AL:ICE-9

by Charles Lamb

  Anyway, once everyone passed basic, he intended to start advance-training programs, including both the advanced heavy weapons and jump school. He had continued to experiment with the repulser backpack, and felt the unit was dialed in for usage. He had even convinced Sara to try it once, though the experience was not to her liking.

  The next report was from Brian. He had taken Revenge out to properly escort the returned battleship and it’s tender into a stable Earth orbit. At that very moment, both were orbiting over the west coast of the US, while Seven had bots and humans installing all the upgrades required. His report noted the extra changes Jake had asked ALICE to include were on the punch list.

  Jake laughed aloud, causing some of the staff to turn in his direction, curious. Apparently, Brian had shuttled over to the battleship, in one of the many shuttles provided by the Wawobash at no extra charge. Jake remembered Brian to be a somewhat mild mannered fellow, but the language he used to describe the size of the battleship, both inside and out, would make a sailor blush.

  He toured the entire ship, sending back several images. Jake was impressed with the attention to detail the Wawobash provided in their work. He now understood why the NeHaw had used them to build their ships. As much as Jake would love to shoot up and tour the ship himself, he was more interested in the special upgrades he had asked ALICE to install.

  If things panned out, their crew problems would be a thing of the past.

  ----*----

  Jake was in the new combat planning room, as they called it, when the call from Chris came in. Just one of the small conference rooms off the control room, they had stocked it with enough equipment that allowed it to act as a mini control room. Jake’s thought was if or when they went into combat, this room would act as combat command central.

  “Jake, we have a call from LA. It’s Chris, and he says it urgent,” ALICE announced.

  “Put him on,” Jake replied, while moving to the display.

  Chris appeared, apparently sitting in an office of his own, “Hey Jake, I think we may have trouble brewing here.”

  “What’s up?” Jake asked.

  “We have been getting hints of a large force building in the south. Word is they found an armory and are looking to run the place, us being the first on their list to displace.”

  “Do you have any idea where they are at the moment?” Jake asked while pointing at Patti and one of her analysts.

  “Not specifically, the last group of refugees said they skirted a very large band of men near Santa Ana. They were shooting at anything that moved and taking what they wanted,” Chris supplied.

  Jake turned to Patti, who shook her head no. Jake assumed that indicated no sign of them.

  “Here,” Her analyst suddenly blurted out.

  Hitting several keys on her terminal, the image appeared in split screen for both Jake and Chris.

  “See that bunch right there?” the analyst said as she highlighted a section of the screen.

  On the display, Jake could make out what looked like a pile of ants. As she zoomed in, it had to be five or six hundred men, all moving on foot and destroying everything in their path.

  “Yup, that’s them,” Chris said, “I’d appreciate it if you could take care of that before they get here.”

  Jake almost laughed aloud, “I bet you would,” he replied, and then added, “don’t worry about it Chris. We will handle this. It’s exactly the kind of thing I would never ask someone else to deal with.”

  As Jake watched the display, it reminded him of the stories he had read about Genghis Khan. The reports of wholesale massacre of populations and laying waste to the lands always seemed fanciful, until he saw this.

  “Ok Chris, we will keep you posted. This will be dealt with before they can do much more damage,” Jake stated.

  “Ok thanks,” Chris finished, and then cut the connection.

  At that, the display went to full screen. As Jake watched, the mob seemed to move aimlessly yet with purpose. Several times he saw one of the men shoot someone unlucky enough to be in their path. With the last execution, he stated, “Patti, get everyone on alert. It’s time to see what they have learned.”

  “Jake, they aren’t finished yet, graduation isn’t until Friday,” Patti replied.

  Jake turned and thought for a moment, it was Wednesday, “Guess what they are getting for graduation?”

  ----*----

  For the rest of that day and half of the following, Jake had the combat planning room packed with personnel. Outside, in the full command center, he had Linda direct her analysts to extract every piece of relevant information on the armed mass heading north.

  In the combat planning room, he had Sara and Patti working on readying the entire graduating class. Jake was preparing to take almost 130 newly trained combat troops up against nearly 600-armed men. They were to be fully suited up with a standard combat load. He had ordered two of the new Lanai transports as his delivery vehicles. His only regret was they hadn’t even started jump school, so they would have to land. That limited his LZ choices.

  While the possibility of his troops being shot and injured was low, the real danger of being overrun was extremely high. If the experience with Sara and the stadium had taught Jake anything, it was that superior numbers still mattered. She killed three of the seven that came for her, but they still overwhelmed her in the end, suit or no suit.

  This time Jake planned to take his trained and disciplined troops against the superior numbers of an undisciplined mob in a methodical fashion. They would work as a coordinated team, with air support and limited heavy weapons.

  Jake had kept the 10th Cavalry out of the general combat pool. They were his special forces, separate from the regular units. There had been some grumbling initially, as they were all well qualified to be platoon leaders. However, once Jake explained their roles in the big picture, they were content to continue to work outside the mainstream.

  His biggest struggle was what to name this unit. His personal bias was to tag his organization as Marines and Space Marines at that. However, he was identifying them as his primary ground forces, and that was an Armyfunction. Whereas Marines are trained and equipped to be the first into battle, the Army is organized and prepared for long-term combat. Considered a force in readiness, the Marines have the ability to quickly respond to crises, and gain and defend footholds until supporting troops arrive.

  To add to the confusion, most of his fighter squadrons had either Marine or Navy designations, skipping the 1st Air Cavalry and the 10th Cavalry Special Forces. The Army didn’t have much if any in the way of fighter aircraft.

  In the end, he settled on calling them the 1st Space Marine Expeditionary Force, ready for land, sea, air and space. The final tiebreaker was the fact that the unit’s intent as a quick strike and then pack it up unit. Jake had always associated the Army as a more permanent presence, come in and stabilize things type of force.

  In real numbers, his SMEF was woefully undersized compared to a true MEF. However, he was more than happy with the numbers they had been able to field considering the circumstances. Besides, what they lacked in size they more than made up for in sheer firepower.

  Rather than issue the standard 5.56mm rifles they had all been using, he went ahead and jumped into one of the combination weapons he had asked Kola to provide after the first NeHaw engagement. That experience had found him relying on spear guns for use in space. These were 5.56mm on top with an under barrel of NeHaw energy blaster.

  This model had a second barrel fixed under the original. The barrel guard enclosed both barrels so only the ends protruded. Right in front of the trigger guard was a circular opening where the power cell went. There was a fire select switch to allow thumb activation. It flipped between safe, single 5.56 fire, automatic 5.56 fire and energy discharge. It was ambidextrous, for both right and left-handed shooters. As Space Marines, the addition of the blaster was a critical one.

  The energy weapons tended to fall into two categ
ories, concentrated beam or, what Jake called, an energy ball. The cannons on the hover cycles were energy ball weapons. He liked the option for the marines, as it functioned similar to a shotgun. The great part was you really didn’t need sights for a shotgun, just point and fire.

  Fortunately, Jake had also included limited heavy weapons training in the basic program. They had a heavier version of the 7.62mm rifle that had either a bipod or vehicle mount. He had them work from both a fixed positions and vehicle mounts in training.

  For the LA trip, he had several jeeps with guns mounted for mobile firepower. That wasn’t his only surprise.

  ----*----

  As Jake walked into the planning room, Sara and Patti both turned from what they were doing and greeted him. Turning back to their work, Sara asked Jake while not looking at him, “Why are we going to all this trouble? Can’t you just send in the 10th like last time and we can be done with them? Isn’t this a more dangerous option?”

  Without answering, Jake walked over to one of the displays and using the controls, started wandering all over the target area until he apparently found what he was looking for. Magnifying the image, he zoomed into a spot where four women were huddled over a cooking fire. Beaten and battered, they cowered in fear, every time one of the men passed close by.

  “I’m not killing off a bunch of hostages, just to avoid the risk,” he replied.

  Sara nodded in understanding and went back to her previous activities.

  At that point, Patti interjected, “Jake, the transports are back from their runs to Dallas and Kola. They have everything you requested, but we can’t bring them in, as they are too damn big to fit though the hangar doors. We had to land them just outside the lift. We will have the troops load one platoon at a time via the vehicle lift.”

  Jake had to admit they didn’t think that one through very well. When they were selecting designs for the transports and patrol ships, it never occurred to Jake they would want to be bringing them inside anywhere other than Lanai.

  “Where is everyone now?” Jake asked. He knew they were getting close to mustering time.

  “Everyone is to assemble in the main hangar in a few hours, their gear is already pre-staged,” Patti replied, “For now they are all attending to personal matters. Alcohol is strictly off limits."

  Jake considered that for a moment. The core element of the attack plan was the actual time of the attack. As all of his troops had night vision, the element of darkness was a huge advantage to them. It would allow them to make troop drops from the whisper quiet transports without the risk of being spotted. He could potentially pre-stage his entire force without the enemy ever getting wind of their presence.

  If the marauders had assembled all the hostages at night in a single place, they might have had a chance to drop in a few special troops to protect them. Unfortunately, they were spread all throughout the mass of men, so they would have to fend for themselves once the shooting started.

  So long as everyone was ready to go by dusk, he didn’t see a need to keep them in the hangar.

  ----*----

  LeSoc did not understand his orders at all. He understood they came from the High Council directly, and he understood that to disobey them would mean his immediate death. However, that was where it ended.

  As directed, he was to take his destroyer and another under his direction, escort a transport full of those mindless blue beasts from Netite to an unarmed planet. There, they were to release the beasts on the planet’s surface and retreat to a location slightly behind the planet. Should anyone arrive to intercede on the planet's behalf, they were not to engage them.

  The transport captain was already complaining, as the last time he performed this function, they were tearing his ship apart before he ever delivered them. He was afraid this time they would breach the hull before they reached their destination, due to the distance. LeSoc had suggested he drop their entire ration allotment into the hold and hope for the best.

  They would pick up 3,000 of the animals, with the hope of arriving with a minimum of 2,000 to perform the assigned task. Thank the stars they would disarm them prior to loading. He would drop the weapons, safely stored on his destroyer, upon arrival. Better to keep them separated from the horde during the trip.

  Chapter 26

  Jake was in the hangar reviewing the troops prior to loading aboard the transports, currently parked above their heads. As was everyone in formation, he was completely decked out in his combat suit, minus the helmet. Everyone else was in formation, at attention, waiting on Jake’s go order.

  The 1st Space Marine Expeditionary Force currently consisted of 126 Space Marines in three platoons. Identified as Alpha company, they were first, second and third platoon. Internal to each was first, second and third squad. Per Jake’s orders, they were to act in groups of four marines, to minimize the likelihood of anyone being overrun. That meant, as an example, any one fire team would be identified as Alpha company, 2nd platoon, 1st squad, fire team 3 and so on. They had taken third platoon and pulled 3rd squad out for special assignments.

  For now, Jake was their company commander, a position he was very familiar with given his previous experiences in the Middle East.

  With Sara at his side, Jake reviewed the assembled men and women, impressed with what he saw. 10 weeks ago, these same people were a loose gaggle of raw talent. He was preparing to test what they had learned. This test was pass or fail, where failing meant a possible death.

  “Jake, shouldn’t you say something, you know, inspiring?” Sara whispered in his ear.

  Jake thought about it for a moment, and then, with every eye in the hangar on him, he said, “Marines, today is your graduation. From this day forth, you are no longer boots! Today you earn the title Marine. You will carry that tittle with you for the rest of your lives. Carry it with pride,”

  After a pause, he continued, “Tonight, you will show the evil of the world why they fear a Marine. We are about to descend on an unsuspecting foe, who has no concept of what one marine, with their rifle, is capable of. We are not one, we are many. Protect yourself, protect that man or woman next to you and protect the innocent. Semper Fi!”

  The “OOH RAH” Jake received in reply was deafening in the enclosed hangar.

  “Let’s mount up!” Jake ordered.

  With that command, the platoon and squad leaders started preparing their units to move. There were several support personnel directing traffic to the vehicle lift, where each platoon would rise to the dessert floor above. There they would be loaded into one of the two transports waiting for them.

  Sara was to stay with Patti in the combat management center. The two, with their support staff, were responsible for helping direct the troops according to the battle plan. They were also to keep Jake up to date on all the changing battle conditions.

  Kissing Sara and then pointing her in the direction of the main doors, Jake turned with rifle in hand, and mounted the lift with the last of the troops. As the lift cleared the hangar roof, the support staff directed the squads to their appointed transport. Jake veered off to where the 10th sat patiently waiting, hover cycles all lined up in a nice orderly row.

  “You never gave us a pretty speech like that,” Abby commented sarcastically.

  “You wouldn’t appreciate it!” Jake replied in return.

  After stowing his rifle, Jake mounted his cycle, and with the transports leading the way, he and the 10th lifted off the desert floor.

  ----*----

  Sara was in the combat management center, tracking the movement of the entire force. Jake and the 10th had been assigned a more direct route, while the transports were to circle wide and approach from opposite directions.

  The enemy had been roughly following the path of the old I-5 freeway. Their current location was in the area once called La Mirada. They had estimated that the force would continue on this path until they reached the old 710 freeway and then head north and straight into Chris’ compound. At the current r
ate of travel, that was no more than 3 or 4 days away.

  The plan was to use I-5 in the south and Whittier Blvd in the north as landing zones for the two transports. They were far enough out from the horde to allow a reasonably safe drop and then give their forces time to disperse before the attack.

  As adverse as Jake had been in making this a Search and Destroy mission, Sara didn’t really see them just giving up once confronted. Unfortunately, they had been unsuccessful in locating the leadership of this group. The presumption was they were either in the center of the mass or in front of the group, which is why Jake had chosen that area for his involvement.

  As for the 10th, Jake had A Troop working as a quick reaction force, while B Troop was to snipe from above, taking out any that showed leadership. With no tall structures to work from, they were going to have to shoot from their cycles. Thank goodness for another pleasant evening.

  With the clock approaching midnight, both she and Patti watched the transports converge on the target area, while Jake and the 10th positioned themselves about 150 feet above their designated starting points. The mass of bodies below them, centered on the intersection of the Imperial Highway and La Mirada Blvd, spread out for several blocks in all directions.

  ----*----

  Jake watched on his helmets tactical display as both transports arrived simultaneously, hitting their LZ’s and started off loading their troops. There was actually a mixture of troops on foot, with several open jeeps sporting mounted machine guns. There were also two heavy personnel carriers, similar to the one Bonnie used in Texas, per air transport.

  The heavy personnel carriers each held a fire team, and once disembarked from the transport, they sped off in opposite directions. Their mission was to disperse their passengers at the east and west ends of the circle, expanding the encirclement to be nearly total. Jake had no delusions about these people simply giving up, but he would like to keep the death toll down if possible. Moreover, certainly the captive civilian deaths to zero, which he doubted was possible.