"Can she take much more of this, Admiral?" Taylor looked around at the bridge of the Resolution. She was creaking from the pressure on the hull.
"She will hold. We all have a job to do, Colonel, and this is hers. She will hold."
They continued to be pummelled by the enemy, and they could see assault ships on course for them.
"They mean to board us," said Taylor.
"Prepare to repel borders!"
A heavy shell hit the bridge, and they were thrown violently. Taylor crashed into the Captain's seat and groaned as he fell down to the floor. The lights went out, and they felt another impact. Red emergency lighting soon kicked in. A few of the crew were bruised and battered, but everyone was alive. Sparks began to flow from a section in the roof of the bridge.
"What the hell is that?"
"A breach, Jones, they're coming in!" Rogers yelled.
"Get everyone out of here. Get to the secondary bridge and keep up the fight!" Taylor shouted.
Rogers grabbed the Admiral and bundled him out of the door. Several of their company were in close support to protect him. Jones and Taylor readied their weapons as Babacan stepped onto the bridge with half a squad to support them.
"Good to have you back, my friend," said Taylor.
"It’s good to be back."
Sparks continued to fly as a circular hatch was cut through the roof above them.
"There are two decks above us, how the hell did they get through all that?"
"You kidding me, Jones? There are so many holes in this ship we are barely holding together," replied Taylor.
The cutting stopped before the circle was complete, and for a moment they wondered if they were safe, if the tool had failed, but Taylor knew they wouldn't be that lucky. There was a God almighty crash as though a battering ram was launched against roof, and a three metre-wide slab of steel dropped from the ceiling. It crushed the Captain’s chair and a console beside it to the floor like a pancake. A Morohtan warrior descended through the breach. They all opened fire with a vicious volley that cut the creature down, but it was followed by three more. They kept firing, and within seconds there lay the bodies of ten of the enemy.
Taylor dropped his magazine and reached for a new one. The enemy just kept coming, and they had little cover to use. A shot clipped his flank and bounced off, and another rushed past his face. One enemy warrior leapt onto him. The beast was equipped with only a blade in each hand. It stabbed and cut frantically, but he beat the blades aside with his rifle, finally getting off a burst into the creature’s body. He kicked it back and fired several more shots to take it down.
"We can't stay here!" Jones shouted over to him.
Taylor didn't want to leave, but they were out of options. Several more shots struck the wall beside him. He activated his shield and returned fire. The enemy continued to swarm onto the bridge. One of the Krys with them was almost slashed in half by an enemy blade and dropped dead. Another of the humans was riddled with pulse fire. There was one way off the bridge.
"Fall back!"
He primed a high explosive grenade, launched it into the centre of the room, and ran for the door. A single shot struck his back, glancing from his armour. The charge ignited as he leapt through the doorway to exit the bridge, and a deafening explosion rang out. He hit the ground hard, his ears ringing. He could see flashes of light rushing over him. He felt someone grab him and haul him off to the side of the corridor. It was Babacan.
"Are you okay?"
He was a long way from okay, but he was in his natural habitat. As much as he looked forward to the day that they could live in peace, he was born for this. He had worked his entire life to get to this moment. He may not have known it at the time, but fighting Karadag and Erdogan, they had only been stepping stones to reach this point. He was starting to see that now. The Krys prophecy and that he was some great champion reincarnated - he was beginning to believe it. Everything in his life so far had been based around preparing him for this fight. To fight an enemy so powerful that no human being could imagine they could be defeated.
But Taylor didn't think like the rest. He worked in miracles. He achieved the impossible. He lifted his rifle and returned fire as the enemy charged the doorway. They were bottlenecked now, and his small team made light work of the boarding party.
"We've got to keep moving," insisted Jones.
Taylor drew out another grenade and launched it into the room. He had no idea what damage it could cause the ship, but it didn't matter. If they couldn't survive this fight, it would all be over. He lay down a burst of fire, continuing to run as the charge blew. He reached one of the security doors to the bridge and sealed and locked it. It would contain them for a little while at least. He ran onwards and soon heard gunfire echoing throughout the ship. He looked down at his Mappad to see the location of their units. Rogers had already allocated two of their platoons into the defence of the ship, but their people were being spread thin.
“What do we do?”
“First thing is to get Vega to the bridge. We need to get this fight back under control,” said Taylor as he rushed on.
It was disheartening to hear more gunfire ahead of them, and heard Rogers barking his orders. They arrived just in time as a wall was blown open, and enemy soldiers poured in through the breach. Rogers was sheltering the Admiral behind an ammunition cart. Taylor opened fire, and between them they cut down a dozen of the enemy, but they just kept coming.
His magazine ran empty, and there was no time to replace it. He drew his Assegai and rushed into the breach. He drove his shield into the first as a wave of fire struck it. He pushed the creature back and wedged it against several others so that they were stuck in the breach. He hacked down at its legs and then thrust over the front of his shield to stab the beast in the face. Another lifted its rifle to fire at him, but he slashed the barrel off as the trigger was pulled. The weapon exploded in a ball of light and killed the user instantly. He extended his Assegai and thrust at another, using it as a spear. He slashed to the side against yet another as Babacan reached his side and unloaded his rifle into the enemy.
Three more joined him as Taylor ducked back and watched them strike the enemy down with short controlled bursts. He holstered his weapon and took the opportunity to finally reload his rifle. Another grenade ignited in the corridor, and the fighting was starting to die down. Babacan pursued them, and they seemed safe. They were in some kind of engineering room with tall ceilings and mechanical equipment scattered everywhere.
“We must move on, Colonel. The fleet needs a Commander,” Rogers said.
“Yes, let’s keep on moving.”
They had just got going when a pulse flashed overhead, hitting the Admiral in the chest and shoulder. Taylor spun around quickly. A Morohtan was high up on a gantry in the corner of the room, and a ventilation shaft opening where he had crawled in. He took aim and opened fire. The creature was hit from bursts from three of their rifles. It collapsed over the side of the gantry and crashed to the floor below. He rushed to the Admiral’s side. Lorenzo and Rogers were taking care of him. He looked weak, and there was a hole through his collarbone and upper chest.
“How is he?”
The look on Lorenzo’s face told him everything. It was not good news.
“We have to keep on. We have to reach the bridge,” Vega said, struggling to speak.
“You shouldn’t be moving right now.”
“Keep going….and take me with you. That’s an order, Lorenzo.”
Rogers and Taylor helped the Admiral to his feet. Rogers supported him and they went on as gunfire raged behind them. Babacan and several others continued to hold off the enemy assault. A door beside them was ripped open, and a creature burst out towards them. Taylor smashed it across the face with the stock of his rifle, and as it fell back stunned, he fired a burst into the creature, and a second one behind it. They soon reached a blast door, and Rogers helped Vega to stand before the retinal scanner.
The
doors slid open, and the bridge lit up as they entered. The doors shut behind them as more of the enemy rushed towards them. They were safe behind almost a metre of reinforced steel, but who knew for how long.
Just five of the bridge crew had made it along with the Admiral. One of them leapt into a seat with screens looking out to the corridor. A dozen of the enemy had reached the door and were trying to blast their way in.
“They’ll get through eventually.”
“No, they won’t,” said the woman sitting before him.
She hit a switch. A joystick rose out from the console, and a crosshair appeared on the display screen. She squeezed the trigger. Muzzle flashes lit up the corridor from either side as defensive weapon systems opened fire. She cut them down with one prolonged burst. Jones looked impressed.
The walls lit up as they displayed the scene in space around them. It was utter carnage, but both fleets still fought on, and the battle raged. Vega was slumped in the Captain’s chair. Lorenzo was patching him up as best he could.
“He needs a medical bay.”
“No, we can’t risk it,” replied Vega.
He looked very weak and barely able to move.
“We need to head for the surface. We have to reach Bolormaa.”
“Yes, go. We’ll hold them here, Colonel.”
“You can’t leave now,” Lorenzo pleaded.
“No, let him go,” said Vega.
“We have one job to do. It’s what we came here for, and we are going to do it.”
The doors opened to let them out.
“Stay with him,” Taylor said to Lorenzo.
“They’ll need protection,” said Rogers.
“We can handle it.” It was the woman who had mowed down their attackers.
“Go! I order you to go.”
CHAPTER 12
“We are going to need more than a few transports to make it to the surface safely,” said Jones.
“He’s not wrong,” added Rogers.
“No, he’s not.”
It was clear that Taylor had a plan, and yet neither of them was privy to it. He opened a comms channel.
“Roworth, Docking Bay 2, five minutes,” he ordered.
He tapped a few keys on his Mappad to bring two of the platoons to him, while the rest remained to protect the Resolution. He paced confidently through the ship. A column of the enemy was crossing their path ahead. Taylor simply fired from the hip and cut two down as they rushed past into an adjacent room. He drew his Assegai and swaggered towards their position as more took the corner to engage. He had already closed the distance as the first lifted its rifle to fire. He cut down onto the weapon, slicing the receiver in two, and taking off one of the creature’s hands in the process. He followed it with a thrust into the torso. He activated the spear length grip, and the blade punched through the creature’s body and out the back. He lifted the body and drove forwards to thrust the blade onto the next target, skewing them together.
Taylor retracted the blade, and they dropped. He slashed another across the throat. He was going forward like a man possessed. There was one left before him, and it opened fire, but his shield took the impacts. As he closed the distance, he smashed the muzzle aside, spun in towards the creature, and hacked down onto its collar. His blade burrowed nearly half a metre into its torso, so that its right shoulder began to separate as it collapsed.
“What the hell are you on?”
“Fire runs in my blood today, Jones.”
“Yeah, I can see that.”
They rushed onwards and soon reached the docking bay. Twenty-five marines were awaiting them.
“Is this it?” Rogers asked.
It was clear from Sommer’s face that it was.
“It will have to do.”
Taylor hit the door switch to seal the docking bay, and then another to open the doors to space. A warning light flashed as they sealed their helmets. The doors opened to reveal the near translucent shielding between them and space. It was an open void. A clear view down to the surface, apart from the few hulking wrecks floating around them. A warship soared into view, its docking doors open, and just twenty metres from them. It was the Attila, and they could make out Jafar and CJ awaiting them.
“This wasn’t part of the plan?” Rogers asked.
“You know what happens when too many people know the plan?”
“It gets out?”
“Exactly.”
He took a run and leapt through the shielding, using the boosters on his suit to power him towards the open doors of the Attila. For a moment he had a view of the battle still raging, seventy vessels slugging it out in a brutal grudge match. The losses were heavy on each side, but he couldn’t get a good look to see how bad it was. He had no idea who was winning. It was a brutal and bloody mess, but none of that mattered to him. All he cared about was the prize – Bolormaa’s head.
They passed in through the open doors of the ship, and their boots pulled them down onto the ground. The doors sealed, and gravity returned, as did the oxygen supply. He retracted his helmet back and tapped Jafar on the shoulder in friendship. He had a dozen of his finest warriors with him, Sarik included. He didn’t quite know how to react to CJ, who was leading a squad of his own, a mix of humans and Krys criminals. Though he was impressed that when the time had come, he was there for them.
Maybe there’s hope for him yet.
“Captain, take us in,” Taylor spoke over the comms to Roworth.
“So this is it? This is all that we have?”
“No, Captain Jones, we have two frigates with Marine detachments on board, and a fighter wing flying support,” replied Jafar.
“Sure would have been nice if you’d shared the plan,” said Rogers.
Taylor only smiled in response.
“This is the biggest day in our history. Not our own, but the history of our peoples. This is the battle to decide it all. To decide whether we all get to go on living. None of us is safe while Bolormaa is out there. Today she dies, or all of us do.”
Rogers moved to the side of the room to access a console. Almost immediately the view around them was projected onto the walls. The fleet battle was in the distance, but they could still see it raging. The orbital platform was firing on them, but with few guns. They were rocked by several shots, but it was not enough to slow them down. The station was hit by a salvo of fire from six Cholan vessels and began to break up as they made their way into the atmosphere.
“How do you even know where she is?”
“Because Rivers does his homework, CJ. There is only one facility below the surface, a palace if you like. Reserved for Bolormaa and those important enough to earn a place down there. The rest of her forces here live on the surface.”
“And what are they going to do, just let us waltz inside?” Jones asked.
Taylor’s response was to bring up a map of the terrain. They could see a pyramid like structure that was two kilometres tall and obviously arterial, with a large docking bay door at its base.
“What didn’t come to fight us in space is operating out of these three bases,” said Taylor as he pointed them out.
“And, what do you plan to do about them?”
Before he had even finished he noticed smoke trails heading for all three.
“What have you done?”
They watched in horror as nuclear missiles struck all three targets, and they were engulfed in mushroom clouds. Multiple avalanches erupted across the surface, and yet the pyramid stood strong. Nuclear blasts were a few kilometres from the pyramid. They knew they were protected in the gear they wore, but it still felt terrifying.
“You’re crazy, you know that, right?”
CJ laughed with glee as he played back the explosions on his own Mappad.
“That is some cold shit, damn!”
“Those who support Bolormaa deserve to suffer her fate," Taylor said angrily.
They'd all seen him kill more of the enemy than any of them could begin to count or rem
ember, but this was somehow different, and they all felt it. He'd just killed tens of thousands without a second thought. In fact he'd planned it, and had time to think it through if he had desired it. They all knew that there would be humans down there, too. They had come here in hope of saving those men and women from her, like he wanted to save Alita.
They all watched the screens intently as an enemy fighter squadron approached from the surface. Fifteen craft were coming right at them. The Attila's guns opened fire, and two were blown apart. The squadron began to split as they neared. As they did so, a number of objects were released from the enemy fighters, but they were so small they looked like nothing but space debris.
"Mines!" Rogers shouted.
They ploughed into several of them and were rocked violently one time after another, but still carried on towards the planet.
"Come on, keep it together," said Taylor.
Their own fighter squadron began to engage the enemy, but something else hit the Attila from behind, something far more powerful than the mines. They were thrown off their feet, and the impact was so violent it through them slightly off course. But that was a boon, as seconds later a beam of light soared past them; the weapon from one of the larger enemy warships had fired on them. They could see on the screens that they were being pursued.
"Vega, we need some help here!" Taylor hollered over the comms.
The Attila was taking evasive manoeuvres. They ducked and weaved as nimbly as the heavy vessel could. A beam clipped their stern and cut one of the engine cowls off, but still they would not be stopped.
"We can't keep this up," said Jones.
One of the frigates flying in formation with them began to apply forward thrust to slow down.
"What the hell are they doing?" Jones asked.
None of them wanted to say it, but they could see what was happening. The frigate quickly came about to face the enemy vessel head on, putting a wall up between it and the Attila. The beam weapon fired and smashed the frigate. Half of the bow was torn off, although some of the missile systems continued to fire. It wasn't long before they were struck by a second blast and blown apart.
Battle Beyond Earth - Box Set (Books 6-9) Page 81