by JR Handley
Nhlappo knew they were likely charging into the midst of Spartika’s crack troops. She squatted next to Colchester, taking a moment to discuss their options. These were the troops who’d masterminded the mutiny against her, so Nhlappo pulled her forces back. They halted behind the rubble of a bombed-out armory building, protecting her escort squad. She needed time to send a drone out to gather information, to avoid a trap. While her Marines were collecting valuable intel, Gabrielle repeated their message on a loop, offering quarter for unconditional surrender. The AI had even overridden all Spartika’s secure channels. Nhlappo wanted to show her technological superiority while frustrating last-minute command and control.
Frakk, but Scipio and his band of misfits proved their worth today, Nhlappo admitted to herself. This new kit has been a force multiplier.
She took comfort in the cocoon of silence her new armor provided and reviewed the data from the scout drones. The majority of the enemy were running around, lost and unsure of what to do next. There were Legion Marines interspersed throughout, rounding up those willing to surrender. Satisfied that she could make it through the throng of confused insurgents, she had Gabrielle set a timer. They would charge across the open field in fifteen minutes, killing anyone they encountered. She wasn’t worried about giving the enemy more time to prepare; they’d had months to prepare their defenses. Nhlappo knew anything they did this late in the game wouldn’t make a bit of difference.
When the timer finally hit zero, her AI spoke to her.
Nhlappo, they’ve exhausted their opportunity to surrender. It’s time they be eradicated so we can complete our mission.
The time was up. Nhlappo couldn’t wait anymore. She was still reluctant to kill good Marines, even if they were insurgents. With a weary heart, Nhlappo gave the order to advance. If any survived, she’d see if she could rehabilitate them. Maybe provide them with purpose again. If they lived through the final battle.
“No mercy. They’ve had their chance to surrender,” she told her Marines.
Her troops merely clicked once over the audio signal, acknowledging receipt of Nhlappo’s order. Consummate professionals, they made Nhlappo proud. They were with her at the final moments of the war. The escort squad’s leader, Sergeant Colchester, issued the order to advance. When the troops moved out, Nhlappo fell in line with him. She wanted as much command and control as she could muster while they pushed forward. Seeing her troops advancing, other Legion Marines joined them. Together they cut through the last holdouts in the mostly pacified city.
Once reinforced, Nhlappo made short work of the remaining insurgents. They were soon near the sizeable polycrete pad where the shuttles sat, row upon row of destroyed hulks. Around the landing area were buildings that housed maintenance bays, though they, too, had been blown to smithereens. The landing zone was defended by several impromptu firing positions and guarded by Spartika’s most loyal troops. Some of the enemy guarding the outer guard positions near the shuttle pad saw the writing on the wall. They threw down their carbines in surrender.
Spartika’s more loyal troops were closest to the shuttle pad, guarding their insurgent commander. They began firing at their former allies, and many of the surrendering enemies were shot in the back. Wanting to take advantage of the internal conflict, Nhlappo ordered all the Legion AIs to target only those who appeared to be fighting for Spartika. Killing the surrendering troops seemed like a waste of a sabot.
Her gambit worked, and a path was cleared into the nearest hangar. Her HUD lit up, telling her that it housed an intact Stork shuttle. Nhlappo picked up her pace; Spartika mustn’t be allowed to escape. Before she could reach the hangar, the Stork inside exploded. Not wanting to waste time on a vehicle that was clearly inoperable, she veered off and continued looking for Spartika. Many of the buildings had been destroyed, and nothing inside them seemed capable of flying. She began focusing her attention on any of the remaining Storks that looked like they might be capable of flight. That would be where they’d find Spartika. She needed a shuttle that was operational, so Nhlappo began dismissing the areas of the airfield that were hit the hardest by the previous aerial bombardment.
Tamping down her rising frustration, she ordered the companies of Legion Marines who’d recently joined her to continue flushing her out. Turning to Sergeant Colchester, Nhlappo grimly said, “Spartika’s mine, but anyone else still loyal to her is fair game. Kill shots from here on out. We can’t let our desire to show mercy allow that sakra to escape. This fight ends here. It ends today.”
With the order given, her troops began to move through the damaged airfield. There was a renewed sense of urgency in their step, and the enemy sensed it. They began surrendering in more significant numbers. Nhlappo continued searching the large shuttle pad area and had to occasionally double back when they reached parts of the airfield that were still burning. Only the advancements on their armor’s HUDs allow them to see through the smoke from the chemical and radiation fires. Glancing around, she noticed that Marines still fighting in the old ACE-2 Combat Armor was shorting out from the combination of heat, radiation, and battle damage. Taking advantage of the incapacitated enemy, they pushed deeper into the airfield. They continued until they reached the few remaining shuttles.
“Halt,” Nhlappo ordered her escort.
Magnifying the view field on her helmet’s visor, she saw the forces surrounding the shuttles were wearing the markings of Spartika’s staff. Finally, that sakra’s vain insistence on having her staff marked by the shiny gray metallic color with brilliant green stripes and rank insignia is serving a purpose.
“That’s her. Spartika,” Nhlappo told her Marines. “Take out the guard. I’ve sent you all your targets. Synchronize your fire together. My AI will target for you. We kill her guard and charge in. Nobody touches Spartika. She’s mine. I’m gonna put a sabot in that lying face of hers.”
Zing.
The carbines fired as one, and multiple rounds hit each of Spartika’s entourage with deadly accuracy. When Spartika stood alone, Nhlappo ordered the final charge, and they quickly surrounded the mutinous officer. Despite being encased in full combat armor, Spartika still managed to exude an air of defiance. It pissed Nhlappo off. Wanting to see her face when she was finally beaten, Nhlappo aimed her carbine at Spartika’s center mass and sent a quiet message to Gabrielle.
“I need to kill her AI so she can’t blacken her visor. Calculate the angle I need to hit her with an EMP projectile round that doesn’t kill her.”
And I thought it would be something difficult, something that would require me to pray to Xena, the Goddess of Life. Oh, well. Your shot is ready now.
Grunting at her pushy AI, Nhlappo gently caressed the trigger of her carbine. It sent a precision round deflecting off Spartika’s armored chest. For a second it appeared nothing happened, then sparks and smoke began coming from the AI housing cavity on her chest plate. Seeing the AI die, Nhlappo was glad she insisted they move the housing unit for the ACE-4 to the back of the armor. It would be harder for the enemy to use the same tactic against them and their newly sentient AIs.
Spartika’s suit short-circuited, forcing her to take her helmet off so she could see. Nhlappo had only wanted to clear the visor, but she gloated in the small victory. Staring into the eyes of the mother-frakker who killed her son, she felt nothing but contempt. Spartika was scanning the armored faces of the Legion Marines surrounding her, desperately seeking help. She’s still a schemer at heart, thought Nhlappo. What surprised her more was the pathetic response from her that followed.
“Hey, handsome, help me get away, and I’ll make it worth your while,” Spartika purred at the only Legion Marine without his helmet.
Sergeant Colchester had lost his AI during the final firefight, when the enemy got a lucky grenade behind him. It destroyed the AI housing chamber, but his brute strength let him continue fighting in his unpowered armor. Colchester’s leathery, tanned features, scarred by years of combat service, stared at Spartika withou
t answering. Nhlappo felt relieved. She didn’t know the NCO very well and hadn’t been sure how he might react to a situation like this. After everything that had happened, Nhlappo was afraid to trust and had been preparing herself for more betrayal in the final moments. His non-response moved her. Tirunesh wasn’t sure she could take any more betrayals.
During the one-sided exchange between Colchester and Spartika, Nhlappo watched Spartika’s face. It was a constantly changing canvas of pathetic desperation. The wild look in her eyes fueled Nhlappo’s anger at the wretched excuse for a Marine. Rather than standing tall at the end, she again looked for an easy way out. Just like she’d done when she’d deserted Nhlappo’s son at the Second Battle of Detroit City.
Surprisingly, Nhlappo felt a moment of pride when Spartika finally gained a backbone and challenged her. It would make killing the traitorous sakra that much more fulfilling. Stepping forward, slowed by her lack of AI to control her suit, Spartika spoke directly to Nhlappo.
“Fine. In the end, there is only us. You represent all that is wrong in our perverse system, and I’ve enjoyed making you suffer for your transgressions. If you’re even half the Marine you think you are, you’ll accept my challenge. Fight me – a winner-takes-all death match.”
Nhlappo paused as she took off her helmet and handed it to the corporal standing beside her. Staring into the cold, dead eyes of Spartika, she knew she wasn’t going to accept the challenge.
“No,” she said as she pulled her Flenser pistol.
Before she could fire the final round, ending the mutiny, Colchester calmly reached up and grabbed her arm.
“Look around. Her forces are broken, but there is fight in them. Show them your mettle, and more might be willing to join us. Otherwise, we’ll have to kill them all. Fight Spartika so you can save the rest.”
Shocked at his interruption of justice, she looked around at the Marines around her. They’d cleared their visors and were watching the situation intently. Damn, she thought, he’s probably right. Marines respect strength. Growling, she decided to make it a fair fight. Amplifying her external speakers, she made sure everyone around her was aware of what was happening.
“Gabrielle, deactivate for the conclusion of this battle.”
Looking over at Spartika, she saw the fear and desperation creeping into her demeanor.
“You’ve no AI to power and control your armor, so I’ve turned mine off. I’ll even let you pick the weapons,” Nhlappo said.
When Spartika tossed aside her carbine and grabbed a shock stick and Flenser pistol, Nhlappo laughed. She’d expected the whiny little sakra to choose carbines in an attempt to end it quickly. When she’d chosen close-quarter weapons, Nhlappo’s heart filled with glee. She would make the betrayer suffer before it was all said and done. Wanting to enjoy the moment, Nhlappo unslung her carbine, too, handing it to the corporal holding her helmet. Drawing a pistol and her personal plasma combat knife, Nhlappo addressed her Marines.
“If, by some miracle of the gods, she lives, let her go free.”
Before Nhlappo had even let the last word out of her mouth, Spartika began firing her Flenser pistol. The rounds ricocheted off Nhlappo’s chest and upper torso. Spartika was attempting a head shot while charging forward. Smirking, Nhlappo fired her own pistol.
“Bad move,” Nhlappo taunted.
She crouched into a combat stance as she began sidestepping a circle around Spartika. Spartika pulled up short, seeming to realize her target had moved. Nhlappo chose that moment to step in close and punch Spartika in the face. After she connected the jab, Nhlappo pulled back while firing several sabots from her pistol into Spartika’s armored foot. At that range, multiple shots penetrated. She laughed, though it seemed to lack humor, when Spartika howled in pain. She tried firing again and heard the click from her pistol. Damn, empty ammunition carousel.
Nhlappo relentlessly continued the dance, circling her opponent. She got in close, and punched her and stabbed her. She popped in to strike at Spartika with her plasma blade while managing to avoid being hit. When Spartika began getting luckier with her pistol, sending a sabot grazing across Nhlappo’s cheek, she decided to end the threat of the pistol. She stepped in, swooping under Spartika’s hasty attempt to block the assault and grabbing Spartika’s arm. Nhlappo kept the arm bar, using Spartika’s own body as a fulcrum as she pulled.
She didn’t hear the popping of the broken bone or feel the dislocation of Spartika’s shoulder through the heavy combat armor she was wearing. The grimace of pain on Spartika’s face told Nhlappo everything she needed to know.
With her dominant right arm broken and unable to use the pistol, Spartika attempted a series of lunging blows with her shock stick, though the wild punches had little chance of success. Not against Nhlappo’s ability to jump nimbly out of range.
As she roared like a cornered animal, Spartika’s attacks grew more and more desperate. When she lunged in, Nhlappo stepped into the opening and sliced another ribbon of flesh off Spartika’s mutilated face. Her plasma blade cauterized the injury, and Nhlappo smelled the burnt flesh. Assault completed, Nhlappo used her forward momentum to come full-circle behind Spartika. She’d had enough vengeance, she decided. Her son Serge had gotten his retribution, and Nhlappo went for the kill. It was time to end the battle. Spartika had to die.
Spartika reacted just in time to turn around and prevent the coup de grâce, and Nhlappo’s thrust slashed a shallow cut into her exposed neck. Unsteady on her feet, Spartika lost her grip on her shock stick, sinking to her knees.
“Mercy,” Spartika begged, her voice laden with desperation.
“I’ll give you the same mercy you showed my son.”
With those words, Nhlappo ended it. She slashed her blade through Spartika’s neck and watched as Spartika’s head rolled at her feet.
Tirunesh felt hollow. She’d hung her hopes on vengeance giving her some closure, but it hadn’t brought her son back. Her baby was still gone, and she only had memories left to hold her over until she could meet him again in the afterlife. All she had left were Romulus and Remus, but she didn’t even know if they’d survived the New Order’s surprise attack. Were they still alive, or was she well and truly alone in the galaxy?
— Chapter 83 —
2605 AD
Ship Under Construction, Tranquility Orbit
Commander, Naval Construction Unit, Human Legion
The void, the vast emptiness of space, was calling to him, and Commander Tizer knew that soon he’d be back in the cosmos where he belonged. As he toured the assembled Spirit II Squadron, he was pleased with the progress Master Chief Teon had made. The spaceships had been restored, at least structurally. Their insides needed to be built from the ground up, but the frames of the ships were finished. And they’d done it all without a finished shipyard. Now that the yards were complete, the small squadron should be finished in a matter of months instead of years. The Hardit beamed with pride. At least, that was how Tizer interpreted her expression as she showed him the six ships in the squadron she’d brought back from their interplanetary grave. Thanks to her dedication and hard work, the retrofit of the old training hulks had gone quickly. He hadn’t thought anyone, shy of Nhlappo, could get those Spacers into shape.
As he looked around him, his HUD began lighting on the various Legion fleet assets. There was the recently finished shipyard, which would allow them to build vessels capable of traveling between the stars. And there waited the skeletal frames of a few dozen ships. He knew there would be hundreds of the vessels before they were through, if they didn’t run out of raw materials. Not all of them would be warships, but there were so many iced Marines to transport that they would need everything they could build and more. They hadn’t been able to do more than build the keels until the shipyards were operational, but their Spacers had started as many ships as they could in the interim. He was proud of their accomplishments; they were all working hard and learning as they went. They’d never done this type of work before
, but no one would know it by looking at the former training hulks in front of him.
All six of the ships looked brand-new, and their off-white polycarbonate ceramic shone under the brilliant Tranquility sun. The ships had yet to be named, though Tizer was less concerned about the honorifics surrounding the ships. They were going to drop off the troublesome Sangurians on their promised homeworld. Nhlappo had also used the New Order’s incubation technology to breed a new army of those furry bastards for the Legion. He hoped they weren’t on the ship he would command. He didn’t want to smell them as they went through their training cycle en route to rejoin the main body of the Legion.
Shaking his head inside his sleek, gray spacer suit, Tizer laughed at the idea of one of the Legion Marines having to train those beasts. Would they be as fierce without all the cultural baggage? he wondered. Let Nhlappo worry about that… on someone else’s ship. It wasn’t his problem anyway, so Tizer got back to the task at hand. He propelled himself over to the external hatch into the vessel and headed towards the rear of the ship. When he got to the compartment, he performed several quality checks. The engine room was working flawlessly, at least according to their diagnostic equipment. Knowing he had to turn it on to find out more, he authorized the initial ignition sequence.
When the Spacers assigned to this ship started the sequence out of order, Tizer jumped in and began his spot corrections.
“Horden’s bollocks, if you’ve never done this before, read the damn checklist!”
Turning, Tizer focused his attention on the Chief Engineer, Lieutenant Ulani.
“You were a master chief yesterday, and you’ll be a Spacer tomorrow if you don’t get your crew together. We have manuals for a reason! If you don’t know how to do something, use the gods-damned thing.”
