by Peter Lok
“You're right, that's not much of a plan. They outnumber you three to one, even if your HARMs are the only things that can take on a Newt mecha.”
“I know, the odds aren't the best." Joshua wasn't fazed by Willie's statement. "We're going to thin them out first with anti-air, then we'll take on the survivors. We have a new surprise for them too. So stay close until they land and then get out of here ASAP.”
“We'll run with that plan. Wish we had a better one." Willie paused. "Just make sure you get out, amigo.”
“I’m not planning to go on safari here,” Joshua replied.
***
The HARMs continued running along with the trucks while X counted down. The aliens were definitely headed towards them. "I have the Newt air units on my radar. They are slowing to Mach 2. One minute to contact. Range is 40 kilometres."
"Willie, make your break for it, we’re making a stand here.” Joshua brought his HARM unit to a stop in a cloud of dust. Penny did the same a little further down the road. Both of the HARM units faced the oncoming mechas while the trucks accelerated away. “Penny, anti-air targeting mode. Coilgun to single mode."
"Coilgun to single mode," his mecha’s AI confirmed. "Targets can be engaged at 25 kilometres."
Joshua watched the six enemy units rapidly approach on the zoomed out tactical display. "X, coordinate fire on incoming aerial hostiles."
"Fire control linked," his mecha’s AI replied. "Zooming targeting display. Target sequence will appear on your displays. Fire at each target once. Visual lock established. They are jamming the radar, weapons lock will be by visual targeting only."
The early dawn light showed Newt transports that were like nothing Joshua had seen before. During the Alien War, the Newts had used orbital shuttles to drop off their spider mechs. These were not shuttles or regular transports. They looked like rockets with long triangular wings that ran down their length. Underneath each one was an unusual looking bulge that vaguely resembled a folded up spider mech tucked into the fuselage.
"I've never seen anything like that," Penny commented.
X searched the database but was unsuccessful. "The transports and mechas do not match any known models. Caution is recommended on first contact."
"Looks like we'll be killing some new type of mecha.” The Newts had been developing new weapons and technology too, Joshua thought. They had been considered noninnovative during the war, a trait that had worked to the advantage of their human enemies.
His mecha’s AI began a countdown. "Range is 35 kilometres... Range is 30 kilometres... Range is 25 kilometres. Altitude 200 metres. Engage targets now."
The HUDs for both mecha pilots showed an enhanced video feed of the incoming mecha transports. Each of the mecha transports had been assigned target numbers on them, and a targeting reticule led each transporter to indicate where the HARM pilots should fire to hit them. The lead mecha transporter had been targeted first. When its targeting reticule flashed from yellow to green, Joshua lined up the coilgun sights on the reticule, which turned white to indicate a lock, and fired. Penny fired nearly simultaneously. If their aim was true the hypervelocity shots still wouldn’t hit for many seconds.
The HARM pilots switched targets and fired a second salvo off four seconds later when the coilguns had recharged. The thunderous claps of the firing coilguns came in close succession. While they were setting up for the third salvo, the first salvo was marked as a miss by the AI. The distance had been extreme and they were shooting at the narrow front profile of the transporters. Both pilots fired their third shots. The first target would be reengaged later.
“Range is 15 kilometres. Altitude is 150 metres.”
The pilots switched targets again and fired their fourth salvo. On the fifth salvo one of the transporters exploded spectacularly in air in a massive fireball, as the kinetic penetrators punched through it and its fuel tanks. “Splash one!” Joshua yelled out.
They fired the sixth salvo. Another one of the of the transporters erupted into flame from being hit by a previous salvo. Smoking, it continued flying towards them.
“10 kilometres. Targets are decelerating. Switching to burst mode firing.”
The targeting program had cycled to the first transporter again. A raucous seventh salvo fired off as both HARMs fired three shots per second. There was a pause for a recharge, then they fired off the eighth salvo together. All of the transporters were now braking and evading, making them harder to hit. Still, the rapid fire struck the first and second transporters in the formation. The lead transporter burst into flame and began veering towards the ground. The mecha underneath broke free and a small supersonic parachute deployed behind it, bleeding off its velocity. A moment later the lead transporter struck the earth and exploded in a rolling trail of fire along the ground. The second transporter didn’t get as far, exploding in another ball of flame that rained debris over a wide area. Its mecha did not survived the explosion. Adjusting their aim, the pilots fired their ninth salvo.
“5 kilometres. Last salvo.” Joshua’s AI warned.
Both HARMs fired their last bursts, then pivoted to clear out of the enemy mecha drop zone. The final salvos missed. Less than ten seconds out, almost overhead, the last three mechas dropped free of their transporters which veered clear of the battlefield immediately. The descending enemy mechas deployed their parachutes. The small braking chutes were followed by larger chutes that slowed the mechas to landing speed. The chutes were released by explosive bolts and the mechas completed their final landings with landing rockets.
“Prepare for ground combat,” Joshua called out. “Coilgun to single mode.” The enemy mechas had landed, and now the real battle would start. The tactical display showed four enemy mechas, three forward and one further back. All were immediately on the move after they landed.
“Coilgun to single mode.” X confirmed. “Distance to nearest enemy mecha is 1500 metres. Enemy mechas are spreading out.”
The new enemy mechas were only superficially like the standard spider mechs the Newts had been using. A standard spider mech had a flattened, teardrop shaped body with three legs to either side and a primary beam turret. These new enemy mechas also had six limbs, but they resembled giant, heavily armoured versions of a Blue Newt body shape that were dark blue and red in colour.
Joshua and Penny finally had their first clear view of the enemy mechas. Penny exclaimed, “They’ve copied the HARM design!” The Newts had seen the effectiveness of the HARM units in combat during and after the Alien War and had finally deployed their own versions. These mechas had the elongated body of a Newt that moved on four legs with its two front limbs carrying heavy weapons in their hands. The body was segmented to allow for flexibility and it looked like it had shoulder mounted weapons. The new mechas were fast and moved against the HARMs quickly.
Joshua designated the three closest mechas as targets. “Penny, engage with Typhoon! X, full barrage of missiles.”
“Roger. Activating Typhoon system,” Penny armed her system through her AI.
“Full Typhoon barrage armed and locked on targets,” his mecha’s AI confirmed.
“Fire!”
A single-use Typhoon missile pod was bolted onto each shoulder of both HARM units. One missile pod contained 16 missile cells, giving each HARM the capability to fire 16 or 32 missiles at once. This provided HARM units with an artillery bombardment capability that would otherwise be unavailable on a fluid battlefield. Compared to the regular missile pods, the new Typhoon pods launched improved missiles with more powerful warheads.
It was like a fireworks show when 32 missiles simultaneously rose out of the pods on each HARM unit. In a huge burst of white smoke, 64 missile smoke trails arced high into the air before plunging back down in a crazy swirl of smoky lines. The missiles didn’t fly in a straight line, but spiraled and changed direction on target approach. The expended missile pods dropped from the HARMs.
Well-coordinated laser flashes filled the air even before the missil
es began racing down. The firing came from the point defence lasers mounted on the shoulders of each of the alien mechas. Missile after missile exploded, but over the short distance they were traveling, the 64 missiles made a storm of incoming warheads. At the last moment the alien mechas tried to dodge and throw off the incoming missiles. Large explosions bloomed on the bodies of the alien mechas when the missiles struck. One alien mecha collapsed when six missiles struck it, blowing multiple holes in its armoured back. Billowing black smoke rose high into the air. Another mecha was hit almost as badly by four missiles. A smoking hole on its upper torso and a missing leg indicated it had been badly damaged. The third mecha had taken a couple of hits with deep pits gouged on its armour, but seemed otherwise unaffected.
The HARM units were moving right after the missile launch. The Newt beam weapons had a longer effective range than the coilguns and they would need to close in to negate that advantage. An enemy spider-mech could be killed by a coilgun hit at a distance less than two kilometres, but coilgun projectile power increased at shorter ranges. On the other hand, a Newt beam cannon was equally effective at all ranges under two kilometres so the alien mechas preferred to stand off.
Only twenty percent of the massed missile attack had hit the targets. Joshua had hoped that it would have taken out all three mechas, but Newt missile defences had obviously improved too. “One enemy mecha destroyed, one damaged. Three enemy units remaining,” X announced. “The third unit is closing rapidly.”
Wildlife, led by birds flying off, were scattering off in all directions from the explosions that had interrupted their morning routines. The mechas were fighting in a fairly flat wooded area. There wasn’t any significant cover since they were taller than most of the trees. Joshua picked the intact mecha for his target and closed in. Penny designated the remaining damaged mecha. Both HARM units fired as they ran, their coilguns stabilized by AI directed arm adjustments.
Bang! Joshua’s coilgun recoiled as the hypersonic penetrator shot towards the intact mecha. At the point of impact, massive amounts of kinetic energy were focused to create a small blast of vapourizing armour and extremely dense, depleted uranium. A deep gouge left behind indicated it had only struck a glancing blow off the alien molecular armour. The alien mecha fired the beam cannon held in its arms at Joshua’s HARM. The cannon flashed and the cracking sound of explosively heated air near Joshua’s mecha indicated it had just missed. The cannon flashed again and this time, a chunk of the side armour on his HARM exploded away in a blast of vapour and armour fragments.
“Left side, minor damage,” X called out. “Systems fully functional.”
Joshua changed direction, the feet of his HARM unit digging deep into the ground and throwing up huge clods of earth. There was a lot of mass in a running HARM unit, but he had to throw off the alien mecha’s aim. His coilgun recharged and he fired again. This time the alien mecha had a chunk of its torso armour blow off between the first arms and the forelegs. The alien mecha was staggered, but it kept moving and maneuvering. The beam cannon flashed again, missing Joshua’s mecha. Joshua was rapidly closing the range, which his HUD showed at 988 metres. He dodged again, changing his direction. Another laser blast scorched his armour. The coilgun indicated it was charged. Joshua aimed again, dead center of the alien mecha, and squeezed the virtual trigger. The alien mecha moved, but not fast enough. This penetrator hit dead on, punching through alien armour plate and deep into the torso. Staggered by the hit, the alien war machine lurched sideways, then crumpled into a rolling ball of wreckage, its beam cannon and an armoured limb thrown off as it bled off its momentum against the ground.
“Enemy unit destroyed.” Joshua’s AI confirmed. “Penny is engaging the third enemy mecha.”
The third mecha was damaged, but still very lethal. Unable to run with a leg missing, it still continued to move and fire. Wham! It took a second hit from Penny’s coilgun; smoke rose from another spot on its armour, but the damage was minor. Penny dodged her HARM unit off to the side as another laser blast flashed by. Her mecha’s left elbow joint had been damaged from an unlucky hit early on and wasn’t moving like it should. She closed the distance some more and fired again. This time, the shot was true. The penetrator struck downwards near the base of the torso, broke through the front armour, and went into the power plant. All of the energy from the chemical fusion plant was released in the form of a massive fireball that blew the enemy mecha apart.
Penny’s HARM didn’t stop running after the kill. Her tactical display showed that the fourth mecha had entered engagement range. Her mecha was to the right of Joshua’s and slightly ahead. Her duel had been quicker than Joshua’s and she had been able to close in faster against the damaged mecha. “Engaging the third mecha,” she called out. This was going to be her kill.
“Flanking,” Joshua called out. He increased the lateral distance between Penny’s HARM and his own to come at the enemy mecha in a slightly wider arc. The enemy mecha was two kilometres away and trying to maintain its distance. Odds had favoured the aliens at the beginning, but they had now shifted towards the humans.
The last enemy mecha played it smart, since it was now two on one. Its pilot knew that keeping the range long worked to its advantage due to the superior effective range of the alien beam cannon. The alien mecha fired its beam cannon, aiming at Penny’s closer mecha. Penny fired her coilgun again, but her aim was slightly off and the penetrator missed. Firing on the move was the only way not to be hit, but her mecha’s damaged arm wasn’t stabilizing its gun as well. Joshua fired. His penetrator glanced off the armour of the last mecha. They needed to get closer.
Both HARM units continued to close in. The distance to the enemy mecha was 1800 metres. Both sides continued shooting but were missing or not hitting well. The Newt pilot had proven itself to be very good. A chunk of Joshua’s shoulder armour was missing and Penny’s mecha had a hole burned along its upper chest. The enemy mecha had three impact divots on it from penetrator hits, but none had done serious damage.
“Kakatte koi yo!” Penny yelled at the remaining mecha to bring it on. She lined up her shot, stabilizing it just a little longer than she normally would. The enemy mecha was also lining up its beam cannon. She fired. The enemy laser flashed. Coherent light is faster than a projectile. Molecular armour heated instantaneously and was unable to keep up with the massive energy directed at a single point. Layer after layer of composite plating shattered then vapourized as the beam burned it to gas. A brilliant explosion tore the head off Penny’s HARM unit. The headless mecha pitched sideways in mid-stride and crashed into the earth, plowing through dirt and trees until it stopped front down. Another gouge appeared on the enemy mecha’s shoulder where her penetrator struck and glanced off.
“Penny!” Joshua couldn’t believe his eyes. Penny’s mecha was dead on the ground and billowing smoke. “Respond!”
“Unit two is offline.” X called out. “Pilot may have survived.”
Joshua jerked his HARM off to the side as X spoke. He had lost focus on the last Newt mecha for just a moment, but not long enough to be a predictable target. A flash of laser light missed his mecha. “Bastard! You’re going down!”
“Range is 1700 metres,” his mecha’s AI announced as his mecha continued to close.
They were getting closer. Joshua could tell that the enemy pilot was very, very good from the way the Newt mecha was being piloted. He couldn’t get a clean shot at the evading mecha. The enemy pilot was becoming more aggressive, sniping at him and no longer retreating. It was one on one and both pilots figured they had a good chance at a kill.
“Range is 1600 metres.” Joshua fired again. A portion of the Newt mecha’s side armour blew off.
Joshua could see the enemy mecha aiming. He leapt to the side. A laser flashed by his mecha. The Newt mecha snapped a second shot at him less than a second later. Joshua barely dodged the shot. A shallow furrow appeared on his HARM’s right arm. He could see that the heat radiators on the lower torso of the
enemy mecha had fully extended and were now glowing red hot on his display. The Newt mecha was generating more heat from constant firing than it could easily dissipate.
Joshua kept up the pressure and continued to close the distance. “Range is 1500 metres.” More shots were exchanged and missed. “Range is 1400 metres.”
“Two hundred metres ahead, pop smoke.”
“Firing smoke,” his mecha’s AI responded. Smoke mortars fired canisters from the front of his HARM, creating a line of visual, thermal and radar diffusing smoke. In seconds the smoke was thick and getting thicker. It wasn’t perfect cover, but it did make it harder to target anyone. Joshua had two advantages. His advance was facilitated from behind the smoke and he could still make out the huge heat bloom from the enemy mecha’s radiators.
Laser blasts shot through the smoke, missing his mecha by a wide margin. The Newt mecha was firing semi-blind. Joshua drove his HARM at a dead run for the smoke line. He could barely see the heat signature from the enemy’s radiators, but that was enough. He adjusted his aim, then pulled the virtual trigger again. Another penetrator left the barrel of his coilgun. The penetrator blew through the smoke and tore off a huge chunk of radiator from the enemy mecha. Two more laser blasts shot through the smoke in response, but he had already changed position.
