by Clayborn, JJ
Sergeant Hicks stabbed a knife into the soft area in the chest cavity and shoved a hand grenade inside. Everyone ran or hid behind rocks and trees just as the grenade exploded.
James sat in shock for a long minute, trying to make sense of what happened.
“Ranger!” Hicks shouted.
James shook his head. “I never would have guessed Elvin was one of them. But that would explain why they were always able to find us.” He looked at the soldiers. “You guys are well trained. You dispatched him quickly.”
“We never go into battle without thoroughly studying our enemy,” Hicks said. “But right now, we’ve got to stay focused. That other one is almost here and the bunker is starting lockdown procedures. We’ll be locked out and this place will be swarming with guards before long.”
James looked over at the bunker. Amber strobe lights flashed and a siren wailed. A large metal door was rolling down over the entrance. “Shit!” He looked at the soldiers. “Run around this guard and get inside. Get the guns. I’ll keep him occupied.”
Without waiting for a response, James got up and ran in a different direction, taunting the robot. At first it ignored James, but James fired a few shots at it. The robot turned to face James and began walking quickly towards him. The rest of the team made a beeline for the door, slipping inside just before the door fully closed.
James began jogging away from the bunker, looking over his shoulder to ensure that the robot still pursued him. He pushed the throat-mic. “Katz, Caruso, eta?”
Katz replied. “On-site at Extraction Point.”
James breathed a sigh of relief. “Keep the engines on, we’re going to be leaving hot. Also, get on the .50 Cals, I’m bringing a hostile towards you.”
“I assume it’s not of the human variety,” Caruso said.
“Correct,” James confirmed. “Please terminate with prejudice.” James ran a little faster toward the waterway. He could see the boats. He looked back, the robot was right behind him. “Ready?” James asked the boat patrol.
“Ready,” they both confirmed.
“Light him up!” James cried as he threw himself to the ground. The loud repeating sound of heavy machine gun fire ripped through air. James could hear the bullets zipping overhead as he lay perfectly still. He could hear the impact of the bullets on the metal skeleton.
After a few moments the guns fell silent. “Target eliminated,” Katz said. “Confirm with visual.”
James stood up and walked back to the robot. A smoldering, twisted pile of metal wreckage was all that remained. “Confirmed, target destroyed. Stay on position, ready to leave,” he instructed. He stared at the twisted, ruined pile of wreckage. He felt like he should feel something…joy, relief, anger, something. But there was nothing there.
James walked back to the tree line and picked Moto up. He slung him over his shoulders and trudged back to the boats.
Caruso waived him over, pointing at Moto. “Is he dead?”
James gently shrugged the soldier off of his shoulders and rolled him into the boat. “I don’t know. He got hit with the rifle pretty hard.”
Caruso checked his squad mate over. “He’s alive, but unconscious. He’s going to need medical.”
“Do what you can, I’m going to go check on the others,” James said, sprinting off toward the bunker.
As soon as James was within sight of the building an explosion blew the door open. Smoke billowed out, followed by the rest of the team. Each soldier was dragging a black crate behind them with one arm, and sweeping their guns around with the other.
James ran into the bunker and grabbed the last two crates, dragging one in each hand. As he got to the boat they loaded the last two crates. Taverna and DeVeen boarded the boats to man the machine guns.
“Go,” James said. “Get out of here as fast as you can. “At the river go east and meet at the rendezvous point at Crossville. Don’t stop for any reason, good luck!” He smacked the side of the boat and waved them away.
As soon as the boats were gone James and the rest of the team sprinted east, away from the Arsenal. They opened the radio channel and heard swarms of military radio chatter. “Sierra Squad, requesting immediate evac. Heading east on Redstone Road.”
Friday, November 21st
Over the next hour James was briefed by Ryan and Thompson. The site at the University of Northern Alabama was attacked and overrun just as Mary was finishing the broadcast. Dozens of soldiers died trying to protect them. Dr. Kosnick and Lieutenant Vasquez managed to escape with a handful of soldiers, all of the scanners, and all 3 of the frequency generators they had constructed.
Mary Woods was killed in the attack. It was very confusing and it happened quickly, but somehow she got a grenade. Mary had just finished relaying the instructions for building the scanners. The door to the studio burst open and a police officer and a civilian approached her. Mary unloaded her pistol into both of them to no effect. The swiped the desk out of the way with ease. Mary muttered something under her breath and pulled the pin, She jumped up and hugged the policeman and then the grenade exploded. As the dust settled, the civilian stood up and walked past the camera with bits of the metal skeleton showing underneath. Then the camera cut out.
James filled in the officers on the details of their mission. He explained that Elvin was a robot all along and that Moto was badly hurt. He explained that despite encountering a robot guard in the Arsenal and almost getting locked out of the building, the mission was a success. The two RIBs were fully loaded and en-route to a rendezvous zone. They managed to make off with 12 crates of EMP rifles, each with 24 rifles. “So, what’s the plan now, Colonel?” James asked.
“We’re going to Rome to make our final stand.”
James furrowed his brow. “Italy?”
“Georgia,” Ryan corrected. “Rome, Georgia.”
“Never heard of it,” James admitted.
Ryan nodded. “It’s a small town, but the terrain there gives us a good defensible position. We heard from your friend Officer Blake. They were attacked again in Atlanta and are heading north right now. We’re going to set up a perimeter and meet them there. They’ll reinforce us with whatever they have left.”
“Julia is alive?” James asked excitedly, not really caring about the rest of the details at the moment.
“Yes, she’s leading the evacuation.” Ryan continued. “Once we arrive we need to move quickly. We’re going to be facing assault from multiple directions. The force that’s chasing us will be approaching from the west, and the group that’s pursuing Julia will be coming up from the south.”
The Colonel produced a map. “We’re going to set up here, along this ridge on the south side of the Big Texas Valley. It’s large, relatively flat, and high,” he said, pointing to a mountain ridge on the map.
The next few hours were a blur. The troops were moved into position, spread out along the southern ridge line. Each point had 150 soldiers, except for the points where the generators were going, and the command post, which had 200 soldiers. A few curious locals came out to ask what was going on, and Thompson told them to evacuate. Most of them heeded the advice.
A small group of helicopters arrived from the west carrying Kosnick, Vasquez, and the rest of the guards. They unloaded the frequency generators at different points along the ridge, pointing them in the direction that they expected the attack to come from. Two were set up along the western ridge, and another to the south. Dr. Kosnick was scrambling to get a fourth unit finished.
They took the scanners and passed them out along the ridge. A number of scanners were activated and left loosely covered or otherwise hidden in areas opposite the ridge. Anything that walked into that field could be scanned to see if they were robots.
A single helicopter flew in fast and low over the hills. It came up to the top of the ridge and James could see Katz waving from the door. The helicopter came down and Katz slid a crate out. “Special delivery!” he shouted over the roar of the propeller. “We’re go
ing to drop these off all along the ridge. Colonel says to pass them out and get ready.”
James gave a thumbs-up and the aircraft lifted away, moving along the ridge. James cracked the case open and pulled out one of the EMP rifles. This is both the ugliest and prettiest weapon I’ve ever seen. The rifle was a long, black rectangle with a stock, a trigger, and a scope. A switch on the side near the handle turned the rifle on. I hope there’s enough charge to make a difference.
Sergeant Hicks talked on the radio nearby. When he was done he rang over to James. “Patrols have sighted the enemy, Ranger. About two miles out and closing, just on the other side of the ridge to the west.”
Sergeant Hicks ran off, taking a few of the new rifles. Each of the ridge points would have 18 rifles, except the command and generator posts, had 24.
James had been given temporary command of the soldiers from the 20th who had joined them at the battle of New Albany. A few of his own people were also scattered about. He also had command over about 50 of Colonel Ryan’s Troops. In all, there were about 90 troops on his peak. The combined force of the Colonel’s troops, including James’ outfit, was sixty people shy of 2,000.
The western edge of the mountain range they were on vaguely resembled an upside down number 7. James and his team were situated in the back of the “v” shaped part of the range that connected with the rest of the mountains. The Army was using the USGS maps and called this place Peak 1501. If the robot army tried to cross at James’ position, the cross-fire from the other nearby peaks would cut them down as they entered the V.
The ridge to the north was essentially a cliff wall. James knew that the robots were physically capable of scaling it, but it would slow them down. If they circled all the way around they could get through a gap and slip into the Big Texas Valley behind them.
To the south the ridge line sloped down, but it was still pretty rough terrain. There was a large gap where the road cut through the mountains. If the robots tried to slip through there they would be between the Army and the town.
The proximity sensors built into the scanning devices starting pinging. Robots were definitely nearby, but still west of the field. As soon as the first beep sounded the soldiers threw themselves on the ground, rifles at the ready and waited.
The beeping was constant and steady. Still they waited. One minute turned into five. Five minutes turned into ten. There was no sign of the robot army advancing. A Blackhawk took off from the top of the ridgeline somewhere behind James, to the east. It circled far to the south and then slowly around behind the mountain across from James. They circled back around the way they came and radioed an update.
“All units, enemy sighted,” the helicopter reported. “They are perched along the ridgeline to the west, not advancing. Counted several hundred enemies. Maintain positions.”
“What the hell are they waiting for?” James asked aloud to no one in particular. He was nervous. Even with these new weapons, he wondered at their ability to defeat the robots. James didn’t want to die; he had to fight.
The radio squealed to life. “Contact, South! Peak 1535, reporting vehicles sighted, coming up the road toward the mountain. I count 15 cars.”
James checked the map. Peak 1535 was behind him, near the middle of the range. Robot armies haven’t been known to drive cars in convoys, so he guessed that they must be his friend, Officer Blake, and what remained of her survivors.
The radio squelched again. “Convoy has entered the scanner field. No signs of enemy troops reported.”
James breathed a sigh of relief.
The radio came on again. “Peak 1404, the enemy is moving south along the ridgeline across from us.”
James didn’t need to look at the map for this one. “That’s at the northern end of the range. It sounds like they’re moving away from the gap and heading down this way.”
The radio squawked again. “Peak 1483, lost visual on enemy.”
James looked at the men around him. “That’s the closest peak north of us. It’s a little unsettling.”
“That means they could be anywhere,” one of the soldier said.
“Yes, but they can’t turn invisible. We’ll see them coming before they get here,” James said. “It seems like they are waiting for something.”
Another radio call interrupted them. “Peak 1259, Contact!” After a moment it continued. “Ground forces, infantry, moving in from the south. They’re spreading out into a line. There’s…” Another pause. “Dammit, there’s a lot of them. A few hundred at least.”
“Colonel Ryan,” a familiar voice sounded. “All units stand by to engage. Wait for the signal to activate special defenses.”
The tension was almost tangible. An eerie quiet settled over the hills and nothing stirred. James took up a prone position beside one of his troops. The seconds bled together. It felt like hours but couldn’t have been more than a few minutes. James could hear a rapid heartbeat but he wasn’t sure if it was his or the man’s beside him.
He didn’t have long to ponder the question. The radio erupted with every station reporting sudden movement. The robot army surged forward in a sprint from the south.
The line of robots standing around had immediately transitioned to a line sprinting toward the mountain at 30 miles per hour. The robots to the west leapt over the crest of the hill and ran down the slope as fast as they could go.
“Hold!” came Colonel Ryan’s Voice over the radio.
James could feel the anxiety of everyone around him. This wasn’t natural. These weren’t normal enemies they were fighting. They were alien robots. And if the battle was lost, they’d all end up skinned and used as coats.
The robot army had passed into the scanner zone. The scanners were pinging results at record pace. Every single person down there was a robot. Between the two groups, there were close to a thousand robots. The robots were men and women wearing all different types of clothing from business suits to police uniforms. And they were pressing against the mountain from both directions.
Thankfully, James noted, there were no children in the robot army. He wondered momentarily about that. What did that mean? Did they not kill children? He didn’t have too much time to ponder that question though.
The seconds ticked by as the robots raced forward. Colonel Ryan kept shouting for everyone to hold positions. A mile out. James realized the man beside him was holding his breath.
“Just breathe, it’ll be okay,” James said, reassuringly.
Half a mile out, the robot army was at the base of the mountains. A few of the ones in front had started leaping up the side of the cliffs and hills like a frog. James felt a sudden grip of fear at seeing the robots unnatural abilities.
“Now!” Ryan shouted over the radio, “Activate special defenses.”
James couldn’t hear anything, but he felt a faint buzzing. At first he wasn’t sure if the devices were working, but reports started coming in. The robot army faltered. Many of them stopped running and were frozen in place. Many more slowed to a walk. A few walked erratically in circles. A few of them laid down on the ground in the fetal position. Others wondered around crying and asking for their mother.
James felt a mix of emotions. He was happy the defense was working, but he almost felt sorry for the robots.
The victory was short-lived and things started to fall apart from there. The robots found gaps in the frequency generators. Even with the 4th unit that Dr. Kosnick had scrambled to complete, they couldn’t cover the whole mountain range. The robots were spread out in a long, thin line. The EMP rifles were still experimental so no one knew what the range was. Colonel Ryan wanted to wait until they had a clear shot before using them, which mean letting the robots get a lot closer.
“1535, we have a problem,” the report came in. “We can’t cover the whole line. If we focus on robots south of us, the ones east, keep coming. And if we turn the generator to face east, the southern robots approach. Advise.”
Several seconds followed, and t
hen Dr. Kosnick’s voice answered. “Have you tried sweeping it back and forth along the line?”
“Yes,” they replied. “It has limited effect, it just slows them down.”
“Do the best you can,” Ryan said.
The Radio squealed with a burst of static. “Glover’s Lake Outpost, a sizeable force is making a break for the Fouche Gap! Maybe 100 strong.”
“Shit, that’s right behind us!” James said, checking the map. “Half a mile east,” he said pointing.
Ryan was quick to answer. “1521, 1501, move to reinforce.”
“Acknowledged,” James said, standing. “Come on boys, let’s go.” He took off running to the east, he men trailing behind him. The run didn’t make him tired or out of breath. He marveled for a moment about when he became so healthy. After a few moments, they had covered the distance and were in position, the rest of his men breathing deeply.
James and his men took cover on the west edge of the gap. In total there were about 60 of them. He left some men behind to act as lookouts from their higher peak. He was worried that the robots would somehow slip past.
Across the gap, a quarter of a mile away, James could see the troops from the other peak taking positions. The entire force, 150 soldiers, took positions.
One of the soldiers frantically tapped James on the shoulder and pointed. Across the hill where the road wound its way up a long line or robot soldiers ran up the hill. James could feel the fear at the edge of his senses. He wanted to succumb to the emotion and run. But he knew that he couldn’t.
“Here they come, get ready,” James said. He waited until the robots were almost right below him before giving the signal to attack.
A few grenades were lobbed into the valley and caught the robots by surprise. A rocket launcher from the other peak managed to disable a few of them, but still they came. The smell of gunpowder lingered in the air. Thin columns of thick black smoke floated up into the sky, telling the tale of conflict.
The soldiers opened fire with conventional weapons and the robots barely noticed. The valley was filled with the rapid sound of the machine guns, echoing off of the stone walls. The only one who made any difference was the soldier across the hill with the sniper rifle. His loud ‘pop’ every time he fired could be distinctively heard above the rest of the gunfire.
