Mirko nodded. “Now we see how she handles overwhelming odds. And we'll see how the rest of them do as well.”
KEI LOOKED down the sights and lined up a target, but the enemy solider suddenly exploded in a spectacular cloud of blood and viscera. The railgun shot continued and smacked into a pile of twisted metal and concrete, pulverizing it into scrap with its sheer kinetic force.
He shifted his aim to another target and waited for Griz to give the signal.
“Any time now?” Salim asked.
“You're way too nervous. Wait for them to close,” Griz warned.
Kei tried to estimate the distance. Five-hundred, maybe five-hundred and fifty yards away. Relatively straightforward on the range, but facing moving targets on a battlefield with fractured terrain meant something very different. Firing at long range could be a waste of ammunition for little gain. At this point only a sniper like Gilroy could consistently hit them at a distance.
They could afford to let the enemy close in a bit. Once they were within four-hundred yards or so they'd start making selective shots to whittle down their numbers and slow their momentum. If they inflicted enough damage the attackers might have to back off, stopping their attack when they realized they didn't have enough troops left to sustain the assault.
But if they couldn't then Kei and the rest of the defenders had to inflict as many casualties as possible before the attacking force closed the distance. If they got within two-hundred yards of the trench they could start using grenade launchers, and even one shot landing in the right spot could prove devastating.
He hated this. He hated fighting in trenches like the rest of them, but most of all Kei hated fighting in a fixed position, squaring off against the enemy face-to-face. It went against his experience, his training and every fibre of his being. He had been taught a fighting style based on deception, on maneuver and speed. If the enemy wasn't sure where he was then they couldn't shoot him, but in a trench he felt completely vulnerable.
It was Baryon IV all over again, being forced to live and fight in hellish trenches because his side had been overstretched and needed every available soldier at the front lines.
“Squad, prepare to fire,” Griz ordered.
Kei focused in on his target and flexed his trigger hand twice, trying to keep it loose. If it became too stiff he might end up jerking the trigger when he made his shot, spoiling his aim in the process. This might be a training simulation to pass the time for the majority of them, but he still wanted to put in a good showing.
Besides, Kei took pride in his combat skills, and old habits died hard. Even if he wanted to slack off he didn't think he could, not with a weapon in his hands and a horde of realistic enemies bearing down on him.
“Fire at will. Make your shots count,” Griz said.
Kei relaxed his upper body and squeezed the trigger with one smooth pull.
His first shot hit his target square in the chest, causing the soldier to stumble forward and then lay still. Dead or just incapacitated, it didn't matter at the moment. He was out of the fight. Kei shifted his aim again in time to see another railgun shot rip through a hapless soldier.
“Gilroy, focus on heavy weapons specialists,” Griz said over the radio link.
“One step ahead of you,” she said, and a moment later another enemy fell.
Kei fired off a brace of shots, killing two more enemies and forcing several others to duck down into cover. So far so good. If he could keep this up…
“Griz, I've got a malfunction,” Elsner cut in over the link.
“Copy. Do what you can,” he ordered.
Kei didn't have time to look over to see what the problem might be. The enemy was still advancing, and their shots were beginning to get closer. A couple of the simulated soldiers on their side toppled backward into the trench, shot through the forehead by plasma bolts.
He had nothing else to do but return fire.
LAUREN COULDN'T TELL if she was hitting anything. She tried to remain steady and not waste any of her shots, but everything seemed so chaotic. The sounds and smells of the battlefield swirled around her. She heard the zip of plasma bolts cutting through the air, smelled their burning stench, heard shouts and orders, the cries of the wounded and the dying, felt the dirt kicked up by near-misses…
She sighted in on another enemy soldier and pulled the trigger. This time she saw her plasma bolt slam square into the enemy's chest. One down.
But how many more would she need to kill to make a dent in the oncoming horde? The rest of the squad seemed to be scything through them without any problems. Even with Elsner trying to fix his weapon they maintained a steady, accurate barrage of small-arms fire.
And then there was her. Lauren could barely keep up, needed several shots to hit a target. She thought her aim had improved from all the practice, but many of her shots had been completely wild.
How did they do it? The rest of the squad seemed completely unflappable, almost like they were more machine than human. A railgun shot chopped another enemy soldier in half. Lauren felt completely useless, but she kept fighting. What else was there to do at this point?
She finally realized the full extent of her request. She wanted to go with them, even if that meant traveling into dangerous areas, but this…
How had so many people made it through something like this just once? And yet, much of this galaxy had been embroiled in a war that lasted almost ten years. How had they done it? How had they survived?
But Lauren didn't have any time to mull over those thoughts, not with a full-scale battle swirling around her. She lined up another shot and pulled the trigger.
“YOU REPELLED THEM,” Mirko said over the communications link once the exercise ended. “Held position, no casualties. I haven't looked at your tallies, but they looked decent from my point of view. Good job.”
“Except Elsner,” Salim said.
Mirko smiled. “Well, IVIN and I decided to give Moritz a little surprise. Don't want to leave things too boring, do we?”
“I thought that might have been because of you,” Elsner said. “So you deliberately sabotaged me?”
“Well, you were the only one that seemed to be looking forward to this, so I think it's only fair that we give you a problem to deal with.”
“Thanks a lot. What about Rappa and Bradley? They skipped out on this thing entirely.”
“Bradley's on bridge duty right now, so I'm not going to fault her for missing out,” he said. “As for Vic, well, let's just say he can have his own surprise when the time comes. But I can't do anything to him right now.”
“I can arrange something,” IVIN spoke up.
Mirko grinned. “As much as that might be fun, I think that also sets a bad precedent. So we'll leave him be for right now.”
“As you wish. Though this does nothing for your reputation of being no fun.”
“Is that really what you all think about me?”
None of the others gave him an answer.
“Fine then. You're through with exercises for now. Find something else to do. You can decide what that is, because apparently I'm not any fun.”
“You're really letting an AI get to you, chief?” Griz said, not even trying to disguise his amusement. “You do realize that IVIN is probably just doing this to entertain himself.”
“Whatever. Go amuse yourselves,” he said, and closed the link.
“Can I expect a full assessment of the battle scenario?” Nina finally spoke up.
“Of course. Is there anything in particular you want me to focus on?”
“Make it comprehensive. I know we did it for her benefit, but if there's anything else we can learn from it then we might as well make sure we know about it.”
Mirko watched her leave, then turned back.
“Shall I start compiling the report?” IVIN asked.
He nodded. “Go ahead.”
KEI WENT to the starboard observation room to read, but to his surprise Lauren was inside, looking out t
he window at the stars.
“So you discovered this place too?” he said. “It doesn't get a ton of use, to be honest. Everyone else likes the upper observation deck because there's more room. And a card table.”
“I think it's too busy for me right now,” she said.
He thought she sounded unhappy.
“Is… did the training scenario not go the way you thought it would?”
She sighed. “Not exactly, no. It's not like I can't do it. I know I can, eventually. But right now I'm not so sure. I'm not sure I'm going to be ready in time to go with you.”
Kei sat down in one of the chairs and frowned. “What brought this on? I thought you did fine.”
“I'm not sure I did. Not compared to everyone else.”
He sighed. “Really? Is that really the way you're going to look at things? You're not an expert fighter, you haven't even gone through a basic boot camp, yet you managed to live through the entire exercise without embarrassing yourself. I'd say you did a pretty good job.”
“Is that going to be enough, though? I wasn't making shots. And…”
“What about it? How much do you really think that matters?”
She sighed. “It matters a lot to me, because I want to be with all of you if you're searching based on the information inside the chip. But if I can't meet standards...”
“I think you're fine. And I'd daresay that you've met them.”
“You can't seriously think that. Nina told me that I needed to meet a certain level, otherwise-”
“She told you that, yes, but she always has her angle. And she's not the type to fluff someone up to soothe their ego, unless she has something to gain from it,” Kei said. “I'd say she wanted to test whether you'd break or not if you were put in danger.”
“How can you be sure?”
“I can't. But I've been around her long enough to pick up on some of her tendencies, and that seems to be the way she operates. She doesn't think you need to be equal to the rest of the team in terms of combat ability, she wants to make sure you know what you're getting into. Because once we're out in the Central Expanse, there's no turning back.”
“I guess. But can you be sure?”
“I'm fairly certain,” he said.
Kei wasn't completely convinced, but he felt he needed to do something to encourage her. The worst feeling to have was doubt, because it hurt one's ability to focus and perform when it counted. If doubt was allowed to worm its way into her mind the resulting effect could snowball out of control.
“That's what this is all about,” he continued. “Making sure you're prepared for what you're getting into, or at least that's the way I see it. Because you don't get to have second thoughts when we're out on a mission. You need to be ready, and I think you'll be fine.”
She frowned. “I guess. But I want to be better.”
“Then keep practicing. That's the only way I managed to get better. That's how all of us got to where we are right now. Hard work, practice and experience.”
“How do you do it, though? How do you go through something like that without feeling any fear?”
Kei shrugged. “I think you have it wrong. I feel fear. It's a natural human reaction to feel fear. But at this point I'm used to it. I know the feeling, and I know how to control it.”
“How do you get to that point?”
He grimaced. “You get it through facing a lot of danger. And it still takes time. Even after training I remember being completely terrified on my first few deployments.”
“Sometimes I wonder whether I made the right choice asking to go with you all,” she said.
“Well, think of it this way. We're preparing you for the worst-case scenario. More than likely it's going to be a lot of searching and sitting around inside the ship. And even if we do get on the ground we're probably just going to be looking at Ulic technology. Your field of expertise, right?”
She smiled for a fleeting moment. “Right.”
All of that depended on the results once they reached home, though.
CHAPTER EIGHT
Amadis spread out underneath them.
Mirko was glad to finally be back at Goethe Prime after all the time spent out on the frontier. From Amis Anan to Charyn, to Imira, to Palharen, they had been gone for months. And then there was their last little run-in at Caleth…
But right now their voyage was coming to an end. Once the reached the ground and traveled to headquarters they could let their guard down, since there would be so much security around the place. They'd be just one of many teams, and the HQ security wasn't made up of slouches either.
He glanced down out of the space elevator's cab at the city below. Amadis was a rare sight in the cosmos, a pristine, prosperous city untouched by the ravages of war. Shining metal and glass, the maglev system snaking its way through the sprawling metropolis, the huge amounts of traffic running up and down the highway…
So many cities he had visited over the past few years still showed the scars of the Interstellar War, with rubble in the streets, devastated infrastructure and few skyscrapers, if there was even any buildings left standing.
But Goethe Prime and its federated planets had managed to stay out of the conflict, taking a path of armed neutrality and remaining content to bank for, negotiate with, and supply anyone and everyone. Skare Interstellar had become one of the most powerful corporations in the galaxy during that time, its factories safe from attack while many others were blasted into oblivion.
And in the wake of the Interstellar War its power had only grown. Planets and cities needed to be rebuilt, worlds needed to rebuild their shattered militaries, and Skare Interstellar had all the necessary resources at its disposal to make that happen for a price.
Mirko considered himself lucky along with all the rest in his team. Bodyguard work was dangerous, but it wasn't any more threatening than military life and the pay was far, far better. And being able to travel around the galaxy was an added bonus.
“Once we're back we'll get this to the lab,” Nina said, patting the locked briefcase cuffed to her wrist. “After that they'll start sifting through what they can find as quickly as possible, and hopefully we'll have our next move soon.”
“Looks like we have quite the welcoming party down there,” Rappa commented, looking down toward the terminal.
Mirko glanced down and saw what he meant. There was a platoon of security troops armed to the teeth, along with a few police officers backing them up. He imagined there would be snipers hidden somewhere as well.
“So we do.”
“That's quite a scene we're making,” Rappa said. “A lot of people are going to be wondering what's up. And asking questions.”
Mirko shrugged. “Let them. It's not unusual for us to bring back sensitive information and cargo under heavy guard.”
“Even so...”
“You want to get caught up in the streets with no backup if someone decides they want to grab this? Because I don't.”
“OK, OK, I get your point. Just seems like a lot of fuss over one small artifact.”
“Oh, like all those people shooting at us on Caleth wasn't a big deal?” Salim asked. “Sometimes I don't know about you and your priorities, man.”
“It's still going to get a lot of notice from people that otherwise wouldn't ask about it.”
Nina spoke up. “Then we're just going to have to keep everything quiet, won't we? That means the standard procedure. No answering any questions unless you're directed to do so by me in person. IVIN, make a note of that.”
Mirko glanced over his shoulder at the android body that IVIN used for terrestrial operations when they didn't expect combat. It wasn't much, just a basic shell shaped like a human with a processor and transmitter inside, but it allowed the AI to project itself in a physical form.
“Noted,” IVIN said.
“If anyone gives you trouble them refer them to me. But you're to say nothing to anyone else unless I'm present and you're explicitly told to by
me.”
Nothing unusual there, though anyone looking for information tended to avoid the bodyguard cadres. His unit was too professional for it, but some groups were inclined to rough up people that asked too many questions.
The leader of the security team moved forward to greet them as the cab touched down.
“Miss Skare, good to see that you made it back safely,” he said.
“I'm glad to be back, Mr. Draymond, and thank you for getting here on such short notice. I know that you have a lot more things to worry about.”
“Not at all. We're here doing our job. We have your transportation ready whenever you want to return.”
Nina glanced back at them. “I need two volunteers to go with the package. Take the air transport and make sure it gets into the lab safely. You have full discretion to make sure it happens.”
“Sounds like a job for me,” Mirko said. “Who else is going with me?”
“I'll go,” Gilroy said.
Nina undid the lock and handed the briefcase over. “You can decide which one of you gets to wear this, but make sure it's strapped someone's arm.”
Mirko put it on. “Ready to go?”
“All set,” Gilroy confirmed.
“We'll see you later back at headquarters,” Nina said. She motioned for the rest of the team to follow her into a limousine waiting for them.
Mirko nodded and turned toward the landing pad, where their ride sat idling its engines. It wasn't a glamorous job, but it was important. Their entire prospective expedition into the Central Expanse depended on obtaining the information inside the chip.
“ONCE WE'RE BACK at headquarters you'll be off-duty,” Nina said as they rode in the limousine. “Take the time to get some rest and relaxation. It's more than likely that we're going to be out of civilization for a while, so rest up and enjoy yourselves while you can. There will be sporadic meetings, but I'll let you know about them in advance so you can plan around them.”
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