A Wolf Is Born

Operation Phantom Fury was the initial Escean military response to the Rothan invasion of its overseas territory, Hurot Island, in mid-2104. 

Preceding the liberation assault (Operation Restore), Escean SOF and SOF-capable units were dispatched to the island to conduct reconnaissance and sabotage missions against the occupying force. Leading the operation were the Light Marine Recon (or Lemur) Battalions of the Escean Marine Corps.

Ripper was an LMR squad lead by Sergeant Ayden Sato into the southeast of the island – also known as Two Quadrant – in early April, tasked with locating the tracking radars of numerous Gorgon surface-to-air missile sites situated within their AO and sabotaging them with remotely operated Signal Interrupters.

Deployed via Air Force ‘Nighthawk’ drones, Ripper would spend four days in the Huroan wilderness, tracking enemy movements and conferring with native resistance groups in addition to their primary objective, before heading to their designated exfiltration point.

En route to the coast and their rendezvous with a Navy extraction team, Ripper came across a previously unknown Rothan position located in an area of heavy woodland. Thoroughly hidden with holographic and thermal camouflage systems, the newly discovered site contained a single N-87 ‘Sea Snake’ ASM launcher.

Given the destructive potential of such a weapon system, and the slim chance that it would remain stationary until EAF surgical strikes could be conducted in the hours ahead of the invasion, Sato made the decision to neutralise the threat. 

While successful in installing an SI unit on the vehicle, the squad quickly discovered that this particular Sea Snake was armed with a pair of nuclear-tipped N-87 missiles. In the process of making a decision over what to do with this newfound information, a member of the vehicle’s crew, aiming to relieve themselves, stumbled upon some of the Marines hiding in the clearing perimeter. 

In eliminating them as a threat, the Marines inadvertently activated a ‘Vitals-Tag’ (often worn by sentry or critical personnel in conflict zones) dispatching a constant stream of biometric data to a nearby QRF. This in turn triggered an alarm as soon as the crewmember’s vital signs dropped, alerting both the remaining crew and QRF.

Forced to dispatch the remaining crew and leave the area, Ripper deployed small ‘Hummingbird’ drones as well as smoke and decoy emitters in their wake to confuse and occupy the QRF as it arrived, allowing the team to conduct a fighting escape.

This plan appeared to work until the squad entered an ambush close to the Nuai River, a winding ribbon of water that would guide them down to the coast. Within seconds of triggering that ambush, Sato had lost six of his eight-man team, and quickly deduced from the plasma weaponry involved that this was not simply another Rothan unit.

Unable to break the ambush, Sato and his surviving colleague deployed every grenade and distraction device available and fled, managing to escape the kill zone only for the two Marines to find themselves on a cliff overlooking the Nuai. With nowhere else to go, and with the initial QRF and its VTOLs closing in, they jumped into the churning waters below.

Swept downriver for over two miles, the Nuai eventually deposited the pair upon a gravelled shore edging a curve in the river. Sato escaped with only minor injuries sustained during the fall and turbulent journey. His colleague Frank Wallace was less fortunate, suffering a broken leg. Exhausted and exposed, both men were quickly located by patrolling aerial units and captured.

Transferred to a detention facility operated by Rothan Military Intelligence, Sato and Wallace were subjected to physical and psychological torture at the hands of Major Idris Voshtek. In spite of this, both refused to divulge any mission critical information, leading their captors to attempt a different approach. 

After three days of continuous interrogation, Voshtek introduced the two Marines to their ambusher, a notorious Maktharian mercenary called Sevyok’Krug. Seeing Wallace as the weaker of the two captives, Voshtek instructed Krug to use him as incentive for Sato’s co-operation.

Forcing Sato to watch, Krug then stabbed Wallace with his stinger and injected him with a digestive enzyme that liquefied the Marine’s internal organs. Following the agonising death of his colleague, Sato was then informed of a similar fate should he continue his refusal to comply, and left alone with the body.

Deciding he would die anyway, Sato enacted an escape attempt. After tricking a guard into believing he was suffering a seizure, he managed to procure a weapon and access tags. Using stimulant injectors to overcome his fatigue and injuries, Sato worked his way through the inner facility, dispatching enemy personnel where necessary and avoiding others. 

Upon exiting the primary facility, Sato found himself face to face with the killer of his men. With a great deal of luck, he succeeded in firing a snap shot that caught Krug in the head, destroying his eye and instantly knocking him unconscious. Before Sato could ensure the Maktharian’s death, he was forced to engage multiple Rothan soldiers and retreat into the cover of nearby vehicles. 

Acquiring a ‘Bura’ tactical truck, Sato used it to escape the camp by reversing through a perimeter wall and into the forest. After sufficient distance, Sato stripped the vehicle of anything useful, to include some clothing, medical supplies and food, as well as a radio, and retreated further into the wilderness. With enough time at hand, he administered the necessary aid to his injuries, hunger and exhaustion.
 

Bolstered by his brief recuperation, Sato found himself the subject of a manhunt by Rothan paratroopers. Armed with an arsenal of guerrilla warfare tactics and a thirst for revenge, Sato set about engaging his hunters and their reinforcements over a forty-eight hour period, utilising traps and improvised weapons in addition to those acquired from fallen enemies. 

Having eliminated every Rothan soldier bar one, Sato then captured the survivor, stripped him of his weapons, and ordered him to return to base with the story of what had transpired, as well as a warning to send nobody else.

Having satisfied his need for retribution, Sato sought out members of the Huroan resistance and through them was able to establish contact with the Escean military. Ten days after arriving on the island, a team of Navy NEWTs, mere hours before the invasion began, finally extracted the 19-year old EMC sergeant.

Despite concerns by psychiatric technicians over Sato’s mental state in the wake of his ordeal, Sato himself displayed no outward symptoms of psychological trauma. Following physical recovery and evaluation, he was allowed to return to active duty. 

Within months of Operation Phantom Fury’s conclusion, Sato’s exploits on Hurot had garnered the interest of the 23rd Guard’s Battalion and an invitation to Selection was offered. It was during this period that rumours began to circulate of a Rothan codename for Sato, fuelled by his actions on the island and gathered by SIGINT experts at the time of the conflict.

Inspired by his method of operation and ferocity in conducting it, the Rothans had codenamed their escapee ‘Volk’, and as the name filtered into the circle of students and instructors involved in Selection, Sato found himself with a new moniker, a decision he both accepted and resented in equal measures.