Gunz

by William Stacey

  "She's coming back again," Cassie said, pointing. "My twelve o'clock."

  Elizabeth saw nothing, but she felt the fae seelie mage channel once more.

  "Shield, Leela!" Cassie yelled.

  "On it," the young woman replied.

  "Now, Elizabeth, one o'clock, just over the trees." Cassie channeled air, sending leaves from the branches flying up into the air, wrapping around a massive winged shape the size of a small plane. Elizabeth channeled a lightning bolt directly into the whirling tempest of leaves just as a fireball exploded beneath one of the G-Wagons, sending it flying through the air to smash into Leela's shield. Leela screamed from the effort as the armored SUV rebounded from her shield. Elizabeth's lightning bolt—augmented more than tenfold by the Brace—turned night to day, shredding a now-visible wyvern, literally blowing it apart in the air, and sending chunks of charred flesh to crash around them like macabre rainfall. The body of the wyvern, headless and missing a wing, slammed into the burning G-Wagon. The top torso of a dark elf woman rolled along the ground, coming to a stop in front of Elizabeth, her flesh smoking, her yellow eyes staring. The air stank of smoke, ozone, and barbecued meat.

  Paco whooped with glee, slapping Elizabeth on the back. Clyde howled then ran over to the carcass of the wyvern and barked at it.

  "I'm not sensing anyone else," said Cassie. "Maybe it was the only one."

  A massive ball of fire lit up the sky to the north, where they heard the nonstop bursts of machine-gun and auto-cannon fire. "The only one here," said Elizabeth. "The rest are attacking the forward vehicles."

  Alex ran over and stared at the dead wyvern. He grabbed Elizabeth's arm. "Can you help the others? Major Ryker is trying to disengage his cars and pull them back, but they can't break contact with an enemy they can't see."

  Elizabeth pulled the Brace back up her arm and looked at Cassie and Leela. "Maybe. I have an idea. Where's Helena?"

  "She was with Swamp Thing and the others," Cassie said. "Why?"

  "I'll explain in a minute." Elizabeth darted off, looking for the tents where the others had tried to get some sleep, finding her way easily with the burning fires. She found the survivors of Task Force Devil, all safe, thank God, and among them was the terrified Helena. Elizabeth ran to her, breathless. "Helena, Kargin's backpack—tell me you still have it."

  "I … what? Yes, of course. Corinna gave me his ax as well. Why?"

  "I need to check something. Please."

  The scientist dashed away and returned a moment later with Kargin's pack and handed it to Elizabeth, who undid the belts holding it closed and began to root among the dwarf's belongings, seeing not only odd-looking clothing, but also strange hand-crafted tools and a myriad of items she didn't recognize—as well as a flask that smelled so strongly of alcohol, it made her eyes water. Then she found what she had been looking for and, the three dwarven crowns in hand, gave the bag back to Helena. She ran back to Cassie, Leela, Paco, and Alex and thrust a crown into the hands of each woman. Both stared in confusion at the beautiful but odd objects.

  "I … this is magical," said Cassie in surprise, turning the crown over to examine it. "How?"

  Uncertainty swept through Elizabeth. In truth, she had no real idea how the crowns worked or even if they could do what she wanted, but it was worth trying. "Kargin made them. Put them on."

  Doubt filled Leela's large brown eyes. "Why?"

  "Please, trust me."

  Cassie put her hand on Elizabeth's forearm. "I trust you." She placed the crown over her head so that the large purple gem was just over her forehead, with the two smaller blue gems resting above her eyes. Cassie inhaled audibly, her eyes growing larger. "That’s … interesting."

  "Wait for it," said Elizabeth as she put on her own crown. She turned to Leela. "Please."

  Leela frowned but put the crown on, looking decidedly unhappy about it.

  Please, God, please work. Elizabeth reached out a hand to both women and touched the large purple gem in the center of their crowns, channeling a trickle of mana into both gems, just as she had seen Tlathia do with her. She gasped and staggered back as a wave of heat and energy coursed through her skull. She saw from the sudden surprise in the other two women's faces that they felt the same sensation. Leela, in particular, stared about herself in wonder, her eyes large and her mouth agape. Elizabeth exhaled. It was now or never.

  She focused on projecting her thoughts to the other women. Can you hear me?

  Leela's eyes grew even wider. Cassie nodded then answered her with her own thoughts. I … how … what's happened?

  Elizabeth even felt Cassie's uncertainty through the link, as well as Leela's fear. We're linked, she answered. At least that's how Tlathia described it. These crowns are how she and Kargin learned English in only minutes, how I showed her where to open the gateway to the railroad bridge to rescue you. We can share our thoughts and memories and—more importantly—communicate instantly.

  So… thought Leela cautiously then with more focus as she began to get the hang of mentally projecting her thoughts… So why? How will this help us?

  I get it, thought Cassie. Individually, we're no match for the dark elves, but together…

  Together, linked like this, noted Elizabeth, we can pool our strengths. Make the ultimate magical fire-team. Cassie, you can sense the dark elves better than either of us, so you can mentally project their location for us and show us where they are when invisible. Leela, you shield us whenever they're attacking. And I'll—

  Use the Brace to bring the pain, Cassie added.

  Exactly, answered Elizabeth.

  Better than anything that I could have come up with, thought Cassie approvingly. We might even stand a chance.

  Leela looked about at the destruction around them and the battle that was still taking place among the other squadron vehicles. "So what now?" she said then, realizing she had spoken aloud, projected her thoughts instead. I mean, what now? Shit, you know what I mean.

  Paco and Alex stood beside them, watching them in confusion. "Everything all right?" Alex asked Elizabeth.

  "Just fine," she answered. "But you need to get us forward right now. Otherwise, the dark elves are going to kill everyone."

  As if on cue, they heard a large diesel engine, turned, and saw the FOO LAV-III with Huck sitting in the turret, working the action on a pintle-mounted C6 machine gun. With the weapon now ready for firing, Huck pulled herself out of the open hatch and removed her crew commander's helmet with its radio headset and stood atop the turret, staring down at them. She carried no weapon other than a pistol in a shoulder holster. "What now, Alex? I've got no fire support to call in."

  Alex turned to Elizabeth.

  "I need to see to cast magic," she said. "The other two can ride inside."

  Cassie and Leela darted away to open the hatch at the rear of the LAV-III and climb inside. Paco stood in front of the open hatch, Clyde at his side. "Leela, you be careful. You hear me?"

  "It's all right, Yancy. Go with the others. You can't help."

  Alex yelled up to Huck, "Elizabeth needs to ride up top. Share the commander's seat with you."

  Huck stared at him in confusion.

  "Trust me," he said. "Elizabeth is your fire support."

  She nodded. "Gonna be a tight squeeze."

  With Alex showing her where to grab and place her feet, Elizabeth climbed up the side of the armored vehicle, then Huck grabbed her wrist and hauled her up with her onto the turret. She showed Elizabeth where to stand inside the open commander's hatch, just behind the C6 machine gun. Huck squeezed in behind her, with her arms around her, grasping what looked like handlebars underneath the hatch. Huck had been right. It was tight. Alex jumped in the rear of the vehicle, letting Paco close the hatch behind him.

  "Hang on!" Huck yelled into Elizabeth's ear.

  The LAV-III's engine roared as the vehicle sped forward.

  39

  Everything had gone to shit for Lee and the others.

  He scann
ed the battlefield through his infrared sight, identifying the alien infantry, the four-armed warriors, moving forward in massed ranks once again. This time, they had lit fires in the woods behind them, and the heat obscured his infrared sights, creating one large mass. "The fires are messing with my targeting, Lieutenant. What do you want me to do?" he yelled.

  She fired a long burst from her C6 then paused long enough to yell back down through the hatch. "Engage at will, Lee. Concentrate fire on our twelve o'clock. Best judgment."

  "Ack." He fired his Bushmaster, once again using fragmentation rounds, sending explosions cutting through the massed ranks. Even with the fires messing with his aim, it was hard to miss. Nearby, two cars burned, their crews—his friends—dead.

  He still didn't understand what was happening. He had seen 1-1 Charlie burst into flames as the Coyote moved to flank the trolls on the highway. There had been no warning. One moment, they were moving, the next, bright-orange flames were jutting out of the open crew commander's hatch, the crew commander himself on fire and thrashing about, screaming. Maybe they were hit by an alien incendiary device that burned through their hull before igniting?

  While Lieutenant Blackwell had been trying to assess the situation and find the shooter, 1-1 Alpha on their immediate right had also gone up in flames. Warrant Officer Descallier, the troop's second-in-command—and a damned good man—had been in that vehicle. Hell, they were all good men. Now they're all dead men, and we still don't know who or what is shooting at us.

  We could go up next.

  The infantry reported the trolls and their barricade were now just a hundred meters away from their position and closing.

  What the hell is happening?

  Lee adjusted fire, sweeping his cannon shots, taking out huge swaths of the enemy's ranks with each fragmentation round. We can't stay here, he thought. There's too many of them, and I'm probably missing with half my shots.

  Major Ryker was on the radio, trying to gain control of the situation. He wanted to pull the cars and the infantry back to secondary firing positions while 3 Troop provided overwatch, but the trolls would be on the infantry long before they could remount their LAV-IIIs and disengage.

  Lee's chest tightened with fear, his pulse racing and his mouth dry. Yet despite the adrenaline coursing through him, he felt strangely lucid, almost as if he were outside himself, calmly assessing his performance in combat, making notes. We need to pull back now! Figure out what's taking out vehicles.

  The lieutenant keyed her internal communications. "Listen up, Hank. I want you to pull forward about two hundred meters. Give Lee a firing angle on the flank of those troll-things pushing the barricade forward. Lee, once we're in position, you need to stop those trolls, or the infantry is going to be fighting hand to hand with creatures carrying axes and swords. They'll be slaughtered."

  "Ack," said Hank, gunning the diesel engine.

  "Ack," said Lee, holding fire and checking his ammo load.

  The interior of the Coyote exploded in a white flash, searing Lee's vision. At the same time, thunder filled the turret, punching Lee in the back of the head. When he could finally see again, his ears buzzed and his vision was blurry. Someone was yelling, he realized through his dizziness—Hank or Bradley, he wasn't sure. It felt as though he were underwater, his ears ringing. He shook himself, desperately trying to focus his vision. When he could finally see clearly again, he saw Lieutenant Blackwell curled up into a ball inside the bottom of the turret, flames rippling on her sleeve. He scrambled over to her and slapped the flames out. The stench of raw eggs—no, ozone—burned through his nostrils. Lieutenant Blackwell moaned, her eyes rolling into the back of her head, leaving only a sliver of whites exposed.

  "Lieutenant!" He shook her then placed his ear near her mouth. She was still breathing. He climbed past her and pulled the crew commander hatch closed. The inside of the hatch was charred and smoking. What hit us?

  The radio squawked as Major Ryker called their call sign repeatedly.

  "Bradley!" Lee called out. "The lieutenant's down. You're in charge."

  Bradley didn't answer, and Lee couldn't reach him from where he was.

  "What the fuck was that?" Hank screamed in panic. "The electronics all lit up. Some are fried. We get hit by lightning?"

  "Don't know. The LT is down, and Bradley's not answering."

  "What do we do?" Hank turned in his seat and stared wide-eyed at Lee.

  Lee grabbed the handset for the radio and keyed it; thankfully, it still worked. He had half feared the circuits were gone. "1-9, this is 1-1. Lieutenant Blackwell is down. We got hit by something."

  The radio was silent for a few moments. When the major's voice came back on, Lee could hear the fear in it. "Soldier, stop those fucking trolls before they roll over the infantry!"

  His heart pounded as adrenaline coursed through him. "Go, go, go!" he screamed at Hank. "Get me a firing angle!"

  The engine roared as Hank sped forward, bumping over the rough terrain. They heard the sound of small-arms fire as the infantry tried to engage the approaching enemy. The infantry's LAV-III-mounted Bushmasters were hitting the barricade, blowing portions of it off, but the enemy would be over them long before the barricade fell apart. Hank stomped on the brakes, jarring Lee with the sudden halt, but when he peered through his sight, he saw that Hank had placed him in a perfect firing position, facing the exposed flank of the trolls carrying the barricade. Behind the trolls, hundreds of the four-armed warriors massed, waving and pointing at Lee's vehicle. Metal projectiles pinged off their hull—crossbows? Are they shooting crossbows at us?

  Is this a joke?

  Lee opened fire, sending a long burst of fragmentation rounds directly into the trolls. The resulting explosions washed out his sight. He kept firing until his Bushmaster ran dry, then he activated the crew commander's controls to launch a salvo of eight fragmentation grenades spiraling forward to land amongst the massed warriors. As the grenades detonated, followed by the pain-filled howls of the enemy, Lee switched to the C6 coaxial machine gun and began to hose down the reeling warriors with machine-gun fire. Flames washed over his vehicle, obscuring his sight for a moment but doing no real damage. When the sights came back into focus, he saw the trolls were down, and the four-armed warriors were fleeing back down the highway, leaving behind piles of wounded and dead.

  We did it!

  A female voice came over the radio, one he had never heard before, someone who had no understanding of radio voice procedures. "Can you guys hear me? Listen, this is important. Close all the openings on your tanks. The dark elves are above you, casting magical fire into the turrets. If they can see inside your vehicles, they can set you on fire. Stay locked up."

  Lee stared at the radio in amazement. Magical fire?

  "Who the fuck was that?" Hank asked.

  The major's voice broke over the net. "All call signs, this is 1-9. That was call sign Gulf 2-2 with a civilian specialist from Task Force Devil. Do as she says. Button up, and stay buttoned up. I want all cars and foxtrot call signs ready to pull back to secondary fighting positions in one mike. Acknowledge, over."

  Lee acknowledged the major's instructions, followed by the only other surviving troop car, 1-1 Bravo. 2 Troop acknowledged next. They had lost only one car with injuries to the crew of another. The infantry Foxtrot call signs acknowledged next, but only three out of four. Lee peered through one of the crew commander's periscopes and saw that an infantry LAV-III was also on fire.

  The enemy was still moving forward left and right of the highway but much more cautiously now, and they were being cut apart by cannon and heavy machine-gun fire. Despite his anger over the deaths of his friends, Lee had to admit he was impressed that these warriors could continue to advance under such losses.

  They may have been monsters, but they were brave monsters.

  Fire washed over the glass of his periscope. We're hit! Lee's breath caught in his throat, but a moment later, he realized the fire had done nothing more
than burn their paint. He glanced up at the closed troop commander hatch, realizing with a shudder that if that hatch had still been open…

  The major's command Coyote arrived on the highway where the infantry were mounting their surviving vehicles. Accompanying the major's vehicle was the FOO LAV. Lee, still watching through the crew commander's periscope, saw that while the major's Coyote was buttoned up, two figures could be seen crammed together in the crew commander's hatch of the FOO LAV. One of the figures was pointing up.

  What?

  Moments later, a bright flash of lightning arced from the figure's outstretched hand, striking a massive winged shape in the sky, setting it aflame. Lee blinked rapidly, trying to regain his sight again. When he could see once more, all was darkness and fires again. Someone cheered over the radio, a long rebel yell of joy.

  "All call signs 1-1 and 1-2," said the OC, "move now. Move now!"

  "Don't have to tell me twice," said Lee. "Punch it, Hank."

  They sped away from the carnage, following the major's Coyote. The FOO LAV, with its weird lightning-shooting crew commander, stayed back, providing cover for them.

  EXCITEMENT COURSED through Elizabeth as another wyvern and its mage rider fell burning from the sky. That made three since the attack had started. Three down, God only knows how many more to go. Lord, forgive me. As always, the thrill of battle raced through her, like a caffeine buzz.

  She had been right: linked through Kargin's crowns, the three mag-sens were far more powerful than they could have been individually. Cassie unerringly pointed her to where the invisible wyverns and their riders were, and Elizabeth used the Brace to cast vastly overpowered lightning bolts at them—so powerful that all she needed to do was cast the bolt near the invisible dark elves. And when they did take return fire, Leela's shields protected them. As the infantry vehicles sped away, Elizabeth yelled over her shoulder to Huck, "Anybody left?"