Taylor sighed with fatigue. He dropped the magazine and reached in for the last one he had left for the gun and slammed it in. Seven shots, that was all he had. The vehicle turned in front of them, and two heavy machine guns opened up on the shop. Many ricocheted off the walls, but some ripped through the entrance. He saw one shot strike the counter just fifty centimetres from Alita's head. He quickly turned back, primed the weapon, and took aim. The first shot struck the thick mantlet around the gun barrel and bounced right off. The gun didn't even stop for a second as it still rattled off shots. He took aim again, but a shot came right through the porthole and skimmed his helmet. It was enough to knock him back. He dropped the weapon, and it fell back inside the shop.
The rest of his people were hunkered down into cover. Even Babacan didn't get up to face the onslaught.
Now you're really pissing me off!
He quickly picked the rifle up and rushed back to the porthole, angrily stuffing the barrel through once more.
"Fuck you!" he screamed, as he fired one shot after the other in quick succession. On the last shot in the magazine there was a massive explosion outside as the tank blew apart. They felt a shock wave through the building, and Taylor was knocked off his feet and onto his back. They heard the roar of engines overhead.
"You're welcome," said the pilot that had addressed them before over the comms.
Taylor let out a long sigh. He stood, but none of the others had moved. They were still in shock.
"Well, what are you all waiting for? Let's get back in this fight. Move it, people!"
Babacan was back on his feet in seconds and thrust the barrel of his machine gun through one of the broken portholes. He smashed the remaining glass out and opened fire on full auto. The rest of them jumped to his aid and began throwing a hail of fire into the street where hundreds of Gurvs were rushing to the front of the store. Taylor heard a scream and then a gunshot. A Gurv collapsed as he came through a hole in the roof beside Alita.
He rushed to her side. There was now a man-sized hole in the roof not far from where she was sitting. It looked like a piece of debris had ripped through the structure, and he could hear more clambering onto the roof. He lifted the rifle he had taken from Alita just in time as the first appeared at the hole. He fired a burst as the creature leapt in, and it was dead before it hit the ground. Without hesitation, he jumped and used his booster to leap up through the hole, landing on the flat roof beside three unsuspecting Gurvs. A burst of gunfire killed the first two until his magazine ran empty.
Taylor didn't give the third a chance. He jumped forward and kicked the filthy creature square in the chest so hard that it was launched off and into the horde below. He didn't need to look over the edge. He knew the enemy were all around. He drew out two grenades and primed them, launching them over the side where the creature had fallen.
He ducked down and waited for them to ignite. As they blew, he heard the groans of agony from below. He jumped up and drawing his pistol went to the edge. Bodies were piled high to the extent that he could barely see the road. He took aim at the nearest one still standing, and put a single shot into his head. Gunfire still raged from the ground floor, and in all the noise and confusion, nobody seemed to notice him on the edge. He moved from one to the other. One shot, one kill, it was surreal, as though he was in some kind of video game. He remembered the games made from his exploits, and that made him snap out of it.
It was just in time, as a dozen of the Gurvs had finally spotted him and opened fire. He ran as the bullets landed all around him, and he felt one strike the back plate of his armour. It jolted him forward. He went into a roll and fell through the breach in the ceiling to come crashing down in the shop once more. He landed on his back and felt the wind be taken out of him.
Alita began to giggle in her drugged up state. It was a bizarre thing to hear as the battle still raged all around them. She seemed oblivious to it all.
Maybe it’s better this way, he thought.
She had been close to breaking point. At least now her mind was in a better place. He hoped he had done enough to keep them off the roof for a bit, but that hope was soon thwarted as he heard several jump up and run along the roof top.
“Persistent bastards,” he muttered to himself.
He slammed a new magazine into Alita’s rifle just in time to open fire as the first dropped down from the breach. A second followed it, and he shot that one, too. When a third leapt right in after the first two, he couldn’t believe what he was seeing. It was as if they had no care for their own lives at all. But as the third dropped dead on impact, no more came. He looked up cautiously with his rifle held ready to fire. There was still nothing. Then finally two gun muzzles were pushed through the opening and fired sporadically all around the shop.
Everyone was ducking for cover and trying to avoid the spray of bullets, but Taylor couldn’t get a shot. He fired twice into the opening, but they didn’t penetrate. He looked over to Babacan for help, but he had already got the message. He rushed to the breach and stood under it with his heavy machine gun held vertically and held down the trigger. The shots ripped through the roof in a wide radius until there were more than twenty holes above them.
Finally, he eased off the trigger, and they waited for some retort, but they didn’t get it. Instead, blood began to drip down from three of the holes. Whatever was up there was now dead.
“Taylor, come in,” Jones called over the radio.
That’s the best thing I have heard all day.
“Well, I’ll be damned,” he said to himself before responding.
“Taylor, you there?” Jones asked in a concerned and desperate tone.
“Yeah, we’re here, just about.”
“Just stay put. We’re coming to you.”
Taylor could hear the sound of gunfire over the radio and the same outside the building. He knew they must be close now. They climbed to their feet and looked for signs of the rest of the Regiment, but as they did, a series of explosions rang out. Far louder and more violent than anything they had encountered from their own support aircraft.
“Aerial bombardment from the fleet?” Lorenzo asked in astonishment.
Taylor shook his head. He knew the Admiral wouldn’t risk it. Something crashed into the barricaded doorway and made them all jump.
“It’s Jones!” a voice yelled.
Taylor ripped back the barricade and opened it up. Their troops were pouring past.
“Damn, it’s good to see you,” said Taylor.
“Likewise, but we have bigger problems,” Jones said, pointing up to the sky, “Those aren’t our ships hitting the town.”
Taylor stepped out as huge gunships soared past them. Alliance fighters were in pursuit of several, but they seemed to be having trouble scratching them.
“They’re hitting us with more? Why? What’s so important about this place?”
Jones didn’t have any answers.
“Resolution, come in, this is Colonel Taylor, over.”
“This is Resolution. Colonel we are getting ourselves in deep here.”
“I get that, Sir, but something isn’t right.”
“I would say there is quite a lot not right about this situation, Colonel.”
“No, Sir, they are throwing just enough at us to make our life difficult, but not enough to crush us. That isn’t Bolormaa’s way.”
“Well, maybe we should count ourselves lucky.”
“I wish we could. What word have you had from other colonies?”
“Which ones?”
“Any of them.”
“Can’t say we have received word from anywhere.”
“Admiral, this whole situation stinks. I thought they were coming here to destroy another colony, but they could certainly have done it easier than this.”
“What do you want me to do?”
“Find out what the hell is going on.”
“Will do, but in the meantime you need to get the hell out of there.”
<
br /> “And the civilians?”
“We are picking up as many as we can, but there’s only so much we can do with their aircraft in the skies.”
“Where are they launching from?”
“A carrier. It keeps jumping in and out, on different locations every time. Never long enough for us to strike, and we can’t bombard the city from orbit, not without risking the lives of you and the countless civilians still on the ground.”
Taylor sighed as he thought it over.
“What do you think they are up to?” Jones asked.
Taylor shook his head. “I don’t know, but I don’t like it. How is the evacuation going?”
“We’re getting plenty out, but there is a lot left. Frankly, we are swamped. After we got through that canyon, it was gridlock. Since the dome went down, the transports have been in and out, but they’ve only been able to land behind our positions. Your guys got through in the end and are fighting the other side, but they haven’t managed to secure any landing zones this side of the canyon.”
Taylor didn’t like what they were going to have to do, but he knew they would have to call a halt to their rescue operation soon.
“We can’t keep this up too much longer.”
“Why not? We’re doing okay.”
“They are testing our fleet, dividing our forces. Give them a little longer, and they’ll hit the Independence. I guarantee it.”
“How can you know that?”
“Because it’s what I would do. They will know where our forces are by now. They’ll know the Independence is the most powerful, and at present most weakly defended vessel. I’d have hit it already.”
“Well, maybe they aren’t as smart as you.”
Taylor sniggered. “If only you were right.”
Vega came over the comms once again.
“Colonel, we’ve got a second fleet on intercept course.”
His voice was as calm as it could be, but Taylor understood how serious it was.
“How much longer do we need to get these people off the ground?”
“We’ve not even evacuated half yet, but we don’t know how many casualties there are down there.”
“Wrap this up, Admiral. Get us back to the fleet.”
“And the remaining civilians?”
Taylor looked around. He could see his people fighting hordes coming from every direction now. They were cutting them down efficiently in great numbers. But few had much ammunition left. He could see two-dozen enemy transports coming in to bring fresh troops, and the fighters still waged battle in the skies.
“We can’t stay in this fight much longer, Sir. Get us out.”
Taylor knew it was an unenviable call for the Admiral to make, but they both knew it had to be done.
“Affirmative, Colonel. Prepare for full evac. Resolution out.”
“We’ll be leaving a lot of people behind.”
Taylor nodded.
“And we’re going to leave a lot more dead if we don’t get out of here soon.”
“You still don’t think this is it, do you?”
“What?”
“The real target?”
Taylor shook his head.
“No, I do not. Bolormaa is too smart for it, and too powerful. If she wanted this colony, or us dead, she would send a whole lot more than this. I don’t know what her game is. None of us do.”
“You think she just does all this for fun?”
Taylor grimaced but still nodded. It was the only sensible conclusion he could come to. Two shots zipped past his head, and he ducked back and forth, firing two back to kill the Gurv firing on him. Now that he was out from the cover of the building, he could see the full extent of what they were dealing with. Gurvs for as far as the eye could see. They advanced with the support the four-legged creatures as he had seen before, and many at the front carried huge pavise like protections.
“It’s time we got the hell out of here.”
He was beginning to doubt why they ever went there in the first place, but then he looked into the shop and saw the two young women who had been hiding there. They were talking to Alita and keeping her company. It was an act of kindness, and that spoke volumes to him. It reminded him of his humanity.
“Are we really going to leave so many to this fate?” Jones asked.
Taylor sighed, hating what he had to do.
“There are no more lives to save here than we have already, just more souls to lose.”
Jones knew it was true, but that didn’t make it any easier to stomach. Taylor opened a channel to the whole Regiment.
“All units withdraw to the boats, retreat to the boats. We’re getting the hell out of here!”
Nobody questioned it. They wanted out as much as the next person.
Taylor rushed back inside. He grabbed Alita and hauled her to her feet.
“Come on, girl, it’s time to get you out of here.”
“Girl?” she asked as if insulted.
The two young women beside her didn’t look like they wanted to move a millimetre.
“Come with us, or you’ll die here,” said Taylor.
It was the hard truth that they needed.
“But…but…” one of them protested.
“But nothing. We have saved everyone we can. Stay here any longer, and none of us will make it out.”
“But this is our home,” said the other, “I’ve never been off world.”
Taylor sighed. He knew the feeling all too well, but he didn’t have time to explain it to them.
“Do you want to live to tomorrow?” he asked them bluntly.
They nodded quickly.
“Then come with us.”
They agreed as he turned back to Alita and helped her out the door. Gunfire was still raging.
“Running low on ammo!” was the resounding call from those around him.
Taylor looked up in the hope that he would be able to call in air support, but he could see they were busy dealing with the enemy fighters and keeping them off the transports.
“All right, lay down smoke, deploy mines for fifty metres. Let’s go!”
He was close to the rear of the column as they made their way to where Jones had come from. He saw two Gurvs rush out from a side road and struggled to get his rifle up while he helped Alita. Finally, he dropped her, lifted it, and fired two bursts. They dropped dead. He looked down to Alita. She was getting to her feet and able to stand, but only just.
“Help her!” he said to the two civilian women with them.
They rushed over and supported her from either side, but they struggled with the weight of all her equipment and armour.
“She’s heavy,” one of them complained.
“If you want to live you, will make sure you get her back safe, you hear?”
The look on his face was so serious that they dared not question it, and soon rose to the task. They rushed on as Taylor threw smoke grenades behind him and tossed down the two mines he carried. They kept laying down the weapons as they went with their delayed activation pressure plates.
Soon enough they heard the first few igniting behind them. Taylor turned back but could not see through the trail of smoke they had left. Only a flash that lit up the smoke as each one went off. The mines kept blowing.
“They just keep coming,” said Jones.
The Gurvs were running through the mines, even after knowing what they were. Taylor wanted to think it was the confusion, stupidity, or those pushing them on, but he had gotten to know that they were far more simple than that. They would run through any kind of fire for a chance to kill.
“Pickup the pace. Let’s move, move, move!” he ordered on an open channel.
He ran to the girls helping Alita and took her himself. He rushed ahead.
“Go on. Run as fast as you can!” he said to them.
They didn’t hesitate, and he was glad of it, as seconds later he felt an impact of a bullet on his back and helmet. Neither penetrated, but he looked over to see th
at shots had passed through Alita’s right arm and leg. She was bleeding badly from it, but didn’t even notice because she was so drugged up.
“Just hold on, hold on! We’ll make it,” he said to her firmly.
He knew she didn’t understand, but he said it as much for himself. The medic must have plied her with so many drugs. Maybe he saw how fragile her mental state was, too.
“I’ve lost too many friends to lose you now. You have to stay with me!” he said.
He pushed on as hard and fast as he could. Jones covered him all the way, but he didn’t look back again. He could see the huge transport ships ahead. They looked large enough to carry ten thousand humans. There were nine of them lined up, and more in the sky coming and going.
“You see that, Alita? We’re almost home.”
“Home? This doesn’t look like home,” she mumbled.
“Yeah, I know what you mean.”
He pushed through a lot of marines and civilians to get to one of the ships, and as he passed Lorenzo, he grabbed him and pulled him along.
“You’re not gonna let her die,” he insisted. He finally reached the ramp of the ship. The crew were stopping people loading. They were trying to raise the ramp for lift off. There was a Navy Lieutenant at the ramp pushing people back.
“Lieutenant, you have to take her, and my medic,” he insisted.
“Sorry, Sir, we are full. We have to get on out of here.”
Taylor sighed as the man tried to drive him back. He passed Alita over to Lorenzo calmly and drew his pistol. He grabbed the Lieutenant firmly and put the gun to his head.
“The only way this ends is with my friends getting on this boat. Whether that means a bullet in your head or not is up to you,” he said firmly.
The man looked horrified.
“I wouldn’t test him,” said Lorenzo, “That’s Colonel Mitch Taylor you are messing with.”
The man looked terrified.
“Okay, okay, the girl, but no more, not you!” he insisted.
Taylor let him go and helped Lorenzo with Alita up the ramp. He then stepped back.
Battle Beyond Earth Box Set Page 72