It had not taken long for the drone to spot the elves’ army as well as the mass of undead that were the necromancer’s forces. Spotting the gnomes had been much harder. The drone had finally found them just before sunrise on the third day attempting to infiltrate into the necromancer’s camp. Richard and the children had watched the gnomes through the drone’s night-vision cameras. The gnomes had stopped on the outskirts of the undead host as Remozorz and the elf, Kreathin, continued on towards a large tent in the center of the camp. Richard wasn’t sure what kind of stealth shield the two used, but it must have been very good because they almost made it to their goal. However, the flash of fireballs soon confirmed they’d been discovered. Richard and the children had watched helplessly as Remozorz and Kreathin fought their way back to the other gnomes. Since that time, the gnomes had been running south barely staying ahead of the lead forces of the undead army. The undead were not fast, but they never tired. They just kept coming steadily onward gaining on their prey anytime the gnomes stopped to rest.
Once Richard and the children realized the gnomes were in trouble, they wasted no time in saddling up and racing to intercept them. The children rode their ponies, and Richard ran alongside. His battle suit easily kept up with the children’s overworked ponies. It was now late afternoon, and the High Priestess and her party were making for a town just over the ridge ahead. Richard wasn’t sure the gnomes were going to make it.
Kicking the battle suit into high gear, Richard pulled ahead of the children as he made his way towards the ridge. Just before he got to the top, Richard lay down and low-crawled the last few meters.
I don’t think anyone is near enough to see you, Rick, said Nickelo.
Doesn’t matter, Richard said. I’m not taking any chances at this point. I don’t want to be forced into fighting undead unless absolutely necessary.
Parting the tall grass at the top of the ridge, Richard looked down on a fast-moving river about fifty meters across. A small town was located on the other side of the river. The blackened ruins of a burned out bridge destroyed any hopes of easily getting the kids across the water without getting wet.
The townspeople probably burned the bridge when they left in the hopes it would slow down the necromancer’s undead, said Nickelo. I doubt it will do any good. Those zombies will just walk on the bottom of the riverbed until they get to the other side. Most of them will be so decayed they won’t be able to swim across.
The town appears deserted, Richard said as he moved his eyes methodically from one end of the town to the other. Are you picking anything up with your electronics? I don’t want to waste Power on an active scan unnecessarily.
I’m not detecting anything in the town itself, said Nickelo, but I sense some underground activity in that cemetery just to the south of the town. That doesn’t bode well.
At the sound of hoof beats, Richard turned to watch Dren and Brachia ride up. They looked tired but resolute.
“Tie your ponies to that bush,” Richard told them. “Dren, you’re up here with me. Brachia, I want you to stay behind us and work the drone.”
The children dismounted and tied off their ponies. Dren crawled up next to Richard and pulled out a pair of binoculars he had given her.
“Do you see them yet?” said Dren as she scanned the town.
“No,” Richard said, “and they’re outside the useful range of my passive scan. Brachia, take the drone lower if you need to. I have to know the exact location of the gnomes. Hopefully, they know the cemetery is there and will stay well clear. Nick said he’s sensing underground activity from that location.”
“I’ve got them, Rick,” said Brachia. “Rem and the others are entering the far side of the town now. You should be seeing them through gaps in the buildings pretty soon. They are barely ahead of a large group of undead.”
Richard tuned to look at Brachia. The boy was sitting cross-legged just below the crest of the hill. He was wearing a pair of the clear goggles which allowed him to see through the drone’s video equipment as well as allowing him to observe his surroundings. He held the control box for the drone in his hands. He was furiously moving the levers on the box as he attempted to zero in on the gnomes.”
“We need to cross the river, Rick,” said Dren. “We need to get the staff to Rem.”
“There’s no time,” Richard said. “The bridge has been destroyed, and there are no boats on this side of the river. Besides, I don’t want to risk the two of you more than necessary. That river is a good line of defense. It looks like two boats are tied to that dock on the other side of the river. If Rem, Sam, and the others can make it there, maybe they can use the boats to get across. The river current is pretty fast here. Nick said the necromancer’s undead minions will have trouble crossing. Most of them won’t even float. If they try walking across on the bottom, I’m thinking the current will push them well down stream before they can get out. I’m betting that will buy us enough time to linkup with the gnome and brief her on what you’ve done with the staff. Once that’s done, ‘the One’ should send us home.”
“They’re not going to make it to the river, Rick,” said Dren who was also wearing a pair of the clear goggles. “They’re already hard pressed by the zombies behind them. If the undead in the cemetery are active, the gnomes will be trapped.”
“I think it will take a few minutes for any undead to dig their way out of the ground,” Richard said. “I believe our best bet at this point in time is to wait right here. Once the gnomes get to the river, I can provide them cover with my M12.”
“It’s too late now, anyway,” Brachia said. “The gnomes are almost to the cemetery.”
Richard looked at the group of people on the north side of the cemetery. He counted ten small humanoids running along with a figure twice their height.
“Well, I guess the butthole is still around,” Richard said. “It figures.”
“Rick,” said Nickelo aloud for the children’s benefit, “look at the southern part of the cemetery. The zombies are digging out faster than you hoped.”
Richard shifted his gaze to the southernmost graves. The ground around several of the graves appeared strange. As he tried to figure out what was wrong, a bony hand thrust up out of the ground.
“The first ones are breaking out,” Richard said. “You were right, Dren. The gnomes aren’t going make the river without help.”
“Nick,” Richard said, “mark me the ranges to some points in the cemetery. Brachia, get that drone in position over the river. If any zombies find a crossing point, let us know pronto. Maybe we can give the gnomes enough fire support from this side of the river to give them time to get across.”
As he spoke, Richard pictured a SR413 long-range plasma rifle with a computer controlled scope along with a thousand rounds of self-guided ammunition. He did not feel any Power drain from his reserve. He raised the flap of his dimensional pack. It was empty.
“Nick,” Richard said. “What gives? It’s almost eighteen hundred meters to the cemetery. I need that sniper rifle. It’s not as advanced as some of the other equipment I’ve summoned over the last month. Why can’t I summon it?”
“I don’t know, Rick,” said Nickelo. “Don’t waste time worrying about it right now. You can use an older sniper rifle. I’ll send you the specs.”
“This is bull,” Richard said with a blaze of hatred for ‘the One’.
The specs for the antique sniper rifle appeared on the heads-up display. It was a M107 .50 caliber sniper rifle (LRSR) from the twentieth century with a ten round detachable box magazine. Richard imagined the rifle along with four hundred rounds of .50 caliber ammo. Feeling Power drain from his reserve, Richard opened his pack and pulled out the rifle along with eight olive-drab cans of ammunition.
“There’s no scope, Nickelo,” Richard said. “Did I screw up the specs?”
“No, you didn’t,” said Nickelo. “I didn’t put one in the specs. Just use your battle suit’s visor in magnification mode. If you activate
the suit’s override, I can help aim if you select the targets. I’m better than any sniper scope anyway.”
“What can I do to help?” said Dren.
Richard imagined five magazines for the rifle. He pulled them out of his pack and handed them to Dren.
“Keep these loaded,” Richard said.
Richard took a second to open one of the ammo cans and show Dren how to load. Then he pulled two sets of ear protectors out of the pack.
“Put these on,” Richard said as he tossed a pair to each of the children. “It’s going to get really loud, real fast.”
Richard did not wait to see what the children did. He slapped a full magazine into the rifle and chambered a round.
“Seal me up, Nick,” Richard said.
When the battle helmet’s filter was in place, Richard focused his vision on the cemetery.
The lead gnomes had stopped short of the cemetery. Their companions slid to a stop behind them. Even with the battle suit’s magnification, the distance was far enough that Richard could barely make out the gnomes’ forms. The gnomes looked like miniature men with long beards. Remozorz was near the center of the group. Richard noticed the elf was bringing up the rear. As Richard watched, Kreathin turned around towards a group of undead just coming into view. He waved his hands twice. A ball of energy streaked out and hit the group of zombies charging up behind them. The ball of energy exploded into a large ball of fire.
The gnomes in the front must have realized the danger from the cemetery because they began forming a defensive line in front of Remozorz. They faced the churning earth of the graveyard. Dozens of rotting corpses, some barely skeletons, began dragging themselves out of the ground. The closest of the undead started lumbering towards the gnomes.
Richard aimed at the head of the zombie closest to the gnomes. It was a long shot, and Richard doubted he had the skill to make it with the unfamiliar weapon. As he pulled the trigger, Richard felt his arms move slightly as Nickelo adjusted his aim.
Boom!
Richard did not wait to see if the bullet hit. He began firing rounds as quick as he could chamber them. When the magazine was empty, he replaced it with a new one and repeated the process.
You can’t destroy them all, said Nickelo privately. Try to clear a path to the river for the gnomes.
What do you think I’m trying to do? Richard said. I wish the gnomes had chosen a different route. The cemetery is teaming with zombies. I doubt I can destroy them fast enough to keep the gnomes alive. Nick, let me know when they get within range of the M12. I need a higher rate of firepower.
The far edge of the river is six hundred meters, said Nickelo. That’s the maximum effective range for the M12.
Richard continued to fire as fast as he could sight on a target and pull the trigger.
The line of gnomes gamely moved towards the river as they engaged the walking corpses attacking from their front. Richard noticed one of the gnomes go down as two zombies overwhelmed him. A couple of his fellow gnomes attacked the two zombies and pulled them off their now bloody companion. Without warning, the bloody gnome stood up with sword in hand and began swinging at his two would be rescuers. As they retreated, Remozorz stepped forward and waved her hands. Richard saw a flash of light. When the light disappeared, only a pile of smoldering ashes remained where the bloody gnome had been.
It’s getting bad, Nick, Richard said.
I’d recommend shifting your fire to the rear now, said Nickelo. The elf can’t cover their backs much longer.
Richard switched his view to the rear of the gnomes. The elf commander and two of the gnomes were doing their best to hold off an incoming wave of at least two hundred zombies. One of the gnomes was Sam. A bolt of lightning shot from the old gnome’s hand and incinerated several zombies, but more took their place. Out the corner of his eye, Richard saw hundreds more from the necromancer’s army just beginning to enter the north side of the town.
Richard aimed at a zombie closing in on the elf. He fired and then immediately switched to another target without waiting to see the effects of his first shot. He sighted on a new target and pulled the trigger again. Click.
Empty, Richard said kicking himself for not counting shots. He extracted the empty magazine and reached over for a replacement. Dren shoved a full magazine into his hand. Richard noticed two of her fingers were bleeding. But the girl said nothing. She immediately began loading fresh .50 caliber rounds in the empty magazine.
“How many have we fired?” Richard yelled.
“We’re on the third container,” said Dren.
Nick, Richard said, I’ve fired over a hundred rounds, and it doesn’t look like I’ve even made a dent.
There’s too many, agreed Nickelo as Richard began firing at the zombies approaching from the rear of the elf’s position. If things stay the same, I calculate the gnomes will be overwhelmed in ninety-six seconds.
Richard fired the last round in the magazine and switched it out for a new one. In the relative silence, Richard said, “Dren, can you fire a rifle.”
“Yes,” said Dren. “I was on the marksmanship team at school. But I’ve never fired anything the size of that monster you’re using. I’ve only fired modern, lightweight target rifles.”
“Nick,” Richard said out loud. “Range to the gnomes.”
“Eight hundred meters to the nearest gnomes,” said Nickelo using the helmet’s speakers so Dren could hear. “It’s eight hundred and thirty to Kreathin and Sam.”
As Richard completed his reload and began firing again, he thought of a civilian model Westal .40 watt plasma rifle with tripod and computer-assisted telescopic sight. He felt Power drain from his reserve.
When he’d fired the last round in his magazine, Richard stood up and removed his dimensional pack. Lifting the flap, he pulled out a shiny-new rifle.
You know this doesn’t make sense, right, Nick? Richard said privately. I can summon Dren a top of the line weapon, but I get stuck with a centuries-old model.
Not now, Rick, said Nickelo. Just deal with it.
Richard set the rifle on the ground near Dren.
“Do the best you can,” Richard said.
He imagined four replacement batteries and a communication’s headset. Power drained from his reserve. Reaching in his pack, he pulled out the batteries and headset and tossed them to the Dren. Richard thought she looked confused.
“Cover the gnomes as best you can,” he ordered. “You have seven hundred and fifty rounds. Brachia, get over here. Make sure nothing sneaks up on your sister.”
“You can’t leave us,” said Dren. Her voice quivered, and Richard saw the hint of tears in her eyes. “You promised.”
“I’m not leaving you,” Richard said. “You’ll still be able to see me. Remozorz may be our only ticket home. I’ve got to help her. And, I will come back for you. I give you my word of honor.”
“Eighty-four seconds, Rick,” said Nickelo.
Without another word, Richard took off down the hillside as fast as his battle suit’s legs could carry him. He shoved his M12 into his dimensional pack and pulled out his M63 lightweight plasma assault rifle instead.
Don’t give me any bull about it, Nick, Richard said. The M12 is too awkward for what I need to do.
I’m not disagreeing, Rick, said Nickelo. I think you’re going to need the extra ammo capacity.
Richard swung his pack onto his back. He arranged the M63’s sling over his right shoulder.
Seventy-one seconds, said Nickelo.
Richard did not reply. He hit level ground just prior to the river. With a burst of speed, he jumped off the river bank as he wrapped himself in Power. Just before his foot touched the water, Richard exerted upward pressure with his telekinesis. The telekinesis counteracted his foot’s downward movement. He kicked up into the air. He repeated the process just before his opposite foot made contact. Richard had a fleeting thought that if the kids were watching they’d probably think he was running on water.
Let your foot get a little closer to the water, Rick, said Nickelo. Do it like we practiced back at the Academy pool. Lifting your own body weight is expensive. The closer you get to the water, the more back pressure you will get from your telekinesis. That will conserve Power.
I’m doing the best I can, Nick, Richard said. The water in the pool at the Academy was flat and calm. The water in this river is uneven and constantly changing shape. Whenever I try to get closer to the water my foot winds up going under a little. The additional suction and water resistance uses more Power than being a little too high.
I’m just giving advice, Rick, said Nickelo. Take it or leave it.
Richard head a cracking sound over his head. He saw a streak of energy pass over his head going in the direction of the gnomes. Then several more streaks passed overhead.
Good girl, Richard said. Is she hitting anything, Nick?
The kid appears to be a great shot, said Nickelo approvingly. Sixty percent of her shots are on target. Don’t worry about her. You’ve got your own job to do. You’re getting close to the other bank. I’ll help with your aim when you make contact. Just pick out the targets for me, and I’ll guide your M63. By the way, you should activate your phase rod. You’re going to need it.
Richard unhooked his phase rod and activated it in destructive mode. The meter-long shaft of the modified riot baton shot out the handle. Red streaks of lightning crawled up and down the shaft. The heft of the phase rod felt good in Richard’s grip. It helped him focus on the task at hand.
Richard eyed a place on the far bank which appeared to be lower. With a jump, he was up and over the top before he knew it. As soon as he cleared the embankment, Richard selected some targets and began firing. He was still two hundred meters out from the nearest zombies and running, but he figured he was close enough. Richard felt the arm of his battle suit moving slightly as Nickelo adjusted his aim. The zombies started going down quickly.
Fifty-nine seconds, said Nickelo.
Stop counting, Richard said. I’m doing all I can do. Counting is not helping the situation.
Wizard Cadet (Intergalactic Wizard Scout Chronicles Book 2) Page 37
