Operation R.A.V.E.N. — One SCU Late

The filing went into the BLVN Operations System on the morning of the 25th, and it was as dull as we could make it. A four-person detachment would leave Orbituary Station for Golden Riviera on Bloom. They would verify Osoian Hide availability, observe commodity restock intervals, and acquire inventory "when practical." It had a two-hour window. Combat was not an objective, and extended periods of observation were anticipated.

Readers of this log will remember Osoian Hides. The last time they appeared here, they were twelve SCU of contraband in a Prowler's hold, moving quietly from Pyro to an unmarked yard on Euterpe. This time the unit wanted to see where they come from, when they come in, and whether anyone was watching them.

The cover story

Nobody volunteers to spend two hours watching a commodity terminal, which made the volunteers interesting. Each name on the manifest got the same transmission from RVN-1: interesting choice, a welcome, and one line of advice.

The mission description tells you what we're going to do. It doesn't necessarily tell you what we're preparing for.

— RVN-1 — personnel assignment acknowledgement

That morning, a general advisory went out across Believe Nation asking operators to mark themselves on duty. It said no support was requested, then added: "No further explanation is considered necessary at this time." Three people read all of that and decided they wanted in. They had worked out that the flat paperwork was hiding something. What it was hiding was a Raven Unit operation.

Raven-4 MacTaggert was assigned the heavy end of it. He would bring a Perseus to sit over the site and work both the ground and the sky. Bringing an Idris to buy hides was also discussed, and rejected on the grounds of taste.

One SCU

The detachment arrived at Golden Riviera at 1200 hours in a pair of Sabres plus escort. The terminal read 1 SCU.

Intelligence on the restock windows had always been assumed rather than confirmed, and the brief said so. Now we had confirmation, which was not the kind we wanted: the window had opened before we arrived and closed while we were in transit. At 1223, the SITREP called the primary objective out of play. The detachment stayed. A pivot to Chawla's Beach was considered and turned down. The site was ours, and there was more to learn by holding it.

Holding the ground

ZH-1 took sniper overwatch. Gutsy-Hero took the southern end with a second rifle. Blightreaver held ground security and kept watching the terminal, because recording an interval was still the job. LT_BILKO had the sky.

Over the next twenty minutes, other people came looking:

• 1231 — One ground element was removed. One enemy asset was confirmed destroyed.
• 1238 — One air element was removed.
• 1241 — Two Eclipse bombers were spotted holding at distance in overwatch positions. LT_BILKO took both out.

Threat level low, but we have conviction.

— Operations net · 1241

The air cover

At 1238, a WARNORD update downgraded the Perseus's arrival to "unlikely." To be fair to Raven-4, he was not late in any sense that counts. He was still at an appointment he had told us about at 0902. The op had been filed with a generous margin so everyone could get to Bloom. It turns out the margin needed to be on the other side. By the time MacTaggert walked in his door at 1303, the mission had been complete for ten minutes and the overwatch alert had been stood down.

What we came for

The acquisition was always listed as unlikely, and it was. The rest of the brief is now done. We know the stock was gone before 1200, and we know who else turns up at Golden Riviera when it runs low. Next time this op is filed, it will be filed earlier.

The cargo bay came home empty and the notebook came home full. In recon, that counts as a win.

Who flew

ZeroHawk (Raven Actual, overwatch), Blightreaver, Gutsy-Hero, and LT_BILKO. Raven-4 MacTaggert held the Perseus in reserve. He will get his turn.

Move quiet.Watch the dark.

RVN-1 · Raven Unit · End Dispatch