We've got a situation on Salk.
As most of you know, Salk's been struggling these past few years. Between terrorist insurgencies put down in '97, to a resurgence of a deadly strain of virus that's wreaked havoc on many parts of the planet, things've been made worse by the influx of diaspora and refugees dislodged from the Civil War and the fight against the Arachnids.

The disease, mentioned in your datapad, has resulted in many cities becoming quarantined until a vaccine can be synthesized and mass produced. One of these cities, Union, is under such a quarantine. We've got a small situation that needs our assistance, however. The police department has long since left, and been replaced by a garrison of Federal Marines. They're working out of Union's train terminal, and apparently a group of disgruntled civilians have managed to storm their old police station. They're calling on us for some help, which is where Alpha comes in. We want the commander of the Garrison, Lt. Ian Kelly, back in our possession. Intelligence has led us to believe that the group of civilians has Lt. Kelly hostage- why, we don't know. We've yet to receive any ransom demands, or any stable line of communication with them.

If Lt. Kelly dies, this could have far-reaching repercussions for Union's stability and the broader region as a whole. We wrap Alpha up in environment suits, and we send you down- quick and clean. Lt. Kelly's gonna' be stark-bald. He'll also probably be dressed like a Marine. Exercise some discretion with people on the ground. If they don't get in your way, leave them be. I'll leave establishing further rules of engagement up to the drop leader.