by L Bowers
“This is convenient,” Francine said. “I wonder what other conveniences may be tied to our craft?”
“Same here,” I replied
“What? You can hear me? But I didn’t turn on comms,” Francine said.
“When we’re connected a data and voice connection is established automatically,” I replied using the info Titan learned.
Tapping into that data made me aware of something else as well. The secure file Titan mention before, came to the forefront. One of the encryptions had dropped stating a key had been applied. Titan and I both wondered what that might be and noticed it had the same time stamp as the log showing Foe Hammer locking into place. As a green beam splashed off our shoulder and burned away a layer of paint I knew we didn’t have time to ponder.
Chapter 36
We kicked our thruster back up to max and headed for Gigalance. As we moved closer, we could no longer ignore the green lasers. We initiated evasive maneuvers while still heading for the Champion.
Because Foe Hammer was on our back, we couldn’t fly in the prone position we had to modify it a little. We were mostly prone but canted up slightly so Gigalance got to see a bit of our belly. It was risky, but worth it to keep Francine safe.
“How long can this guy keep firing?” I said
Unknown at this time.
“The Champions are supposed to be gods capable of limitless power,” Francine added.
“Something tells me that is hype designed to scare and impress,” I said. “We either destroy this fuck without knowing or find out and use that info to destroy him.”
“I hope we can do it,” Francine said in a somber tone.
“You bet your ass we can do it,” I said. “I’ll be damned if I stand before the pearly gates at the end of today and tell my Marine brothers that I had the opportunity of a lifetime and let some dick named Gigalance take it away from me,” I snarled getting a little more worked up than I intended.
“What are the Pearly Gates?” Francine asked.
“Remind me later and I’ll explain. For now, we have arrived at our destination so put your tray tables up and raise you seat backs. It’s go time.”
“If you keep saying things like that there will be a lot of explaining needed,” Francine replied.
“Point taken. I …”
Gigalance fired a thick beam at us and vanished. We dove right but instead of the beam passing it burst into a million glittering shards and Gigalance was suddenly there next to us. A small beam lanced out from an emitter on his side and hit our shoulder sending us spiraling off course.
“What the fuck was that?” I shouted through clenched teeth. We were in space with little to no gravity, but I felt the g-forces as we careened out of control.
Undetermined. Examining the data.
“Tom!” Francine shouted through our comms. “This is … too much.”
We fired maneuvering thrusters to stop the spin. I felt infinitely better once were no longer our own special kind of hellish blender. A sigh of relief left me but was cut short by another bursting beam and the appearance of Gigalance.
Instead of firing at us the other giant robot swung a closed fist hitting us in what was essentially Titan’s face. We flew back but kicked our rockets on and stopped. We kept our foot rockets going and shot toward Gigalance. Time slowed as we got closer. Our fist pulled back. A green glow emanated from the center of Gigalance. We shot our arm forward adding a little extra boost from a maneuvering jet that was in our elbow. A thick beam shot out from Gigalance’s mech. Our fist reached the point where the robot should have been. The Gigalance robot flickered then vanished. We passed through the spot he had occupied.
The sensor package aboard Titan Tracked the beam as it traveled two hundred kilometers from us then burst. The Giant robot flickered back into being and spun to face us. We did the only thing I could think to do, gave chase.
Two kilometers is an inconsequential distance to Titan, and we were there in a heartbeat. It was enough time for Gigalance to determine his next move and we walked right into it. Five smaller emitters on his chest lit up then fired. We were able to lean slightly to the left as the beams hit us. The ineffective dodge did nothing to help us. The beams hit our chest and alarms went off like crazy.
Five new holed opened in Titan’s exterior faster than we could move out of the way. We did get clear of the beams by moving to the left as quickly as we could but also received five scorch marks for our trouble.
“How much of an issue are those holes going to be, Titan?” I asked.
They were shallow and should pose no serious threat.
“Good. We need …”
Another thick green beam burst into our path and we were struck by another group of five beams. We shot up getting clear again with five new holes.
“This guy is perforating us!” I shouted. I juked to the left and dropped down then shot left and right.
Beams lanced out at us trying to catch up, but I kept our course erratic going so far as to vary thrust to effect speed. I vowed then to make long range weaponry a priority when we got back to the Liberator. First, we had to survive in order to get back. For that, I needed more information.
“Francine, can you tell me anything about this guy that might help beat him?” I asked my friend even though I was sure she wouldn’t have any information. Never hurt to ask.
“No. The Champions were people that were altered to fight an alien threat. They wrecked the aliens then followed them for what the Champions call The Hundred Years War. Then they came home and instead of the heroes we thought came back we got these dictators. The stories of who they were before they left didn’t match up with the people that came back,” Francine said.
“Any information about their powers?” We dodged left and circled around a thick beam that was too slow in following us.
“No. That information was classified, and the Champions made sure to destroy any trace of that information when they returned.”
“Of course, they did. We’ll figure something out,” I replied with a sigh. I was hoping for some actionable intel, something to change the tide of this battle.
“Hey, Tom,” Francine said. “If I might interject. I notice we keep running from Gigalance, but he is a long-range fighter.”
“Yeah, and?” I asked.
“So, shouldn’t we get in his face so his blasts might not be as effective? Even if they are at least we will get a chance to hit him. If we are going to be in range of his weapons, we should be close enough to slap him around and make him run from us.”
The woman had a point. I opened my mouth to object, but nothing came out. I let it shut with a clack and spun us around. I was going about this fight all wrong. If this were a Stephen King book, I would have to say something about forgetting the face of my father, or in this case my Marine Corps.
Well this Marine was done being someone’s whipping boy. It was time to open a giant robot sized can of whoop ass.
Titan used the telltale green glow of the emitters along with the position they were on the body relative to our position to predict where the beams would be. Beam after beam lanced out as we closed the distance with Gigalance. Each beam was expertly dodged by yours truly. In just a few short minutes we floated in front of our target. I let him get a good look for a split second before going to work.
Our huge metal fist struck the Gigalance robot in the face rocking it back. We engaged thrusters and moved with it launching blow after blow. Each hit caused a metallic clang to echo through Titan, and the hits came faster every time. Before long, our arms and legs created a strange hum from the constant and forceful contact with Gigalance Bot.
Our foe was made of stern stuff. Titan speculated that his bot was skinned in the same material as the ship we had been stuck inside of. When I found that out I wondered if the beating we issued was in vain, until I knew it wasn’t. One of the emitters dented inward under our onslaught.
“Fuck yeah!” I shouted. “Get some, Motherf
ucker,” I made sure Gigalance could hear that last part.
I don’t know if he was just pissed or needed specific criteria before he could pull of his final form, but I found out what the form was.
Every emitter began to glow, including the one we dented. An overlay of where beams would go came from titan and showed that it was kind of hopeless. Our only chance was to get away. We shot forward angling just passed Gigalance, but we were too slow.
The beams we expected didn’t come. In their place came a sphere of green energy so dense it appeared solid. The sphere originated from the emitters and spread out like wildfire. Our left hip and leg were struck by the sphere knocking us off course.
That wasn’t all. Alarms rang out and red flashed across our vision. A silhouette of Titan appeared in our HUD just to the right. There were yellow spots on our chest from the damage we had taken but our left leg was red. I tried moving the damaged appendage but received no response. A moment later the left foot thruster sputtered and died. We killed the right thruster switching to just back thrusters. We risked spiraling out of control with just one foot thruster.
Gigalance retracted his sphere so it was just large enough to cover his bot. Then he shot forward leaving a green streak in his wake. The glowing ball clipped our right shoulder as we attempted to get clear.
Once more we spun out of control and more alarms sounded. Now our right arm was down and out.
Damage to the arm is minimal and it will be operational momentarily.
“What about our leg?” I asked. I knew the answer as asking brought the data to the forefront of my mind, but I let Titan tell me anyway.
The lower left appendage has sustained too much damage to be repaired internally. We will need to dock with The Liberator for repairs.
Before I could answer the Gigalance ball came in for another high-speed attack. This time we managed to just barely dodge. Then the ball stopped on a dime and hit us square in the chest. Knocking us for a loop.
My vision went red. Alarm klaxons sounded through Titan and I realized they weren’t in my head this time. My vision cleared and a few flashing red lights lit up the cockpit sporadically. I tried moving but the harness I hung suspended in kept me immobile.
“Titan?” I shouted, but no response came. “Titan, can you hear me?”
My body jerked and everything went black. There was a moment where I felt like I was floating then my HUD popped up and I saw through Titan’s eyes once more.
Connection reestablished. Welcome back, Tom.
“What happened?
We sustained massive damage and our connection was broken. Attempting to salvage what systems I can.
The Titan silhouette figure flashed red in the lower right of my vision. I focused on it and a damage report ran through my head. I was lucky life support still worked. We were down to the power core, life support, and Titan’s AI core. As I read the extensive list of damages Titan came through. Our forward external sensors came to life in time to watch the sphere collapse in on itself. Then a notice came up that our right arm was back online.
We faced off with the Gigalance bot charging its main emitter and all we had was one good arm. I was half tempted to pull of our left arm and use it as a club, but Gigalance was too far away. Our thrusters were offline, so we weren’t getting any closer to beat him with our makeshift club.
“Tom,” Francine said with a shaky voice. “Can we fight? Should I disengage from Titan and take over?”
She didn’t need me to tell her that her plan was suicide. I could tell by her tone of voice she was a ware it would be a one-way trip. “No way,” I replied. “I’ll cover you while you leave. Find the Liberator and find some place safe.”
“What?” Her fear had transformed into confusion. “Why would you sacrifice yourself for me? I’m no one, just an insignificant soldier. You’re the pilot of titan. You need to live. My death won’t mean much, but yours…”
“Enough of that horse shit,” I snapped. “Your death would hurt me more than I care to say. You living means a lot to me, Francine. As awesome as all this is, it’s not worth loosing you.” A fat silence hung in the air for a few moments.
System Message:
All conditions have been met.
Initiating the Foe Hammer protocol.
Chapter 37
“Tom, something is happening,” Francine said over our comms. “What is this?”
“I don’t know. Hang tight and I’ll let you know as soon as I do. Titan, what does this mean?”
We have … oh.
“Oh,” I replied with a sly smile cracking my lips. Once again I knew as he knew.
“That one really messed you up, Bruh!” Gigalance's voice shouted through our comm speakers. “I tell you what though. You were owning me for a lil bit. You got style and balls as big a galactic star cruisers. We could use a guy like you. So here is the deal. One last chance to make the right decision and join the winning team, Bruh. Hand over your robo and the ship and we make you a Champ.”
“I was under the impression that the process to become a Champion was lost That you guys came back and destroyed it,” I replied.
“Nah. That's the shit we told to stooges so they wouldn’t look for a way to gain powers like ours, Bruh. This shit is exclusive. Invite only, which means you should feel all kinds a special right now. What do you say, Bruh?” Gigalance asked.
“That is a tempting offer,” I replied.
“Tom, no,” Francine said with betrayal and pain thick in her voice.
System message:
Foe Hammer is no longer responding.
Protocols broken, Foe Hammer is standing down.
That didn't go as planned. If we were going to get out of this we needed Francine. We needed Foe Hammer.
Titan anticipated my need and opened a secure line to Francine. “Hey, Francine.” She didn't answer. “You trusted me with the life of your sister. Trust me now. I promise that I will fight tyranny wherever it raises it's ugly head. I made a vow to my country, to my people, to fight for the rights of individuals. I hold that vow sacred and will continue to represent my country and my Corps by doing just that. Trust in me, Francine like I trust in you,” I said.
My friend remained silent.
Foe Hammer is in play.
System Message:
Foe Hammer protocols engaged.
“Hey GL, you don't mind of I call you GL do you?” I asked.
“Nah, Bruh. It's kinda epic and I dig it,” Gigalance replied with a chuckle.
“Great, I'm glad you’re on board. So first, I want to thank you for making that offer. I appreciate it, I really do.”
“Oh good, Bruh. I am glad you are on lock with my offer. You are going to make a sweet Champ and we are going to be besties, I know it.”
“About that.”
With our one operable appendage we reached back and grabbed the handle that sprouted from a transforming Foe Hammer. As we pulled it down a portion of the ship broke free and shaped to our face locking in place over our left eye. The ninety percent of Foe Hammer we held in our hand opened up like a flower a Long double barrel unfolded pointing at the Gigalance robot.
New targeting data was fed to us through the piece of Foe Hammer attached to our face. We had a targeting solution and were ready to rock.
A second after we pulled Foe Hammer free I said, “sucks to be you, Bruh.”
A purpled beam as big around as Gigalance's big beam shot out of Foe Hammer in a continuous stream. GL answered with the big green beam from his center emitter. Our beams clashed with a shower of white and red sparks. We kept up the attacking and I hoped it would be enough to overpower GL.
A full minute passed with our stalemate going strong. Then there came the first shift in our precarious balance.
“Fuck you, Bruh,” Gigalance shouted at us. “Take my full power and die!”
The green beam increased to twice its size and pushed through our purple ray. We were doing everything we could, which amo
unted to pointing and shooting. As I watched the purple beam shatter under the awesome power of a Champion I realized I was staring at death.
A window popped up in our field of vision and Francine smiled at us from it. “Tom, I am sorry I doubted you. Since we met you have shown me nothing but kindness even when you saw me as an enemy. I am with you, Tom, no matter what.”
A tear ran down her cheek and purple light bounced around the salty liquid as it traversed down her face. My friend held up her hand showing me the purple light glowing in her palm. Francine's smile widened as she slammed her hand down out of sight. “I am with you, Tom!” She shouted.
The rear of Foe Hammer opened and thick tubes shot out connecting to ports that opened up like hungry mouths on our wrist. New data was unlocked under the Foe Hammer files and I flashed my friend a smile.
“Together,” I told her.
“Together,” She replied with a giggle.
Titan and I opened our power core to Foe Hammer. Through our new connection we could do more than just pull the trigger.
Our purple beam flared bright then thinned out. As it got smaller it grew brighter. The smaller beam of concentrated energy tore through the center of Gigalance's beam.
“What the …” was the last thing GL said before our beam weapon, the Foe Hammer, ripped open his giant robot.
The beams died out and both robots floated motionless for a moment. A hole the size of the purple beam went all the way through Gigalance's robot giving us a good view of what happened next. A ball of white energy exploded outward from the machines core obliterating the robot and Champion.
A second later the shockwave of the explosion hit us peppering our outer skin with debris and shooting us out farther into space.
Francine, still in the window on the bottom of my vision, screamed as centrifugal force pulled her. It did a number on me as well, throwing me against my crash webbing. The disconnect with my body helped to alleviate the stress I felt, bit it was going to come back to bite me in the morning.