AMP The Core

by Stephen Arseneault

  The Colonel again shook his head. “That sounds like a stretch to me, Grange. How could anyone possibly track every Human being? That would be six hundred million objects at once.”

  I nodded. “Improbable, yes; impossible, no. Remember, we now believe the Duke transported nearly four billion of us from one galaxy to another. It’s hard to imagine the assets he would have to have at his disposal for doing such a task, but it was done.”

  The Colonel sighed. “You know, it seems that not a day goes by that we don’t learn something new, something we would have thought not possible. War used to be easy, Grange. Two sides came together and fought. You hoped you had the manpower to have the edge on the day it happened. Now, it seems there are too many other factors involved, and they are constantly changing. We have done well to be where we are. A big part of that is from your contributions.”

  I held up my hand. “Whoa, Colonel. I have just been bouncing along through this whole thing. You give me too much credit for just being there. Your leadership has had more to do with our ability to survive than my poking my nose into everyone’s business.”

  The Colonel shook his head. “You know, I have only come across a handful of people that have had an impact like you have on those around them. One of those people had the same last name as you. Your father would have been proud of you, Grange. Heck, I know I’m proud to just have known you!”

  I rolled my eyes. “OK, Colonel. I can see it’s time for me to go. Otherwise my head is going to start swelling from all the cheese you are pumping into my ears.”

  The Colonel reached out his big left arm and slapped me on the back as I began to stand. “Glad to see you got your legs back, Grange. I’ll let you know when we need your services again.”

  As I walked out of the Colonel’s office, I ran into George in the hall. “Hey, Doc!”

  George replied, “I see you are already walking.”

  I nodded. “You did good with these new legs, Doc. Last time it took me a week to get to this point.”

  George stepped back and looked over my new legs. “Walk down the hall and back for me.”

  After walking a few steps, I turned back. “I feel like I’m putting on a fashion show or something.”

  When I returned, George had his right hand propped up under his chin. “Hmm. Looks like you are favoring the left leg. I’ll have to make a slight adjustment to the balancing algorithm.”

  I replied, “Well, just keep doing whatever it is you’ve been doing, because they feel great already. I might still be a little unstable with certain moves, but overall, with a little effort, I can do anything I need to do.”

  Word then came over the comm. The Durians had resumed their attacks. Parliot was now under siege.

  I walked back into the Colonel’s office. “Where do you want me, Colonel!”

  The Colonel had two staffers standing beside him. “Grange, it looks like they are preparing to open another front. We are watching a massive buildup near East Fallia. If they punch through there, then West Fallia is next. The significance is that would place them on the outskirts of this city. They have too large a force for us to keep them out of here. We need for them to stick to the attrition plan if we are going to have a defense near-equal to their attacking force.”

  I replied, “So, how do we get them back on track at Parliot?”

  The Colonel swiped several screens and sent a staffer away with several numbers. “I am sending orders to abandon Parliot and to then weaken our force at Gamella. That might draw them back into the pattern we have been pursuing. What I think this shows, however, is that the Durians may be onto our strategy now. The Fallias are nicely defended; if we are lucky, each will last for a day.”

  The BGS Marines were ordered to East Fallia in anticipation of the coming assault. The Colonel’s techs had fully uploaded the worm virus onto the Colossun androids that we held captive. In a final raid by the Durians, we allowed the mega-transports to be recaptured and taken away.

  As I landed in the fields in front of East Fallia, York landed beside me. “Glad to see you back out here, Mr. Grange. Looks like your luck is still holding!”

  I replied, “I sometimes wonder which side of that equation the real luck is on, York. I’ll keep fighting so long as I have breath in me, but I am so ready for all this fighting to be over.”

  York looked out in the direction the assault would be coming from. “I think you might have your answer one way or the other in the next week, Sir. If we make it that long, I think the tide of this war might have turned.”

  I looked at York. “Why would you say that? The other side has been constantly reinforcing, while we have a fixed defense.”

  York sighed. “I’m not supposed to mention it, Sir, but we have a new weapon that might be ready in as little as ten days. It’s a fission bomb, Sir. Dirty and nasty for us all, but we can take out every ship on that landing pad along with all the troops positioned there. That would make one serious dent in their assault capabilities. Typically nukes aren’t even a consideration because of a difficult delivery and a nasty cleanup afterward. With a Wren, we can put one right where we want it.”

  I laughed. “So, a fission weapon is going to be our salvation. Hmm.”

  York replied, “As I said, Sir, we never had a good delivery system before. Nukes are easy to detect, and with conventional delivery such as shooting them at something or dropping them, they can be easily destroyed by ion defenses. I suspect the Durians changed their strategy based on detecting our creation of the fissionable materials the bomb requires. Unless we can hold them off from reaching our core cities now, it won’t really matter.”

  I looked up as the first of the attackers at East Fallia began to top a hill that was eight hundred meters away. “Well, I guess we find out now. Knock ’em dead over there, York!”

  The invaders were soon upon us, and the massive amounts of killing began. I squeezed the triggers on my weapons as rapidly as they were again ready to fire. I could hardly feel the burn wounds on my chest, as the BGS suit kept a set amount of pain medication pumping through the bio-gel. I glanced down as I sent the destruction out with each finger squeeze. I was happy to once again be standing as I fought.

  The battle for East Fallia lasted all of sixteen hours before the walls were overrun and the remaining troops evacuated. Our BGS Marines cleared a swath through the attacking troops, creating a pathway for retreat to West Fallia. As the Colonel had predicted, nearly 40 percent of the 350,000 troops who had manned the walls of East Fallia made it out by the end. Those Marines would live to fight again, when their kill ratios would be much higher.

  As we prepared to defend West Fallia, a comm came in from the Colonel. “Grange, it looks like our androids have been activated. Their landing port appears to be in complete chaos. I have a Wren circling over it right now, reporting back. I’m patching through a video feed.”

  On the video, thousands of Colossun androids were in a fierce fight with a company of Durian Helgrons and three brigades of Dakar regulars. From what I could see, our newly programmed androids were pushing the others back. I then took note of a Dakar frigate that came down just above Nevil and began to fire upon its own ships. Our worm virus was spreading!

  As I watched with the corners of my lips turned up, the Colonel again came over the comm. “Grange! Prep your BGS people for an assault on East Fallia. We are going to see if we can push them back.”

  As I looked back towards West Fallia, I could see hundreds if not thousands of Marines dropping over the high walls onto the farmlands below. Within ten minutes, forty thousand Marines were standing in the field behind me. York waved her arm in the air, and the assault force began to move forward.

  As the single Wren circled around Nevil, the remaining seven began to perform strafing runs on the troops that reinforced East Fallia. Within seconds of York’s wave, the entire force was sprinting towards the just-fallen city.

  My BGS suit again worked to restrain the adrenaline that was cours
ing through my veins as we charged ahead. As I fired off the first few rounds from my weapons, I found myself yelling at the top of my lungs. With my helmet secure, there would be no one to hear my battle cry but me.

  As I reached the outer wall, I used my BHD glove to power up and over the top. When I landed on the other side, I began to blast away at the Durians and Dakar who were busy trying to mount a defense against an assault they were not prepared for.

  Five Durians lined the top of a near wall. I powered up to their position and blinked in and out as I ran through their position. A tungsten round then took out the three Dakar just beyond.

  As we pushed the enemy back around the walls of East Fallia, the Durians switched tactics. Thirteen Colossun cruisers dropped from the sky and began to pound the ground around the city. We had no defense against the heavy ion cannons, as the ion inhibitors for East Fallia had already been destroyed. Our guns at West Fallia fired repeatedly at the destroyers, doing damage with every hit. But the Durians had accomplished what they had intended. Our push forward had been halted, and our casualty count was rising rapidly.

  The Colonel came over the comm. “Grange! Get your people out of there! We’ve lost two BGS units, and a third is badly injured. Your suits won’t shield you from those big cannons!”

  I spoke. “Colonel, eight of those cruisers are lifting off due to the fire West Fallia is laying on them!”

  The Colonel replied, “And five new cruisers are on their way. It’s time to cut our losses and run, Grange. Pull back to West Fallia until we can figure this out.”

  I spread the word as I powered up and over the outer wall. As I reached halfway across the fields between the cities, a heavy ion bolt struck the ground beside where I flew. My active skin shot up to 86 percent shielding capacity. The single cruiser continued its random fire as I fled.

  Just before reaching the safe area around West Fallia, I turned my head back and looked up for the new cruisers. As I zoomed in with the optics on my HUD, I was stunned to see one of the new cruisers firing upon the others. Our worm virus had disrupted their counteroffensive!

  I raised the Colonel on the comm. “Colonel, are you seeing that battle raging between those cruisers? Is it worth us taking another shot at East Fallia?”

  The Colonel replied, “We are watching that unfold, Grange. Two Durian ships are now on their way down. Sit tight and wait for things to settle. We can’t risk losing BGS Marines to that heavy fire. You guys are good for 25 percent of our kills. You are too valuable.”

  For much of the following day, the battles raged on between the Durians and our reprogrammed androids and infected ships. When the last of our converts had been taken out, the Durians turned their efforts back towards taking West Fallia.

  Again, I was a killing machine as the Durian troops rushed our walls. After fourteen hours of continuous firing, my fingers were again numb. As the walls were breached, I almost had a feeling of relief that it was over. The Colonel ordered the evac shortly thereafter. I powered to the other side and began cutting that swath through the encircling troops for our Marines to escape. This time the attackers moved away, allowing us an unfettered retreat.

  When I reached the walls of Mirada, I continued on until I reached the Colonel’s office. I powered into the room, blinked in, and removed my helmet.

  I plopped down in my usual chair and spoke with heavy breath. “Tell me that bomb is ready, Colonel. I would be happy to deliver it myself.”

  The Colonel held up his hand and spoke in a soft voice. “Don’t mention that again, Grange. We can’t be sure if anyone is listening.”

  I pursed my lips. “Sorry, Colonel. I thought of all places, this office would be secure.”

  The Colonel replied, “We can’t be sure, so cease all talk of it. What we need to work out is how we defend this place.”

  I nodded. “I’m all ears, Colonel. Just tell me what you need me to do.”

  The Colonel spoke. “We are expecting the attack to come directly from West Fallia towards this long wall. What we need is for you and the BGSers to split into two teams. You will be positioned here and here, on the outer edges of the throughway. Our wall defenses are strongest here, so your mission will be to funnel the attackers into this corridor.”

  I replied, “We can do that.”

  The Colonel continued, “We aren’t expecting them to begin their assault for another four hours. I would suggest you take your team and have them all sleep for at least three of those four. This could easily be a battle that lasts for several days. We will need everyone at their best for this, Grange. So, go and sack it for a bit.”

  I nodded as I stood. “Thanks, Colonel, and it might benefit you to get some rest beforehand too.”

  The Colonel waved his hand in a gesture telling me to leave. He had work to do reviewing the personnel to move around in support of the city’s defense.

  I had my team assemble in one of the buildings by the quad. “OK, listen up, we have been instructed to take a rest for three hours. The Colonel wants us fresh, as this is our last front to defend, and we may be going at it nonstop for days if not longer. Set your timers for three hours, and I will brief you all when we wake.”

  Chapter 23

  The buzzing on my sleep timer jolted me fully awake. Stimulants added to my bio-gel soon had me fully alert. It was time to prepare for our final fight.

  I raised the Colonel on the comm to get the latest briefing. His response was that plans had not changed. We would be used to funnel the Durian assault into a narrow but heavily defended section of wall. The fight for Mirada was our last hope for the Human race.

  In and around the target walls of Mirada were just over a million Marines, including eighteen thousand of the Colonel’s Gray Ghouls who had been modified with the upgraded prosthetics.

  I found myself wishing I had time to spend with Ashley. Here we were, possibly at the end of our existence, and me without the one I loved beside me. I took solace in the fact that she was safe. A “safe” that would possibly end with her and Jon Touchstone being the only two Humans left alive.

  I then laughed to myself as I thought about Frig. Who would be there to keep him in line with sarcastic comments? And what life would the three of them have, being constantly on the run from the Durians? I asked everyone on our team to gather around for a pep talk.

  I spoke with my helmet under my arm. “We are the Human race! We were plucked from our homes and placed in this nightmare of an existence against our will. We’ve fought and run a hundred times over. We are survivors. We adapt. We overcome. And here today we are faced with yet another fight.

  “Only, this is a fight that we can no longer run from. This is a fight that we have no other option but to win. We’ve all dug down deep before. This time we have to go deeper. We all have to reach down to the core of our very beings.

  “When we draw back from this core, we need to have three things in our grasp: all of the resolve we have within us, all of the courage, and all of the fight. We are placing our hearts, minds, and souls on the field for this one final battle, a must-win battle for us all.

  “So, take a moment to reach deep down inside for those things. And when you have them firmly in your grasp, share that resolve, courage, and spirit of fight with the others here around you. Draw on each other as we make this final appeal for survival. Draw on me, here today, and know in your heart that we will stand tall when all this has ended! We will be the victors! We will control our fates! We will control our existence and the existence of the Human species!”

  I looked around as every member of the BGS team looked down in reflection as they attempted to pull strength from within. As I looked around the room, Frost held her fist up in the air.

  Frost spoke. “Humans!”

  Frost looked around the room and then yelled, “Humans!”

  A chant was soon started that had the room echoing with the sound of emotion!

  “Humans! Humans! Humans!”

  Hands were then s
haken and firm embraces given, along with slaps on the back and every other gesture of encouragement. When the group had finally begun to settle down, all eyes again turned towards me.

  York spoke. “Well?”

  I replied, “Well what?”

  York laughed. “Well, you got us all worked up an hour before the fight, Mr. Grange. What are we supposed to do with all this energy now?”

  I pointed towards the door as I shook my head. “Well, go forth and spread that energy around, York. I am sure there are others that need a good pep talk out there. Go, spread the love!”

  York again laughed as she turned towards the door. “I’ll give a pep talk, Mr. Grange, but spreading the love, that sounds a little more like something for Frost!”

  The team left the room full of laughs and high spirits, high spirits that I hoped would carry on to others. When I reached the Colonel’s office, I saw a team of staffers that were hustling about with encouraging smiles on their faces and banter coming from their mouths. The Colonel and Admirals had just finished a similar speech. For a moment, I wondered if I might really be the leader the Colonel had often talked about. If I was, I knew in my heart that it was as a leader of the species that most deserved to win the final fight. We were Humans, and it was time for us to kick ass like Humans do.

  The Colonel brought me back from my little self-hurrah with a hard slap on my back. “Grange! It’s time! Take your teams out there and give those aliens a fight like they never dreamed of having. Make them pay for messing with the Human race!”

  The Colonel then leaned in close. “About that which I told you to not talk of earlier, we need to keep those walls up for three more days. If we make that happen, we can possibly turn this thing around.”

  The Colonel then leaned back and spit a chaw of Omega root juice on my pant leg. He then turned away to bark orders at his staff. I followed with the order for my teams to deploy.

  York and Frost joined me on the right side of the field as we split into two groups of seventeen BGS Marines each. By the time we moved into position, the Durian soldiers were on the move.