Heavy Carnage

by Eric S. Brown

  “Good. I want you to light up their world,” he ordered.

  The three mechs lumbered to a halt as Hammer stopped and whirled about in the direction of the pack that was trailing them.

  “One nice, clean shot Steven,” Robert warned.

  “You got it sir.”

  The flash of the volley leaving Hammer’s launchers temporally blinded Robert and he cursed himself for not remembering to tone down the infra red input on his display screen.

  The ensuing explosion lit up and rocked the woods where the pack had been located. Steven whooped over the comm. Heavy Carnage’s sensors confirmed that Steven had gotten them all with the single strike.

  “Area clear sir,” Steven reported.

  “No…” Gayle cut Robert off before he could congratulate Steven. “I’ve got incoming from the South, West, and East.”

  “East?” Steven whispered in clear disbelief. East was the direction they were heading in and where the dropship waited.

  Maybe the beasts were smart enough to leave a guard at the ship after all, Robert thought.

  “The things are closing fast sir!” Gayle yelled. “They must have seen Hammer’s launch or heard it!”

  “Fine,” Robert snarled. “If they want a fight this bad, let’s give them one.”

  ****

  The first wave of beasts emerged from the trees, coming in on Lady Luck’s side of the defensive formation the three mechs fell into. Lady Luck wasn’t a true up close combat mech like Heavy Carnage nor was she an artillery unit like Hammer, she was a support unit, designed to fill in the gaps left by mechs like Heavy Carnage on the line. Her armor and weapons were lighter than either of the other mechs but she could still hold her own. Gayle wrestled the controls of Lady Luck deploy the flamethrower on its right arm in time to meet the advancing beasts. A geyser of orange flames erupted from the weapon hitting the beasts head on. The hair of the lead beasts’ ignited as their flesh charred and their howls of pain echoed in the trees. Robert spun Heavy Carnage’s upper body to bring his tribarrels to bear on the slowed and dying beasts, the high velocity rounds cutting them to pieces where they stood.

  Another pack of creatures came at them on Hammer’s side. Hammer’s only close in weapons were six foot long swords that extended from its upper forearms. Steven popped the blades and waited for the beasts to come to him, slashing into the monsters as they charged forward. As strong as the beasts were, Hammer was far stronger. The motors of its arms whined and hummed as the mech engaged the beasts. Its left arm impaled one Sasquatch, lifting its twitching corpse into the air, as its other arm came down in a wicked arc, cutting a second beast in half along the middle of its body from head to groin. With Steven at its controls, Hammer fought like a rage filled berserker, flinging Sasquatch body parts in all directions as the mechs’ blades continued slash and stab any of the beasts dumb enough to get close to it.

  The third wave of beasts joined those pouring towards Lady Luck. Robert repositioned Heavy Carnage to stand shoulder to shoulder with her. Heavy Carnage’s tribarrels spun, spitting streams of death in the beasts’ ranks even as Lady Luck‘s flamethrower lit the night.

  The beasts died by the dozens but for every one that fell, three more took its place. When Robert felt the impact of a beast landing on Heavy Carnage’s he knew they were going to be overrun. Steven was doing the best he could in Hammer but the mech’s melee weapons were simply no match for the number of beasts they were facing.

  Robert swiveled Heavy Carnage’s huge head around to get a real look at just how bad Hammer was fairing. What he saw was far worse than he’d imagined. Two dozen or more beasts clung to Hammer, trying to bring the large mech to the ground. Hammer was fighting valiantly but the beasts now had the upper hand. Robert watched as the mech was overpowered and Hammer crashed over to land on its back, bumping into Lady Luck as it did so. The impact caused Lady Luck to stumble forward. Somehow, Gayle managed to keep Lady Luck on its feet though and resumed spraying the advancing the beasts coming at her with thick geysers of fire.

  “Steven!” Robert screamed. He couldn’t abandon his spot in the formation to help Hammer and even if he could, the rounds from his tribarrels were powerful enough to pierce Hammer’s armor. A stray shot would be just as lethal to Steven as the beasts swarming over Hammer were likely to prove to be.

  Inside Hammer’s cockpit the control panel lights flickered and dimmed; alarms sounding as systems began to fail. Steven flipped several switches only to find that what he feared was true. Hammer was dying and him with it. Another alarm began to sound in his ear. The beasts were pulling open compartments. It wouldn’t be long before the figured out how to pry open the body of the mech and get to him.

  Steven’s lip curled into a snarl and he made up his mind. “Robert, you’ve got sixty seconds to get to a minimum safe distance.” He crossed his fingers that the comm system was still working.

  Inside Heavy Carnage the speaker crackled with static, “Rob…. static ixty seconds…. static get… static distance….” Robert checked his comm and tried to boost the gain. He wasn’t sure he had heard that correctly. WHAM! One of the monsters had thrown a large boulder right at the cockpit. With a flip of his wrist, he ended the troublesome stone thrower with tribarrel 30mm slugs of exploding death. Swinging the barking barrels in an arc, Robert cleared a swath large enough to try to work the controls of the comm system to get a solid signal. Before he could even begin to contact his comrade again, a red light flashed on his HUD. Crap!

  Keying the comm for Lady Luck, Robert said, “Gayle, we need to get out of here NOW! Steven has set his missile payload to detonate.”

  Gayle checked her display; shock at what she was seeing crossed her face, “NO! Steven, don’t do it!” Static.

  Realizing that Steven had set a play in motion that could not be stopped, Robert made the only decision that could be made, “Gayle, I’m going to cut a path bearing zero-nine-zero. Deploy all your flares when I tell you.”

  Bounced by another impact, Gayle replied, “Affirmative.”

  Flipping the safeties off the countermeasure board, Robert said, “On my count. Three…. two…. one…. Deploy!”

  Both mechs simultaneously dumped their entire load of counter measure flares. The resulting maelstrom of light and sound was impressive. Launchers all along each mechs back spewed dozens of flares in rapid succession, creating fans of intense light that illuminated a two hundred yard radius. Inside the mechs the machines automatically dimmed the view ports and cameras to protect their occupants. The hoard outside wasn’t as prepared for the sudden light show. Involuntarily, hairy hands and arms went up to protect unshielded eyes. Howling in rage and pain, some even tried to stumble away.

  Robert slammed the throttle to full, “That’s our cue. Lady Luck, stay on my six.”

  Heavy Carnage leaped forward into the crowd of blinded Sasquatch; smashing some underfoot and blowing holes in others with tribarrels of spinning death. Lady Luck slid in behind and cleaned up anything that was left still alive. The two cut an ever-lengthening path away from Hammer. A few of the hairy bipeds had been spared being blinded and were trying to make their way to intercept the departing mechs. However, the less fortunate beast hampered their progress.

  Steven smiled as he watched his comrades make a break for it. Flipping the protective cover off his thumb switch, he reached over with the other hand and set a sixty second delay on all the remaining warheads in Hammer’s missile bays. With a smile of resignation, he flipped the switch, engaging the countdown. The pounding from the outside seemed to intensify and a few of the control boards sparked and cracked in protest to the overloads they were suffering. He glanced at the counter. Forty-five seconds. Another alarm added itself to the din. Selecting the screen with the warning: Steven sighed. They were going to get the mech open before the payload detonated. The wailing alarm indicated that the seals along the cockpit were under a significant stress and were about to fail. Calmly, he pulled his firearm and checked t
hat it was ready. He laughed a sick little laugh as he looked at the small pistol. A lot of good this will do, he thought. Popping the release on the five-point harness, he readied himself. Thirty seconds.

  The scream of rending alloy alerted Steven to the imminent failure of his mech’s containment. One minute the mech was protecting his fragile body and the next it wasn’t. Looking up, he couldn’t even count the number of beast that huddled over the top of him. Feral eyes blazed at him and massive hands reached. With a deliberateness that he was surprised he had in himself, Steven picked the closest monster, raised his pistol and neatly placed a round through its left eye. The effect was instant and gratifying as the beast grunted and fell to the side of Hammer, quite dead.

  In the moments that followed, Steven was surprised to find himself eerily calm. One of the Sasquatches grabbed him and pulled him from the cockpit. He tried to shoot the hairy thing between the eyes without success, the small rounds doing only minor damage to the already ugly face. With a last effort, he threw the useless weapon at his tormentor. The gun bounced harmlessly off the things chest. With a roar that seemed to shake the very ground itself, the beast pulled off the offending arm.

  Everything was surreal for Steven. He was intellectually aware that he had lost an arm. However, his mind had done what it was designed to do in situations of extreme pain and duress. It had dumped a myriad of chemicals to help numb him from his impending death. Even in his fogged state, he was able to smile as he heard the solid tone indicating that only five seconds remained on the timer.

  Smiling through bloody teeth, Stevens spit his last, “I’ll see you in Hell!”

  A second later, the remaining ordinance on board Hammer went off in high order; every scrap of explosive going off at the same instant. For the briefest of moments it was as if a small star had been born where Hammer once laid, the expanding ball of fire and heat vaporizing everything in its path. The creatures that were far enough away to not be instantly turned to dust, burst into flames, howling and reeling like animated roman candles. Further out, the shock wave slammed into flesh, causing internal damage and broken bones. In an instant hundreds of the monsters were dead or dying. Unfortunately, it was only a fraction of the bodies this hellish planet could produce.

  Heavy Carnage and Lady Luck, while mostly clear of the blast zone, were buffeted by the expanding shock wave. Checking his rear camera, Robert was astonished by what he saw. Burning trees, bodies, and a crater that was the final resting place of his friend Steven. What grieved him the most was the waves of Sasquatch still streaming from the tree line. Checking his map, Robert made a change in plans.

  “Gayle. Change to course zero-nine-three. I have an idea.”

  Gayle looked at her HUD and realized what he had in mind. “Are you sure we can make it?”

  Robert paused before answering, “No.”

  Gayle shuddered at his response, but agreed, “Okay. I always knew you were crazy.”

  Robert turned off his mic before saying aloud, “Yeah… Well this is crazy even for me.”

  Both mechs accelerated and quickly began leaving the chasing pack behind. Pressing the machines as fast as they could go required them to place all the other systems into standby or low power to conserve on the heat build up. It was a dangerous play, running full tilt with minimal sensors. Even so, it had to be done. The Sasquatch were fast and seemed to be able to call to others ahead and alert the packs of their approach. Several times the sensors almost didn’t give enough time to evade as a group of the hulking creatures would come out of trees. Their chilling shrieks loud enough to even be heard inside the cockpits of the rumbling mechs.

  Trying to cut some of the tension, Gayle keyed her mic, “They don’t seem to be happy about us being here.”

  The ridiculousness of the comment caused Robert to relax, if only slightly, “No they don’t seem to be interested in what we’re selling.”

  Gayle smiled, “No kidding. They didn’t even let me tell them about the extended warranty.”

  That brought an outright toothy grin from Robert. “You’re welcome to stop and discuss it with them.”

  Shaking her head, Gayle replied, “Oh no. I’ll just keep moving thank you very much.”

  The two mechs marched along for another half klick before Gayle spoke again.

  “Sir, are we going to make it out of this?”

  Roberts pressed his lips together into a thin line, not sure how to respond. Finally, he said, “I’m grasping at straws. I don’t know if we are going to be able to get out of this mess.” He paused before going on. “I’ll tell you this though. I haven’t given up and neither should you.”

  It was comforting to hear that he hadn’t given up. It was just what she needed. “I’m with you sir. I won’t let you down. I’m ready to get home.”

  Robert nodded, “Good. So am I. When I get back I’m going to do two things. First, I’m going to find Steven’s mother and let her know that he died to save us. Two, I’m going to find the nearest pub and have a cold one.”

  Gayle broke into a toothy smile. “That sounds good. I’d like to tag along if that’s okay.”

  “I would be happy to have you along lieutenant.”

  Robert checked his map. They were almost in position. Another kilometer or so and it would be time to let Lady Luck loose. Gayle’s mech was special in that it was designed for a supporting role. It was much faster than its heavier companions so that it could work the flanks of a battlefield. The lower profile made it a great scout. It could bridge multiple mechs and coordinate their fire. Best of all, it could lay down anti mech mines to protect weak spots in a line. Robert wasn’t sure the Sasquatch would trigger the mines, but they were going to find out.

  Coming to the top of the hill, Robert slowed the Heavy Carnage to a stop. Lady Luck came along side before stopping. In front of them sprawled a sizable canyon. Directly across from them was the narrowest point for ten klicks in each direction.

  Gayle spoke first, “Are you sure we can make that?”

  Robert had no idea if the combined speed of a full run and jump thrusters would allow them to make it. He was pretty sure Lady Luck could make it with ease. Heavy Carnage on the other hand, he wasn’t so sure. Instead of raining on the parade, he said, “We should make that with some room to spare.”

  Gayle wasn’t completely convinced, “I think you’re full of crap.”

  Robert replied, “It’s too late to change our minds now.”

  Pulling up the command and control he sent the coordinates and layout for the mines to Lady Luck’s computer. “Set up along here. They should bottle neck along this area.”

  Turning the agile mech, Gayle moved to the area Robert had indicated. Setting the parameters of the dispersal, she next set the sensitivity of the mines. Dialing them back to their lightest setting. With a final check, she flipped the switch to deploy the mines. Both shoulders and several compartments along Lady Luck’s back opened up to reveal the smart mine launchers. Hundreds of triangular mines swarmed out of the bays and began planting themselves in the hard packed soil. It took less than five minutes to complete the minefield.

  Gayle toggled her comm, “Any of them coming that way are in for a surprise.”

  Robert had been busy trying to create an uplink to the drop ship. He had hopes that he might be able to tap into its defenses and even send out some of its attack probes…. if he could get the system to reinitialize. Checking his tactical HUD, he said, “Good. Come back up here and….” A warbling alarm cut him off in mid sentence. Checking the cause of the alert, his heart sank. They had both been so busy they didn’t see the group of fifty or so moving through the trees to their right flank. Lady Luck was in real danger. “Gayle, get out of there!”

  Spinning Heavy Carnage around to face the approaching beasts, he spooled up the weapons systems and began cutting away at the crowd with 30mm chunks of exploding lead. In Lady Luck Gayle pushed the throttle full out to get away from the approaching group. Turning, she
realized this group of Sasquatch had been sneaking up on them. Once they realized they were spotted, almost as one they stood and charged. Pulling on the controls hard, Gayle worked to get Lady Luck facing away from the oncoming onslaught. Her eyes went wide as she saw one of the massive beast charge out with a large log raised above its head, ready to throw.

  Before she could get her mech turned the beast loosed the log. Time for Gayle slowed as she watched the log fly through the air at her. With a sickening thud, the heavy log hit Lady Luck’s left leg just as it was fully loaded with all the mechs weight. The counterforce of the impact only pushed the joint of the leg sideways by an inch or so. However, with the full 40 tons of weight on the leg, it was enough. In a screech of metal and scream of failing hydraulics, the leg gave way causing the machine to pancake on the ground.

  Inside, warning lights flashed and alarms whooped. The impact of hitting the ground momentarily stunned Gayle. Shaking her head, she tried to push back the fog. In her ear, Robert sounded distant. Blinking, everything finally snapped into focus. Robert was screaming at her to get up and head for the ravine. Pulling on the controls to stand had no effect. Checking the systems board to her right, she understood why. The left leg was showing critical damage at the joint. She wasn’t going anywhere. Before she could key up the comm to advise Robert, the banging on the exterior started. They were on her.

  Robert moved closer to Lady Luck trying to keep the things off downed mech. It wasn’t working. Every time he would focus his efforts, he would have to swing around to save his own skin. To make things worse, his sensors showed that hundreds more of the filthy beasts were closing fast.

  Flipping the switch to open the channel, Robert tries to control his wavering voice, “Gayle, you have to get moving. I can’t keep them off you!”