Chapter 92: First assignement

Annette gave Rick and O’Brian the results of the former’s checkups. For all intent and purposes, Rick was the healthiest man she has ever seen. That meant he was free to go back on the field. Of course the supplementary tests for his conditions were kept secret and would need a lot more time for Annette to make sense of what she was getting from Rick’s samples. Especially since she was working almost from scratch with only his arbitrary information regarding the capabilities of his body.

For his part Rick was busy working Angela to the bone. Everyday, he gave her printed pop quizzes about the BOW they had studied the previous day. At least at first. The more her knowledge increased the more he varied the questions. After two weeks he asked no question about the ones from the previous day but picked plenty from the first days.

She almost aced everything every time.

When they weren’t busy with the bestiary or reviewing some old cases and personal reports to give her a second hand experience on what to search on the field during an investigation, Rick dragged her down to the gym to train her in close quarter combat. Fortunately she knew the basics and they just piled on it.

The last part was studying on ballistic gel dummies much like they did for the zombie. It was a thing Rick had argued with O’Brian when had started in the FBC. Dummies to study and practice how to take down BOW. They weren’t used much by many but in Rick’s opinion it was a mistake. Not like it cost any money. The mold did but the ballistic gel? It was almost free.

Currently, Rick was looking at articles on the BSAA homepage in the hope of finding a simple investigation. Angela was ready to go on the field and gain some experience. Unfortunately, there was nothing interesting in North America. The idea of contacting the European or Asian branch had crossed his mind but it was way too far for a first job.

That was until O’Brian opened his office door. “Wald! Miller!”

Rick exchanged a look with Angela as he stood up. Both went to their Boss’ office to see what it was all about. The man was at his printer and was collecting papers. When no prints came, he tidied up the pack, put a staple on everything and handed it all to Rick who quickly read it and passed it to Angela.

“Canada?”

O’Brian nodded and answered his veteran agent. “British Columbia to be exact. North of Prince George.”

“Canada?” Rick repeated in disbelief. “So removed from anything, anywhere? The possibility of—”

“It being an underground lab is high.” Clive interrupted. “I know but the two of you are the only ones available.”

Rick frowned when he heard this because it wasn’t the case. There were still Chris and Jill in the office, yet his boss was sending him and Angela. The rookie with the agent with the highest survival chance. That meant that whatever assignment his friends were about to get was very serious and dangerous. More than the hypothetical existence of a lab.

Sending Rick would be in theory the better choice for the other mission, however Angela would find herself with either Chris and Jill. While they were part of the best of the BSAA, they couldn’t do what Rick could and Angela’s chances to survive diminished drastically if they partnered with her and a lab was indeed there.

“Logistics?”

O’Brian for once wasn’t spitting fire at him. “Anything you need.”

One of Rick’s eyebrows arched in surprise. For a simple investigation agents were rather limited to their service gun with a few spare magazines and a knife. More equipment was when they were deployed in known or potentially known fields filled with BOW or when harsh resistance was suspected. Full gear for a simple case of disappearances and mutilated bodies in the wild was unheard of.

“Who do we have to report to there?”

“Prince George police. They made the request when the…” O’Brian checked a few papers on his desk to search for something. “Conservation officers and the coroner reported they had no idea what kind of beast killed the hikers they found or rather the pieces of them. With the paranoia of BOWs going around, they called us.”

Rick checked his watch. Going from one coast to the other could take nearly half a day by plane. Reaching Vancouver would take perhaps a bit more. Then there was the road to their destination. He needed to have a look at that.

“Bill?”

“As usual,” O’Brian replied. “Pay what you need, keep receipts and the BSAA will reimburse you.”

With a nod, Rick stood up. Angela let go of the files and followed him. She had questions and it showed on her face.

“We’ll talk about it on the plane.” Rick sat down at his desk and looked on the internet for plane tickets to Vancouver at reasonable prices and left today. “First, pick up our gears, then depending on—” He stopped talking when he found what he was looking for. “There is a plane at 1500, which leaves us with five hours to go back home and pack a week of clothes.”

Angela was already checking out of her session on her computer. “Warm clothes I gather?”

“Yes. No room for a bikini this time around.” He answered stoically, making reservations. “Also, it’s the middle of February in Canada. Don’t dress for the cold, dress for skiing.”

“I think I might need to do some shopping then.”

Rick nodded. “Don’t take a coat and pants. The BSAA has gear for us for this weather. Maybe boots too.”

“Oh!” She was surprised by that. “I’m good then.”

Standing up, he made sure his computer was powering down completely and they both left for the armory.

“It’s an eleven hour flight to Vancouver and afterwards an eight hour road trip to the small town of Mackenzie.”

Angela didn’t enjoy the prospect of a ten hour ride. “Is there no plane to a city closer to Mackenzie?”

“There is. To the city of Prince George. The problem is, the price of the tickets and the wait for the correspondence. It’s better by car. And we still have a two hour drive to reach our destination.”

“I guess the BSAA hadn’t yet received the FBC’s budget.” She sighed.

Rick thought the same thing. “I think it did and part of everything else. It’s only been two months since it’s been official, things move slowly. That or planes and cars are used somewhere else or for more important investigation although it’s a bit of a waste to give one plane to two agents.”

“Fair enough.”

After entering the armory, they went straight to Elizabeth at the counter. A short brunette in her early to mid-forties and John’s wife.

“Hello, Elizabeth.” Angella greeted the woman. She had met her during one of Barry’s gatherings for the little club he had started. Rick gave her a polite nod.

“Hello, dears. What are you getting today?”

Rick went straight to the point. “Lots of things on the go.”

Elizabeth’s expression turned serious. On the go was a very explicit expression to mean they were getting weapons and gears outside the armory. For her it meant lots of appropriate paperwork for all of it. The members of the BSAA couldn’t board a plane armed simply. Not after 9/11 and the increased security at airports. They needed quite a few forms for the authorities. Thankfully, once they wouldn’t have to depend on civilian mode of transportation they could do away with all this. Nobody was happy about it.

“Where?”

“Canada.” Rick said nothing more but it was enough to make Elizabeth relax.

“You’re lucky. Canada isn’t that big on security compared to our country. I’ll get you covered. Now what exactly are you taking with you?”

Rick turned to Angela silently to let her answer this one. She had read the file far more than he did and had listened to him talking with O’Brian. The knowledge she had was more than enough to prepare accordingly.

“A Benelli M4 for Rick and bandolier for it while I’ll take a P90. For each of us, his special tomahawk, three tactical knives, four pouches, including one for first-aid kit, a tactical vest and a radio.”

Elizabeth smirked while Rick nodded sagely. “He got to you, huh?”

Angela simply smiled. “He’s still alive so he must do something right.”

“That, he does.” The woman eyed Rick. “It seems like you're going on a raid.”

“Small remote town, possibility of a lab so it’s better to be overgeared. I’ll take slugs by the way.”

Elizabeth nodded and left the desk to gather everything they asked for. Rick glanced at Angela silently as if waiting for something. It took a moment for her to realize the one tiny mistake she had made.

“Slugs are better in forest terrain for our job.” She sighed.

He bobbed his head slightly. “In an outbreak in an urban area buckshot is better but in a forest it would mostly hit trees. You did well. I’m surprised you’re going for the axe though.”

“I may lack a bit in the strength department but the pike and crowbar are really too good to pass up. Besides, what would have been the point in training with it if I don’t end up using it?”

“I’d say preparedness but you won’t find that kind of axe around if you fiund yourself in a surprise outbreak so good thinking. By the way… You should think about bringing stuff to occupy your free time. Music, a book or some crosswords if that’s your thing.”

Angela blinked. “I haven’t thought of that.”

“People rarely do when they start a job where they move around quite a bit. They don’t make the same mistake after their first long trip. The experience is that excruciating.”

“Thanks. Spending almost a day travelling with nothing to do would have driven me nuts.”

“Depending how far you travel, sleeping pills help a lot among a few things to deal with Jetlag.” Rick shared.

“Sleeping on the plane, I gather?” She got curious.

“Yes. Although it’s not so much as sleeping it’s about immediately forcing your body to behave the way it would at your destination. A simple way which helps greatly is to change the time on your watch appropriately. If it’s the middle of the night in… let’s say… Rome. Then you should put a mask on, ear plus and limit the light your body is subjugated to.”

Angela thought about it for a moment. “In other words, I’m tricking my body. It’s made easier with sleeping pills.”

“HmHm.”

Elizabeth came back and not alone. John had come to her rescue with a huge military weapon case while hers was way smaller. Rick took the big one from the man’s hands without an effort and began to fill the proper forms. So did Angela. They received the paperwork for the load at customs and thanked the married couple.

“What now?” Angela was carrying the small briefcase which probably contained the knives and spare magazines.

“We get our winter gear, get O’Brian to sign the form so we don’t get stopped by security at the airport, then you go home and pack your bag with enough clothes for a week. Keep in mind your suitcase must be small enough so you can take it with you inside the plane.”

“What about you?”

“Lesson number #2 regarding travels, always have a bag full of clothes in your locker.”

“Uh.”

She wished Rick would have told her before they needed to travel but she supposed having to go back home and pack a bag left a bigger mark on her. After getting their winter gear and a genesis from the R&D, they split up to meet later at the airport. Angela was both excited by finally having the opportunity to be on the field and a bit anxious. She wondered what awaited them.