ARMS Helm's End: (Book 7)

by Stephen Arseneault

  "Why have me back at all?"

  "Because you're a good strategist. And although my short-term plans have changed, I may still be open to the possibility of conquest once our house is in order here."

  Harris said, "Given the alternative, Bax, you might want to seriously consider that offer."

  "And, Mr. Gruberg, as much as it pains me to say it, you may be vital to this organization as well. You will act as a liaison between Miss Rumford and me."

  Bax scoffed. "A liaison? For what purpose?"

  "For the purpose of getting the truth from you. In addition, you will each have a bot assigned that will be with you at all times. Everything you say and do will be recorded and analyzed for any sign of treasonous behavior. And as for the alternative Mr. Gruberg was referring to, we all know what that would be."

  With a defiant expression, Bax said, "When do you want a decision by?"

  Croft stood. "I'm giving you each one hour."

  "That's generous."

  "It is." Croft turned. "Bots! Take them outside. They can enjoy the heavy gravity for an hour while they think on the merits of staying alive and being contributors."

  Bax and Harris were pushed through the exit. The heavy gravity of the third planet in the Rabid system quickly let its pull be known.

  Harris chuckled as they were forced to sit on the ground.

  Bax asked, "You find this funny?"

  "I do. Doesn't bother me much, but I know an hour of this will make you feel like someone has been sitting on top of you for that time. Won't be pleasant."

  "I can do unpleasant."

  "Some regulars end up panicking after only a few minutes. Mostly psychological, but it can be deadly."

  Bax lay back. "Well, if you see me flipping out, clock me one with your boot and knock me out. I don't need the humiliation that comes from being mentally weak."

  Harris smiled. "I might do that just to spare you from the possibility."

  Bax scowled. "While I appreciate the offer... no."

  Harris looked around. "Surrounded by thousands of bot warriors. Can't say it gives me a good feeling about our chances as a species."

  "These will be what saves us. We need the massive production and instant training these things offer if we're to survive the threats we now face. No way as Humans we could pull together the fleet of trained pilots we need for what's coming. These androids should be our ticket for remaining alive and free."

  "Free? You mean the freedom that comes from a dictatorship?"

  "Croft will surround himself with wealth and elitists who want a piece of that. One day he'll be dead and a new emperor will take his place. If we're lucky, that someone will be like me."

  Harris laughed out loud. "You? Are you serious?"

  "Yes. I might be in charge and demand order, but the things I would be doing would be for all humanity, not just for my enrichment and pleasure. My thrill is success and accomplishment, not surrounding myself with gold and jewels and yes-people."

  "OK. I guess I can give you credit for that. So you'd still be only halfway between Croft and freedom. I'll take freedom, thanks."

  Croft stood in the doorway, within the gravity-well of the dome. "The Banshees have control of the production plant. We're eight hours from having a hundred and twelve new Banshees at our disposal. I know it has only been a few minutes, but have you made your decisions?"

  Bax stared for several seconds. "You know we'll take the deal, so let's get this over with."

  "Harris?"

  "I have no problem with what you ask. I would like to add, though, that if you call on me to harm another Human, you might as well terminate me then. I won't be muscle for your empire."

  Croft nodded. "Good to know. Now, from the time on my arm pad, it appears you still have fifty-two minutes to go out here. The bots will bring you in when that time expires."

  The Emperor turned back into the dome. Harris stretched out, crossing his legs as he lay back.

  "I like that man less every minute," Bax scoffed.

  "Hard to imagine liking him to begin with."

  "I'm starting to agree with you. I guess that's what I get for being a dumb, naive, college girl when we met."

  Harris rolled onto his side. "What's the real story of Bax? The early story?"

  "Truthfully? It was lonely. My parents were both military scientists. They worked on the genetics program that spawned you."

  "I thought they were all killed?"

  "The active scientists were. Unfortunately my parents were also a criminal type. They got caught stealing equipment to sell and were fired. They weren't prosecuted, but they were shunned by the science community and couldn't find work. It was only about six months later that the labs were raided and everyone was killed."

  "Were they part of the team they recruited to try to restart the Bio efforts?"

  Bax shook her head. "No, they were passed over, which pushed them further into a life of crime. They were scammers and schemers. I was born into their criminal enterprise, where I was taught from an early age how to manipulate people. And I was good at it. When I was ten, I came home from school one day to find them both slaughtered in our house. They had evidently crossed the wrong people."

  "That's a harsh reality for a ten-year-old."

  Bax smirked. "I didn't even cry. Went to live with my uncle, who was into the family trade, but not quite so deep. Anyway, teenage years were as a rebel, and then I met Croft in college. He was young and dashing. First person I let close to me since my parents’ death."

  "So you're the product of a messed-up childhood. Huh. Such a waste of all those looks and brains."

  Several dozen bots standing a hundred meters away, toward the southern end of Dome One, suddenly exploded as a flurry of plasma rounds came from the surrounding hills.

  — Chapter 27 —

  * * *

  Weapons fire erupted from the hilltops above the domes. Bots scattered, ran for cover, or squatted in place. Dozens more exploded before the first firing positions were located. A healthy exchange of plasma bolts ensued.

  Harris slipped his strapped hands underneath himself and to the front, rocking to his feet, holding out a hand to assist Bax with standing.

  "Come on, not good to be out here in the open."

  A surge of plasma blasts could be seen as the attackers charged for an entrance just to the south.

  Bax said as she stood, "Those are Biomarines!"

  Harris nodded. "Come to reclaim the Retreat. Follow me."

  "Where we going?"

  "Out of the direct line of fire. Over here, behind these pots."

  "Those won't stop plasma rounds."

  "They'll stop one. And keep your head leaned away from it. If it explodes, you don't want the shrapnel shredding the back of your skull. These suits will protect our bodies, but without helmets, our heads are waiting to be split open like melons."

  Bax took position behind a two-meter-wide container that housed a small tree. "So what do we do now?"

  "We wait."

  "Why assault the building if there are still thousands of bots out here?"

  "If I had to guess, they're attempting to get to the defense control room. Press a few buttons and those rail cannons would open up on the bots. That leaves just the ones inside. You'll see a much different fight then."

  "Do they even stand a chance against these androids?"

  "If I know the colonel, yes. I would bet they've studied the programmed reactions of those bots and planned their strategy accordingly."

  Bax attempted to look out at the battlefield surrounding the dome. "I can't believe this is happening."

  "And you won't have to if you don't keep your head down."

  Harris kicked the side of a pot, breaking off a chunk of concrete, exposing a jagged edge. The plastic straps that bound his hands were rapidly rubbed on the hard edge until they began to fray.

  "You escaping?"

  Harris chuckled. "Not exactly."

  "Well, whatever i
t is, take me with you."

  "You'll be fighting androids."

  Bax nodded. "That I can do. Just get me out of these."

  The straps on Harris' wrists popped free. The freed chunk of concrete was used to violate Bax's restraints. Two bots crouched in the doorway nearby, firing rounds up at the hilltop where the first shots had originated. The chunk of concrete saw one bot's head smashed as a hard shoulder saw the other slammed into the wall beside it. Its Saxon repeating plasma rifle was snatched from its hands.

  Bax was passed the second rifle. "Take this. Stay behind me. Cover our backs. And don't fire forward. I don't want to be leaping into one of your poorly timed shots."

  "Backside. Got it. Wait, bots coming this way from inside!"

  Harris dove and rolled up behind one of the pots; Bax scampered for another. Three bots emerged through the door. Each received a plasma round to the midsection, ripping them apart.

  Harris said, "When I run, you run. If I flop, flop. If you want to stay alive, do your best to stay with me. If we get separated, you're on your own. This isn't a babysitting mission."

  "Where are we headed?"

  "Ground floor. Defense control room. If the bots keep the other Bios from reaching it, the Biomarines all die. If they can't get in to enable those cannons... we will."

  Harris sprinted, Bax followed. Three additional bots were met and destroyed as they turned out of the hall leading to the door outside.

  Harris said as he sprinted forward. "We're gonna get serious company now. They know we're in here."

  As they reached the first corner, running into an adjacent hall, Harris dove and slid out into the opening. Six rapid-fired rounds from his Saxon all found their marks. Two return rounds passed by, exploding on a far wall. Harris was immediately up and again sprinting. Bax struggled to keep up.

  As they passed the scattered bot parts from the prior six, three more emerged from a side room. Harris pushed himself off the near wall to rapidly change direction as he fired. Again, two plasma rounds came in his direction before the bots who fired them disintegrated. A return round struck a wall next to Bax, showering her with sparks that singed the belly part of her suit.

  As she glanced back toward where they had come from, two bots rounded the corner. She dropped to the floor, pulling the trigger on her repeater as Harris fired two rounds from behind her position. The bots exploded, firing two shots into the floor in front of them. The duo was immediately up and moving.

  Two further halls were traversed before they came upon eight bots guarding the hall that held the door into the defense control center. Harris managed two kills before being forced back around the corner.

  "You, up here."

  "I'm not going out there," Bax replied.

  "Not asking you to. Take your weapon and hold it like this. Ram it out around the corner and send out a burst of three. One burst. And pull back as fast as you can. Don't need to hit anything. Just want to keep them in place and occupied."

  "Where you going?"

  Harris pointed back down the hall. "Gonna work my way around. Just keep shoving that Sax out for a burst and then pulling it back. And do it at different levels so they don't zero you. And when you pull back, take a step away as they will undoubtedly be hitting the corner of the wall here. Can you do that?"

  "I can try."

  "No try. Just do. Listen for my yell when it's safe to come around the corner. When we go in the room, you'll be guarding the door."

  "That I can do."

  Harris held out his rifle, sending an example burst shot down the target hall. The sound of a wall impact reverberated back.

  "Take the shots. Maybe we get lucky and you hit one. And keep an eye on your back too. This isn't the best defensive position."

  The Biomarine sprinted away, soon disappearing around the far corner. Bax took her first shot. The wall behind her exploded with the plasma from a dozen rounds. Sparks and flame bounced her direction as the wall itself began to glow red at several points. A second burst was followed by another return of four hits. She lay on the floor for a third, and then a fourth burst.

  Harris yelled from the hall. "It's clear! Come on! You got them all!"

  As Bax stepped around the corner, two plasma rounds sparked on the far hallway wall. Her walk turned into a dash for the door. In the seconds it took to reach the defense center, Harris had cleared the room of three bots.

  "Guard that door while I reset those cannons!"

  Using the same out and back strategy as before, Bax held the attackers at bay. The two quickly turned to four, and then six.

  "They're ganging up out here! You’d best finish whatever it is you're doing!"

  Harris turned. "System is restarting. Twenty seconds and the bots outside should be eliminated."

  Android boots could be heard charging down the hall. Harris dove out, firing repeated bursts as he fell toward the floor by the opposite wall. Two bots exploded and three others sought cover. A hard push with his legs had him sliding back across the floor and into the doorway. Bax pulled him to his feet. An out and back eliminated another bot.

  Seconds later, the automated rail cannon system came online. Repeated rumbles reverberated through the walls and floor of the dome as several thousand bots perished at once. The majority of the outside force was eliminated in the tungsten mayhem that followed. Those left were quickly mopped up by the Biomarines that charged down the hills surrounding the complex.

  Harris rolled into the hall, eliminating two bots whose attention had been diverted toward a far hall. Half a dozen slugs and stumps, led by the colonel himself, dashed from doorway to doorway. A grin covered Harris' face.

  "Colonel! Cannons are secure!"

  Seconds later, a hand was outstretched and gripping his forearm. "Outstanding Gruberg! If they were still giving out medals, I'd put you in for one."

  Harris turned to see Bax typing away at a console. "Hey, what are you doing?"

  "Entering in the Fargo's transponder. Don't feel like getting blasted should I be allowed to leave."

  The colonel said, "You shouldn't be making plans, Rumford. You have a lot to answer for."

  A half dozen plasma rounds ripped into the hallway near where they stood as a horde of bots entered the far end of the hall. The colonel's squad reacted, taking out three and sending the others into retreat. The Biomarines raced down the hall with Harris following after.

  "Croft is still here," Harris said. "He was on the second floor last I saw."

  "We're going up!" the colonel yelled.

  "The old Tamerin meeting room."

  "Old?"

  "He decided on some remodeling. He planned on making it his palace room. Took out a half dozen walls and two ceilings above."

  The squad maneuvered up a stairwell. At the top of the steps a huge firefight ensued. Two slugs perished before the colonel and his team, including Harris, were pushed back down to the first floor. The fight quickly turned when two other squads emerged from other stairwells, catching the defending bots in a crossfire.

  As the colonel strode into the room that Croft occupied, he was found cowering behind a box in a corner.

  "End of the road, Croft. Get your sorry ass up here. Time to pay for your sins."

  A Fox-40 was pulled from behind his back. Before it could be fully raised, a precision shot from Tawn blew open the former President's chest. His split torso dropped to the floor.

  Harris turned. "Freely? You made it! Trish and the others?"

  "Back at Midelon. Should be arriving in the Bangor from orbit. Had them wait until we knew the rail cannons were properly functioning."

  "How'd you manage to survive the Hailstorm?"

  Tawn chuckled. "Survive? Nobody would have survived that. You see the crater it left?"

  "Haven't really had the chance to check it, no."

  "When we first dropped from orbit, we did a quick dump of all units to the ground."

  The colonel tapped the duo on the shoulder as he passed. "Got to
go. Still have resisters in the other domes."

  Tawn continued, "We marched here. Eighty kilometers. I have to say my legs are pretty fatigued right now. And this right one is a bit sore."

  "Latest word from Domicile?"

  "They were free when we left. Why?"

  "Four Banshees survived the fighting here. Croft sent them to secure it."

  Tawn scowled. "We were hoping that wouldn't happen. Almost left the Bangor there in reserve."

  "Four would have been too many."

  A comm came from the Bangor. Harris answered, "Trish! Gandy! Good to see you!"

  "Is it over? Why was Bax let go?" Gandy asked.

  "What?"

  "She zoomed out while we were coming in. Should we go after her?"

  "Can you catch her before she jumps?"

  "Not a chance."

  Harris rolled his eyes. "We just screwed up big-time. She'll have those Banshees in just a few hours."

  Tawn scowled. "How'd you let her get away?"

  "We were fighting and looking for Croft. She slipped out. Completely my fault."

  "So all this was for nothing?"

  Harris shook his head. "Hardly. Croft is dead and we still have Midelon. And now we have the Retreat. We have a few hours before that next group of Banshees comes off the line. We just have to keep her from getting those."

  Gandy said, "What about the Grindle?"

  "The Grindle?"

  "Yeah. We have it back at Midelon. It has a decent laser cannon. We could bring it back and fight the new Banshees."

  Tawn grabbed Harris' shoulder. "We might even have time to attack right now, before Morgan releases those ships!"

  Harris bolted for the door, Tawn fast behind. "You're a genius, Freely! If they were still giving out medals I'd put you in for one!"

  The Bangor rocketed up through the atmosphere as a fireball. Minutes later, a jump was made to Midelon space. The ship dove into the waters beside the island and was soon docked with the opening going into the hidden bay. Harris and Tawn sprinted for the Burrell ship, strapping themselves in before powering up her drives.