Battle Earth V (15 page)

“Fire in the hole!”

The explosion rang out, and several metres of the metalwork of the roof were ripped apart.

“Go, go, go!” shouted Chandra.

They rushed forward into the unknown with shields held before them. Taylor’s pulse was rushing, and he knew the others with him would be no different. Several of the unit managed to get to the breach ahead of the Colonel. It was likely she wanted to be through first, but light flashed through the breach, and they knew the first through had been hit.

Dust particles created a fog of the breach that only made it more terrifying. As Chandra passed through, she could see the bodies of three of their unit on the ground. Two of them were already dead. She knew she had to keep moving forward and leave the wounded soldier to the medics, as and when they could reach him.

A few pulses smashed into the wall in front of the Colonel, but the troops of Inter-Allied had already begun to overwhelm the enemy with a barrage of fire. Through the chaos, she caught sight of the first enemy that grabbed her attention and fired several aimed shots in quick succession.

Taylor quickly surveyed the scene as all around him lay down fire. They were in what appeared to be some kind of laboratory. Scattered instruments and machinery had little meaning to the Major. The room was thirty metres long by twenty metres wide. The ceilings were only just tall enough for Jafar to stand in who was at his side. The area could be described as nothing but clinical. It seemed that before their entrance nothing was out of place. There had not been a spec of dirt or dust in sight.

“Keep pushing forward!” Chandra ordered.

She looked around to realise that as usual, their comms were now being jammed.

“God damn, this is getting old!”

A pulse smashed into the top of her shield, and the force knocked her off balance and onto her back. She cursed at having been caught unawares and her clumsy tumble. Taylor let his rifle drop onto his sling and hoisted her to her feet. She quickly lifted up her rifle and gestured for the troops at their back to push forward.

“This stone age communication has to be resolved!” she shouted.

“Amen to that,” he replied.

She tried to regain her composure as Jones rushed past to join the fight. The troops were lining the room as the bottleneck left much of the Battalion waiting on the surface. Other units were putting down all around them, and they knew they could not expand out beyond the one breach.

“We’ve got them on the run!” Jones called out.

The speaker on his suit was transmitting just loud enough for Chandra to hear a few metres away. She pushed forward and joined the shuffle of troops trying to squeeze through the doorway of the room. They reached a ramp that was leading them deep below the surface. Jafar reached their side, but he had nothing to say.

“You must have some idea what this place is?” asked Taylor.

The alien shook his head.

“No, we have never experienced this place, but it is certainly not a colony.”

“Then what is it?” Chandra asked.

“A research facility by the looks of things,” replied Taylor.

Jafar nodded in agreement, but it was obvious he had no better idea than them. There were flashes up ahead, followed by the ripple of gunfire, but the column didn’t stop as they rushed down the ramp ten wide. They descended fifty metres and finally evened out into what was apparently a docking facility. Just two ships lay on the deck and were visibly in some state of repair.

The vast underground hangar was large enough for ten ships the size of the Deveron. Crates of ammunition lay stacked at the walls, but there was no sign of life. Chandra signalled for the troops to spread out as they were at last managing to get through the bottleneck.

“An underground hangar, why? What enemy were they guarding from?” asked Chandra.

“The Meteor showers. They are common on all our worlds.”

“So you all live underground?” Taylor asked.

“The higher classes, yes. Living on the surface means the weak do not survive.”

“No wonder they want Earth. It truly is a paradise compared to this shithole,” replied Taylor.

The silence was broken by the crack of several pulses rushing towards them.

“Cover!”

They rushed to any shelter they could find as the fire increased. Chandra and Taylor managed to get behind one of the two enemy ships nearby. They looked around to see that much of their unit were already returning fire with rapid bursts. Taylor peered around the nose of the ship to see several dozen Mechs flooding into the hangar from the opposite side. They were two hundred metres apart. The creatures seemed to come at them without fear, despite the odds.

The initial wave of creatures was cut down within minutes by the volleys of the first two companies who had got inside the hangar. Chandra smiled as she saw them brought to their knees and fired a few shots at one of the wounded creatures to finish it off. Mechs continued to flood into the hangar, but now they were taking cover behind crates and storage canisters. Chandra leaned back around to Taylor.

“Crazy bastards coming at us like that. They must truly believe they are superior.”

“We may have the upper hand today, but don’t you forget what it was like to face them with fairer numbers.”

Chandra sighed. She was enjoying the moment, but it hit home just how uncertain their situation was. They had caught the enemy by surprise, and the skirmish was far removed from the epic battles they had come to know and dread.

Taylor stepped out to the blunt square nose cone of the ship, which lay on its belly, so he could get a better view. The enemy momentum had been broken, but so had theirs. More Mechs poured into the defences up ahead, and neither party wanted to close the open ground they were fighting over.

“We need to gain some ground!” Taylor shouted.

Chandra looked around for any options to make progress. To their right there was another tunnel like they had come from, but flat this time.

“Take Jones’ Company that way, and see if you can get around them!”

Taylor was quick on his feet and rushed out in between the fire to reach the Captain’s position.

“Follow me Captain!”

Taylor had barely slowed down as he passed Jones, but the Captain was quick to follow. Mitch looked back to see Jafar and Tsengal were close behind and had followed him through the enemy fire, without order or question. Pulses rushed in between the Company as they made a dash for the corridor. Two were struck, but Taylor knew they couldn’t afford to stop for anything.

“Come on!”

He burst into the corridor to where he knew they would be safe, but could only hope no threat lay around the corner ahead. He couldn’t stop or risk leaving the others out in the line of fire. His rifle was held forward at the ready, as was his shield. Having the shields back brought an immense amount of comfort to their jobs. He took the turn and was relieved to find it empty.

Taylor carried on for ten metres and finally stopping when he was happy they were all inside. Jones was at the head of his Company with the two aliens either side of him.

“Stay close,” whispered Taylor.

He went forward once again at a jogging pace. It was enough to cover ground quickly but not too fast to make a racket or rush into danger. The corridor seemed to go on and on. The lighting was red, as on the surface. It tinted everything to the level that they all blended into the architecture. Mitch could see runners in the floor that were parallel. They ran the length of the corridor, but it was the first time he had noticed them. They appeared to be a kind of rail system for transport. He wanted answers but knew it was insignificant in that moment.

They passed several rooms with open doorways but didn’t have time to investigate. Up ahead, lay another bend in the corridor, and one Taylor hoped would lead them to the enemy’s flank. He took the turn as quickly as the last one, but stopped in horror. Jones and Jafar stumbled into his back. Before them were Mechs as far as they could see.

“Back!” screamed Taylor.

He fired off a quick few shots as the enemy raised their weapons and opened fire. It was clear they were as surprised to see the humans as much as Taylor and his lot were. Mitch just managed to get back around the corner as a brutal wave of enemy fire gushed down the corridor towards them. He slammed his back against the wall and took in a deep breath.

“Fuck!” he yelled.

He looked back around to see the enemy forces were moving steadily forwards to their position.

“Jones, send a runner to the Colonel. Tell her we’ve met heavy resistance and are staying put. We cannot assist her.”

Taylor leaned out around the corner and fired a burst into the first creature his rifle came to bare against. He quickly ducked back. Jones had already relayed the command and sent the message on.

“How many are there?” he asked.

Taylor shook his head.

“No idea, more than I can readily count.”

“We can’t hold here. They get to this corner and we’re goners.”

Taylor stopped and thought for just a moment. He looked back down the corridor over the heads of the troops. He could see the tops of entrance doorways to the rooms leading off from the corridor.

“We’ll fall back to those doorways. We can at least defend from there and retreat into the rooms if need be.”

“And if those rooms are dead ends?”

“I have no doubt they probably are,” replied Taylor glumly.

Jones accepted the grim forecast Taylor had given and turned to usher the troops back quickly while they still had time. The Major and Jafar fired several bursts around the corner and followed the others back. The Company scattered into four rooms with entrances fairly close to one another, giving some cover to fire from. Taylor continued into the same room as Jones. He reloaded and stopped just inside the doorway.

“You know we have absolutely no idea how many of those things are out there,” Jones said.

Taylor nodded in agreement.

“We could have just flown into the hornets’ next, for all we know,” he continued.

Taylor nodded in agreement once again as he looked out down the hallway, anxiously waiting to see the enemy.

“For Christ’s sake, Mitch, are we really that disposable that we can just be thrown into the abyss to see what happens?”

Taylor turned and gave all his attention to the Captain.

“After everything we have been through, we are just being tossed away as if we mean nothing?”

“Possibly, but some one had to carry out this mission. Would it be any fairer throwing raw recruits into this mess? Look, this battle has only just begun. They’re gonna have to try a damn sight harder to stop us here.”

“Last I looked, it was us on the run,” Jones answered.

Shots rang out from the troops on the other side of the corridor, and Taylor leaned out to see the first two Mechs entering the hallway tumble to the ground dead. Their comrades continued to push on past their bodies, as if they meant nothing. Taylor had always assumed the aliens simply had no care for their own, but Jafar and Tsengal had drawn all that into doubt.

“Give ‘em hell, boys!” Taylor roared.

He lifted his rifle and joined the fight.

“Come on you bastards!” he screamed.

* * *

Chandra peered over the cockpit of the craft she was hiding behind. Its hull was holding off all the enemy fire levelled at her. Parker and her platoon were huddled under the same cover and returning fire whenever they could. Just over a hundred of the Battalion had managed to get into the hangar with her, but many of the others were still held up on the ramp. She could see that no one wanted to move forward across the open ground between them and the enemy.

One of Jones’ troops came rushing across the open ground from where they had departed with Taylor, and she could already tell the news was not good. The messenger ducked and weaved through the fire with his shield held in both hands to provide a buffer. Two rounds struck the shield. The second knocked him off balance, and he tumbled in partially behind the cover near Chandra. She leaned over, hauling him across the floor as another pulse landed where his feet had been a second before.