by Ben Winston
“Understood Sir,” both privates replied.
“Now, all of us are human so as to not make the Terrans uncomfortable. Try to speak English as much as possible when dealing with our, uh, hosts. Any questions?” Wendy asked.
Both privates indicated they had no questions, and the trio flew on at treetop level straight for the village of Discovery, twenty miles further to the east.
Their arrival was about what Wendy expected though. The moment they got within a mile of the village, the idiots on the ground began firing at them. The trio ignored the weapons fire and flew on. At the edge of the large clearing where the airfield was located, Wendy and her two guards gently floated to the ground and simply began walking towards the village.
“Hold it right the fuck there! Don’t take another fucking step or we’ll kill you where you stand!” one of the soldiers that now surrounded them yelled.
“Oh bullshit!” Wendy replied which made him flush in anger. “If you could hurt us at all, you would have already done it, and we both know it. Now, I’ve come here to speak to your commanding officers. Would you be so kind as to pass the word along for me please, Sergeant?”
“Just who the hell are you?” the belligerent NCO replied.
“Lieutenant Wendy Foster, Sergeant. These two Marines are my guards. Now would you please pass my message to your commanders?” Wendy asked again.
“I’ll consider it after we get you three put in the nice cells we have for you,” the sergeant said and motioned to some soldiers.
“Are you really that stupid, Sergeant? How did you ever make it to the rank you have? Your people have been shooting at us for the last five minutes, and we don’t even have a scratch on us. Do you really think we are going to meekly submit to you? No. Now, call your commanders, or I will simply walk over to your command post myself. Do you understand?” Wendy said indicating the command post clearly marked in the village.
“Lady, you are really tryin’ my patience. You better hand over those weapons, and let us take you to your cell, or we will open fire on you right here. Do you understand that?” the sergeant said, angrily.
“If you shoot us, you will most likely hurt one of these soldiers because the bullet will ricochet off our armor. Wait, let me guess, you think I’m threatening you now right? Man, you really are an idiot!” Wendy said. She pointed to one of the troopers surrounding them. “You, Private! Go get your platoon Sergeant or Lieutenant. This idiot is about to get one of you killed,” Wendy ordered. It was clear she was used to command, because the private almost ran off to follow her orders.
“Stay put, Wills. She isn’t in command here,” the NCO said. “Okay, bitch, you asked for it. Wills! Garret, escort these three to the stockade, if they resist, shoot them!”
The two privates stepped forward and Wendy motioned for her two guards. “This idiot is no help at all, let’s go guys.” She turned and all three started walking toward the village and the command post.
“Squad! Back off and open fire! Take them down!” the sergeant ordered. The Terran soldiers backpedaled and started firing at the trio as they slowly walked towards the command post in the hut near the landing field. The white clothes that all three Alliance Marines had been carrying since leaving their own lines clearly visible.
On the front porch of the hut, Wendy could see the command officers standing outside watching the proceedings. Bullets were flying all over the place, and as she predicted would happen, one of the Terran soldiers fell to the ground, followed shortly by another, and yet another. The officers at the command post must have ordered the sergeant to stop shooting because he did soon after that. Wendy and her guards still advanced on the command post.
Near Discovery
Northwest Territories
Canada
Planet Earth
Sol System
Vulpas used their armor to quickly converge on Sergeant Tul-sa and her teammate. They had gotten a positive ID on an Arac soldier, although it had been a little smaller than they were used to. Tul-sa had managed to tag it so when Captain He’rsree arrived, she set one of the probes on the signal from the tag and launched it; they couldn’t afford to lose this Arac.
“They picked a location close to habitation, Captain. That can’t be a coincidence,” Tul-sa replied as she knelt next to her commanding officer. Since the computers in their armor were still limited, Tul-sa had to physically link her tracking unit into He’rsree’s computer in order for the drone to follow the tag Tul-sa had fired.
As she watched the drone racing through the woods on her visor, He’rsree silently hoped Eric would be able to build the upgrades for the new armor. It would be good to be able to do stuff like this without having to physically connect the suits together.
“We have no way to know, Tul-sa. Personally, I agree with you, but there is still no proof. For now, let’s just focus on finding and then killing these Shuk-pa. We can worry about their society later,” He’rsree replied. “After all, that’s why we’re recording everything.”
“Yes Sir. I’m just a little worried about how close those Terrans are,” Tul-sa replied.
The Captain nodded. “Well, those Terrans are so certain of their ability to handle any situation that I doubt anything will get them to leave. Bravery is one thing, but blind stupidity in the face of overwhelming circumstances is quite another.”
Tul-sa chuckled. “There is a human saying that goes; ‘there is a fine line between bravery and stupidity.’ I think that would definitely apply here.”
“Well, as far as we know, the Aracs haven’t started taking the Terrans yet. But, it’s only a matter of time,” He’rsree replied. “Got him! That is one fast spider!”
“I’d heard they clocked one on the surface of Jakkar II at almost eighty klicks per hour,” Tul’sa said conversationally.
He’rsree was a little distracted as she chased the critter with the drone. “The drone is bouncing back and forth between about forty and seventy. I think all the trees are slowing it down, but it sure is weaving through these trees. Whoops! It just dropped into a hole. Here we go!”
“Captain He’rsree, this is the Honor of Vengeance; recording and mapping software is on-line. Approach and secure hive entrance, wait for reinforcements before breaching. Repositioning other drones to listen for resonance echo,” the AI reported. Each of the drones emitted a special subspace signal that they used for mapping. An echo received by another drone could indicate either an area of much softer ground, or another ingress into the hive.
After only a few moments of mapping, He’rsree could tell the underground was a complex maze of tunnels and chambers. She could also see that they looked to be leading off to the east toward the village of Discovery.
Her unit, a military grouping roughly the same size as a Terran military company in terms of number of personnel, settled to the ground around the still hidden tunnel.
“Holy shit! Captain, Sergeant, I think you should see this!” one of the troopers called. He’rsree and Tul-sa moved to where the trooper had called and were surprised by his discovery. In a framework almost like a tent, a tightly woven web of fibers had been built over the entrance. The amazing thing was that the fibers seemed to disrupt light to the point that they completely hid the large hole from anyone not directly on top of it. Even ten feet away, the hole was completely camouflaged.
“Command, are you seeing this?” He’rsree asked.
“We’re seeing something, Captain, but we’re not sure of what it is. Can you describe it?” the colonel asked, proving he was online as well.
Tul-sa looked up at her commander so He’rsree could speak to command through Tul-sa’s vidlink. He’rsree nodded and addressed the Camera. “What we have here seems to be a webbing of some kind. It appears to be disrupting light to the point where it completely hides the entrance. Our suit sensors aren’t getting through it either; according to them, there simply is nothing but more ground there. There is no way Lord Cowan’s sensors drones would see thr
ough these.”
“Now that there is a drone inside the hive they can detect each other, but I believe you are correct; the drones have been fooled by this webbing. Be sure to get a sample for analysis,” Edgigly replied.
“We’ll do our best Sir,” He’rsree replied.
“For information purposes, Captain He’rsree. I have sent one of our Lieutenants that was born here into the Terran group in Discovery in an effort to get them to move. We do not believe she will be successful, but we had to at least make the attempt.” Colonel Cren’lith added.
“Considering the direction these tunnels look to be going, I can only hope she is successful, Colonel. It would be the height of coincidence for the Queen to have taken up residence right under the only village in the area,” He’rsree noted.
“Agreed, Captain. My advisers believe that when the Terran soldiers begin disappearing, the Terrans will blame us for it. If that happens we must be very careful. The Terrans will redouble their efforts against us at that point.” Edgigly said. “It is truly a sad thing that Terran greed would not keep this from happening.”
“Captain, Colonel,” AI Honor interrupted. “Excuse my interruption, but I am receiving resonant echoes from inside the village of Discovery.”
“How many echoes are you detecting, AI Honor?” Colonel Cren’lith asked.
“Six spread through the village. All appear to be under or very near buildings,” the AI replied.
“Blessed Grathis, those Terrans don’t stand a chance!” Colonel Cren’lith said.
“Agreed, Colonel. I would advise that you move in and dislodge the Terrans from the village, if they still do not relocate, you may have to take measure to save as many as you can. I will contact Admiral Vance, inform him of the situation and get permission for you to use force to get them out of there,” Edgigly said.
“I agree, Captain. I will move my command post to the village and prepare to make our assault. There are several Terran aircraft at the village that will need to be removed as well. Perhaps the pilots of those transports can be persuaded to take their brethren to a safe distance.
“I show night-fall to be a little more than an hour from now. We will need to be in place with our defenses set by the time the sun goes down. The Aracs will attack given the amount of activity there has been on the surface here,” Colonel Cren’lith said.
“What are our orders then, Colonel?” He’rsree asked reminding everyone she was still online and listening.
“Secure that entrance for the time being and set up a defense perimeter for the night. The rest of the assault force will assemble in Discovery and attempt to hold the position until morning. We will begin the assault at that time. Remain alert, He’rsree. I am certain they will attempt to use that exit in order to make a stealth approach to our position. It will be up to you to stop them,” Colonel Cren’lith explained.
Discovery Command Post
Village of Discovery
Northwest Territories
Canada
Planet Earth
Sol System
“Colonel, please listen to me; your entire unit is in grave danger!” Wendy pleaded with the stubborn officer.
“I have no doubt that you believe that, Lieutenant. However, I really doubt that you know what you’re talking about. You represent an alien power that we have been sent here to stop,” Colonel Jessup replied. “I will not base the safety of my people on the word of a junior officer in what amounts to be my adversary on this mission. Now, your presence here is disruptive. Either follow these gentlemen to a holding cell, or leave!”
“Sir, I do understand the importance of following orders. I also understand your position here. I am very familiar with the capabilities of the 82nd Airborne as I was also in your military before I was recruited into the Alliance. Sir, you are so outclassed and outnumbered you can’t even imagine it. Your weapons will have no more effect on the Aracs than they had on my guards and myself. I…” she was interrupted by her comm unit beeping at her. “Excuse me Sir, my bosses are calling,” she said and put her hand to her ear. “This is Foster, go ahead.”
“Lieutenant Wendy Foster, I assume you are not having any luck getting the Terrans to move?” Colonel Cren’lith asked.
“No Sir, I am not. I am speaking with the over-all force commander on site, but he refuses to listen. He claims that we are his enemy and therefore cannot be trusted,” Wendy replied.
“I thought as much. Please tell him I will be there to speak to him in a few minutes. We have found the hive, Lieutenant Wendy Foster; you are standing on it. When night falls, there is a very good chance that the Aracs will attack in force,” the Colonel informed her.
“Sir, I thought they couldn’t have that many troops yet, didn’t the biologists say that the Queen was still too immature to produce?” Wendy asked.
“That is what we believed. However, Vulpas engaged an Arac and followed it back to an entrance in the woods near you. Based on its size and speed, we now believe it to have been a scout. The drones we are using to explore the hive have found large caverns full of full size, mature soldiers in some kind of stasis. We can only assume that the Queen somehow reached maturity and has been producing broods. Since they are in a static condition we believe that they do not require food as yet.
“It is clear we cannot rely on any of our former assumptions at this point. We are rallying all of our troops except Vulpas to the village of Discovery in an attempt to contain the attack if it comes this night. We are also to remove the Terran soldiers from the village even if it takes stunning them and bodily throwing them on their aircraft. I am told that Admiral Vance is seeking diplomatic assistance in getting them moved, but as with all things political; it will take time.”
“Sir, what will happen to them if we cannot get them to move?” Wendy asked.
“There is a very good chance they will be killed when the Arac soldiers emerge to feed. I believe it will be tonight, but we cannot be certain. They could emerge and attack at any time,” the colonel replied. “Perhaps you should inform this Colonel Jessup that I am not human?”
“I understand Sir, and I’ll tell him,” Wendy replied.
“You have done well, Lieutenant Wendy Foster. The Terrans simply do not have the information we do, nor will they accept ours. Sometimes, the attempt is all that we are able to undertake. We will join you shortly,” the Colonel said and closed the channel.
Wendy turned back to the obviously listening officers. She looked at the Colonel. “Sir, with respect, my Commander, Colonel Cren’lith, will be arriving shortly. The hive we have been searching for has been located under this location. We will be setting up our command center and rally point for our assault. Sir, I feel I should warn you and your other officers, Colonel Cren’lith isn’t human like we are. He’s from a planet a long way away from here called Simonia. He is a rather large being, very closely resembling a dark brown gorilla. He is a very well respected commander and very good at his job. The rest of our force will also be arriving here; all tolled there will be just over seven hundred Alliance Marines. We have to set up the defenses needed in the case the Arac soldiers attack tonight.”
Jessup just shook his head slowly. “I’m sorry Lieutenant, I’m just not scared of giant spiders and talking gorillas. We will find a way to stop you, and then we’ll put your Colonel gorilla back in a cage where he belongs.”
Wendy pursed her lips at the insult the man just issued. “When your men begin disappearing Colonel, don’t blame us. We have gone out of our way to keep you dumb fucks alive, but since you insist on being eaten alive, I’m thinking it would do you wonders to watch your friends and soldiers ripped apart in front of you. Go ahead and use your precious projectile weapons. It’ll give you something to do while the Aracs rip your arms off. You have no idea what you’’re getting into here and you’re far too stupid to listen to our warnings.
“We have powered armor that even resists laser weapons fire and an Arac soldier can cut through it
like paper. We have laser pulse rifles that can penetrate any armor you have here on Earth and all we can do is try to shoot their legs off so we can kill them. So when they come boiling out of the ground and start cutting through your men like a knife through butter, just remember how invincible you are; I’m sure it’ll impress the hell out of them.” She turned and stomped out of the office the Commanding officers were using while a couple of them chuckled.
“She seems like a good officer, Henry. What do we do if she really is trying to tell us the truth?” a Major asked.
“We are too far north for spiders Major,” Captain Lafayette replied. The Captain was a member of the Canadian military and nominally commanded a company of tanks. His entire company was assigned to the mission as a liaison, but his troops and their equipment wouldn’t arrive until tomorrow. “It is much too cold for them even in summer as the evenings here are much cooler than in the US.”
“Giant spiders? Please! So we go get a couple of cans of raid and problem solved. Besides, everyone knows that spiders don’t live in hives!” Jessup scoffed and turned back to his maps.
Discovery
Northwest Territories
Canada
Planet Earth
Sol System
Although they were shot at as each unit landed in the area by the landing field surrounded by Terran troops, the Alliance soldiers simply ignored them. That indifference to them really annoyed the Terran troops until Captain Gre’trand overheard a comment about being over-run by gorillas. The Simonian Captain ordered his troops to clear a small portion of trees from an area near the village.
Four or five Alliance Marines simply shot the trees with their rifles, which made the base of the tree simply explode, dropping the tree very close to where it had stood. A few other Marines walked up to the fallen trees, some of which were very large, the Marines picked them up, one Marine per tree, and carried them to an out of the way place a few hundred yards away.
That pretty much ended the comments from the Terran troops as well as the weapons fire, but they still tried to capture every Alliance soldier that landed.
