by John Walker
The space station was another story. The report looked grim. They called for backup and already lost some men. The intel on the station suggested minimal resistance but the way Sergeant Jenks told it, they were fighting a well fortified and trained occupation force. Definitely not expected, especially considering a group of thugs were supposed to have taken it over recently.
I guess those criminals just paved the way for this force to get in there and cause trouble.
“Agatha, give the enemy one more chance to surrender peacefully,” Gray said. “Just after our next volley, make the call and see what they say. Hopefully, they’ll understand they really don’t have a lot of hope against us.”
“Sir,” Olly called out, “I’ve got bombers incoming.”
“I’m on it,” Adam said. “Automated defensive guns are ready but I’m having Revente take those guys out before they get too close.”
“Sounds good. Those might be a real problem even if our enemies here aren’t proving much of a challenge.”
Clea spoke up, “Durant states that the generators are holding fast and are performing at peak performance. Our recharge rate is nearly tripled what it was before his enhancements. Redding, you should practically be able to fire nonstop. The time between blasts will be less than fifteen seconds.”
Gray exchanged a wide eyed glance with Adam. “Well, that sure would’ve been nice when we faced the enemy near Earth.”
“Can’t argue with those numbers,” Adam said. “Hammer them, Redding.”
“Aye, sir. Firing another volley now.”
“Let me know when those fighters have engaged the bombers,” Gray said. “I want to know the second we’re clear of those guys. It’s a stress we don’t need.”
“They’re redirecting our forces now,” Adam replied. “ETA less than a minute.”
“Sounds good. Everything’s under control, folks. Let’s keep it that way.”
***
Meagan and her wing took down the forces around them and were about to engage some incoming fighters from the battleship. She checked her messages, hoping for something from Tiger wing but they hadn’t reported yet. They were formed up, ready to dive into action when Revente piped into her helmet.
“We need to redirect Panther wing to take out a squadron of bombers en route to the Behemoth. Disengage your current targets and take the new ones out.”
“Sir, did you find out what the enemy is escorting?” Meagan asked. “Are you sure we should be letting it go?”
“Tiger’s on it. Get those bombers or it won’t matter to us.”
Meagan cursed under her breath. “Panther, we’ve been redirected to take out some bombers. Follow my lead as we get out of here.”
She redirected her fighter, following the course Revente plotted for them. She checked the scanner and frowned. Sure enough, five large and slow moving ships were moving toward the Behemoth, escorted by four fighters. She highlighted them for the rest of her crew, assigning the lower four to take out the maneuverable ships while she and the others went after the heavier of them.
Scans indicated the bombers were heavily armored with powerful shields spawned from a reinforced, separate generator. They weren’t close enough to one another for a single blast to take multiple ships out either. This meant they were going to be dropping missiles and a whole lot of pulse blasts to put their targets down.
“You worrying about what I am?” Mick asked.
“Probably,” Meagan said. “These guys look pretty tough. We’ll find out in twenty-five seconds.”
“Enemy fighters are breaking from their escorts,” Lieutenant Tullefson said. “We’re moving to engage.”
“Panthers Two through Four, stay on me. Five through Eight, you know what to do with those fighters.” Meagan sighed. “We’ll rendezvous at the following coordinates. Stay sharp. We’ve got this.”
Revente’s voice filled her helmet again and she nearly snapped at him that it wasn’t a good time. “Meagan, we know what they’re escorting.”
“Kinda busy, Estaban.”
“It’s a bomb and they seem to be heading toward the space station our marines are on.”
The hair on the back of Meagan’s neck stood up. “Any idea why?”
“Intel suggests they’re going to attempt to knock the station out of orbit and put it on the capital.”
“Christ…are our allies going to do anything about it?”
“They’re trying and Tiger’s doing their part but when you finish those bombers, I want you back in that area ASAP. Got it?”
Meagan shook her head. “Yeah, I’ve got it but this isn’t going to be a fast fight. These things are tough.”
“Understood. Do what you can and back up Tiger. I’m launching more ships now including the bombers.”
“Great, we could use all the help we can get. Thanks, Estaban. I’ve got to focus on shooting things now.”
Meagan’s targeting computer zeroed in on the first bomber just as they started firing turrets back at them. She pulled up, dodging the blasts as they blurred past her. The others around her did the same as the enemy fighters disengaged from their charges and fell out to meet the rest of Panther wing.
Mick dropped down low beneath her, firing at one of the bombers. The shields flared but didn’t go down and the ship kept moving at a methodical, deliberate pace. Meagan took a couple pot shots but she couldn’t maintain a steady course with them still shooting at her. She climbed then spun, working on a firing solution away from the turrets.
Unfortunately, the bombers had some on the top and bottom. It gave them an incredible firing arc and they may have been using AI to guide them. Meagan called for her team to fall back out of range, to regroup so they might make another push at their targets with a different tactic in mind.
“They’re hyper accurate,” Flight Lieutenant David Benning, Panther Three, called out. “They snagged me five times. Shields held.”
“One of them shot down my missile,” Flight Lieutenant Shelly Brown added. “Took it out before it even got close.”
“Okay, we have to overwhelm them then,” Meagan said. “Form up and concentrate all firepower on my target. We’ll take him down then spin around for the others. If you can, focus on the engines. Hopefully, that’ll at least slow them down enough to keep the Behemoth safe.”
“Bombs away!” Mick shouted. “One of them let some go!”
“Panthers seven and eight,” Meagan said, “take out that ordinance before it reaches its destination. The rest of you, follow the plan and let’s take care of this. Now!”
They formed up and hit their burners, firing the second they were in range. The turrets unloaded but the combined firepower of four fighters easily overwhelmed the shields and caused a reactor explosion. Panther wing pulled up and rocketed away with blasts following them from the other ships.
“I was hit,” Mick said. “Checking systems.”
“Me too,” Shelly added. “No damage.”
“One down,” Meagan said, letting out a sigh. “Four more to go. Where the hell’s our backup?”
“You called for some assistance?” Wing Commander Rudy Hale piped into their communications, one of the leaders of a bomber wing. Meagan checked the scanner and saw his unit incoming. “We thought you might need some help with the bombers before we go help Tiger.”
“These guys can take a lot of punishment, Rudy,” Meagan said. “And they’ve already fired off some bombs.”
“Your guys seem to be on them,” Rudy replied. “Yep, they just took them down but let’s not give these guys another chance, huh?”
Meagan watched as the bombers engaged, lumbering closer with their own massive turrets. The superior technology tipped the scales and Meagan redirected her team to hit them bombers from the rear. In a crossfire, the bombers couldn’t react to all the threats. One by one, they took them down, turning them to bulbs of orange-white fire.
The other members of Panther rejoined them. “Fighter threat eliminated.�
��
“Wait!” Rudy called. “One of the bombers got through…he’s about to fire!”
“I’m on it.” Meagan hit her afterburners, screaming toward her target fast enough to be pressed into her seat. As she approached, she saw the blue glow of its engines and the bombs dropping from the bottom of the craft. She dropped down, avoiding some turret fire and let loose a barrage of pulse blasts, aiming for the ordinance.
The bomber tried to dodge but it didn’t have the maneuverability. Her shots caught the enemy’s payload and knocked out the propulsion. The impact must’ve been enough to make it think it reached its destination because the resounding explosion annihilated the bomber and the shockwave made Meagan’s shields flare up dramatically.
“Whoa!” She spun away, heading back toward the others. “I did not expect that!”
“You should’ve,” Rudy said. “Considering what you just shot. Come on, we’ve got to stop this thing from getting to the space station. I hope you’re a better escort than these guys had.”
***
Sergeant Dylan Walsh led two shuttles worth of troops to the space station, plowing through a massive battle area of fighters and capital ships duking it out. Their fighter escort was stretched thin, with only two vessels attached to them. Still, they had turrets and that seemed to be enough to get them through.
They performed a hot dock, which meant they didn’t slow down until the last possible second. The thrusters engaged, forcing them all deep into their seats as the g force intensified. One of the pilots called back and let them know they’d be ready to deploy in less than ten seconds. Walsh wished they’d have taken thirty to ensure they didn’t die before arrival.
The shuttle shook as they made contact with the docking arm and something hissed as they sealed the connection. “Go, go, go!” The pilot finally found some passion and started yelling at them. “We’ve got the next ship incoming so establish your beach head as quickly as possible!”
Walsh hurried his men out and followed them through the airlock and into the cargo bay they’d found. He deployed his marines to lock the area down as he established a com connection with Jenks, buying some time for the others to arrive before they charged into the facility in full force.
“You there? Sergeant Jenks, respond.”
“We’re here!” Jenks’s voice was accompanied by gunfire. “We’re locked down by an enemy force but dug in fairly well. They’re not likely to take our position but we’ve got wounded! How long before you get here, Walsh?”
Walsh checked the layout of the space station and set the most direct route to get to the other marines. He cursed. “It’ll take about a minute at double time. I don’t know if we can do that considering how hot this place is, Jenks. You’ve got to hold out, man. I’ll get there as quickly as I can.”
“I recommend you take two directions! That way you might not entirely get locked down like we did.”
“Understood. We’ll see you soon, buddy.”
Walsh quickly scanned for a secondary route, one which might’ve intersected with the route the previous team already had taken. Chances were better they might already be clear of hostile forces. The computer ran through a dozen scenarios before finally showing him a solution, one which would take the platoon through a number of corridors with minimal need for elevators or stairs.
“Alright, Bravo, you take the route I just uploaded to your HUDs. Alpha, with me. Watch your fire and keep your coms hot. We might be meeting in the middle. Regardless of what you encounter, remember that we’re in a rush here but not at the expense of your lives. We want to get there quick and alive. Got it?”
The marines all shouted together and the two teams went their separate ways, Alpha to the right with Bravo going left. Walsh allowed one of his men to take point as he coordinated the efforts from somewhere near the back. Scans were spotty on the station, as if something were trying to block them but couldn’t quite take the signal down completely.
They made it nearly to the end of the hallway before Walsh heard a familiar word. “Contact front!”
Guns went off, heavy fire that caused the marines to burst through doors and take cover. They exchanged shots with someone down the hall. Someone chucked a grenade toward the enemy, shouting, “flash bang out!”
The grenade popped and Walsh’s visor instantly reacted, protecting his eyes from the blast. Whoever was at the end of the hall started wailing but none of the marines advanced. Instead, one took careful aim and fired several shots. The next cries of pain were certainly real and the person went silent a moment later.
“Clear!”
The marines pushed on, passing by three bodies sprawled in the area. They hustled, picking up the pace even as they knew they’d encounter reinforcements further in. Jenks hit the com and let Walsh know it was getting worse. The enemy were overrunning their position and they didn’t have long.
Damn it! Walsh wanted to throw caution to the wind but it wouldn’t do anyone any good. They needed to get there when they could, and that meant engaging the enemy along the way. He checked the progress of Bravo, but they were having the same luck. They conducted a firefight in a hallway, tearing through the enemy but not quickly enough to make a difference.
“New plan,” Walsh called to his guys. “Ethan and Orin, get to the edge of the station and plant some high yield explosives. The kind that will open this place up like a tin can.”
“Sir?” Ethan sounded nervous. “Um…”
“They’re going to read that you’re doing it and it should draw their attention. They don’t want to die after all. It might distract some of their forces. Plant the bombs then get the hell out of there. You won’t want to face what’s going to come your way.”
“But what if they go off?”
“Put in a safety,” Walsh said. “Do whatever you have to in order to keep us all alive but I want that distraction and I need it now. Got it?”
“Yes, sir!” The two men ran off, back the way they came and the marines pressed on with two less in their ranks.
I hope that works or I just handicapped us for no reason.
They rounded a corner and their point man, Rikes, took a grazing shot to the shoulder. His armor deflected the damage but he leaned against the wall and fired back, catching his attacker in the face. The man’s head snapped backward and he collapsed the ground, quite dead.
A moment of chaos consumed the hallway as they started a running gun battle, luckily in the correct direction. By the time they reached the end of the hallway, two enemies threw their hands up to surrender, five of their buddies lying dead around them. Walsh cursed under his breath. They didn’t have time for prisoners, especially when they couldn’t trust whether they’d behave themselves.
“What’s going on here?” Walsh asked. “Why’s this place so heavily defended?”
“We don’t know!” The first one said. “We were ordered to keep it locked down so that’s what we’re doing!”
“Cuff them and leave them here,” Walsh said. “Make it quick. We have to hurry.”
The men were bound up and the marines once again pushed on. He checked on Bravo and saw they were getting close to their destination. They might make it before them in fact. He reached out to Jenks but the man didn’t answer the com. You’d better not be dead, man. I will take it real personal if you died.
“Bravo, I’m not picking up our guys on com. Can you?”
“We haven’t tried and we’re a little busy at the moment, Sarge.”
Walsh clenched his fist and moved on, coming to the stairs they needed to ascend. Two men led the way, clearing the next landing and holding position at the door. They stacked up and breached, moving in with guns blazing. An enemy went down before he could even lift his weapon and another ran for the door, three rounds stitching his back.
“Grenade!” One of his men shouted and they all dove for cover. The resounding explosion didn’t have much impact on them in their environmental suits but it tossed a table in the a
ir, which landed on one of the marines, pinning his leg. Walsh rolled on his side, taking aim just as one of the enemies shot the struggling soldier in the head three times.
“Son of a bitch!” Walsh capped him in the forehead and chest but it was too late. His guy was already down. “Secure this room! Now!”
A couple marines engaged in hand to hand melee combat, struggling to restrain a number of the wild enemies. Walsh himself was jumped by a guy who swung a crowbar, whacking him in the shoulder twice. They rolled around on the ground before Walsh pulled his side arm and unloaded several rounds point blank into the man’s kidney.
The guy jerked three times and fell on the ground, blood spilling out of his mouth. As Walsh regained his feet, his men seemed to have gained control of the situation. In all, nine enemies were dead and two marines. Christ, we’re down to five of us here.
“Ethan, Orin, did you get the bombs planted?” Walsh called over the com as they got moving again.
“Yes, sir,” Ethan replied. “And I think it did the trick because we’re being pursued through the outer ring of the station.”
“Keep them on the move and do not engage! We’ll meet up with you when we finish our primary objective. Just stay alive.” Walsh checked Bravo again and they were at the final corridor before reaching Jenks’s position. He took a deep breath and prayed privately, even as they rushed along to the last stretch of their own trip.
Gunfire sounded up ahead and it sounded like theirs. Is that coming from Bravo or Jenks? Hard to tell.
“Jenks!” He called on the com again. “Can you hear me?”
“You almost here?” Jenks replied, filling Walsh with some relief. “I swear, you assholes are seriously slow!”
“Wow, glad to see you’re feeling appreciative.”
Scans flickered but he counted more than twenty enemies in the surrounding areas. Bravo engaged their side. Five men seemed pretty risky to jump into such a mess but they did have the element of surprise and more importantly, they were taking their opponents in the flank.
