“Hey, that toothpick has killed more enemies than you can imagine,” he said, leaping to the defence of the weapon that had been with him through so many years, although he was very interested in this development.
“That is not all that we have to offer, Colonel.”
He then reached for a weapon that was a bit larger than a pistol. It was fed with a rifle-sized magazine just in front of the trigger guard, with a narrow snub-nosed barrel. It looked ridiculous, as if some kind of caricature of the rifles they used.
“I thought we were going large?”
“Well, size isn’t everything, Colonel, and the AR2 is designed to be more than just a powerful suit. It is intended to be fast, powerful, and stealthy. It emits fewer decibels than any other equipment currently in use. It also emits less heat; it absorbs, and does not reflect light. Even radio and proximity scanner jammers will assist in keeping you off the radar of any enemies in sight.”
“But only for thirty minutes?”
“Yes,” he replied with a sigh.
Taylor could see it in his eyes that Rivers was as disappointed in their lack of progress as he was, but also that the man was dedicated enough to keep moving forward.
“Today this suit is powerful and useable, but not without its issues. Tomorrow it will be better, next week, next month. We will not stop improving this product.”
Taylor nodded in appreciation before admiring the supersized pistol.
“So come on? What is it?”
“We call it the Hush Puppy. It packs all the punch that your rifles does, but with near silent operation, and the rounds dissolve within one hour of being fired, leaving no forensic evidence of their origin,” he replied and took aim at the target, firing off a single shot. He then waited two seconds before firing another.
“All you have to do is keep your rate of fire down, and it’ll keep on working for years. Push it too hard, and you’ll warp the suppression cylinder and damage the barrel, too.”
“I can live with that,” said Taylor.
Rivers put the weapon down and reached for what looked like a polished metal baseball.
“Grenade?” he asked.
“Yes, but no ordinary grenade,” he replied, as he picked up another in black, “Follow me, if you will.”
Rivers led them to a glass corridor set up as a firing range. At the far end was the upper torso armour of a Morohtan warrior riddled with holes, and the glass looked to be ten centimetres thick. Rivers twisted the black version. He held it up before the entrance to the tunnel with an outstretched and open palm. Small lugs shot out from the grenade and flapped rapidly, until it took flight and soared towards the target. Rivers swung the door shut. Taylor watched in amazement as the grenade flew right up to the target and then ignited at one metre. The charge blew the target apart.
“Range of thirty metres, and can be preset to lock onto any DNA pattern you wish. Right now we have programmed it for every known enemy you have encountered and that we have such information for. The grenades will be constantly updated via your Mappad with further profiles as we get them.”
“And the silver one? What does that do?”
“All the same applies, but in stun variant, which is both visual and audible. The AR2 suit is entirely proofed against it. Feel free to let them off right in front of your face, but be careful around others. This stun grenade will incapacitate almost anything for a minimum of a few seconds and up to a few minutes, depending on their constitution.”
“Well, we sure are getting all the toys today, aren’t we?” Taylor said to Rogers.
“I promise you, Colonel, that we are continually working to achieve great things here. I have invested my entire fortune and my life into the work we are doing here. That is how important I think this work is, and that is how much I am willing to commit to it.”
“Yes, I hear you.”
“Oh, and there’s one last thing, isn’t there?” Rogers asked.
Rivers didn’t look at all comfortable.
“Well, spit it out, come on,” Taylor insisted.
“What the Captain is referring to is an experimental and unreliable technology that is not remotely safe to use.”
“So like pretty much everything you are dealing with here?”
He could instantly tell by the look on the man’s face that it wasn’t. Rivers led him to a sealed safe and went through several security features before opening it. He pulled out a small metal cylinder. He slid the cover from it to reveal a syringe filled with a jet-black liquid that looked ominous even to Taylor.
“Advancing the technologies of the equipment our troops wear and carry has not been the only developments that we worked towards. We thought, what if we could make a man, or a woman, better? Not just with the implants that you were given to replace your damaged internals. That made you a little tougher and a little stronger. But I don’t mean by a small amount. What if we could make humans better, with chemicals? What could we do to enhance them? Imagine being able to do what the AR2 could do, but with just your own body?”
“And I suppose you are telling me you have found a way, with this stuff?”
“We have barely scratched the surface of the potential of what we can do here, but with what we have learned from the DNA of one of their Princes, the possibilities may be endless.”
“How the hell did you get that?”
“We have one,” said Rivers, as if surprised he even had to ask.
Rivers tapped a key on the console attached to his arm, and a large window opened on the wall nearby. Inside was one of Bolormaa’s kin, suspended in some kind of near clear liquid. It looked badly damaged. He couldn’t make out which of them it was, and most of its armour was stripped away.
“What the hell is that thing doing here?” he demanded.
“That specimen has been highly valuable to our work.”
“It should be burnt,” snapped Taylor.
None of them quite knew how to respond, and Taylor didn’t know how to do it himself, but he was fuming. Then an idea came to him. He drew out an HE grenade and headed for the archway and ramp that would take him to the top of the tank.
“No!” Rivers shouted desperately.
Taylor would not stop, and Rogers charged on after him, but would not dare lay a hand on him. He leapt in front and tried to block his way, but Taylor pushed through him and rushed up the ramp to get to the top of the tank. He didn’t want to leave any margin of error.
“Please, Colonel, this specimen cannot be replaced. It is vital to all the work we are doing! Please do not get in the way of that!” Rivers shouted.
Taylor stopped at the very edge of the top of the tank and thought about it for just a moment, knowing he was right.
“You have no idea of the power you are meddling with here! Only a fool would not destroy it!”
He put his other hand onto the grenade ready to prime it. He was fully committed now to what he knew had to be done. He took a deep breath and was ready when one of the Prince’s arms sprang to life and lashed out at him. The blow hit him like a freight train, and he was thrown from the ramp. The grenade fell from his hand before it could be primed, and he crashed down over a workbench and onto the floor. The five-metre fall had been painful, and he moaned as he tried to get back up, still in shock over what had happened.
Screams of panic rang out as glass smashed, and the liquid of the tank flowed out across the room, washing over his hands and feet. He could also feel something on his face, and he touched it. Blood was streaming from a head wound. He groaned as if it were old news. He’d seen enough of his own blood to not worry about it anymore, but that didn’t help with his throbbing head. He was stunned, but he knew he had to get his head in the game. A cry rang out nearby, and he turned to see one of Rivers’ staff be impaled with a steel pole as others fled.
He had no weapons to hand as the Prince came at him and struck him once more. He was thrown across the room again, but this time he managed to break his fall and go int
o a roll before crashing to a stop against a subdivider.
“Taylor!” a voice yelled.
He looked across. It was Rogers, and the Captain tossed him the new Assegai. He managed to catch it as he stood back up. Rogers had the Hush Puppy in hand and was already firing. Through the chaos, none of them could even hear the whispers of the near silent pistol, but they could see the shots land. They were hurting the Prince, but not stopping him. Taylor activated the Assegai and extended it fully. He rushed at the Prince who was now bleeding profusely from several wounds, but he seemed to show no signs of stopping. As he reached the creature, it turned and glared as if recognising him. It stood there taking the shots that Rogers was firing and didn’t even seem to care.
“Taylor,” it growled.
Ah, shit!
He didn’t know which Prince it was, but it didn’t matter. It certainly knew him. A battle cry rang out from his side as Babacan rushed in with his shield activated and Assegai in hand. He crashed into one of the Prince’s legs, and it buckled but soon recovered. It was wielding nothing more than a steel pole that was nearly three metres long, the same pole that had so recently impaled a woman. It was still coated with her blood. It looked like a structural beam of some sort, and the Prince smashed it down onto Babacan. He was knocked down onto one knee and barely held the pressure with his shield raised over his head.
Taylor leapt to his aid and cut across the Prince’s leg with his Assegai. The blade cut in deeply but didn’t sever the limb, and the creature recoiled, taking a few steps back in order to compose itself. A burst of gunfire rang out, and they looked aside to see Dart unloading his pistol into the Prince. The bullets found their target and seemed to penetrate, but it was as if the Prince felt no pain at all. The Prince turned towards him and rushed forward. With one quick kick, he was launched into the air. The pilot smashed into a support for the dome of the ceiling and fell down lifelessly. Taylor had to hope he was still alive, but they had bigger problems to worry about.
Rogers kept firing until the Hush Puppy ran empty, and he had no idea where to find any more ammunition. He looked around frantically for something else to fight with as Taylor and Babacan went against the Prince once again. Taylor hacked away with his Assegai, but he was all too aware how dangerous the situation was. He had no armour on, and not even his shield to protect him, unlike Babacan who was in full battle order, as he almost always was.
Taylor dipped and spun under several swings as the wounded Prince lashed out at both of them. It was wounded, angry, and confused by the two targets, and finally he saw his opening. He thrust the Assegai up into its lower torso, and the beast let out a deafening shriek of agony. Taylor stopped in shock at the sound, and in doing so allowed the Prince to grab hold of the Assegai, pulling it out of its body and wrenching it from Taylor’s grip. It staggered back to be clear of both of its attackers. It slumped slightly, now in massive pain, and yet still was a terrifying opponent to have to face.
“You will never defeat Bolormaa. She will tear you apart,” the Prince spat.
“And yet I’m still standing, and she is nowhere to be seen. Looks to me like she needs others to do her fighting for her,” Taylor sneered.
The creature hissed scathingly at him with a murderous look in its eyes. Blood was pouring out from so many wounds now, and neither of them could believe how the Prince was even still standing.
“Stand aside!” a voice roared.
The two of them looked back to see the AR2 suit clamp around Rogers as he stood at the ready to fight.
“This asshole is mine,” he said.
The helmet visor locked and sealed, and he took a run towards him. He soared past Taylor and Babacan at lightning speed, and not even the Prince was able to respond quickly enough to the immense speed of its attacker. To all of their amazement, Rogers smashed into the creature, took hold of it, and pushed it back until it was pinned against the far wall. With one hand on its throat, it could not move.
“Here!” Taylor shouted.
He picked up the blood-soaked Assegai and tossed it to Rogers. He caught it and held it in front of the Prince’s face as it struggled to get free, but it was still unable to move. Rogers opened the faceplate of his helmet so that his vanquished enemy could see him with its own eyes.
“This universe isn’t Bolormaa’s, and neither is our fate for her to decide. You can tell her that when you see her in the afterlife.”
The Prince opened its mouth for a retort, but Rogers drove the blade into its open mouth. He levered the handle down, driving it directly up into the Prince’s brain and out into the wall, where it pinned the creature where it was. Rogers finally released his grasp on the neck of the beast and turned back to the others. He was coated in blood, and yet looked immensely satisfied.
“Is that test enough for you?” he asked Taylor.
The Colonel was still as shocked as Babacan. They had both seen the suit used in testing and been mightily impressed, but neither had expected so much of it in a real world application.
The sound of battle had dissipated and was now replaced with the screams and cries of the wounded, both physically and mentally. Taylor didn’t know what to do.
“Medic!” he called.
At first nobody came. Then two nurses and a doctor rushed to the scene, but they were clearly not accustomed to dealing with the wounded on a battlefield. They were as horrified as any civilian would be, but they were doing what they could. He could see five dead nearby and many more wounded. Rivers came out from behind cover and was just blank faced as if in shock. Taylor didn’t blame him for that part at least.
“I…I…we had no idea. It was dead. All life signs were gone. It had suffered massive internal injury. There should have been no possible way for that thing to still be alive.”
“And yet you call yourself a scientist? You dedicate your life to seeing things that people never thought possible.”
“Yes, but…but…”
Taylor grabbed him and pulled him close as he growled in the man’s face.
“I told you, you’d have to be crazy to keep one of those things around in any state. I told you it had to be burnt!”
He wanted to hit Rivers, but Rogers pulled him away, and with the power of the AR2 suit, Taylor was powerless to fight him.
“Can’t you see how stupid this was? These deaths are on all your hands!”
“Yes, and that is something we will all have to live with, but don’t tell me you never made a mistake.”
That struck a nerve. Taylor backed away and sat on a desk, as he thought about all the lives that had been lost under his command.
“Yes, I am certainly guilty of that,” he replied and began to calm down.
“I am sorry, I really am. If I’d had any idea there was a risk keeping that, thing, I would never have entertained the idea.”
“Yes you would have, because you couldn’t help yourself. You had to know its secrets,” replied Taylor.
Rivers shamelessly agreed.
“We all take risks to get a job done. Sometimes you cannot achieve your goals without the risks, can you, Colonel?” Rogers asked.
Taylor was lost for words. He could understand where they were both coming from, and yet all he could do was stare at the bloodshed all around them. He was relieved to see that Dart was coming to.
“And if that thing managed to get a signal out to Bolormaa or her agents? What if it had told them everything about this place?” he asked.
“Impossible. There are no forms of communication possible with this site, not one way except coming here in person,” replied Rivers.
“And you sure of that? Concrete sure?”
“Yes.”
“I sure hope you are right.”
Rivers was looking around at the equipment and checking several things, and Taylor could tell by his tone that it was not good news.
“It will take us weeks to recover from this, and…friends and colleagues that this project could not afford to lose.�
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“Just tell me you can keep moving forward with the work that you have done here?”
“We can.”
Taylor sighed in relief that it wasn’t a complete dead loss.
“So what now?” Rogers asked, even as the wounded were still being carried away. Taylor looked to the body of the Prince still pinned to the wall where Rogers had left it.
“Have you got a furnace around here?”
“Yes.”
“Then you know what you have to do.”
Rogers went over to the body and pulled the Assegai from it so that it slumped down, but even with the suit it was a heavy load to bear. Babacan and Taylor went to his aid and dragged the body. Rivers led them to the furnace, and they trailed blood all the way. Finally, a large silver door was opened up, and the heat from inside washed over them. It was so hot it nearly burnt their flesh from several metres away. They stuffed the body of the Prince through the gaping doorway, and with one final push from Rogers, it was cast into the fire. The vertical door slid shut, and they were all silent. None of them could consider celebrating. They had lost too much.
“Never, ever, do that again,” declared Taylor.
“You have my word, Colonel,” Rivers replied.
Chapter 6
“You knew it was a mistake to bring that thing down here, didn’t you?”
Taylor was watching Rogers clean the blood from the suit as it lay recharging.
“Yeah, maybe, but Rivers…”
“Rivers what?” Taylor demanded.
“He has some crazy ideas, but he does get results. Most people just give him some room to work and let him achieve greatness. That’s why the Alliance provides assets for him but does not get directly involved. They understand that he needs to be left to his own devices. The same way you do.”
“And what’s that supposed to mean?”
“You do whatever you want, and when you want to do it. Every time your bosses buck against that, they pay a price, and so does the Alliance. You work almost entirely outside of the chain of command, and you know it.”
“I do whatever is best for the survival of humanity.”
Battle Beyond Earth: Deception Page 8