Retrieval Brief

"Aren't we gonna wait for the big dog?" asks Chen who is in the war room with Cade, Ghost, and Benedict.

"Agent Miller is the head of the special unit that discovered this case. He knows every detail of this mission as much as I do, if not more," Benedict responds.

"And we have already gone over the general strategy over the phone."

 Images of the mission site are flashed through the holographic device in the middle of the round table.

"This mission is ranked S, Agents. And it is for that reason why we are sending two First-Classes in Agent Miller and Agent Vanderwood."

"This is an S? It's just a bunch of naked forest people," Chen comments.

 Although he was previously sent as part of the second unit for the Redwood Mission, the situation was already handled by the time they arrived, making this his first actual S-rank mission.

"The driving factor of this mission being categorized as an S is not the tribe, Agent Xu, it's this," Benedict points out the meteorite on the medium to low quality, satellite image.

 He squints his eyes and looks at it closely.

"Aren't we supposed to be highest of all high tech? Why do we have shit cameras?" he complains.

"This, is a meteorite," Benedict completely ignores Chen's comment.

"An EXTREMELY rare material."

"Is that the same void meteorite on Sentinel Island?" asks Cade, the only person in the room aside from Benedict who knows what it actually is.

"The what meteorite?" Chen cuts in.

"Yes, Agent Vanderwood, it is indeed that. Agent Vanderwood is a witness to how important this material is and the possible implications that come with it."

"We have more than reason to believe that the wanted Dr. Crowe is out to collect materials such as this. And although we're assuming that he is unaware of the existence of this particular one, we still cannot approach the situation with a laid-back attitude," Benedict explains.

"Furthermore, we also have to take this, in consideration," he points out the enshrined creature.

"We possess no information about this creature whatsoever, only that the tribe is apparently worshipping it as some sort of deity. Whether it's a corpse, a broken vessel, or a slumbering monster, we don't know. But we must prepare for the worse-case scenario."

"Which is?" asks Chen.

"Our theory is that it's simply slumbering. A monster in suspended animation. It would make sense as to why we have not detected it before if it doesn't emit any sort of signature. What doesn't make sense, however, is HOW it is able to do it."

"Anyone else don't understand what just happened or is it just me? Says Chen."

 Ghost shrugs and raises his shoulders. He is equally confused.

"Every monster emits a special signature and we use this signature to detect and locate them. This 'signature' comes from the ancient essence and at times, the ancient energy that they emit. All of these monsters have essence perpetually flowing inside them. It's sort of like the thing that powers them. Their fuel, their life force," Benedict expounds on his previous discussion.

"Every monster emits a certain signature. And we also use this same signature to categorize how strong they are. The larger and more concentrated, the stronger the monster is."

"And this one with the tree people doesn't have one?" Chen clarifies.

"Yes."

"Then it's probably not a monster. Or IF it is one, it's dead."

"Agent Xu, I understand that this is your first time joining a mission of this caliber so let me explain it to you. What we prepare for in these scenarios, in ANY scenario, especially here in S-rank missions, is the worst possible case," Benedict lectures him.

"If we just took everything at face value and didn't put into consideration the worst thing that might happen, every mission you agents take will end up like the Redwood Mission."

"To give you a much better idea, even the Redwood Mission was meticulously planned. And yet, look how it ended. I guess I don't have to tell you that, you were there. You saw how that mission went," he adds.

"So, unless we want another Redwood Mission on our hands, we WILL take every precaution necessary. I'm not saying you were incorrect. It's probably NOT a monster. Or if it is, it's probably dead. Both of these scenarios are probable. But the scope of probability is not just limited to these two options. The reason why we conduct briefings and discussions like this before missions is to identify and plan for the things that could go wrong. We don't discuss things that aren't wrong."

 The rookie agent couldn't say anything else. Benedict completely schooled him.

"And going back to the latter in your concern, there is very little possibility that this creature is dead. The only reasons why this thing would be here already lifeless are if the tribe themselves or some other animal or creature killed it, or its corpse wasn't retrieved during a clean-up operation."

"A primitive group of people with only wood and rocks for weapons are barely capable of taking down a C-rank monster, let alone THIS abomination. Neither animals nor men with makeshift weapons would be able to take down monsters. And even if that were the case, we would have detected this thing. Would have also helped in locating this meteorite if it was already there before the monster."

"A lapse on clean-up would be even less probable. We have never had a case like this and we probably never will. Clean-up is the most thorough process in missions as it needs to be perfect to avoid exposure," he elaborates.

"And even in the slightest, littlest chance that this was a clean-up lapse, then this would mean that this monster was part of a horde and wasn't extracted with the rest. If this was a solo monster, there is no way that this was just left in the forest. It wouldn't make sense either if it was part of a horde since we would have had data on this."

"Are we clear on everything, Agent Xu?"

"Yes," he answers, faintly, just under his breath.

"Moving on," Benedict is quick to move past the brief lecture.

"We are taking into consideration the possible monster. But remember that even if it is alive and it becomes hostile, your main priority is the meteorite."

"If a certain situation arises and you must decide whether to take the meteorite or extract the monster, the meteorite comes first," he reiterates.

"Another, or perhaps a more viable strategy would be to split up if the monster poses a huge threat and you would have no choice but to deal with it."

"The unit is composed of a pair of Second and First-Class agents. IF you must split up, then one Second and one First-Class must go with each other. One pair extracts the meteorite while the other deals with the monster," he explains.

"The reason for this specific pairing is because we are also taking Crowe into account. If the fugitive does appear on the scene, he will definitely come for the meteorite and we would have much higher chances of fending him off if there is at least one First-Class agent guarding the meteorite."

"Who pairs with who will be up to you agents to decide. As well as who shall take the meteorite and who shall deal with the monster. Obviously, the pair with the better combat advantage against the monster shall take up that responsibility. But again, this is for you agents to decide and it's for you to decide when that time comes."

"Questions?" Benedict asks before proceeding further.

 No response. Ghost nods "no".

"Agent Xu, have you parachuted before?"

"Uh, no, not really," he answers.

"Well, first time for everything," says Benedict.

"Like the previous Amazon mission, you agents will be parachuting over a designated safe spot as this area of the forest is highly remote and there is no clear land for the jet to land on. The best possible place would be the river but like I said, the tribe's location is incredibly deep in the forest. It would take hours for you, agents, to get there if you were to start from the river," he explains.

"This will also serve as your extraction zone. A chopper will continue roaming the skies to wait for you agents, making for a quicker extraction as, above everything else, this is also a race against time."

"Or technically, a race against Crowe," he adds.

"What do we do about the tribe?" asks Chen.

"I mean, there's no way they're just gonna let us waltz in there and take their treasure away, right?"

"Whether they like it or not, you will bring the meteorite back," Benedict answers.

"If that means doing it by force, then so be it."

"Sooo, we're probably gonna be offing some people?" he asks again.

"If they throw spears at your head, what choice do you have?" Cade retorts, never afraid to get his hands dirty in the line of duty.

"Yeah, no, I know," Chen follows up.

"Just makin' sure."