Ambush

  It was only several minutes later, but they must have traveled close to half a dozen miles upwards when they started slowing down. It took another few moments before they came to an abrupt halt. Hawke was feeling sore where the harness had held him, and he was gasping for air when they finally stopped with a huge swinging motion. Trying to fill his lungs, he saw that when they moved onto a side platform, there were barely two dozen feet or so of clearance from the top of the shaft.

  Waiting for them, were several more techs and guards. All were watching him with amusement on their faces.

  Gasping loudly, Hawke turned to look at the grinning technician whom he rode up with through the head webbing. “Not for the faint of heart? Heck, that’s enough to give someone a heart attack. Holy hell man, that ride was awesome!” declared an excited Hawke. “Sorath’s would come a great distance and pay handsomely to ride that”.

  The technician laughed and explained the pulley system while the others helped remove their harnesses. “We built these shafts with unwelcome visitors in mind. We knew anyone looking would sense the electromagnetic activity and power consumption if we built them using the normal lift process, so we devised a mechanical wooden method. We tried to minimize any metal. We stationed a series of granite blocks weighing several tons in another shaft to avoid collisions. They are hooked up to a fiber cable system using a large wooden wheel that pulls up anywhere from one to four persons at a time. Or we can attach a wooden cage to bring up supplies. When ready to bring someone or something up, we hook the cables to that block and release it. We have wooden brakes and safeguards, but it is all without any electronic signature. During times when we are not being attacked, or as in this case, invaded, we raise the blocks back into position using anti-grav sleds.”

  Now fully recovered, Hawke patted the technician on his shoulder. With humor in his voice he told him “Thanks for the ride. I think I will take the safer route down now if you do not mind.”

  “Good luck to you, sir. Thanks for all you’re doing.”

  Taking a moment to check his flight suit and making sure none of his knives had come loose, Hawke asked the technician. “You never mentioned your name. Do you mind?”

  “No, I should have told you when we first met, but well… things have been a little hectic. I am Warren. The man to your right is Ian and the one on your left is Terrance. Sir, you better get moving if you want to make the deadline.”

  Laughing, he shook his head in agreement. Turning, he waved goodbye while he made his way to the cave entrance. It was cold with flakes of snow drifting down, they were so high up. The air was thin, but it was not something he was unaccustomed to. Glancing at his watch, he saw he was running out of time.

  Walking carefully outside onto the small ledge outside the cave, Hawke looked over the scene below carefully. He had enhanced eyes in comparison to humans, like the bird he was nicknamed after. Standing at the top of one of the highest mountains on the planet, he had a clear view for hundreds of miles in all directions. Dropping down in a crouch, he searched the immediate area where he saw several Pteroductdy flying nearby.

  Spending a precious few minutes checking on the way the Pteroductdy flew, he had an idea why they did what they did. They lived at the top of the trees, but hunted for their food on the ground. They were using their own wing strength to get as high in the air as possible before they dove down towards the ground where they leveled out just feet from the prairie grasses using their wings to glide silently close to the ground looking for prey. Their silent approach was their most lethal weapon.

  Now that he was ready, he searched for his target. That took a little longer than he liked, but he finally found him. Hawke could feel his anger rising, but along with that, his determination. He grinned while he made sure his knives and the pair of wooden injectors were secure. Then unfurling his wings, he calmly walked to the cliff edge and dropped from the mountain going straight down.

  The thrill of being back in the air was invigorating, being on the hunt for an ancestral enemy was a dream come true. Diving toward the ground, he picked up tremendous speed. The air pulled on his head feathers, fluttering the small feathers on his skin, yanking his face back into a grimace. Hawke waited until he was only several hundred feet from the ground before he slowly leveled out and started his turn towards his target. He was moving a lot faster than the normal Pteroductdy, but his time was limited.

  After several up, down and glides, he was finally in the area that he expected to find the officer. No alarms had sounded nor any hostile actions. Hawke smiled as it seemed Zeke was correct. Without any metal, he was not considered a threat.

  Just as he reached the top of his last ride, he saw his target. The Chohish was moving slowly to his left with his head sweeping right and left, but never raising his eyes skyward.

  With rage burning inside him, Hawke pulled the knife in his right arm band with his left hand and one of the wooden injectors from his belt using his right hand. Hawke pulled his wings in and went into a steep dive. The wind slapped at him as he dived straight down. It matched the fury that was growing in his belly. Hawke could feel the feathers on his arms tingling with excitement. It was everything he could do not to scream out his battle cry.

  When he was thirty feet from the Chohish, the officer must have felt something as he looked up and saw Hawke. The Chohish moved with lightning speed on defense, but it was too late to stop Hawke from flying just inches past him. Twirling in a tight circle, Hawke reached out and grabbed the Chohosh’s right shoulder where while he was still twirling rapidly, he wrapped his legs around the Chohish’s neck to hold himself from flying off while plunging the wooden injector into the Chohish shoulder. Once done, he let his momentum carry him off.

  But Hawke had slowed too much. The Chohish with a load roar grabbed Hawke’s leggings and yanked down. Tumbling to the ground, he was not alone, the Chohish tumbled right beside him.

  Trying to brace his landing with his legs, he failed, he was moving too fast, he hit the ground hard. Sharp pain went shooting through his leg as his right leg bent sharply backwards. Hobbling in a half circle, he turned just in time to face the Chohish who was now charging at him with a wicked looking knife that in any other person’s hand, would have been called a sword.

  Crouching and bracing with his good leg, Hawke pulled a second knife and made ready to fight for his life. With practiced ease, Hawke flew backwards while rising into the air. The Chohish was still gaining ground, but Hawke had no intentions of waiting for him. Rising to a level of ten feet, Hawke flew to the left out the Chohish reach. The Chohish dropped his weapon to pull a hand weapon from a shoulder holster where Hawke knew he would not stand a chance once that was brought into play.

  With a Sorath war cry, Hawke dived straight at the Chohish. Twirling at the last minute, he slashed at the hands holding the weapon and was satisfied to see a greenish liquid splash onto his leathers. The weapon dropped from the Chohish hands, proving the obsidian knives were still true and sharp after so many years.

  Just as the Chohish bent to retrieve the weapon, he staggered a few feet away like he was losing his balance. Flying around in a circle, Hawke next attacked from the rear. The Chohish tried turning quickly to meet him, but he reacted sluggishly and stumbled. Using the handle on his knife, Hawke smashed it on the back-crown section of the Chohish’s left of the ear. The Chohish dropped like a rock, but even then, started to rise again. Hawke stooped quickly to use the second injector. “I sure hope this works; he just will not stay down!’

  Just as Hawke saw the Chohish officer drop again, he heard the distant thuds of approaching footsteps. Without looking, Hawke flew up a few feet and away from the camp as fast as he could, in a zigzag pattern. Hawke stayed as close to the ground, knowing that when the missiles hit, the shock waves were going to make going any higher suicidal.

  Just as he was winging around a large boulder, he saw what he had heard earlier, several Chohish running towards him. He knew with his hurt ankle and
only his knives, he would not be able to put up much of a fight. And with the blasts just moments away, he could not go any higher.

  Landing next to the boulder, he made ready to make his last stand. His right leg bent in pain that only with all his willpower stopped him from collapsing. Screaming in rage, he opened his wings to their full extent and fluffed his feathers like his ancestors had done when going into battle before they reached for the stars.

  The Chohish were just several dozen yards away, moving fast. One was swirling an object that was familiar in design to an ax while the other was starting to swing around a large hand weapon. Resigned to his fate, Hawke grinned, knives gripped tightly in both hands.

  The low distant sound of ‘wwwuuuummmmpppptttthhhhh’ reached Hawkes ears while at the same time all his feathers tingled his nerves.

  Knowing what that sound was, Hawke desperately dove next to the boulder. As he hit the ground with pain shooting up his leg, a laser blast from the Chohish weapon smacked into the boulder at the height where he had been standing. The heat and smell of burnt feathers, let him know close it had been. It was then that the shock waves hit.

  The boulder shook and rocked back and forth like it was a toy. If the bigger section of the boulder had not been buried deeply in the ground, Hawke knew he would have flown his last flight.

  Through air now filled with dust, debris and ash, Hawke watched as the two Chohish were picked up and thrown around like rag dolls. They landed hard only to be picked up again and slammed down again and again. From their bodies jellied look after being bounced one final time, coming to rest on the ground a good distance away, it was obvious they would not be a concern for Hawke anymore.

  The shock wave lasted no more than twenty to thirty seconds, but it had seemed like a lifetime. Dirt and dust were still swirling in the air when Hawke, thinking about rising again, felt the feathers on his arm rise and tingle again just before another terrific blast of energy smacked into the camp. Hawke heard, then felt the ground tremble with the shock of the attacks. “Ahh… never been on the receiving end of the primaries. Should have known they would use them more than once.”

  Looking up, Hawke saw over a dozen fighters speeding towards the camp. And they were not alone. Just on the horizon, hundreds of Marine Battleoids, were running towards him. Or as he thought more about it, towards the Chohish camp. Smiling, he knew that indicated the shields had been knocked out.

  And if that was not enough, he felt the feathers on his arm rise again just before the primaries smacked once more into the camp. Hawke screamed in pain as he was picked up and thrown dozens of yards away.

  With his right leg feeling like it had been broken, Hawke gingerly tried to rise. It did not take long to know he was in trouble. Blood ran freely down his face dripping off his chin while every area of his body ached. Gingerly, Hawke attempted to stand. Leaning on his left leg, he rose slowly trying to keep as much weight off the right one. The leg felt like it was going to collapse on him at any time. Finally, he was able to straighten enough to see what’s been happening around him.

  And he was not to be disappointed. The sound and the shock wave from the fighter’s arrival were unmistakable. With glee in his heart, Hawke watched as the fighters now took their turn. A dozen fighters, flying just a hundred feet from the ground, let loose missile after missile followed by their lasers. The plain was covered in smoke, ash, dirt and dust. Visibility of what was happening in the camp was nigh impossible.

  Limping a few feet, he was going to try his wings out when he was reminded of another presence. The Marine Battleoids had arrived, dozens and dozens of them. He could identify the RGN Battleoids but a good many were a type he had never seen before. The markings though made it easy to know where they came from.

  Especially one of the four racing directly towards him. That one was colored in shades of red and black with the arms decorated like streaming flames. It and its fellows were smaller than the RGN’s, but he would bet no less lethal.

  Four battleoids pulled up in front of Hawke and the faceplate on the decorated one opened to show the smiling face of Jeanne. “Well, my friend, we all watched your heroic actions. But we need to get moving. I brought an empty battleoid with me for you and a friend to help you out. Your Captain said you would not have any problems managing one of these battleoids, I hope you still are with your injuries. Our controls are slightly different than the RGN’s though. Your target is still in the area where you took him down. A little banged up, but should be alive, hopefully. Got to run my friend, I have some fish to feed.”

  With that Jeanne closed her faceplate and took off with another one following. Turning towards the other two Battleoids, he saw one was open and displaying an empty cavity. Limping heavily, Hawke tried, but was unable to raise his leg high enough to climb in. Not until a large metal hand came around his right side and assisted, more like it did all the work as he could no longer move his leg. The hand, joined by another, placed him inside the Battleoid so he was facing out.

  The Battleoid slowly closed around him and did not stop until it was snug, leaving his head the only area that had room to move. Feeling better almost immediately, Hawke had to admit, it was more comfortable than an RGN model. The soft hum of the air purifiers could barely be heard, although he could feel a slight breeze on the left side of his face. And then he felt the pin prick. “Oh, that feels so good…” he thought as the pain in his leg started to subside from the drugs administered by the AI battleoid.

  Feeling the Battleoid encase his right leg in a quick foam sealant, Hawke started running some tests to see what controlled what. It did not take long to become comfortable enough to start moving, barely.

  “Sergeant Melinda Matheson here, but better known as Mel by my friends. Is there anything on the Battleoid controls that I can help you with?”

  Looking at Mel’s Battleoid, he noticed it was pitted like it had already seen action. That reminded Hawke that the personnel here had been dealing with the Chohish long before the Lucky Strike made orbit.

  “Hi Mel, thanks, I think I can manage movement for the moment. But I am glad to have you around as I would hate to run into any Chohish as these weapon controls are not so obvious. Maybe you can give me some instructions on how to operate them as we go pick up our package.”

  “I will be glad to, but time is very limited. I suggest, sir, that you hoist the Chohish and I will guard your back. These Chohish are tough cookies and you do not want to meet one with your arms full.”

  As his Battleoid started moving to get his package, he watched as the other Battleoids reached the camp. Most of the Chohish heavy weapons were knocked out and the few that hadn’t, were being targeted by the fighters. The camp had been hit hard, but there were still plenty of armed Chohish around.

  Picking up speed slowly to ensure his leg could support the effort, Hawke adjusted the display of the camp in the immediate area to the top right side of his view screen. The first several Battleoids met a group of Chohish and he saw just how deadly the Battleoids were. They were hit by lasers and other weapons. But the Battleoids individual shields shrugged off the lasers with little damage and the other weapons had little, if no effect, against the super hardened tungsten alloy.

  Then the Battleoids let loose. The Chohish wore leather armor only and it did not impede the fire from the lasers that arose from the left shoulders of the Marines. Nor from the small Gatling guns on the right shoulder. Both were AI controlled unless overridden by the human in the suit. And if this was not bad enough, each Battleoid had a fusion rifle in one hand and an oversized knife in the other. Hawke could see that the operators of these Battleoids knew their business.

  Loping at a decent clip now, Hawke was getting close to where he had left the Chohish officer when he saw Jeanne and Jan enter the fray. Where most used brute force to bring the Chohish down, Jeanne used finesse. She danced around her opponents and used her rifle and knife in a deadly combination. With alarm he saw Jeanne get surrounded by five
Chohish.

  Stopping with the intention of going back to assist, even though he knew he would be too late, Hawke watched as Jeanne and Jan fought for their lives.

  One Chohish was cut down by the shoulder laser from Jeanne while another met his end when she swung her fusion rifle into his face firing on full auto. The Battleoid that he presumed Jan was in, grabbed one Chohish by his chest harness with his left hand while wrapping his right arm around his neck and squeezed hard in a crushing embrace. The last two Chohish screaming in rage, fired their rifles towards Jan but he was not where they expected. Their blasts smashed into the Chohish Jan had been holding as he had dropped to the ground and rolled. Before they could fire again, he let loose with his own fusion rifle.

  One Chohish was hit in the chest and disintegrated before Hawke’s eyes. Body parts went everywhere. The other Chohish, distracted by flying body parts, was lowering his rifle towards Jan when Jeanne threw her knife, end over end, into the temple of the Chohish.

  Standing up, Jan walked towards Jeanne while stopping by the Chohish corpse to retrieve Jeanne’s knife. The Chohish body raised up several feet from the ground before it came loose, the knife had been buried so deep. Tossing the knife to Jeanne, they both took off running towards another group of Chohish.

  The sound of a woman chuckling echoed in Hawke’s ears through the Battleoids speakers. “God, I love to watch those two in action.”

  A small shudder crept up Hawke’s spine when he thought of where he was just a short time ago. And to think the RGN had thought of attacking the planet Tortuga with only twelve divisions of Marines. Thankfully, Jeanne and her folk were on their side in this fight, he would have hated meeting her and her kin in battle. It would have been bloody; about that he had no doubt.