"Roger Enforcer Six, Bravo Three out."
Dekker stood up and marched back to the tower. "Badger."
"Go ahead Colonel," Lt. Simmons said. Her voice was calm, casual even, as if she hadn't told him that her orders were to undo everything he was trying to accomplish. The only explanation had been that she had orders. They had each played that card. As much as he hated to admit it, they were even on that score.
"We have some guests inbound. Tell your east side patrols to keep an eye out. We need to prepare a debriefing."
An hour later, Dekker, Lt. Simmons and Corporal Ortiz sat at an abandoned table on the second floor in what had once been a dining room. The grills and warmers were long cold and the only light came from the shafts of sunlight that clawed through scratched plastic windows and the dust-ridden air inside.
Corporal Ortiz sat with one foot under the table and the other off to the side, as if he needed to be ready to run at a moment's notice. He leaned on the table with one elbow and stared at the wall. Dekker knew he was listening, though. Combat taught a man to think about things without having to see them.
"Corporal," Dekker said, "I know there's a lot to tell, but we need to take this in order. We have a situation on our hands and what you tell us here will determine our final decision, so please be accurate and specific."
Corporal Ortiz nodded. "You'll get my best report, sir."
Lt. Simmons said, "Our first concern is the communications array on the MEF headquarters building. Specifically the dish antennas."
Corporal Ortiz shook his head.
"What did you see?" Lt. Simmons asked.
Without moving his eyes, Corporal Ortiz said, "They just lined up their tanks and blew the living fuck out of the compound. They didn't leave a single building standing."
Lt. Simmons shifted her gaze to Dekker and eased back in her seat. "What about the S-2 bunker?"
"They got that, too. They used demolitions. For the line bunkers, too. It was a real show."
"Alright, Corporal," Dekker said. "What's the status of the MEF?"
"That's a little trickier, sir" Ortiz said.
"Take it a step at a time, Corporal."
"They came off the line with a single front attack. Honestly, there's not much to tell there. They pinned us in the compound. We couldn't maneuver and they gained fire superiority before we could even move to our alternate positions." He shifted in his seat, raised a fist to his mouth and cleared his throat. "Once they had us tied down, they sent an element to Dirt Hill to round everybody up." For the first time since they sat down, he looked at Dekker. "That got ugly fast. There was nobody up there to help those people. Everybody ran. A few made it out, a bunch got rounded up." His eyes sagged as his gaze shifted to somewhere behind Dekker. "The ones they couldn't catch - they shot them in the back as they ran."
Dekker felt his own eyes shift away from Corporal Ortiz. "Where's the tricky part, Corporal?"
"We were distributing ammo in the gocart before all this happened. When the attack started, we were at the ammo bunkers getting ready to load." He tapped his knuckles on the table. "It was my call, sir." He looked at Dekker, waiting.
"Go on Corporal. You said you'd give me your best report."
"We didn't even try to join the line. I told the driver to turn and head for the notch. We didn't see how things ended up, but there's no way, sir. They either got stomped or taken prisoner. Once we got away from the fight, we waited for a while to see if anybody else made it out of there, but all we found were the few civilians we brought with us. We never saw anybody from MEF again."
"What weapons do you have?"
"Just our personal weapons, sir. We don't even have a squad weapon. We're a heavy fire team at best."
Dekker nodded. He wanted to reach across and take the man's hand, but he could tell Ortiz was a Marine who stood on his own two feet, for better or for worse. "You did the right thing, Corporal. You guys were never expected to hold back the entire First Brigade." He caught Simmons shooting him a glance.
"How do you mean, sir?" Ortiz asked.
"It was symbolic. The rest - don't worry about it right now. You did the right thing."
"Sir, I have to say this, because my guys all feel the same way." His boot scuffed the floor as he moved his leg further away from the table. "If the Paladin had been there, it might have worked out, you know?"
Dekker leaned back and looked straight into Ortiz's eyes. "Yeah, I know." Turning to Simmons, Dekker asked, "Do you have anything else, Lieutenant?"
"No sir," she said, "except to add that you did do the right thing, Corporal. Your report has provided us with some very important information. Thank you."
"You're dismissed, Corporal," Dekker said. Ortiz stood up, assumed the position of attention and then turned to climb down the ladder leading to the ground level of the tower. Dekker clasped his hands on the table and leaned forward. Lowering his voice, he said, "So that's it, then. We have my battalion, your two squads and the Paladin to deal with the entire Second Brigade."
"And they have their First Brigade in reserve," Simmons said. "I'm sure our guys gave them a bloody nose, but they're free to maneuver and reinforce the Second if it comes to that."
Dekker sucked in a breath through his nose and let it out with a grunt. "Which means we're a reinforced battalion up against a light division. We can join the Paladin and fight it out. We probably can't take them, but it's an option we know we have for sure."
"Option B," Simmons said, "is to establish the uplink. The risk is whether or not we can find suitable equipment, including a dish antenna. If we make it work, we have a big gun, if not -"
"Then the Paladin is on his own and we'll be stuck with what's left of Second Brigade. And who knows, after the Paladin is done with them, maybe we'll be able to finish it."
They sat in silence as he pondered their options, letting them tumble over each other in an endless spiral of answers that guaranteed nothing. There were no orders to lean on. There were no more conversations to be had. All that was left was a decision, one that only he could make.
"One way or the other," he said, "I get the feeling this is going to be the last fight."
"Yep."
"I'd hate to leave that satellite sitting up there waiting for somebody else to get their hands on. Call the Paladin. Let him know we're going try and set up a track."
Simmons smiled. "Aye aye sir."
Pladin's Briefing
Major Walker pulled back on both control handles to bring his Cat to a stop. His Cat swayed forward as the stabilizer servos surged to bring the Cat back to a stable stance. The Cat to his left took a few steps forward and did the same. The next Cat took a few more steps and stopped as the last Cat in the platoon of four took its final steps and halted, finishing the echelon formation with Walker at the base.
"Line pivot right," Walker said into his microphone. He pulled up the elevation handle and the turbine lifter fired to bring the Cat a few feet off the ground. He eased the pedal under his right foot forward to rotate the Cat 45 degrees before easing the elevation handle back down. The frame rattled as the Cat thumped to the ground. His cockpit shuddered again as the rest of the Cats landed in near unison. He checked the alignment of the four Cats, which were all within a few feet of making a perfectly straight line, ready to advance as a single firing line on the smoke marker representing their target. "Good line," he said. "That's good for now. We'll pick up with bounders this afternoon."
He powered down his Cat and released the canopy hatch. The heat of mid day rushed in as the ladder extended itself to the ground. As he swung out of the cockpit and climbed down, puffs of wind rippled his uniform and scattered grit against the Cat's metal skin.
He stepped off the bottom rung when his headset chimed. "Two Bravo Delta, Badger Six."
"Go Badger."
"Operation AF is a go," Simmons said.
He stood at the bottom of the ladder as the wind started kicking up boiling billows of dust and scoo
ted them past the pyramid. "What's the schedule?" he asked.
"We don't have numbers on time yet. We have some prep to do here. Contingent is to reinforce if you come under attack before we can finish over here."
"Our last estimate on Second Brigade was for 34 hours. Tell Dekker to get his ass in gear."
"Will do. There's something else you need to know. We lost the compound."
For the first time since he could remember, Walker felt a flash of fear run through him. "Understood," he said. "Two Bravo Delta out." He surveyed the terrain around the Pyramid, reviewing - again - the likely avenues of approach, elevation changes, defilade and the best locations for setting up his defense. The problem with his Cats was they were too big to hide. They were stand-off weapons systems, and on their own were not good for taking or holding ground. Now, he had to figure out how to do both.
As the wind began whipping grit across his boots, he pulled his collar up to shelter his face and trotted to his command tent. The pilots he had been drilling with were right behind him as he ducked into the tent. One of them coughed as somebody pulled the zipper down to close the flaps. They huddled around the plastic tables covered with charts and tablets as the wind howled around the light poles outside and sand scraped along the outside of the tent.
"Well, since we're all here, I might as well brief you," Walker said. He picked up a remote connected to a monitor mounted on a portable tripod. As he punched buttons on the remote, the screen filled with a topological map and zoomed out to show the area between MEF headquarters and the Pyramid.
"As you all know, the Terran Guard Second Brigade is on the march from their compound, heading straight for us. Our estimates put them somewhere in the Delta Five sector here." He pressed a button to display an infantry brigade marker showing the Second Brigade's position east of the Pyramid. "According to Colonel Harris of the MEF S-2, and confirmed by communications with Badger, attached to the Enforcer Battalion, Colonel Dekker has a single operations STI shot with a track somewhere in this region." Surveying the room, he saw most of his officers staring back at him wide-eyed. A few let their mouths fall open. The lone exception was Captain Holt, who knitted his brow, but otherwise didn't react.
"Where's the track?" Holt asked.
Fixing his gaze on Holt, Walker said, "We don't know yet." He let go of Holt's gaze and resumed his briefing. "Colonel Dekker, with his Enforcer battalion, will establish an uplink and provide us with the track at that time."
"Where is Dekker now?" Holt asked.
"We don't know," Walker said, zooming the map back out. "He was dispatched from MEF two days ago." He zoomed in on the MEF compound and overlaid a red X. "Since then, the Terran Guard's First Brigade launched a deliberate attack on MEF headquarters and wiped out both First and Third Battalions."
A murmur scuttled through the tent. "Then we need to go back," somebody said
"What about the colony?" somebody else asked.
"What are we doing out here?" another asked.
Walker put up his hand, signaling for them to all quiet down. "That's enough," he said. "There's nothing we can do about MEF or Dirt Hill right now. What we can do something about is the Second Brigade. They are heading this way and we will be waiting for them. Our mission is to lure them into the track so Dekker can take them out with his STI shot. After that, we'll link up and deal with the First Brigade." He zoomed the map in on the Pyramid. "This is our one shot, gentlemen. Right here. If we miss, Second Brigade will finish us off along with the Enforcer Battalion. After that, none of your questions will matter."
He caught Holt's eyes again as his XO studied the map. "Any thoughts on this, Captain Holt?"
Keeping his eyes on the map, Holt said, "I'm just wondering how we're supposed to know how to deploy if we don't know where the track is going to run."
"I'm sure we'll hear from Dekker as soon as he's ready. In the meantime, we wait."
"Maybe I could go over there and keep an eye on things for you, sir."
Walker stepped away from the table and walked up to Captain Holt. "We don't know where he is."
"Seems we ought to find since he was sent to find us."
Major Holt blinked and cocked his head. "I don't remember saying anything about Dekker's mission. What makes you think he's after us?"
Holt's eyes darted to look at the floor and then back to Walker. "I guess that seems like the best reason for him to be here considering everything that's happened."
Walker smiled and strode back to the table. He picked up the remote and turned off the monitor. Setting the monitor back down, he said, "Yes, I suppose so."
Loyalty's Pride
Captain Holt keyed the microphone on his transmitter. "Tiger One Tiger Papa One. Message. Enforcer Battalion in possession Strategic Target Interdiction assets, proceeding for fire on Second Brigade." He let go of the button and watched the light flicker as the device encrypted the message. When it flashed green, he pressed the button again to transmit the message. The light flashed out and he waited for a response.
He felt something bite the back of his neck. By reflex, he reached around to slap at it, driving the shaft of the dart even deeper into his skin. The light on his transmitter flashed yellow and then blurred as it fell from his hand. His knees buckled and the world collapsed into a sea of darkness.
Colonel Harris shuffled through the scrub and rock towards Holt's body. As he crouched down to check Holt's hands, he saw the transmitter and its flashing yellow light lying on the ground. He let Holt's hands drop and fetched the transmitter out of the scrub. The button continued to pulse with yellow light as he turned the device over in his hand to study it. He grunted and turned the unit back over in his palm so he could watch the light. After a moment, the flashing stopped and the button glowed with a steady green, indicating the device had received and decoded a response. Harris pressed the button.
"Tiger Papa One, Tiger One. In response. Do not answer. Determine asset location and advise status soonest. Out." The button's light went out.
Harris tossed the device a few inches in the air and watched it drop back into his palm. "Huh," he said. Looking at Holt's unconscious body, he said, "How about that?"
Major Walker and Colonel Harris stood next to each other, looking down at Holt as is he slept in a plastic chair with a hooded light on a pole pointed at his face. They were the only ones in the tent and the flap was closed. The sentry of two Marines outside had instructions not to let anyone come within a hundred feet.
Holt groaned and his head lolled. His eyes fluttered and a hand floated up to shield them from the light. He winced and turned from the light as he pushed himself upright in the chair. He grunted and started to mumble, his eyes flitting between Harris and Walker.
"What the hell happened?" he asked. He rubbed his forehead. "Major?"
Harris held out his hand. Holt's eyes froze on the transmitter sitting in Harris's palm. Holt patted the pocket on the left front of his field utility blouse. He unbuttoned the flap and fished for something inside.
Harris held out his other hand to reveal a black capsule. "By the time I'm done with you, you'll be begging me for this."
Holt stretched his neck and yawned. "You're an idiot."
"You have a point," Harris said. "If I'd been doing my job, you wouldn't have lasted this long."
"That's enough," Walker said. "Look at me, Captain Holt." He waited until Holt leveled his gaze on his own. He took a step forward, shaking his head. "Why?"
"Because we can't win."
"Since when is that your call to make?" Walker asked.
"Since it became the obvious truth that nobody seems to want to admit."
Walker pulled back his hand and slammed his palm into Holt's face. The captain's head jerked sideways, blood trickling from the corner of his mough as he coughed.
Holt scoffed. "Doesn't change anything. We should - "
Walker cut him off. " -have surrendered? Is that what you were going to say? Let the colony work for th
e Terran Guard because someday they'll remember that they're human too, especially now that the Shoahn' are gone? Was that it? That after a while, all they would remember is their fellow man and their zeal for the Godfrey Decree would fade into history? Is that what you were going to say?"
Wiping the corner of his mouth, Holt said, "Yeah, something like that. If we surrender, we have a chance. Otherwise, the day will come when they find a way to just exterminate us." He glared at Harris. "But I guess that day is already here, isn't it?"
"It's not about any of that," Walker said. He leaned over and picked up the Old Scrolls sitting in the corner of the tent. He held the case in front of Holt with both hands and kicked the chair with his boot, knocking Holt to the ground. He crouched down and shoved the case in Holt's face. "It's about this!" he yelled.
Holt pushed himself away from Walker and asked, "What's that?"
"See, that's the problem with people like you," Walker said. "People don't know everything. People don't need to know everything. They just need to follow orders. It's easy. It's simple. It's what makes the Corps work."
He slid the Old Scrolls across the floor towards Harris and stood up. "There are two kinds of people that fuck all that up." He unsnapped the resin fabric flap on his holster and drew his weapon. "Civilians," he said, pulling the slide back. "And arrogant fucks like you."
Walker fired his weapon, filling the tent with a loud pop. The bullet flew just past Holt's right ear, clipping the cartilage. Holt clapped his hand over his ear and grimaced. Walker holstered his weapon and crouched down in front of Holt. "Yeah, you know how it works. The round goes supersonic and creates its own little shockwave which snaps the air. And when it snaps hard like that, right next to your ear, it hurts. And it leaves a little something behind that keeps on giving. For as long as you live, you're going to hear that ringing in your ears. It ain't never goin' away."
He stood up and stepped back towards the front of the tent. "I'm done with you, Captain Holt." He jerked his thumb at Colonel Harris. "But the S-2 here. Hell, I don't think he's even started yet." Walker spat on the ground, turned around and walked out.
The Terran Mandate Page 17