Wade gave a weak smile and nodded. “I guess it runs in our blood. For generations the Kleese have fought wars on their terms; we’re going to change that. The Zaltule may be the warrior caste, but they’ve never fought an enemy quite like us. That was apparent when we attacked their home system. They made a colossal mistake in suspending their attacks for such a long time while they fortified their core worlds. It shows they’re not infallible and are susceptible to innovative tactics. We’re going to test that notion and see if we can’t throw the Kleese another curve ball.”
“A curve ball?” asked Marken, looking confused. He still wasn’t familiar with all the idioms Humans used in their speech. “What’s a curve ball?”
Wade quickly explained and the others nodded their understanding. “I’ll be returning to the Solar System in a few days and we’ll set our new plan into motion.”
Marken nodded his acceptance. He was concerned about Ryan Nelson being involved. He recalled how upset Wade had been when he found out Ryan and his Marines had been taken prisoner by the Kleese.
In the back of his mind, he was satisfied with the way the war was going. His people had chosen the Humans to destroy the Kleese Empire, and Marken was pleased with the current direction the Humans were taking. He and Harnett had spent many long hours talking about the Humans and how they were different from most races the Kiveans had previously encountered. He still didn’t believe the Kleese, and the Zaltule in particular, realized just how big a danger the Humans were. He strongly suspected they were shortly going to find out.
-
In Freedom Station recently promoted Captain Ryan Nelson was putting his Marines through their paces. They were all wearing Type Four battlesuits and attempting to take a ridge in the training facility. Sergeant McElroy and a platoon of Marines in Type Three battlesuits were entrenched upon the ridge, firing down at Ryan’s advancing Marines. The Marines on both sides were using stunners, which were quite effective at immobilizing a battlesuit when its anti-stunner equipment was turned off. After the Marines had been captured by the Kleese on Diadem, the Kiveans had come up with new gear to prevent stunners from immobilizing a Marine inside a Type Three or Type Four battlesuit.
-
“Damn stunners,” muttered Corporal Alexander Parker as he ducked down beneath a stone wall. “I hate that stinging sensation when you’re hit. It feels like you’re being bitten by a hundred bees.”
“Then keep your big ass down,” replied Corporal Lauren Adams. She and Alexander were good friends even though he had been trying for months to get her in bed with him. “At least we’re not going up Charring Mountain.”
Ryan was listening to the exchange and couldn’t help smiling at the banter between the two. Since their initial training in the Type Four battlesuits and their harrowing experience with the Kleese, as well as being stranded on Delton, they had become a tight-knit group as well as close friends. Normally this would be frowned upon, but the size of the Human race had been drastically reduced by the Kleese almost to the point of extinction. Now clones made up a significant portion of the population and nearly 40 percent of Ryan’s Marines were clones.
The training center they were in was inside a large dome on the exterior of Freedom Station. The station had been seized from the Kleese and brought back to the Solar System in a daring raid. A second station was also seized and taken to the Lanolth System. The entire station was one hundred and twenty kilometers across and twenty-four kilometers thick. The domes covering its upper hull ranged anywhere in size from ten to twenty kilometers across. The smaller domes were normally home to the humanoid races that served the Kleese upon their ships and maintained the stations. They were currently home to the seventy thousand crewmembers who had decided to stay and work with the Humans.
Ryan took a moment to study the ridge in front of him with the sensors in his command suit. He allowed himself to smile seeing Sergeant McElroy had set up his platoon to provide overlapping fire down the slope. McElroy was a dedicated Marine and very crafty when it came to engaging the enemy. However, McElroy still hadn’t taken into consideration the difference between a Type Three battlesuit and a Type Four. The Type Fours were smaller, faster, and much more nimble and Ryan would now use those advantages to take the ridge.
“Sergeant Hunter,” Ryan said over the suit’s comm. “Are your people in position?”
“Yes, Captain,” she answered promptly. “I don’t believe they’ve spotted us.”
“Lieutenant Guthrie, what about your platoon?”
“Ready for the diversion,” she replied. “They’ll never know what hit them.”
“Corporals Parker and Alexander, you can resume your advance.” Ryan was curious to see how Sergeant McElroy responded to the three-pronged attack he was about to face.
-
“All right, Alexander,” Lauren called out as she signaled for her squad to move out. “Let’s see if you can keep up with us!”
Alexander swore as he saw Lauren begin bounding toward the ridge along with her squad. The Type Four battlesuits allowed its wearer to run at a speed faster than an Olympic sprinter. “Let’s go,” he ordered as he stood up and gestured to his Marines. “Let’s see how many kills we can get.”
-
Ryan watched with interest as Sergeant McElroy’s Marines began laying down heavy stunner fire at the advancing Marines. With a grimace, he saw several fall and lay still as they were hit.
“Lieutenant Guthrie, you may begin your attack.”
From the right flank of the ridge, twenty Marines in Type Four battlesuits suddenly rose up in the air using the antigravity plates in the boots of their suits. The plates generated a repelling force that allowed limited flight. They began moving rapidly toward the ridge in a zigzag pattern while firing their stunners at Sergeant McElroy’s Marines.
Ryan waited twenty seconds before giving his next order. “Sergeant Hunter, you may commence your attack.” Ryan focused his attention back on the ridge to see how the sergeant reacted. If all went as planned, Ryan’s Marines would have complete control of the ridge in the next ten minutes.
-
Casey nodded at hearing Ryan’s command and then signaled to her six Marines to follow her. She wanted to complete her assignment to impress Ryan. Since their return from Delton, she and the captain had been living together. It had been the happiest time of her life, and she knew that shortly it might have to come to an end as they couldn’t allow their emotions to get in the way of combat operations. She was disappointed that the change was necessary, but there would be other times in the future they could be together.
Casey and her Marines were on the far left flank of the ridge and using an arroyo with a small running stream in it to conceal their movement. If Ryan’s plan worked, Sergeant McElroy’s platoon would be focused on the attack on their center and right flank and would never see Casey’s squad approaching.
They were moving as rapidly as possible as they wanted to hold casualties down from the attacking Marines under Lieutenant Guthrie, Corporal Parker, and Corporal Adams. Casey knew if any of them lost a lot of their Marines, she would be in for it when they returned to the barracks.
“I’ve got movement,” Private Juan Rios said over the squad’s comm channel. Juan was from Luna City and had attended the fleet training center there.
“So do I,” added Private Mary Hatterson. Mary was a clone like Casey and they had known each other since the Academy. “I don’t think they’ve spotted us.”
They carefully continued to move along the arroyo and then began climbing around a small cliff face which should put them directly above Sergeant McElroy’s position.
Casey had her sensors probing every possible hiding place but all she could see were two Marines in Type Three battlesuits watching the battle on the lower slope of the ridge. They didn’t seem to be aware of Casey and her squad.
Spreading out across the top of the ridge Casey saw most of McElroy’s troops were now in plain sight below wher
e they were firing upon the advancing Type Four battlesuits.
“It worked,” said Private Rios, as he pointed his stun rifle in the direction of the enemy.
It was that moment that Casey heard a laugh over the general command network, which allowed all of them to communicate, including Sergeant McElroy.
“Not this time,” the sergeant said.
Before Casey could respond, she felt her suit go limp and she felt as if she had been stung by a swarm of bees. She moaned from the pain. She hated getting hit by a stunner. Where the hell are they, she wondered as she fell to the ground? In her HUD, she saw the rest of her squad had been hit as well. It wasn’t going to be a fun time in the barracks tonight.
-
Ryan was astonished to see all of Casey’s squad suddenly switch from bright green icons to steady glowing red ones in his HUD. With a feeling of dread, he had a hunch he’d underestimated Sergeant McElroy once more. Standing up from behind the wall he had been crouching behind, he began scanning the ridge to see if he could spot the trap the sergeant had laid. Sure enough, just behind Casey’s squad two Marines in Type Three battlesuits were visible. They had been hiding behind some large boulders, which blocked sensor scans from revealing their position. He also saw that between Lieutenant Guthrie, Corporal Adams, and Corporal Parker he had lost eight more Marines. With a deep sigh, he knew he wasn’t going to be able to take the ridge, not without sacrificing most of his Marines.
“Everyone pull back,” he ordered over his comm, feeling disgruntled at giving the sergeant another victory. The sergeant was a great leader and excellent at defensive strategy. The sergeant’s biggest problem was his offensive tactics; too often Sergeant McElroy was hesitant to act quickly in situations that were fluid or rapidly changing. However, when it came to defense, there was none any better.
-
“At least I didn’t get stunned this time,” Corporal Parker said as he pulled back with his four surviving Marines. The other two were still lying stunned at the foot of the ridge.
“You were lucky,” Corporal Adams said as she pulled back with her three survivors. “As big a target as you are you should have been nailed almost immediately.”
The two squads joined back up and continued to fall back to the assembly area. Once everyone was there, Captain Olivia Morris would reactivate everyone’s disabled suits.
Corporal Parker walked over to Lauren and patted her suit on the rear with his right hand. “How’s that feel?”
Lauren spun around and slapped Alexander’s hand away. “I’ve told you before to keep your hands off me!”
“Oh, you know you like it,” Alexander said laughing as he turned and walked away. He really enjoyed teasing Lauren. She just needed to loosen up a little.
Lauren stood fuming. She liked Alexander and at times was even a little tempted to flirt with him, but he needed to be kept in his place. Without a moment’s hesitation, she raised her stun rifle and shot Alexander in the back.
“Damn, Lauren!” yelled Alexander as his suit shut down and he felt the stinging sensation from the stunner. “I was only joking!” Alexander tumbled to the ground to lay immobile face down.
“So am I,” Lauren said as she turned and continued on toward the assembly area.
The other squad members said nothing and stepped around the prostrate corporal. This was the third time Lauren had shot him at the end of a drill.
-
Ryan saw Corporal Parker’s green icon suddenly switch to red, indicating he had been stunned. With a heavy sigh, he shook his head. He had a strong suspicion Lauren was involved. Lauren and Alexander spent a lot of their free time with Ryan and Casey. The two didn’t date, but they were good friends, and there was no doubt in Ryan’s mind if Lauren were willing Alexander would take their relationship to a much more intimate level. He wondered what Alexander had done this time to infuriate Lauren; it seemed that after a while the corporal would get tired of her stunning him as he hated the stinging sensation. Ryan would talk to the two once more. While Alexander had probably deserved what Lauren had done to him, he couldn’t allow Lauren to continue to stun the other corporal every time they had an argument.
“I see that Alexander’s icon just changed from green to red,” Casey said over the command frequency. “I assume Lauren stunned him again.” Since she was wearing a command suit, she could still communicate though she was immobile at the top of the ridge.
“I assume so,” Ryan answered with a sigh.
-
Colonel Dylan Winfrey allowed a smile to cross his face at hearing the exchange over the command channel.
“She can’t keep shooting him,” Captain Olivia Morris commented with a frown. Olivia was formerly with the British Special Forces and was heavily involved in training for the Type Four battlesuits. Colonel Winfrey had been her commander back then and still was.
“I know,” answered Dylan. “They’re just blowing off some steam. I’ll make sure Ryan addresses the problem though I suspect from what he was saying he already plans on doing just that. What’s your assessment of Captain Nelson’s people?”
“They’re the best we have,” answered Olivia without hesitation. “My only concern is how close they are to one another. Hell, sir, Captain Nelson’s been sleeping with Sergeant Hunter.”
“Times have changed,” sighed Dylan. “If we restricted fraternization between our Marines we would have a revolt on our hands. We’re fighting for our very survival. From our latest surveys, we estimate 28 percent of our military personnel are paired up with someone in their units. It’s a good way for them to relieve the tension they’re experiencing.”
“That’s all well and good, sir, as long as it doesn’t affect their fighting capability.”
“Are Captain Nelson’s Marines ready for their mission?”
Olivia hesitated briefly. “I wish they weren’t. The mission we’re sending them on is highly dangerous, and they’re bound to suffer some casualties. These are all good people, sir.”
“This is war,” Colonel Winfrey responded grimly. “We lost Major Stevens and Colonel Stratford when they were abducted by the Kleese.”
“Ryan told me how they died,” Olivia said in a quieter voice. “They died as heroes.”
“We’ll lose more in the coming months.”
Colonel Winfrey looked across the training facility. He well remembered how intent Major Stevens had been about the arduous training for the Type Four suits. Captain Nelson’s group had been the first to complete the course and be deployed to combat. They had all nearly paid with their lives on Diadem. Sadly, many of them hadn’t come back from being abducted by the Kleese.
Olivia looked at the returning Marines in their Type Four suits as they came out onto the parade ground in front of the barracks. With a deep sigh, she pressed the button to reactivate all the suits that had fallen victim to stunners. She also sent out the recall order for Sergeant McElroy and his Marines. Captain Nelson had been the one to suggest that Sergeant McElroy and his people be included in this training. From what she had seen so far of the sergeant’s performance, Ryan had been right in making the suggestion.
“I’ll contact Fleet Admiral Kelly and General Mitchell and tell them the mission is a go,” Dylan said. “The new assault ships are ready and have been tested.”
“They’re more powerful than our original battlecruisers,” commented Olivia.
“They need to be,” Dylan responded. “They have to keep our Marines alive and we’re going a long way.”
-
Ryan was sitting in the mess hall eating his evening meal along with Autumn, Casey, Lauren, Alexander, and Juan.
“I think we should go astro gliding again on our next leave,” suggested Juan. “We had a ball last time.”
“Until that asshole showed up,” Lauren said pointedly.
“People have grown a lot more accepting of clones now,” Juan replied. “My cousin said there have been very few incidents in Luna City recently.”
&
nbsp; “Same on Vesta,” added Ryan. “I spoke to my parents the other day and they say things have changed a lot.”
“The war is becoming more serious,” commented Autumn as she speared a carrot with her fork. “My brother recently moved to Mars and he says things are changing there also.”
“I think all the refugees we’ve taken in has helped to curb a lot of the hostility. We have the Kiveans, the Deltons, and the Talts all living in asteroids in the Solar System now. They’ve brought some valuable technologies with them that have been introduced all over.” Ryan knew this was making a huge difference.
In most Human colonies in the Solar System, it wasn’t unusual to see one of the three alien races that now called this their home helping out building new infrastructure or showing Humans how to use the new technologies. There were also visitors from some of the Alliance worlds on occasion. The news channels were now full of features on different alien worlds and their cultures, particularly those of the Alliance. Humanity had learned the hard way they were not alone in the universe. It was a lesson they would never forget.
“When do we deploy?” asked Autumn as she looked expectantly at Ryan. “This training is getting boring and I suspect Alexander is getting tired of Lauren stunning him.”
“I’m not sure, but I suspect it’ll be shortly. We’ve gone through a lot of training in the last few months. Then Ryan shifted his gaze over to Alexander and Lauren. “Lauren, you have to quit shooting Alexander with your stun rifle. It’s not setting a good example for your Marines.”
“It was my fault,” Alexander interrupted before Lauren could say anything. “I pissed her off and she blasted me.”
Lauren looked surprised at Alexander taking the blame. “I’ll stop,” she promised. “I need to control my temper better. It’s just that sometimes Alexander knows exactly what buttons to push.”
“Or feel,” Casey said with a mischievous grin. Lauren had been the one who had helped to show her how to act and feel more like a Human woman.
Galactic Empire Wars: Insurrection (The Galactic Empire Wars Book 5) Page 3
