Bulletfoot One

by Marshall Rust

  “This world demands every ounce—every scrap— of goodness we have, every last trace of sanity we can muster and give, the promise of brotherhood, and the conviction that there are things to live for," Hammerhand said and gained the support of those who agreed with his every word. "And keeping that promise is the hill I will die on if need be.”

  More cheers erupted from the men around, which triggered more debate. It was odd how inspiring the man’s voice could be when he wanted it to, and she wasn't sure why. When he was in the Excalibur, he could make his voice boom all around him and thus made it almost impossible to ignore. But even when he was out of the mech, the low, deep timbre of his voice was somehow as inspirational as when it was magnified around them.

  "If I might have a word?" Windchime asked and attempted to make his voice carry above what was said all around him. It didn't work the first time, which forced him to release a single loud blare of the alarm on his mech that overrode every other sound in the room.

  That made them fall silent rather quickly as almost every Knight in the Beast had been trained by experience to react quickly and decisively to that particular sound.

  Hammerhand and Tinker stopped their conversation to turn and face Windchime. Jessica13 wondered if the man would have to resort to drawing his vibroblades and turning them on to gain everyone's attention.

  She was glad he didn't. There was something about the noise the weapons made that made her teeth grate. It was bound to get on everyone's nerves and would either force them to pay attention or prove to be a tipping point that would make things turn from hostile into violent. Given the number of combat mechs around them, things could get incredibly ugly really quickly.

  Hammerhand raised a hand—as if there wasn't already silence in the room—and pointed a finger at Windchime. The man stood his ground, although he looked a little like he hadn’t expected the sudden and very effective reaction he’d garnered.

  "Windchime," the leader said loudly. "You had something to add?"

  "I did." The man looked at each member of the group. "Well, it was really a question to make sure we're all operating on the same kind of intelligence here since I'm not the expert when it comes to logistics. Did you receive the transmission I sent to you of the SOS we received?"

  "We received it, yes," Tinker said. "The location was taken into account as well as the source of the transmission which was what allowed us to triangulate the location."

  She could tell that Windchime was scowling from his body language.

  "But did you listen to the actual transmission?" he asked and his stare was a little more challenging. "Did you hear the contents and actually listen to the description that was given of the mech that led the attackers?"

  Jessica13 raised a tentative hand and drew some of the attention to herself. "A couple of the Knights who are still running security outside listened to the description. They talked about how the helm shaped like an owl or a bird of prey was indicative of them being from some of the nearby bunkers, particularly the Eyrie bunker out east?"

  She could tell they hadn’t paid attention to her beyond a certain part of her statement which was a little frustrating, although it also meant they had listened to some of it, at least. And from the concern on Tinker's face, she could tell that it had an impact. Even Hammerhand, usually so stoic and unaffected, returned to his seat, looked pensive, and brushed his fingers over his jawline.

  "A helm shaped like an owl?" Tinker asked. "Did they say that specifically?"

  Windchime, who finally acted like he was being heard, caught her hasty glance and said, "I questioned them about it. It's in the file I sent to you while Jessie and I made our way back."

  It still irritated her when they called her Jessie. She hadn't been too happy that the nickname had followed her into the Knights Mechanica, but she supposed it was less clunky to say than her full name.

  Windchime pulled up the audio file he'd recorded of the conversation. The SOS signal was heard first, and when he responded, the man on the other side asked for help and described the mech that led the attack on them.

  Both Tinker and Hammerhand appeared affected by what was said, and so was every other member of the Knights Mechanica. The silence that settled over the group was almost palpable once the description reached the part about the cloak the mech wore.

  All eyes turned to the leader and the man’s face paled visibly, although there was no other sign of a reaction in his expression. He might as well be listening to any other conversation about a group in peril.

  Jessica13 zoomed her HUD in on him and saw that he grasped the arms of his chair tightly enough to turn his knuckles white.

  It was not a comforting sight.

  The audio came to an end but the silence remained. A calm yet determined look now defined Tinker’s features. He set his jaw and his almost vacant stare indicated that he was deep in thought.

  “Right then,” he grunted and tugged gently at his graying beard.

  She had tried to talk him into shaving the damn thing since the hair would be caught in the filters and make his mech overheat, but he wouldn’t hear of it. He did his own cleaning and he wouldn’t even talk about losing the beard.

  It was an odd thing to think about in these circumstances, but it was what almost always came to her mind when she saw him out of his mech. All the other knights were clean-shaven—almost religiously so. All except Tinker.

  “What are your thoughts?” Hammerhand asked, his voice a little lower.

  Tinker sighed deeply and nodded. “The description matches that of an Excalibur-class mech, so I don’t think there’s any doubt as to what we have to do next. I don’t think there’s anyone else Outside who wears a shawl of tattered flags.”

  “Agreed,” Hammerhand said with a firm nod. “So we will help them.”

  “Yes, I suppose we will,” he agreed but he didn’t look happy about it. “We’ll need to parcel our resources out to make sure we get there intact. What do you think?”

  “We should send a team ahead to verify it,” the leader said. “At least to have a good look at what we might have to deal with out there.”

  Tinker nodded. “I can lead that team. Maybe…Windchime, Jessie, and myself should be enough to cover that kind of distance quickly.”

  “I can run the Beast at a slow crawl to conserve fuel on the way,” Hammerhand replied quickly.

  This was something that she liked to see. They had come to an agreement, all the arguing had stopped, and they put plans for the future forward together.

  She still had no idea what had shocked them out of their disagreement. It was obvious that they recognized the description of the mech, and hearing it described as another Excalibur was more than a little worrying. That at least explained why other mechs hadn’t been able to deal with it. The Excaliburs were practically walking fortresses.

  “Right then!” Hammerhand ordered the rest of the Knights. “Get ready to move out. I don’t keep you all around so you can lollygag. Get the Beast ready to move again. Scout team, start gathering what supplies you’ll need for the journey.”

  That was Jessica13 and Windchime, and she followed the man as he moved to their supply shed inside the Beast. The other Knights hurried into action as well, which generated a fair amount of confusion before she finally reached where her teammate had already begun to select what supplies they would need. Tinker joined them moments later.

  “What’s the matter?” she asked while she helped him and loaded the bulk of what they would take onto the mag grab on her back. “What are we saving these people from? Who are we saving them from?”

  Windchime didn’t answer and Tinker appeared reluctant to talk about it.

  “I won’t be able to help much with recon if I don’t know what we’re looking for,” she insisted.

  The older man finally sighed and shook his head. “We’re heading in to deal with the worst of the lot—a nightmare, a monster, and worst of all…family.”

  Jessica13 pa
used and realized that his explanation hadn’t explained anything at all but also that insisting wouldn’t do her any good at this juncture. She would have to ask later once they were on their way to find out exactly what kind of family he was talking about.

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  Windchime was able to push his mech at a speed that was both interesting and surprising. Most could move at that pace but not for long since they would risk overheating. They could sprint over shorter distances at a higher speed than Jessica13's Minato could unless it was in Bulletfoot mode.

  But Tinker had worked with the man and put considerable work in to make it a prime combat hybrid, and it showed. Jessica13 and Tinker carried the bulk of their supplies, which enabled the other man to move forward constantly and function as a scout almost a full klick ahead of them, although he remained in contact.

  There was little information to share with the other two, however, and they continued through the grasslands without incident. The lack of any water sources nearby meant those plants that could survive in the dry landscape did so with almost no competition.

  "We're walking on shit soil," Tinker pointed out as they pushed on at a steady pace. "Nothing will grow here."

  "Windchime pointed out the same thing," Jessica13 said. "It makes you wonder how they manage to have any villages or towns in the area."

  "You have to understand that there's potential even in shit soil," he said. "I might know a little about that from my time working in the grower level at Sanctuary. A little water and fertilizer are enough to turn shit soil into useful soil. And as you well know, humans living in numbers anywhere tend to produce fertilizer."

  She made a face. Of course, she knew every resource they could get their hands on was necessary and turning her nose up at anything was the way to end up without any food or resources. It didn't mean that she had to like it, though.

  "So, only a little water," she said, ignored the mention of fertilizer, and looked around. "So they would settle around somewhere that has a river close by."

  "Or maybe where the water simply comes up from the ground," Tinker said. "I read that a couple of the older bunkers—the first ones that were built—were put on top of wells that could draw water from deep underground. In some places, the water comes up without any help. That actually is the source for many rivers, but if they find one of those, they know to set up beside it and get the water as clear as possible."

  The amazing amount of knowledge he had was one of the things that made these long trips with Tinker enjoyable. It also seemed like he was glad to have someone with whom to share all the knowledge he had stored inside.

  Jessica13 wondered if there was another reason why he wanted to keep talking about soil instead of the actual purpose of their mission and what they were likely to find. She didn't want to press what appeared to be something of a sensitive issue for the man, but she still needed to know what they would ultimately face. It was a matter of survival for her.

  "I'm being rather clever over here," Tinker said when he noticed she had zoned away from the conversation. "If you don’t pay attention to my cleverness, what's the point of having you on the team in the first place?"

  "Well, it's because I'm actually rather clever myself," she countered. "And…I'm sorry. I was thinking about something else and was a little lost in thought is all."

  "What's on your mind, lass?" he asked as if he hadn’t already guessed what had distracted her.

  "Well, everyone appears to know what we're dealing with," Jessica13 said. "Okay, except for some of the newer members, I suppose. You and Hammerhand clearly know who it is and so does Windchime. It can't be a good thing if you're willing to suddenly abandon what you argued so fiercely for."

  "It's history, lassie," Tinker said, and she could see him shaking his head inside his cockpit. "Not the kind of thing anyone would wish to think about unless they ever had to."

  "Well, it would seem we'll have to think about it a great deal," Jessica13 insisted. "If the person we have to handle, for lack of a better term, is piloting another Excalibur like Hammerhand's, I can't help but think we'll need to know as much about it as possible. I still need to be prepared even if I won’t be involved in actually fighting anyone."

  "Not intentionally, anyway," Tinker grumbled. "It was very much like her to circle and attack the support mechs that were exposed, either delivering supplies to the combat mechs or returning. With an Excalibur like hers, it was almost impossible to stop the attack and even more difficult to anticipate it. That’s assuming these people had combat mechs to start with. It’s as likely that any mechs would have limited combat ability and be used mainly for support purposes."

  "So, it's a she, then? Well, either that or you think of the mech as a she. Does that mean Hammerhand's mech is a he?"

  "No." Tinker growled annoyance and clearly bristled at this line of questioning. "Well, the pilot is a woman, although it would be an exaggeration to call her human. Pile of crap would be a more accurate description."

  "Well, I assumed there would be some feelings," Jessica13 replied carefully and kept her tone pleasant. "I simply thought forgiveness would be the kind of thing that keeps the Knights Mechanica afloat."

  "There are things you forgive and things that you don't," he said and still sounded annoyed. "She did things that can’t be forgiven, even by the holiest of the saints Hammerhand follows. We're still not sure where they came from, but Hammerhand and Athena were the first members of the Knights Mechanica—the founders, you could say. Both took their names from the weapons they bore in two different classes of Excalibur mechs. The Hammer also had the shield you saw. Athena's had all the power directed to an electro-spear instead. I was there in the early days of the Knights and it was inspiring to watch them fight together."

  "I have the feeling things didn't quite end that way." She didn’t want to sound sarcastic but it was fairly obvious that Athena had obviously not remained with the group and had left it, along with considerable bad feelings. While she knew she needed to proceed carefully, she also didn’t want him to end the story there and leave her with even more unanswered questions.

  "Not quite," the man confirmed. "The Knights were a much larger group then, and the two leaders took us through the Outside with all the power that could be expected. Morality and strength were what led us, though, until Athena decided we would be able to do our job better as benevolent dictators rather than watchful helpers. Hammerhand disagreed, obviously. It became apparent that she was setting herself up in a position to carve out a portion of the wilderness and rule it with the help of the leaders of the local pirate groups.”

  Jessica13 lowered her gaze as the man spoke. There were obviously open wounds from that time so she could understand why he would not want to speak of it. Certain things simply didn't heal. She hadn’t had much experience of that herself, but her recent discoveries had triggered emotional responses she hadn’t yet come to terms with.

  Tinker continued grimly as if he had to power through to the end of the tale. "When Hammerhand found out, he was furious. I don't think I've ever seen the man angry before that moment—or since—but in that, he was angry. The problem was a great many of the other members of the Knights agreed with Athena. They thought they would be in a better position to help others if they had greater control over the landscape, or so they said. I don’t doubt that the decision came from nothing more than a desire for the comfort and power of a centralized location, lazy bastards that they were. Going around and finding folks to help seemed like too much work."

  "I'll assume, based on Hammerhand's particular personality—or the little I’ve learned of it—he wouldn't have pushed for an amicable break over differing opinions," she prompted and made sure to keep her voice soft.

  He laughed but it was a sad, almost depressed sound from a man who was usually impressively upbeat. "He confronted Athena publicly in front of the other Knights. She saw this as a grievous betrayal on the part of her closest friend and confidant a
nd attacked him and the Knights who stood with him. Hammerhand was able to hold her off and those loyal to him were able to escape, as he did himself, but he swore he would kill her if they crossed paths again. I know this since I was there to help repair the damage she did to his mech. So they were as close as family at one point, but she let her greed dictate who her friends were."

  Jessica13 nodded and now understood why Tinker had suddenly changed his mind about attacking Athena. It hadn't only been an affront to Hammerhand's honor and beliefs but his as well. He believed in what the Knights did, and in turning her back on and betraying Hammerhand, she had done the same to all who had stood beside their leader when it mattered.

  At least the reaction from the Knights on hearing the news, Windchime included, made sense. They had dreaded the almost inevitable second clash between Hammerhand and Athena. Maybe that was a simplistic assumption, but it explained things for her without confusing her with too many details. And while they might be loathe to accept the inevitable, they also wouldn’t shy away from it.

  "I'm sorry you had to go through that," Jessica13 said, her voice softer and more apologetic than before.

  Another dry laugh from Tinker failed to ease her spirits. "It is what it is, I suppose. Athena was never the type to shy away from the accolades the Knights received and they went to her head. She was bound to turn against our core beliefs eventually, and perhaps we should count ourselves lucky that she did so when we were facing her, rather than her deciding to thrust her electro-spear into our backs. Maybe that was why Hammerhand chose to confront her directly about it. He didn't believe she would do the same and wanted to get it over with before any infighting caused the Knights to turn on each other."

  "I suppose that makes sense," Jessica13 replied. "And, from how I've seen Hammerhand handle conflict, he might not have been of a mind to try to resolve their differences peaceably."