The Phantom's Valor (Special Missions Unit Book 2)

by Gary Beller

  DJ fired again at the second tank, now passing the first. That vehicle was swinging its turret around and bringing its main gun up to fire on the ridge. The second shot was as good as the first, having a nearly identical result. As DJ reloaded, and Erica was preparing to fire, a half-dozen smoke trails erupted from the Narcanian lines. The anti-tank rockets found their mark on four additional Banor units, leaving the enemy tanks burning in the grasses below.

  “There’s no way we or the Narcanians can win this fight.” Sid said. “That’s a whole goddamned division of Banor troops down there, and I think we have the wolves’ den pretty well riled up Sir!”

  Ben gave her a silent thumbs up and kept firing, The Banor began to break contact, falling back to a new defensive perimeter being set up by a regiment behind them. Artillery fire was falling again, now less accurate, but still just as dangerous. The Narcanians took that as a cue to break contact as well, but did so in a much more orderly fashion than the Banor.

  Ben pulled his team off the ridge and kept moving along the ridgeline. The hills curved slightly before coming to a shallow valley, where the Narcanians were already waiting. Ben held his team short, not wanting to provoke a firefight with a battalion-sized group of Narcanians, set his rifle down and walked forward alone, his hands outstretched.

  “Who goes there? Halt and Identify!” A Narcanian yelled, moving towards him with his weapon shouldered and aimed at Ben’s chest.

  “I am Colonel Benjamin Pierce, United Coalition of Independent Systems’ Marine Corps. I come as a friend.”

  The Narcanian soldier stopped and took a knee, speaking into his radio. A moment later, three more Narcanians came forward, and walked out to him. The guard lowered his weapon, but not all the way.

  “Colonel Pierce, of the Coalition Marines?” one of the Narcanians asked.

  “Yes.” Ben said. Ben had, for a moment, forgotten one critical thing about the Narcanians until just that moment: They were a species of “naturalists”, preferring to go without clothes whenever practical. The Narcanian officer wore only a tactical web vest and gun belt, his pistol strapped to his thigh. On his arm was an intricate tattoo which Ben guessed was probably a badge of rank.

  “Colonel, I am Overseer Jahlva, of the Narcanian ninety-third Partisans Group. Was it you and your Marines who helped us?”

  “Yes, Sir.” Ben said.

  “Glad to have the help.” Jahlva said. “I was not aware there were Marines here on Chiodrick.”

  “We’re new here.” Ben replied. “Our colony was overrun here some time ago, and we are now in a position to attempt to take it back.”

  “Yes, we are aware. Ours managed to avoid being overrun, but only because the Banor overlooked our presence until recently.” Jahlva looked back and saw Ben’s Operators sitting on the hillside. “Bring your troops, Colonel. I know relations between Humans and Narcanians have always been less than cordial, but I think you will find here on Chiodrick, that is not the case.”

  CHAPTER 15

  The Phantoms followed the Narcanian battalion back to their base camp. The Narcanian base was well away from the Banor lines, but still close enough to allow foot patrols. “How many Marines are here, Colonel?” Jahlva asked.

  “Right now, a few hundred.” He said. “We’re scouts, sent in ahead of the main body.”

  “Nice to see the Humans are taking an interest in our plight here.” Jahlva said.

  “The Narcanian government hasn’t?” Ben asked.

  “They view the war as an inconvenience, and us as collateral damage. We are left to fend for ourselves, so we banded together with the human colonists.” He said. Sure enough, as they entered the base camp, Ben saw Humans and Narcanians working together at various tasks, from treating wounded to tending crops. “If this planet is liberated, we hope to show that Narcanians and Humans can coexist peacefully. Perhaps even convince our government to side with the Humans in this war.”

  Ben decided so far he liked Jahlva. “How long have you lived here?” Ben asked.

  “Most of my life. I served with the Colonial Constabulary before the invasion. Before that, I served in the Army. That’s how I came to be an Overseer.”

  “You’ll have to forgive me: I am not familiar with Narcanian titles and ranks.” Ben said.

  “An Overseer commands between eight hundred to one thousand troops normally, so the equivalent of one of your battalions.” Jahlva said. That made him roughly equal to a Coalition Lieutenant Colonel. “Come, I wish you to speak to our leader, Prime Overseer Kiyahla. Bring two subordinates.”

  Ben grabbed Sid and Kate, and left Rob in charge. They walked to the Prime Overseer’s “office.”

  “Prime Overseer, I bring friends.” Jahlva said.

  The Prime Overseer stood behind her desk. She was a tall, slight woman, and looked somewhat familiar to Ben. Her purple hair was turning gray, the only visual clue to her age. “Please, Overseer, introduce me to your friends.” She said warmly.

  “I present Colonel Benjamin Pierce, Coalition Marine Corps, and his subordinates…”

  “Major Summer Dawn, my second in command, and First Sergeant Kate McMillan.” Ben finished for him.

  “Welcome. The Overseer’s adjutant tells me you bring only 24 Marines in your unit, Colonel. Am I to presume there are more Marines here?”

  “Yes, Prime Overseer,” Ben said, “I command all Marine Forces presently on this planet.”

  “And you have come to liberate this world from the wolves?” Kiyahla asked.

  “We are scouts, Ma’am. The advance party. More will come later.”

  “You are no mere scout, Colonel.” The Prime Overseer said. “I am familiar with you. We met some time ago during the Troubles. If I recall correctly, you were at the time what the Humans called an ‘Operator’, a warrior of superior skills?”

  “Yes, Ma’am. We all are.” Ben said.

  “Jahlva, please excuse us.” She said, offering the three Marines seats.

  Jahlva left, and Ben took a seat across from Kiyahla. “Colonel, you say more Marines are coming?”

  “Yes. We are here to gather information on the Banor’s troop concentrations, and when the landings start, we will disrupt their ability to counter them.”

  “Colonel, Do you really think a few hundred Marines, even highly skilled ones such as yourselves can cause significant issues for three hundred thousand Banor?” Kiyahla asked.

  “Three hundred thousand?” Sid asked, looking at Ben.

  “You did not know?” Kiyahla asked. “The Banor reinforced their occupation force after our resistance began defeating their forces. The battle you witnessed today was little more than a reminder to them not to be complacent. Only rarely do we engage them openly like that.”

  “Guerilla warfare?” Ben asked.

  “Precisely. An irregular insurgency. You should know, Colonel, that the human colonists have cooperated with us, and have shown themselves to be capable warriors in their own right.”

  “I am glad to hear that. How many of the colonists are surviving?” Ben asked.

  “When the Banor came, there were forty-five thousand humans and roughly sixty thousand Narcanians on this world. Only ten thousand Humans found their way to our colony, although more may be scattered across the countryside. At least, that is my hope.”

  “Your hope?”

  “We have not found evidence of additional survivors, outside of slave labor the Banor have used to build a series of field fortifications south and west of here, towards the sea. We did find evidence of numerous mass graves, but due to the Banor presence we could not, regrettably, investigate further.”

  Ben’s heart sank. The Human colony had been made up almost entirely of civilians. They had a small militia force for defense, with only a company of regular troops assigned as a defensive force for the Government House. Kiyahla was speaking of detailed mass murder of men, women, and children. Kate covered her face with her hands, and Sid was obviously angered. “How many warriors do
you have, Prime Overseer?”

  “I have a combined strength of five thousand soldiers, made up of both Narcanians and Humans. The Colony scattered, there are two other camps, each similarly numbered, although with fewer humans. I estimate our total population is ten thousand humans, and around fifty thousand Narcanians, including civilians.”

  ***

  Ben left the meeting, the Narcanians agreed to allow 1SMU to talk to the humans and gather information, and gave them tents to stage their operations out of. Ashlie and Geoff reported into Ben in his tent. “Most of the humans, and some of the Narcanians, suffered some sort of wounds from the invasion. And a lot of them are suffering from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder.” Geoff said.

  “And they confirmed what the First Overseer said. The Banor killed anyone they saw, even children.” Ashlie said, looking disturbed. “Among the survivors is a media team from the local news affiliate, they have photos, videos, and a stack of written eye witness accounts as tall as me.” She said.

  “That’s not a difficult feat, Ash. You’re what, two feet tall?” Geoff asked with a smile.

  “Four-Eleven.” Ashlie said defensively.

  Ben cringed. “You look through any of it?”

  “Just glanced through the photos. It’s not pretty.” Geoff said. “We don’t have the gear to digitize the paperwork, but I was able to make digital copies of the videos and photos for you.”

  Ben took the digital copies and pulled out the small field computer he carried, and hooked it up to the hyperwave radio he had been issued. He wrote a brief report and attached the photographs and videos to it, along with photos he had taken on the ridge earlier, directing it to Praxis. Along with the basic report, he included information given to him by Kiyahla. He sent it out, then refreshed his inbox. He had written reports from several of his subordinate commanders.

  “Any good news?” Ashlie asked, as Geoff left.

  “We have locations on five enemy divisions.” Ben said. “Still looking for the enemy’s main Command Post.”

  “So, what’s the plan?” Ashlie sat down on his bed.

  “We disrupt as much as we can. Kiyahla is going to chalk a detachment of troops to both Rob and Sid for a patrol tonight. Tomorrow night I want to hit that division again.”

  “The division? You realize that’s 20,000 troops with armor and artillery, against us?”

  “Psychological warfare, Ashlie. Get inside their heads. Most of those enemy troops are conscripts. They are determined enough, but we’ve shown before we can unnerve them.”

  “You are a devious bastard. The Narcanians have any heavy weapons they can lend to us?”

  “Yes, actually. They have about a dozen sixty millimeter mortars, and a few hundred rounds of ammunition, including precision guided rounds. I plan to have our sniper teams illuminate targets for them.”

  “Wish they had some actual artillery.” Ashlie said with a shrug.

  “It would be nice, but we found out today the Banor have some sort of warning system, that’s the only way they were able to fire on us that quickly and that accurately on the ridge. Even if they had artillery pieces, using them would likely provoke accurate counter-battery fire.” He stepped outside his tent and lit a cigarette. As he did, he heard a distinctive and familiar screeching noise.

  “Aerial recon?” Ashlie asked.

  “Yup. Looking for this place, most likely. Those are fighters, chances are, the best they could do is strafe us….” Ben thought for a moment. “Where do you suppose their airbase is?”

  “You’re the tactical genius, where would you put an airbase?” Ashlie asked.

  “Could be anywhere. Those fighters have an impressive range, even if their atmospheric performance sucks.”

  “If only you could get in the air.” Ashlie said.

  “Actually, I can….” Ben paused. He retreated into his tent and pulled a small case out of his bag and opened it. Inside was a miniature aircraft, disassembled into its’ major components. Ben assembled it and set it on the desk. The small aircraft was 12 inches long, with a 14 inch wingspan and a 3-bladed airscrew.

  “Nice. But aside from being a model plane, what does it do?” Ashlie asked.

  Ben flipped it over. On the bottom, the aircraft had a series of digital cameras. Some pointed down, some pointed outward at various angles. “This thing takes ultra-high definition video at 48 frames per second from each camera. I can control it from here,” Ben held up his battlefield tablet, “And get a live view from both the pilot camera, as well as any of the cameras on the bottom.”

  “What about still frames?” Ashlie asked.

  “That’s the best part, we can use each of those 48 frames per second as a still photograph, or create an interactive map.”

  “Okay. I am impressed.”

  ***

  The night patrols proceeded without incident. The Banor, it turned out, were content to send their aircraft out to patrol rather than sending ground troops. Also during the night, Kate and DJ had gone back to the ridge line to scout the enemy base some more, and had tracked the enemy fighters to a base behind the infantry positions they had mapped earlier. Kate resisted the urge to take a shot at one of them as they flew overhead, knowing the pilot’s wingman would have turned and probably strafed them.

  Ben launched the Mini drone early that morning. The aircraft flew up to three hundred meters, and flew at an airspeed of thirty kilometers an hour. Ben ran the plane over the ridge, and spent ten minutes flying over the enemy division’s camp. As he passed the far side of the camp, he saw something on the corner of the camera.

  Ben banked the plane towards the visual contact, and quickly realized what he was seeing. “I found it!” He said to himself. A large airfield filled the cameras. Banor fighters were lined up in tight groups along a long runway. Ben counted forty-eight fighters, twenty-four transports, and thirty-six attackers. There were fuel tanks, munitions bunkers, and a massive sensor assembly. Around the runway, hangars provided repair facilities for the aircraft. Ben pulled the plane back and downloaded all the information to his computer.

  “Six months of fighting, and this is the best intel we have gotten so far.” Kiyahla said, looking over the video of the flight. “We knew the base was close, but really, only 5 kilometers?”

  “Yup.” Ben said. “And on the return flight I flew it on a circuit past the site of yesterday’s battle. There’s no enemy presence there.”

  “Flank the division, hit the airbase?” Kiyahla asked.

  “That’s the plan, at least for my people.” Ben said.

  “How many Marines are you taking?”

  “I have a second team about ten kilometers west of here. I sent them a message to rendezvous with me in about five hours. We will attack the airfield, so double my present strength. I still want you to attack that division. And I’ll leave my sniper teams with you to illuminate targets for your guided projectiles.” Ben said.

  “Works for me.” Kiyahla said.

  ***

  Ben grabbed 1SMU together, and briefed them. Kate, Gene, DJ and Erica left once they had their orders, leaving Ben with twenty Operators. They set out to handshakes from the Narcanians and the Humans. They took the hike through the woods slowly, not wanting to alert the enemy of their presence, or wear themselves out before arriving at the enemy’s gates.

  2SMU was waiting for them. “So,” Kay Jay said, extending a hand, “We’ll be hitting an airfield?”

  “Yup. Ready to wreck a bunch of enemy aircraft?” Ben asked.

  “Always.” She said.

  As they approached in the distance, they heard the sound of explosions. 2SMU wasn’t ready for it, and nearly panicked. “Relax. That’s just the locals, raising a distraction.” Ben said.

  “Human colonists?” Kay Jay asked.

  “Narcanian and Humans.” Ben said.

  “Ooh fuckin’ Rah.” Kay Jay said.

  ***

  The Operators entered as the sun was setting, quietly sneaking through
between the hangars. They took down the guards quietly with knives, and continued on. Despite the noise of battle coming from the division camp, the airfield was quiet.

  “You’d think they’d put up some kind of air strike…” Kay Jay said quietly.

  “They don’t know we found the airfield. Running up the engines on some attackers now would give it away, especially since they’d be seen during climb out.” Sid said.

  “She’s a keeper.” Kay Jay said with a wink at Ben.

  “Alright. Let’s make some noise.” Ben said. “I want high explosive rounds put on that sensor dome, and APX rounds on the fuel tanks.”

  2SMU readied their rifle grenade launchers and took aim. Ben ordered 1SMU to hold, for follow on. In short order, the ten Marines assigned to the firing detail launched their weapons and reloaded. Ashlie and Evans each fired a round into the control tower windows, nailing their shots dead on. The enemy troops scrambled towards the burning fires in the fueling depot, control tower, and sensor dome…and away from the neat rows of valuable aircraft.

  Ben and Kay Jay set up their heavy weapons gunners to strafe along the lines of fighters and attackers, and in moments all the Operators were firing. Landing struts gave way, causing heavy craft to crash into the hard pavement. The enemy, preparing for a potential attack, had kept the fighters fueled and armed with missiles, ready to launch quickly. That forethought would haunt them, as the weapons’ fire set missile fuel tanks ablaze, and even caused two to accidentally launch. Fires began to burn on the flightline. “Knock it off. Fall back.” Ben said. He recognized the danger the fires posed, not only to enemy equipment, but to his own people.

  Sid had Wilkie set a series of four shaped charges against the corners of the two nearest hangars. Kay Jay’s team did the same. Sid produced one last surprise, a high-yield charge that she set on a two minute timer and threw it into the vicinity of the enemy fighters before falling back. As they reached the gates of the base, the explosives went off. The four rectangular hangars, having lost their key structural supports on two sides, began to collapse from the force of the explosions. Although not totally leveled, they were wrecked. The explosion among the already burning fighters was much more satisfying, although Troy Evans and Davidson Burge from 2SMU were both seriously wounded by shrapnel. Others received minor cuts or burns as pieces of debris fell around them. In the course of just six minutes, the Operators had brought enemy airpower in this area to its knees.