“That’s very kind of you Ti’rrk, all of the others have made a similar offer but I would prefer to stick with you.”
“It is my duty and obligation to protect you, Mark, you are a Friend of the People.”
“What is this Friend of the People thing? When Alan said I was one, he didn’t say what it meant.”
“Alan is often short on detail and doesn’t like explaining things. I find him very annoying sometimes. Have you ever noticed that?”
Mark burst out laughing “There were times when I could have killed him because he was so annoying.” Mark said. “I thought it was just me.”
“It is good to see you laugh Mark, you have seemed very unhappy every time I have seen you. There won’t be much to laugh at when we go into action but I hope that when we have defeated the enemy you will be more settled.”
“Do you think that we will survive this Ti’rrk? Everyone else I’ve spoken to seems to think that there’s a good chance we’ll all die, and I think I’d be a liability even if we weren’t outnumbered and outgunned.”
Ti’rrk chuckled. “Of course we will survive Mark. Their outward pessimism is just their way of coping with the pre-mission stress. They’re always like this. That doesn’t mean it won’t be dangerous or that nobody will get killed, but I’m proud to be a part of this unit. They are the best of the best and Sally is an outstanding leader. She will lead you into danger but she will lead you out of it again. You will need to play your part, that is taken into account when Sally and Orange plan our mission. They understand your lack of experience and training so they won’t have planned for you to take a major part in this. All you need to do is follow any orders you get without hesitation. You will do fine, and I will protect you. All of the team will, you are one of us now.”
“Thanks, Ti’rrk, I feel better about it now. I think. I’m still terrified though. I’m exhausted too, I’ve been up for twenty hours now and I’ve spent almost the whole day being trained.”
“I will interrogate the ship’s medical AI and get something for you that will stop you feeling tired but won’t affect your performance. When it wears off you will have to catch up on real sleep but it will keep you going for several days. I’ll have a pattern for it before we take off and you can collect it from the onboard synthesiser when we land.”
“And you were going to tell me about being a Friend of the People?” Mark said.
“That will wait until another day, we need to leave now, but being a Friend of the People is a good thing. A very good thing,”
Ti’rrk turned and made her way up the ramp and Mark followed behind her. There were about fifty seats in the lander but there were just the six of them inside it. There was no provision for Ti’rrk to sit but there was a space at the front of the lander and she settled down there. Sally was standing at the front of the gangway between the seats and Mark ducked his head as he moved past her.
Sally spoke to him and said, “Mark, a moment please.”
Mark was tired of being threatened and abused by Sally, but she was in charge so he stopped and turned to face her. It was the first time he had stood close to her since he left Earth and he could see her face clearly now. Without the thick rimmed glasses she had worn on Earth he could now see that she had intensely green eyes with irises much larger than humans had. He could also see that her pupils were slit-shaped, like a cat’s.
“I know that you don’t want to be here but you are and we are all depending on you to do your job. You know how to use your weapon now, all you have to do is follow orders and we’ll come out of this without any problem. You will be vulnerable though so…”
Mark interrupted “I know, everyone has said it. You want me to stick close to you so that you can look after me.”
“Great Satan no! I was going to tell you to stay close with one of the team and they will look after you. Your best bet would be Ti’rrk if she will tolerate you.”
“Are you sure you’re not a devil worshipper?”
Sally smiled. “No Mark, your soul is quite safe with me. Take a seat and we’ll leave.”
Mark was far from sure that his soul would be safe with Sally. As far as he was concerned she was a violent and unpredictable psychopath and no part of him was safe with her.
He took a seat next to Mike. Mark thought that she was more like him than anyone else on the team, despite being a female and a reptile. He was a bit surprised they weren’t strapped in, he had seen the movies with soldiers held tightly by their harnesses when they were in helicopters going into a war zone. There weren’t any straps at all in these seats, they were more like aircraft seats but bigger and with a lot more leg room.
There was a slight lurch from the lander as it took off and straps extruded from the seat to form a harness around Mark, holding him firmly in place. They were on their way down to Gnn'Ath, the first alien planet that Mark had visited, and he was going there to try to kill people before they killed him.
Preparing To Land
As soon as they lifted off, Mike said: “Your backpack contains water, field rations for eight days, a fork and bowl in case we find anything we can cook and eat, a mug, a medical kit, a waterproof ground sheet in case we get time to sleep - you wrap yourself in it. A fire lighter, a small torch and a spare jumpsuit. It’s unlikely that you’ll get a chance to change but you never know. You haven’t got a full field kit because you wouldn’t know what to do with it and it would just be extra weight for you to carry. You haven’t got a knife or any other hand to hand weapons to fight with because you’re more likely to injure yourself than your opponent, unless they are already dead. Ti’rrk saw you sit next to me, she told me she has ordered up sleep suppressors for you, I’ll show you where the synthesiser is before we disembark. They are in tubes like the one I gave you the tranquiliser when your nose was broken. They are easy to self-administer. You can administer the first one.
“None of that seems very exciting,” Mark said. “What are the field rations like?”
“Don’t worry about the lack of excitement, there will be plenty of it soon. The field rations? They’re edible. Just. You haven’t got tailored ones for a human. You’ve got the same as Sally, your body chemistries are similar. You wouldn’t like mine or Simon’s and Orange’s rations would kill you. I’m not sure what Ti’rrk eats, she provides her own rations but doesn’t seem to eat much at all when we are in action.”
“I was hoping to avoid action, but I guess that’s not an option. What is it we are going to do?”
“OK, I’ve got to brief you on our mission and on ground conditions. Gnn'Ath is a low gravity planet, about eighty-five percent of your Earth’s gravity. That’s a good thing for you, it will make it easier for you to move about but more difficult for Simon, Orange and Sally who are used to much higher gravity planets. I’m OK because I grew up regularly moving between my civilisations planets which were a mix of high and low gravity, so I’m used to both. Ti’rrk seems to be comfortable with gravity levels that would crush the life out of me and she’s just as happy with weightlessness. Ant warriors are trained as soldiers from the moment they pupate. You should be comfortable on Gnn'Ath. The climate where we are going is on the cool side of temperate but not freezing. It rains a lot there. The atmosphere is a bit thinner than Earth’s, but the oxygen level is slightly higher. Have you got all that?”
“Slightly lower gravity, air breathable, rain. Got it.”
“Good. The native population are avians, flightless, with modified wings that act as arms. They are smaller than humans and lightly built. If you come across any your AI will flag them as harmless. They are not aggressive and are crap at fighting, which is why they lost so much territory before we got here and also why we committed to a ground assault before we were ready with enough troops. If Sally hadn’t committed our regulars when she did it would all be over now. As it is, our troops are taking a beating with over one hundred and fifty dead and twice that many wounded badly enough to be evacuated. Out of two thous
and troops that’s had a big impact on our capability. On the other hand, our best estimate is that we have killed or incapacitated over two thousand of their troops, but that still leaves us massively outnumbered. Our mission is to go into their local headquarters encampment and disable the industrial synthesiser. That will dramatically reduce their capability to sustain their troops now we’ve got control of the orbital space around the planet. The secondary objective is to destroy their generating equipment and any technology we can find. Without a synthesiser to replenish it they will have their overall capability in this sector diminished. And of course, we will try to kill every enemy soldier we can find.”
“What? Just six of us? Will their headquarters camp be empty?”
“No!” Mike chirped briefly. “There will be enemy soldiers, and more importantly, local commanders and technicians. Those are the people we will be targeting on this mission. The soldiers are just a nuisance.”
“But - does that mean we’ll be targeting non-combatants? That’s not right!”
“Mark, this isn’t a nice clean little war like you have on Earth. I’ve seen the videos and read the reports about the insurgents and terrorist organisations that have been annoying you on Earth and while I wouldn’t play down how bad they are, they are like kittens compared to the enemy we are going up against. This isn’t an isolated attack, this is a slow-burning war that’s been going on for thousands of years. It’s hotting up now and we may be approaching a critical moment in its development. Their leader is called Tk'ng Dach Rrn…”
“I know, Simon told me about him.” Mark interrupted.
“Simon told you? Really? Apart from the odd bit of foul-mouthed banter with Orange he hardly speaks to anyone!”
“Er, I found him quite chatty. Well, not exactly chatty, but he did talk to me quite a lot.”
“It would seem that we are in times of even greater change than I thought. But to get back to your concern about non-combatants, this isn’t a holy war or a species war, or a battle of different ideologies, this is purely about power and dominance. Tk'ng Dach Rrn’s followers are in no doubt what they will get out of this if they succeed. It isn’t some crazy idea of an eternity in paradise if they die in battle or that they have any divine or natural right to rule the galaxy. If they win, they will be the absolute rulers, and the million or so of them will rule the millions of galactic civilisations each with their trillions of citizens without any constraint on their greed and cruelty. They will rape, torture, steal, burn and destroy everywhere - including at some point, Earth. You aren’t, as far as I know, here to represent Earth, but believe me, if we fail to stop Tk'ng Dach Rrn’s army, Earth will suffer like it has never suffered from any human tyrant. If your species is lucky, they will be wiped out quickly.”
“On the whole, I’d rather that didn’t happen.” Mark said. “But, as I’ve repeatedly said, I am the last man - person - human, I mean, that should be here. I am not a natural soldier. I am by nature, the guy who hides in the background until it’s all over, so what am I doing here?”
“Fucked if I know.” Replied Mike. “But you are here and you must play your part. If we fail to defeat the enemy here, not only are you likely to be dead as a result of that, but Earth, along with the rest of the galaxy, is more likely to be swept away by the tide evil of that will be unleashed by Tk'ng Dach Rrn.”
“Ok,” Mark said shakily. “realistically, what are our chances of success?”
“We’ll win the battle for Gnn'Ath. I’m fairly confident that our unit will mostly survive too. Sally has got plans up her sleeve for Gnn'Ath, and for what follows. But we have to focus one battle at a time. We absolutely have to succeed in this mission, Mark. It’s not just its strategic importance in this sector, it is symbolic of our ability to progressively take down the enemy, and it’s important that Sally is seen to be in the front line and winning. As you know, this is an entirely voluntary army and though anyone who leaves during an engagement or a war is technically a deserter, realistically there are no sanctions that could or would be taken against them. If Sally is seen to stumble we are likely to lose soldiers. We can’t afford that and we need a lot of new recruits. The people we want aren’t going to be in a hurry to join us if they have no confidence in our leader.”
“Shit. No pressure then.”
Mike smiled. “All any of us can do is - the best that we can. We are doing this for a reason, Mark, not just for kicks. We’ll be landing soon. Do you have any last minute questions?”
“How long will we be down there? How do we get out again? What happens when we land?”
“To take your questions in order, I don’t know how long we’ll be on-planet. It could be for some time, possibly months. Hopefully, we won’t leave until the job is done. I’d expect Alan to have gone by then so we’ll be taken up in the landers to our transporter ships. Finally, what happens when we land? We’ll get off damned quick and take offensive positions. You’ll be last off but don’t hang back, none of us will tolerate that. You need to get off on the heels of the person in front of you. You’re going to stick to Ti’rrk. Good choice. If for any reason you get separated from her or if she is killed, find another one of us and stay close to them. Whatever you do, don’t get separated from the unit. If you think you are going to get captured put the barrel of your Mark Seven in your mouth pointing upwards and fire it. Your AI will override your armour. Other than that - do what you are told, when you are told. Don’t do anything unless you are told. Got it?”
Mark, feeling sick, with his stomach threatening to rebel against him replied, with a tremor in his voice, “Got it.”
“Good. Stand and check the straps on your backpack and put your helmet on. That will activate your energy field body armour. Then we’ll get your sleep suppressors. You stay at the back ready to land. Sally will be first out followed by Ti’rrk, me, Simon and Orange. You run out straight behind Orange, duck down and get to Ti’rrk. Got it?”
“Got it.” Mark's voice was still shaky. As he started to get up from his seat, the straps making up the harness holding him in released and shrunk back into the seat.
“VR video game. VR video game” Mark repeated to himself, taking deep breaths.
“Come on.” Mike said, leading him to the back of the nearly empty lander.
She stopped at a recessed panel in the wall behind the last seat and put her hand on it. The panel slid back and revealed eight of the small cylindrical devices that Alan had administered a painkiller to him with, and that Mike had used to give him a tranquiliser. Mike picked them up and put seven of them into his backpack. The eighth she handed to Mark.
“This is an injector, you’ve seen them before. They are quick and easy to use on yourself. Hold the flat end against your neck, roughly where your carotid artery is, it doesn’t have to be exact, and press the rounded end.”
Mark did as he was told and apart from the end of the injector that touched his neck getting a little colder, there was nothing to indicate that anything happened.
“You’ll start to feel more awake in a few seconds.” Mike told him. “Are you bonded with your Mark Seven, field attenuator and energy field armour?”
Mark paused for several seconds and then replied: “I am now.”
The lights in the transporter slowly started to dim. Sally’s voice came over the unit comm link. “Heads up everyone. We are coming down just south of an enemy patrol. There are a lot for a patrol, looks like two platoons, they are too close together to do an accurate count. They are probably extending their lines, so they will have their weapons hot and their armour up. Get ready to engage as soon as we hit the ground.”
“The firefight will start as soon as we land.” Mike said to Mark. “Your armour will shield you from any incoming fire until you get into position if you’re quick. Take as best cover as you can without exposing yourself to enemy fire - they will be trying to kill you. Return fire as soon as you can, remember you’re taking down the targets whose shields have collapsed.
If there aren’t any collapsed, pick a target, focus your field attenuator and keep firing at it until the image has gone. It gets nasty now Mark. Bullets, energy pulses, shrapnel, mud, blood and guts. Just concentrate on what you are doing. Forget anything and everything else.”
“Couldn’t we land somewhere else?” Mark asked.
There was no trace of a smile on Mike’s face as she looked Mark right in the eyes and said: “Why would we do that? I’m going to get in position to disembark. Take your position right behind Orange and get ready to follow him out. There will be a lot on the comm link as soon as the door opens. Keep your ears open and your mouth shut. Listen out for orders to you from any of the team and do what you are ordered immediately and without question.”
Then Mike grinned at Mark and said, “You’ll be fine, just you see.” She flicked her long forked tongue out at him, turned and moved to the head of the gangway between the seats.
Sally stood at the door with her heavy KE weapon at her shoulder. Behind her, Ti’rrk stood in a half crouch with all of her six legs bent. Mike lifted her Mark Seven to her shoulder and Mark could see her drop down a couple of inches as she bent her legs, ready to leap out of the transporter behind Ti’rrk. Simon got out of his seat to take his place behind Mike. For all of Simon’s size Orange, who was now standing just behind him, dwarfed him.
Mark moved up right behind Orange, ready to follow him off. He held his Mark Seven pointing down with the stock pulled into the crook of his elbow to give him room to run without accidentally shooting the man in front of him, just the way Simon had shown him. He didn’t want to shoot Orange in the back. It wouldn’t hurt him because his energy field armour would protect him, but Mark really didn’t want to piss him off. By now the light in the cabin had gone completely, and it was pitch black.
Unwilling From Earth Page 18
