The Dragons of Jupiter

by Jacob Holo

  Naomi shot one in the chest. The heavy shatterback punched through a layer of armor, detected a soft interior, and exploded into a shower of deadly spines. The target’s smartskin crashed, revealing a grid of hexagons over crusader armor. The dead crusader staggered back, raised its Gatling gun, and opened fire.

  Vari-shells pounded Naomi’s position, but she was already running, already taking aim. Naomi shot it two more times in the chest. The force of the impacts blew the dead crusader in half at the waist. The bottom half fell over and remained still. The top half propped itself up on an elbow and continued firing.

  “Crusader thralls!” Ryu said. “We’ve got crusader thralls out here!”

  “This complicates matters,” Kaneda said. “Three-Part, status?”

  “Holding, sir, but they keep coming!”

  The crusader thralls near Ryu and Cat ran into the tree line. The two dragons opened fire.

  “Kaneda, we’re getting overwhelmed here!” Ryu said.

  “I can see that,” Kaneda said. “Liquajet squadron Tau. Target the following beacons.”

  “Targeting,” the pilot of liquajet Tau One said. “Warning, friendlies close.”

  “Priority One override,” Kaneda said.

  “Override accepted. Firing now.”

  Kaneda set another nav beacon in the center of the forest. “Everyone get back!”

  “Here it comes!” Ryu rose from his crouch and sprinted towards the center of the forest. The other dragons and crusaders all abandoned their positions and headed for the center.

  The first heavy shell crashed through the dome and exploded amidst the crusader thralls. They dashed out of the way, but not quite as fast as live crusaders. Shrapnel blossomed out of the impact point, shredding their smartskin and flinging them to the ground.

  Icy water rushed in through the breach along with a stream of heavy shells. Another liquajet blew open a hole over the second group of crusader thralls. The remaining six liquajets shelled the gun-spiders and the civilian thralls rushing in from either side.

  “Incoming fire!” Tau One’s pilot said. “Tau Three is hit! Tau Three is hit!”

  “Maintain bombardment,” Kaneda said.

  Cracks widened along the dome. Water gushed in, drenching the forest in a solid downpour and flooding the streets.

  The shelling smashed the gun-spiders and crusader thralls to pieces. The onrushing water swept the horde of civilian thralls back into the tunnel. Many of them went inert, dropping their weapons or pushing sluggishly against the tide. Whatever chemicals or devices kept the thralls moving didn’t respond well to freezing temperatures.

  The water level reached Ryu’s knees and kept climbing.

  “Tau Three has reactivated! It’s heading towards us!”

  “Cease bombardment,” Kaneda said. “Destroy Tau Three.”

  “Yes, sir! Engaging Tau Three now!”

  The water rose past Ryu’s head. His smartskin struggled to maintain the illusion while submerged.

  “Fighting has broken out all over the city,” Kaneda said in a strangely detached tone. “I think Caesar sensed he couldn’t bait us into another ambush like on the Errand. He’s decided on a direct confrontation.”

  “With numbers like these, I can see why,” Ryu said. “It’s a whole city of thralls!”

  “Indeed,” Kaneda said. “We will abandon our search for survivors.”

  “We need to get out of here,” Ryu said.

  “I agree, but not before we turn this to our advantage.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “We reverse the trap,” Kaneda said. “Caesar lured us here to destroy part of our forces. We can do the same by breaking this city apart, flooding its interior and sinking it to the ocean floor.”

  “That won’t stop the robots.”

  “No, but it will stop the civilian thralls.”

  “All right, but it’s a big city, and we don’t have any nukes,” Ryu said. “How do your propose we do this?”

  “We have our liquajets and a small selection of ultrahigh explosives with each platoon,” Kaneda said. “Our fortress cracker mines, to be precise. With these resources, I’m sure your quantum mind can offer a suggestion.”

  “You’d trust her?”

  “I don’t have a choice.”

  “Right. Matriarch, are you online?”

  “I’m here, Ryu.”

  “Any ideas?”

  “Yes. North Pacifica was not originally designed to become this large. There are seventeen key structural supports in the habitat framework. Severing these supports and adjusting the ten largest ballasts in the right order will rip the city apart. In order for this to work, you must mine the supports and set up TangleNet links on the ballasts which I will control. I am sending the locations now.”

  “This is acceptable,” Kaneda said. “Give me a moment to distribute the orders.”

  “Looks like we’re close to one of the supports,” Ryu said.

  The last of the air bubbled out of the park dome.

  “Orders sent,” Kaneda said. “You’re right. One of the supports is ours. Let’s go.”

  Ryu checked the nav beacons Kaneda had set. He led the other dragons to an apartment along the wall, scaled the exterior, and kept climbing along the dome until he reached a large breach.

  Ryu placed his hand near the edge of the breach and extended a dot-cam tubule.

  “Looks clear,” he said. “You know, all this water is going to play havoc with our illusions.”

  “If it’s a problem, we can take the lead,” Kaneda said. He and his crusaders started scaling the wall.

  “No, we’ll handle it,” Ryu said. He flipped himself over the edge and onto the habitat’s top.

  The dome sloped down to a flattened plane that made up most of the habitat’s upper surface. Pacifica Fishing had painted it with a blue-and-white swirl and a huge cartoon of Smiling Sally the Salmon. The dome over the forest had been one of her eyes. Thin towers crowned with floodlights illuminated the mascot.

  Naomi and Cat climbed out of the breach and crouched next to him.

  “The water should mess with the enemy illusions too,” Naomi said. She swept her sniper rifle across the plane slowly.

  “The support isn’t too far,” Kaneda said. “Proceed at your discretion.”

  “Got it,” Ryu said. He kept his stance low and made his way down the dome’s slope.

  They headed directly towards the target at the edge of the habitat. The nav beacon flashed within a collection of black framework and heavy cables tied to this habitat’s anchor point. The cables led up to a junction that branched to six other habitats. The two other platoons that landed on this habitat were heading to the ballast control room and a similar anchor point on the far side.

  Above them, another habitat split open and folded inward. A huge fireball bubbled out, cooling quickly in the water. Part of the support frame fell away, nearly clipping the Pacifica Fishing habitat on its way down.

  “What was that?” Naomi asked.

  “The platoons in the Axis Mechanical habitat were overwhelmed,” Kaneda said. “They detonated their fortress crackers in an effort to take as many robots with them as possible.”

  “You don’t sound surprised,” Cat said.

  “I’m not,” Kaneda said. “They told me what they planned to do.”

  “What? And they willingly blew themselves up?”

  “Their sacrifice will help us achieve our goals.”

  “You make it sound like they’re just tools and not people.”

  “It is not my duty to grieve for the men and women under my command, but to lead them to victory.”

  “You’re a cold one, you know that?” Cat said.

  “Your opinion is noted,” Kaneda said.

  “What about their target?” Ryu asked.

  “I have two platoons moving in from the opposite direction. The plan is unaffected.”

  Ryu made his way across the habitat. It took several minutes t
o reach the edge. Four heavy anchor points stood in a row, each the size of a small house. Dozens of thick diamoplast cables ran from each anchor point along a framework to the junction point above. Long shadows stretched across the habitat’s hull only to disappear amidst the blaze of floodlights illuminating the company logo.

  Naomi climbed the first anchor point and ran up the cable until she had a commanding view of the habitat. She loaded a turbo-devastator into her rifle.

  Ryu stepped up to the edge of the habitat and gazed at the city sprawl above and below him. Small explosions flickered in the distance.

  “The other teams are encountering resistance,” Kaneda said. “It’s likely Caesar has deduced our plan. Be on guard.”

  “Give us a few minutes to plant the mines,” Three-Part said.

  “What if Caesar tries to disarm or move them after we leave?” Ryu asked. “We are going to leave before you detonate them, right?”

  “Of course we are,” Kaneda said. “And you needn’t worry. Once armed, they are designed to be impossible to disarm. Your hacking glove wouldn’t work, and moving them will only trigger an early detonation.”

  “Ryu, get back from the edge,” Naomi said. “Something’s scaling the side. I can’t make out what it is.”

  Ryu ran back to the anchor point near the edge and took cover behind it with Cat.

  “Defend the anchor points,” Kaneda said.

  The crusaders moved in behind the anchors. Several kept watch on the plane behind them.

  “Dragons, keep still as long as possible,” Ryu said. “Look for an opening to inflict maximum damage because once we move we’re going to be easy to spot in the water.”

  “Understood,” Naomi said.

  “You too, Seven. Keep your head down.”

  “I’ll try.”

  “Looks like a group of gun-spiders coming up the side,” Naomi said. “They’re moving around a lot, which is causing some turbulence. They could be hiding a tank-spider in that turbulence. It’s hard to tell.”

  “Take the shot only if you can confirm a high value target,” Ryu said.

  “Get ready. They’re almost to the top.”

  “Robots coming out of the breach behind us!” Seven said.

  “We’ll take them,” Kaneda said. The crusaders guarding their rear cut loose with long range Gatling fire. Streamers of disrupted water ended against the forest dome in brief foamy bursts of light that bubbled upwards. Return fire struck near the anchor points.

  Ryu ducked in tighter. Diamoplast slivers broke off the anchor points and floated around him.

  Gun-spiders crawled over the edge near the anchors. The crusaders blasted several of the robots clear of the habitat edge. Dozens more scaled the side and peeked over the edge for shots of opportunity. The crusaders around Ryu started taking damage. Another KIA code scrolled down his sight.

  “Tau One, standby for close fire support and pickup,” Kaneda said.

  “Tau One standing by.”

  “Naomi, I don’t see the tank-spider,” Ryu said, hugging the anchor point’s rear.

  “Neither do I. I’ll keep looking.”

  “Mines are set!” Three-Part said.

  “Tau One, execute pickup,” Kaneda said.

  “Yes, sir. Tau One on approach.”

  Gun-spiders rushed in from both sides, but the crusaders kept them at bay. The liquajet slid through the water, coming in low across the habitat.

  “Shit!” Naomi shouted. “Tank-spider on the cable! It’s right next to me!”

  The tank-spider stopped its descent down the cable and aimed its railguns, perhaps spotting Naomi the same time she spotted the robot. Naomi shot her turbo-devastator into its side at point black range. The impact flashed and bubbled upward. The turbo-devastator knocked the tank-spider back and blew a fiery hole out its side. The robot clamped onto the cable and slipped underneath it. Its illusion crashed.

  Naomi stood and ran down the cable to the anchor points.

  The tank-spider fired at her, but didn’t have a clear shot dangling from underneath the cable.

  Ryu activated the command channel key Kaneda had given him. He tagged the tank-spider. “Tau One, fire on my target!”

  “Yes, sir. Acquiring target.”

  The liquajet shot a steady stream of heavy vari-shells that exploded around the tank-spider in bubbly flashes. The impacts shook the robot loose and blasted it away. It fell past the habitat.

  Tau One slowed next to the anchor points, spun around, and opened its rear hatch. Its dorsal turret targeted the gun-spiders coming out of the breach and blasted them with heavy shells. Ryu and Cat slipped in first, then Naomi. The crusaders retreated into the liquajet, maintaining constant fire.

  Return fire pinged off the liquajet’s hull. The hatch swung up and sealed. Air quickly displaced the water-filled hull. Drops fell from the ceiling and ran down the walls.

  “Put some distance between us and the city,” Kaneda said calmly.

  “With pleasure, sir.”

  The liquajet rose and accelerated. It looped past the cables and arced towards a formation of waiting liquajets. But before the jet cleared the cables, a heavy object struck the hull. The liquajet tilted on its side and flew in a straight line.

  “Pilot, what just hit us?” Kaneda asked.

  No response.

  “Pilot, respond.”

  “Not good!” Ryu said. He put his back against the wall to one side of the cockpit door. “Get the cockpit open!”

  Cat palmed the door from the other side. It slid up. Ryu slipped out of cover and aimed his rifle into the cockpit.

  Water gushed out of a small hole in the pilot’s hemispherical control screen. A robotic armor held the pilot’s head in a three-prong claw. The claw’s drill was past the man’s teeth, through the top of his mouth and into his brain. His hands hovered over the controls, twitching. Blood sputtered out of his mouth and drained down his neck.

  The tank-spider smashed its free arm into the cockpit, tearing the hole wider. It pulled itself up, bringing its railguns level with the hole.

  Naomi aimed her rifle past Ryu’s head and fired her last turbo-devastator. The weapon’s release rattled Ryu’s teeth. The heavy projectile blew both railguns and most of the tank-spider’s underbelly off. Its illusion crashed, but it kept moving, kept widening the hole so it could pull itself in. Water flooded the cockpit and poured into the hold.

  Ryu dashed forward, shoved his rifle into the gaping hole underneath the tank-spider and painted its interior with forty shatterbacks. Sparks flashed inside the robot. Its arms went limp.

  Ryu shot three grenades into the robot’s gut just to be safe before he kicked it off the liquajet. The robot pulled the dead pilot with it and fell away.

  Kaneda stepped up and linked with the liquajet’s controls. He guided the damaged craft back on course.

  Ryu slumped against the wall. “Shit. Damn things are persistent.”

  “Not persistent enough,” Kaneda said. “The last platoons should be taking off shortly. Then we’ll blow the city apart. Two minutes thirty seconds until the first support is cut.”

  The liquajet joined the waiting fleet and began flying back to Capitol City.

  “And ...” Kaneda said.

  The timer reached zero. Nothing happened.

  “Uh oh,” Ryu said. “That’s not good. Was there supposed to be a boom?”

  “Second detonation in another twenty seconds,” Kaneda said.

  The timer reached zero again. Nothing happened.

  “What went wrong?” Kaneda asked.

  “Caesar must have disarmed them,” Cat said.

  “Impossible,” Three-Part said.

  “No, not impossible,” Kaneda said, shaking his head. “Not when you consider the kind of monster we face. Caesar had only a few minutes to figure out what we thought was impossible, but somehow he did it. Third detonation in ten seconds ...”

  One of the habitat supports near the top of the city blew apart and s
napped free. Ballasts activated, putting additional load on the surviving supports, but not enough to cause structural damage.

  Kaneda and the others waited in silence as the remaining timers ticked down to zero. In all, only three detonated. North Pacifica survived with minor damage.

  “Do we go back in?” Three-Part asked.

  “We’ll take heavy losses if we do,” Ryu said. “Caesar knows exactly where we’re going.”

  “Yes, but we can’t leave a force this size intact,” Kaneda said.

  “Kaneda, this is Matriarch.”

  “Go ahead.”

  “The robots over Capitol City are drilling down again. It looks like our enemy is taking the offensive. I expect forces to launch from North Pacifica and New Edo shortly. To make matters worse, the scout I sent to New Edo spotted stealth craft heading to Third Kyoto. I fear that city will fall as well.”

  “Understood,” Kaneda said. “It seems we have run out of time. All forces will return to the capitol at maximum speed.”

  “Matriarch, what about the star drive?” Ryu asked. “Can we escape with the city?”

  “I am sorry, Ryu. I have failed,” Matriarch said. “I’m just not fast enough. There’s no way I can finish in time.”

  “Well, at least you tried.”

  “I’m sorry.” Matriarch disconnected.

  “Then that is that,” Kaneda said. “Three-Part, I’d appreciate some assistance reviewing our defensive plans. We need to account for our recent losses.”

  “Of course, sir.”

  The two crusaders stepped out of the cockpit. Ryu and Cat closed the door behind them, which allowed the hold to displace the water again.

  Cat leaned next to Ryu and opened a private channel. “So are we going to get through this?”

  “Of course we will.”

  “Come on, Ryu. Give me an honest answer.”

  “Umm ...”

  “Just be straight with me. Are we going to make it?”

  “Hell, I don’t know. This is a tough one, okay?”

  “Ryu, please.”

  “Look. Maybe it’s best if we don’t talk about this.”

  “Just tell me.”

  Ryu sighed and looked away.

  “Come on. I deserve to know.”

  “Honestly?”

  “Yes, honestly.”

  Ryu paused for a moment then shook his head.