Last Stand on Talos Seven

by Rodney Hartman

  Janet turned in her seat and grabbed the front of Connor’s fatigues. “I mean the Donovan’s gone. They sacrificed themselves to save us. Forget it. You can grieve later if you’re still alive.”

  “But—” Connor started.

  Janet slapped him hard across the face. “I said forget it.” She pointed at the glowing wall of energy ahead. “Pirates will be coming through there in about thirty seconds. If we don’t stop them, they’ll destroy the transport. The force field will come down, and everyone inside will die. Do you understand?”

  “Yes, but—”

  Releasing her grip on Connor’s fatigues, Janet faced forward in her seat and took hold of the Wingbat’s gun controls.

  “There are no buts,” said Janet. “We’re here to fight, so do you duty. Now get us up to where the beams are converging. When the hole opens, we’ve got to be there to stop anything that tries to get through.”

  Images of Anna the last time he’d seen her popped into Connor’s mind. He forced them aside. Wiping something from his eye, he pushed the drive controls forward. The Wingbat loped forward. Spotting a dip in the ground fifty meters from the glowing spot on the mine’s force field, he headed toward it. The dip was a good four meters deep. He jumped the Wingbat inside and braced its legs against the rocky sides of the small ravine. Squatting down slightly, he kept only the top of the cat and its weapon pods above ground level.

  “Will this work?” Connor asked, trying his best to forget the pain in his chest while keeping the image of Anna in his mind.

  Janet nodded. “It’ll do.”

  Boom!

  Beams of green light shot through the force field from the outside in. The plasma beams tore into the ground sending truck-sized chunks of rocks in all directions. The beams drew back and steadied into an arch around a thirty-meter-wide and twenty-meter high section of the force field. Two pirate Long Cat’s came running through the hole along with a score of infantry in power-armor.

  Whoosh!

  A half a dozen anti-armor rockets from the pod on the Wingbat’s left shoulder flew out, striking the leftmost Long Cat’s legs. The medium cat stumbled and fell, squashing a squad of infantry beneath its bulk.

  Boom!

  A red blob of energy flew past Connor’s right side. The blob of energy exploded against the right-most Long Cat blowing off the end of the cat’s 200mm phase cannon. The medium UHAAV staggered but recovered. Raising its left appendage, it fired off a salvo of rounds from a quad of 40mm autocannons. Following the rounds, Connor saw them explode against the force field in front of a Talosian anti-tank gun fifty meters away. A member of the crew turned to look at the Wingbat. Connor recognized his uncle. The anti-tank gun’s force field held. His uncle grabbed another round and shoved it into the gun’s breech. The gun fired again, and his uncle was lost in the smoke.

  Rockets shot out from the Wingbat’s right and left shoulder pods as Janet released a salvo of anti-tank missiles at the pirate Long Cat. The missiles hit, knocking the medium UHAAV on its back. Janet touched a button on her gun controls. High-energy plasma beams shot out of the Wingbat’s right appendage and cut across the soft underbelly of the Long Cat.

  Boom!

  The pirate cat exploded, decimating a group of pirate infantry that were swarming through the hole in the force field. The loss of their companions didn’t slow down the pirates’ assault. A six-legged pirate Leviathan came through the breach in the force field, then another, and another. The lead Leviathan moved forward crushing wounded pirates under its massive feet. More infantry in power-armor rushed through the opening in the shield replacing those that had fallen.

  “Play time’s over,” said Janet. “I’m out of anti-armor rockets. You’ve got to get me under their bellies where our energy weapons will do some good. Their side armor’s too thick for anything smaller than 200mm phase rounds.”

  The thought of moving toward the lumbering metal beasts sent a chill down Connor’s spine. An image of Anna with her red hair flying in the breeze gave him strength. He shoved the control sticks forward, climbing the Wingbat out of its hidey hole. Increasing his speed to max, he ran toward the nearest Leviathan. He saw the heavy UHAAV’s main plasma cannon turn to track his Wingbat. He shoved the control’s hard left. The cat’s two left legs tangled, sending the Wingbat toward the ground. Instinctively, Connor jerked the controls for the right legs to compensate for the loss of the left two legs. It wasn’t enough to stop the cat from falling, but it did reduce the force of the impact. The cat hit hard, but not hard enough to sustain any damage. Leveraging the UHAAV up, Connor saw green beams pass through the point where the cat had been standing.

  “Great job,” said Janet. “I don’t think even a wizard scout could’ve dodged better. Now get me close to that Leviathan before its buddies decide to fire.”

  Untangling the Wingbat’s legs, Connor began running toward the closest Leviathan. Two balls of red phase energy hit the Leviathan’s forward force field. The pirate’s defensive shield held, but the cat’s main cannon shifted from the Wingbat to Connor’s right. Glancing out his side view screen, he noticed the two Talosian Long Cats standing shoulder to shoulder firing round after round from their 200mm phase cannons at the now staggering Leviathan.

  Switching targets, Connor maneuvered the Wingbat toward the second closest Leviathan. Janet fired beam after beam of plasma energy at the heavy cat, but they ricocheted off the Leviathan’s forward shields, disappearing into the sky. The third cat in line pointed its main gun at the Wingbat. The end of the massive barrel looked like it was aimed directly at Connor’s face. He knew there would be no accidental dodging to save their lives this time.

  Bringing up a final image of Anna, Connor jerked the controls hard left, knowing it would do no good. Then he saw it, a movement of black climbing up the side of the third Leviathan’s legs.

  What the...? he wondered. Then he knew. “It’s a wizard scout.”

  “It’s Trinity,” said Janet. “Only she’d be crazy enough to take on a Leviathan by herself. It’s got to be her.”

  Chapter 31 – Tea and Crumpets

  ____________________

  “Maybe you should have discussed your plan with me before you started climbing up the side of a Leviathan,” said Jennifer. “What are you planning on doing when you get to the top? I seriously doubt the pirates are going to unlock the door and invite you in for tea and crumpets.”

  Trinity ignored her battle computer and focused on hanging onto the side of the lumbering six-legged metal monster. To be honest, she wasn’t sure what she planned to do. All she knew was that she had to stop this cat and the others already through the hole in the force field before more arrived. She could already sense units of pirate UHAAVs making their way toward the breach in the force field

  “Leviathans are tough,” Trinity told her battle computer, “but they’re not invincible. Yardis took one out.”

  “True,” admitted Jennifer. “Still, I feel obliged to point out that Wizard Scout Yardis was a shifter. He could pass through the UHAAV’s armor by shifting into the void between dimensions. You cannot. Even being a shifter, he still died destroying the pirates’ Leviathan. Is that what you want? Do you want to die?”

  Trinity thought of her fiancée Jerad. Dying was most definitely not what she desired. Doesn’t matter, she thought in her private space. I’ve got to stop the pirates’ cats. That’s all there is to it.

  An idea came to Trinity. “Can you hack into the Leviathan’s security network and open one of the doors?” She knew she was grasping at straws, but time was running out fast. The big cat’s main gun was already swiveling in the direction of the Wingbat being piloted by Janet and Connor. To make matters worse, this particular Leviathan was one of the rare ones equipped with a disintegrator cannon. She didn’t need her battle computer to tell her the Wingbat’s force field wouldn’t stand a chance if it took a direct hit from the weapon.

  “Sure, I could hack into it given time,” said Jennifer. �
�Unfortunately, that is the one thing you do not have. A platoon of pirate infantry in power-armor is headed your way even now. I calculate when they get close they will try to shoot you off the side of the Leviathan. Your self-heal can take care of any damage their low-caliber weapons do to you, but once you are knocked to the ground, there is a ninety-seven percent probability the Leviathan’s pilot will try to stomp on you. Even your self-heal will not be able to help you with two thousand tons of brerellium steel squishing you. When your self-heal runs out, you will die.”

  Bursts of green energy began splattering the Leviathan’s thick armor all around Trinity. She spied a team of pirates setting up a crew-served autocannon on a tripod two hundred meters away. Other pirates were running toward her, firing as they came. Reaching out with her passive scan, Trinity sought any possible source of assistance. She found it climbing over the mine’s rim.

  “Trevor!” Trinity said mouthing the words inside her battle helmet.

  The Leviathan driven by Wizard Scout Trevor brought its last two legs over the rim and opened up with every weapon it had on the lead pirate Leviathan. Already weakened by its battle with the two Long Cats driven by Wizard Scouts Ostaris and Mikala, the front shield on the pirate Leviathan gave way before the onslaught of high-energy beams and rockets. The front two legs of the pirates’ heavy UHAAV buckled. The big cat fell to the ground burying its head a meter deep in the rocky soil. The two Long Cats and Trevor’s Leviathan continued pouring fire into the pirate cat’s exposed back. The thinner topside armor gave way.

  Boom!

  Smoke and flames billowed out of the pirate Leviathan as its weapons stopped firing.

  Trinity formed an image of her hanging onto the side of the third Leviathan along with a feeling of assistance needed. She sensed Jennifer forwarding the image and feeling to her fellow wizard scouts. The two Long Cats and Trevor’s Leviathan immediately shifted fire to the third pirate cat. Blast after blast hit the forward shields of the pirate cat. The shields held, but the Leviathan was knocked back a step, throwing off its aim at the Wingbat piloted by Connor and Janet. The purple beam from the heavy cat’s disintegrator beam passed ten meters above the Wingbat.

  The second pirate Leviathan that had been firing at the Wingbat shifted its fire to Trevor’s Leviathan. Beams of green, red, and blue energy crisscrossed the sky. Momentarily free of return fire, Janet and Connor’s Wingbat began running directly toward the third Leviathan, firing its weapons at the platoon of infantry threatening Trinity. A salvo of 20mm rounds from the Wingbat’s chest autocannon made mincemeat out of the pirates that had been setting up a crew-served weapon. The pirates’ power-armor was no protection against the Wingbat’s armor-piercing rounds.

  Trinity sensed the disintegrator cannon on the Leviathan tracking the Wingbat’s path. She sensed disintegrator energy building up inside the weapon in preparation for firing. Trinity closed her eyes and imagined the inside of the pirates’ heavy UHAAV. She felt for the disintegration generator with her passive scan. A large source of energy appeared in her mind. She reached into the energy source and followed it as the disintegration energy flowed into the cat’s main cannon. Wrapping anything she could find with a line of Power from her reserve, Trinity twisted and jerked the line using telekinesis. The disintegration energy overloaded.

  “Drop now!” warned Jennifer.

  Trinity released her grip on the heavy cat, but she was a hair too late.

  Boom!

  The heavy cat exploded in a blast of purple energy. Trinity was flung into the air. Pain swept through her body, and disintegration energy ate through her battle suit and into her flesh. She vaguely sensed Power flowing from her reserve as her self-heal sought to bring her deteriorating flesh back to baseline. Something slammed into Trinity and everything turned black.

  * * *

  Pain pulled Trinity from the blackness. When she rolled onto her back, sharp rocks bit into her flesh. Opening her eyes, everything looked red.

  “It’s blood,” said Jennifer. “Wipe your eyes. Your battle helmet is cracked, but I am unharmed. I cannot say the same for your battle suit. It is in shreds.”

  Trinity raised a hand and wiped at her face. She made out a blur of colors. The colors focused into roaring flames of orange and purple coming out of a half-melted lump of metallic wreckage twenty meters away. Trinity tried to rise. She fell back.

  “Your self-heal needs another twenty seconds before you will be able to get around,” said Jennifer. “Wizard Scout Trevor’s Leviathan and the two Long Cats are engaging the second pirate Leviathan. Janet and Connor are taking out the infantry with their Wingbat. I have requested that they come pick you up.”

  Trinity tried to think. It didn’t come easy. She reached out with her passive scan in an attempt to get a feel for the battle. The pirate destroyer’s weapons were still firing at the mine’s force field. If anything, the breach in the energy shield was larger than ever. Trinity sensed a dozen pirate medium and heavy cats outside the shield making for the opening. Two score more were coming out of the ravine accompanied by nearly a thousand pirate infantry. She sensed the locations of the Talosian forces and her fellow wizard scouts. All of the mine’s defenders appeared to be engaged with pirate units that had already forced their way through the breach in the force field.

  “We’re not going to make it, are we?” Trinity said, recognizing a losing battle when she saw one. She had one slim hope. “What about the Empire? Contact the high command. Let them know our situation. Tell them we need help now, or they can kiss the titanium vein goodbye.”

  “I took the liberty of doing that while you were unconscious, Wizard Scout. The Empire is fully engaged with the Crosoians. They are fighting for their lives the same as you. There are no Empire units to spare. I am truly sorry.”

  Trinity sat up. She ignored the pain and looked around for her phase rod. Surprisingly, it was still gripped in her left hand. The handle looked worse for wear as did her glove, but she sensed the weapon’s creallium core and phase energy ready to activate at her command. Glancing down at her legs, Trinity saw jagged chunks of the battle suit’s armor missing, exposing the half-healed flesh beneath.

  “Can you help me get up?” Trinity said. “I’m a little weak.”

  “Negative, Wizard Scout. The suit’s assistors are inoperable. I calculate if you give it another fifteen seconds, your self-heal will have repaired enough damage for you to stand without too much pain.”

  Trinity used her right hand to leverage herself to a standing position. She ignored the pain in her legs and chest. She suspected she’d be feeling a lot more pain in a few seconds. She turned to face the breach in the force field. Four pirate Long Cats, two Macrons, and a dozen Tomcat scouts were running through the opening firing as they came.

  “What are you planning on doing?” said Jennifer. “You’re hopelessly outnumbered. What can you possibly hope to do?”

  With a thought, Trinity activated her phase rod.

  “I’m a wizard scout. I can fight. That’s all I can do.”

  Chapter 32 – Cavalry

  ____________________

  Anna hooked the safety line from the last of the Donovan’s survivors to the ring on the waist of her pressure suit. Using the maneuvering thrusters on the side of her suit, she’d been able to gather the other six survivors of the crew. Try as she might, she hadn’t been able to locate any of the original members of the Donovan’s crew. She didn’t have to be told they’d all accompanied their beloved survey ship on her last journey. Anna consoled herself with the fact that at least she’d gathered together her fellow Talosians in one spot.

  What good it’ll do, I don’t know, she thought, but it’s all I can do. Another wave of assault troops just left in the shuttles for the surface. My friends are fighting for their lives down below, and all we can do is drift in space until our air runs out.

  She glanced at the light cruiser five thousand meters away. With the pirate transports no longer threatened, the cr
uiser seemed content to just orbit in place and monitor the battle below. The big warship wasn’t even bothering to fire its space to ground weapons any more. Anna could only assume the ship’s captain took the outcome of the battle below for granted.

  If only the Empire had sent us some ships, Anna thought. Even a couple of destroyers would’ve made all the difference. But they didn’t come. Now all my friends are going to die.

  Anna pictured Connor down below in the Wingbat with Janet. For all she knew, they were both already dead. Maybe everyone she knew was dead.

  “What’s that?” asked a voice over Anna’s intercom.

  Anna recognized it as Bentley, the son of the farmer who’d been murdered by the Crosoian scout at the mine. Following Bentley’s raised arm, Anna spotted a disturbance in the space behind the pirate’s cruiser. It was a group of stars moving in formation.

  No, not stars, she thought. Those are ships. The question is whose ships are they?

  She didn’t have to wonder long. Dozens, no hundreds of beams of light shot out from the incoming ships and struck the force field surrounding the light cruiser. The pirates’ defensive shield blazed with energy for a couple of seconds before collapsing. As the oncoming ships drew closer, the pirate cruiser returned fire at the attackers’ lead ship. The pirates’ weapons ricocheted off the approaching warship’s force field. The lead warship drew closer, growing ever larger as it came. The ship was massive. Anna had never seen a dreadnaught before, but she had no doubt that’s what she was seeing now. The dreadnaught was joined by another ship of equal size and ten smaller warships. All twelve starships fired in unison. Anti-ship missiles and beams of red and blue plasma hit the pirates’ cruiser at the same time. The light cruiser erupted in a silent explosion of fire and plasma energy.

  The filter on Anna’s helmet went black. She counted to ten before the filter cleared. The nearest of the dreadnaughts began spitting out fighters of every make and model. Some made their way toward the pirate transports. Others dove for the planet’s surface.