Mecha Samurai Empire (A United States of Japan Novel)

by Peter Tieryas

  Nori and Kazu are scoping out the area, trying to determine the current situation. I take several steps in the Arikuni and look out at San Francisco. I switch the camera so the whole bridge vanishes and it looks like I’m floating in the air with wireframes of my arms and legs visible. There’s a special sunscreen that compensates so that the solar light won’t be blinding. Audio is also in full-immersion mode, and I can hear the water in the bay. It’d be one of the best experiences of my life if I didn’t know what awaited.

  “There are three Guardian-class mechas and nine Labor-class mechas on sensors,” Nori says. The three Guardians are standing along the piers of San Francisco. The Labors are inactive but stationed at Oakland Port alongside the gigantic container cranes that look like quad mechas themselves. “None of them are responding to our communications, but they’re on a different communication network from ours for security purposes, and I think their system is down.”

  “Is anyone aboard?” Kazu asks.

  “The Labors look empty, but there should be crews on the Guardians.”

  Guardian classes are offensive mechas that are midsized and older generation. No surprise they’re stationed here as the Bay Area is generally considered a safe haven.

  Behind us, the ground begins to shake. A Guardian mecha is approaching from the airfields, probably the one stationed in the base. I look over at the communication console. It looks similar to the setup I had on the quad mecha.

  “I think I might be able to contact them on a public channel,” I say. “Though that means anyone can hear us.”

  Kazu considers it. “Do it.”

  I get out of the driver’s seat, walk to the communications console, turn it on. There’s a general system used in case of emergency situations. The links tend to be weaker, but they’re useful if you want to make free calls throughout the USJ. There’s only one external signal aside from the Leviathans, which I assume to be the Guardian. I call them. The communications officers on the Guardian answers in audio only: “Who are you?”

  “I’m Cadet Makoto Fujimoto,” I answer. “Those two with me are fellow cadets.”

  “This is Captain Mizoguchi,” another voice chimes in. “Your communicators are down too?”

  “Yes, sir.”

  “What in the world is it that you’re driving?”

  “It’s a prototype, sir,” I answer.

  “Prototype? You have weapon systems on board I’ve never seen before.”

  “Yes, sir,” I say, wanting to get to the more pressing issue. “Captain, are you aware Mechtown was under attack?”

  “Attack? By who?” he asks, stunned.

  “It was an internal attack, and we have reason to believe that German biomechs will be attacking the city soon.”

  “Is this some kind of practice drill?” the captain asks.

  “No, sir. This is real.”

  There is silence for a long minute. “Most of the mecha corp is away for the holidays.”

  “Yes, sir.”

  I’m about to explain more when we hear a strange sound, a dismaying rumble, like someone has taken a hammer the size of a building and is whacking the ground repeatedly. But it’s coming from the sky, and the noise turns into a ghastly warble. We see what looks like an enormous horde of locusts descending. They are four long aircraft, an eerily alien black, each carrying a massive shipment.

  “That’s the Nazis?” Captain Mizoguchi asks.

  “I believe so, sir.”

  “I’ll send an SOS message to Berkeley Command. In the meantime, I want you three to stay out of the way while I handle this.”

  “Sir, you’ll need our assistance. Our mechas are designed to fight the biomechs.”

  “You’re cadets, not soldiers. Leave this to me and my crew. There isn’t a Nazi alive who stands a chance against us.”

  “But, sir—”

  “That’s an order, cadet.”

  I get back to the pilot’s seat and inform Kazu and Nori of what the captain said.

  “For now, we let the captain take the lead. But as soon as they need assistance, we’ll give it,” Kazu concludes.

  When the planes open up, four pods are dropped into the bay at a high velocity. They shriek as they fall, two of them landing close to our current position. Right before they hit the water, rocket boosters fire, easing their fall. It is less a cannonball dive and more a finessed descent as they open up and release a nebulous shape that has the contours of something I recognize all too well.

  Nazi biomechs.

  Just then, Chieko comes up, and the platform goes back down to get Kujira.

  “So this is the Longinus Strike,” I say.

  But no one’s listening as the four biomechs take shape and emerge from the water. They’re even bigger than I remember. Just the part above the surface means they must be around ninety meters, putting it at equal height with the Statue of Liberation. In comparison, our Leviathans, which aren’t built at the final size, are only forty meters tall. Big, but the biomechs are at least double our height. Kujira arrives just as the biomechs take on their full shape.

  “What’d I miss?” he asks.

  “Four biomechs just landed,” I reply.

  “At least the party didn’t start without me.”

  The two biomechs close to us come our way. The other two head for Berkeley.

  The Guardian steps ahead of us into the water.

  “Whoever you are, you’ve illegally set foot on United States of Japan territory. Withdraw immediately or we will be forced to destroy you,” Captain Mizoguchi commands on the mecha’s speakers.

  The two biomechs appear different from each other, their flesh oozing like one of those Jupiter storms. The one on the right is taller and has a familiar purple protrusion on its back that resembles a dorsal fin. I could swear it’s the one from the Quiet Border. Both resemble bipedal creatures, but it’s more like a dissolving combination of flesh that somehow remolds itself and is bound by an elastic sheath.

  “That’s the one, isn’t it?” Chieko asks me.

  “I think so,” I reply.

  The biomech doesn’t give a verbal response to the captain but instead, launches hives of missiles oozing with the black chemicals. At first, I think it’s the gnats, but they’re much smaller and faster. All we can do is raise our shields and brace for impact. As soon as they hit our surroundings, everything metallic dissolves. That includes the jets, buildings, and the Guardian mecha. Right before their mecha is destroyed, the Guardian launches a final volley of missiles that sprays the biomechs with its fiery projectiles but does no visible damage. The captain and his crew are killed. But when the biomech’s weapon hits our shields and armor, the chemicals have no effect other than to splatter against our plating.

  “What is that?” Kujira asks.

  “I can’t determine the composition yet,” Nori says. “It’s some type of acidic solution that melts whatever it hits.”

  “Looks like Dr. Günter knew about it,” Kazu states. “We’re impervious to it.”

  I think about the Guardian’s crew and wonder what was going through their minds as the biomech’s weapons destroyed them.

  Off in the distance, I spot the two other biomechs launching a fusillade of their chemical weapons on the buildings in Berkeley. The damage is much worse, and I see several buildings topple over.

  “Get your M87s ready,” Kazu orders us. “Remember the training. Dr. Günter has built our Leviathans specifically to combat the biomechs. If we follow the training, we will beat them.”

  The two biomechs launch more of their weapon, but this time target the columns holding up the Bay Bridge. As soon as the missiles hit, they corrode the steel. The dissolution happens quickly, and the part of the bridge connected to Treasure Island’s southernmost point begins to collapse.

  “Is anyone on the bridge?” Chieko
asks.

  “Even if there is, we’ll have to deal with a rescue later,” Kazu replies. A hard fact, but an all-true one. We couldn’t perform rescue operations even if we wanted. “Target the biomechs.”

  We all do. Behind, I notice the emergency platform submerge. There’s no escape now even if we wanted to leave.

  “Do not fire until they reach land,” Kazu orders. “All the M87s do is strip them of their armor. We still have to deliver the finishing blows. And I want to wrap this all up soon so I can get home for dinner. Eileen’s cooking my favorite, hong shao rou.”

  “Can I come over too?” Kujira asks.

  “You’re all invited.”

  “Not that I doubt your wife’s ability, but I’m very picky about braised pork belly,” Chieko says.

  “I guarantee it’ll even satisfy you. Let’s kick some ass first to whip up an appetite.”

  The biomechs don’t take a long time to come. Even with two-thirds of their bodies submerged under water, they move through it quickly.

  They are even bigger up close, essentially being mountains that can walk. Even residing inside the Leviathan offers little comfort when they dwarf us in size. Once they reach Treasure Island, they rush up the shore and charge toward us with a speed that catches us all off guard. I wasn’t expecting them to be so fast. We begin firing, but unlike the simulations, the Biomechs deflect the ablative shells with their arms, using them like a shield to swipe them away. A few shells do hit, causing parts of their regenerative skin to dissolve. Despite the slight retraction, within seconds, other parts of the armored skin cover it. At this distance, our shells won’t be anywhere near as effective. The one with the purple dorsal fin is quickly upon us and is about to seize Chieko and Kujira. They try to force it back with shots from the M87, but their weapon has little effect. The biomech punches Kujira, then grabs Chieko. It’s about to throttle her neck when Kazu charges into the biomech from its flank. Using his mecha’s weight, he collides into it, taking it down with him.

  The biomech gets back up and starts pummeling Kazu’s Leviathan, which doesn’t react in any way. Has Kazu lost control? The monster grabs the mecha’s arm and rips it out of its socket.

  Kazu yells, “Fire on it!”

  Kujira and Chieko shoot from their M87, and at this closer distance, the shells are penetrating the armor, causing much of it to rot off. But it’s not enough to stop the biomech from dismantling Kazu’s Leviathan.

  “Kazu-sempai, eject!” Chieko yells.

  “There is no eject on the prototype,” Kazu answers. And for the first time, I see fear in his eyes.

  The biomech wraps its arms around Kazu’s neck and puts it between us as a shield, preventing us from firing anymore. Chieko and Kujira sprint forward to try to grab the biomech and pull him away by hand. That’s when the biomech squeezes the Leviathan’s neck hard.

  “Tell Mayu and Mio—” we hear Kazu say.

  But before he can finish the sentence, the head explodes, causing a reaction all the way down to the stomach, where he’s positioned.

  Kazu’s Leviathan has no power. The biomech rips its guts out and eviscerates it. The bridge is completely destroyed. Kazu’s life signs are blotted out.

  Our four Leviathans come to a stop.

  I don’t think any of us can believe sempai is dead.

  The biomech hurtles Kazu’s Leviathan at Kujira, then takes rapid steps forward and knocks the M87 out of his hand. Kujira swings his sword at the biomech, but the blade gets swallowed up. Nori thrusts her spear into the biomech, while Chieko fires ablative shells. This lets Kujira withdraw his sword. When an opening appears in its head, Nori is able to pierce it. Chieko slashes it with her chain whip, slicing quickly across what could be called its head. The biomech is weakening but not fast enough for the three Leviathans to defeat it.

  My attention turns to the second biomech, which has taken a slower approach but is moving toward us like a hunter stalking its prey.

  Red blips are catching my attention. I scroll through the visual interface, trying to determine what they are. IDs show up indicating all of those blips are people in the remaining buildings. The scanners indicate they’re military personnel, but I can’t get any communications through to them when I try.

  “I think there are peo—” I start to say, when the biomech uses a swirling slash attack to force us back. With the space it’s been given, it fires its gnats. But they’re not aimed at us. Instead, the buildings full of soldiers begin to disintegrate. Many of the red blips vanish.

  “Mac,” Chieko calls.

  “Yes?” I ask her.

  “I’ve been waiting a long time for revenge,” she says to me. I think back on all the RAMs who were killed and that moment in the Crab mecha when we were first attacked.

  “So have I,” I reply.

  “I’ve missed Wren,” she says with a wistful smile. “It was an honor to be among the Five Tigers. Now I need all of you to withdraw.”

  “What do you mean, withdraw?” I ask, confused by her request.

  Chieko turns off her communicator and charges at the biomech. She gets it in a choke hold and uses her grapplers to cling to it. Whenever the biomech tries to get her off, she deftly maintains her grip. They wrestle across the airfield and end up crashing into one of the towers. There is rage in her every motion that blazes even through the mecha armor. But it’s a controlled anger that moves as fast, if not faster than the biomech.

  “Chieko. Your BPG generator is overheating,” Nori calls. “You need to shut it down.” But even as she says it, I see the heat level rising rapidly.

  “Is it damaged?” I ask.

  “I don’t think so. She’s shut off her communicator.”

  “Why’s her generator overheating?”

  But as I ask it, the answer dawns on me.

  “Chieko!” I yell. “You don’t have to do this!”

  Our scanners keep on alerting us to a power overload in her mecha when the biomech’s fist goes straight through her Leviathan’s head.

  We survived that first biomech together. I can’t bear to think of losing her.

  “Mac, we need to retreat,” Nori says.

  “What about Chieko?” I demand.

  “Her generator is going to explode any second now.”

  “But—”

  “Wake up man!” Kujira yells. “She’s holding on for us. We need to withdraw.”

  Kujira, Nori, and I have no choice but to get as far away from her as we can.

  Chieko’s mecha self-destructs, and the blast from the BPG incinerates the biomech in a fiery rapture. I check the sensors, hoping somehow she might have survived even though all that remains of the Leviathan is a charred husk. The explosion has caused a big hollow in the Leviathan’s body, and the biomech’s skin melts away, the inner skeleton, destroyed.

  Both fall over.

  “Chieko! Chieko!” I shout.

  I scour the Leviathan in the hope that, somehow, she might have survived.

  “I’m not picking up life signs,” Nori says.

  We don’t have time to grieve because the second biomech attacks.

  I lift up my M87 and take aim. I’m furious and can’t think straight. I am repulsed to see that its flesh is alive, oozing all over its body. The ground is shaking with its every step. Chieko, why did you do that? We would have found another way.

  I make sure to lock onto the target before firing the ablative shell. A projectile launches toward it at the speed of sound, and the burst is loud. The shell hits it hard, knocking it down. Direct hit for once instead of a deflection.

  The smoke clears, the biomech’s skin is scrambling all about, some of it rotting off. There are parts where I can see the metallic skeleton underneath. But it stands back up. And while it’s clearly damaged, it’s not enough to stop it.

  Do I stand my ground an
d fight it, or do I run? My initial instinct is to withdraw, find a better place to fight, then engage. But then I see Kujira and Nori behind me and think about all the remaining civilians on the ground, unprepared for the attack. Do I follow Chieko’s example and take both of us down?

  That’s when I realize I’m in the exact same position my mother was. But they had the whole crew to think of, as well as families behind them. I—I don’t have anyone. If I die, it won’t be as grave a loss as those people below. It’s not even a choice. The only thing I have to decide is whether to run to face it, or make a quick counterattack as it rushes me. I get my sword ready. I’m not as good as a wrestler as Chieko, but I feel confident I can take it down. I’ve never set off an internal self-destruct on the Leviathan and need to figure it out quickly. I bring up the BPG controls on the display screen and get my grapplers ready. Alarms are going off on my scanners. I shut them down because I already know what’s coming my way. I brace for the impact, haunted by the idea that its regenerating skin is created from the cells of the dead. For some reason, Griselda comes to mind. I wish I could have spoken to her one last time.

  Just as we’re about to collide, something smashes the biomech in the side of the head. It’s a spear going through its temple. From the opposite side, a sword plunges into its abdomen. Kujira’s on one flank with the sword, and Nori has impaled it with her spear.