16
Temporary Base Camp,
Sunset Ridge, Excelsior Lake Roebuck District,
Neo Terra, Tau Ceti System
Captain Nance was met at the edge of camp by a red-faced lieutenant named Gregorski. He escorted the ARC platoon through the camp. Half the Marines were busy setting up simple shelters and organizing supplies. The other half were on duty along the edge of the cliff, their weapons pointed down toward the strip of land between the ridge and the lake. Angel searched for any signs of the Special Forces Fire Team that had led into battle in the McDuall Mountains, but there was no sign of them in the camp.
Lieutenant Colonel Nathaniel Goldman was ensconced in a large three-sided tent. A variety of table top monitors were on, with feeds from the satellites in orbit overhead. A communications officer was set up at a mobile relay unit with cables running to a high-powered antenna array. The commanding officer of the Marine battalion looked harried. His dark skin and eyes looked ominous as he glanced up.
“Captain Nance?”
“ARC squadron reporting for duty, sir,” he said as he snapped off a sharp salute.
“It’s about damn time. The Swarm will be here soon. Are your people ready?”
“Absolutely,” Nance said.
“Excuse me,” Angel said, not quite believing what she had just heard. “Captain Nance’s Air Force squad isn’t ready, sir. They haven’t had any training in their suits, nor have the suits been calibrated.”
“What’s she talking about, Captain?” Goldman asked.
Angel popped off the binders on her helmet and pulled it from her head. Nance was the only other officer of the ARC squadron not wearing a helmet. He looked at her with daggers in his eyes.
“I’m Second Lieutenant Angela Murphy, sir. We haven’t had the opportunity to prepare their ARC suits,” she waved at the Air Force squad. “They aren’t even armed.”
“Well what the hell are you waiting for, Captain?”
“Sir, I was under the impression that our technician had the suits well in hand,” Nance said. “This is the first I’m hearing that they aren’t ready.”
Angel wanted to refute Nance’s bogus claim. She wanted to say that as the senior officer of the ARC platoon, it was his responsibility to know the status of the ARC suits at all times and that he had failed to ask Petty Officer Daniels if the suits were ready. Instead, she held her tongue, knowing that she had already committed the cardinal sin within the special platoon by speaking out and contradicting a superior officer from a different branch of service.
“Well, this is a damn fine how-do-you-do, Captain,” Goldman growled. He stabbed his finger down onto the monitor that showed a layout of the great lake, including the ridge they were stationed on and New Chicago. “The Swarm is on the move and if we don’t stop them here, they’ll destroy one of the biggest settlements on this planet.”
“Sir? May I ask the status on Staff Sergeant Cashman’s team?” Angel asked.
“They’re in position here,” Goldman pointed to a spot at the base of the cliff. “Their job, which I assumed your people would assist with, is to move out in front of the swarm and disrupt their movements. At which time, the battalion would open fire from elevated positions along the ridge top. If we’re lucky, we’ll decimate the Swarm and take out the queen.”
“We’re ready, sir,” Nance said. “Our ARC suits may not be a hundred percent but my squad is the best of the best. We can do the job.”
Angel wanted to ask Nance exactly what their job was and how he intended to do it, but Lieutenant Colonel Goldman saved her from making another blunder.
“No, we can’t risk your people,” the commander said. “Cashman’s people will have to do it on their own.”
“Sir, I’m in charge of the Special Forces Fire Team,” Angel said. “My suit is ready to go. With your permission, I’d like to join Cashman’s squad.”
“You see any problem with that Captain?”
“No,” Nance said through clenched teeth.
“Very good, Lieutenant. Good luck down there. Scramble their hive mind and we’ll give ‘em hell from on high.”
“Yes sir!” Angel said, saluting.
She spun on her heel and walked away from the command tent. Petty Officer Daniels followed close behind her.
“Holy shit, Lieutenant,” Daniels said with a chuckle. “I thought Captain Pretty Boy was going to spontaneously combust when you contradicted him like that.”
“Me too,” Angel said. “But he flat out lied to the colonel. They aren’t ready. They don’t even know what they’re doing.”
“You don’t have to tell me. It had to be said. They would have been slaughtered otherwise.”
“We know that, but I doubt Nance does. He’ll have it out for me now for sure.”
“Well, we have bigger fish to fry at the moment,” Daniels said.
She unfolded a thick unit from the pack on her chest. It folded down so that it stuck out from her stomach at a ninety-degree angle. Two more components folded out to the right and left sides of the main touch-display module. One showed a smaller version of the topographical map Angel had seen in Lieutenant Colonel Goldman’s command tent. The others had ARC suit readings. On the left panel was the Air Force squad. All six members were listed as off line. On the right panel was Cashman’s team led by Angel. They were all in the green.
“Okay. You’re set up?” Angel asked.
“I’ve got readings on the ARC suits,” Daniels said. “I’m still trying to connect to the command frequency on the LAN.”
“Let me know when you’re online. Now, how do I get down there?”
“It’s almost a hundred meters down,” Daniels said. “It will take too long to climb.”
“Do I have enough power for a controlled descent?”
“Sure, but I really have no idea how much power that will leave you with,” Daniels explained. “We’ve never tested it before. In theory you should be fine. Those battery packs are built to last for an entire day of fighting.”
“Do we have extras?”
“Not ready, I’m afraid,” Daniels said. “I haven’t had time to do everything, and charging spare batteries wasn’t a high priority.”
“Well, there’s no other choice,” Angel said.
They were standing by the edge of the cliff. Angel pulled on her helmet, and Daniels double-checked the bindings. She patted the top of Angel’s head once she was satisfied that the ARC suit was ready to go.
Angel walked back from the edge of the cliff. The Marines were all watching her, like spectators at a sporting event. Nance appeared out of the crowd, followed by his squad of Air Force officers.
“Lieutenant, a word,” he demanded.
“I don’t have time, Captain,” Angel said.
“The hell you don’t. How dare you contradict me in front of a superior officer. I’ll have your ass, you little upstart bitch.”
“Sir, I was out of line,” Angel said firmly, “but you weren’t being honest with the commander.”
“I don’t give a damn what you think. God didn’t die and leave you in charge.”
“No, sir, he didn’t. But I’ve fought the Swarm. I know what I’m doing. You and your squad will be stellar in the ARC suits, Captain. I have no doubt about it. But you’re not ready. Your suits aren’t ready. And there’s too much at stake for me to let your bullshit slide.”
“You’re through, Angel. I’ll have you thrown out of the CSF so fast your head will spin. I have friends in high places. I’ll bet your pretty little brain didn’t even consider that.”
“No sir, it didn’t. I was too concerned with saving your life, protecting our platoon, and rescuing the colonists. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I need to join my squad.”
Nance started to say something, but Angel spun around and sprinted for the edge of the cliff. She was concentrating and didn’t hear the gasps by the Marines watching. She reached the edge and jumped, firing a thruster to propel her up and away from t
he cliff face. She flipped three times in the air before dropping down out of sight.
17
Beachside, Excelsior Lake, Roebuck District,
Neo Terra, Tau Ceti System
Cashman was oblivious to the tension up on the ridge. His men were positioned against the cliff, which offered the only protection available to them. He could see the dust rising up behind the Swarm, which was still too far away to see. But he felt it was time to move out into position. He loved his ARC suit. There were things he could do in the suit that he wouldn’t have even dreamed of before being added to the ARC platoon, yet he knew he wasn’t ready to do what the suits were created to do. Under different circumstances he could have continued training with his squad in the ARC suits while they waited for the Swarm to reappear; but having been assigned to the Ramses in orbit, they were very limited in what they were able to do. And with the Swarm approaching, he had no choice but do take the lead role in disrupting the Swarm.
His squad was armed with modified Tasker 51 close combat assault rifles. Each one had been modified to fire explosive-penetration rounds. Once he started his attack run, the four other Marines would begin a moving attack, staying at a safe distance in front of the Swarm. If Cashman failed, Bolton would take his place, then Vancini, Jones, and Hays. He didn’t feel confident. Not that he ever felt overly optimistic going into combat, but this operation felt different than the others. He had always been confident in his training and readiness in the past, but the ARC training had been cut short. Still, in the back of his mind, he knew the real reason he felt worried. Despite their experience and combat expertise, Cashman knew that the effectiveness of his squad, even in their ARC suits, was cut in half without Lieutenant Murphy. She was the undisputed master of the ARC suit, and had become a cherished leader of their platoon. Cash missed her. He wasn’t afraid to admit it.
“Well, would you look at that,” Hays said in his ambling Texas drawl.
“Hot damn!” Vancini said.
Cash looked around, saw his squadmates looking up, and turned his attention to the sky. He had heard people refer to Lieutenant Murphy as the ARC Angel, but never had he thought of her that way until he saw her twirling down out of the sky. She was firing her thrusters to slow her descent; but when she landed she dropped and rolled, letting the ARC suit’s impact absorbing fibers take the brunt of the impact. She came up on her feet in a smooth, graceful fashion. Cash grinned so big it made his helmet open the defense measures. He went through the facial motions to shut down the suit’s deadly defensive capabilities and hurried to his commanding officer.
“Ten-hut!” Cash shouted. “Officer on deck.”
“At ease,” Angel said.
“Good to see you, LT,” Bolton said.
“How was civilization?” Hays asked.
“It had it’s moments. I’ll tell you all about it when this over,” Angel said. “Staff Sergeant, what is your plan?”
“We’re limited in movement here,” Cash explained. “I didn’t want send the entire squad in the Swarm, so I thought I would lead the attack. They were to maintain a safe distance and use their rifles to slow the aliens.”
“You think the Taskers are up for the job?” Angel asked.
“We got new ammo, LT,” Hays said.
“Exploding penetration rounds,” Bolton said. “Even if we just hit the ground in front of them, it should kick up enough dirt and rocks to slow the front lines.”
“Okay, so I’ll take the point,” Angel said. “Staff Sergeant, you keep the squad in line. Don’t forget there’s an entire battalion of Marines with guns pointed down here. We don’t want to get caught Swarm when they open up.”
“So how do we avoid that?” Vancini said. “I mean, we can keep our distance, but if you go into the Swarm...”
“It’ll be chaos,” Cash said, “especially if you’re effective. Once their coordination breaks down, they’ll panic with no where to go.”
“It’s part of the job, right?” Angel said. “Once the shooting starts, I’ll get up on the cliff face. I should be safe up there.”
“It still seems risky,” Cash said. “Why not let me go in?”
“Because I have a better chance of surviving than you do,” Angel said. “Besides, if I buy it out here, it will save me from having to deal with our new CO.”
“Captain Reynolds isn’t so bad,” Cash said.
“Didn’t you hear? The Command Staff sent a second squad of ARC suits back with me. They’ve assigned Air Force pilots to our platoon. They’re all officers who outrank me.”
“You’re kidding, right?” Hays asked.
“No, I’m not,” Angel said.
“So where are they?” Bolton said. “Shouldn’t they be down here with us?”
“They should, but their suits aren’t ready. Daniels and I put their thrusters on in transit.”
“So they haven’t trained?” Cash asked.
“They don’t even have their suits dialed in yet,” Angel explained. “They aren’t armed. We did some basic gymnastics moves in one training session en route. The Swarm and ARC technology has been classified. They’ve heard reports but none of them have seen the aliens. They don’t know what to do.”
“I guess it’s time to show them,” Hays said.
“Damn straight,” Vancini agreed.
“Alright, take your positions,” Cash said. “I don’t want us caught gabbing when the enemy shows up.”
The squad saluted Angel. She returned their salutes with respect and watched them go back to their positions along the cliff face.
“You think this will work?” Angel asked Cash.
“Hell if I know. It worked in the mountains, but we had nothing to lose.”
“And more room to maneuver. We can get up the cliff, but we’ll be sitting ducks there if the Swarm rises up.”
“We’re armed,” Cash said. “Taskers, concussion grenades, and our ARC defensive systems, but no heavy ordnance. The colonists plan to build out here soon — an upscale resort with big homes up on the ridge. They don’t want the view besmirched with rubble from explosives.”
“So, we don’t take unnecessary chances,” Angel said. “Captain Alex Nance is in charge of our platoon now, but I don’t trust him. I don’t think he understands what we can do, or how we’re supposed to infiltrate the enemy. Take care of your squad. That’s an order.”
“We look after ourselves, and that includes you, Lieutenant. You’re one of us now.”
“I wouldn’t have any other way, Staff Sergeant.”
Cash couldn’t see Lieutenant Murphy’s face, but he would swear she was smiling.
18
Beachside, Excelsior Lake, Roebuck District,
Neo Terra, Tau Ceti System
“We’re online, Lieutenant Murphy.”
Petty Officer Daniels’ voice came through Angel’s helmet speakers with crystal-clear clarity. Angel checked the platoon channel.
“Alpha Team, in position,” she said.
“Correction, Lieutenant,” Nance’s voice was smug. “You are designated Bravo team.”
“Roger that,” Angel said, shaking her head at the sheer size of her captain’s ego. “Bravo team in position. What’s the ETA on the Swarm?”
“They’re coming into the kill zone now,” Daniels said.
“Switch over to the command channel, Angel,” Nance said. “The Colonel wants to give the Go order.”
“Affirmative,” Angel said.
She didn’t like Nance speaking in a familiar tone, as if they were friends or had a history. It was better, she thought, when he was angry with her.
“We have aliens in range,” came a serious voice over the command channel.
“Hold your fire,” Lieutenant Colonel Goldman said. “We need them fully in the trap before we spring it. I’ll give the order.”
“Roger that,” said the first voice.
“ARC leader, await my Go order. And pull back on command. Is that clear?”
�
�Yes Colonel. We’re ready.”
“This is our shot, Marines,” Goldman said gravely. “Let’s show these bastards who they’re facing.”
Angel heard people cheering quietly, but her eyes were on the horde of aliens she could finally see approaching. Her helmet used a series tiny cameras, some with optical zooms that worked like high-end binoculars. The Swarm hadn’t changed, not that she expected it too. Still, seeing the aliens made her insides feel as they had turned to water. Her legs felt shaky, and she could feel her heart thumping hard inside her chest.
It was a very real possibility that with the Swarm pinned between the cliff face and the lake, they might not have room to maneuver. When she dashed into their midst, she might simply crash into the strange beasts, be knocked off her feet, and trampled to death. It wasn’t a reassuring thought; nor was the idea of being eaten by the aliens, who consumed all organic matter they came across. Angel wasn’t sure if they could eat the ARC suit, but she wasn’t anxious to find out. If they could dig and consume minerals from the soil, she didn’t give the suit much chance of surviving a feeding frenzy by the Swarm.
“Damn, I forgot just how hellish these creatures are,” Vancini said.
“Yeah, like a nightmare, isn’t it,” Bolton said.
“There’s just so damn many of them,” Hays agreed.
“Keep your ammo handy,” Cash said. “And try not to shoot the lieutenant.”
“Oh yes, please try very hard not to shoot me,” Angel said. “Colonel, the enemy is one hundred meters from my location.”
“I have you on screen, Lieutenant,” Goldman said. “Let’s draw them in closer. Do you need some distance to amp up your speed?”
“At least ten meters,” Angel said.
“Alright, almost there. I’m sending you in once they cross the thirty-meter mark. You’ll have less than a minute to disrupt the hive-mind. Then we start shooting.”
Battle ARC Page 8
