“That’s fine,” agreed Calvin. “Just don’t shoot it near me.”
Bridge, TSS Vella Gulf, 54 Piscium, February 24, 2021
“Both shuttles launching,” said the communications officer.
“Roger, both shuttles launching,” Captain Sheppard repeated. “Good luck, boys and girls...”
* * * * *
Chapter Thirty-Two
Shuttle 01, Approaching the Replicator, February 24, 2021
“A little further to the right,” Azrael said, pointing. “See that hatch? That’s where we want to go.”
“Got it,” said the pilot, Lieutenant Rob ‘Thing 1’ Mees, “Couldn’t pick an easy one, huh?” The hatch was in a recessed area where it would be hard for the pilot to ‘hover’ the shuttle.
“Nice and easy,” advised his WSO and cousin, Lieutenant Paul ‘Thing 2’ Mees. “It’s just like the third simulator flight in flight school.”
“Yeah, except that the simulator flight didn’t have live Drakuls that would come pouring out to shoot at you if you clanged the shuttle into it,” replied Thing 1. He worked a couple of minor corrections into the controls. “OK, this is as close as I can get. Send them in.”
Thing 2 pushed the button to put down the ramp. He could see from the camera that Thing 1 was holding the shuttle less than a foot above the replicator, despite his earlier comment. “Gluck ab!” he commed to the troops as they stepped down onto their objective.
Shuttle 02, Descending to 54 Piscium, February 24, 2021
“Shit!” said Venturi. “I don’t know how they did it, but they’re onto us.” He paused, looking at his scope. “Yeah, they definitely know we’re here. All of their command posts just went on high alert. I’ve got missile systems warming up in orbit and on the planet.”
“Hold on in back,” commed Boom Boom to the troops in the cargo bay. “It’s going to get rough.” He began a series of evasive maneuvers as he pushed the nose of the craft down toward the planet to hasten their descent.
“At this rate, we’re going to exceed the recommended heat limits on the nose of the shuttle,” said Venturi.
“Yes, we are,” agreed Boom Boom, “probably by quite a lot.” He jerked the shuttle to the left. “If I can get us down and back in one piece, though,” he said, “they can bill me.” In counterpoint, a laser beam from one of the orbital defense stations flashed through the space he had just vacated.
Within seconds, more lasers were firing, and it wasn’t long before the ground lasers began firing as well. The shuttle took a glancing blow from one of the large orbital lasers, and their stealth module failed.
“We’re visible,” said Venturi. “On the good side, the stealth module absorbed some of that last shot, so we took less damage. On the not-so-good side, you’re now going to have to fly the shit out of this thing.”
“No kidding,” Boom Boom grunted as he wrenched the shuttle around to the right.
Task Force Calvin, Onboard the Replicator, February 24, 2021
“Let’s go, ladies,” growled Master Chief, using his suit to look behind him while he ran. “Try and keep up.” Tasked with capturing the dreadnought, his squad was sprinting toward the replicator’s docking tube to the warship. At least he didn’t have the worms slowing him down. The only aliens that had been added to his squad were the three flying ones, and they could keep up, even if they were hard to control since they didn’t have suits on. The high ceilings were helpful for one thing; they gave the Xanths room to fly above the middle of the squad, since they were too small and light to be good shock troops. Of course, the pain in the ass photographer had also been added to his squad, but at least he could keep up. So far.
Wraith had the lead, with the two kuji in close pursuit. Although they had other failings, when they put their heads down, they could run for long periods. Master Chief was right behind the kuji, and the rest of the platoon was spread out behind them. The two that worried him the most were the squad’s cyborgs, Staff Sergeant Dantone and Staff Sergeant Randolph, who had been added to his squad for the assault. Built more for combat power than speed, they kept falling further back.
Before he could order a halt, Wraith rounded a corner and ran headlong into a Drakul that was approaching from the other direction. Running with their heads down, the kuji ran full speed into her, tripping and going face first into the rest of the Drakuls that were spread out across the passageway. There were five Drakuls returning from some errand or work detail.
“Contact!” Master Chief called, drawing up short of Wraith. His laser rifle was already in transit to the firing position as the rest of the squad started to bunch up behind him.
Lords of their domain, the Drakuls had no need for weapons and were unarmed. Although they initially drew back slightly in surprise from the invisible creatures that ran into them, they immediately began moving forward again, and the Drakul in the front reached down to grab Wraith. Lying back on her hands and feet, she spider-crawled away from its grasp. Before it could grab her, Bob, one of the kuji, leapt forward. Too close for his rifle, the miniature tyrannosaurus rex had several rows of sharp teeth inside his mouth that he could use, and he clamped his jaws shut on the Drakul’s forearm. The Drakul roared in pain.
Master Chief shot the closest Drakul to him between the eyes, momentarily blocking the passageway. As the Drakuls behind it pushed the slumping Drakul out of the way, the three Xanths flew overhead, screeching their hatred. Although they blocked the firing lines of some of the back members of the squad, the Xanths had great angles of their own, which they used to shoot the other Drakuls that were in the back of the pack. They only had laser pistols, but they also had great aim. All three were down before they could get close to the Terrans.
The last Drakul continued to roar as it swung the invisible kuji back and forth at the end of his wrist. Bob’s teeth shredded the skin and meat at the end of the Drakul’s arm as Bob was thrown from side to side. Seeing the impact Bob was having, Doug leapt forward, fastening his teeth on the other forearm of the Drakul. The weight of the second kuji overbalanced the Drakul, and it was pulled forward.
Feeling itself drawn down, the Drakul leaned forward to bite whatever had fastened itself to its arm. It opened its mouth, but only got a mouthful of Wraith’s laser rifle as she jammed it between its jaws and pulled the trigger. The laser fired, the bolt frying the roof of the Drakul’s mouth and continuing upward to boil its brain. The Drakul twitched a couple of times before falling forward, dead.
Bob spit out the arm he had been chewing on and then vomited out several pieces of flesh in a blue spray onto the dead body. “That is the worst thing I’ve ever tasted!” said Bob, who was known to like everything, even the Vella Gulf’s version of food. “That’s even worse than swamp rat.”
“Nothing’s worse than swamp rat,” Doug replied. He spit out a piece of Drakul flesh. “Bleh. Except Drakul.”
“If you two food critics are done,” Master Chief said, “we still have a ship to capture. Wraith, if you’re OK, lead on.”
Task Force Night, Onboard the Replicator, February 24, 2021
“It’s this way,” commed Azrael, pointing to the right at the “T” intersection. Lieutenant Rrower bounded off in the indicated direction, invisible to everyone who didn’t have a suit. Down a number of people due to casualties on the asteroid, Lieutenant Rrower joined the Ground Force and volunteered to take point. Night let the natural-born hunter have it.
“How much farther?” asked Night. Their advance was painfully slow, having to wait for the Hooolongs. It was a rapid advance...in slow motion.
“About 100 yards or so,” Azrael replied. “We’re almost there.”
“Drakuls!” called Lieutenant Rrower. “Four coming your way.”
“Understood,” repeated Night. “Four inbound.” He set up a firing line across the passage as the four Drakuls made their appearance. “One, two, three!” he commed. The soldiers fired, and all four Drakuls dropped. One wasn’t dead, though, and it pulle
d out a little box and said something into it before Night could finish the creature off.
The box was obviously some sort of transmitter, as blue lights began flashing, and a voice began repeating over the replicator’s intercom, “Intruder alert! Intruder alert!” Behind them, a door began rolling across the passageway, sealing it off. With an electrostatic ‘pop,’ all of the soldiers became visible as the suits’ stealth modes died.
“Quickly!” cried Smetlurge. “We must get to the control room. It’s just a little further on the right.” He began an end-over-end method of travel that the Terrans hadn’t seen before. As one of the end pads of the creature touched down, the other end pad flipped up and over. As the end came over the top, the end in contact with the ground pushed off, giving the Hooolong a bouncing effect as it vaulted down the corridor. The creature moved so quickly that the Terrans were left behind; the only member of the group able to keep up was Lieutenant Rrower, who bounded after the Hooolong in four-legged pursuit.
Smetlurge didn’t have far to travel, and stopped in front of a closed door about 50 yards farther up the passageway. “This is the control room,” he said. “I am in contact with a Hooolong in there. The Drakuls are killing all of the non-Drakul races. He will open the door for us when we are ready, but we have to hurry; they are discussing killing him, too.
Master Gunnery Sergeant Kinkead took charge of the entry. “Zoromski, you’re in first and go left. I’m second and going to the right. Sergeant Hanzo in and left, followed by Corporal Westbrook, who goes in and right, followed by the twins and everyone else. Ready? Let’s go!”
“Open the door!” said Night.
“Stand by...” said Smetlurge. “They’re looking at him...They decided to kill him...Door opening!”
The door opened, and Sergeant Zoromski charged into the room in time to see a Drakul picking up a Hooolong, with several other Drakuls looking on. He didn’t have a shot at the Drakul holding the Hooolong, so he fired at the one closest to him, hitting it in the chest.
Master Gunnery Sergeant Kinkead followed Zoromski into the room. She saw that the Drakul would kill the Hooolong before anyone could get into a position to shoot it, so instead of going right, she charged it. Again.
Seeing her coming, the Drakul tossed the Hooolong to the side and opened its arms, ready to grab her. Kinkead put her head down and launched herself at the creature, driving her head into its stomach. She had hoped to knock the wind out of it, but it didn’t have that effect on the Drakul. Instead, it latched onto her and rolled to the side, using her momentum against her as it threw her to the ground. Momentarily stunned, the Drakul dove on top of her; she felt her ribs re-break inside her and something vital tear. Momentarily stunned, she watched as the Drakul tried to bite her through her helmet, but only succeeded in leaving slobber trails from its fangs down her face mask.
Regaining her senses, Kinkead drew her laser pistol from her leg holster and began firing into the creature’s side. The Drakul shuddered every time she fired, but still drew its knife from a sheath. Kinkead saw it coming, and her eyes widened in horror; the oversize knife was as big as a Terran short sword. Kinkead struggled to get her pistol arm free from under the Drakul, but it had her pinned. She fired as quickly as she could pull the trigger, the pistol growing warm in her hand. She could tell that the pistol was having an effect as the monster’s actions slowed...but it didn’t stop the Drakul from grasping the knife in both hands and driving it into her chest.
Night entered the room with the second rank of soldiers, diving forward and then rolling up against the feet of one of the Drakuls. The creature looked down in time to see Night’s rifle come into alignment. Night fired, killing it with a shot through its right eye. Pushing the falling Drakul to one side, Night propped himself up on a knee and surveyed the room. He fired one more time, killing the last Drakul standing. Jumping up, he went to assist Master Gunnery Sergeant Kinkead, who was trying to push off the Drakul that was on top of her. He could see where she had shot it repeatedly on one side; half of its internal organs were open to view, and most of them looked cooked.
Pushing the dead Drakul off her, he saw why her motions were weaker than they normally were. The Drakul had left its knife buried in her chest. Checking her life signs in his monitor, he saw that she was fading fast. Her suit showed dark red, fading to black. She struggled to get her helmet off; he helped her remove it.
“Told you...” she said, “tougher than...stupid frog.” Her head fell to the side, and her suit went black in his monitor. She was dead.
“I am sorry for the loss of your soldier,” said the Hooolong, who had come over to thank her for saving its life. “I will do anything I can to help you.”
“Good,” growled Night. “Show us what we have to do to take over this damn station.”
* * * * *
Chapter Thirty-Three
Shuttle 02, 54 Piscium, February 24, 2021
The laser fire was nearly continuous now, and the terrestrial missile batteries had opened up as well. “30 seconds to go,” commed Boom Boom. In the back of the cargo bay, Lieutenant Finn’s eyes darted wildly from side to side with every near miss. The troopers riding alongside him could see the sweat pouring off of him and knew he had never done a combat drop before. It was their first combat drop, too, but they had the training and knew what to expect. Finn didn’t.
With the loss of the stealth module, it seemed like every missile and laser had opened up on them at once. The troops in the back were slammed from side to side as the Venturas tried to defeat the weapons aimed at them. Knowing that the terrain would help hide them from the enemy’s radars, Boom Boom dove for the ground and the mountain range just to the east. The nose of the shuttle glowed a bright cherry red as it overheated, moments from failure.
Without warning, they were hit by an orbital anti-ship laser, which put an 11-foot diameter hole through the starboard side of the shuttle and glanced briefly off the bomb, melting the straps that held it to the bulkhead. The air screamed explosively from the cabin, and Lieutenant Finn watched in horror as the Doomsday Device fell onto its side with a clang. He held his breath, but the weapon didn’t detonate. The ship maneuvered again, and the weapon rolled off the pallet, giving Lieutenant Finn a look at where the laser had hit. All of the external equipment had been slagged, and all of the covers to the buttons, dials and gauges down the side of the bomb were melted off.
“Crap” he said. “I think we just lost the ability to remote detonate the bomb,” he commed.
“We’re kind of...fuck!...busy up here,” replied Boom Boom. “What does...bastard!...that mean to the mission?”
“You’ll have to drop me off and run,” Finn replied. “I’ll have to manually detonate the bomb. Hopefully the arming mechanism hasn’t been destroyed, too.”
“Roger that,” said Venturi. “We will set down in as clear an...bitch!...as clear an area as we can find. As soon as you are off the shuttle...damn it!...we’ll take back off and try to lead them away.” He paused as he fired the shuttle’s anti-missile laser, detonating a missile just outside its effective kill range. The blast rocked the shuttle. “It’s pretty hairy out there,” Venturi continued. “They’re everywhere.”
The WSO paused as there was another blast close aboard. The shuttle began to shake violently. “Stand by,” said Venturi. “10 seconds.” The shuttle’s boarding ramp started down. Finn didn’t think it possible, but the ramp’s movement made the shuttle’s swaying even more violent and uncontrolled. The bomb rolled toward the opening, but got stuck on the corner of Finn’s seat.
Lieutenant Finn’s shoulders slumped, and tears threatened to break free from his eyes as he saw the weapon up close. “The remote receiver is melted,” he said. “I’m going to have to detonate it manually.”
“Manually?” asked Corporal Cuillard. “As in, set it off while you are standing next to it?”
“Unfortunately, yes,” replied Lieutenant Finn, looking destiny straight in the eye. “That’
s not the worst part. It looks like the arming mechanism is going to need some work, too. It will probably take me five minutes once we get on the ground before I will be able to set it off.”
“We will stay with you to make sure you have enough time,” said Corporal Stump. “The Three Caballeros do not leave men behind.”
“And the Three Caballeros always win,” said Corporal Owens, as if it were one of the tenets on which the universe was built.
“Gluck ab!” all three chorused.
“Well, I won’t say that some company wouldn’t be appreciated,” said Lieutenant Finn with a small sniff that he did his best to hide. “I can’t work on the bomb and defend myself...especially from 10-foot tall monsters.”
“That is why we will be staying,” said Corporal Owens. “We have been taught by Lieutenant Cristobal Contreras that duty and honor are important, but honor most of all!”
“We will not leave an officer to fend for himself,” added Corporal Cuillard. “You fix the bomb; we’ll kill the Drakuls.”
“Crash positions,” commed Venturi. “This is going to be violent.”
Finn looked out and saw the ground rush up to meet them. As the pilot applied power to brake their descent, there was another blast close to the shuttle, and the troops winced as shrapnel sprayed in through the ramp opening. Hot metal pinged off the inside of the ship, but the shuttle was already so damaged it didn’t appear to cause any additional harm. Finn felt something hit his seat and looked down to see a six-inch sliver of metal sticking out of the seat between his legs. If it had been four inches higher...he didn’t want to think about it.
Theogony 3: Terra Stands Alone Page 26
