Star Crusades Nexus: Book 05 - Prophecy of Fire (28 page)

“Something needs to give. We could try a push,” suggested Jack.

Riku and Callahan both shook their heads.

“No way,” said Riku firmly, “You’ve seen how many of them are out there. There’s no chance in hell.”

Private Jenkell lowered herself down from the damaged wall of the bunker and turned to Jack.

“She’s right, Jack. If we go out there, it will be just like with the Lieutenant. It’s a no-man’s land now.”

In answer to her point, a group of marines ran out from cover to grab one of the abandoned L56 weapons from a shattered Ram. They had started to move the thing into position when two of the warriors dropped into their trench.

“Dammit!” said Jack as if he had been caught napping, “Canner, in the reserve trench!”

He tried to get a shot, but the angle of depression made it impossible from where he was positioned. He was forced to watch as the combined firepower of the guns on their arms tore into the marines. Two were killed outright, with a third falling to the ground; five holes in his chest armor.

“Medic!” An unidentified Naval crewman called out as he tried to drag the wounded marine to safety. One of the enemy warriors struck the man in the neck and then blasted him as he lay there screaming on the ground. Another pair appeared behind the trench and clambered over the top, finally giving Jack a target he could see. He tapped the firing mode selector and took careful aim. Just one squeeze, and the high-power shot put a hole the size of his fist in the creature’s head. It dropped backward lifelessly.

“Fall back!” shouted one of the survivors, and they scrambled back, leaving the weapon in the pile of rubble and bodies. Three more frontal assaults had ended in the same manner as the dozens before them, and nothing looked as though it would change. Jack was desperate to make a move on the vehicle pool, but every time he plucked up the nerve to try, another group of the enemy moved into position and pinned him down.

If we stay much longer, we’re dead.

He lifted his head a tiny fraction to look at the group of enemy troops moving in to block them off from their only chance of escape. They dropped down into a sink in the ground that allowed them to move around their flank while staying hidden from gunfire.

“We’ve got a problem.”

“Really?” replied a familiar voice.

Jack checked the IFF system on his helmet overlay, confirming what he already knew.

“Gun?”

“I think you’ll find that’s Colonel,” replied the grizzled warrior.

Jack checked for his position and spotted the green shape, but it was right in the center of the enemy position.

That can’t be right.

He popped his head up a little and winced as arcs of fire flashed from both sides. Nearly a hundred meters away walked one of the large metal machines. It moved slowly as it led the massive wave of troops for a final big push. Its gun sponsons fired heavy projectiles that shredded man and building alike. Around its legs swarmed scores of different warriors, every one of them the foot soldiers of the Biomechs. An explosion shook one of the massive machines’ legs, and then he saw him.

Gun?

The machine dwarfed the great bulk of the Jötnar, yet he and two of his surviving bodyguards were right in the middle of the enemy unit. Where they had come from Jack couldn’t tell, but they hacked and slashed at their foes until they reached the machine. Gunfire rattled away from their shoulder-mounted weapons, and then the impossible happened. Gun had clambered onto one of the legs and was working his way up the torso. The machine was as big as a Hammerhead gunship, but Gun treated it as though he was fighting a wild boar. One of his comrades tore off one of its legs, and it stumbled. Gun must have found an opportunity because he rolled off the machine, landed on the ground, and jumped up just as a blue flash tore off the armored head of the war machine. It dropped onto its haunches and just sat there, completely stationary.

He’s for it now.

The warriors around Gun and his guard completely surrounded them, yet as each of the creatures moved in to attack them, they were hacked down. Jack couldn’t believe what he was seeing in front of him. The three were like armored gods standing back-to-back in a triangle of flesh and metal.

“Help them!” he shouted.

Paying no attention to the approaching gunfire, he lifted up to the parapet and emptied what was left in his carbine magazine. The other marines did the same, trying to ease the pressure on their commander. Even so, scattered groups of the so-called Canners reached their lines, and bloody hand-to-hand combat filled the final two quadrants.

“Jack, this is it. We can’t hold for much longer,” Callahan said bitterly.

Riku and Private Jenkell covered the left of the bunker. Jack and Callahan had taken over the center when the Sergeant had taken a round to the face. Four Helions of the NHA protected the right even though they were clearly terrified of what was happening.

“Jack, what the hell is that?” asked Riku.

Jack refused to turn his head but could just about make out her arm from the corner of his eye. She was pointing out to the left, near where the old command bunker had been. A burning lander covered its partially collapsed roof. Out in the distance behind it was one of the shattered walls that had been breached early in the battle. There was no fighting in that part of the base, although a small number of the Canners were moving methodically through the ruins to look for survivors to finish off.

“The prisoner!” she added in irritation.

He followed the highlighted shape on his visor and saw the dark form. At first he thought it was a marine, but the long robe took him right back to the violent struggle with the Helion prisoner that had turned out to be a Khreenk. The warrior looked back in the direction of Jack before a group of five of the Biomech warriors leapt in to attack him. Three fell down from a weapon the Khreenk was carrying, and then he dodged to one side before finishing off the other two with some kind of blade.

He could have killed me if he’d wanted,
Jack realized as he watched the speed and ferocity of the fighter. For a brief moment, he could see the cold bands of his armor before the dust of battle obscured them. Just as quickly as it had started, the five warriors were dead, and the Khreenk warrior stood alone on the smashed wall.

“What’s he doing?” asked Riku.

“Who knows? Probably trying to work out a way to kill us before he leaves us to rot,” suggested Callahan.

Jack looked back to the middle of the field and the large numbers of enemy that had moved closer to the marines. It was clear to him this wasn’t just another assault. They had positioned larger numbers than before, and they were massing at both the front and on the flanks. Even as Gun and his bodyguard continued to fight out in the middle, they were preparing for something big.

“This is going to be their major assault.”

He looked to Riku who shook her head.

“We’re screwed then. I’m out, and half of the marines left are wounded. One rush and they’ll roll us up.”

Jack shook his head angrily, grabbing a fallen carbine to check for ammunition. It contained a single half loaded magazine but was of an older type, with just two narrow barrels joined together over a single magazine. It wasn’t much but was better than no weapon. He flicked the lever to extend the spike bayonet. Riku seemed unimpressed.

“Check your wide area overlay. Have you seen what’s out there?”

Jack used his retina to select a different distance mode and almost choked at the aerial view from the drones. Markers identified the small number of remaining fighters, but there were still landers coming down all around the northern and eastern approaches to the base.

“We’ve had it,” he agreed bitterly.

* * *

The formation of fourteen capital ships left a great streak behind them as they skimmed the surface of Eos’ thin atmosphere. The two Battlecruisers took the lead, with the rest strung out in a short column directly behind them. All of the massive ships used their primary engines and maneuvering thrusters to keep from being pulled down to the moon, without providing too much thrust so that they might rise in height and effectively slow down. There were no fighters anywhere near the ships, and only the tiny group of surviving escort ships dared to go any closer to the abrasive atmosphere of the moon.

Genera Daniels waited patiently as one of his subordinates double-checked the strapping inside the Mauler. There were only three other marines inside the cavernous interior of the craft, and all four of them wore the new APS Alpha Armor. It was the first time the General had worn the gear, and he was pleasantly surprised at its ease of movement. He nearly forgot why he was there, but only for the briefest of moments. The craft shuddered a little, but the clamps held it firmly in place.

“Four minutes until emergency drop,” said a monotone computerized voice.

“General, is it wise going to the surface? Emergency drops are incredibly dangerous,” asked the young Lieutenant.

The General said nothing and instead checked his secpad for what must have been the hundredth time. It showed the disposition of the fleet as it hurtled around Eos in such a low orbit that three of the cruisers had sustained heavy structural damage from the atmospheric friction. He looked up to the officer with an expressionless face.

“Son, I will not leave my people behind. Just make sure this is ready to go.”

* * *

Admiral Lewis waited patiently as the formation of ships moved around the moon. His eyes were on the visual feed from the bow of his ship as he looked for the first sign of the enemy. Because of their height, and the line of sight problems of orbiting Eos, the enemy had been unable to target them. He looked to the right where a counter ticked down. When it reached zero, they would be in sight and therefore in range of the Biomanta particle beam weapons. He found himself counting down as it reached the final thirty seconds.

What have I done? Will this mean the end for the fleet and for our people on the ground?

“Target!” called out Lieutenant Vitelli.

The Admiral nodded, but still his eyes remained on the visual feed. A red diamond appeared over the shape of the first ships, then one by one the others appeared to mark out the rest of the fleet.

“Admiral, they appear to be transferring cargo or something between their ships and the smaller landers.”

The tactical officer turned in his chair with a look of sheer joy on his face.

“Admiral, we’ve caught them with their pants down!”

“Excellent!” replied the XO.

Just those few simple words instantly transformed the bridge crew from the misery and despair of certain death to one of hope and possibilities. Admiral Lewis could see that, and he gave his XO the smallest of smiles before giving his orders.

“Prepare for the combat drops.”

The XO moved a short distance to the right where he could assist with the deployment to the surface. Admiral Lewis, in the meantime, grabbed the intercom and connected to the captains of every ship remaining in the fleet.

“We will have clear, uninterrupted targets in thirty seconds. Remember the plan. Follow the Nile pattern and keep moving. No course changes and no staying behind. This is a hit and run operation!”

* * *

The officer looked to his General and then extended his hand to the man. It was far from procedure, but General Daniels knew only too well how risky the mission was that they had undertaken. Never in his entire life had he been involved in such a massive emergency drop, and never at this height. The computer simulations hadn’t been particularly positive, but he refused to back down. He remembered the discussion with the ships’ officers just minutes before as they had moved closer to their drop-point. Two of the captains had almost mutinied at the requirement to pass so close to the Biomech warships, but General Daniels and Admiral Lewis had been adamant. Eos might fall, but the Alliance would never leave their people behind to die.

“Good luck, General.”

He shook the man’s hand and then glanced to his right, checking where the spare weapons were fitted as well as the escape hatch, just in case, before looking back at the man.

“Thank you, Lieutenant. We’ll be back on board in less than two hours. Make sure all marine units are ready. There are going to be a lot of casualties on the return leg of this trip.”