The lead Targarian replied, “It is you who is out of step with us, Mr. Hardy. Synchronize with us and we can indeed move faster.”
Mace stuttered his step and the team began to move as if one.
Mace looked across the tarmac as they ran. “The last of them are on. They’re closing it up! Just drop it here and let’s go!”
The reactor-bomb was set short of its goal, but closer to the now fully loaded transport. The team hustled back to the shuttle and Mace demanded an immediate liftoff. The loaded transport slowly left the ground at the same moment. The Targarian pushed the shuttle to max speed, Mace pressed the detonate button, and within seconds a fireball rose from Gatwick field.
The unit on the north tarmac was the first to go. The shuttle rumbled from the shock as the mini-reactor went critical and exploded. The unsuspecting troops nearby were either incinerated or thrown violently away from the blast. The northernmost wing of the terminal building collapsed and burst into flames. The previously damaged transport was knocked from its landing skids and rolled up on its side.
The second reactor bomb detonated a moment later. This time the tarmac was almost void of Dedrus troops. The blast however was powerful enough to damage the nearby transport, which quickly settled back to the ground.
Mace pointed. “Set us down right on top of her hull!”
The shuttle landed. The Targarians assisted with moving another reactor out and onto the Dedrus troop hauler. The bomb was enabled as the shuttle lifted away. At two kilometers’ distance the reactor sitting atop the Dedrus ship went supercritical. The resulting explosion tore through the hull, cutting the downed ship in half and surely killing all aboard.
Mace nodded in acceptance of their accomplishment. “That’s what we’re looking for. Let’s find the others and do this again.”
The next stop was to the Ben Gurion airport near Tel-Aviv. Fatso Geerok had taken to a constant series of hit and run attacks. He would wait for units to gather before cutting loose with a barrage of concussion waves, devastating the ranks of smaller units before moving to a new set of victims. All told, more than three thousand had been killed, but they were only a handful of the more than three hundred thousand Dedrus who had landed there.
The shuttle dropped Mace a half kilometer away. After a quick run, he pinpointed from where Fatso Geerok was unleashing his fury.
Mace drew close and yelled. Geerok replied and was led back to the shuttle.
As they hurried up the ramp, Mace said. “We have a couple of reactor bombs with us.”
Geerok drew a deep breath. “Good. I’ve been firing almost nonstop and I’ve just begun to make any progress at all. I’d have been here for a month working this. The troops at the other end of the runway don’t even seem to care.”
Mace lifted one end of a reactor before switching his holo-projector back on. “Have a seat. We’ll have these placed in the next few minutes and we can then be on our way.”
Twenty minutes passed before the team returned for a second reactor. Once that was placed, the shuttle again lifted into the air.
When at a safe distance, Mace asked, “Would you like to have the honors?”
Geerok shook his head. “Please, you take them. I’d just as soon sit here.”
Mace pressed the button. Two detonations leveled the terminal buildings surrounding the runway and half the waiting troops went up in flame. Two thirds of those remaining were scattered among fields surrounding the complex. A small contingent at the north end of the runway had been knocked to the ground by the concussion, but survived.
Geerok said, “Drop me over by the remains of that building and I’ll see to it they join their friends. You can pick me up on the next scheduled run through here.”
Mace nodded. “It may be a while. We have three more of these camps to destroy.”
“Then I guess I’ll enjoy the beautiful countryside.”
The drop was made and the shuttle continued to the next Dedrus base. Jane had been given the task of eliminating the four hundred thousand troops stationed around the Summer Palace just outside Beijing. The forest surrounding the complex had been cut down and the palace buildings flattened. Again the Dedrus soldiers stood in neat formations.
Jane was collected, two reactor bombs were set out and detonated. The annihilation was complete.
Jane sat in the cabin. “They had six fighters stationed there. I took them out first. They made it easy, as all the canopies were open.”
Mace replied, “I had the same at Gatwick. One was closed and a pilot came out to oblige me. We left a few thousand soldiers there, not a force they will be able to easily field. Tel-Aviv had no fighters.”
Next was a run down to Sydney, Australia. Jenny was brought aboard and the four hundred thousand Dedrus soldier force was eliminated. Four fighter craft and three transports perished in the fusion reaction infernos. The initial dozen reactor-bombs had been used. The fights had been anything but difficult. That was all about to change.
The final run was to Washington, D.C., where the former Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport was being used as a base for six hundred thousand Dedrus regulars. A contingent of a dozen fighters sat at one end of the runway. Eight were parked on the ground as four others hovered several hundred meters up in the air.
Mace scowled. “Johnny wasn’t able to get all their fighters. That’s bad news.”
Jenny said, “They stay where they are and we can knock them down with one of the bombs.”
Mace said, “If they stay low like that, we have a good chance. The other shuttle should be here in a few minutes. We need to locate Johnny before they arrive.”
“I think I have him. And we have a problem. Those transports are full. This one is lifting off right now… and there go the other two.”
Mace clenched a fist. “We’re too late. Those formations are starting to move.”
Jenny said, “They had those same personnel transports in Sydney.”
Mace replied, “Easily defeated. Step up and fire a blast through any of the slots. With the armored outside and the confined space, none of them make it out alive.”
The shuttle settled near where Johnny was causing damage. Dedrus soldiers, as they marched in quick time, were being blown through the air and scattered about. The sheer number of fighters meant Johnny’s effort would have little effect.
Mace ran to the area of destruction, calling out to where he thought Johnny might be. Several yells did not earn a reply.
After a moment’s pause, Mace called out again as he continued to move around. “Johnny! Answer me!”
Johnny said in a quiet voice. “I’m right here. Why are you yelling?”
Mace sighed. “Follow me. We’re heading behind the terminal building.”
After a short run, Mace rapped on the invisible hull and the ramp lowered.
Johnny asked. “I’ve been killing nonstop since I was dropped off. Don’t think it made much of a difference. They don’t die as easy as the uniformed ones and there’s like a billion of them. You have a plan where we can be more effective?”
Jane replied, “We had reactor bombs coming. Managed to take out the other four landing bases. This was the last one.”
Johnny said, “I took out eight of the fighters before the other four got off the ground. I took a couple shots at them. Other than bouncing them around a bit, it had no effect. If you go upriver a little you’ll see they’re constructing a bridge across Roosevelt Island. It’s already flooded with those light tanks. Stark’s people on the other side have been forced back almost half a kilometer.”
Mace gave the command for the pilot to take them higher. “We can take out the bridge when the other shuttle gets here. If enough of those reactors are ready we could place them all along that bank of the river. We’ll need at least eight to get decent coverage.
A comm came in from above. “There’s been an accident at the lab. No one was injured, but a portion of the parts storage has been destroyed. A micro-reactor lo
st containment and started a fire. There are only three reactor bombs available until more circuits can be constructed. Doctor Moskowitz offers his apologies.”
Mace growled. “Figures. When we need them most we can’t access them. Take us up and we’ll bring them over. I would assume with a single shuttle running the ammo drops are piling up. Let’s get those aboard and stop as much of this as we can.”
The shuttle rose for a rendezvous with its surviving other.
Chapter 21
*
The shuttles docked in high orbit and the reactor-bombs were transferred. A run back to the surface had Mace and the Targarians putting the first bomb in place at Gravely Point. The second was placed at the western abutment remains of the 14th Street bridge. The final bomb was moved into place at the Marine Corps Memorial, a position as close to the newly constructed bridge as they could safely find. The shuttle lifted up two kilometers.
Mace said, “The forces are assembling for a crossing. This might be our most effective time to set those off.”
Johnny said, “Just do it. Every minute we wait we risk failing to do anything.”
Jane and Jenny nodded.
Geerok replied, “If you’d like me to do the honors, I would be happy to do so.”
Mace shook his head. “No thanks. This is my country. I swore to defend it. Here goes…”
The first blast on Gravely Point was almost centered in a long column of Dedrus soldiers. Thousands perished in an instant and thousands more were knocked backward, tumbling over each other as if a crashing wave. The second blast created equal carnage. The bodies that weren’t incinerated were thrown like so many rag dolls. Thousands lay dead or injured.
The third blast reached out to catch several brigades as they were forming up for a crossing. Again thousands were dead, including many who had gone out onto the hastily constructed bridge. The bridge itself remained undamaged. The soldiers next in line moved forward, passing the screaming and injured, not stopping to lend comfort or care.
Johnny scowled. “They’re crossing. Stark’s people won’t be able to stop that mass.”
Jenny pointed to a bioscan. “Look… here. The Dedrus… they’re pouring out of the Metro tunnel by the L’Enfant Plaza Station. I thought they had that barricaded.”
Mace shook his head. “They must have broken through. D.C. is lost. Over here on the scan, Stark’s troops are pulling back.”
Johnny pointed. “And back over here… there’s a column heading for Falls Church. And south toward Fredericksburg.”
Two of the fighters screeched past their position, moving across the Washington Mall and the White House before pounding the retreating Humans.
Johnny said, “This is sickening. We have to do something.”
Mace sighed. “Other than being down there on the ground, there’s not much else we can do.”
As Stark’s men hastily retreated, the trail from a missile shot up from below. The closest fighter pulled up hard, attempting to bank away before taking a direct hit from the shoulder-fired unit. The explosive warhead penetrated the armored ship’s hull, knocking out its engine. The fighter, now without power, spiraled upward for several seconds before losing speed. As it came to a stop the force of gravity took over. The alien fighter with its heavy armor fell like a stone.
Another missile offered a similar violent end to the second fighter. The third and fourth broke away from their approach, turning instead directly toward the shuttle. The Targarian pilot had little time to react as the closest ship again made a random maneuver, crashing into the bottom of the invisible shuttle. The damaged fighter spun out of control, arching over and crashing down a kilometer away.
The fourth fighter now had a new target as the protective holo-image that shielded the shuttle’s location had been knocked offline. Two quick bursts of laser fire from the remaining fighter cut deep into the ship’s hull. Smoke and flame billowed into the cabin.
The Targarian pilot yelled, “Brace for impact!”
The shuttle dropped from the sky as its systems began to fail. Last-second maneuvering by the Targarian in control saw a reduced impact as the shuttle splashed down in the tidal basin in front of the Jefferson Memorial. The ramp opened and water flooded in, dousing the flames.
Mace opened a comm. “Move out! That fighter will be targeting the wreckage!”
The group moved into the murky water of the basin as several laser bolts impacted parts of the upper hull that remained out of the water. As Mace and the others came ashore, another missile trail reached up from the north lawn of the White House, this time missing its target as the Dedrus fighter banked hard away. The craft’s attention then returned to Stark’s Humans as they fled north. No further missile trails were seen as the fighter blasted positions in and around what had once been considered downtown Washington, D.C.
Jane led as they moved up under the dome of the Jefferson Memorial. “So what do we do now, Mace?”
Johnny said, “We could go take back the Metro tunnels, but it wouldn’t do us much good with that bridge up there. We need to destroy it if we want to stop this horde.”
Mace replied, “I’d have to guess they are moving two hundred thousand across the river. Those other two forces look to be about equal. That means we have two hundred thousand moving toward Falls Church and another two hundred thousand towards Richmond. I think we just have to pick one force and then focus on stopping it.”
A shuttle ramp lowered just on the south side of the memorial. A Targarian was standing in the doorway. “Please hurry. We cannot risk that fighter seeing us.”
The group hustled up the ramp and the shuttle was away.
Mace said, “Take us back to Gellos. We’ll re-plan from there.”
“Those troops are moving now,” said Jenny. “We could be down there at least slowing their progress.”
Mace shook his head. “We need rest. You’ve all been at this for hours. We’ll come back when we have a strategy that’s more than just taking potshots.”
A micro-wormhole opened and the shuttle slipped through to open space. A second jump was made to Gellos.
As they walked down the ramp to the deck, Johnny said, “We should have destroyed that shuttle.”
Mace winced. “It doesn’t have the self-destruct our warships had. We never had a chance to build it in. I’ll see if Jeff can rig something up to take back with us. If so, I’ll have him make four. One for the Fortune, one for Jasper’s gunboat, one for this shuttle, and one for the shuttle we just lost.”
Mace and Johnny walked to the science lab.
Jeff said, “Sad to hear we lost another ship.”
Mace replied, “We need a self-destruct for the shuttles. Our technology is on there and we can’t leave it for the Dedrus to find.”
Jeff nodded. “It’s on the list. We’ve just had a shortage of time to implement these things.”
Johnny said, “Well, the time has come. We lost a shuttle today and it’s sitting right where the Dedrus can get at it. These battlesuits and those shuttles are the only advantages we have. We lose those and this fight is lost.”
Mace asked, “Any progress in the last few hours on rebuilding our parts stock? We could use more of the reactor-bombs.”
Johnny said, “The enemy is already on the move. Unless we have them grouped up, those aren’t very effective.”
Mace shook his head. “I don’t think that’s true. We could make efforts to bunch them up. I was thinking… why couldn’t we just drop them from the shuttle. Add an altimeter switch to the trigger and just push them out the door. No carrying them around or having to place them to the side. Doc? Could we build something like that?”
Jeff nodded. “We could. I’ll put a team on it if you like.”
Mace nodded. “I like. And if your team can conjure up any other bombs we could drop, I’d like to hear about it.”
Mace and Johnny headed for the dining hall.
Johnny said, “So we’re gonna turn our shuttle into a bo
mber?”
“If we can. We don’t have any other effective weapons.”
A comm came in from Jordan Crawford. “Just checking in. How are things on Earth?”
Mace replied, “We lost a shuttle. What’s your status out there?”
“Same as before. I catch up to a horde of ships, scorch a few, and the rest jump away.”
Mace asked, “Have you made any attempt to contact them?”
Jordan nodded. “With every jump. I make my plea over the general comm and it gets ignored. The EM waves from our ships should be having impact soon. I’m hoping for a response once that happens.”
Johnny said, “What are the chances of you coming across a freighter or two loaded with munitions during your travels?”
Jordan replied, “Actually I’ve roasted a few dozen freighters. If you like, I’ll start checking them for content before doing so. Which is not a bad idea anyway. We might do well out here being back in the pirate business.”
Johnny looked at Mace. “We should have been doing that all along. Let the Dedrus supply us with weapons or any other resources we need.”
“Mr. Crawford, you have two Targarians there with you. What are the chances you could hijack a Dedrus warship and fly it back here for us to make use of? I can’t believe we didn’t think of this before. We’re burning ships that we could be capturing and using to build a new fleet. With a single ship we could annihilate the Dedrus on Earth. They would have no defense against it.”
“I’ll see what I can do, Mr. Hardy. I think we could all use a break from the chase.”
A half dozen small bombs were put together by Jeff Moskowitz and the Targarian engineers. The shuttle was loaded and traveled back to Earth. After a flyover to get the locations of the Dedrus troops, they stopped at the downed shuttle. Dedrus personnel were crawling all over the portion of the hull that jutted from the tidal basin.
Johnny shook his head. “I knew we screwed up by leaving it.”
“We don’t know if they have anything yet.”
Mace turned to the pilot. “Take us in close and open the ramp. Johnny, Jenny, Jane, when that opens we hit that hull with everything we have. Clean them all off there. I’ll jump down and deposit the bomb. Collect me over by the memorial and we’ll set it off. Other than those three officers standing on the shore, there doesn’t appear to be anyone else around.”
HADRON Emergent Page 21