“We’ll be pushing the troops to the point of exhaustion,” Wilkes pointed out. “Especially in this humidity.”
“That’s a risk we’ll have to take,” Talbot said decisively. “The Irians can’t be allowed to call the shots any more.”
Talbot had Wilkes drive the troops hard. After descending the southern arm of the ridge and rejoining the others, the host covered several miles of dense jungle in the stifling afternoon. Normally Talbot would allow the engineers to forage and pursue their specializations, but there was no time. They marched until the steaming thickness of the jungle gave way to a light woodland. The terrain rose gradually until they were running the lip of another ridge, this one overlooking a wide, graceful valley to the southwest. By this stage the light was fading quickly. It was easy to forget that a typical Avari day was less than sixteen Terran hours.
Talbot pushed his way along the column, his legs heavy and thick from the day’s trek. Night had already fallen in the valley below. But there, nestled in the pitch black vegetation, glowed a series of lights arranged in a square.
“They’re setting up camp as quickly as they can,” Talbot said grimly. “If we’d stumbled into that valley tomorrow they would’ve given us hell.”
“Our troops aren’t ready for a frontal attack,” Wilkes said, appearing alongside Talbot. “But that doesn’t mean we can’t cause some mischief.”
Talbot grinned at his commando. It was clear the Irians didn’t rate the Terran host at all. They wouldn’t have expected the humans to follow through the jungle so quickly. Talbot had every intention of giving his troops a much needed rest - to push them further would be folly. But if a small - very small - insertion team could slip into that camp undetected, Talbot could make his first surprise attack of the virtual war.
“You and me,” he said to Wilkes. “No one else. We go, we lay a shit at their doorstep, we come back.”
“I like your plan,” Wilkes said. “Though I think it’s too sophisticated.”
As expected, Fielding didn’t approve.
“You’re our leader,” she said. “Throwing yourself in there is fucking ridiculous.”
She’d kept her voice low and private, otherwise Talbot would’ve reprimanded her for insubordination.
“What’s gotten into you lately?” she went on. “Are you sure you’ve got it together?”
“Never been surer,” Talbot said confidently. “For once we’re the ones making the play - Ashby will hate that.”
Fielding glowered at Talbot as he geared up. It made sense that he and Wilkes be the ones to go. No one else had assault rifles, which were superb clearance weapons if things went haywire.
“Set your people up along the ridge,” Talbot said to Fielding. “If you see an alien, shoot it.”
There was scattered laughter amongst the soldiers, but Laura was far from impressed.
“You’re reckless,” she said. “We don’t need errors of judgment just when things are turning around.”
“Let’s talk again later,” Talbot said with a cocky grin. He’d only just detected signs that his crew were warming to him and he wanted to ride the wave to the shore.
“How long do you get?” Quantum asked, ever practical. “Before we need to withdraw?”
“Two hours,” Talbot said. “Go for the beacons and stay mobile.”
14
Talbot and Wilkes hustled through the dusk-shrouded undergrowth, descending into the valley at a rapid pace. Talbot had marked a distant rock outcrop as the general direction to follow, but the landmark was now indistinguishable in the blackness. The problem was the cloud cover - without Avari’s moon, tracking and orientation would be difficult.
On the other hand, the dry, moonless night was as close to perfect for skulking across enemy lines as the soldiers could hope for. The Terran pair would be right next to the enemy base before they knew it. Talbot tried not to think about the various stings and bites he received as he pushed through an undergrowth shimmering with insect chirp.
Wilkes slowed and dropped to one knee. Respecting the man’s experience, Talbot followed suit.
“Trip wires,” the commando said.
Talbot looked over his shoulder. Sure enough, by the dim luminescence of a generator-fed light, the silhouette of a knee-high cross wire could be seen.
“Would’ve missed it completely if it wasn’t dripping with something,” Wilkes said.
“Acid, poison, who knows?” Talbot said. “I’m glad we didn’t find out the hard way. And how did they get trip wires and camp lights anyway?”
“We probably had them too,” Wilkes said. “In fact, they’re probably ours, remember?”
“True enough,” Talbot muttered. The loss of that quad on Regal was still hard to swallow.
“I can’t see anything else,” Talbot said.
“Just sentries,” Wilkes said, pointing out a pair of slow-moving Irian dragoons in the foliage some twenty yards beyond the trip wire. “They haven’t had enough time to dig pits or anything that elaborate.”
“Just as well,” Talbot said, patting his comrade on the back. “Let’s go cause some trouble.”
A guttural bellow reverberated across the valley. Talbot threw Wilkes a quizzical glance - was that inside or outside the camp? Sounded like a large creature in any case. The pair waited until the sentries had moved on. Wilkes was about to rush forward when Talbot gripped his arm.
“Two more,” he said, dropping to the grass again. “Classic defensive ruse. Two pairs close together.”
“Seems neither of us are too old to learn,” Wilkes said with a smile.
When the way was finally clear, the men hustled forward, taking care when negotiating the trip wire. These Irians were devilish, and Talbot half expected another trap just beyond the wire. Nothing, but his nerves took a battering, which in itself was a small victory for the enemy.
The camp was a hive of activity. Ashby had certainly chosen a decent position. A dry, flat location under the splayed canopy of several tingle trees. From the sound of it, a babbling stream ran close to the far side. The invaders crouched within a dense shrub and watched a clutch of Irians erecting palisades.
“Foragers,” Wilkes said. “Extremely gifted in procuring resources. They can also work minerals and have access to special construction schematics.”
“Yeah, in some ways those guys scare me the most,” Talbot said. “A well-resourced Irian unit is nigh unbeatable.”
“Freeze,” Wilkes said suddenly. A sentinel sat by a newly-erected palisade, staring directly at the Terran pair. Talbot’s heart lurched, but something kept him from running.
“Why isn’t he moving?” he whispered. The pair studied the thing for a full minute.
“It’s just a shell,” Wilkes said. “Deactivated. Maybe recharging.”
“Yeah, well, it scared the shit out of me,” Talbot said. “You think we could …”
“Not a chance,” Wilkes said, reading his comrade’s mind. “Strictly for Irians.”
“Look beyond the palisades,” Talbot said. “A land of opportunity.”
Through the metal sheets the pair could just see the corner of a cage. A black tail flicked into view occasionally.
“That’s what we heard before,” Talbot said. “Irian dragoons can level up in animal husbandry. My guess is they’ve identified a local animal they can tame. Sounds like there’s several in there.”
Wilkes frowned. “Mounted Irian dragoons would be tough to beat. And fast. They could travel from beacon to beacon in no time.”
“Exactly,” Talbot said. “You know, Wilkes, I’ve always wanted to be a animal conservationist.”
“I don’t believe that for a second,” Wilkes said. “But I suppose you could try.”
“Here’s the deal,” Talbot said, warming to their task. “I release those cages. “You lay photon charges. Sound like a plan?”
Wilkes nodded in satisfaction
.
“Meet you back on the hill,” he said.
“Where we can watch our handiwork,” Talbot enthused. “Let’s move out before the sentries come back.”
Talbot waited while Wilkes advanced - the commando needed time to lay his charges. A trickle of sweat pooled in the hollow at the base of his neck. The air was thick with crushing humidity and the hum of insects. His senses seemed acutely attuned to every bob and sway of vegetation in the immediate vicinity.
The cautious rhythm of two sentries faded away somewhere behind him. After a couple of minutes he slithered forward like a boa constrictor, feeling at one with the jungle. He crossed several yards of open ground, pausing only to deactivate a camp light on the way. Lovingly embraced by darkness, he crept through a veil of creepers and found himself at a crude wooden cage.
The creature inside was large, hoofed and smelly. Its head was something like a tapir’s, but the body was fatter and covered in thin red stripes. Unlike the placid tapir, it stamped and snorted aggressively when it saw Talbot. He let it work up a head of steam before releasing the catch on the far side. The cage wall collapsed with a dull thud.
The beast looked like it wanted to double back into the darkness, but Talbot brandished his assault rifle and hissed loudly. The creature charged straight into a gap between the palisades, where more than one Irian called out in alarm. Talbot scurried along the camp perimeter, keeping a sharp lookout for sentries.
Talbot found more animal cages to the east. Only one was occupied, but the beast within was even more promising than the angry “tapir”. A lithe, powerfully-built cat crouched low, just itching to tear Talbot’s throat out. Its skin was ebony-dark and it eyes were fiercely luminescent.
Keeping his rifle trained on the cat, Talbot opened the cage with his free hand. Again, the predator was inclined to flee into the darkness, but an assault rifle burst was enough to send it bounding into the camp.
Talbot withdrew into a bush with a wide grin. He savored the next few seconds - the calm before the storm. The sigh of harpoon bolts made him freeze, but they weren’t directed at him. A gaggle of dragoons were chasing the hoofed creature, who broke through one of the western palisades. Talbot almost laughed out loud at the sight.
Better still, the sentries who had been lurking behind him rushed to join the fray. The next few seconds passed in a ragged blur. First, Talbot heard the big cat scowl from somewhere in the camp center.
The panicked Irians were interrupted by a deafening blast that sent metal sheets flying in Talbot’s direction. He leaped over a fallen log, landing awkwardly and wrenching his shoulder, but the move saved his life. A metal plate skimmed across the log and disappeared into the gloom.
Talbot risked popping his head over the log to survey the damage. A severed hand clocked him in the forehead, leaving an ichorous smear. Several animals were now squealing to Talbot’s right. He took advantage of the general chaos to sprint in that direction, finding more cages filled with the hoofed creatures. He set them all free, knowing they would otherwise be used against the Terrans in the coming days.
Most of the animals wisely hared into the darkness, but some panicked and thundered headlong into the fiery maelstrom in the camp. A lone figure emerged from the furnace, running straight for Talbot.
“Run!” Wilkes called, waving Talbot on. “Get the fuck out of here!”
Talbot didn’t need to be told twice. He bolted north up a hill, Wilkes at his side. Talbot was lashed and stabbed by all manner of plants but kept going regardless. Behind them, the glow of the ruined Irian camp began to fade. That was when the best sound of all drifted up to them - Ashby, harsh and brutal, barking commands to his shell-shocked troops. The mission had been a definite success, especially considering it had been executed by two men.
“Any idea of enemy losses?” Talbot asked in between deep breaths. In his mind’s eye he pictured a gallery of injured and dead aliens.
“Six, maybe seven dead,” Wilkes said triumphantly. “More wounded. The photon charges went off just when they were funneling troops to deal with the fucking cat. And you know what else?”
Wilkes’ eyes glittered like he had a sackful of Christmas presents to hand out.
“I blew up their thopter.”
Talbot looked into the man’s eyes, barely daring it to be true.
“You fucking genius,” he breathed, wrapping his last commando in a bear hug.
Not a bad night’s work at all. One thopter and seven soldiers didn’t even the ledger, but it was a hell of a good start. Most importantly, the raid let the Irians know they couldn’t do whatever the fuck they wanted. From now on they would be more circumspect, perhaps even easier to anticipate, because of it.
The runners slowed their pace once they reached the flat ground on top of the ridge. An enthusiastic scout stepped forward to congratulate them on the glittering carnage he’d witnessed down in the valley.
“Hold your position, soldier,” Fielding barked, stepping into view. She glared at Talbot, but both knew she couldn’t possibly mount an argument against what had just happened.
“Just as well you’re back,” she said grumpily.
“Just as well,” Talbot said with a smile.
“We should move on,” Fielding said. “The Irians will come looking for us.”
“You can bet on it,” Talbot said more seriously. “Wilkes, prepare the troops for hard march.”
The commando saluted and disappeared along the line. Talbot accessed his character screen so he could level up. Since he’d selected a squad-based perk last time, he decided to concentrate on his assault rifle. Improving weapon accuracy was tempting, but Talbot opted to go with a larger magazine. Carrying ammo through this jungle was a pain in the ass.
Besides, the Irians were so quick and evasive that reducing reload frequency could well save his life. When he exited the character screen, his assault rifle was heavier and bulkier, as if it had always been that way. The game mechanics were remarkably seamless. If Wilkes was following orders to the letter, he would be busily developing his demolitions skills.
Fielding was right - it was time to march. Talbot settled into the rear of the line as the Terran host began its night trek west along the ridge line. Far below them, the remains of the Irian base still smoldered. It had been a sweet victory, but Talbot didn’t delude himself that Ashby would be shaking his fist at the moon. The man was a consummate professional and would now be taking steps to regain the upper hand.
Wilkes drove the soldiers hard through the night. The troops had benefited from their layoff, but by the early hours of the morning the column was ragged and sluggish. Recognizing the need for rest before the sun reappeared, Talbot was about to call a halt when Porter passed word down the line. Talbot pushed past his comrades to the front, ignoring the fatigue in his legs.
It was a beacon, silvery and pure in the bashful dawn light. The glade was picture perfect, lush with grass and adorned with purple flowers. Talbot took the honors, stepping through the orb with a trace of theatricality. The surrounding scouts murmured appreciatively as it turned navy blue. That gave the Terrans three beacons in total, assuming the Irians hadn’t re-taken the others. It was a bleak thought, but entirely possible.
The Terran host pressed on across a steep slope. Talbot passed word up the line to change course and venture to the bottom of the valley to the south. It only took ten minutes to reach the cool valley floor, but by this stage the Avari sun had already risen. The soldiers were dirty, smelly and in dire need of a good rest. But where? The valley was choked with vegetation and the going was slow.
What they needed was access to a workbench and forge. Then they could produce useful tools like machetes and axes. And yet setting up camp in the middle of the jungle was fraught with danger. The Irians could theoretically make it all the way into the camp using the cover of the jungle, just as Talbot had done to them several hours ago.
Talbot knew his people were hurting, but dared not stop right now. Jus
t a few more miles could well reveal the answer they needed. Not for the first time that day, his instincts proved correct. The column marched into a breathtaking canyon scoured by a wide, sandy river. Talbot allowed the soldiers to bathe in a calm pool away from the furious main channel. He dipped his own head in the miraculously cool, refreshing water. The imposing canyon wall to the north was like a buttress, whilst the river’s horseshoe bend provided natural protection from the jungle approach.
The perfect camp location - and the best was yet to come.
15
Talbot heard the drone of an engine approaching from the north east. He had the troops take up defensive positions along the edge of the jungle while they waited for it to approach. At length the quad came grumbling down the river bed, manned by the two engineers Talbot had left behind.
“Sir,” one said bashfully as he pulled in, aware of the eyes on him. “We tried to contact you, but our coms were disrupted.”
Talbot frowned. Did the Irians have some kind of signal jammer?
“What happened, soldier?” he asked.
“We were attacked. Three Irians on patrol. Private Jannes and I just had time to get the quad going. We figured the raw materials were more valuable than winning a minor skirmish. We found this river bed and have been following it ever since.”
“You did very well, Private,” Talbot said. “In fact, your timing is immaculate.”
The young man beamed.
“What now, sir?”
“I want a five-man base,” Talbot said, raising his voice so everyone could hear. “You can bet the Irians will be on our tail. They’re quicker than us. Stealthier. We need to slow them down while we make a run for the remaining beacons. Start building something compact but fucking hard to bust open. I expect you all to level up at least once in the next few hours. Before we get to work, you’ve got half an hour to refresh yourselves. Dismissed.”
From the looks on the soldiers’ faces, they were keen and engaged. Talbot suspected they, like him, enjoyed being proactive rather than reacting to what the Irians were doing. It made for a positive change after the horrors of Regal.
Virtual War: Alpha Centauri (A LitRPG Novel) Page 9
