Two Marines, One Mission

Posted on 2026, Mon Aug 24th, @ 10:22pm by Major Alexander Stroud & Captain Samuel Woolheater

962 words; about a 5 minute read

Mission: Episode 1 "Operation Iron Justice" USS Halo, Star Base 113, USS Vigilance
Location: TBD
Timeline: TBD

[[ Civillian Transport Hub ]]

Kade did exactly as he promised. And Elias Mercer, civilian contractor, exited the shuttle without fanfare. Sam thanked the man and was seen signing the standard "company paperwork" for a shuttle transport to this transportation hub.

The transaction was complete. Samuel nodded and gathered up his one travel case and a travel bag filled with used tradecraft for a contractor hired on by the company.

He walked through the main concourse, and here was the first test. Would his travel documents pass inspection at a civilian security-run checkpoint? Sam actually wasn't nervous. Lieutenant Voss had done an amazing job on his cover. Sam waited in line just like the dozens or more of fellow travelers until he was next. The security guard waved him forward.

Before Sam even made it to a checkpoint, 3 Men in civilian security grabbed him while the other grabbed his luggage. Little did he know they were in Starfleet Intelligence, but under cover to help Sam. "Sir, you need to come with us." They didn't give Sam time to respond, but they pretty much escorted him to a room, placed him in it, and left. 10 minutes later, someone walked in wearing similar clothing,

"Sam, Major Alexxander Stroud, or Alex, I have been assigned to help you on your mission, those guards were with Star fleet Intelligence, They have secured us a shuttle of our own, and updated your background a small bit to have us as step brothers who work together, we are to report to the shuttle in 10 minutes, Any questions?"

Sam let a beat pass as he adapted to the new information. He processed it quickly. Snipers usually did.

"Always have questions...Alex. Elias always wanted a brother. You always were Dad's favorite anyhow. Let's do this"


[[ Restricted Transit Area and Corridor ]]

The room emptied almost as quickly as it had filled.

Samuel stood slowly from the chair once the door shut behind the intelligence operatives. No dramatic reaction. No wasted questions. If this operation was legitimate, answers would come when they came. If it was not legitimate, questions would not save him.

He picked up the travel case and slung the contractor’s bag over his shoulder before stepping out into the corridor beside Major Alexander Stroud.

The hallway beyond the holding room was narrower than the public concourse outside. Lower lighting. Utility access panels. Fewer civilians moving through it. Fewer visible security cameras too. Which usually meant there were more cameras.

Sam’s eyes moved once down the length of the corridor automatically. Exits. Utility doors. Reflections in darkened display panels. Blind corners. Distances between choke points.

The habit happened before thought ever caught up.

The two Marines walked together at a measured pace toward the docking section. Sam kept his posture loose enough to pass for civilian labor while still carrying himself with the unconscious balance of somebody trained to move under weight.

The contractor’s bag dug lightly against his shoulder. Machine oil. Shuttle fuel and the smell of old fabric. It felt, real and it felt good. Used equipment always sold a cover better than pristine gear did.

Sam restrained himself from actively checking corners and assessing terrain. As they walked in measured silence. Ahead, civilian dockworkers maneuvered cargo containers across an intersecting corridor while travelers flowed around them in uneven streams. Nobody paid attention to the two men moving through the station.

Exactly how operations like this preferred it.

Sam turned the slim civilian-style data chip over once between his fingers as they walked. Updated background material most likely. Adjustments to the cover identity.

Elias Mercer.

Civilian contractor.

And now apparently part of a fabricated family.

Mercer looked over at Stroud. He tried to gauge the man that he was putting his life in a bucket with. Undercover work always became strange eventually.

That was the dangerous part about cover identities. Not the big lies. The small details. The kind that had to come naturally.

Sam found himself already building the rhythm internally. The fake memories. The half-formed arguments. The sort of mundane history people stopped questioning because it sounded boring enough to be true.

It was oddly unsettling how quickly the human brain adapted to it.

A checkpoint ahead opened automatically before either Marine reached it. Somebody in Intelligence had already cleared their path through station security.

Efficient. Quiet. And, no doubt, expensive.

Mercer said, "You do the talking. I've not read the new additions to the story and its a hell of a time to add to the backstory."


"Understood" stated the major as they walked up.


His attention shifted back toward the corridor ahead. Elias was already mentally cataloging everything around him out of habit. Civilian security patterns. Emergency access points. Camera placements. Which doors were actually in use and which existed for maintenance routing only.

The old instincts never stopped running. He caught himself. Anybody who knew how to read a human being would quickly discern that Elias was taking in the whole scene...just like a Marine would. Sam stopped himself from doing that and looked at the ground.

"Tell me, fast, what we're about to do?", Elias asked.


"We're gonna walk through like we own the place, Our profession tends to allow us some leeway." The Major stated with a smirk.


At the end of the transitway, a compact shuttle sat waiting behind a maintenance barrier with running lights already active. No visible registry markings. No civilian company identifiers. Nothing unnecessary. Which was somehow more reassuring than if the shuttle had tried too hard to look normal.

Sam slowed slightly near the boarding ramp.


The Gaurd scanned thier stuff and looked at them for a sec as if he was second guessing himself but let them through.

RSS Feed