Debra glanced at Tregan, her caution high after the conversation with Captain Dugachard, ‘The captain mentioned Silakian bandits, are they dangerous?’
Tregan shook his head, ‘I don’t think so…our weapons should be sufficient deterrent. I was told they are poorly armed and very weak after our clearances.’
Debra’s eyebrows rose in curiosity, ‘Clearances?’
Tregan nodded, turning his head to look at her, ‘I only know what the stories were at the time and from the planets history log on the space station…probably both exaggerated.’ He stopped, waiting for Shino and Riaz to catch up, the three other marines cautiously staring out to either side as the track gradually inclined into the mountains. He continued slowly, ‘The Silaks controlled this area many years ago and we lived with them peacefully. They were a very quiet race, similar to ourselves in many ways, presenting themselves as a religious order of perhaps only two or three thousand across the valley. The Trevakian force on the planet left them pretty much to their own devices and we met with them occasionally, offering supplies and some assistance.’
Debra nodded, her intrigue rising, ‘Interesting…so what happened?’
Tregan started walking again, comfortable the others had caught up, ‘It is said that many years ago we intercepted a radio message to them from the Morgons. The message seemed to indicate that the Silaks were providing information about us to them…unit strengths, army locations, etc. We sent a military convoy to investigate….then it became quite apparent what they had been up to.’
Debra nodded, her expression becoming more inquisitive, ‘So what was that?’
Tregan sighed, ‘They opened fire as our forces approached apparently, but they were no match for our armour. Many were killed…they just kept resisting us as we tried to subdue them to find out what was going on…then the survivors fled.’ His face became strained, ‘We found a laboratory with some of our people inside. It was all very sinister. They had apparently been experimenting on them, cutting them apart and trying to understand their bodies…very gruesome stuff. It was then we discovered the mine.’
Debra looked aghast, the colour draining from her face, ‘They had been experimenting? What kind of experiments?’
Tregan looked at her, realising the others were starting to listen to their conversation, ‘That was the thing, their experiments seemed to be beyond their technology…we realised they were working for or on behalf of the Morgons. All the ones we captured took poison, so we were left with no answers.’ He turned to the others, raising his voice in frustration, ‘Keep alert, there are possible enemies in the area!’
The soldiers stiffened, Shino and Riaz began scanning the surrounding terrain again, cautiously holding their weapons aloft as the light slowly began to fade.
Debra raised her own weapon towards the winding track ahead, her voice apologetic, ‘Sorry, I am distracting you and the others.’
Tregan shook his head, ‘No, you should know……’ He glanced around cautiously, a cold breeze enveloping them, ‘The mine had some exotic elements and uranium veins, metals we were keen to extract. We moved mining teams in and started work and that has what it has been like ever since really. The Silaks harass our troops more than anything else as they are quite poorly armed, but I have read reports that the attacks have become bolder recently, perhaps motivated by the Morgon invasion……’
Tregan’s voice trailed off as he tensed, raising his hand sharply for the others to stop. Seeming to sniff the air, his senses heightened, he lowered his hand cautiously placing a finger to his lips, his voice lowered to a hissed whisper, ‘Quiet…there is something ahead.’ He indicated to the sharp right bend in the track some twenty metres in front of them.
The group froze, Riaz raising his weapon to his eyes and moving it sharply around them as he stared down the sight. A muffled moaning could be heard from ahead, Debra swallowing and grasping her assault rifle tightly. Tregan indicated to two of the marines, hissing, ‘You two with me! The rest form a circle and keep down! Follow slowly…..’ He lunged forward at a crouch, his weapon held before him. The two marines advanced from the group, their weapons scanning to either side, the visors slipping down silently.
Cautiously Tregan approached the bend along the side of the track, skirting the right rock in the slight depression. Reaching the corner, he ducked out quickly then turned back to face the nearest marine, his voice lowered, ‘Casualty on the track ahead…could be an ambush.’
Mrin nodded, his face determined, ‘Want me to move up?’
Tregan hesitated, thinking for a second, ‘No…let’s see what he has to say first.’
He shifted on his knees, moving his face slowly to the bend on the track, projecting his voice, ‘Which unit are you from?’
The groaning continued uninterrupted and Tregan looked out again slowly. The body lay some fifteen metres from the bend in the track, a long blood trail extending into the distance along the snow. Glancing around and along the track, Tregan raised his assault rifle to his eyes as his visor slipped down, scanning the ground in front of them.
Ducking out, Tregan sprinted to the opposite side of the wide path, pushing himself into a depression in the rock, now some seven metres from the body. Glancing out again, he looked back, seeing the group at the bend, their expressions contorted in fear. His stare turned back round to the casualty on the track, biting his lip as he realised the man was close to death and hissing, ‘Which unit are you from?’
The body shuddered, trying to move, the voice grunting and through gritted teeth, ‘46th detachment…..’ The injured man gulped, his mind weak from the loss of blood, ‘B-be careful…I think they are watching…..’
Tregan sighed, his pity for the wounded volunteer soldier high, ‘How are you wounded?’
The wounded man grunted again in extreme pain, the body attempting to speak and turn, his frame too broken to do so, ‘Acid wound….it’s in my organs…I am finished.’
Tregan gritted his teeth in frustration, ‘What happened? Acid wounds are Morgon….I thought it was only Silaks round here…’
The body shook, the man attempting to turn again, ‘Silaks have their weapons…we were the last patrol from the mine…’ He gulped as he felt the acid start to eat through his stomach, whining loudly in despondency, ‘They ambushed us…all dead….I think they let me get away…Morgons are near!’
Tregan stiffened, his jaw tightening and turning to the group at the corner, hissing, ‘Weapon alert! Morgon patrol close!’ The three marines raised their assault rifles instinctively, Mrin pushing himself forward and running half crouched towards Tregan.’
The projectile zipped past, a green wispy air distortion in its wake. The marine fell flat, raising his rifle and firing a burst into the distance, beyond the body. Rolling on the snow, another projectile flashed past, exploding on the rocks behind them, splattering green acid across the stone. The second marine leant out quickly, firing one shot in the dusk air into the distance towards the muzzle flash. He ducked back in as another projectile swept past, smacking against the rocks behind.
Mrin rolled to a halt in the snow and fired again, this time four shots, the gunfire echoing across the rocks. Tregan leant out, seeing the body desperately trying to move, ‘Stay still, play dead….’
It was too late…another bullet hitting the prone body and exploding, blood and matter thrown into the air. Tregan shook his head in anger, raising his weapon in the dimming light. Firing a burst, he lunged from cover, sprinting across the track to another spot between two rocks, now in front of the dead marine.
Riaz pushed himself out, running half-crouched across the track as another green spinning projectile swept past, narrowly missing him. Shino cried out desperately after him in fear, ‘Riaz!’
The Asian officer ducked into the slight depression, pushing his back against the cold rock, his breath short and sharp. The prone marine rolled over into the snow in the ditch, firing again past Riaz. Mrin looked up at the security officer
grinning, ‘You ok?’
Riaz nodded, gritting his teeth, his heart beating hard in his chest as he held his assault rifle tightly, ‘How many are there?’
The marine pushed his head down, ‘Only a couple…the rest are probably trying to move behind us…standard Morgon tactic, we need to attack and drive forward!’
Riaz swallowed hard, ‘We will be trapped?’
Mrin smiled again grimly, shaking his head, ‘No…we will be dead!’
The flash on the track ahead made them glance round, Tregan having thrown two smoke grenades. The puffs of cloud followed, beginning to spiral out from the small round canisters. As the billowing shroud filled the path, Tregan thrust forward into the cloud, two marines sprinting after him. Riaz pushed himself out from the rocks as the marine next to him rose up indicating to Debra and Shino, ‘Get moving…there’s not much time! Keep running up the track!’
Riaz turned, glancing behind them as the two women ran out, the bursts of automatic fire from further up the track indicating Tregan and the two marines were engaging the ambushers. Running past Riaz and the marine, Shino felt the fear rising within her as she entered the smoke, her senses disorientated, her boots crunching on frozen snow.
She emerged from the shroud suddenly, seeing Tregan and the two marines at the next bend firing over the rocks at the side of the track. Running hard, she felt the armour seem to lighten, the material compensating for her heightened pulse and heart rate, allowing her to move faster.
As they approached the bend, Tregan pointed for them to follow the track, ‘Keep going, most of them will be behind us now!’ He raised his voice, shouting, ‘Marines…defensive retreat!’
The three marines acknowledged firmly, ‘Yes Sir!’ Two dropping to the ground and facing the way they had come.
Riaz, Debra and Shino ran past, their chests heaving as Tregan slapped the marine next to him on the shoulder, ‘Go with them!’ The soldier nodded and ducked behind the rock, lunging after the three officers.
As they ran, they realised it was nearly dark, their collective fear heightening. Flashes on the distant horizon to their right indicating the battle continuing in the distant valley below, near the ravine.
The track began to climb steeply as they dropped to a brisk walk, breathing heavily. Riaz and Shino raised their weapons, scanning the path and rocks ahead. Bursts of fire from below them, further down the track echoed across the landscape, the small rear guard engaging against any suspected movement.
Riaz glimpsed a movement ahead on the track, his finger moving to the trigger on his assault rifle and pulling it, the weapon beeping ominously in response. He pressed the trigger again, the beeping louder and now also in his headset. He glanced at the marine in exasperation, ‘Is the safety on?’
The experienced soldier slapped his back, grinning as he breathed heavily in the chilled night air, ‘No! They are with us, soldiers from the mine ahead. They must have heard the shooting! Good safety measure, eh?’
Riaz flushed in embarrassment, ‘Er…yes, sorry!’
The marine leant next to him, his voice lowered, ‘That’s good! You reacted before I did…I would have done the same…they are too far away to distinguish!’
Riaz grinned in satisfaction as Shino drew level with him, smiling devilishly, ‘So your first shot was against our allies!’ She giggled, gasping as the mountain air chilled further.
Riaz looked ahead ignoring her as he smiled, his expression defiant, ‘Bollocks!’
Debra was bent double behind them, drawing air through her open mouth, ‘Jeez, will you guys never stop arguing!’ He dropped to her knees, blowing out heavily, ‘I thought I was fitter than this!’
The escorting marine strode past her back down the track, ‘The air is thinner and colder in the mountains…I will go and help Tregan!’ A burst of gunfire echoed around them as the firing below continued.
More marines ran past them down the track, their weapons held across their chests. A captain stopped next to them, his uniform combats dark grey, voice demanding, ‘What’s going on? Have you seen our patrol?’
Riaz looked up at him, tightening his jaw, ‘Ambush Sir! Your patrol is gone I think….Morgon and Silaks are in the area.’
The captain glared at the officer and Shino, ‘Why are you speaking accented English? Is that a joke? Where are your salutes?’
Shino stiffened, nudging Riaz as they brought their feet together sharply, bringing their right fists up to their left armour chest plates, ‘Private Shino and Riaz reporting Sir! Heathrow Battalion!’
The captain’s eyes widened, ‘Heathrow Battalion? What the hell unit is that?’ He glanced beyond them at Debra, ‘Sergeant, are these your marines?’
Debra straightened up, sighing, ‘Yes Sir…we are from earth.’
The Captain smiled, his expression softening slightly, ‘So our allies have joined us? Good, stand normally then!’ He indicated to the two officers in front of him, ‘Get yourselves up to the mine, I don’t want an issue here where we lose our new recruits.’ He nodded at Tregan as he approached, ‘Are these soldiers in your charge?’
Tregan clicked his heels, raising his fist to his chest, breathing heavily, ‘Yes Sir! Enemy patrol engaged and driven off. Infiltrators with Silak support I think!’
The Captain nodded solemnly, his condensed breath escaping from his mouth, ‘Our patrol…any sighting?’
Tregan grimaced, ‘One casualty found Sir, the rest believed dead…ambushed! Casualty was alive when we got to him, enemy finished him off before we could form protective cover, Sir!’ Several shots echoed further down the track.
The captain pursed his lips in irritation, ‘Very well…get your soldiers to the mine and bed them down.’ He turned to walk back up the track with Tregan, ‘What is the situation in the valley? We have lost radio contact.’
Tregan waved the marines forward, indicating for Debra and the officers to stay with him, turning his head back to the captain, ‘A mobile brigade is dug in at the ravine holding back the Morgons. We have come to get you to reinforce the village in case they break through.’
The captain stepped up the slope, seeming thoughtful, ‘I see. We may be able to leave late tomorrow at the earliest…there is something interesting here that we have found, we need to investigate further.’
Tregan’s eyes widened, ‘But it’s just a mine Sir?’
The captain shook his head, looking up at the mouth of the darkened mine as they approached and indicating to the soldiers at the entrance. Raising his voice, he pointed at the nearest marines, ‘Prepare defensive positions at the entrance…double the sentries and place extra troops in reserve positions near the mouth!’ He nodded to the nearest soldier, ‘The Morgons and Silaks are near and we don’t know how strong they are!’
The soldier’s face darkened, his expression shocked, ‘Yes Sir!’ He slammed his fist to his chest armour.
They walked into the mine, the walls lit with dim battery operated lighting, the deeper darkness enveloping them. The captain turned to Tregan again, ‘We uncovered a blocked off shaft about three days ago. It seemed to be nothing special at first, until we found a concealed chamber yesterday…also blocked off. Someone or something did not want us to find it.’ He indicated to the right fork in the tunnel ahead, ‘Bring your men…I will show you. Our scientists are in there now trying to figure it out…it is very interesting.’
They trudged on, Tregan nodding over his shoulder to Debra for them to follow. Several marines and soldiers passed in the other direction, their expressions grim as they clutched their assault rifles. Turning a bend in the dimly lit tunnel, the captain indicated to an even darker narrow opening on the left wall ahead.
They squeezed through one by one, entering a confined passageway. Proceeding cautiously, the group emerged into a well-lit cavern extending for approximately fifty metres. Several tables were positioned around the room and at the end a darkened black machine, the large mechanism seeming to shine in the battery lit light. Wide gro
oves stretched across the main body with a lone man stood before it seeming to study a panel on the surface. Wooden and metal crates were scattered across the area.
The captain cleared his throat, the man turning abruptly, a surprised expression crossing his face, ‘Ah…some visitors!’ He indicated to the large machine behind him, smiling broadly, ‘So what do you think of her? Interesting eh?’
The captain stood to the side, turning to the amazed group, ‘This is one of our military scientists, Tang. He has been leading the investigation.’ He looked back to the man, ‘Please can you explain what you have found so far to our guests. They are from earth…our new allies.’
The scientist nodded, his eyes widening with excitement, ‘Excellent. Well, this seems to be a Morgon transporter of some sort. It is disabled, but we are trying to establish where the link was programmed to when they deliberately damaged it.’ He pointed to the long tables, ‘We discovered considerable quantities of primitive fabrics or clothing, perhaps uniforms in the other chamber...’ His face became grave, ‘We also discovered many body parts, probably Trevakian, and what looks like an abandoned butchery…so we are a loss as to what went on here, but it was not pleasant. There was some paperwork, but not in a language we can decipher. Our sensors and detection equipment are offline due to the jamming, so we are unable to download information from the space station.’ He recognised the inquisitive expressions, ‘Please take a look if you will, but I request you do not touch the material…it seems contaminated in some way.’
The scientist turned back to the captain as the others stepped forward, ‘What is happening on the surface?’
The captain indicated to Tregan, ‘Morgons and Silaks are active above. The marine here has come to bring us back to the village...’
Tregan grimaced, ‘The Morgons are fighting near the ravine and we need to reinforce the town in case they break through.’
The scientist nodded, seeming to think then shaking his head, ‘We cannot leave until we determine what they were doing here…it may have vital information for the Trevakian Empire.’ He glanced across at Shino and Riaz as they stared at the table, ‘Find anything you like?’
The Last Marine in the Galaxy (Galaxies Collide Book 1) Page 11