by Andrew Beery
“Understood Lieutenant. Until we can take those air defense batteries down we are all going to be hard pressed to get air support. I have McKinney’s team looking into that as we speak. In the meantime I just need you to slow them down. The flanking maneuver is a good first step but I suggest you make a show of attempting to stop them then fall back. Once they get into the city proper they will lose their range advantage and you will have an easier time dealing with them.”
“Then that’s what we will do Admiral. On a second note, we ran into a few civilians that we are routing away from the immediate combat zone. They were most insistent that they be allowed to proceed to the JasNair observatory. Something about‘poison-pill’ protocols?”
“I’ve recently been made aware of them Lieutenant. I’m heading that direction myself with a small team. You can let those civilians know that we are attempting to secure the disarm codes… they will know what that means. Anything else? -- We’ve got some inbound dragonflies I’d just as soon avoid.”
“No ma’am that it. Myer’s out”
Cat checked her internal chronometer. They had just over two minutes to find cover.
“Let’s move. We’ve only got a few minutes to find our way into the tram tunnels”
It took them the better part of that time to locate where the entrance should have been. As Cat had feared, the entrance had been obscured by the remnants of a partially collapsed building. Working together, she and Private Stone cut away portions of the debris using their pulse rifles in continuous discharge mode. It was effective but it drained the weapon’s energy reserves quickly. The private’s Mark Six combat suit could be used to recharge the weapons but is was anybody’s guess as to when they would be able to recharge the suit itself.
Finally Cat was able to see the beginnings of an opening. Unfortunately it was at about that same time that the Dragonflies began to make their run. The Modos Syndicate had an amazingly simple but effective strategy. Systematically turn entire sections of the city into rubble with air-dropped blockbuster bombs. This forced everyone to include civilians and freedom fighters to flee those areas and congregate in the zones being spared from the blockbusters. These zones however were the primary focus of the armored track vehicles that were even now making advances into the city.
“Help me pull this last piece off!” Cat yelled towards the Private.
Together they lifted a section of wall that Cat estimated weighted just shy of 2800 kilos off of the opening. Cat’s superior Heshe enhanced strength might have been able to accomplish it alone but with the Private’s Mark Six the task was accomplished quicker.
“DOWN!” Cat yelled as she literally grabbed Debbu and raced down the steps.
In reality the steps were some type of escalator but as power was out to this section of the city the normally moving escalator was frozen in place. The power being out also meant there was no lighting in the dark tunnels. In the distance they could hear the blockbusters doing their dire business. The rumble could even be felt through the pavement. It was one hell of a way to wage a war. She tried not to think about the number of innocent lives being lost.
Cat adjusted her optic nerves to compensate for the dim conditions. The Naan’s sun was similar to Sol in that nearly half the energy reaching their planet was in the form of infrared. On the surface during daylight this made these frequencies too saturated to be of much use seeing but here below the surface and in the relative dark infrared was an ideal spectrum to see by.
Aside from the lack of electricity, the underground tram system looked remarkably intact. She saw no signs of other inhabitants but to be sure she instructed her AI to continue a full spectrum sweep. If there were Syndicate soldiers nearby her active scans would be like a beacon announcing their presence to the enemy but she was pretty sure the trade-off was worth the risk… especially in the tight confines of the tunnel system where the need for advanced warning and limited options to flee factored in to the debate.
“Can’t see a damn thing” Private Stone mumbled as he moved forward awkwardly. His comm was off and he was whispering but Cat’s hearing was exceptional thanks to the Heshe.
“Private” Cat signaled with her outstretched arm for him to move forward and to the right side of the tunnel.“Tune your optics to 10μm… you’ll have plenty to see by.”
He did as he was told and immediately started walking with greater certainty.
They passed a stalled tram with its doors pried open. Apparently the passengers had been trapped when the power failed and been forced to flee the dead conveyance. Cat peaked inside the tram’s cabin. There was a control console located near the center. Debbu confirmed her suspicion that these cars were designed to travel both forward and backward on the same track. The tracks themselves provided energy for electric motors on the tram.
“Professor… How far do you think that observatory is from here?” Cat asked.
Debbu paused to think.“If we could take the tram I’d say only about an hour… Walking it might take us the better part of two days.”
Cat nodded. This is what she suspected. The observatory was not on her rather limited map of the surrounding area. She was still receiving a steady data feed from the computer complex Commander LeAnder had secured earlier but as yet the information gleaned did not include local maps. Orbital observations yielded several candidate structures but they were as yet unconfirmed.
She motioned the others to enter the tram.“Let’s see if we can’t speed things up a little.”
Once inside the vehicle she had her AI quickly scan the mechanism. Within moments she had identified the motor compartment as well as easily accessible power feeds. “Professor… if you would be so good as to grab the controls… I’m going to see about supplying an alternative power source so we can shave a few hours off our little hike.”
“I’d be delighted Admiral” the Naan replied while hopping gingerly over to the control console.“This guy should be able to get us to the main terminus and from there we should be able to grab a tram to the JasNair facility.”
Private Stone pulled the door closed and walked over to Cat.“Begging the Admiral’s pardon but what are we going to use to power this rig?
Cat smiled and tapped the young man’s chest with the tip of her finger.
“Ma’am?”
“The Naan’s use Multiferroics in their electronics. Its three orders of magnitude more efficient than silicon-based electronics. On top of that, these trams are very energy efficient. They operate by floating above permanent rare-earth magnets. All that is needed is a minimal lateral force along the desired direction on motion.”
“Ma’am?”
“We push.”
“Ah”
***
Lieutenant Myers wiped the gunk off his faceplate. His battle suit was covered with mud. A Syndicate Track vehicle sat smoldering a few meters ahead of him. It had a six centimeter hole in its windscreen and a much larger hole in its rear compartment. The lieutenant’s plasma rifle was responsible for the first hole. An exploding fuel cell was responsible for the second.
He tapped his comm link.“Mikey, tag that last one as a confirmed kill. Any more trouble coming our way?”
Staff Sergeant“Mikey’ Rutledge pause briefly before answering.“That depends Sir. Do ya figure sixteen more of dim bad boys coming down the pike as ‘trouble’ or not?”
“I would count them as trouble. Take your squad and head east. I’ll meet you by that shopping plaza we found earlier… there is another underground parking garage there. Set the charges and let’s let them have some fun digging out.”
“That would be the third group to fall… fergiving the pun and all… fer the same trap. Ya sure that’s the way ya want’a play it Sir?”
“Hey when a plans working why change it?”
“Roger that sir. Give us five to git ready… I’ll give ya a shout out when we got her rigged.”
“Take your time Mikey… its only sixteen against one.”
&
nbsp; “Sir… if’n I were the suspicious type I’d be think’n ya were being sarcastic-like.”
“Perish the thought Sergeant… perish the thought”
***
General Moss scanned the tactical readouts. He was back aboard his flagship having turned the ground assault back over to his commanders on the planet surface. The energy shield that protected the planet was unidirectional in that it allowed ships to leave but not enter the planet's atmosphere.
Much to his surprise the Modos home office near the galactic core had a small but well-armed contingency fleet in system. He had a suspicion that this was a force pulled from a pool of ships that the chairmen was unaware existed. Certainly the general had been unaware they existed. How they knew to deploy to the Naanac was another mystery. Unfortunately despite the addition of a sizable number of new ships they were still in a swagger-fishstandoff. The massive weapon’s platform in orbit around the planet greatly curtailed their ability to land additional troops. Any attempt to engage the platform was met with seeming distain. The platform’s shielding was too strong.
“Get me Captain Dry-Bait back online” he barked to his communications officer.
“The Captain is on comms Sir” the young lieutenant answered promptly.
“General… how can I be of assistance?”
“Have you given any thought to what we talked about earlier?”
“I have Sir. Unfortunately my answer is still the same.”
“Captain” General Moss said slowly as if he were talking to a child.“You acknowledge I have operational command of this sector… yes?”
“I do Sir.”
“Then I order you to engage the enemy as per our previous discussion.”
“I’m afraid sir” Captain Dry-Bait said with equal patience“that you are not in my current chain of command.”
“And you still refuse to tell me who is your chain of command?”
“My orders specifically preclude that yes sir. That said there is something I can do to help with the current situation. Perhaps if you will invite me onboard your ship we can discuss it.”
Chapter Twelve – Nothing Like a Good Soak...
Cat shifted in her seat. This was the third tram they had boarded. She estimated they had travelled a good two thirds of the way to their target. They were making better time than she had anticipated. The tram tunnels were in better shape than anyone had a right to expect. She and the Private, a young man named Anthony, had been forced to clear debris only once and in another instance they had been forced to board another tram one track over. Private Stone had been relieved that she had not been serious about pushing. The induction motors on the trams required a minimal charge in order to push the vehicles forward. Cat had been able to wire one of the Private’s remaining spare energy packs to provide the necessary electric current.
Debbu chewed softly on a third spicy bug bar. It had been days since he had eaten a proper meal. His sister would be mad if she knew he was gorging on junk food but given what was happening he supposed she would make allowances. He tried not to think about where she might be or what may have happened to her over the course of the fighting in the city. As he chewed, he continued to watch the system display. The track ahead continued to show clear.
“So tell me again,” Private Stone asked the Naanac professor, “how getting to this observatory is going to help us beat the Modos?”
Debbu turned to look at the younger human.“We are fighting the Modos Syndicate… not the Modos. In truth, it will not. What it will do is help us preserve any victory we manage to secure. It is common knowledge among the acquisition worlds within the Syndicate that worlds such as ours that attempt to leave the Syndicate have a bad habit of becoming lifeless. We would like to avoid that fate if we can.”
“And getting to the observatory will help you do this?”
Debbu nodded.“Years ago we discovered a series of thermonuclear devices buried under every major population center. The devices are protected from tampering. That protection is extremely sophisticated.”
Cat leaned forward to wipe a bit of condensation off the window she was peering out.“Our friends here on Naanac made contact with the Modos Liberation Front,” Cat added from her seat.“They have experience disabling these systems using computer generated codes… however since the disable codes expire within a few hours of being generated it was important to develop a mechanism for requesting and generating valid codes on an as needed basis. That’s where the hidden facility at JasNair comes in.”
“Correct” Debbu agreed.“But there is one problem with…,” Debbu began before pausing to look at a flashing light on his control board. The track was no longer clear. There was something massive coming their way. He looked up in sudden terror.
“Admiral!” Debbu screamed at the exact same moment the tram they were riding in slammed into a wall of water rushing down the tunnel. The three were immediately thrown off their feet as the cabin began to roll sideways. Cat’s faster reactions allowed her to launch herself across the intervening space and grab Debbu before he could crash into the forward bulkhead. Private Stone grabbed at a rail as the change in momentum caused him to fly by. The rail snapped and he careened off a wall as the tram continued to roll. Only his Mark Six saved him from being snapped in two as he hit a forward panel awkwardly.
After several moments of mayhem, the tram’s tumbling slowed. At this point however water began rushing into the cabin from every available opening.
“Somewhere along the line a water main or aquifer ruptured!” Cat yelled.“Private seal up your Stark.”
“Negative, ma’am,” the Private yelled back over the sound of water rushing in.“If we’re quick I can get you into my suit. It’s more important you survive.”
Recognizing the cause for his concern Cat immediately silvered her previously invisible facemask so he could see she was protected.“Anthony… I appreciate the thought but I am in no danger. Seal your faceplate now. That is an order!”
Before he could respond she turned her attention to the Naan she was holding.“What about you? Am I right in assuming water is not much of an obstacle for your species?”
Debbu gulped as he tried to slow his racing heart. In response to the Admiral he opened his breathing slits and partially unfurled his purplish external gills.“I can do quite fine in water… so long as there aren’t too many toxic contaminants.”
At this point the water was well above chest height in the compartment but the inrush had slowed. The tram was bumping along the tunnel wall as the flow continued to push against it. With a final grinding crunch the tram stopped as it became wedged again something in the tunnels.
“This is apparently where we get off boys,” Cat said, as she attached a lanyard between herself and the Private.“Anthony, if you would be so good as to hold on to the professor for me. If we somehow get separated head topside and seek cover until we can rendezvous. Clear?”
“Yes, ma’am,” the Private said, while hooking a utility belt around Debbu’s torso. He clipped a second lanyard to this belt and then gently wrapped a metallic arm around the alien’s midsection.
“Right, then,” Cat said, as she tore the exit door off its track in preparation for leaving.“Here we go.”
***
The last twenty minutes had been rough ones. Cat reached a hand down and pulled Debbu up the last few feet up and out of the tunnel they had been swimming through. The Harromag tram system was ruined. Somewhere an aquifer had been breached and as a result the entire system was now flooded. Private Stone joined Cat and the professor a few seconds later. In truth the Private had had the worst of it. His Mark Six combat suit while water-tight was not buoyant. He had been forced to pull himself along the bottom.
Cat made a mental note to herself to review the Mark Six’s design specifications. The Encounter suits used by the GCP had Higgs Field nullifiers which could be used to artificially reduce the suits mass. She was using the same thing embedded within her nanite-ba
sed second skin. There really was no good reason why the Mark Six couldn’t employ the same technology.
“Well that was fun,” Private Stone said, sarcastically as he opened his faceplate. He looked around. They seemed to be in a burnt out park or playground. The grass, shrubs and trees were all charred and burnt. In the distance he could see the shattered remains of what must have once been a decorative wall surrounding the park.
“I enjoyed it too,” Debbu said from where he was sitting. He seemed totally unaware of the human's sarcasm.“Nothing like a good soaking to limber up the old joints!” He said, cheerfully.
Cat saw the Private purse his lips to respond but shook her head to cut him off. There were more important things to discuss.
Cat waved an arm around them.“Any clue where we are?”
Debbu made a strange chortling sound that seemed to emanate from an air pouch in his throat.“I grew up near here. We are about five stone measures from the observatory.”
After several minutes Cat determined that a‘stone measure’ was a unit of time and translated to something on the order of twenty minutes. The group made their way as quickly as possible through the destroyed park. Cat could see the anguished look in the Naan’s eyes as he saw the source of so many childhood memories in utter ruin.
The street outside the park was in little better shape. Various personnel transports were scattered about like tossed toys. Some were even dumped on top of other vehicles. Like most of the city… blockbuster bombs had done their work here. It seemed the Syndicate wanted to level the city without using nukes. Which of course in Cat’s mind begged the question– why? They had shown a great willingness to use nuclear weapons in other cities. What was in Harromog to make the situation different? They seemed willing to lightly scour the surface but they were reluctant to completely and permanently destroy the city.