Final Conflict

by Raymond L. Weil

  Leah looked surprised by the question. “No, it doesn’t bother me. I guess the best way to describe it is confusion. You have all this basic knowledge and memories they implant in your mind while your body is maturing. When you are awoken you have twelve years of education and you can actually remember attending the classes though the teachers’ names and the faces of other classmates are sort of vague.”

  “Once you’re awake they take you to a facility with other clones and some older Humans who teach you how to use what you were taught in the cloning chambers,” continued Kinsley. “It’s not a bad experience. They’re very patient and help you to adjust to the real world. After that we begin our higher studies and decide if we want to go into civilian life or the military.”

  “How many chose the military?” asked Brian curiously. He knew that many did.

  “Nearly half,” replied Kinsley. “I chose the military because I thought it would be exciting and I wanted to travel to other worlds.”

  “Same here,” added Leah. “I thought it would give me the experience to live in Human society better. I think all clones are concerned about fitting in.”

  Leah looked over at Brian. “What about you and Thomas? Look at who your parents are. Heroes who pretty much saved the entire Solar System. How have the two of you dealt with that?”

  Brian took a deep breath. “I guess we were lucky to grow up together. We’re used to running around with Kiveans and other races. Thomas and I practically grew up in Marken’s home playing with his son and others. On Vesta no one treats us any differently which is the way we prefer it.”

  “However, we do run into problems when we leave home. People go out of their way to be nice to us hoping to score points with our parents,” added Thomas with a deep sigh. “It does them no good as neither of us will ever use our parents to help us gain anything.”

  “That’s one reason why we joined the Marines,” said Brian as he bit into a chicken leg. At least the food here was good with large portions. “While we wanted to do our part to defend the Solar System we wanted to get away from the shadow of our parents.”

  Thomas nodded. “So far it’s worked pretty well. If anything our Marine training has been harder as no one wants to be seen as taking it easy on us because of who our parents are.”

  Thomas looked over at Kinsley. “Have you experienced any problems with other Humans because you’re a clone?”

  Kinsley shook her head. “No, at least not yet. I know back in the early days there were a large number of Humans who didn’t want to accept us as equals. That seems to have changed over the years particularly since so many Humans and clones have gotten married and had children.”

  Thomas had to grin. His mother was a clone. He had never noticed the difference in his home or how people treated her. He knew at first his grandparents had a hard time accepting his mother but eventually they welcomed her into the family.

  Finishing off his chicken leg, Brian reached for a second one. “We’d better eat up; I suspect we’re going to need the energy for this afternoon’s drills.”

  “Let’s hope everything goes well,” added Thomas. “I need to speak to Corporal Coyle about tomorrow’s attempt at Charring. I really don’t want to get stunned again.”

  Leah nodded. “None of us do but I suspect there’s little we can do about it. There will be more stunners and explosive pop-ups than last time. Each time it will get increasingly more difficult and challenging.”

  “I heard some Marines never make it to the top,” said Kinsley. “They still graduate, though.”

  A serious look crossed Brian’s face. “One thing though: once you make it to the top you don’t have to go up Charring Mountain again unless you volunteer to.”

  Kinsley looked surprised. “Well, I don’t think I would volunteer to get stunned again if I didn’t have to.”

  “Me either,” chimed in Leah.

  “However, it would be good training to prepare us for when we actually have to face the Kleese,” said Thomas.

  They all looked at each other thoughtfully. Of course one of them would have to make it to the top first before a decision could be made.

  -

  The next morning the platoon was once more lined up at the foot of Charring Mountain. Thomas was surprised to see Lieutenant Adams there dressed in her battlesuit as well as both the sergeants.

  “This will be a live fire exercise and Marines have been known to be hurt in these,” explained the lieutenant over the platoon’s comm channel. “A few broken bones are not uncommon.”

  The Marines shifted uneasily in their stances not expecting to hear this. So far no one had been seriously injured in the attempts on Charring. It sounded like today was going to be different.

  “You need to learn to fight through the pain. Have faith in your battlesuits. The suits are capable of healing even the most serious of wounds. All Type Nine battlesuits are capable of injecting medical nanites into your bodies. Of course if your head gets blown off or you have a hole in your suit the size of my fist there’s very little the nanites can do.”

  Brian looked over at Thomas. “Sounds like today is going to be interesting.”

  “Painful,” muttered Leah unhappily.

  “A learning process,” said Kinsley excited to get the drill started.

  “Just follow orders,” Thomas said. “We know what the objective is.”

  “Not to get stunned,” answered Leah. “I hate getting stunned.”

  Thomas had to agree. He didn’t care for it either. “I’m curious to see what Lieutenant Adams does to get us to the top of the mountain.”

  “Do you think she wants us to get to the top?” asked Brian, shifting his attention back to the lieutenant.

  Thomas nodded. “I think so or she wouldn’t be going up the mountain with us. I doubt if she wants to get stunned any more than we do.”

  “Corporal Coyle and Corporal Thomas, your squads will take the left side of our formation,” ordered Lieutenant Adams. “Corporal Hasher and Corporal Anderson, your squads will be on the right. I have no idea where the pop-ups are on this mountain. I have asked Major Reed to throw everything he can at us. This may well be the toughest ascent anyone’s attempted of Charring Mountain. We will use what I learned in combat against the Kleese in our attempt to reach the top. I will admit the odds are not in our favor.” Lieutenant Adams paused and then continued. “All four squads will advance forty meters up the mountain and then stop and wait for orders. There will be no scouts at this point until we reach the tree line.”

  Leah looked over at Kinsley. “Well, let’s go get stunned.”

  Stepping onto the slope of the mountain, Thomas kept his assault rifle at the ready. He was carrying one of the rifles, which fired an intense energy beam. Leah was carrying the same type of rifle while both Kinsley and Brian had the ones that fired explosives. After advancing about forty meters he signaled for his squad to stop. He then waited to see what Lieutenant Adams’ next command would be. The four squads were formed into a skirmish line stretching out over one hundred meters along the slope. So far no pop-ups had appeared.

  “Every other Marine will now use their explosive launchers to clear potential weapons sites,” ordered Lieutenant Adams. “You will set your launchers to fire fifty meters ahead of us and then advance in ten meter increments. Each Marine will fire exactly ten rounds and then stop.”

  Thomas looked around. From the way the Marines were counting off Kinsley and Brian would be firing their explosive rounds. The squad had only practiced firing this type of explosive once before on the practice range. Thomas was curious to see what its effect would be.

  “Stand by,” ordered Lieutenant Adams. A moment passed and then she spoke again, “Fire!”

  Instantly grenade-like explosions began occurring up the slope, throwing dirt and other debris on the waiting Marines. The explosions slowly advanced up the slope and after about a minute came to a stop. Much of the slope was now covered in smoke with a few small
bushes burning.

  “We will now advance another one hundred meters,” ordered Lieutenant Adams.

  Thomas signaled to his squad and they began advancing once more.

  “Well, this is interesting,” commented Kinsley as they moved up the slope. “It’s definitely better than being stunned.”

  Thomas stopped to examine what appeared to be a destroyed pop-up weapon. All that remained was a twisted tripod and a barrel split in two. Thomas wondered if the pop-up had been real or a fake.

  “Corporal Thomas, keep moving,” ordered Sergeant Cain loudly. “We don’t have time to ogle the scenery.” Sergeant Cain was behind the two squads keeping an eye on the recruits.

  Thomas began walking again keeping his eyes and sensors looking for any signs of additional pop-ups. After moving up the slope another one hundred meters Thomas brought his squad to a halt, waiting for the next order from Lieutenant Adams.

  “Private Henderson!” called out Sergeant Cain. “You’re too close to Private Greerman. We don’t want a pop-up taking both of you out at the same time. Increase your spacing before I throw you back down the mountain.”

  Josh carefully stepped over to his left side another two meters.

  Looking at his HUD, Thomas checked the position of the rest of his squad. They were in a slightly staggered formation and all currently standing still waiting for orders.

  “Same as before,” ordered Lieutenant Adams. “Those of you who did not fire explosive rounds before will now get your turn. “Set the beginning of the rounds for thirty meters in front of us and then every ten meters until I tell you to stop.”

  Thomas quickly used his neural interface to set the parameters for the launch of the explosives. A green light on his HUD indicated the explosives launcher was ready.

  “I think I like the lieutenant,” said Brian. “So far none of us have been stunned.”

  “I agree,” said Leah. “We haven’t lost anyone yet.”

  “The day’s not over,” Kinsley reminded them. “The forest will be a total different matter as it will be difficult to use our explosives there.”

  Thomas knew Kinsley was right. He was curious to see what the lieutenant did to get them through the tall trees.

  “Fire!” ordered the lieutenant.

  Instantly Thomas activated the explosive device on the back of his battlesuit. He felt a nearly imperceptible vibration as the first explosive was launched. In front of him a line of explosions began and then slowly marched up the slope. The explosions continued until they nearly reached the tree line when Lieutenant Adams ordered them to stop firing. Checking his HUD, Thomas saw he had five rounds remaining. He wondered if the lieutenant was saving those for some reason.

  “We’ll advance until we’re sixty meters from the tree line,” ordered the lieutenant. “At sixty meters we will stop and see if we can eliminate the pop-ups that are generally located there.”

  “I wonder how we’re going to do that?” asked Brian. “We can’t use the explosive launchers on our backs, the trees are in the way and our assault rifles that fire explosives won’t reach far enough into the tree line.”

  “Move forward!” ordered Lieutenant Adams.

  Thomas and his squad moved up the slope in their staggered formation until they were about sixty meters from the tree line. Not a single pop-up appeared though Thomas was certain the tree line was full of them. He wondered what trick Lieutenant Adams had to deal with those.

  “Attention,” said Lieutenant Adams over the platoon comm. “Everyone with an energy rifle will aim it about ten meters above the ground. The goal is to use our energy rifles to cut down the tops of the trees, causing them to collapse to the forest floor. We will then use explosive rounds to finish off any pop-ups that might be waiting for us at the start of the tree line. In most Charring Mountain scenarios the most pop-ups are always located in the beginning of the tree line. If we can eliminate those then most of us should be able to make it to the top. All corporals, you will be in charge of eliminating the trees directly in front of your position. Continue to fire until I tell you to stop. Energy rifles only!”

  “Do it,” ordered Thomas as he took his energy rifle and aimed at the trunk of a tall tree directly in front of him. He fired and a beam of energy lanced out, striking the tree and after a second cutting through the thick trunk, causing it to tumble to the forest floor. He then picked out another target and fired again. All across the front of the tree line limbs and trunks were falling. Some were on fire, causing the tall brush and overgrowth on the forest floor to begin burning.

  “Cease fire!” ordered Lieutenant Adams. “Now, everyone use the remaining explosive rounds in your explosive launchers. Fire them into the beginning of the tree line and then back for forty meters. That should clear out all the pop-ups in that region.”

  All the Marines began firing and a serious of grenade-like explosions rumbled through the trees, throwing dirt and fragments of branches up into the air. After about two minutes of firing the Marines ran out of explosive rounds.

  “Move forward,” ordered Lieutenant Adams.

  “What!” said Brian. “But the forest is on fire!”

  Thomas had to grin. Brian should have paid more attention in their briefings about the battlesuits. “The suits are nearly impervious to fire. Activate the special filters in our helmets and we should be able to see just fine. Keep spread out and watch for any pop-ups that might have survived. So far this has been way too easy.”

  “Think we’re walking into a trap?” asked Kinsley.

  Thomas nodded. “Most likely. I imagine Major Reed knew some of what Lieutenant Adams would do to get us to the top of Charring Mountain. So far the lieutenant has demonstrated how to clear out pop-up weapons, something we will find useful in actual combat. However, I still suspect we’re not supposed to make it to the top of this infernal mountain.”

  “So we’re still going to get stunned,” said Leah with a deep sigh. “I was hoping to make it to the top this time.”

  “We may,” replied Thomas. “We just need to see what other tricks the lieutenant has as we get up higher.”

  Thomas signaled his squad and into the tree line they went. The smoke was thick and in some areas fires were raging. It was difficult to keep track of one another even with the advanced equipment of their suits. Thomas had the hearing of his suit turned up and he paused as he heard the unmistakable sound of a stunner going off. Somewhere nearby there was still an active pop-up weapon.

  “Everyone beware, there are still a few active pop-ups hidden in the trees,” said Lieutenant Adams over the platoon comm frequency.

  Thomas thought he heard someone cry out in pain and then there was silence. Several explosions suddenly rang out as someone fired an assault rifle loaded with explosive rounds. Almost immediately the sound of the pop-up vanished.

  After a few more minutes Lieutenant Adams ordered the four squads to stop their advance. “Now for the interesting part of the drill. I’ve gotten all of you this far and now you will be on your own to get to the top. I’ll leave you to your own initiative as to how you do that.”

  Thomas turned to see the lieutenant and the two sergeants heading back down the mountain.

  “Damn!” uttered Josh. “I knew this was way too easy.”

  “Corporal Coyle, looks like we’re on our own,” said Thomas, calling his fellow corporal over the comm.

  ‘Yeah, what do you suggest?” Corporal Coyle sounded unsure.

  Thomas thought for a moment. “Keep in our staggered formation and continue to advance up the mountain. We’ll stop every twenty meters and sweep the forest in front of us with our energy rifles. There’s no reason we can’t create additional fires and bring more of the forest down to destroy the pop-ups before they can fire on us.”

  “You think there’s more?” said Corporal Coyle.

  Thomas nodded though he knew she couldn’t see him. “I’m positive of that. I still don’t think we’re supposed to win this scenario. Let
’s move out.”

  The two squads continued their advance up the mountain, pausing periodically to fire their energy rifles into the trees ahead of them. Occasionally the sound of stunners going off and even explosions could be heard. The smoke and visibility were bad enough that even with the special filters in the helmets it was difficult to keep track of everyone.

  Thomas could see his squad through his HUD and by contacting Corporal Coyle, he knew where her squad was. He had tried to contact the other two squads but other than some static and a voice he couldn’t quite understand he had no idea where they were. They could be ahead of them or even behind them.

  The two squads continued their slow advance up the mountain, most of the time walking through smoke and burning trees. Several times tree trunks fell over, nearly landing on several Marines. At last they reached the area where the trees became smaller and with a large patch of boulders going up to the summit. Thomas called a halt and waited for everyone to catch up.

  At this height the smoke was less and the fires were far fewer.

  Thomas waited and was surprised to find he still had his entire squad as did Corporal Coyle. No one from the other two squads had put in an appearance. This confused Thomas as he did not see how stunners could have taken out the other two squads without him knowing about it.

  “We’ll wait here another few minutes to see if anyone else shows up,” he ordered. “Then we’ll advance to the beginning of the boulder field and see what we can do about reaching the top of the mountain.”

  They waited expectantly for the other two squads but after a several minutes it was obvious they were not going to show up. “Let’s go,” ordered Thomas, moving carefully through the smaller trees. “Find a large boulder and get behind it. We’ll use them for protection until we decide what to do.”

  It took a few minutes as the two squads took their time moving through the small trees. Surprisingly not a single pop-up appeared. Finally they reached the field of boulders and took cover behind the larger ones.

  “Well, we’ve been here before,” said Brian. “That didn’t work out so well last time.”