At the left hand edge of the raised dock Troopers Drew Minos and Sully Barak manned a similar position but their shield faced directly ahead towards the outer doors. Drew and Sully were known as the wog boys and that was a title they wore with pride. They had been best mates since recruit training six years ago and they had seen plenty of active service since then. But it was for their sense of humour that they were known and liked.
“Hey Drew how come we always end up at the sharp end?” Sully asked.
“It’s in our blood, mate. Your great to the power of ten grandad and mine were cutthroat types and these jokers know that. They’re not going to put the girls up here are they? Real men, that’s what they want.” And flexing his arm muscles Drew added “and that’s what they got mate. Don’t you worry we’ll show these snakes a thing or two.”
“It was a horse wasn’t it?” asked Sully.
“No, I said snakes mate” replied Drew.
“No! I mean your lot at Troy, they came out the arse end of a horse didn’t they? So that proves your lot were full of shit. Doesn’t it?”
“Very droll Sully. That was so lame mate even for a wog boy like you.”
“Sorry Drew it was the best I could come up with under the circumstances. All this talk of snakes has put me off my stroke” responded Sully.
“Now who’s full of it?” came back Drew.
The other half of Alpha Team, Group 2, was in depth in the ante tunnel behind the dock inner doors. Here the team leader Sgt Tarik Johnston had positioned Troopers Taleen Gregorian and Madga Hagen forward. Their position was literally dug into the rock on the right hand side of the road 100m from the dock doors. Tarik and his quanto gunner, Trooper Miko Lampo were the backstop. They were another 100m down the road, also dug in. There were two further alternate positions further back at 100m intervals. The last was outside the door to the main entrance.
There was little room to manoeuvre in the tunnel. Looking back to the dock the road ran along the left hand side and dominated the tunnel. On the right was a walkway on top of which ran the air conditioning ducts and cabling. There was a half-height wall running the length of the tunnel between the road and walkway. It was a solid enough to deter one of the heavy mining vehicles from running down anyone on the walkway. Tarik hoped it would also be solid enough to provide some cover for Group 1 to withdraw down.
They had erected a series of zigzag barriers down the walkway to prevent enfilade fire at the withdrawing troops and to provide some temporary cover if need be. Just before the dock doors there was a personnel door D4 to the right. This led to a corridor and workshops that eventually connected to D2 and D3. A further barricade had been erected to protect anyone coming through D4.
After the last heavy vehicle came through they closed the main D1 doors. These were rated to resist blast and overpressures. Thus any enemy would have to come through either of the smaller personnel doors at D2 or D3.
There had been some heated debate between Art and the commander of A Coy, LCmd Chuck Yaeger, about the need for battlewagon support. Chuck was a long serving officer in the marines. He was below average in height but he was solid. He had a squarish head on wide shoulders, with muscular arms. He was a pugilist by looks and to a degree by nature. He didn’t smile a lot but when he did it was a big wide one.
Chuck had insisted on deploying the battlewagons up top to cover their withdrawal. Art wanted to retain them down on level 1 to counterattack any penetration. Chuck Yaeger was not easily persuaded. He held the same rank as Art but in theory was subordinated to Art. Chuck saw Art as a spook and not a soldier. Art saw Chuck as a pushy alpha male out to prove he was top dog. So the debate had gone on for some time. In the end they reached a compromise and one battlewagon was committed up top.
The Trojan II battlewagon, Tango 1, was now at the end of the tunnel just in behind the open door to the main entrance. From there it could shoot down the entire tunnel road to the inner dock doors. Its commander, Sgt Tommy Tomasek, had his hatch open and his small almost birdlike head was leaning out. You couldn’t tell he was short because his lean torso was almost totally contained below the hatch.
He was looking back to the heavy vehicle elevator and the two vehicles waiting their turn to get down. With the enemy now approaching he was most concerned that his line of retreat was not blocked.
“If push comes to shove” he said to 1st Lt Liz Adair, Commander 2nd Pl “they need to get out of the way and be left behind.”
The diminutive Liz with her short blond hair and powder blue eyes saw his point and went over to the driver of the rear vehicle. “You have to back up and get out of the way. There won’t be time to get your vehicle down.”
The driver replied “There’s not enough room for us to turn and that tank’s in the way.”
Liz pusher her trim frame and ran back to Tommy. “You need to move forward so he can turn.”
“Right you are Maam”. Tommy barked some instructions and Tango 1 moved forward a length and a half. He turned to see the driver give him the thumbs up. The driver then mounted his vehicle and started the process of doing a laborious series of small turns so he could end up at 90 degrees and get off the road. But there was precious little room to do it and it was going to take time.
Art looked on, just a few metres away, and wondered if there would indeed be enough time. He glanced back down to his scanner. A large red dot appeared coming up fast behind the line of smaller red dots. “They have a vehicle of some sort” he broadcast. He switched to the camera feed on his console that was linked to the cameras they had set up covering each of the doors. It was still too dark to make anything out.
No there it was. A suited figure advancing towards the outer door of the first airlock. Art waited for the booby traps they had set to go off. They didn’t. Instead the camera went offline. “Blast” said Art. That wasn’t going to plan, he thought. He decided not to relay this info to the troopers up front. He didn’t want to add to their anxiety level.
There were now red dots moving into the first airlock. How did they get through so quick? He switched to the next camera. This was inside the outer door looking back into the tunnel. Yes there were figures moving past and then he saw it. It was an assault vehicle of some sorts. Bloody big. ‘What is that?’ Art asked himself. Then the blinding flash. Shit they have a beam weapon on the assault vehicle. ‘How, how could they?’ thought Art. ‘Fuck it. Get a grip Art. They obviously do.’
“They have an assault vehicle with a beam weapon. They’ve blown straight through the outer door and are now approaching the second air lock door” Art broadcast to the whole platoon.
“I don’t know about you Drew, but I’m certainly full of it now” said Sully. “We’re sitting ducks here. We’ll be crispied before we get a shot off.”
“Enough” demanded Cpl Hafa Boutros. “You guys get down in your hole and no one pulls back till I say so.”
Tommy Tomasek was now in a flap over the trucks blocking his line of retreat. “Get those fucking trucks out of the way” he demanded.
The heavy lift just arrived and the first truck in line drove into it and the lift descended. The second truck was now free to turn forward and off to the side, which it did. A relieved Tommy buttoned up and was now focussed down the tunnel. He knew that they had to get the first shot off and it had to count. Otherwise they were toast.
“They’re through to the second air lock” announced Art. Art knew that his traps were being fried before having any effect. The full force of the enemy would be through to the docks in a few minutes at this rate. “Group 1 hold your fire till the enemy soldiers come through. Ignore the assault vehicle. Take down as many of their footsloggers as you can, fire the fleshes then bug out quick.”
“Roger that” replied Hafa. His hand was already on the firing device for the fleshes anti-personnel mines. These were fixed to the inside of the far wall facing back towards them. Normally this would be a bad idea but that’s why they were dug in behind shields. The
thinking being that the enemy footsloggers would be cut down from behind.
“They’re into the third air lock. Get ready” said Art.
“Suit up” called Hafa and his group fixed their helmets and locked tight.
Drew and Sully were as low as they could get. They could hear the metal doors in front buckling and warping and then a tremendous tearing sound. A great stream of molten metal was now heading down the road. There was a roar as the atmosphere was sucked out of the dock. A huge hole had been blasted through the doors. The edges of the hole were glowing white hot and a swathe of blistering metal clung to the road for a good 20 metres. There was a pause now. The enemy were waiting for the gap to cool down sufficiently so their troopers could enter.
A grenade launcher began firing multiple grenades through the gap. All of these fell way short of the dock. Now two pulse guns began firing, one down the road and another angled inwards. A few rounds hit the shield in front of Drew and Sully but no harm was done. There was no return fire.
Another salvo of grenades was fired. This time they got closer and Drew and Sully’s shield got peppered good and proper. But again no harm came to them. Now the enemy had to commit. Three soldiers came through the gap together. Their tall suits silhouetted against the remains of the door.
“Christ they’re tall buggers” said Drew.
“Hold your fire” said Hafa.
“I count 30 soldiers and one vehicle on the scanner” said Art.
The three soldiers went prone ten paces in. Another three pushed on past them a further three paces. Then a third brace of three went to the left. They now had nine soldiers on the deck in a rough line about fifty metres in length. It covered the left half of the dock as Hafa viewed it. They obviously couldn’t make out our two positions, otherwise they would be firing, thought Hafa. He wondered if they had scanners, thermals or any other visual aids. It didn’t matter really. They either couldn’t see them or were choosing not to open up on them.
Then more enemy came through the gap. Hafa counted 6. These were bunched and presented too good a target to pass. “Fire” ordered Hafa. Bolin Cheng’s quanto opened up and in a long burst tore into the mass of enemy soldiers just in front of the gap. Hafa dropped the nearest enemy on the line to him. Drew and Sully hit two on their end. Sully then let off his grenade launcher again into the gap. It fell short but took out one enemy still crawling from Bolin’s opening burst.
The enemy recovered quickly. The remaining six soldiers, now all prone were laying down a good fire at the two positions.
“I count 22 enemy plus vehicle” said Art. “Close the entrance door.”
Liz Adair hit the close and the door closed in just ten seconds. Tommy’s Trojan was now on the wrong side as he saw it. He was starting to feel like he was not loved. But he realised that they couldn’t take the risk of having the lift damaged and nor could he. He just hoped it opened as fast as it shut.
Another two enemy charged through the gap and dived straight away over the top of three bodies. Bolin fired off another short burst but was forced to take cover as the enemy fire was getting more accurate. Only 70 metres separated the two sides and at that range, even in a suit, it was hard not to hit something you could see. Another two enemy came through and they too dived, then crawled forward.
Drew and Sully were alternating in popping up and firing. But they were now effectively neutralised due to the superior firepower coming back at them. “Hafa” hailed Drew. “We need to make tracks.”
Hafa wanted to buy more time. “Wait” he ordered.
“Vehicle on the move” advised Art.
“Shit” said Sully “Come on Hafa, we’re going to be fried here if we don’t go now.”
“Take cover” he ordered and fired the fleshes. The ten mines mounted on the far wall blasted a wall of metal frag the full 200m of the dock. Elements impacted the near wall behind Drew and their shield was plastered like salt and pepper. “Are you alright Sully” cried out Drew. A shaken Sully looked up and nodded.
Hafa chanced a look above his pock-marked shield. Not one enemy soldier moved. But he could hear something coming and it motivated him to order “Pull back”.
Bolin let off a long burst towards the gap and turned around and ran through the doors behind him. Hafa followed right on his heels. They rounded the corner to the right and with his legs pumping Hafa overtook Bolin. He even gave Bolin a smile as he passed him. Bolin let out a laugh and picked up his pace. It was a race and they both new why. They had further to go to get to D4 than Drew and Sully and no man wanted to be tail end Charlie with a beam wielding assault vehicle bearing down on you.
On hearing the command to pull back Drew tapped his mate who fired off another grenade and they both charged through the doors behind them. They made it without any enemy fire. They turned right and headed for D4 just as the enemy assault vehicle charged through the gap. In fact it was a battle shuttle not too dissimilar to the warthogs only much, much bigger. It carried a full platoon of troops and the remainder of the first assault troop poured out of the rear opening doors, fanning out and firing. The assault shuttle fired its beam weapon from left to right raking the far wall from D3 to D2.
Hafa could hear that terrifying sound of metal being torn and blistered. It was getting closer. He forced his legs to pump harder. Bolin was struggling with the quanto and falling behind. “Drop it Bro” cried Hafa. Brolin didn’t need to be told twice. He dropped the gun and soon caught up and passed his corporal, giving him a quick smile has he did so.
Drew and Sully had reached D4, but the door was closed. Drew went to pull it open when Brolin ploughed into the back of him. Hafa pulled him back and the door was finally opened. They piled through, with Hafa closing it behind them. Drew and Sully were already behind the first barrier in the walkway, ready to cover their mates, when the beam blew out D4 onto the road. Brolin was nearly hit by it but escaped when again Hafa grabbed him.
Now the beam was directed at the rear dock door, D1. Hafa just pushed Brolin forward and they soon got into their stride, passing the wog boys with a grin and charging to the next barrier. Once Hafa was there he ordered “Come on, we need to get back to the alternates.” All four then started sprinting down the walkway as best they could while zigzagging around the barriers. As Drew and Sully passed Taleen and Magda, Sully gave them a wave and wink. Though if truth be told neither Taleen nor Magda were paying Sully any attention. Their eyes were focussed on the blast door ahead now red hot and bowing.
Magda and Taleen had been in the same team for the past year and a half and were the best of friends. Magda with her dark Spanish features and Taleen with her fair ice blond looks were always being ribbed by the ‘boys’ as the black and white minstrels, though often the last word was swapped out for ‘mistresses’.
Tommy Tomasek’s eyes were also focussed on that door and in particular on what was on the other side of it. He had his 80mm long barrelled pulse cannon trained on the lateral centre of the door but a little below the vertical centre. His gun was rated for four rounds per minute but it had a theoretical rate of fire of twice that, though the autoloader had never been tested to see if it could maintain the rate or reload. It was reckoned that the barrel life would be severely diminished at 8 rounds per minute but Tommy was going to be conducting some field testing of his own in just a few seconds and as long as this barrel lasted long enough for them to withdraw to the elevator he didn’t give a cuss.
Magda had a rocket launcher to her shoulders and was going to fire off a shot as well. Taleen looked across at her and could see her left hand trembling as it held the forward section. She gave her a nod and it stopped trembling. Magda took a deep breath as the door went white and began to buckle.
Drew and Sully reached the first alternate 300m back from the door. Hafa and Bolin went past them at the trot. They were getting tired. They were fifty metres from the last alternate just in front of the rear door when the front door gave way and a stream of molten metal was project
ed fifty metres into the tunnel. The intensity of the light partly blinded Tommy as he was looking through the magnified sights. He was forced to shut his eyes and it took him a second to readjust. The glow around the gap was still incredibly bright and he couldn’t make out any shapes on the far side.
Then the enemy assault vehicle fired another beam attack down the tunnel. Tommy was again blinded temporarily but he squeezed the trigger nonetheless and held it down. The pulse cannon roared. The Trojan rocked back. The autoloader rammed another round into the breach while another was inserted into the magazine rail from the battlewagon’s main magazine. All this in five seconds, five long seconds. The beam bore down the tunnel and hit the blast door behind them.
The door began expanding as the second round from the Trojan’s big gun fired down the tunnel. Tommy couldn’t understand why they hadn’t shifted the beam across to take his vehicle out. Maybe they couldn’t see him but that was unlikely now that he had fired. Just then the beam started shifting towards them. Tommy could see now the source point of the beam. He adjusted slightly and the next round hit pay dirt. It tore through the enemy vehicle’s frontal armour. Being a shuttle it wasn’t nearly as thick as that on a Trojan battlewagon. The inside layer of metal on the enemy vehicle melted and disintegrated into tiny flakes of white hot death. Whatever was in there was no longer alive. The vehicle’s beam stopped. Tommy punched another two rounds into it just to make sure.
There was no one more pleased at the demise of the enemy vehicle than Magda. She saw the whole thing magnified through the rocket launcher’s sights. There was no major explosion just the penetration followed by a violent jolt and then nothing till the next round did the same thing. Taleen let out a forceful “Yes!” But then she saw the first enemy trooper push forward. She aimed and fired her rifle but missed as the enemy went prone and crawled. But she could still see him and got him with her next burst. Magda put the launcher aside and took aim with her rifle at the next enemy trooper. She dropped the figure with her first shot.
The Awakening: Book 1 of Warner's World Page 32