Hunter, Warrior, Commander

by Andrew Maclure

  The double doors snapped open, and the troops ran in, lining out as soon as they entered, choosing their targets and moving forward at a slow pace. Most of the outcasts had removed their body armor and fell immediately. Those leaning on the bar who still had armor reached for their weapons, but their field armor was quickly overwhelmed as more fire was directed on them. They quickly checked the fallen hostiles for life signs and dispatched any that were showing them. They checked the thirty-eight civilians more carefully, but they had all been dead for some time.

  “Out, now! Sah Lee ordered. I’ll seal the door and we’ll move on. It would be great to find surviving civilians.”

  “Go to the gym on the next floor down.” Sah Lee’s AI showed her the security visual feed. The hostiles had shot up the doors and damaged the equipment near the entrance, but it looked like they hadn’t spent much time in there.

  “There are thirty two civilian guests and sixteen staff trainers barricaded in the suite of therapy rooms at the back. The nearest gravity tube is fifteen meters further on from here, on your right. At the entrance to the gravity tube on that level there are six outcasts standing over the bodies of three habitat staff they have just killed. They are arguing whether they can stay longer or should return to their transports ready to leave.”

  “They are leaving? Why?”

  “They appear to have planned this as a quick raid, realizing that the Operators would get an armed response here fairly quickly. They misjudged how fast that would happen.”

  “Have any of them left yet?”

  “Groups of them are drifting back to the freight dock. The door AI is allowing them in but not letting them out again. There are forty-two secured there at the moment and more on the way. There is good news. The communications net is functional again. I sent a message on your behalf to Colonel Ssar Bess Dassur with a brief situation report and copied it to General Mauren Dag Slen, which is within military reporting guidelines as this is a sensitive mission. I also contacted the Operators. They have a cleanup crew on the way and evacuation cruisers approaching. I told them you will have sterilized the habitat of outcasts before they arrive though there is extensive damage to the freight dock. They responded that any damage is acceptable and expressed their gratitude to you personally for commanding the operation.”

  “You’ve what! How dare you send messages from me without asking first! Satan knows how I’m going to sort this out. How could you?”

  “I used more tact and diplomacy than you are capable of Sah Lee, though that isn’t saying much. You are subtle as a charging massoon and as diplomatic as an enraged vulpen. The communication to the Colonel and General were correct to the letter of military protocol and I suspect the Operators will wonder where you got your diplomatic training from. You concentrate on the fighting, leave the rest to me.”

  “Is everything all right Corp? You look troubled. Is it bad news?” Teng Rass asked.

  “No, not bad news. Good news in fact, but I’ve just had a difference of opinion with my AI.”

  “Really? I just tell mine what to do and listen when it gives me advice.”

  “Lucky you. Listen up everyone. I want a task team of four close combat specialist soldiers, plus Torf Dredden from the Militia with me. We’re going to drop down a floor and take out six hostiles. The gravity tube is just ahead of us. The rest of you pick up as many outcast weapons and ammunition as you can and follow us down. Task team, with me!”

  She ran to the gravity tube, she and the task team fell one level and sprang out, taking the outcasts by surprise and quickly overcoming them. Private Serfal sustained a shallow stab wound in the neck which although not life threatening, needed treatment. After collecting the outcast weapons and ammunition, the remaining troops dropped down the gravity tube and joined them. Sah Lee persuaded two of the medic Militia’s to accompany Serfal back to the hospital despite his protestations that it was ‘just a nick.’ Drones showed that their path back to the hospital was clear and despite the fact that Sah Lee was barely on speaking terms with it, her AI confirmed that there were no outcasts that could intercept them before they got to the hospital.

  Sah Lee led the way to the gym. She thought there would be a problem persuading the civilians to open the doors to her, but she knew they would be safer if they got to the hospital, which was secure and had plenty of room. As they approached the therapy suite, Taris Darrek stepped forward. “Would you like me to speak to them Corporal? The staff know and trust me.”

  “Thank you Taris. That might make things easier.”

  Taris spoke to the staff trainers behind the barricaded door to the suite. They cautiously came out armed with weight bars, just in case they had been deceived. Sah Lee asked for volunteers with military service while Taris passed them the conditions of service in the Militia. Eighteen stepped forward, a mix of staff and guests. Each of them were given weapons and Sah Lee tasked them with providing armed escort to the hospital for the remaining civilians - except one, a heavily built civilian reptile called Wenten Guk Boosen who had been a Major in the Galactic Savior Army and knew Si’ir Monn. Sah Lee asked her to stay with them. Her AI ordered Militia badged uniform, body armor, boots and backpacks from the gym synthesizer. While Wenten changed Sah Lee pulled the drone feeds into her visual field and started to flick through them through them, looking for outcasts.

  “Sah Lee, it is normal to leave sorting through the feeds to your AI. I can alert you to anything of potential interest, you don’t need to spend time looking at empty rooms and corridors.”

  “How do I know you’re not going to message someone with the information before telling me?”

  “I apologize if I offended you by helping, I will in future consult you before offloading things from you when you are fighting. Would you like me to tell you where the next optimal target is?”

  “Yes, and make it quick.”

  “The control core, where all the habitat controls are located, including the AI hardware.”

  Sah Lee called out, “Listen up, our next target is six floors up, then a six hundred meter run. There are eighteen hostiles in the control core. Follow me!”

  She led her mixed team of soldiers and Militia to the gravity tube at a run. They ascended in groups and when they were all together again, she led the way at a run toward the control core. “Two outcasts ahead, twenty meters down the next intersection on the right, moving away. They have a civilian captive with them.” Sah Lee’s AI told her.

  “Teng, Torf. Go right at the next right intersection. Take down the hostiles, bring their captive with you and catch up with us as fast as the civilian can move.” Sah Lee ordered.

  “The outcasts have shot up all the maintenance bots I had working in the core. They are attempting to insert their own AI to take control of the habitat’s main AI functions and bypass my patches to the door and security systems. If they succeed, things will get difficult.”

  “Can you hold them off?”

  “I can overcome their attempts to use the manual overrides easily enough, but if you check the feed from the drone I have in there, you’ll see they are using laser torches to cut their way through things. I can only re-route so much before running out of options. I am trying to find an intact pathway to re-enable the security physical safeguards, but the hostiles extensively damaged them when the original attack took out the AI’s.”

  “With the Militia, we are now sixteen against eighteen. We should close this group down quickly, though I‘d like Torf by my side.”

  As they rounded the final intersection into the corridor with the control core fifty meters down on the left, two outcasts that had been slouching against the wall by an open double door sprang into action and opened fire, one with a KE weapon, one with a particle beam weapon. Sah Lee had two of her troops on her left and Wenten on her right. Without breaking stride, they brought their weapons up and fired.

  “Target the KE weapon!” Sah Lee ordered. As they ran forward, their combined fire collapsed the
field armor of the outcast with the KE weapon and Sah Lee’s GSA20 beam punched holes through its chest. As it crumpled to the floor, more outcasts burst out of the doors firing.

  “First rank, five on the floor!” Sah Lee called out flinging herself down. The three either side of her and one behind dropped down beside her. “Second rank, five kneeling, third rank, stand!” All sixteen could fire at the hostiles in this position and diluted the effect of the incoming fire. The outcasts weren’t as organized, jostling each other to get room to aim and fire, most of the shots from the four or five that could actually use their weapons at a time went wild. By concentrating fire on those using KE weapons, Sah Lee’s team depleted and collapsed the field armor of one after another of the outcasts and GSA20 fire then took them down. The firefight was brief and conclusive. When all the outcasts had fallen, and the firing stopped, Sah Lee got to her feet. “Well done troops. Perfectly executed.” She quickly scanned her team. All had taken hits, but their armor had held, and none were injured. “That was easier than I expected.”

  “It’s not over yet Sah Lee. There are sixteen bodies there. There are two more inside.” Her AI showed her the drone feed. Two outcasts were taking cover behind cabinets inside the control core room. Both were holding oversized weapons. “They have heavy caliber KE weapons. If they are using explosive rounds, and I am sure they are, they will collapse field armor quickly and then they will rip through body armor. If you take a team in and rush them, you will take them down, but not before your team have suffered fatalities.”

  “Show me their locations on a schematic.” Sah Lee studied the schematic carefully, comparing it to the live feed from her AI’s cloaked drone, moving it around to enable her to build a complete three-dimensional model in her mind of the location, the room and access from the corridor. Finally, she said. “Got it. We bounce a few grenades in there, then go in and finish them off. Problem solved.”

  “You can see from their positions that you will need multiple grenade blasts. You will need at least one grenade to disorient them enough for you to get inside the entrance, then you will have sight of the cover they have taken and be able to launch more grenades. By then they will have killed you with their heavy KE weapons. If you just saturate them with grenades, you will destroy the core hardware - which is not a desirable outcome.”

  “Right. Those are the problems, what is the solution?”

  “I do not have one for you.”

  She paused and thought for a few moments. “Let me see, my field armor is back up to 85%. Would that defend me from a grenade detonating four meters away?”

  “Yes, but you would be disoriented as much as the outcasts. Don’t forget they have cover.”

  “What about six meters?”

  “What are you planning Sah Lee?”

  “I run at an angle to the entrance. As I run, I throw a grenade to bounce off the side of the doorway into the entrance of the core room and it will detonate inside. That will distract the hostiles for a few moments, enough time for me to reach the corridor wall opposite the core control room. The corridor is four meters wide. They are taking cover inside, four meters from the entrance. I throw another grenade to land right in front of them while running at the entrance. I will be halfway across the corridor when the grenade detonates, about six meters from it. That will badly disorient them long enough for me to get close enough to hit each of them with one of your sticky grenades.”

  “You’re planning to run towards an exploding grenade and then attack them? Just say that out loud to yourself and see how crazy it sounds.”

  “Maybe, but would it work?”

  “It could, but there are too many unknown variables to determine success or failure. How hard would you throw the grenade when you are running and potentially making an abrupt change of direction? How accurate would you be with it in those conditions? How far across the corridor would you be when it detonated? How much of the blast would be directed out of the entrance towards you? How sheltered from the second blast would the hostiles be after the first grenade. I have to recommend that you come up with an alternative plan.”

  “It’s the only plan we’ve got.”

  Sah Lee turned to her team. “There are two more hostiles in there, armed with heavy caliber KE weapons, so we can’t storm them without taking casualties. I’m going to take them out myself, I have a plan.”

  “If you don’t mind me asking Corporal, but what are you planning?” asked Taris

  “I’m planning to neutralize those two hostiles and then I’m going to walk out of there.”

  “I noticed you standing still, I presume you were discussing it with your AI. What did it think of your plan?”

  “That's not important. Sorry Taris. This isn’t a discussion point. I’m the ranking officer here. My decision is made.”

  “You’re crazy to attempt that by yourself!”

  “Yes, but I wasn’t crazy before outcasts killed most of my people, all my family and friends and destroyed my world.” She walked away, the anger and grief still burning inside her.

  Stopping ten meters from the entrance, she shrugged her backpack off, reached inside and took two standard army grenades and two of the small sticky anti-personnel grenades her AI had made.

  She stretched her neck and shoulders, taking deep breaths. After a few moments she started to run toward the entrance, breaking into a sprint. Five meters from the entrance she threw the first grenade at the entrance to the control core. It bounced inside and detonated just before she reached the wall opposite. She turned, thudding her back into the wall and threw the second grenade, pushing herself off to follow it. When she was halfway across the corridor it detonated. She was hit by the blast and shrapnel. Her momentum carried her forward and her field armor protected her, but the blast severely depleted it with the line in her peripheral vision showing its status in red. She entered the control core room and saw the two hostiles looking dazed but unharmed. She quickly threw the two small sticky grenades. The first hit the hostile on the left square in the middle of its chest where it detonated, killing it instantly. The second grenade missed.

  Sah Lee pulled her knife from the sheath on her back as the surviving hostile brought up its KE weapon and fired. Her field armor collapsed with the first shot and she felt a searing pain in her right side with the second shot. She was on the hostile now and swept its weapon away with her left hand, swinging her knife up with her right, jamming the blade into its neck. The hostile dropped its weapon and grasped her wrist with both hands. She twisted the knife and pulled it sideways, letting the hostile draw the knife out, the blade cutting deeply as it withdrew. The hostile dropped to its knees, blood pouring from the neck wound and welling up through its mouth. Sah Lee held it down while it struggled briefly, then it died.

  Chapter Eight Nine

  Battle Of The Freight Dock

  Sah Lee walked out of the control core room and found herself facing sixteen soldiers in three ranks, all pointing weapons at her.

  “Was it something I said?” she asked.

  Taris thrust his weapon into the hands of the soldier next to him and ran over to her. “That blood, some of it’s yours.”

  She looked down at her side and saw her body armor was torn and blood was seeping out of it. “Yeah, but most of it isn’t.”

  Taris dropped to his knees. “Medics!”

  All the militia dropped their weapons and ran over, one pausing to scoop up Sah Lee’s backpack. Taris probed the wound with his fingers. “You’re bloody lucky. The bullet has just cut through the skin and nicked your external oblique muscle. A day in hospital and you’ll be as good as new. I’ll get a gurney here straight away.”

  “You are joking. I’ve got field dressings in my backpack, that’ll do for now. I haven’t finished here yet. Anyway, you say I’m lucky, I would have been a lot luckier if it had missed me.”

  “As Senior Medical Officer on the Celestial Heaven, I insist that you return to the hospital for immediate medi
cal attention.”

  “Militia Taris, do you remember the terms of volunteering you agreed to? I’ll remind you. I am your commanding officer and I’m ordering you or one of your medical staff - who are also Militia volunteers, to apply a field dressing. If you refuse, I will dismiss you from the Militia and my soldiers will escort you back to the hospital.”

  Taris leaned back on his knees and grinned. “You’re very bossy for a Corporal. You’ll need to remove your body armor for me to get to the wound. Are you in much pain?”

  “No, can’t feel a thing.” Sah Lee said as she pulled her helmet off and started to remove her body armor.

  “That means you’ve got an advanced AI that must be shutting off your pain receptors and pathways. How are you feeling?”

  “Good. Ready to fight again.”

  “Your AI is probably boosting you with endorphins too.” He rummaged in Sah Lee’s backpack. “Your field medical pack has got painkillers, but I’ll leave that to your AI. Slip your jumpsuit down to your waist, I’ll clean the wound and patch it up. It will do for now, but you need to limit your activity to command only. You won’t be able to fight again until that’s healed.”

  He quickly cleaned and disinfected the wound, then applied a field dressing. Sah Lee pulled up her jumpsuit and put her damaged body armor back on.

  “What’s the status of the remaining hostiles?” Sah Lee asked her AI.

  “They are all returning to the freight dock. The course of events would indicate that most of them were here to act as a distraction. The outcasts that ambushed you and those that were trying to take control of the core were of a different type. They appear to come here to take over control of the habitat. They would all fit into the yacht. I surmise that the rabble were brought here on the freighter and were told to leave at a specific time. If you take your time, they should all be safely locked in by the time you get there.”