Steel Breach

by Casey Calouette

  The man huffed up and leaned up against the bus. "In the Capital, that Lokeen freighter is the only thing left."

  "Get more troops here," Umi said flatly. "Tollefson!"

  "Sir?" Tollefson stood with one massive hand on Lady Atli's shoulder and in the other held a tri-barreled autocannon. The sort of thing normally mounted to a vehicle.

  "Get her to Sevel. Carry, drag, I don't care. And I don't care what she says about it."

  "I'm perfectly capable, thank you very mu—" Lady Atli said.

  "Tolly, you heard me?"

  "Da."

  "You guys know the drill," Umi said, and ran up to the main corridor.

  The Lokeen freighter sat like a giant blocky rectangle in the center of a flame scorched concrete pad. The area around it was mostly clear except for where the containers started a hundred meters away.

  Umi picked out the route. He had decent cover almost the entire way, except for the last rush up to the freighter itself. He slid back into his role as an armored cavalry commander without even realizing it. It fit him, and he liked the feeling. He had a purpose. "Kelly, right flank, Vik, left flank—everyone else, let's go!"

  Sirens sounded from far in the distance. The armored car crept back toward the main gate.

  Captain Kolich wavered and looked between the freighter and burning transport.

  "Captain! Get your shit straight. You coming or going?"

  "Those were my men!"

  Umi felt for the man, but set out ahead with the large bore hand cannon at ready. He had his priorities—for now, they were all about getting onto that freighter.

  The group moved slowly, carefully, logically, through the lanes of cargo containers. At every junction the group halted, they checked the lane, then the scouts raced across. Once that was clear the rest moved ahead in spurts and bursts. Of the dozen troopers only a few moved at a time while the rest covered.

  It was smooth. There wasn't an extra motion anywhere. Lady Atli looked out of place, and Captain Kolich, he never seemed to know exactly where to be.

  An explosion ripped through the air, a high pitched crack. Lady Atli cried out. The Sigg hunched down to one knee. The turret of the armored car tumbled through the air and landed with a crash.

  Umi listened. Where was this bastard? He scanned the tops of the containers but saw nothing.

  Vaughn fired off a three round burst that smacked against the side of a container. "Contact!"

  A black form bounded over the tops of the containers like a gargoyle. It dropped out of view as the rounds ricocheted around it.

  "Move!" Umi yelled.

  The group rushed ahead and reached the last of the containers.

  "Where is that damnable Sevel?" Lady Atli said. She leaned heavily on Tollefson's arm.

  Kelly ran up to Umi and popped a pack of micro-grenades out of her vest. She handed the quarter kilo pack to Umi. "What's the plan?"

  Umi wanted to tell her he was making it up as he went, but decided to just run for it. He tucked the grenades into his jacket and stood up. "Get to the freighter, I'm going to draw it out, then shoot," he said and sprinted out of cover at an angle parallel to the freighter. "Go!"

  The others ran clear and raced toward the freighter. When they were halfway, a massive cargo door creaked open. Lights flashed on either side of the freighter and the group rushed toward it.

  Umi paused for a split second then turned and sprinted toward the freighter. He'd expected an entirely different response from whoever or whatever was hunting him.

  Kelly perched on the edge of the freighter cargo hatch and leveled her weapon. "Down!"

  Umi dropped to the wet ground.

  Gunfire rang out. First it was the sharp pitch of Kelly's submachine gun. Then the others opened up.

  Umi rolled onto to his back and leveled his cannon just in time to catch the black clothed synthetic a few meters away. He didn't even have time to grin before he pulled the brass trigger.

  Click.

  "Shit."

  The synthetic stopped and leveled a chisel tipped sword directly it Umi. It had eyes like dirty ball bearings ripped out of an aged machine. There was no emotion, just the reflection of a machine.

  Rounds pinged and ricocheted of its body but it made no move for a second. It cocked its head slightly. "Where is the data?" Its voice was gravel, a thing like broken gears.

  "Here," Umi said as he ripped the pack of micro-grenades out of his jacket and pitched them out toward the black clothed synthetic. The only thing he held on to was the arming pin.

  The synthetic swung the sword and smacked the flat of the blade against the pack of micro-grenades. The packet burst apart and a half dozen individual charges flew away and exploded out of range.

  Kelly advanced out of cover with her weapon tight to her shoulder. Beside her, Blaser, Vaughn and Vik advanced. They racked off round after round. Riga knelt down and braced his small bore sniper-rifle against the side of the freighter and fired. His wiry frame bucked from the recoil.

  The sniper round struck the synthetics eye and sung off like an errant note. The synthetic shrugged the blow off and pulled its elbow back to strike. A steady hail of rounds smashed against the black clothed creature. It never even flinched.

  "Halt!" a voice bellowed from inside of the freighter. Master Sevel stomped out in a suit of blue-white heavy body armor with a chipped boarding shield in one hand and a weapon that looked between an axe and a mallet in the other. On either side of him stood two other Lokeen similarly armored.

  Kelly and the other Sigg stopped firing but kept their weapons locked on the synthetic.

  The synthetic slid one foot back and leveled the sword at the approaching Lokeen. "This doesn't concern you Lokeen."

  "They are under my protection," Sevel said. His voice was strong. The mallet in his hand swayed from side-to-side. "And I will protect."

  The synthetic said something in a strange language and launched itself at the three Lokeen. Sevel parried the first thrust with his mallet.

  The synthetic sidestepped and rammed the tip of the blade through the chest armor of one of the Lokeen.

  The armored defender fell with a groan and his mallet and shield tumbled to the ground.

  Sevel struck low with the mallet and then smashed his shield into the synthetic. It stumbled back and parried a blow from the other Lokeen. For a split second it stood and gauged the situation with its ancient eyes. Then it lashed forward and struck again.

  Umi stood and was amazed at how quickly the massive Lokeen could move. He ran to the dead Lokeen and picked up the mallet. It felt light in his hands and it almost buzzed with energy. He watched for an opening and kept on the edge of the violence.

  The three danced in an out with a maze of mallets, shields, and the lone black blade piercing inwards. The armor, chipped and corrosion streaked, looked almost as ancient as the eyes of the synthetic. But even with its age, the metal deflected the blade in a shower of titanium white sparks.

  Then the synthetic found an advantage and pivoted its way through the Lokeen and slammed the blade into the back of the other Lokeen. Sevel roared out and thrust the tip of the mallet at the synthetic and connected. The synthetic sailed back and tumbled onto the ground. Sevel cast the shield aside and leapt with both hands on the haft of the mallet.

  The synthetic lay stunned for a moment, then rolled to the side and tripped the massive bodied Lokeen. Sevel fell flat on his face and, when he turned, found a blade a centimeter from his face.

  "Tell them to give me the data," the synthetic said. The blade never wavered in the growing wind.

  "No," Umi said from behind the synthetic.

  The synthetic snapped its head toward Umi.

  Umi crashed the mallet down onto the synthetic's head. It connected with a crunch and a crackle of electrical energy blasted out. Sparks and static enveloped the synthetic's head and the black cloth disintegrated leaving only the dirty ball bearing eyes and a skull that looked to be made of charcoal.
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br />   It sprawled out to the side and fell into a slow motion heap. Sevel stood above it, took a careful grip on the mallet, and landed blow after blow to the synthetic until its entire upper body was no more than crunched black chunks.

  Sevel shook with rage and his deep brown eyes burned. He turned to the freighter and beckoned. More Lokeen rushed out and carried the dead back to the ship. A thin drizzle whipped from the sky.

  "You saved my life," Sevel said to Umi.

  "And you saved mine, let's call it even."

  Sevel said nothing and stomped past the Sigg.

  "We leave now!" he called back.

  "You heard him," Umi said. He hefted the mallet and followed after. This wasn't how he intended to leave Vasilov Prime. "Let's go."

  The Sigg ran up the boarding ramp. Umi turned and stared down at the dead synthetic and watched as the body dissipated into a pile of rust. Only then did he drop the mallet.

  #

  Chapter Twenty-Nine

  Lishun Delta – Mackinof Front

  Lieutenant Torori shook off the crystalline snow and stomped his boots. His teeth chattered. The air inside the rear of the tank was frigid, what little heat they had disappeared the moment they let the Lieutenant inside. "Good god," he said. "It's cold!"

  The electric heater kicked up a notch and barely warm air flowed out of it. The crew sat mummified inside of sleeping bags and blankets. Their faces were tight and drops of snot hung from the tips of their noses.

  "Soup, LT?" Mueller handed a cup to the Lieutenant.

  Torori took it and his lips chattered against the rim. "Good, where'd you get it?"

  "I stole it."

  "Right!" Torori looked away from Mueller and shook his head.

  Tomi shivered in his bag and watched the LT. He liked him a hell of a lot more than he liked the Company Commander, Captain Norton. The Captain was convicted of dereliction of duty on Lishun Delta, but most of the charges were dropped. But still the rumors flew, especially once they arrived back again. He didn't see much of Norton, and he was okay with it. What little he did see was of a nervous man who couldn't make any decisions.

  "Here's an update: the mission is still on. There's a storm blowing in, a big nasty one, and we're gonna sneak out once that bastard blasts the line. Once we punch a hole, the 12th is going to hold it."

  "That's the Baron, eh LT?" Gous asked.

  "Yup." Torori sipped the soup and smiled. "Not bad." He stopped and looked at Tomi. "Where's Sergeant Nikov?"

  "I thought she was off to see you, sir, with Kallio, they left an hour ago," Tomi said.

  Torori shrugged. "I must have missed them, but for fuck's sake, they knew about the meeting, right?"

  Tomi stammered.

  "Fine, fine, just keep her in the loop."

  Torori continued with the briefing and laid out the basics. He set his tablet onto a crate and showed the expected route. At the end was a series of depressions in the map. Depressions that they hoped were artillery emplacement. "Once we arrive, we'll hit them with cannon fire first, and if that doesn't work, we dismount and use demolition charges. We don't have to get 'em all, just enough. Questions?"

  No one said a word.

  Torori glanced at his wrist and jammed his hands back into his mittens. "Check your gear, do a full equipment sweep. Inside and out!" He looked around at the crew to make sure everyone heard. "It's cold now, but it'll be even colder if you breakdown out there. I'll be in the lead, just stay behind me and when we make contact, keep moving. There's no gunships tonight, weather is too nasty, but we've got our own rocket artillery. Ping 'em if you need 'em."

  Tomi felt better about this than another defensive maneuver. He disliked just waiting for the turret to shoot whatever it could. They'd already participated in two defensive ops, on the second Nikov let him take the turret and get a feel. But still, he felt trapped, running in the open sounded much better.

  "Open 'er up," Torori said. He pulled his facemask on and squeezed through the side of the hatch before it had opened all the way. Fresh snow and ice blasted inside and it was cold again.

  The hatch closed and Mick tossed off his sleeping bag. He launched himself across the tank at Bosovitz and ripped the little man out of his blankets. "You dirty fuck, where'd they go?"

  "Woah, woah!" Bosovitz said, squirming under Mick's grasp.

  "Where'd you get it? Where'd they go to use it?"

  "I didn't sell 'em anything!"

  "Who did?" Mick shook Bosovitz and slammed him against the wall.

  "I don't know!"

  Mick slammed him again. "Who!?"

  "A cook, a cook named Quinn!"

  Mick dropped Bosovitz and pointed at Tomi and Hutchins. "Get suited up, we're going to find them."

  Tomi pulled the sleeping bag off and tightened his jacket. He felt a sense of dread the moment Mick grabbed Bosovitz but he knew it was the truth. Nikov and Kallio were both kettle addicts. "How do you know they're using?"

  Mick tightened his facemask, left his rifle, and scooped up a half meter long steel wrench. "Nikov and Kallio are both addicts. Someone smuggled a little kettle."

  "Get everything ready," Mick said to Puck. "Check every track link, bolt, and reactor junction. Get everyone fed and save us some dinner. Got it?"

  Puck stood and bumped fists with Mick. "Got it!"

  "Now come on." Mick swung the wrench into his other hand. "Time to go fuck someone up."

  They fought through the inky black with only the strange illumination of fresh snow to light the way. Guide ropes marked the edge of the platoon area and they followed it until they ran to the company command post.

  It was beyond cold, the point where steel wasn't quite steel, but a brittle thing. Where exposed flesh froze in under a minute. The only thing Tomi could think of was getting back to his barely warm sleeping bag. That and how he'd explain to the Sigg how the heater was not nearly large enough.

  Mick kicked in the door to the cook shack and punched the first man he saw. He leveled the wrench at another cook. "Kallio and Nikov. Now. Or I start boiling your balls."

  Hutchins pushed his way through and tossed a scrawny cook at Tomi. The next man Hutch reached tried to run but he caught him by the coat and tossed him into the wall. His massive hands ripped a cabinet from the wall and tossed it at the last standing cook.

  "Well?" Mick said.

  Tomi was practically holding up the cook. The man quaked with fear.

  Mick swung the wrench into the stomach of the cook that Tomi held. The man let out a deep “ooooof!” He buckled over onto the floor. Mick leveled the wrench at the next cook. "Where is she?"

  "With Corporal Moloscic! In the storage truck!"

  Mick kicked open the door and tossed the cook outside. "Lead the way, fucker!"

  Hutch took a quick second to demolish a bit more of the kitchen then followed out with Tomi close behind.

  They stopped at a line of cargo trucks and Mick waited for the cook to point it out. He stepped up on the back, waved to Tomi and Hutch, then smashed the door open. He was through in a moment and the sounds of wrenches on flesh announced his arrival.

  Tomi ran in. He thought that Mick was going to kill the man. The cook, swaddled in blankets, rolled on the floor and tried to escape the blows. Mick rained down one after the next until the man bawled and screamed.

  They found Kallio first. She was heaped under a pile of dirty packaging. One eye fluttered as if in a gentle dream, while the other eye was covered with a silver foil that was half dissolved. Her lips were blue, but through it all she looked to be in a state of bliss.

  Mick pulled a flask out of his pocket and poured liquid into her foil covered eye. She screamed and flailed and clawed at her face. The foil fell off and she writhed in agony.

  "God! God!" Kallio cried.

  "Just Mick." Mick waved to Hutchins. His voice was stable, the rage gone. "You take her."

  Farther in the trailer they found Nikov. Both of her eyes were covered in the foil. The bruisi
ng had returned and it looked like someone had smashed her in the face with a hammer. Her lips quivered and her head twitched.

  Mick stood over her for a second with the flask in his hand. "She'll be dead soon."

  Panic hit Tomi. "Then do something about it!"

  Mick shrugged and poured the liquid into her eyes.

  Nikov bawled out and sat up. She clawed at her face and then rolled on the floor.

  Mick waited until the worst of it passed. "Give me a hand."

  Tomi and Mick each took an arm and helped her outside. Nikov was sobbing like a child and her legs stumbled with each step. She seemed lost inside a dream, mumbling and crying.

  They caught up with Hutch and stumbled through the darkness. A light suddenly flashed and a security detail stopped them.

  A soldier from Baron-Colonel Devos's unit spoke. "The hell you doing? We had reports of a brawl."

  "Some assholes tore up the cookshack," Mick replied. "This is my medic and commander, we're bring them back."

  "You people are animals." The soldier sneered. "They should have lined you up and put a bullet in your head."

  "Well, there's still time for that," Mick said.

  Tomi kept his face tucked into his jacket and kept his mouth shut. The security detail left and disappeared into the darkness.

  "Assholes," Mick said.

  When they arrived at the tank they washed out Kallio's eyes again with ethanol. "It dissolves the kettle wafer," Mick said. Then they worked on Nikov. She had passed out along the way.

  Puck said to Mick. "LT says we gotta roll in fifteen."

  "We ready?"

  "Yah," Puck said. "But I wish we had a medic."

  "I'm okay, I'm okay," Kallio slurred.

  "Tomi, get us ready," Mick said.

  Tomi slid into his drivers seat and verified everything was ready. He felt odd. They was about to go into their first real battle without a proper commander and a stoned medic. Shouldn't I be worried about this?

  Comms chatter picked up. Indicators showed vehicles coming to ready status. He followed the text orders, sealed everything tight, and engaged weapons systems.

  "Bulldog? This is Bastard, confirm ready status."