The assault ship seemed to shudder violently and then all of its power faded. Inside, lights went out and the emergency lights came on. Moments later, twin particle beams from the battlecruiser Cygnus struck and blasted deep glowing rents into the hull, tearing open more compartments and sending additional Nabians to their deaths. With a final shudder the vessel blew apart, sending fiery debris in all directions.
-
“All four Kleese assault ships have been eliminated,” Commander Shepherd reported, turning her head toward the admiral. “All ships report no damage.”
Admiral Adamson looked at the tactical screen, which no longer showed any red threat icons. “Take us into orbit and have the assault cruisers and their escorts move in. They have the go to initiate their attack. The fleet will stay at Condition One until further notice.”
“Message sent,” reported Lieutenant Emma Travers from Communications.
-
Ryan felt the drop ship suddenly accelerate as it left the flight bay of the Deliverance. The ship banked sharply and darted down toward the surface of the planet. Drop ships were designed for rapid passage through a planet’s atmosphere to give defenders a minimal amount of targeting time. The drop ship also had a weak defensive shield that could take one or two weapon strikes before it risked failing.
“Eight minutes to target,” a voice came over the comm system.
“Standby to disembark,” said Sergeant Aryan Reinhart. He was a career minded Marine and had seen considerable action outside of the Solar System.
Ryan remained silent as he wanted the sergeants of the five platoons to be looked to for orders during battle. His own orders would be sent via his command suit to Lieutenant Guthrie and through her the five sergeants unless they were in the thick of battle. The shuttle began to vibrate and Ryan could hear the atmosphere starting to buffet the drop ship. The vibrations steadily grew stronger and the sound of their passage through the planet’s atmosphere reached a crescendo before it finally began to fade.
“Three minutes to target.”
“When we land and the hatch opens, I want this drop ship empty in twenty seconds,” barked Sergeant Reinhardt. “Form a defensive perimeter around the ship until we’ve assessed the situation. Once we’ve determined the potential threats, we’ll move out.”
Ryan nodded his approval. The sergeant seemed to be on top of things. The drop ship’s flight seemed to have steadied, as most of the vibration was gone. Ryan unbuckled his safety harness and stood up, grasping a support handhold on the hull. With the power of his Type Four battlesuit, he wasn’t worried about being thrown around the compartment. Ryan quickly checked his RG rifle and then his hand slipped to his Energy Lance. The Energy Lance was fastened to his waist and operated off the suit’s batteries. It emitted a blade of energy a meter long that was capable of cutting through almost any material with relative ease. For close in combat against the Kleese, this was Ryan’s favorite weapon.
“Saddle up!” ordered Sergeant Reinhardt as he unbuckled his own safety harness and stood up. “I want a quick weapons check and make sure you keep one hand on the handholds on the hull. I don’t want anyone falling or stumbling when we land.”
Ryan caught his breath as the ship suddenly seemed to drop straight down and then he felt a slight jar indicating the ship had landed. Glancing toward the hatch, he saw it slide open and the landing ramp extend.
“Everyone out!” barked Sergeant Reinhardt. The sergeant quickly headed to the hatch and started down the ramp, his RG rifle held at the ready.
Ryan waited until the last Marine had reached the hatch before he followed. Over his command channel, he knew the other three drop ships were also setting down as well as the larger cargo drop ship that held the hover tanks.
Exiting the hatch, Ryan quickly jogged down the ramp and came to a stop. They were at the extreme western edge of the spaceport on what appeared to be some type of parking lot for civilian vehicles. The parking lot was nearly empty, containing only several large trucks, which obviously were used to carry fuel. Every spaceport he had ever been on was similar.
“Immediate area is secure,” reported Sergeant Reinhardt.
Looking over toward the cargo drop ship, Ryan saw the two hover tanks emerge and move out away from the ship with their powerful energy cannons aimed toward the heart of the spaceport. The tanks also had two secondary railgun cannons as well as dual explosive shell launchers.
“Sergeant McElroy,” Lieutenant Guthrie’s voice came over the command channel. “Move your tanks another hundred meters away and then stop. Spread your platoon out in a skirmish line and wait for further orders.”
“We’re on the move,” responded McElroy as he passed on to his platoon what they were supposed to do.
“Captain Nelson, this is Captain Morris. We’ve landed just outside the spaceport on the north side. Hover tanks are deployed and we’re beginning to advance. No resistance encountered so far.” Captain Morris was in charge of the four drop ships and the cargo drop ship that had dropped from the other assault cruiser.
Ryan acknowledged the message and then addressed his sergeants. “Sergeant Hunter, your platoon will take point, Sergeants Lewis and Dewey, I want your platoons on Sergeant Hunter’s flanks. Sergeant Reinhardt, your platoon will be directly behind Sergeant Hunter’s and will serve as a reserve. Sergeant McElroy, your platoon and the hover tanks will remain here until I call for you. Let’s go people; we have a battle to fight and Kleese to kill!”
-
Moments later, the Marines began moving up. Eighty Type Four battlesuits began to advance toward the spaceport. The Type Four battlesuits were smaller and more form fitting then the Type Three or Type Twos. The suits were black and gray with small red battle damage lights at the joints and other areas. It was nimble and quick. The Type Four battlesuit was eight feet tall and made out of a composite material, which was stronger and lighter than that of the Type Threes. It allowed for greater flexibility in movement that at times made the wearer almost forget that he or she was incased inside one.
In addition, the Type Four suit was capable of operating in full combat conditions for nearly twenty hours before needing to be recharged. In non-combat situations, the suit could keep its wearer alive for well over a week. The antigravity plates in the boots were capable of generating a repelling force, which allowed the Type Four battlesuits a limited flying ability. This ability was seldom used as it made the Marine more visible and an easier target for incoming weapons fire.
-
Ryan was in between Sergeant Hunter’s platoon and Sergeant Reinhardt’s keeping a careful eye on the advance of his Marines. A sudden shout over the general comm drew his attention to the right flank where Sergeant Dewey’s platoon was.
“Popups!” screamed a voice over the comm as several explosions shook the ground around the Marine platoon.
“Take cover!” ordered Lieutenant Guthrie, who was thirty meters to the right of Captain Nelson. “Sergeant Hunter, see if you can spot those popups and take them out.”
“We have movement!” called out Sergeant Lewis, who was on the left flank. “There are incoming conscripts in Type Two suits; a lot of them.”
Ryan paused as he used the sensors in his command suit to scan the immediate area in front of them and to his left. All of his Marines showed up as small bright green icons on his HUD. His suit contained a neural link, which was connected directly to Ryan’s cortex. With just a thought he could control all the different systems of the suit, including the sensors. Switching to a different screen, he saw numerous red threat icons appear. From the looks of things, there were well over one hundred conscripts in Type Two battlesuits rapidly approaching. He then switched the screen back to show his Marines.
“We’ve got popups as well!” reported Casey. “Both explosive rounds and energy beams.”
On Ryan’s HUD, he saw several green icons suddenly turn amber and one a heart-wrenching red. Red meant the Marine had been killed! “Sergeant M
cElroy, I need the two hover tanks! Bring them up on the right flank and prepare to fire a salvo of explosive rounds.” The explosive rounds contained in the hover tanks’ launching tubes were ten times more powerful than the ones contained in the tubes on the back of the Type Four suits. They could be devastating to an advancing enemy and were quite capable of taking out the popup weapons.
“Sergeant Reinhardt, I want each of your Marines to fire ten explosive rounds two hundred meters in front of Sergeant Hunter and Sergeant Dewey’s positions,” ordered Lieutenant Guthrie. “That seems to be where the majority of the popups are.”
Ryan suddenly felt himself flying through the air as a popup explosive round landed nearly at his feet. He landed hard and rolled, getting the breath knocked out of him.
“Captain!” a frantic Lieutenant Guthrie called out, seeing Ryan go flying through the air.
“I’m fine,” grated out Ryan as he fought to catch his breath. Switching his HUD to give a diagnostic of his suit, he saw the battlesuit hadn’t been compromised though it was dented in a few areas. Stretching out his right arm, he picked up his RG rifle from where it had been knocked out of his hands. Looking down he flexed his left hand into a metal fist satisfied that the suit was still functioning properly.
Standing back up Ryan saw a series of explosions suddenly began hammering the blastcrete of the spaceport as explosive rounds from Reinhardt’s Marines landed. Each round was fired from one of two small tubes on the back of the Type Four battlesuit.
“We’re in position,” reported Sergeant McElroy. “Hover tanks are firing.”
A series of larger explosions suddenly began rolling across the blastcrete, blasting meter deep holes in the strong material and throwing debris up into the air. Black smoke began rising up blotting out the sunlight.
“Taking incoming fire from the conscripts,” reported Sergeant Lewis sounding worried.
Ryan drew in a sharp breath. This battle was rapidly becoming more intense.
-
Casey was behind a small wall where she was pinned down by the energy beam fire from several popup weapons. The weapons had been embedded in the blastcrete and risen up when the Marines came into close proximity. “Private Rios, I’m pinned down. Can you spot the popups firing on my location?”
“Got em,” Raul responded. He was twenty meters to Casey’s left behind some type of vehicle. Raul was carrying an energy cannon instead of an RG rifle and stepping out into plain sight, he fired two quick bursts at the two popups. Both exploded, throwing pieces in every direction for ten meters. Raul nodded in satisfaction at the two smoking holes in the ground. Raul suddenly yelled in pain as several RG rounds struck his suit. He darted back behind the vehicle.
Looking at her HUD, Casey was relieved to see that Raul’s icon was still green. “Are you okay?”
“Yeah, but I’ve got a couple of pretty good dents in my chest armor.”
Poking her head up above the wall, Casey saw a number of the popups blocking their advance being blown apart from the explosive rounds being fired by the two hover tanks. It shouldn’t take long to clear them out and then they could continue their advance across the spaceport.
“Sergeant Hunter, I’ve got a problem,” Sergeant Lewis’s strained voice came over the comm. “The conscripts are coming fast and I’m afraid they’re going to overrun my position.”
Casey used her sensors and saw that Lewis was right, the conscripts were moving quickly and in only a matter of a few moments would reach Lewis’s Marines. “Corporal Parker, Corporal Adams; get your squads over to support Sergeant Lewis.”
Ryan’s voice came over the command channel. “Sergeant Reinhardt, move your platoon over to the left flank to support Sergeant Lewis. Sergeant McElroy, bring up the two hover tanks to just behind Sergeant Hunter. Your Marines will have to support her advance. I want to get to those two buildings as soon as possible.”
“Sergeant Lewis, you’re about to be involved in hand-to-hand combat,” warned Lieutenant Guthrie as she hurried over to where the sergeant’s platoon was. “Use your Energy Lances; the conscripts won’t have any as they’re not part of a Type Two suit’s weapons.”
-
Alexander and his squad had just reached Sergeant Lewis’s Marines when the first conscripts appeared. Lewis’s Marines were laying down a heavy fire of RG rounds, explosive rounds, and even some energy beam fire. The enemy were going down by the dozens, but there were over a hundred of them. Alexander quickly drew his Energy Lance and charged toward the nearest conscript. He swung the lance, piercing the conscript’s suit and nearly cutting it in half. Around him, Alexander could hear screams and Marines yelling as the fighting switched almost solely to hand-to-hand.
“Watch it, Corporal,” yelled Private Richards as he lunged forward, chopping the head off a conscript about to fire his RG rifle from point blank range into the corporal’s back.
“Thanks,” Alexander said, shaking his head. Of all the people to have to step in and save his life, it would be Private Richards. “Let’s finish this battle; we have some Kleese waiting for us up ahead.”
The fighting grew very intense as the conscripts in the towering Type Two battlesuits struggled to subdue and kill the Humans in the more nimble Type Fours. The difference in the battle were the Energy Lances. The lances could slice right through the armor the conscripts were wearing, and their bodies began to litter the landscape, many cut completely in two. Occasionally a Marine would fall, the victim of RG rounds from close range.
-
Ryan was monitoring the battle with his HUD and listening to the Marines over the general comm channel. This was the first combat for some of them, and the more experienced Marines were helping to keep them focused on the battle. It didn’t take long for things to start to wind down and without surprise, Ryan saw the last conscript icon vanish from his HUD. With relief, he switched the screen back over so he could check on his Marines.
“Enemy has been eliminated,” confirmed Lieutenant Guthrie. She was busily walking through the combat area with a squad of Marines making sure all the conscripts had been taken out. Occasionally she would stop and check a prone Type Two battlesuit.
Looking at his HUD one more time Ryan saw they had suffered eight wounded and four killed in the battle. With a sigh, Ryan looked around at the carnage. Using the optics in his suit, he examined the battle area, seeing several Type Four suits moving around covered in blood. Two of them were Corporal Parker and Corporal Adams; they always seemed to find a way to be in the middle of the heaviest fighting. He also searched for and found Casey’s battlesuit. She was slowly advancing toward the center of the spaceport followed closely by Sergeant McElroy’s Marines and the two hover tanks.
“Captain Nelson,” came Captain Morris’s voice over the command channel. We’ve captured several Airadians and they’ve informed us there are fourteen Kleese in the two buildings near the control tower protected by over seventy conscripts in Type Two battlesuits. They also claim there are a large number of popup weapons surrounding the two buildings.”
“Are there any Airadians in the buildings?”
Ryan heard Captain Morris speaking to someone over the comm and then she replied. “No, the Airadians say only the Kleese and their conscripts are there.”
This made Ryan feel relieved as it made the rest of the battle very simple. “Are the Airadians with you wearing the Kleese obedience collars?”
“Yes,” confirmed Captain Morris.
“Keep them with you then; the Constellation will be sending down a shuttle shortly with several Kiveans on board to scan the collars for their release frequency. I’m also requesting the Deliverance hit the two Kleese occupied buildings with railgun rounds.”
“Affirmative,” Morris answered. “We’ll hold our position here until after the strike.”
Ryan quickly contacted Commander Durham to request the railgun strike. The Deliverance had six KEW batteries specifically designed to hit targets on the ground. They were also c
apable of pinpoint accuracy.
“Attention,” Ryan said over the general comm channel. “There will be an incoming railgun strike on the two Kleese controlled buildings shortly. All Marines are to stay at least four hundred meters from the targets. Once the buildings have been destroyed, we’ll move in and sweep the area for survivors. Be aware there are possible popup weapons in the vicinity of the buildings.”
The Marines hurriedly took cover behind whatever they could find. Buildings, walls, vehicles, even holes in the ground from the explosive rounds that had been used. It didn’t take long and then everyone was looking upward expectantly, waiting for the rounds to fall. The railgun rounds weren’t explosive. The destruction they unleashed was caused by the terrific velocity they achieved, and it was that velocity released as kinetic energy, which was so devastating.
“Rounds are inbound,” Ryan announced over the general comm channel as the Deliverance confirmed their firing. Looking up, Ryan could see half a dozen brilliant streaks of light heading toward the ground. The light was caused by the friction of the rounds moving through the thick atmosphere of the planet.
Moments later, the rounds struck. The two buildings exploded into a million pieces as they were leveled. Fire leaped into the air and black smoke began billowing from the ruins of the two structures.
Ryan felt the ground shake from the impacts and the visor on his helmet automatically dimmed from the bright flashes of light caused by the impacting rounds. Standing still he surveyed the damage, satisfied both structures had been obliterated. The Kleese inside and their defending conscripts never knew what hit them. They would have died instantly.
“Sergeant Hunter and Sergeant McElroy, move your platoons forward and check out the wreckage. Lieutenant Guthrie, take Sergeant Lewis and Sergeant Dewey’s platoons back to the drop ships as well as our dead and wounded.”
Galactic Empire Wars: Insurrection (The Galactic Empire Wars Book 5) Page 10