his head thoughtfully. "And why should we do that?"
Athena frowned. "Sir, an operation like this is most likely premeditated. If the mutineers simply want to desert from the Imperial Army, they have no reason to do so in such a manner. They have taken this base by force for a reason, and most likely that reason is this lab here and Doctor Payton. If we stay here, we will be susceptible to whatever backup plans or reinforcements the traitors may have while we have no way of sending out a call for help. Our best chance will be to fight our way to the shuttle bay and escape when we can."
She had made her own plans as well. By the time the Imperial loyalists head for the shuttle bay, they would find the rebels there slaughtered by the roaches. Before that, on the way there, the loyalists would encounter a few roaches and see for themselves that the base had been breached by some kind of beast. They would escape from this world. Maybe the Imperials would return to try to find the roaches, but Athena herself would be gone by then and the Imperials would be left with nothing to look into.
Instigator Kendrick nodded slowly as Athena spoke. "You make a good argument, private." He stated before saying something that surprised Athena. "But we're staying here."
Wait…why? They were sitting ducks here! Athena was about to say something else before she caught herself. Instigator Kendrick was a member of the Imperial Security Corps. From everything Athena saw and heard, the man was a competent and dedicated servant of the Venya Imperium. The only reason he would make such a seemingly foolish decision… would be if he knew something Athena didn't.
The lab itself was heavily fortified on all sides. It could be breached with the proper equipment, but that would take time. Plenty of time. If there were no reinforcements coming for the Imperials, then staying here would be suicide. On the other hand, if there was help en route, then the story would be completely different. If reinforcements were coming for the Imperials, then this fortress of a lab would be the best safe house to hide in until they arrive.
When Athena met with Instigator Kendrick a few days ago and nothing happened, she thought he either didn't believe her or was taking action in secret. At first, when the mutiny occurred without being shut down, the former seemed to be the case. Now, the latter appeared to be more likely. Somehow, Instigator Kendrick must have been able to send out a call for reinforcements without the rebels knowing. Morgo IV was a moderate amount of distance away from major Imperial worlds. No starship would accidentally come to Morgo IV, but it shouldn't take a warship equipped with Callisto Engines too long to arrive. So why hadn't the reinforcements taken over the base already and locked up all possible traitors, including her?
The Instigator was surprisingly calm given the mutiny that just happened. He even had the extra time to chat with her. Most likely, the things happening now were still a part of his plan. The Instigator wasn't satisfied with just putting an end to this treachery. Instead, he had taken this betrayal and turned it into a trap for the rebels and whoever they were working with. He and his men knew this treachery was coming, and they allowed it to play out, even potentially taking casualties to make things seem real.
The moment all the enemies of the Imperium show themselves would be the moment they were crushed by overwhelming Imperial might.
Athena glanced at Instigator Kendrick again. If she was right, then the rebels were doomed. The Republic reinforcements here to back up the rebels were also in deep trouble. Luckily, it seemed like she would do just fine. If anything, she would be well rewarded for her service.
She silently instructed her roaches to return underground and hold off the attack on the shuttle bay for now. More likely than not, she could let the Imperials do the killing for her. All she had to do was secretly harvest the resources with her roaches.