The Squad Novelettes 1-5

by Stephen Arseneault

  Tanner looked at the cards laid out on the table. "All in." His remaining credits were transferred to the electronic pot."

  Collins pushed his cards in. "Fold."

  "You people have no guts. Xurpok? You in or out?"

  The alien looked at his cards and then at Tanner. "All in."

  The credit transfer was made.

  Tanner revealed his cards. "Heart flush baby! Read 'em and weep."

  The grinning flush-holder reached for the transfer.

  Collins grabbed his hand. "Hold on. Let's see what you beat."

  Xurpok laid out his hole cards. Collins began to laugh. Tanner looked on in disbelief.

  Mendez nodded. "Full house. Didn't see that coming. And he had it early. Nice play Xurpok."

  Tanner sat back with a scowl on his face. "Four straight. That's four straight strong hands of mine that he has topped."

  Mendez pushed a mug toward Tanner. "Hey, now that you're out, how about getting me a refill?"

  The next round saw Collins as the victim with Mendez going down the round after.

  Tanner shook his head. "All those credits and he can't even spend them."

  The game was one of many with Xurpok usually coming out on top. I had to guess he was of exceptional intelligence, even before his transformation into a lethal fighting machine. He was aware and always seemed to be one step ahead.

  When the poker had concluded, Sammy, our new pilot, had come into the lounge for a break. He had been a long-time chess player. Xurpok, after being schooled at how the game was played, defeated Sammy in eighteen moves. The next game only lasted twelve.

  Tanner sat next to me as a disgruntled Sammy insisted on a third. "He's something ain't he?"

  "Has everything going for him, and yet nothing going for him at the same time."

  "Yeah. I've had some time to think on that. I know I've chuckled about the thought of the Maxans wiping us out, Humans I mean, leaving just me behind. But a quick thought has no comparison to the reality of it. He can never go home. Can't have a family. And other than his brother, he'll never see another Corbo alive."

  Tanner asked, "Why hasn't he awakened his brother?"

  "I don't think he wants to give him the news."

  "Even as bad as that news is, I would want to know."

  "I told him exactly that. I think he still has hope of finding some of his people alive."

  Tanner scowled. "Crappy what his own people did to him, you know, just leaving them out in the middle of nowhere to die. Hey, I wonder if back on his ship he has any images of what a Herzek looks like? I've been curious about that for a while now."

  "Just ask him."

  "Later maybe. I think kicking our ass in these games has his spirits up. If we want him focused on fighting, when that time comes, we need to keep him together."

  "On that we can agree."

  Sammy stood from the table shaking his head as he turned away. Nine moves had been all that was required for his defeat. He walked back toward the bridge, humbled.

  Chapter 5

  * * *

  On the thirteenth day of our journey we reached the Maxan outpost colony we had encountered before. There were no ships in sight and no soldiers on the ground. For whatever reason, the Maxans had chosen to not defend her further.

  Three other star systems were checked before a Maxan scout was spotted. We had no weapons, but we did have a faster ship. Before the scout could enable its jump engine, we were on it with a breach tube extended. Xurpok raced aboard and made short work of the crew of four. Their bodies were placed in the freeze.

  Tanner stood on the bridge of the scout, looking back at the Fracker. "Sarge? What happened to our ship?"

  I stopped and looked. "Are you talking about the extra armor?"

  "When did that happen?"

  "It was one of the upgrades we paid for. And a reason we had the work done inside a private bay where snooping eyes wouldn't get people asking questions."

  "She looks like a big blob now."

  "Almost triple the armor we had. Won't have an effect on maneuverability out here, but we'll need to keep an eye on that when in-atmosphere. Either way, we should be able to stroll right up to any ship the Maxans have. We don't have anything to shoot back at them with, but we can safely extend a pipe, which is what we want to do anyway."

  Tanner scowled. "I like the thought of the extra armor, but she's hideous now. I'd almost be embarrassed to cruise up to a port flying that."

  I chuckled. "How is it you survived out here this long? And when did you start giving a rat’s-ass about what our ship looked like?"

  "Well, I guess I don't. Just that was a bit of a shock seeing her for the first time. She was definitely not beautified."

  Collins walked in. "Looks like a pregnant whale don't she?"

  Tanner sighed. "Not gonna be picking up chicks in her on Saturday night, that's for sure."

  I asked, "What is it you two are talking about?"

  "Old Earth movies," Collins replied. "Kind of got on a kick watching them the last few days just to see Xurpok's reactions."

  Tanner looked around the bridge of the captured scout. "So what do we do with her? I know there's a bounty, but is it worth a trip all the way to Alday and then back out here again?"

  I shook my head. "There would be a profit, but not the kind of profit we're looking for. We may just have to fly her into that star or something."

  Mendez came up behind us. "Why not program in a rally point? We send her on to a bit of dead space between here and Alday with a local beacon transmitting that says she's ours. In fact it might work best for us to drag those bodies back here and to just stick them in the crew quarters or something with the heating off. Program her to make jumps to the rally point and we'll pick her up later."

  Collins nodded. "I like that. Would allow us to stack up four or five ships, heck, maybe even a dozen, before heading back in. More ships, fewer trips, more bounty."

  I smiled. "Nice work Mendez. You may have just increased our profit potential."

  "Good. And since I came up with it you should have these two monkeys drag the corpses back."

  "Sounds fair."

  Tanner shook his head as he turned back toward the pipe. "Always getting the shaft. This whole venture has been a shaft. Come on Col. We have some dragging to do."

  Xurpok was sitting in the pilot's chair just across from us. His head was looking down at the floor.

  Mendez walked over. "Pep up. You at least got to exact revenge on a few."

  "I received no satisfaction from my effort. I had hoped this would be my path to recovery."

  Mendez took a seat beside him. "Recovery from loss is a long, slow road my friend. And with lots of bumps along the way. Just stick with it though. You'll eventually get there."

  I followed up. "She's right. The healing will come with time. So let's get on with this, there are more Maxans to hunt and we need to earn a living."

  The scout ship was programmed and sent off to a rally point for our collection later. Two new systems were visited before another ship was sighted. This one had been called a Warhag. It was about halfway between the size of the Fracker and a frigate. It was also very old and drew little as far as bounty. But the twenty to thirty Maxan soldiers aboard would pay nicely.

  The Warhag had a pair of light-duty lasers for weapons. A constant stream coming from both would take nearly an hour to penetrate our armor. We weren't worried.

  A run toward the Warhag had it turning our way. The twin beams coming from her weapons scarred our otherwise pristine exterior, but only cosmetically so. We pulled alongside, and the breach tube was extended. A two-meter round hole was cut into her hull and Xurpok was quickly through.

  I raced in after but was unable to see more than arms and legs flying through the air and bodies dropping to the deck. The real action was taking place around a corner. Two Maxans entered the hall. I opened up, taking out the first as the second dove for cover. A quick check of my position had me o
ut in the open with Tanner and Collins coming up behind. I dropped to the floor as I tried to wave them off.

  A pair of tags came from the repeater of the surviving Maxan. But he was unable to pull the trigger on the blaster-portion of his weapon, his arm having been hacked off by a flash of black that sprang from around the corner. Tanner squeezed off a round, firing into the ceiling as he lifted up on his blaster rifle at the last second. Xurpok was quickly back around the corner and moving forward, cutting through the four squads of soldiers the older ship carried.

  Before we could reach the bridge, the mayhem had ended. Two Maxan crewmen were pinned to the deck.

  I hustled up to take control of the second as Xurpok picked up and began an interrogation of the first. Screams of pain were followed by a gurgling sound as the crewman's throat was cut and his body tossed to the ground. Xurpok wasted no time attempting to gather information from the second. A similar fate was bestowed on the remaining crewman less than a minute later. Both had been defiant to the end.

  Xurpok moved on to the ship's logs. Ten minutes of perusal followed as the rest of us worked to check every nook and cranny for hiders. A scan from Sammy said the ship was clean.

  When I returned to the bridge, Xurpok was again sitting in the pilot's chair with his head down.

  "Nothing new on your people?" I asked.

  He hesitated for several seconds before offering a reply. "Only mention of their discovery. Nothing of their annihilation."

  An hour was spent dragging dead Maxans into the sleeping quarters of the soldiers before the door was closed off. The ship's nav system was then programmed for a run to the rally point for a pickup later. We again moved on in search of new prey.

  Four days were spent with no sightings, each time moving us deeper into known Maxan territory. We were all sitting around the dining lounge, discussing our options.

  Tanner said, "Why not just go for broke? Head right toward one of their known colonies?"

  I shook my head. "We don't want to be taking on a hundred ships at once. Getting dead won't make us any credits and won't get Xurpok the answers he desires. One at a time and we'll get the job done."

  "You're starting to sound like Sergeant Bickers, all cautious and everything."

  The comment drew a nasty stare from me.

  Collins said, "We do know where some of those colonies are. Maybe we just head in that direction. I would think traffic might pick up as we move closer."

  Mendez nodded. "I agree. All this running around out here in the boonies is just wasting fuel. We need to move in where there's more action."

  Sammy was seated across from me.

  I asked, "Can you scout out a few closer targets on the nav for us? And I want you to bring them here for my review before making a move."

  Sammy stood. "On it. Should only take a few minutes."

  Tanner grinned. "Finally, the big guy listens to me."

  Chapter 6

  * * *

  A new set of targets were identified and approved. With two I was comfortable and with the other two I feared we might be getting into territory where our own fleets had been fighting.

  There were two types of mercs. There were those who went out and freelanced for bounties, like we had been attempting, and those who fought alongside our fleets during conflicts. The second was a mission I wanted to avoid. I had seen too many instances where merc crews and ships were sacrificed for a larger strategic goal, oftentimes for a goal that was not achieved.

  And there were further problems. If a merc crew was in the vicinity of a fight, it was mandatory that they immediately offer their services to the local commander. Most merc mission contracts were negotiated at favorable rates beforehand. If you were called into a mandatory mission you received the minimum pay. It was the same pay had by the CDF crews and Marines, but they weren't putting their own ships and equipment at risk. Being forced into a fight was always a very bad deal.

  At the first system of the day we caught the tail-end view of a Maxan Warmonger as it jumped away to elsewhere. The system was searched with no evidence of any other units found. We proceeded to our second target only to find a system that was in its natural state, nothing but a star, planets, moons, and asteroids.

  I walked to the bridge as we prepared for our third jump of the day. "We're moving into a potential hot-zone, Sammy. Keep a coordinate entered in for a jump away should we hit a system we don't want to be in."

  Sammy nodded. "Already programmed in, Sarge. And I hate to say it, but this next one makes me nervous. I was there seven years ago during the Avingyard push. It was only a small outpost at the time, but it had twenty-six warships parked in orbit where we only had eight."

  "Doesn't sound like a fair fight."

  "It wasn't. And our commander was busy in the head when we arrived and his second was hesitant to make a call. A sixty-second delay cost us three ships and over six hundred Marines and crew. The only thing saving that officer from a court martial was the unhappy fact that the command ship was one of the losses."

  "We're coming in at maximum sensor range. That should give us any space we need to jump away."

  "Unless there's an ongoing conflict and we're called to join in."

  "Well then, let's hope that N7742 is a quiet and peaceful place."

  The jump to N7742 was anything but peaceful. Two fleets, each totaling close to seventy ships, were battling it out in orbit above what would now be considered a major outpost. Almost immediately a hail came over the general comm from the command ship of the CDF force.

  "Merc ship Fracker. You are hereby conscripted into this fight. Do you accept?"

  "We do, sir. Tell us where we're needed. We can board any opposing ship, but we have no weapons."

  "One moment." Voices could be heard coming from the command bridge of the other vessel. "Fracker. You should be receiving orders and the nav directives designating your first target. We are requesting immediate assault of the Warmonger designated as M62. Scan parameters will be included with your data."

  "Thank you, Lieutenant. We'll do our best." I opened the PA system. "Listen up. We've had a bit of bad luck. We've just been conscripted into a fight. We'll be going aboard a Warmonger. Suit up. I don't see this as being a cakewalk."

  I turned to Sammy. "Study the data command just sent us and find the best path going in to that Warmonger. Pre-position us as needed. I'll let you know when we're ready for the assault."

  "Will do, Sarge."

  I hustled back to my stateroom and began the three-minute process of getting into my battlesuit. The back half hung on a rack on the wall. I backed into it and fastened the handful of hook-and-loop straps that would keep it in place. I then moved to a chair for the leg sections.

  First came the thigh leggings. The left was snapped into place, followed by the right. After came the boots. I jammed in my left foot and cinched the boot tight before snapping the main clasp in place. A second clasp was set and the other boot put on in the same manner. Following the boots came the shin guards, again snapping into place and fastening tight with a pair of latches.

  I stood and moved over to the arm station. The upper arm and outer pauldrons were popped into place first. The forearm guards came next. From there I picked up the chest plate, cinching it tight and then fastening the eight latches that held it in place. Next was the shoulder and neck collar that fastened the chest, back, and pauldrons together. Once set, I grabbed my gloves and helmet and pulled my blaster rifle from its mount. I hustled down to where the breaching tube would be extended.

  "Sammy. We're in place. Take us in."

  "Roger, Sarge. Forty seconds. And you best grab hold of something for the ride because we're gonna be taking a pounding."

  I looked at the others, all holding a hand strap coming from the ceiling and a rail bolted to the wall. "We're set."

  The run going into battlespace was harsh. The Fracker shook violently with each hit, but she was a strong ship, and with the additional armor was not in dan
ger of early hull failure. More than once my boots left the deck, but the strap and rail held me securely in place.

  Sammy did an excellent job of bringing us in to a point where a breach was considered highly productive. The tube extended, attached, and the cutters soon had a two-meter diameter hole cut into the Warmonger's hull. A swift boot from Xurpok sent the cut-plate flying.

  Xurpok glanced back. "Just cover this entryway. I'll be back shortly."

  I gave a nod and our alien friend darted through the hatch and was quickly around a corner. Seconds later the familiar whumps and thuds of plasma bolts being fired was heard, followed by screams of terror and screeches of Maxan madness.

  Tanner chuckled as we moved through the pipe onto the Maxan warship. "I think I could listen to those sounds all day."

  When we reached the nearest hall, I checked in either direction for hostiles. The only Maxans I saw were already dead, having encountered the "Corbo Tornado" as Tanner had designated Xurpok to be.

  I gave Sammy a status. "We're aboard and Xurpok is cleaning house. I'm sending Mendez and Collins back to guard the hatch. How's the fight outside going?"

  "The place is lit up like Christmas, Sarge. This is about as heavy an engagement as I've ever seen. Sheer chaos and it looks like both sides have committed every ship they have."

  "We taking any more hits?"

  "That's a negative. They seem more interested in the targets that are shooting back. In fact, I'm wondering if we slipped in unlogged or something. My best guess is just that they are all busy."

  "If you start taking a beating let me know."

  "I did have a thought on that, Sarge. What if we have Xurpok clean out the docking bay? This ship should squeeze in there nicely and we won't be fired upon at all."

  "Good idea. I think we're too far into this assault for now, but we'll keep that in mind for the future."

  Tanner said, "Sarge, as far as ideas go, I just had one. Tell me if you think it's doable. What if when Xurpok has this job finished we go to the bridge and program this barge to fly to our rally point? We then move on to the next ship."