by Greg Sorber
The fearsome mech used Angel’s limp body to clear a path through the scrap. It looked up towards Misty and Connie, and pointed a finger at them. The screevers came to life once again. First came the sound. As soon as they powered up, the high-pitched screeching started anew. Misty put her hands to her ears, even though it didn't help. Then the screevers adjusted their course and headed straight for them.
Without being told, Connie converted back to her hover cycle form. “Misty, let’s go!”
Misty didn’t need another invitation. She hopped onto Connie and held on as the converter took off back to the defensive line. She had to warn the others of what was coming. More screevers and that nightmarish mech. Poor Angel.
As soon as they’d crossed their defensive line, Misty jumped from Connie’s moving form and landed near her mech suit. She climbed back in and fastened her safety harness, yelling orders for everyone to get ready. Gladius and Lancer both reacted to the speed of their return and had already ordered everyone into position. There were more screevers than ever—and that mech. What had that mech done to Angel? Where was Sly? Or had she suffered a worse fate?
Screevers crawled, flew, and climbed over the escarpment, but instead of rushing headlong at their defenses as they had done before, they stopped, waiting. Misty watched the large black and orange beast of a mech launch itself up over the escarpment. It still carried Angel’s motionless body. It hovered in the air for a moment before it came crashing down, smashing Angel into the ground as it landed. The mech strode forward, surrounded by all the screevers, waiting in anticipation for its command. Angel was wrong: they had a central controller, and it was terrifying.
It picked up Angel from the ground and held him aloft in one hand and smashed him into the ground again. Misty shivered as its cruel voice, amplified through the sonic processors of a multitude of mechanical minions, filled the air. “I am Zeta IX, the Reaper. My screevers and I will enjoy wiping any trace of your existence from this world.”
Chapter Sixteen
Excerpt from Archivist Nicobulus Licinius’s response to Archivist Singh’s address on Pax Machina and Mechhaven
The Head-Archivist obviously has a soft spot for the Mechanai to label the Pax Machina and Mechhaven as historical. My records show that to date, just over two-hundred Mechanai have declared Pax Machina. Surely this is a footnote in history, not a turning point. Far more have chosen the path of Delendis Memoria. We need the resources the Mechanai represent to help our worlds recover, not ship them off to a useless planetoid.
Archivist Nicobulus Licinius
The Imperium
Zeta IX’s words lingered in the air; a haunting prelude of inevitability, as if the outcome of the battle had already been written. The mech dropped his arm in the defenders of Mechhaven. Screevers surged forward. The high-pitched sounds they emitted filled the plains with mind-numbing screeching. This time though, instead of an unruly mass of unrelenting machinery, the screevers divided into smaller units, fanning out along the plain as they rushed to destroy their targets.
The first wave of screevers, as haphazard as their attacks were, had only been a probe, a way for Zeta IX to gain valuable intelligence. The screevers now worked as units, some rushed to attack the defenders, others zoomed in but then feinted away in other directions. Several groups flanked the defenders and attacked from all sides.
Dennis had been in enough battles to know that there was an ebb and flow to them. At that moment, he didn’t care for the ebb or flow of this one. Angel, their most powerful asset, was presumably dead. Angel and Sly’s mission may have destroyed the Planet Cleanser, but there were still far too many screevers to fight, and with Zeta IX controlling them, they were more effective at their destruction than before.
Misty was frozen in place, still in shock from seeing Angel smashed to the ground, like an unwanted toy. Therapy stood next to her, prattling off information, options, and data. She wasn’t responding. If any of them were to survive the day, they’d have to fight hard and be very lucky. Dennis knew he should say something. But what could he say that she wasn’t already aware? He nudged Therapy out of the way.
“Misty.” Dennis placed his hand on her shoulder. “Misty, we need you here, now.”
Misty turned and looked him straight in the eyes, pleading. “How do we fight this, Dennis? If we stay here and hold our position, it’s only a matter of time before they overwhelm us.”
Good, she had been listening to Therapy. “We need to take the fight to him.” Dennis said, pointing towards Zeta IX.
“He’s too big and too powerful. Look what he did to Angel.”
“I know,” Dennis said, “but we have to do something. We’ve got a big mech, Bastion. We’ve got fast mechs, Larry, Lancer, and Connie. We’ve got the Legion, and all the others. If we all attack together, we can take him out.”
“A lot of mechs will die if we do that,” Misty said.
“Misty, a lot of mechs will die if we don’t.”
“Okay... we’ve got this.”
Her voice was trepidatious, not her usual confident self. Was she trying to convince him, or herself?
“We’ll do this. Dennis. Tell everyone what you have in mind. Let me know when everyone is ready.”
He turned to Ajax and Doc, who were nearby. “When we’re distracting Zeta IX, I need you two to get to Angel. See if you can reboot him, or transport him to safety. If you can get him back into action, he might just save us.”
Dennis hustled from mech to mech, explaining his plans. Most would help cover the Legion’s backs as they surged forward, but to others he assigned specific objectives. When he reached Gladius, the mech was annoyed that he was being interrupted in the middle of battle, though he agreed to the plan and the Legion’s role in it. The only change he demanded was that he wanted to be one of the few that went after Zeta IX, for, unlike the mindless screevers, the Reaper was a worthy opponent.
Villagers moved into position while avoiding screever attacks and covering the Legion’s flanks. As they used up the rest of their ammunition, they tossed their weapons aside and picked up those of the fallen. This was the wildest battle Dennis had ever seen.
There was nothing fancy about his plan. Their objective was to take out Zeta IX, or at least distract him to the point he could no longer control the screevers. To accomplish this goal, the Legion would transition into a wedge formation to take the brunt of the screevers’ attacks and gain ground as fast as possible. The other mechs would cover their flanks and rear. A hand-picked team would stay in the middle of the formation, until the last second, at which point they would launch a multi-pronged attack against Zeta IX. While the main group distracted Zeta IX, Ajax and Doc would attempt to reboot Angel, or at least take him to safety. Dennis wasn’t confident his plan would work, but any action was better than waiting for their inevitable fate if they did nothing.
When everyone was in place, Dennis signaled Misty. At her command, relayed through Gladius and Brutus, the Legion shifted from a straight line into a wedge formation. Lancer commanded the Villagers to form up behind them. Dennis, Misty, and Ajax then took up positions in the center. Connie and Therapy stayed close by. Then they all pressed forward.
They made rapid progress at first, as most of the attacks came from their flanks. It wasn’t long before Zeta IX reacted to their new configuration and directed screevers to attack the front of the formation. He sent shredders, rippers, and sprayers in to slow their forward movement. The buzzers swooped around and tried attacking from behind, where the mechs were less protected. Bastion did the best he could, swatting as many of the buzzers out of the air as possible. He wasn’t fast, but when his enormous hands connected, the buzzers didn’t survive.
The blinders were a constant threat. If strobed, the legionnaires trusted their brothers to cover them, so they held their positions, continuing to push forward, their shields interlocked. The other mechs fought hard, but lacked the exacting discipline of the Legion. They struggled to keep as ti
ght of a formation which gave the screevers more opportunities to strike.
At one point, a wave of screevers hit the front of the formation with flamethrowers. The extreme heat forced the formation to a halt. The legion’s shields were thick and strong enough to withstand the high heat for a short time, but would melt if exposed to intense temperatures for too long.
“Angel said nothing about flamebots,” Misty said.
“He must not have had any intel on those!” Dennis waved to Sparky, Ash, and Cinder—the Pyro Siblings. “Can you three handle those flamebots?”
“Hold my bombs.” Sparky stepped forward and handed his explosives to Dennis.
“It’ll be our pleasure,” Ash said as he did the same.
Cinder shrugged as she handed hers to Misty. “We wouldn’t want these to explode just yet.”
The Pyro Siblings jostled their way forward through the formation. When they’d reached the front, the legionnaires opened a gap large enough for them to pass through and closed behind them. The flamebots surged forward and sprayed the three mechs with fire. Unbeknownst to the screevers, Sparky, Ash, and Cinder were Inferno mechs, and they not only handled flame-based weapons, but they were created to operate in extreme temperature environments.
The intense flames were like a warm breeze to the Inferno mechs. They picked up the fire-spewing screevers and directed the flames away from the formation and back at the other bots. Similar to the Inferno mechs, the flamebots could handle the incredible heat, but not all the screevers were reinforced for such extreme temperatures.
Sparky, Ash, and Cinder didn’t have their original equipment, but until the flamebots stopped functioning, they used the captured screevers as makeshift flamethrowers and put them to excellent use. Taking the lead, Sparky, Ash, and Cinder sprayed oncoming screevers with fire and allowed the formation to make progress again.
Once they exhausted the flamebots’ fuel cannisters, they tossed the depleted screevers back to the advancing shield wall. The Legion dispatched the empty flamebots with enthusiastic precision. When there weren’t any flamebots left, the Pyro Siblings merged back into the formation and retrieved their explosives from Dennis and Misty.
“What are you saving these for?” Dennis asked, handing the explosives back to the Sparky and Ash.
They turned their heads forward to Zeta IX. Dennis nodded and said, “I like the way you think. Keep them safe until then.”
No longer slowed by the flamebots, the formation was free to continue its advance towards Zeta IX. In response, the screevers changed tactics. They circled the formation, no longer attacking the formation head on. At irregular intervals, screevers peeled off and pressed inward, striking at small openings in the shield wall or at the back of the formation where their defenses were weakest.
Mechs fell to the constant onslaught. When one fell, others stopped to help their fellows. Some stayed behind to defend the injured and help them off the battlefield, but this left them vulnerable. Too often, within moments, screevers surrounded and destroyed them as well. Dennis shook his head at their losses. At this rate, there wouldn’t be many of them left by the time they reached Zeta IX. A dozen or more bots broke off from the main body of circling screevers and headed towards them.
Blinders!
They jumped into the formation at lightning speed.
“Shield your eyes!” Dennis shouted. But it was too late. Dozens of blinders flashed at the same time. He was blinded. He wasn’t sure how many of the others were affected. As he staggered around, he bumped into something. A hand gripped his arm and steadied him.
“I’ve got you,” Misty said.
“I can’t see anything,” he said, “what’s happening?”
“We’ve stopped. Too many of us can’t see.”
“Hold your positions!” Dennis shouted. “Cover those who can’t see!”
Blinded, he had to rely on his sense of hearing, and that was almost useless with the shrill scream of the screever’s sirens. From what he could discern, screevers continued attacking and mechs shouted in dismay as unseen enemies attacked their vulnerable formation.
“Where’s Zeta IX?” Dennis’s vision returned somewhat, but he couldn’t see the mech through the splotches of green and blue that obscured his sight.
“He’s right where he’s been the whole—” Misty said, but stopped. “Wait, he’s not there anymore.”
“Where is he?” Dennis asked as he scanned the battlefield.
He glanced up and the ominous form of Zeta IX was hovering in the air above the formation. The mech wasn’t waiting for their formation to get to him. Instead, he was bringing the fight to them. Before he could shout a warning, Zeta IX stopped his upward trajectory and descended towards the ground, right into the middle of their formation. He sped downward at lightning speed. As he hit the ground, he unleashed a shock wave that sent mechs and humans sprawling in all directions.
Zeta IX stood triumphantly and laughed.
“I was getting bored waiting for you to reach me. Now I will have my fun.”
Zeta IX shifted his arm into a plasma cannon. Dennis hadn’t realized the mech could do that, that was technology on the same level as Angel. The mech targeted a legionnaire struggling to regain his feet and fired at point blank range. He turned to another legionnaire still laying on the ground and fired again. He was taking out those that posed the most threat to him. Then he called in the screevers. With the shield wall down, they were defenseless.
Dennis found Misty. She was conscious and trying to stand up. Ajax was back up and ready for action, already helping those around him to their feet. Mechs grabbed any weapons within reach and defended against the screevers. With all semblance of order now abandoned, everyone fought on their own or in small groups of twos or threes. Dennis did what he could to rally them together. Gladius and Brutus shouted orders for the Legion to rally on them.
Dennis found Ajax and pointed to the section of the escarpment where Angel’s body lay. “Get there now and see what you can do!”
Ajax nodded and tapped Doc’s shoulder. The two ran off, avoiding screevers where possible. Doc smashed those that got in their way with his mace, and Ajax kicked any others out of his way with his mech suit.
Zeta IX destroyed two more of the Legion. Brutus shouted a challenge and charged at the Reaper, sword in one hand, shield in the other. Gladius yelled for him to stand down, but Brutus didn’t listen. Zeta IX sidestepped the oncoming mech and backhanded Brutus, sending him tumbling.
“Feisty! I think I’ll save you for later.” Zeta IX laughed. He aimed at more legionnaires. Before he could fire, Lancer crashed into him, ruining the Reaper’s aim, causing him to destroy several screevers instead.
“Not this day, foul beast!” Lancer said.
The sinister mech turned his aim on Lancer, who dodged and weaved in constant motion, his silver spear spinning and taking out screevers as he moved. As Zeta IX was about to fire on Lancer, Gladius slammed into him from the other side, shield up, sword in hand.
Zeta IX roared in fury.
Connie sprinted in, converting to her battle mode as she slid under Zeta IX’s attack and sliced at his legs with her arms formed into sharp blades. She didn’t wait to see if she’d caused any damage. As she completed her attack, she converted to a hover cycle and sped out of harm’s way. The mech aimed at Connie, but found himself struck by a metal beam wielded by Bastion. Zeta IX tumbled dozens of yards away, and disappeared into the throngs of screevers.
“Leave this place, or face your doom,” Bastion’s voice boomed.
The surviving mechs cheered.
Angel was half buried when Ajax found him. Zeta IX had smashed him into the ground with such force that his body lay embedded in the soil. Ajax activated a scanner on his mech suit and examined the Archangel.
“Watch out!” Doc shouted.
Ajax ducked as Doc’s mace swung just over his head and smashed an incoming buzzer that was about to slice him. The mech suit may have protected
him, but better not to risk it. He checked the scanner: it read zero. Angel’s body, though it was damaged, was in far better shape than it had been when he first crashed on Mechhaven. But with no signs of any power, as far as he could tell, Angel was dead.
“We’ve got to jump start him,” Ajax said.
“I’ll watch your back!” Doc swung his mace at an oncoming shredder.
Before the battle, Ajax had installed the last battery pack from Angel’s siphoned power on his mech suit, thinking it might be useful to revive other fallen mechs, not Angel again. But he needed to get Angel back up and running again. Otherwise, they’d have no chance at surviving the battle. Even though Angel hadn’t shown any of the legendary prowess of the Archangel mechs, he remained their best chance to survive this fight. Ajax applied a conduit pad to Angel’s body, affixed a cable to the pad, and then attached the cable to the battery pack. He tapped his datapad and opened the connection.
From what he’d seen over the last few days, Angel absorbed energy through his skin and converted it into power his systems could use. He also had an unknown, yet powerful internal power source. If Ajax could get enough power back into Angel, it might reset his systems. If the power transferring back into him was the same power that had originally come from him, perhaps it would accelerate the process. Ajax increased the flow of power. His scanner indicated power was being absorbed, but nothing happened: the power levels didn’t increase, and Angel didn’t move. Perhaps Angel was dead.
The Legion, humans, and Villagers continued fighting Zeta IX. When Bastion slammed the Reaper with a metal beam and sent him flying, Ajax thrust his fist in the air. Maybe that would give him enough time to get Angel up and running. Screevers were still swarming and attacking, but no longer in an organized fashion. Bastion’s attack had disrupted Zeta IX’s control of the raging bots.
