HARM

by Peter Lok

  HARM

  by Peter Lok

  An action packed mecha vs. mecha story set in the early days of Exocrisis Blue.

  This is a work of fiction. All the characters and events portrayed in this book are fictional, and any resemblance to real people or incidents is purely coincidental.

  © Peter Lok, 2012. All rights Reserved.

  HARM

  The heavy cockpit hatch set in the giant robot's lower chest sealed with a hiss then a dull thud. Internal cockpit panels and displays immediately lit up. Second lieutenant Joshua Scott finished strapping himself in then followed with the final plug hookups for his suit. He then put on his silvery cybernetic helmet that would use his mental impulses to help control the machine. You could clearly see his face through the wrap-around visor of the helmet, but the inside of the helmet showed a three dimensional view from the perspective of the robot’s head to the pilot. He completed the biometric security check, and punched the red Start button. The machine began to hum to life as its electronics powered up.

  "Welcome back, Lieutenant Scott," greeted the synthesized voice of his robot's AI.

  “Glad to be back X-14.” He replied. He had been piloting X-14 for weeks now, and various experimental models of these new humanoid robots for months. It was something he was adapting to, something that he was good at, but he missed flying fighters. “Start up progress?”

  "HARM start up in progress… Master power on… System initializing… Control systems ready… Mobility systems ready… Sensors and targeting ready… Weapons ready… Communications ready… Network linkage ready… Control synchronization initiated… Loading mission data…"

  Cockpit visuals showed technicians on the hangar floor uncoupling external power and data feeds after finishing the final checks on his robot. The hangar was also bustling with additional activity. Large trucks were being loaded with equipment, tools, and supplies. Everything that was useful and moveable was being packed up for a move to a safer General Automata Corporation facility.

  His tactical display showed friendly positions and the advancing enemy units in real time. Tactical orders, requests for support, and status messages scrolled down the side. Things were looking pretty bad, Joshua thought to himself, as the alien advance was only 15 km from this facility. The aliens, also known as the Blue Newts from corpses recovered on the battlefield, had made a surprise breakthrough of the main defensive line. They seemed to be on a direct path towards Huntsville Alabama, otherwise known as Space City USA. Unfortunately the path of the alien advance would take them right through the research facility where Joshua was. Worse yet, the fighting was nearing a refugee camp of 40,000 that was also in the area.

  Joshua continued to listen into the chatter on the army com-nets, some of it panicked. He was nervous too, but focused on his work while finishing the pre-start sequence on his HARM X-14. HARM was short for Humanoid Assault and Reconnaissance Machine. His machine was a 13 metre tall bipedal robot that vaguely resembled a medieval knight with its thick torso, massive joints, blocky armour plates, and a squat helmet with a horizontal slit on top. There was no sword though. Instead, his right arm had a coil-gun attached to it, an electromagnetic cannon which was his main weapon, and his left arm had a smaller automatic cannon built into it. While large, the HARM was nimble for its size, with a near full range of human motion, the ability to rocket jump 20 metres up, and was able to run at 80 kph.

  The brains at General Automata Corporation had hastily assembled the robot he was in over a three week period. It was the culmination of work that built on many earlier prototypes and hundreds of simulated computer models. Sometime during development, everyone had started calling the big robots “mechas,” following a Japanese naming convention. Joshua wasn’t big into science fiction, especially Japanese science fiction, but he sure felt like he was living it.

  His mecha was the first production prototype off the robotic manufacturing line. It was so new that the cockpit hadn't been finished by the technicians. Inside the cockpit, there were unpainted surfaces everywhere, empty electronics bays, and both the electronic camouflage and ejection systems weren’t even operational. More importantly, the onboard visual displays, key instruments, and robot controls were fully functional. Despite looking new on the inside, they had been busy field testing it for the last week. The yellow, external paint job was now dirtied, scuffed, and scarred on the outside from the operational tests, and shooting exercises. He was quite nimble at piloting the machine now, but had resigned himself to his robot’s yellow paint scheme as it was originally a test model that was never supposed to see combat. Combat that was now necessary as an alien breakthrough in the last day had changed things dramatically.

  Inside the cockpit, a pair of joysticks with thumb controls were located in front of the pilot. These were the manual backups to operate the machine, but this could just make it walk and work its arms in the simplest manner. The real controls for the HARM were linked the cybernetic 3D display helmet and the motion capture suit that the pilot wore. The tight-fitting suit was plugged into a skeletal support frame that provided both physical support for the human operator and force-feedback to show how the machine was responding to commands. Even though their cockpits were 9 metres off the ground, pilots felt like they were wearing the 30 ton machine in a manner similar to how battlesuit infantry felt when they were wearing their powered exoskeletons. When you first piloted a HARM you had to adjust to the disorienting size perspective and the actual capabilities and limitations of the machine.

  Initialization error 22 - cerebral synchronization requires restart. The error message flashed on Scott's helmet display. “It appears the interfacepickups require adjustment,” the AI responded, “I will attempt to correct.”

  Crap, Joshua thought to himself, not again. He'd have to restart again through the neuro-syncing interlocks again. The mecha systems themselves were ready as he had green lights right across the board, but the vitally important cybernetic control interfaces were being difficult again. The cybernetic interfaces read his mind to enhance the motion capture control of the robot to a new level.

  "Don't worry," Janet Chan, the chief engineer, spoke through the visual com-link. "We see it. Fred's working on it right now too. Once we get it going, you'll be fine.” Janet was an older Chinese lady, a formidable woman with a keen intellect. She actually scared Joshua a bit with her personality. Some of the staff referred to her as the Dragon Lady. If you didn't do your job right you would hear about it. “They're adjusting the primary protocols right now - the threshold values shifted on the last set of replacement neural sensors."

  "It better work or I'm a sitting duck in this tin can," Joshua replied with a hint of sarcasm. There had been serious glitches with the mecha before, but they seemed to have been ironed out. "I'd be better off with a battlesuit and a rocket launcher. Better yet, get me a fighter."

  "Why don't we let our security boys play with the gorilla suits," Janet replied with just a hint of a grin, "we need to get the big guns out there to back them up – and you didn’t do all that well last time you were in a plane if I recall.” Joshua was surprise to hear her joke – it was rare. She then asked, “How are the power levels on your end? The chemical fusion plant was fluctuating just a little last night but our telemetry shows a clean curve now."

  Joshua checked his visor HUD, thought power status and noted the displayed readings matched. "Power's good. We'll see how it goes at full output." He did expected problems, but not serious problems as the HARM had proven itself already, but the machine still unnerved him a little.

  The machine he was riding in would have been technically impossible to build seven months ago. The technology to build something like it, something much cruder and different existed, but this mecha used alien technology. Alien technology
had been captured or recovered, then reverse engineered to build new weapons, chemical fusion power plants, synthetic muscle, active molecular armour, and even cybernetic mental interfaces. The governments of earth, with their best scientists, most powerful computers, and massive, around the clock, desperation had worked miracles through international cooperation and collaborative miracles due to the Internet.

  Japanese robot scientists, Russian physicists, American computer scientists, Canadian nanotech researchers, German weapons engineers, and a host of help from other nations had learned and innovated from the fragments of alien technology. Even with the massive devastation to modern society from the alien war, communication and collaboration went on through the nets. Thanks to advanced computer directed manufacturing and fully automated factories new designs were created, prototyped, and tested with astonishing speed. These same robotic factories also enabled countries to keep manufacturing, despite the war losses and supply chain disruptions, as manufacturing was no longer centralized in Asia as it was at the beginning of the 21st century.

  The HARM’s AI computer voicesuddenly spoke. “Cerebral synchronization complete. Please begin operational validation tests.”

  Joshua moved his right arm, followed by his left arm, then flexed his fingers, causing the three fingered grippers on the mecha’s arms to open and close. He then rotated his head ensuring the sensors in the mecha’s head were tracking his motion. Walking forward two steps he then turned 360 degrees both left and right. Finally, he mentally activated his offensive and defensive systems to complete the testing, but not before he double checked the power couplings to the coil-gun as it drew it’s power from the mecha’s power plant.

  “HARM X-14 is ready for operation,” the AI spoke out.

  “Great.” Joshua spoke out. “All weapons and systems check out. X-14 is moving out. Will head to Waypoint Charlie to rendezvous with Bravo Company, 3rd armoured battalion.”

  “Open the bunker doors,” Janet directed. “Inform General Garcia that X-14 is on its way to join the blocking force.”

  The mecha walked forward up the ramp from the underground hanger to bunker exit. At low speed the full of extent of its agility wasn’t evident at all. It moved like a lumbering four story high giant, but without the sound of heavy whining of motors or hydraulic actuators. The synthetic muscles that powered the machine flexed and pulled it along with only a slight whirring sound that was drowned out by the thumping of its heavy footsteps.

  “Good luck, Joshua,” Janet spoke, even as the technical crews in the hanger all raised a cheer. “Go kick some alien butt. It’s time for some payback.”

  “I’ll be ready – X-14 and I – we’ll do the job. We’ll stop them or buy you more time.” Joshua pivoted the mecha around and gave a thumbs up with the mecha to his crew, raising more cheers.

  When Joshua was clear of the bunker, the massive doors closed again and Janet spoke again off comm. “Continue with the evacuation of all personnel to Site B. This facility is shutting down as scheduled.”

  ****

  Joshua followed his visual direction indicators to run X-14 towards Waypoint Charlie once he cleared of the bunker. His main gun was cradled across the front in the travel position between both of his arms to reduce strain on the gun arm from the heavy mass of the tubular coil-gun. The machine's synthetic muscles flexed to pushed it to maximum speed within seconds. He dodged and leapt over abandoned vehicles, trees, fences, and drainage ditches with ease as he headed for the 8 km distant waypoint.

  Sensors were set to maximum range and he did not pick up any enemy units on the tactical display. A scattering of friendly units in blue that were shown around him. Zooming out, using the Army tactical net data, he could see friendly units retreating from the south east at high speed towards the defensive position at Waypoint Charlie. Behind them were a dozen red markers indicating the advancing spider-mechs of the Newts. A long series of blue markers suddenly appeared on the southern edge of the display. Identifying the new friendly units elicited a groan from Joshua. It was a refugee convoy heading to Huntsville that had just entered the combat zone. Even as he watched, two spider-mechs stopped then began moving south west to intercept.

  The Blue Newts had brutally attacked the Earth ten months earlier. There had been no communications, just a massive meteor bombardment from the asteroid belt. Astronomers had spotted the incoming meteor swarm late and governments had to prepare for the worst with barely a month of warning. Although these meteors were not global extinction causing events they were large enough and fast enough to obliterate cities on impact. A single meteor strike would have been bad, but there were hundreds of them. Several were much larger too, capable of causing sizable tsunamis in both the North Atlantic and Eastern Pacific Oceans where they were projected to strike.

  The space faring nations of the 21st century only had limited space-based weapons capability to target a just over a third of the swarm with nuclear weapons. The largest rocks and the ones striking on home territory were given priority. The United Nations was in an uproar over this self-serving behavior, but the nations with the means protected their own first. Still, a few weapons were diverted from meteors that would strike in Siberia or North Dakota to save major cities like Karachi and Sydney.

  The nets had been buzzing with conspiracy theories about the approaching meteor shower as no one could explain it. Was is a mystery swarm from deep space? A cometary impact in the asteroid belt? No one knew the cause. Everyone did agree it was unbelievable that over half would strike near or directly on large cities. Still, no one really believed the alien attack theories it until it was too late.

  The meteors would strike over a 12 hour period, impacting over most of the planet as it rotated. Ninety percent of the intercepted rocks were destroyed, including the largest ones. The world breathed a sign of relief that was cut off as the remaining meteors struck home. The devastation had been intense around the globe with fires raging out of control everywhere. Casualties were still in the millions despite the evacuations. The Earth was covered in a thin smoky haze during the day and burned a fiery red at night.

  Hundreds of cities spanning the globe had been destroyed or damaged. In the United States, Grand Forks, Wichita and Knoxville had been hit, but an interception malfunction had allowed San Diego to be destroyed by a nearby impact. Tragically, Toronto in Canada, had also been devastated when another interception had only partially succeeded. In Europe, Sheffield was a smoking crater along with Dusseldorf and Krakow. Nairobi was gone and so was Hyderabad. In China, the destruction of Shanghai had stunned the country due to another failed interception.

  As disaster relief efforts ramped up the aliens revealed themselves. Their invasion fleet unmasked and their fusion drive flares began appearing in space as they decelerated towards Earth. Global hysteria peaked and mass panic ensued. Rescue efforts broke down, but the pre-disaster mobilization of military forces allowed central authority in most nations to keep order.

  The first six alien landers came down in the eastern United States near Richmond, Virginia. They were met by F-24E interceptors of the First Fighter Wing out of Langley AFB. The first battle between alien and human was very short. The F-24Es gave a good showing and took down two landers, but took 70% losses in return. Each group of landers were met by airpower and the outcomes were similar. This type of encounter occurred repeated around the globe except in the third world where the local air forces were generally swept aside. The battlefield skies were soon cleared of military aircraft for both sides as it was such a lethal environment to be in. It was missile versus laser and neither side was well prepared for the other.

  A protracted ground war ensued as the aliens had landed all over the countryside. Alien concentrations were particularly heavy in the south eastern United States where they seemed to want to consolidate their position. Fighting was heavy, and millions of civilians perished as they couldn’t escape the aliens fast enough. More cities burned and highways were clogged with refugees.
The fighting had been going on for almost seven months now.

  The battle for Atlanta had started two months ago and the city had burned again after the defenders had put up a protracted fight around it and in it. Atlanta had ultimately fallen and refugees streamed west and south. General Jose Garcia had used brilliant strategy and tactics in its defense, but the cost of resistance had been high. After the fall of Atlanta, the aliens began moving towards the north west to cut America in half. As the aliens expanded their territory they killed everyone and reduced cities to ruins in a scorched earth policy. There was not mercy offered, in fact, there was no communication at all.

  ***

  A bing sound alerted Joshua to an incoming visual communication. An image of General Garcia popped up in a window. “X-14, come in,” spoke the General in a gravelly voice.

  “General, Sir,” Joshua replied.

  “At ease, Lieutenant. I have a situation here.” Garcia looked very tired. He paused and rubbed one hand over his head, ruffling his field cap. He then fixed his gaze on Joshua.

  “Can your fancy machine really do what Dr. Chan says it can do?”

  “That and some more, Sir.” Joshua confidently confirmed. “Best way is to show you.”

  “We both know I have orders to protect the research lab, but you might have noticed that a large refugee convoy is out in the open to the south of your position. There’s over a thousand civilians in that convoy. They only have a light escort with them so they’re sitting ducks for the spiders going against them. I'm stretched thin right now and you are the only unit close enough to get them through. I’m ordering you to take out those spiders and rejoin the blocking force ASAP.”

  “I have the convoy marked,” Joshua confirmed, “I’m on my way.”

  “You stop those spiders, son. Save those refugees and give me some good news. Stay alive, I don’t need any more dead heroes.” The general then paused. “Good hunting.”