“Who are they?” Valentine asked.
Olik reached for his Thumper where it lay resting against a heap of crates and worked the action. He looked to Valentine, and then to the others.
“The Ski’ligs are pounding our fleet. Admiral Hurik is trying to withdraw, but many of our ships are heavily damaged, including the transports. It’s going to take hours.”
The ground kept on shaking as the landing pods slammed into the diamond rock of the planet. And then something else happened, something none had expected. From out in the darkness of the cavern came a rustling sound that became louder and louder. Until they’d stepped foot on this world many had never heard it before, but after a single battle, not a soul on Ekati Alpha was unfamiliar with the strange noises that came before an attack by the Ski’ligs. Olik looked up and snarled.
“The enemy flagship is directly above us. General Rivers believes it is a moving colony, like an Ark for their race. It is the only way they can have so many people aboard. And right now it’s launching thousands of landing craft around our positions.”
“We’re screwed,” said one of the marines, “We’re trapped down here.”
“What do we do?” Sergeant Jablonsky asked.
Lieutenant Fletcher appeared from an adjoining chamber and looked to them. He was partially hidden by the multitude of massive stalactites that pushed up from the ground and vanished far above them. He started to speak when a unit of marines rushed in from above. One collapsed to the ground, his body riddled with spikes. Their leader, a bloodied corporal dropped to his knees.
“They’ve used other tunnels,” he said while gasping, “They’re coming this way.”
“How many?” demanded the General.
“All of them.”
A loud horn sounded, and it was a noise Valentine had never heard before. She watched as the regular marines and IAB forces grabbed their weapons and formed up into squads. The ground was uneven and dozens of different directions the enemy could come from.
“Shield walls!” General Gun roared.
“You heard the General,” said Sergeant Jablonsky, “Close ranks. Hurry!”
Valentine moved alongside the rest of the lance as they formed up into a compact line. Other marines did the same or sheltered behind rocks, tables, and other structures erected by those that worked and lived there. She looked back at their position and checked their tactical dispositions. They were one of hundreds of similar units all over the planet, with all of them linked by passages and chambers. This section in particular was wide, with plentiful cover provided by the spikes rising from the ground. But then there were the holes leading off into other passages, and vast openings in the ground that burrowed deep towards the planetary core.
Valentine could see five platoons of marines at the other end, as well as four Mavericks, and a squad of Novas. She looked back to those near here and guessed there must be at least a hundred of them, including two thirds of her 1st Platoon. But even more impressive, the legendary war heroes General Gun and Captain Olik were both with them.
“Ready!” General Gun said.
Valentine lifted her weapon to her shoulder and took aim.
Tex…you’ve got the XHEC-1.
The artificial intelligence answered as the weapon charged to full power.
I have your back.
With no sight fitted to the weapon, she used the digital sight added to her eyes. It floated there, automatically considering the heavier gravity and changes in temperature and air density. It felt like cheating, but as the shadows coalesced into shapes, she simply did not care.
“Brothers and sisters!” General Gun howled, walking behind the lines of warriors, “This is the day!”
There were marines, IAB veterans, Novas, and so many others. Their weapons extended out like the spines of a porcupine, and it looked as though nothing could stop them. Then some of the others must have spotted fresh targets. New threat markers floated over her virtual HUD, and in just seconds there were hundreds of shapes. Some came from below, others from the passages, and then many more through the air as they circled on the thermals.
“Remember Deimos, remember Mars. And Remember…The Fallen!”
Just hearing that last word chilled Valentine. A shape moved next to her, and she nodded to Lieutenant Fletcher.
“For Deimos,” he hissed, and Valentine knew he was talking about his family that had been killed. And right now, she couldn’t blame him. The only thought in her mind was of those she had fought alongside in that last battle. And in particular the final act of a dying woman as she threw herself into the arms of their enemy, killing herself and the beast.
The shapes moved quickly, and Valentine could see what was coming for her. They looked like Ski’lig warriors, though without wings. They moved quickly over the rough ground, while the usual aerial hunters soared a few metres above their heads.
“Fire!”
She pulled the trigger, and the powerful LX48S shuddered. In the past the L48 was designed for semi-automatic fire only. The large calibre made fully automatic shooting relatively inaccurate, also leaving the firer out of ammunition in seconds. The LX48S variant, like the Thumper lacked the advanced features of its predecessors, and fired at a relatively slow three hundred rounds a minute. The first fifteen rounds tore into the ranks of the enemy, each slug blasting off body parts with ease.
“Cut ‘em down!” Lieutenant Fletcher shouted.
The defensive wall of warriors fired as one, creating a line of fire that was impossible to breach. Valentine’s shoulder cannon blasted away completely independently of her control, with Tex putting short bursts into the enemy ranks.
“Behind us!”
Valentine turned and lifted a hand to protect her face as a series of twenty, perhaps more denotations, ripped open the ceiling above them. It was almost a hundred metres above their position, and as it split open, hundreds of Ski’lig hunters dropped down.
CHAPTER NINETEEN
Morato Class Frigate ‘Nautilus’, Ekati Alpha, The Ski’lig Territories
24 hours later.
“Captain,” said Admiral Hurik, “You have to succeed. We will hold them back, but you must thin the attackers. Good luck.”
Captain Regina nodded and turned to her XO. Before she could speak, a beam of light narrowly missed them, striking a cruiser in the distance. Everything about the battle slowed down as Nautilus rolled between two of the alien vessels. It was moving so far it could easily have been a fighter. As it passed through them, the ship unleashed two volleys of missiles at point-blank range. It then turned away, not before lashing them with aft fire from its main particle cannon battery.
“Beautiful,” said Captain Regina, “Outstanding work.”
The two damaged ships tried to change course, but one quickly split apart as six Alliance gunships shredded it from bow to stern. Heavy gunfire from one of the dreadnoughts then struck it amidships, causing the ship to explode in a bright fireball. Captain Regina pulled the intercom back to her face.
“Moratos, I have been given tactical command of this squadron. Follow us in.”
She then turned to her helmsman.
“Now bring us about and take us into the atmosphere. We’re all going inside.”
The helmsman looked back in surprise.
“Inside, Sir?”
“Yes, the heavies can manage on their own, and the escorts will continue to engage the pods. But we need to stop those that get through. Our people can’t survive unless we start to thin the herd. And that came right from the Admiral.”
“Yes, Sir.”
The ship spun around and then dove down towards the thin upper atmosphere of the planet.
“Switch to secondary weapons,” said First Lieutenant Meredith, “Particle weapons won’t help us here.”
They were through in a shorter time than expected, and Captain Regina gasped as she watched scores of the craft falling like meteors to the surface.
“Firing,” said Lieuten
ant Zimmer.
Streams of projectiles from the rapid fire of the 20mm railgun cannons reached out to the targets. The ship carried twelve motorised cannon mounts spaced out around her hull, and soon they were firing all around her.
“Take us right at them!”
The other frigates were now with them and hammering the spacecraft. Some were destroyed, but many more fell through.
“No,” said Lieutenant Zimmer.
Captain Regina felt discomfort in her stomach as she conjured up a host of fresh problems.
“What is it?”
He tagged the targets, and several of the crew gasped.
“Thirty landing ships are coming through. Another four are burning and falling through the atmosphere.”
“Forget the pods,” said Captain Regina, “Those are our new targets.”
Soon they were directly ahead, and the damaged ships fell so quickly they’d already begun to break up.
“The same design as the lander we captured on Epsilon Prime.”
“Crap,” said Lieutenant Zimmer, “They’re armed!”
Immediately a barrage of hardened slugs smashed into the lead frigates. The Morato took nearly a hundred separate hits, with some punching deep into her armour. And then something much heavier struck her.
“Those are more like railgun shots,” said First Lieutenant Meredith.
“The weapons do not interest me. Take us in closer. Use everything we have.”
The six frigates accelerated towards the enemy, both sides unleashing a hail of fire that caused damage to every vessel in the battle. And as they fought, more and more pods continued to fall.
“Ram them, if we have to,” said the Captain, “We have to…”
Captain Regina cried out as a piece of metal ripped from the ceiling and dropped down. It struck her in the shoulder, knocking her to the ground. More shots crashed into the ship, causing it to spin wildly out of control. A junior officer bent down to help her, while First Lieutenant Meredith moved to take her place.
“Bring them down! No mercy!”
* * *
The Trench, Ekati Alpha, The Ski’lig Territories
Two robotic Grunts pushed ahead of Valentine but were ripped apart before her eyes. They were the only Grunts she’d seen in the last twenty minutes. Most fell in the first wave of the assault. She pulled back her foot from its mangled remains and swung her rifle like a club as the Ski’ligs swarmed over their position. They were smaller, lighter, and faster than the others they’d encountered. They wore armour and carried smaller weaponry, but what they lacked in strength or firepower, they made up for in numbers. Valentine felt herself falling back, but she pushed into Bandu who remained upright and firm. He stopped her from falling, even as the Ski’ligs clambered over her.
“Thanks.”
She slammed her head into the face of a Ski’lig and blasted away with the rifle. Sergeant Jablonsky ducked and crashed into her side. Two Ski’ligs pushed him back, but fire from Kallias cut them down, and he was able to stand back up.
“Good work,” he said, grunting in pain. Valentine could see damage to his armour, as well as blood splatters along his chest, though she had no way of knowing if it was his blood.
“We could use some cluster munitions right now.”
“Agreed,” said Valentine, “I’d take a flamethrower personally.”
An explosion wracked the front line, and several marines, one Nova, and at least nine Ski’ligs were blown apart. Fresh troops from both sides rushed to fill the gap, and for a few seconds the enemy managed to create a breach in the defensive wall.
“Hold the line!” Lieutenant Fletcher shouted.
Alexis and Sergeant Jablonsky were both there, encouraging the marines to come with them as they continued to fire.
“Do not let them through!” Alexis screamed, “We fight and die here!”
Valentine tried to see her, but the front rank was quickly overwhelmed by a fresh assault. The marines and Novas looked like rocks on a beach as the high tide engulfed them, only to vanish as the water cover them completely. Then a narrow gap appeared as Kallias opened fire. The long bursts from his four guns cut a channel through the enemy, and Valentine cried out in relief as she spotted the open space beyond the battle. It wasn’t much, but it meant the next group had not yet reached them from the surface.
“We can do this! Their strength is nearly spent.”
A spike came down from above and lanced into her shoulder. She was so enraged she didn’t even cry out, and Tex returned fire immediately, blasting the aerial attacker out of the sky. She then looked back and found five of the armoured slave soldiers. They carried hardened spears again and were mixed in with Ski’lig foot soldiers. One rammed a spear into the chest of Private Peterson. The man cried out, and Colston and Tsarkov stepped in front to protect him. More shot hit them, and Tsarkov went down. The soldiers smashed through the gap, skewered Peterson three more times, and then forced their way through the broken line.
“No!” Valentine shouted.
She tried to turn, but more hit from the front. Her interceptors fired at point-blank range, with two enemies falling, while lifting their hands on their eyes.
“We can’t beat them,” said Kallias, “There’s just too many of them.
“No,” said Valentine, “All guns, target here.”
Alexis was now right next to her and fired repeatedly, only to take a hit to the face that knocked her down. Valentine looked down and cried out in relief as her friend pulled away the front of the damaged helmet. There was blood, but Alexis appeared to be alive. She looked back and took aim.
“Novas, clear the left flank!”
They opened fire, quickly cutting a space along the one side of the attacking enemy force. At the same time, the enemy continued ripping their way through the formation. She could see they were moments from total defeat.
“Captain!” she screamed, “We need you on the left flank.”
They fired again and again, and then Captain Olik was there, just behind them and firing away. More marines rushed to the line, but there were few units left in reserve to plug the gaps.
“I’m here.”
Valentine looked back and nodded.
“The Chasm breaks away to the right. We can cattle drive them into it...if we can push into their formation.”
Shots crashed around them, and Valentine fired again and again. Slugs, spikes, and bullets hit around them, with marines and Novas crying out in pain. Every few seconds another would fall, slowly thinning out their numbers.
He hesitated, and then roared with pleasure.
“Yes! Marines, 4th Platoon, to our left flank, now!”
The regular marines reformed into a defensive line to their left and continued to fire.
“I like your plan,” said Lieutenant Fletcher, “There’s something very old school about all this.”
She gave him a nod and then lifted her right arm high.
“Now…we push.”
“You heard the Lance Corporal!” said the Captain.
He lifted up his Thumper and howled. Slugs continued to strike him, and he merely laughed while opening fire. He then stepped forward, and Valentine and the others joined him as they ran forward. Valentine barged two Ski’ligs out of the way while IAB marines and regulars rushed to fill the gap as the Novas advanced along the flank of the enemy. In seconds they were far out and away from the safety of the shield wall of marines. A single platoon of marines had come with them, providing a thin link back to the line. Being taller, Captain Olik could see over their heads, and the battle looked worse by the second. The bulk of the enemy was clustered to the right, and a smaller number engaged by the marines on his left.
“Here!” Valentine said.
“The group slowed and continued to fire, keeping the enemy from getting too close. Shapes moved around them, and then the Ski’ligs to their left tried to encircle and surround them.
“Val…whatever we’re doing, we need to
do it fast!”
She placed the rifle on her side where it locked onto the weapon clamp and activated her close quarter combat modes. The shield to the left extended, and her right arm shifted in mass further to the hand, creating a crude mace.
“Now…we move to the right and push them back! Over the edge and down to Hell! Now…push!”
She turned and ran at the enemy. The other Novas and some of the marines did the same. More marines pushed a few metres from the main line to the left, doing their best to pin down the smaller numbers of enemy in front of them. They were able to advance through the weakened line to form a barrier shielding the Novas.
“Val, this is insane,” said Kallias as he almost fell forward while pushing.
Olik was right next to them and managed to catch seven of the Ski’ligs and pushed them into a mass of flailing limbs. He looked like a ram as he continued forward.
“That’s it!” Valentine said excitedly, “Just keep pushing.”
A firearm blasted her from the right, but there was nothing she could do but brace her body and keep pushing.
I can do this, said Tex.
The cannon on her shoulder fired again and again, killing and maiming while the Novas continued to push.
“Ten metres!”
It was slow going, but Valentine could feel they were about to break. It was like a sport, where one side needed to push back the other for some bizarre reason. Those pushing forward had the advantage, and soon the Ski’ligs and their slave soldiers lost their footing or collapsed in the crush. In that moment Valentine knew they had done it. Captain Olik roared like a wounded beast, shouting so loudly her internal speakers almost deafened her.
“Push!”
Valentine tightened her artificial shoulder and then pushed and pushed. She felt the Ski’ligs break, and then it turned to a rout. Further and further, they pushed until half of the enemy were sent tumbling to their deaths. The lucky few broke and fled back into the tunnels and passages that filled the vastness of the cavern. She stopped just a metre from the edge and looked over at her fallen foes.
Star Crusades Page 24
