by Knox, Barry
Gideon knew he couldn’t destroy the cloud of approaching devices and had only seconds to figure out a way to help protect everyone on the hill.
“Marines, use your particle beams to slice the top-three rows of sandbags!” Gideon quickly ordered. Then on his helmet speakers he set the volume to the max and yelled, “Everyone in environmental suits, you don’t have time to get into the building. Lie down at the base of the sandbag wall and let the sand cover you! It should protect you and there’s enough air in your suits to breath until the attack is over! Do it now!”
The marines sliced the sandbags with their weapons, and sand began to flow down the wall. Most of the prisoners lay at the base of the wall and allowed the sand to cover them while others just stood there, confused, or just didn’t want to do as advised. Gideon didn’t have time to explain his orders to them again, so he didn’t attempt to. They’d made their choice.
The red cloud rushed onto the top of the hill and spread over the small building, the ground, exposed prisoners, and marines.
The devices were about an inch long, red, and shaped similar to a wasp. Using mechanical legs and wings, the devices attacked and began covering the marines and exposed prisoners. Everyone instinctively started swatting, and Gideon noted a good hit from a hand or stomp from a boot easily destroyed the devices. He also quickly noted the marines and prisoners couldn’t destroy all the devices that way.
The devices that remained on the marines and prisoners began using micro-lasers to bore their way into the marines’ armor and the prisoners’ environmental suits. The prisoners under the sand seemed to be safe for the moment since the devices concentrated their attack on the exposed marines and prisoners.
The marine armor slowed the boring process, but the prisoners’ environment suits provided little protection. As the marines and prisoners used their free hands to wipe the devices off them, hundreds of other devices were ready to take the place of a destroyed device and began boring in the same exact spot as their predecessor.
The devices bored through the exposed prisoners’ environmental suits first. Prisoners began to yell, roll, and run in an attempt to save themselves. As soon as the devices penetrated their environmental suits, the devices began boring into flesh. Gideon was horrified by the sight of hundreds of the red devices quickly tearing the exposed prisoners into pieces after they’d compromised their suits and flesh.
An armor-breach alarm sounded in Gideon’s helmet as he felt a change of air pressure, and the temperature inside his armor increased. He was also leaking oxygen but not enough yet to cause a problem. His heads-up display showed a small hole in the thigh of his right leg. He swatted at the area, and a moment later the armor self-sealed and closed the hole. The alarm went off for a second, and then another armor-breach alarm sounded. This time it wasn’t only the same place; now there were several other places in his armor that had been breached.
“Gunny, fire a low-level wide particle beam at me! Maybe it will keep the devices off for a while!” Gideon shouted over the platoon channel.
Without hesitating, Xia fired at Gideon. The green particle beam struck Gideon’s armor, and even at a low level, it knocked Gideon off his feet and threw him back several yards. The armor was designed to take limited particle-beam hits and distribute the energy from the beam around the surface of the armor until the energy dissipated, which took about three minutes. Gideon’s armor glowed green with residual energy, and the devices attacking his armor dropped off as the energy along the surface of the armor short-circuited and destroyed the simple, unprotected devices. Devices crawling on the ground and on the sandbag wall near Gideon quickly attacked him, but as soon as the devices touched his armor, the energy on the armor destroyed the devices.
“Manelly, Kindle, fire a low-level wide particle beam at each other now,” Gideon shouted over the platoon channel as he stood. He aimed and fired a beam of energy toward Xia. The breach alarms stopped when the armor self-sealed.
“As soon as you get another breach alarm, ask for a shot of particle beam!” Gideon ordered over the channel. The marines chimed an acknowledgment.
The exposed prisoners who hadn’t allowed themselves to be buried by the sand were all dead now. They lay in grotesque positions on the ground, surrounded by destroyed devices and blood. As devices continued to attack his armor and were destroyed by the dissipating energy, Gideon took a quick look down hill and noted the czar troops were still taking cover. Remembering Michael, and the fact he hadn’t seen him since the attack, Gideon assumed he might be dead. Gideon looked around for what might be left of him and his robe on the ground.
“They will order three more of the death clouds to attack soon,” Michael said in a low voice as he approached Gideon from the other side of the building.
Gideon was surprised Michael was still alive and watched as the devices attacking Michael were being destroyed inches from his body and falling to the ground. Gideon didn’t see an energy shield but assumed Michael was somehow generating one and didn’t have time to discuss it with him.
“How do you know?” Gideon asked.
“I know these people have used trillions of dollars and killed many people to perfect their weapons and ways to kill,” Michael said. He pointed skyward as three more clouds started toward the top of the hill.
A breach alarm sounded again, and Gideon asked Xia for another shot of particle beam. The impact was a bit harder this time and again knocked him off his feet. Gideon estimated their armor could take only about four more shots of particle energy before the armor began to degrade and not protect them at all.
The devices then changed their attack strategy. Devices that were covering the building and surrounding area were now beginning to cover the sand that spilled on the ground and were digging down toward the covered prisoners.
“Tidwell, we need to be extracted ASAP. What’s your ETA?” Gideon transmitted urgently.
“Ten minutes!” Tidwell replied.
Gideon knew that as soon as the other three clouds of devices arrived, they wouldn’t have a chance. The sheer number of devices would quickly degenerate the residue particle-beam energy on their armor, and their armor could handle only a few more particle-beam hits. Also, the devices were quickly digging out the covered prisoners and would soon penetrate their environmental suits and kill them. He considered ordering everyone into the building, but knew it would only delay the inevitable. He didn’t want his men to die this way, and made his decision.
“Sipes! Leave the doctor in the building and report to me!” Gideon transmitted over the platoon channel.
“Yes, sir,” Joseph said.
“Gunny, come over here and help me make some explosive charges when Sipes gets here,” Gideon then transmitted.
Joseph exited the building and trotted toward Gideon. When he reached Gideon, the red devices began attacking him. Joseph wiped and swatted the devices off him. Xia walked behind Joseph and took off Joseph’s rucksack that contained the explosives.
“Sipes, stand back a few feet. I’m going to fire a particle beam at you to destroy the devices on you and keep ‘em off you for a few minutes,” Gideon said.
Joseph stepped back. Gideon fired, and the energy from the beam knocked the big man back a few feet but didn’t knock him down.
“What’s the plan, sir?” Xia asked over a private channel.
“I don’t think we’re going to make it, Gunny, and I’d rather not suffer like the prisoners. Maybe we can even take a few czar soldiers with us,” Gideon said over the same private channel.
“I agree, sir, and I see no reason to tell the others,” Xia said.
“I’m sure Manelly and Kindle have already figured it out, but you’re right. No need to tell the rest,” Gideon replied.
Gideon and Xia began making several explosive charges that would totally disintegrate the top of the hill and more than likely kill most of the czar soldiers at the bottom of the hill.
***
The devices that
continued attacking Joseph’s armor were immediately destroyed by the residual energy from Gideon’s blast. With his mind temporarily off the red devices attacking him, Joseph looked around and saw the mangled and torn bodies of the prisoners who had been killed. Joseph shook uncontrollably at the sight.
Joseph watched as Gideon and Xia took the explosives and detonators out of the rucksack to build their deadly devices. As he watched, Michael walked over and stood by him.
“Joseph, are you frightened?” Michael asked on a private channel.
Joseph turned to face Michael and answered, “Yes.”
“There is nothing to fear. Nothing is going to happen to you, and you will soon be safe aboard your ship,” Michael stated in a warm, calming voice.
Joseph stopped shaking as an unexplained calm came over him. He said, “I was told by my grandma to help save people. What about the others? What can I do to save them?”
Joseph saw Michael smile behind the visor of his environmental suit helmet and answered, “I should have known you would be more concerned about the others than yourself and do whatever you have to do to save them. You and the men with you cannot save yourselves, but I will save you, Joseph, so you can continue to save others, and I will save them because you care about them.”
Joseph watched as Michael turned and walked to the small building. Michael climbed up a maintenance ladder attached to the wall facing the east. Once on top of the building, Michael walked to the highest point on the roof and stood. Strong winds coming from the approaching storm caused his robe to wave around him.
***
“Done,” Gideon said as he finished the last charge.
“Sir, the czar soldiers are beginning another attack,” Manelly said over the platoon channel.
“Anna, how long till those approaching clouds of devices reach us?” Gideon asked.
“Forty-five seconds,” Anna said.
Just after she answered, the devices that’d been digging in the sand began reaching the buried prisoners. Several prisoners uncovered themselves and began running around, trying to knock the devices off.
“It’s been an honor serving with you all,” Gideon transmitted over the platoon channel. “Gunny, set the charges to go off in forty seconds.”
“Wait! Michael is going to save us!” Joseph yelled over the platoon channel and pointed to the top of the building. “Look…look at him!”
The marines turned, looked at the top of the building, and saw Michael. Michael pulled his environmental suit helmet off and tossed it away. Dark, long hair fell from his head to his shoulders, and then the hair began blowing in the wind like his robe. He also had a beard, and the part of his face not covered with hair was the color of bronze. He then reached his right hand behind his head, pulled his weapon out, and held it over his head.
“Is that a sword?” Kindle asked over the platoon channel.
“Looks like it. I knew the guy was nuts. He’ll be dead in seconds from the atmosphere!” Xia said and then enabled the explosive charges detonation timers. His Anna began counting down over the platoon channel. “Forty, thirty-nine, thirty-eight, thirty-seven, thirty-six…”
Gideon and his team watched as Michael held his sword over his head. A moment later the sword emitted a bright white light that was so bright the marines’ helmet visors automatically darkened to protect their eyes. Then, thousands of needle-diameter-size light beams erupted from the sword, each beam of light destined for a single red device in the remaining clouds of devices. Instead of a beam of light burning through every obstacle in its way to reach its target, the beams went around any object that would injury a marine or prisoner. Microseconds later, each beam precisely hit its targeted red device and destroyed it no matter where it was—in midair, on the ground, on armor, on an environmental suit, or on flesh.
The marines and prisoners were amazed. They’d never seen anything like it before. Breach alarms in the marines’ armor stopped as the holes self-sealed, and the prisoners began screaming for help to seal their suits. Joseph was already slapping patches on the prisoners’ suit holes as fast as he could.
“Fourteen, thirteen, twelve, eleven, ten…” Xia’s Anna continued counting.
“Gunny, disable the charges!” Gideon yelled.
Xia disabled the charges, and his Anna reported over the platoon channel, “Detonation aborted.”
“Sir, the czar soldiers are still coming,” Kindle reported as they started firing mag rails and laser again.
The sandbag wall was taking heavy hits, and some areas of the wall had been knocked down. Lightning from the storm was also striking all around them. The marines couldn’t tell the difference between the sounds of a thunderclap from the impact of a mag rail projectile striking the sandbag wall.
Gideon looked over what was left of the sandbag wall protecting him and saw the czar troops running toward them as they continued firing. “Return fire!” Gideon yelled over the platoon channel.
The marines began to fire mag rail, but it only slowed the attack. The marines were severely outnumbered, and they couldn’t kill all the czar troops before they were overrun.
“Michael, can you use your weapon on the czar troops?” Gideon yelled over the platoon channel and helmet speakers.
“Stop firing your weapons, and I will destroy them,” he yelled. The marines stopped firing and turned to look at Michael.
Michael held his sword over his head, and it began to glow white with energy again. Suddenly a bolt of lightning from the storm struck the sword, and the light of the sword intensified. A bubble of power slowly began to grow until it surrounded Michael, the building, the marines and the prisoners. The marines’ helmet visors auto-darkened again, this time to max, but the marines still had to close their eyes from the blinding light. Gideon could hear the prisoners scream with pain because their eyes were totally unprotected. The bubble expanded a few more feet and then exploded outwardly. The shock wave from the explosion radiated slowly over and then down the hill. The wave destroyed the remaining sandbag wall, and when the wave struck the approaching czar soldiers, it disintegrated them. The wave continued down the hill until it reached the bottom and dissipated.
“What was that?” Tidwell exclaimed over the platoon channel as Bernice streaked at a low level over the hill and rose as it banked right to circle. “I was preparing to execute a strafing run, and then I saw the explosion or whatever it was. I’ve never seen anything like it!”
“I’m not sure what it was, Tidwell,” Gideon said and then asked, “Is there enough room on the hill to land?”
“Looks like it, sir,” Tidwell said.
“Good! Land, and let’s get out of here,” Gideon ordered.
Small Building, Political Prisoner Camp, Planet Leonis
0710—February 28, 2372
Bernice landed on the hill with little room to spare. Gideon ordered Tidwell and Xia to work on the landing gear and allowed Manelly and Kindle to help Sipes with the wounded prisoners. The beams from Michael’s weapon had not only destroyed the bugs but also cauterized their wounds and stopped the bleeding. The marines injected painkillers and antibiotics into the wounded using self-attaching and self-dosing combat syringes from their medical kits. The combat syringes would attach to armor or environmental suits, pierce the suit and flesh, take a blood sample, analyze it, and then inject the proper dosages. The syringe would simply drop off armor when it had expended its contents or stay attached to an environmental suit to keep it sealed.
“When are we leaving?” Dr. Qasim asked as she stood by Gideon, looking on as the marines tended to the wounded.
“As soon as we can, Doctor. The pilot is trying to repair a problem with the landing gear. Until it’s fixed, we can’t leave the planet,” Gideon said.
“What about the prisoners?” she asked.
“They’re not my problem, Doctor,” Gideon answered. He paused and added, “I assume Michael will know what to do with them.”
“Warning!” Gideon’s Anna s
aid into his ear and transmitted over the platoon channel. “Bernice’s long-range sensors have detected fifteen czar troop transports approaching. ETA, ten minutes.”
“Tidwell, get the ship ready. Let’s go now!” Gideon ordered.
“Sir, the landing gear isn’t fixed yet; we can’t go into space until it’s fixed,” Tidwell said.
“I know, but we can leave and land somewhere else and sit in stealth mode until it’s safe to continue repairs,” Gideon said.
“Yes, sir,” Tidwell replied.
“Must be reinforcements,” Xia transmitted.
“I’m sure they are, and I don’t want to be here when they arrive,” Gideon said, “Kindle, Manelly, Sipes, get on board now. We’re leaving!”
“What about the prisoners and the women and children in the building?” Michael asked Gideon.
“They’re not my responsibility. Anyway, it seems as if you and your weapon can take care of yourself and these people,” Gideon said. He noted Michael was surviving the atmosphere without a helmet; undoubtedly, he was using some type of energy or force field to protect himself.
“Yes, I could protect them, but I am going to remain here and cover your escape. If the prisoners stay with me, they will die when I use my weapon,” Michael said.
“They survived your attack on the red devices and the czar soldiers who attached us earlier,” Gideon said.
“Yes, but the power I must use to destroy the approaching enemy would kill the prisoners too. They must go with you,” Michael explained.
“If I take ‘em with us, where can I leave ‘em?” Gideon asked.
“They can be left with one of the rebel groups,” Michael answered. He paused and added, “But know this, Lieutenant. If you leave the old women and children with the rebels, they will eventually be killed because they can neither contribute to the rebel cause nor work as slaves for the czars.”
