by Aidan Colyer
“Thank you Ochre 3. Wait here until we have been gone for at least half an hour. Then you can join the main battle supporting our forces. Your HUD’s will be updated with the current data on dispositions so you can make informed choices about where to strike.”
He finished with a nod and put his helmet back on. His men moved out of the basement and blurred into nothingness as they made their way down the street. Roland lifted his rifle and followed them with his scope until they were out of sight. Once they had gone, he lowered his rifle and sat on the edge of the pile of rubble. Taking off his helmet and running his hands through his sweaty hair he tried to relax.
“Any chance of a heal Bywaters my chest is killing me,” Roland said. He stretched and regretted it instantly as he felt the new scabs split and blood begin to flow again. She approached him and waved her device across his chest. Tweaking a few dials she checked the settings and did it again. She frowned and looked at the back of the device.
“It isn’t working,” she said, annoyance tinging her voice. She removed her helmet and looked closer. After a couple of seconds, she had the back plate off of the device. She stared at it and then looked up in horror.
“It’s empty. The device is a fake.”
Everyone turned and stared at her as she dropped the pieces to the ground.
“Why would they give you a fake device?” Clark said coming over and picking up the parts to inspect them.
“I don’t know. Well, I can think of a few reasons that are on the sinister end of things. They wouldn’t do that, would they? They wanted the target badly enough,” Bywaters said as she rifled through her bag trying to find something else to help Roland with.
Murden walked to the middle of the squad and took her helmet off. “We can’t go jumping to conclusions I’m sure there is a reasonable explanation,” she said looking at them each in turn.
“What reasonable explanation can you think of to sabotage a squad’s medic sarge?” Watts said changing out her magazines to lethal tier four ammunition.
“Why did they order us to wait for half an hour as well?” Roland said as he waved Bywaters away. He changed up his ammunition as well.
“Okay calm down people. We go out there and find a medic with a working unit as a priority. After that we can finish the battle and work this out afterwards. Load up people let’s move out now.”
Roland checked his timer, and it hadn’t been half an hour yet. It wasn’t far off though when they were ready to move out. Bywaters had insisted on changing his bandages and giving him a stim. Roland hoped it would be enough as he scaled the pile of rubble out into the open once more. As he reached the top, the others followed. He moved to a concrete barrier and waited for the rest of the squad to emerge. As soon as they were all out, Roland stood. As he started to walk, he heard a loud crack and then his leg went limp. He tried to stand on it and then collapsed forward. The rest of the team dived for cover but Webb and Lawry were too slow receiving shots to their chests as a reward. They were dragged into cover as more bullets started to rain down on their position. Roland dragged himself across to where Watts crouched down. She grabbed him when he was close and hauled him in the rest of the way. She grabbed a bandage and tied it around his leg. His suit integrity flashed in the red now. His health wasn’t much better with the stim being the only thing to be keeping him alive.
“Where are they firing from?” Murden shouted over the squad comm. Roland winced at the sound in his ear and then grabbed his rifle. Watts was already a step ahead of him as she rose up trying to get a bead on the shots. She started to return fire. Roland followed her shots and saw rebels in the buildings overlooking them. He fired back and took out three of them before they stopped firing and disappeared. They searched the windows in the lull but couldn’t see anyone. Roland ducked back down and reloaded.
“This is a setup,” Watts said over the squad comm.
“They probably followed a tracker attached to the target. Let’s not be jumping to conclusions.” Murden bit back.
“I put the dampener on him, Sarge. If they were following it, they wouldn’t be attacking us either.” Clark replied.
“Fine, we have probably been set up. That doesn’t change facts though. We need to get out of here and the only way to do that is to win this battle,” Murden said quelling any further dissent.
She checked her carbine and stood up to move. As soon as she was out of cover, her head exploded. Her lifeless corpse collapsed to the floor as everyone pressed themselves into cover. Watts fired a single shot ducking back done immediately afterwards.
“I got them. I don’t know if there are more though. We need to get out of here we are sitting ducks.”
“You aren’t wrong there,” Roland replied checking down the street the way that the Major had gone. “Let’s follow the Major. We need answers.”
He pulled himself around and looked for a new piece of cover. He saw another concrete barrier not too far off and ran for it. When he got half way, he remembered his wound. It was too late by then as he pitched forward onto his face. It had saved his life though as a shot flew past and tore into the asphalt next to him. He crawled as fast as he could but it wasn’t fast enough. Another bullet struck him in the calf. He gritted his teeth and carried on. He was down to zero suit integrity and only 5% life. As soon as he was in cover, he tied another bandage around his calf and squeezed his eyes shut to block out the pain.
“Mellors are you still with us?” Watts shouted panic evident in her voice.
“Only just,” Roland replied through gritted teeth.
Chapter 28.
Roland listened as he heard more shots. He turned his head slowly his vision swimming. He saw the others popping up over their barriers and firing at the buildings all around. Clark tried to run over to Watts but was felled by a series of shots that tore into her leg and side. She landed heavily and didn’t move again as a pool of blood spread around her. The level of incoming fire intensified. Shots whipped all around them tearing into the concrete and asphalt. Roland looked further round and saw where it was coming from. A group of suited rebels advanced across the road at a steady pace. They fired as they walked. The tight bursts directed at keeping their heads down. Roland drew his pistol and leant forward squeezing off a few shots towards them. One of the rebels fell, but he had to duck back behind cover as they turned on him and fired.
Watts used the opportunity to shoot another one, but she was thrown backwards as soon as she fired. Roland watched her drag herself back in. Her helmet was cracked and the plates across her chest and shoulders were all torn. Blood dripped from her onto the concrete barrier.
Roland’s comm buzzed. It was the private channel.
“I don’t think we are going to make it out of this one.”
“I think you’re right,” Roland replied. “Have you got any grenades left?”
“I might have, why?”
“Let’s take as many of them as we can.”
“I’m with you there,” Watts replied.
Roland took another quick look out across the street. Other squads of the rebels emerged from the buildings. A truck screeched to a halt near the alley they had used for their advance disgorging another squad. Their fake uniforms now discarded as they advanced in their suits with the distinctive eye and red line markings.
Roland pulled a grenade out. He looked at it and pulled out another one. As he reached back to put grab the third one, his hand hit something. His rocket tube. He smiled to himself and unclipped it from his pack. He finished lining up his third and final grenade. Then he extended the tubes firing handle and poked it around the side of the concrete barrier. Settling himself he leant out and fired it at the truck. Exhaust fumes engulfed him as the rocket streaked out from his position and hit the truck in the engine. The explosion threw it into the air, flipping it over on its end before it came crashing back down on two of the rebels. The force of the impact had halted the fire for a second. Bywaters ran towards him taking advan
tage of the lull. He pulled the pins on his grenades and rolled them out. Watts was doing the same, and they filled the road with explosions and shrapnel as grenade after grenade exploded. Bywaters made it to him under the cover it generated. She looked at his leg and then up at him. Her face was blank as she shook her head. There were tears in her eyes. Roland smiled at her and tapped her rifle. She nodded and dumped her medic kit on the ground swinging up over the barrier to fire at the rebels. She managed to get five shots off before the combined weight of fire tore into her torso and arms throwing her down. Her lifeless eyes stared directly upwards. Roland looked away. He turned to Watts and picked up his pistol. She drew hers and nodded to him.
“Blaze of glory,” she said over the comm. They swung around the ends of their barriers and started to fire. They managed to kill another five of the rebels before they regrouped. It was all over after that. Watts took a bullet and threw herself down rolling into a new position to start shooting again. Roland saw her down and tried to stand to give her some more time. He got as far as a crouch before the rounds coming in found him. They tore through his good leg and his stomach. As he folded over, the pain taking his vision, a shot entered the top of his skull and blasted out of his neck shattering his spine. Unable to remain upright he fell forwards the world turning black.
He awoke standing on the platform outside of the battalion HQ building. He looked around him and saw the rest of the squad had already arrived. Murden was sat on a barrel her helmet resting next to her as she watched them all fade back in.
Roland walked over to her unsteady on his feet still with the memory of the shots he had taken to his legs.
“Are we all back?” he asked hoisting himself onto the barrel next to Murden.
“Only Watts is left,” Murden replied handing Roland a bottle of water. He opened it and took a sip. He almost dropped the water when he realised something momentous.
“They were rebels, and we respawned. How does that work?”
Murden turned and looked at him. “I assumed there weren’t enough devices for everyone to prevent the respawn.”
Roland thought for a moment. It made sense. They were stealing equipment off of both sides so it wasn’t beyond reason that the higher tech would be limited. He supposed they might only be equipped with one per squad out in the desert, which would be enough. Perhaps they weren’t carrying any in the group that attacked them he mused. He stored away his questions for later. He turned back to the pad and took another sip of water.
Watts appeared within a minute. She strode off the pad and took off her helmet shaking her hair out.
“Well, that wasn’t fun. Why did we respawn here? For that matter how did we respawn?” she said as she dropped her helmet to the floor and took the water from Roland.
Roland looked at Murden who rolled her eyes.
“We don’t know but assume they didn’t have enough of their inhibitor devices.”
“That makes sense,” Watts said using the back of her sleeve to wipe her mouth as she handed Roland the water back.
“Let’s get back to the barracks tent,” Murden said hopping down from the barrel. Watts and Roland joined her. They walked back in silence. When they reached the tent, they went in and dropped off their kit. The whole squad had returned. At least the squad that had been selected. Roland nudged Watts.
“I still have a respawn. Think I should go back in?”
“No idea. Ask sarge or the LT,” Watts replied stripping off her suit.
Roland shrugged and walked over to the main platoon command tent. He entered and saw the lieutenant there.
“Sir, can I ask a question?”
The lieutenant looked up at him. “Fire away.”
“I have one respawn left. Should I head back into the battle as the rest of the squad have been through all of theirs?”
“I would say yes but the battle was over hours ago. You lot are the last back. I’m surprised they equipped you with that kit. I assumed the intelligence group had a better uniform for desert fighting.”
“We weren’t in a desert sir.”
“What do you mean you weren’t in a desert?”
“We were in a city, or town, or something urban at least. The armoured troop we supported at the beginning of this battle set supported us too.”
“I wondered where they had got to,” the lieutenant replied sitting back and stroking his chin deep in thought.
“Are you telling me you fought on a different battlefield?”
“Yes, sir.”
“Odd as that is I’m sure intelligence knows what they are doing. Get yourself settled so I can do a basic debrief. I’m sure intelligence will want to do one of their own as well.”
Roland saluted and then left the tent. He was frowning when he re-entered their barracks tent. Ignoring the fresh sheets he sat heavily on his bed and dumped his weapons and helmet down. He didn’t strip off his suit though no matter how torn up it looked. Watts approached.
“What did he say?”
“He said the battle was over and that it took place back in the desert. We weren’t fighting in the same place which explains a few things.”
“It certainly does,” Watts replied as she sat on the bed next to him.
“Where do you think we were then?” Watts asked poking at a hole in his suit.
He batted her hand away. “I have no idea. Perhaps some sort of rebel HQ level. You know like a hidden level on those old games.”
“That would make sense. You better get changed though as we do have the debrief.”
She stood and walked back to her bunk as Roland started to strip off his suit. He grabbed a spare uniform out of his locker and dressed as quickly as he could. He was still tying the laces on his boots when Murden walked to the front of the tent.
“Everyone up. We have the debrief.”
The sound of creaking bedsprings and shuffling feet filled the tent as they all got up and made their way to the main tent following Murden. Roland looked to the front as they walked in. The lieutenant had moved his desk back and had another projector set up. It had a whole host of screens. They shined the blue static glow they usually made moments before information populated their faces. He moved into the second row of seats and sat next to Watts. The major wasn’t there, yet at least. Roland sat back and waited for the debrief to start.
The lieutenant walked forward in front of the screens and looked at them with a slightly puzzled expression. Roland glanced around and they all sat back in their chairs. There were folded arms and an air of distrust. He looked down and realised he was doing exactly the same thing himself. He made a conscious effort to sit up properly and listen. The lieutenant started.
“Welcome back to the fold. I have debriefed the rest of the platoon already. They are still intended to reinforce the armoured unit you fought with in the first encounter. The last battle went well with us winning once more. That is where we get to your role. Your actions in the first battle really did set us up for that victory. Data from your run into the desert and your hit-and-run tactics were used to win the day.”
The lieutenant paused for a second and touched a couple of the screens.
Watts spoke. “Where were we lieutenant?”
He turned sharply and looked at her the screens forgotten.
“I do not know the answer to that private. It is above my clearance so I can’t even find out for you. I did receive a communication from the intelligence unit and they will be debriefing you shortly as well.”
Watts huffed and shook her head. They watched as the lieutenant took them through their post battle report. He gave hints and tips on the various formations and the attack routes in the desert. No one in the squad seemed to be listening. Watts leaned over to Roland. “What is the point of this? They could just add it to the next respawn download. Most of the information is still there in the training programs that control some of our actions and thoughts.”
“Perhaps they are worried that they will go offline nea
r the rebels?”
Watts nodded and sat back up quickly as the lieutenant turned towards them. He gave them a stern look before continuing. He started to talk about the reliance on stims and how improving the stamina stat was preferable. Roland sighed. He didn’t care about stamina so much. It was the stealth stat he wanted to increase. That and gaining weapons tiers. He tuned out as the lieutenant droned on.
Eventually, the debrief wound down. Roland yawned and then tried to stifle it sitting up straight to keep awake. He wasn’t the only one.
“The next bit is something I’m sure you will all actually care about.”
He changed the information on the screens, the chart showing the stamina stat effects compared to the stim use disappeared and a list started to scroll on the main screen. Roland recognised it instantly and sat forward trying to read the information as it flickered. It scrolled by too fast for him to read. He could tell the numbers on the right were going down though. It hit the bottom and stopped. Roland read the names. Their names. The numbered columns all read zero. He flicked his eyes up and read the column headers. Kills, deaths, points. He looked back and tried not to panic. He opened his own menus and checked. They weren’t wrong. His points hadn’t increased at all. The rebel kills didn’t count, he knew that, but they had wiped the enemy kills he had racked up in the desert. He also distinctly remembered dying at least twice and almost dying at least once. His overall score would have taken a hit but not that bad. Something odd was going on and he didn’t like it one bit. How was he going to hit sergeant without the points he needed?
