I am proud to introduce Commander (inactive) Kim Hurt to the electronic forum. The captain has helped me with most of the information in this file, as she was a member of the Special Security Group - "Dragons" in Section FIVE, where she served as a platoon Executive Officer. So, here is Miss Hürt.
Question 1:
What is the tactical exercise? And how was it accomplished?
There is no standard tactical exercise, if there was one, all
of us would be winning. It starts when it does, oh sure, we know when it is going to, but as far as what we have to perform. Unlike most units, we have to face a situation blind, as most missions go, you take what gear you have, and use it the way you think, thus making flexibility a thing we can ill afford to lose to someone. We can do an extraction, hostage rescue, the only time we find out is when we are moving to the
site. We also train with live ammo, the reasoning is, if you are going to train for the real world, you have to train for it, using live weaponry. You get bonuses for creativity, lots of death looks bad, if you kill a sentry when you could just knock him/her out, then you lose face. Even though Lofwyr may or may not consider security guards expendable, we do not. Everyone of us is an investment of Saeder-Krupp money, down to our underwear. To much killing, the less respect we have,
we understand the meaning of killing, but if it feels a waste, then we don't. As for accomplishing our goals, well, dumb question, we use every means necessary, that is simple enough.
Question 2:
Could you briefly describe some paralegal operations you may have participated outside of your nation or Saeder-Krupp jurisdiction?
***Laughs*** Everywhere, what do you think? we stay home and bake cookies? Although I admit, we haven't been everywhere but we've been to UCAS, CAS, Tir Tairngire, Africa, Russia, UK, like I said, if we haven't been there before, we will be there someday, I can guarantee that. Understand this,
we are not SEALS, Delta, Ghosts, Wildcats, or even the fools at
Fire Watch, who believe because they have the media at their heels means they are better than us. We don't have the strict team size to easily spot us, or to destroy us, Flexibility is what keeps us alive, not the media. Which is not to say we don't respect them, except Fire Strike, we know a SEAL, Wildcat or any SpecOp group could easily kill one of us as
we do them, that is life, and how it will be.
Question 3:
When did you decide to join the Dragons? Briefly describe your rise to become an Executive Officer in one of Section FIVE's platoons.
The regular two years, did
the sec-guard routine, and performed with enough skill to keep me from being dead. As for getting in, a friend thought I
should try, he thought I could make it, and I did. As for my rise to XO, well, luck mostly, I'm not the brightest tactical genius in the world, and accept that. I was bumped from Investigator to Lieutenant within four months, then achieved Commander within five. Unfortunately, our Captain was killed in an actual training accident, and I was next in line. Unit infighting is not tolerated, injuries yes, deaths, no,
stopped when Lofwyr himself intervened, thankfully. Sorry, getting off topic, when Ensenada rolled around, our team was scheduled to go, so we went, and that's all I can say on that matter.
Question 4:
Why did you join the Dragons in the first place? Was it the honor of being one of the elite, or was it the possible prestige, or was it because you wanted to prove yourself to someone?
To prove that I can survive, that's it.
Question 5:
What was your reason for leaving the Dragons? Would you ever consider
going back?
I left because of the hypocrisy of Ensenada, with S-K screaming about lost profits, and all that bullshit. I'm still loyal to Section FIVE, but not to economics. And on the subject of going back, maybe, I don't know, sometimes I do, most of the time I don't, I have another life to live, and I don't want to lose it.
Question 6:
Did you ever consider advancing beyond Section FIVE, or was this due to your leaving the Dragons to pursue a freelance career?
When I was still active, yes, but now, I'd stay with FIVE. And yes, of course it ruins your advancement, sometimes or more exactly, rarely they pull rank if they actually need me for a job, but like I said, rarely.
Question 7:
Okay so you established there is no standard tactical exercise, a good idea. But if you can, will you briefly explain the one you went through?
Before I start, I must remind you of this: You never know who is going to be on your team, sure you know your platoon as a whole, but as far as who is going to be on an op, we don't know. We only find out when the briefing starts. If there are two on the ready line, then that's it. As for the exercise, it was a standard hostage rescue. The site was about mid-sized, not to small, and not too large. The objective was to
obviously eliminate any opposition and keep the hostages alive. Opposition was four members from Section THREE, and we
had an eight-man team. element one was four soldiers with climbing gear to drop to a window, the normal drill. As for the ground element, which I was a part of, was to reach the hostages when the airborne element made their assault. We used MP-5K submachine guns, concussion grenades, stun batons, body armor, and other necessary tools. Everybody, including the "terrorists" had gel rounds in their guns to prevent unnecessary deaths. In short, the whole operation took 20 minutes, ten minutes more than we hoped, obviously, it should take a
shorter time, we try to. The complications were that the airborne team took a minute longer due to a soldier improperly securing himself. We suffered three "casualties", and I took multiple gel rounds in the leg. The opposition "lost" two members, as well as two were" wounded". As for the hostages, all suffered bruises from the grenades, and one was knocked
out from one of our teammates who missed.
Question 8:
You make reference to Ensenada a couple of times. What happened in Aztlan, a country that isn't on great terms with Saeder-Krupp?
Yes, of course, Ensenada was the retaliation of the other seven megacorps for Aztechnology nationalizing their facilities. Operation RECIPROCITY was the form it took in, a ground element and the air element. Fortunately we inflicted enough casualties to not need a ground assault. That is one of the reason they don't like S-K, they don't like anybody except themselves. Also because they are losing ground to
Saeder-Krupp in the financial markets and such things.
Question 9:
You say Lofwyr personally stepped in after you were to become the next XO of your platoon. Were the events at Ensenada so critical, Lofwyr became personally involved, or was it just a case of him not wanting to see more Dragons dead?
Yes he did, and some of us-including me-were glad he did. We kept on being used for exec's petty schemes, instead we traded a few masters for one. As for Ensenada becoming critical, , the only time it became critical is when Ares threatened to use the "Big Gun" on them, and I can't speculate what "Big Gun" is, could be a Thor bundle, nuke, or
something else, I don't know.
Question 10:
What do you think is wrong with the Ares "SpecOps" group- Fire Watch? Do you think it is their media exposure, low morale following the events in Chicago, or do you think they just aren't up to par with the rest of the Special Operations community?
Too much media exposure, that's all. They also rely too much on electronics to achieve their goals, while yes I agree Tactical Computers and BattleTac are very useful, can be a hinderance sometimes. We respect them however, just in my personal opinion I don't like them. As for Seraphim, I've heard about them. They are not new, I know a few people who have gone up against them, and they aren't slackers, they are what
the Dragons are, we sometimes perform the same missions, but that's it, we are still different than them.
Question 11:
What do think of the other corporate Special Operations groups out there besides Fire Watch; such as the Red Samurai, the Jaguar and Leopard Guards of Aztechnology, and Fuchi's groups; Villier's Special Security Operations and Nakatomi's "Cyber-Samurais", both of whom constantly fight each other, sometimes in the open. Also, there is a group called the Seraphims who have been made public after the death of Dunkelzahn. Have you heard anything about this group before?
If so, what?
The Red Samurai are well trained and capable of handling themselves, a marked contrast compared to when they were first started by Inezo Aneki. The Jaguar and Leopards? nasty, I've
seen some of them in the SOX on training, and they don't skimp like we do. In fact, I consider both Aztechnology and Saeder-Krupp regular line troops as first rate, with all factors of combat put together for both companies to field effective assests to handle a job, only groups like the SEALS are the best in the world of government SpecOps. The SSO I really feel under Villiers is pretty good, with Miles Lanier as head, they can't really go wrong, from what I heard. The "Cyber-Samurai's" I don't really know about, but it's not surprising they and the SSO constantly fight each other. The Seraphims are capable, maybe a little fanatic, though I would have voted for Dunkelzahn if I were a UCAS citizen, I don't think the Seraphims is a group to laugh at anyways.
Question 12:
So, what is your opinion of the general regards towards Special Operations nowadays. Most have become the stories of several sims, vids, trids, books-on-chip (for those who can read), etc., but yet the governments, and to a lesser extent, the corps, still treat them like dirt.
***laughs*** Plus ca change? Seriously, the "old boys" groups still have their mystique around them, unlike we do, because they've been around more than we do. Even though the SSG has been around since Lofwyr, we can't claim to be the best in the world, we're one of the best, but you take the SEALS, Delta, SAS, GIGN, GSG-9, or any other group, and you'll see the difference pretty quickly. As for my opinion, like I said, Plus ca change?
Return to SSG.
