The Icarian Legacy Collected Edition: Brave Souls - First Strike (Volume 3)

by Kocho Trajchevski

  “Thank you Admiral.”

  “What is the news on our teams?”

  “They are closing in now. They will be on board in a few minutes.”

  Fillip watched as the drop ship slowly descended on the broken half of the dreadnought. Eleven more shuttles were descending as well on it. It was a four kilometers long piece of one of the enemy’s dreadnoughts. The scan showed several hundred life signs scattered all over. He looked at the rest of his team. Twenty five soldiers were here. The rest of the battalion was on the other shuttles. In total two hundred and fifty soldiers descended on the deck. As the soldiers exited from the shuttles the small ships rose and retreated in the distance. Fillip gave the signal and the soldiers slowly spread out and started moving inside.

  As he looked the ship was a mess. Bodies of dead Dacarians were drifting in the vacuum. The decks were torn, inner bulkheads were shredded.

  “Man would you look at all this damage. I wonder if there is any place left that is untouched on this junk.”

  He signaled the soldier that said those words to be quiet.

  The soldier received the order and continued forward covering the angles with his rifle.

  The specially designed armor suites were an improved version of the ones that Fillip and the rest of the marines wore two years ago when they boarded the Argus. He remembered the ghost like hallways of the battleship. They saw damages then too but it was nothing like the sight before their eyes. As they entered the pressurized decks they could see fires burning all around them. Torn pieces of metal were falling on decks exposing bulkheads. He wondered how someone could survive this.

  No team reported any contacts so far. All they found were dead bodies, some mangled so badly that they were unrecognizable. He divided his unit in to ten teams.

  “Look for the bridge or some other place of significance. If you manage to find survivors try to disable them without killing but don’t take any chances. Report your position every two minutes. They should be surprised by our weapons. They have armor specially designed for beam weapons.”

  Confirmations came from all teams.

  Kal Shar looked at the small group of survivors gathered in the hallway. From the search that they done he knew that several hundreds of survivors were spread out through the decks. Most of them were badly hurt and dying. Those that were still capable of fighting were searching for weapons. They knew that they would be boarded soon. The battle was long over and the final result was shocking to every legionary. He didn’t know the final results but he knew that the fleet was destroyed.

  The Shamusa was among the last remaining ships. He still remembered the moment when the enemy kinetic weapons hit the ship. The dreadnought was split in to three parts and explosive decompression killed most of the crew. The bridge was exposed to vacuum. He hoped that it was destroyed. The information’s there couldn’t be allowed to fall in to enemy hands. He sent ten legionaries with the ten undamaged space suits that they had to destroy everything that was of value on the bridge. He hoped that they will manage to complete the mission.

  He pressed the button of his communicator.

  “Gara how far are you?”

  “We are close to the bridge. We had to bypass several locks. There are still fires burning here.”

  “Is there any sign of humans?”

  “None so far, but we have a lot of bodies here. We found several groups of survivors and sent them in your direction. I kept a group of them with me as additional cover. They don’t have space suits but they can keep a close watch for humans when we enter the bridge.”

  “Ok. Call me when you reach it.”

  “I will.”

  As he ended the conversation he looked at the gathered legionaries. He had forty seven that had weapons. Additional fourteen were armed with swords. There were fifty more here but they were all badly hurt. He knew that most of them will be dead in couple of persks. Two medics were doing what they could for them.

  As he turned he noticed about thirty legionaries approaching. They must be the ones that Gara found. Most of them were armed. As they were coming he noticed another legionary running behind them.

  “We have humans on board.”

  “Do you know how many?”

  “Two hundred at least, they are coming from all sides. At least one team is going for the bridge.”

  He immediately contacted Gara.

  “What is it?”

  “You have humans approaching you. You have to hurry.”

  “I will.”

  Gara looked at the legionaries that were with him. He pointed to the ones that joined him on the previous decks.

  “Susa you and your men must try to hold of the humans. We must prevent them from reaching the bridge. At least until I manage to destroy the data chips.”

  “We will centurion. They might have been able to destroy our ships but they won’t pass by us.”

  “Don’t be so confident. We thought we would be on the planet by now and look at us. They are not like they seem.”

  “I won’t.”

  “Go.”

  The small group rushed back and Gara and the others rushed towards the bridge. They were close to it. He needed for the legionaries under Susa to give him several arns. That was enough time to destroy the information’s on the bridge.

  The teams advanced slowly. They were checking every corner, every room on the broken hull. The scans from the battleship showed life signs at least several hundred, but all they found so far were killed dacarians.

  There was equipment spread out everywhere. Once it was cleared of the living dacarians there was definitely going to be a lot of work for the science teams.

  As he received the last reports from the other teams Fillip noticed his point men raise his hand and with hand signals showing that they have enemies up front. The soldiers stopped immediately. They spread out and took positions that provided them some cover.

  Fillip moved to the front. He looked at Alexander. They knew each other well considering that they served together on several missions to the Middle East.

  With his hand Fillip pointed towards the side tunnel.

  Alexander gave him the answer.

  “Count thirteen hostiles. Spread out moving fast looking for covering positions.”

  Fillip pointed to the grenades with his hand.

  “Use four grenades. Then we open fire. Shoot to kill.”

  The order he gave was carried out immediately.

  Alexander and three other members of the team took four grenades and threw them.

  Susa and his men were moving fast. He knew that they must reach the next lock before the humans. They could hold them indefinitely there.

  He had confidence in his mean. The fleet might have lost but he was sure that their personal armor would have no trouble with the weapons the humans would have.

  They were close.

  One of the legionaries in the front was the first one to notice that they were too late. He tried to warn the others but as he turned four grenades flew in to the ranks of the small group of legionaries. It didn’t take long for Susa and his men to notice the danger. They immediately tried to find cover. But they were already dead.

  The M67 grenade had proven its value countless times before in the conflicts humans fought constantly between them and it proved itself against the aliens in the battle in the Mediterranean. It had a killing radius of five meters and a casualty radius of fifteen. The four grenades that fell among the legionaries exploded throwing hundreds of shrapnel’s that tore through their armor with ease, and even as they died from them Fillip and his team exited firing.

  Susa had just enough time to see the first human coming out before the grenades exploded and the shrapnel’s tear him apart. The thirteen legionaries died within several seconds.

  Fillip and his team didn’t stop to look at the bodies. They continued on looking for other targets and for the bridge of the vessel.

  In several minutes several other teams report
ed contact.

  “We have to find the bridge. By the way they are reacting and the fact that the group we just eliminated behaved like they were trying to protect someone we must be near.”

  “I believe you are right sir. There are signs that a larger group past through here.”

  Fillip looked at Goran. He was one of the best scouts and trackers he knew. If he felt that someone passed through here not long ago he was probably right.”

  “Ok we move fast but careful. I fought one of the bastards hand to hand. They are tough bastards so don’t allow them to surprise you.”

  “Yes sir.”

  They all knew about his fight with the dacarian legionary and the fact that he eliminated an entire group of them by himself three years ago. His report about the fight was something that every soldier had to learn and read. It made him well known among the ranks. He hated it. He was used to working in secret not everyone knowing who or what he was. But at the same time he was happy that the report made every human soldier know how dangerous they truly were. He knew he was lucky that day, very lucky.

  As they moved they heard the noise of someone trying to break something. The team stopped and spread out.

  Fillip and Goran went ahead to examine the situation.

  Goran moved first. As he tried to see around the corner a blade Fillip was well acquainted with pierced through his armor and in to his chest. The human soldier was dead before he fell to the floor. Fillip jumped away immediately as he noticed his team mate falling and fired in to the head of the first legionary that stepped up. Before he could fire again a second one the same one that killed Goran kicked his weapon from his hands and tried to stab him. He turned and immediately jumped to his feet at the same time pulling out his own combat knife. He heard the rest of his team reacting to the new situation but he knew that he doesn’t have time to wait for them. And the legionary didn’t want to wait as well. He stroke with his sword again. Fillip jumped away and used his knife to try to cut his opponent. The blade struck the armor plate but didn’t penetrate the armor.

  “Fuck, their suits are armored as well.”

  As he faced his opponent fur more legionaries stepped up they had guns but before they could shoot him two of them fell than as armor piercing rounds fired from the rest of his team struck them. The bullets made small wounds in the armor but they were deadly. The other two legionaries fired back and retreated. He heard his teammates shouting that they couldn’t get a clear shot. But he knew that he can’t move, not do that and stay alive.

  He couldn’t really see the face of his opponent through his helmet but he knew that the head is his best chance. He knew that he will only have one chance at this. He waited for the legionary to make his move.

  He didn’t have to wait for long. The legionary knew that he is alone and reacted fast. He was named Wainme. He had years of training in the legions and fought numerous battles on several planets. He even had a chance to fight human slaves. He knew they were dangerous. And as he watched his human opponent move he realized that he wasn’t the first dacarian the human fought.

  He knew that this human was the leader of the enemy unit. The way the others watched him showed respect. This was a good fight.

  As Fillip watched him he made his move. He fainted a stabbing for a second time and then suddenly slashed with the gladius upwards. But Fillip expected the stroke. He stepped to the side and away just in time. With his left hand he grabbed the wrist and pulled the dacarian forward.

  As the legionary started to react he struck with all his force plunging the sword in to the visor of the helmet. The blade penetrated the plastic easy.

  The legionary fell to the ground dead. The rest of his team came forward and started firing at the other legionaries that started to retreat through the hatch they just opened. Fillip picked up his rifle and gave the order to advance.

  Gara watched as his legionaries tried to stop the advancing humans. He knew Susa failed when he didn’t answer his hail. He watched the short fight between the human and Wainme before retreating through the hatch.

  He was impressed by the way the human fought. Wainme was one of the most experienced legionaries he knew, a soldier who fought in many campaigns. He was also stronger and bigger than his opponent. But the human killed him quick and with ease. He lost five legionaries before they managed to enter the bridge. He knew he and his men were dead. He tried to pull a plasma grenade but before he could do it the humans were at the door. His men started firing and killed three of them but the incoming fire was devastating. Gara felt four shots penetrating his armor. He tried to move but he couldn’t. The hand that reached toward the grenade fell to his side and he crumpled to the floor. He could feel the air escaping through the damaged suit and the hissing as the suit repaired itself and injected painkillers in to his body. But it was all for nothing as he noticed one of the human soldiers approaching him. His last view was of the gun that blew his head off.

  Fillip looked at the dead legionaries. They were trying to destroy the bridge or better said what was left of it.

  The upper decks were totally destroyed and the bridge was exposed to space. Judging by the damage he could see Fillip guessed that a MAC round hit the decks above it. He could clearly see the debris floating outside. The bodies of the dead were floating everywhere now joined by the bodies of the five legionaries and his three men.

  “Search for any data crystals. And secure the bridge.”

  “Yes sir.”

  His men obeyed him without word and spread out four men searching for anything of value and the others taking positions both inside and outside in the hallway. He turned towards Zoran.

  “Take care of the bodies of the dead. Take them to the hallway.”

  The lieutenant obeyed him immediately. He called several men and they took the three floating bodies outside. Fillip keyed his mike.

  “This is Alpha team to base. We have the bridge. I say again we have the bridge. Securing it and moving on.”

  “Alpha this is base. Wait for the security and science teams. They’ll be there in three.”

  “Copy that. You can approach through the top decks. The bridge is open to space.”

  “Roger that. Base out.”

  He turned to the men searching the bridge.

  “Stop the search. We have a second team coming and they have a science team with them. They will know what to look for.”

  The soldiers stopped and left the bridge.

  “This is Alpha to all teams report.”

  “Beta here Sir, we located several survivors so far but they all had to be eliminated. I lost two men in the firefights. Continuing to Delta’s positions they seem to have located a larger group. Team’s Gamma and Theta are also heading there.”

  “Copy that. Be careful we will join you in several minutes.”

  “Yes sir we’ll be waiting.”

  “Delta I want you to wait reinforcements and just keep them contained until I arrive. Try to block their exits.”

  “Yes sir. We have a really large group here. I lost seven men when we encountered them we had to retreat. We are keeping them in place for now. But we will need assistance. I have a hundred plus in there.”

  “Help is on the way. Just hand tight.”

  “Yes sir.”

  “This is Alpha to all teams advance to delta’s positions. I say again advance to Delta’s positions.”

  He got confirmation from all of them, and the reports about their losses.

  So far seventeen men were dead. Ten more were wounded. He expected that kind of losses. This was a battle on a rough turf. The Dacarians may have been badly beaten but they were professional soldiers and this was a ship they knew well. And with all the damage it had taken and the debris all around it offered many hiding places. He was lucky that the losses were such as they are.

  Their replacement arrived several minutes later. It had forty men that were waiting outside at their starting point for this. Ten were scientists and as soon a
s they arrived they immediately started searching the bridge.

  He gave his commands to the lieutenant leading the team and he and his men headed towards the position of Delta.

  As they arrived he noticed that all teams were here. The dacarians were surrounded and blocked.

  Kal Shar looked at the group of legionaries he had. With the people that arrived previously and with the ones he had his forces now had over hundred and thirty legionaries. He also had sixty three wounded. He didn’t know how many humans were outside but he knew that he was blocked. His men tried twice to break through and spread the fight in to other decks but they were stopped mercilessly. The humans lost seven men in the first shootout and several more after it but he lost thirty five.

  Their weapons penetrated the armor the legionaries wore with ease. They used projectile weapons, a weapon that the legionaries weren’t used to fighting. Their armor could deflect energy weapons, and even light caliber projectile weapons but the humans were using armor piercing bullets that tore through armor and flesh like it was paper. He positioned his men in to covering positions. All he could do was sit and wait for the inevitable. It was sad that it ended like this. He was part of the Al Mach clan. Several of the legionaries were also. They all awaited the arrival in to this system and hoped to see their leader here. Ristarion was part of the scout force. But now he knew that his master was dead. That was a terrible blow for his clan. And thousands of legionaries that served Ristarion and his uncle were now dead as well. It filled him with anger as he remembered Guntar Al Mach. The older one was on a planet in the Arcadian system. He was the one that agreed to this plan and as he was superior to Ristarion the younger one had to agree even though he objected rigorously. And now he and everyone else were dead. He hoped that Gara managed to destroy the data chips on the bridge. These humans had to be stopped from knowing anything about the empire, at any cost.

  He lost the contact with the centurion a long time ago but his last report was that he was entering the bridge.