CASPer Alamo (The Revelations Cycle Book 9)

by Eric S. Brown

  He drew the blade back and forth over the whetstone again, loving the way it grated, relishing in the resistance. That was the sound of something lesser being made into something more. That was how transformation felt. That was essentially what their job was here, to make this place into something that it wasn’t, to hone life and fortune from death and desolation.

  “I think that’s about as sharp as she’s going to get, sir,” Ben said with smile, sitting down on the empty cot across from Bowie’s.

  Ben Nobles was a tough guy, even by Bowie’s standards. The two got along well. That was why Ben was second in command of Alpha Squad. Bowie knew he could trust and count on the big guy in a fight. He stood well over six feet tall, and his body was hard with the thick muscles of a weightlifter.

  “Ben…” Bowie started, but Ben cut him off.

  “I know, I know. It helps you think. So what exactly are you thinking so hard about, sir?” he asked.

  Bowie set his knife and whetstone aside. “It’s good you’re here. I was about to come find you. We’re going after those monsters, Ben. I want you to find the Whites and let them know too.”

  The Whites made up the other two members of Alpha Squad, a brother and sister team of killers. Isaac was the oldest, but there was no question that Cally was the deadliest, in or out of a CASPer. The woman was born with a penchant for death, and rained hellfire down on whatever target you gave her.

  “Yes, sir,” Ben asked. “Anything else?”

  “We’ll be taking Wolf and Viper Squads with us too. I need everyone suited and ready before dawn.”

  Ben nodded, and hurried away to carry out his orders. Bowie slid his knife into its sheath and stretched out on his cot. There was still time to catch a little sleep, and he figured he was going to need it.

  * * *

  The twelve CASPers of Alpha, Wolf, and Viper Squads stood outside the mines as a new day began on Durin II. The sunlight wasn’t the customary brilliant yellow of Earth’s star, but rather a dull, sickly maroon that would intensify and brighten, and eventually wash into a hazy red. For now, in the wan glow of sunrise, the CASPer suits looked like they had been caught in a rain of blood…possibly of their own making. They looked savage and indestructible.

  In the chill of early morning, with every post abandoned and all the mining equipment unmanned, the place had the feel of an old gold rush ghost town. Back home on Earth, this would have been the place you went to catch a case of dysentery and die with dreams of undiscovered gold on your mind. Here, this was the place you went to risk having your guts opened in front of you as you mined for unusual ores at the bequest of a space padre.

  Although Bowie was in charge of the operation, Colonel Travis wasn’t going to be left out of the action. He spoke to the group through their comm units from his position back at their base of operations.

  “Listen up, mercs! You’re here on this waste of a rock with me at this ungodly hour, at a time when most every other member of the human race would be having a cup of coffee, reading the news, and putting on a pair of sensible shoes as they prepare to head out into a world that will threaten them with mundane things like mortgages, deadlines, and performance evaluations.

  “You, however, are here, where the threats are much more dangerous and certainly more real. Unlike the manufactured reality back home, this is a place where you can make a difference, where you can save lives, and that is what we will do.

  “Bowie, you’re in charge, and I offer you only one bit of advice. Show no mercy. Lead your team into that hole and blast everything you see to a pulp. Use every weapon at your disposal, and show these creatures why humanity is still at the top of the food chain. Do I make myself clear?”

  “Crystal, sir,” Bowie responded. “Alpha, form up on me, we’re taking point. Viper, you have the rear.”

  Some of the CASPers were equipped with lasers, others with MACs. Every other CASPer carried a shield. Bowie didn’t. With his combat style, a shield would only hinder him if things went south. He and his men were all used to fighting in large open spaces, not the enclosed tunnels of a mine that could grow tight for troopers in armor. Besides, shields were for defending yourself, and Bowie was planning to attack, not cower behind a hunk of metal.

  “Okay, everyone, listen up!” he barked over his CASPer’s comm. “Be careful where you’re shooting. We don’t want to take out support beams or do enough damage to the mine shafts to bring the ceiling down on us. Keep your wits about you, and we should get through this just fine. This isn’t our first rodeo. We’ve all done this before. Let’s stick to the plan and react accordingly.”

  The Whites led the three squads of CASPers into the mines. Bowie and Ben followed closely after them. Both of the CASPers piloted by the Whites carried shields as they pressed forward. The opening into the mine was large, as was its initial chamber, leaving plenty of room to move about. All the CASPers had mounted shoulder lamps, and their beams cut through the darkness, flickering about the mine’s walls. Shadows jumped and moved at every turn, but everyone was seasoned enough to hold their fire. They knew that the mind and the scans could play tricks on you in tight, claustrophobic spaces like these.

  Two tunnels led out of the mine’s entrance chamber into its depths, stretching away through the jasper-colored rock. Neither tunnel offered any indication where they went. The CASPers aimed their floodlights down each one, chasing away the darkness, seeing no sign of the beasts. Instead, they saw plenty of evidence that the mining operations were well under way. Mine carts used for transporting the various ores from deep within the mountain sat unused on tracks covered in reddish dust. Mining equipment hung from designated places. Crates filled with tools huddled in corners of the rock tunnels. Huge, industrial drills lay dormant, sleeping.

  “Which way, sir?” Isaac asked.

  “Surprise me,” Bowie grunted. “I’m sure if we don’t find them, they’ll find us soon enough. It’s just a matter of making enough noise to get their attention.”

  “Shouldn’t we try to camouflage our movements?” Isaac asked.

  “It’ll be impossible to be quiet in here. Every sound echoes. Besides, we’re here to kill them, not sign a peace treaty. The sooner they show themselves to us, the sooner we can unload our cannons on them. Now, choose a tunnel and let’s get to it!”

  The Whites opted for the left tunnel and started down it. The further it went, the narrower it became. Two CASPers could still stand side by side at its narrowest point, but not with much room to move about.

  “Single file,” Isaac said, his voice coming through as little more than an ordered burst of static. Whatever kind of ore was being mined here also seemed to wreak havoc on their comm units. Most things had to be said more than once before everyone could decipher the order.

  “Viper Squad, hold position in the entrance chamber,” Bowie ordered as he and Ben followed the Whites into the tunnel. “Wolf Squad, take the other tunnel. Everybody stay vocal and let us know what you see. First one to spot one of the beasts gets a weekend furlough. Eyes open!”

  “Yes, sir,” Ward, the CO of Wolf Squad, acknowledged.

  The squads went in their appointed directions, trudging through the mines with heavy steps illuminated by lamps that seemed to grow weaker and weaker the deeper into the mountain they went. Every merc hoped that they’d be the ones to receive the weekend pass, but they were also a bit apprehensive to be the first, since none of them knew exactly what they were up against. As fate would have it, it was Wolf Squad who encountered the creatures first.

  “Major, we’ve got movement up ahead,” Ward’s voice rang out. “Something just came out of the shadows and disappeared into a side tunnel. Wasn’t able to get a good shot at it, but I can tell you for sure that whatever it was, it wasn’t human.”

  “If anything moves in here, don’t hesitate to kill it. That’s an order,” Bowie growled. “The only colonists left in these shafts are dead ones by now. I, for one, am not all that eager to join them.”


  Dewall and Ewing crept forward, ahead of Ward and Garvin, as Wolf Squad entered another open chamber of the mine. There were numerous tunnels leading out of the chamber, branching off in different directions like ever-expanding cracks in a pane of glass. Ward took up position in the chamber’s center as the other three CASPers of Wolf Squad spread out.

  “Sir! I’ve got movement!” Dewall yelled over the comm

  “Me too,” Ewing added.

  Every so often, something fast and black would dart through the light of the CASPers’ searching beams. But these devils were fast, and they knew the mines; the mountain was their home.

  “Hold your fire until you get a clean shot,” Ward warned the others. “You heard what the major said about damaging the mine’s structure. The last thing I want is to be buried under several thousand tons of rubble. Durin II is a terrible place to visit, and I sure don’t want to live here. Dying on this rock would be even worse.”

  “I’m beginning to think that coming in here was a very bad idea,” Ewing commented. “We’re sitting ducks.”

  “Stow that, trooper,” Ward ordered. “Maybe you’ve forgotten that we’re the ones with all the weapons. We’ve got a job to do, so let’s just get it done and get out of here.”

  “Should we continue to advance, sir?” Dewall asked. “There are so many tunnels now we have no idea which ones to explore.”

  Before Ward could answer, everything went to hell. Wolf Squad’s attention had been focused on the tunnels leading out of the chamber they were in, and they paid the price for it. Without warning, dark, scaled forms dropped from the chamber’s ceiling onto their CASPers in a rain of chaos.

  An alien creature with burning yellow eyes thudded down onto Dewall. The impact toppled his CASPer. The creature hissed violently as its claws slashed at the mecha. The light mounted on the shoulder of Dewall’s suit shattered as he tried to roll the CASPer to its feet and escape the monster that was attempting to hold him against the floor. The thing was in too close for him to use the MAC mounted on the other shoulder.

  Another of the monsters landed directly in front of Ewing, and its claws opened up the front of his suit, and his guts in the process. Mechanical fluids, entrails, and blood poured out of the ragged remnants of his CASPer’s mangled abdomen. Ewing tried to bring the heavy machine gun he carried to bear on the monster as he fought to stay conscious.

  The monster was too fast. It snatched hold of the weapon and ripped it from the CASPer’s hands, flinging it deeper into the mine. Ewing took a swing at it with an armored fist, but the monster easily ducked under the blow and lashed out at him again. Its claws ripped open his CASPer’s forward section to completely expose him. Ewing screamed as gleaming, razor teeth bit into his throat.

  He grabbed the beast with an iron fist and squeezed until he felt it turn to mush in his grasp, but the damage was already done. He could feel hot blood jetting from his throat, and hydraulic fluids leaking from his suit. He knew his fate was sealed when more of the creatures rushed him from a side-tunnel, ripping and slashing at him in revenge for their fallen brother. His scream became a horrid gargling noise and then fell silent.

  Dewall used the amplified strength his CASPer gave him to grab the monster attacking him by the sides of its head. With a sharp twist, he snapped the creature’s neck. Its body flopped over to rest at his feet, but more of the fiends dropped from the ceiling, landing on or around him. He grabbed them and flung them off as quickly as he could, but they just kept coming. Another of the creatures plowed into his CASPer from behind, sending it staggering forward. Dewall whirled about, opening fire with his shoulder-mounted MAC. High velocity rounds blazed out of the weapon, lighting up the chamber as they cut the monster to shreds. The roar of the cannon in such a confined space was deafening, but that didn’t deter the creatures in their single-minded task of destruction. For each one he shot and killed, two more stepped in to take its place.

  Garvin raised the laser rifle he carried, blasting one of the monsters as it charged at his CASPer. The beam burnt a gaping hole through the monster’s chest. It went down rolling, carried forward by its momentum as it bounced across the chamber. More of the monsters poured out of the same tunnel it had emerged from like a stream of ticked off ants. He managed to waste two more of them before the rest crashed into him like a tidal wave, taking him to the floor. Claws tore at and through the metal of his suit as he struggled against them. In one last move meant to take as many of the monsters with him as he could, he used his laser rifle to blast at the ones that were on top of him, cutting most of them in half.

  “Fall back!” Ward yelled over his suit’s comm as one of the monsters dropped from the chamber’s ceiling onto him, punching downward as it fell. The blow sent shockwaves rippling throughout Ward’s suit, as he fought to keep his CASPer on its feet while trying to shake the monster loose from its back. Warning lights were going off everywhere in his HUD as numerous suit systems were damaged by the blow and the frenzied slashing of the monster’s claws that followed it. Desperate to get free of the monster, he slammed his suit backwards against the wall of the chamber using the weight of his CASPer and its strength to crush it into the rock. The monster’s body splattered like a rotten melon between the rock of the wall and the CASPer. He staggered forward as the right leg of his suit locked up. The unexpected shutdown of the leg caused him to careen about and topple sideways onto the floor. Half a dozen of the monsters were on him before he could right himself. Ward was dead in a matter of seconds as they tore apart his CASPer and the body inside it.

  Dewall realized he was the last surviving member of Wolf Squad, and he backed his CASPer up toward the tunnel through which he and the others had entered the chamber. His MAC continued to blaze, ripping through the monsters like tissue paper, and splashing their blood onto the tunnel walls.

  “I need backup!” Dewall shouted.

  Bowie heard the entire battle taking place over his comm, but there was nothing he could do except listen to his men die in gruesome and horrific ways. Alpha Squad abandoned its advance, and pulled back into the mine’s entrance chamber where Viper Squad was waiting. Viper Squad had already taken up defensive positions facing the tunnel Wolf Squad had gone into. The flashes of Dewall’s MACs could be seen around the bend of the tunnel.

  “Everyone, be ready!” Bowie warned, expecting Dewall to emerge from the tunnel and take cover as the rest of them opened fire at the monsters that would surely be following him. To his surprise though, the roar and flashes of Dewall’s cannon came to a sudden stop.

  As the echoes of cannon fire faded, Bowie heard the shrieks and hisses of the monsters from the tunnel. He and all the others trained their weapons on the passage, nervous about what they couldn’t see. His eyes went wide as his mind processed the sounds, and he realized just how many of the monsters had to be coming at them. Thankfully, they were coming straight into a perfect kill zone. Because of the bottleneck, only a handful at a time would be able to emerge from the tunnel, straight into the combined firepower of Alpha and Viper Squads. It would be like shooting fish in a barrel.

  Prepared to open fire at any moment, the men were confused to see Dewall suddenly appear at the bend of the tunnel. His light had been smashed to bits, which made it difficult to see how much damage he had sustained. But it was him. There was no mistaking the CASPer’s hulking shape and size. He moved forward with a strange jerking motion that indicated malfunctions in his mobility systems, and he didn’t say anything, which indicated his comm unit was destroyed. Yet he kept coming, slowly and methodically.

  “Hold your fire,” Bowie ordered. “Dewall has got to be hurt. Isaac, come with me. He needs help.”

  Strangely enough, the monsters had gone quiet in the mining tunnel and showed no sign of themselves.

  It was wishful thinking to imagine they had retreated deeper into the mountain, though, and no one thought that likely. Bowie and Isaac moved forward with careful deliberation while Dewall kept creeping forwar
d slowly. They were about halfway down the tunnel when Dewall’s foot struck a rock and he toppled over, revealing the hordes of monsters that had been behind him, pushing him forward and using him like a shield. That the man inside the CASPer had been dead for some time was apparent as the beasts charged, swarming over and around his fallen corpse, their sights set on what was left of the merc company.

  Bowie and Isaac opened fire and backed up as quickly as they could as a tidal wave of beasts flooded the shaft. They were soon joined by reinforcements, who stepped up to fire round after round to drive the hell spawn back. MACs thundered and laser beams flashed as the monsters died by the dozens. Their bodies began to pile up in the mouth of the tunnel, but still more of the things came, leaping over the corpses of their brethren as they screeched their hatred at the armored soldiers.

  “Keep it up!” Bowie ordered. “We only have one shot at this! We can’t let them make it any further into this chamber with us! As long as we keep them where they are, we should be good.”

  “Movement to the left!” Ben barked at him, as more of the monsters began to emerge from the other tunnel leading into the entrance chamber.

  The two squads of CASPers split their fire, covering the mouths of both tunnels. Bowie couldn’t even guess at how many of the monsters they had killed, as their weapons began to run dry. The clicking of empty guns was infinitely more frightening than the screeching sounds the monsters made.

  “We’re running out of ammo, sir!” Ben warned him. “We can’t keep this up forever!”

  “Steady, people!” Bowie raged. “We’re winning! Look at how those mothers are dying!”

  “They just keep coming,” he heard Cally mutter over his comm.