Chapter 290 (1/2)

”It's obviously bullshit but it's cool, so I choose to believe it.” - Anonymous, Pre-Glassing Terra

And lo did he stride out against the invaders of his homeland, the feathers of a thousand phoenix and firebirds woven into his war bonnet. A tomahawk in one hand, his bow in another, astride his great horse. - The Tale of Crazed Horse Rider Titan, Pre-Glassing Terra, the Founding of the Hamburger Kingdom.

Tens of thousands fell in the battle, but at long last the Titan Rushmore was brought to his knees by the Thunder God Franklin in his lightning powered battle-mech. General George Washington, his teeth carved out of the bones of saints and prophets, uttered the words of power that would have killed any lesser man who had even once told a lie, and the Titan Rushmore collapsed into a deep dreamless sleep. - The Fall of the Mad Titan Rushmore, Founding of the Hamburger Kingdom.

And thus she was placed in the harbor for all to see that the New World was free of the terrible grasp of the Titans. On the plaque at her feet was inscribed: She feeds upon the tired, the poor, the hungry, the teeming masses who do not know what it is to be free. Guard against these sins, lest she awaken again. - The Legend of the Devourer of Liberty, Founding of the Hamburger Kingdom

”There is a powergun in every kitchen, a tank in every garage, and a Burgerlander behind every shard of glass with a rifle. They do not care if they die, they only seek to kill those who invade their crazed and insane lands. You may kill one, but the blood of a dozen of your brethren stain its skin.” -Mantid Speaker Proverb

”Eh, they're our little brother. You know how kids are...” - Your'o'Goon General, Pre-Glassing

The Lanaktallan couldn't hear the laughing of millions, billions of Mantids as they managed to land on one of the most heavily defended continents on northern hemisphere of Terra. It seemed to the pilots that more and more air defense systems were coming online every second, every minute, to the point where not only were the ships being destroyed coming in but the debris from those ships were being swept from the air.

Nearly twenty dropships managed to come in hard, leaving behind them a trail of exploded dropships, plummeting debris, and Lanaktallan in armor screaming as they fell to the ground. They slammed down, the ramps opening even as the shock killed nearly 10% of the troops on board, and the Military Fleet Forces rushed out of the dropships, knowing that missiles would soon be targeting the dropships.

The Grand Most High of the Task Force looked around at the pitiful remnants. He had been forced to abandon ship when his beautiful Leviathan Class planetary assault ship the Glory of Complete Dissolution had taken multiple C+ cannon hits and broken up.

Now he was standing on the soil of Terra itself, a breathing mask over his face and a combat harness on to protect him from nanites. He looked around and frowned.

There was a statue of a nearly naked Terran on the back of some kind of riding animal that had obviously been carved from an entire mountain. It was over a thousand feet tall, the Terran looked like a fierce warrior with hair made from avian feathers. It was thickly covered in the purplish green glass of orbital weapon hits.

The Grand Most High pointed at the statue. ”As soon as the artillery in set up, use that cultural site for target practice. The Mantid were not able to destroy it, so we shall.”

”Yes, Grand Most High,” the Great Most High of Artillery said. That was par for the course, destroy the enemies cultural sites, break their will to fight.

There was what looked like some kind of shop nearby and the Grand Most High clopped his way over to it. He went through it, looking at the objects for sale. Many of them featured that warrior, using a hand-axe to cleave through tanks painted red and white, swatting aerospace fighters from mid-air with one hand, and wading waist deep in water to destroy wet-navy ships.

The Grand Most High snorted. Such fables were for a weak and useless species, who insisted on having impossible legends to make up for their lack of accomplishments.

He did stop and stare at a large tapestry. It was titled ”The Mad Titan Crazy Horse Imprisoned by the Hero Sitting Bull” and showed the giant figure half turned to stone as several groups of people were chanting and billowing up clouds of smoke.

He snorted and turned away. Foolishness.

When he trotted out there was a flickering and a human suddenly appeared. A hologram, but still the Grand Most High drew his pistol and almost shot the hologram before he realized what he was doing.

”Uh, whatcha doin?” the hologram asked.

”We have come to destroy your primitive peoples. We'll destroy your pathetic cultural site then move in and destroy the planetary defense batteries,” the Grand Most High sneered.

”I wouldn't do that,” the hologram said.

”Pfft, you are in no position to make demands of the Great Herd,” the Grand Most High said.

”I'm serious. You mess with him too much you run the risk of waking him up. That wouldn't be a good idea,” the hologram said.

”Begone, lowly one,” the Grand Most High sneered and trotted away.

After some time had passed, which was strangely devoid of any attacks by the lemurs, the Great Most High of Artillery clattered up to the Grand Most High.

In the distance an aerospace fighter roared by but didn't come too close. Something that the Grand Most High had noticed.

”We are ready to begin test firing and calibration using that cultural site as a target,” the Great Most High of Artillery said.

”Excellent. Begin at your leisure,” the Grand Most High said.

The hologram appeared. ”I wouldn't do that. You're going to wake him up.”

The Grand Most High sneered. ”Begone, holographic pest.”

”Don't say I didn't warn you. The Red Warriors of the Plains National Association takes no responsibility for any injury or death incurred by your actions,” the hologram said before winking out.

The Great Most High of Artillery gave the order and the massive self-propelled guns of the Lanaktallan Military Fleet began to roar. Each shell that hit blew off chunks of the glass covering it, showering the area around the gigantic monument with shards of purplish green glass.

Overhead clouds started to gather.

After a few minutes the guns went silent while they were being recalibrated.

”Um, do you see that?” the 14th Most High of Military Intelligence said, looking at the giant monument with his vision macrobinoculars.

”See what?” the Grand Most High asked.

”Follow my laser designator, Grand Most High,” the lowly MilInt technician said.

The Grand Most High snorted with exasperation and lifted up his macrobinoculars, following the UV laser to where the lowly one was designating.

The Grand Most High frowned.

The glass, nearly six feet thick, had broken away from... something under the glass.

In the middle of the spiderweb of cracks that covered the glass, a large enough chunk was missing to expose what looked like bronze colored flesh. There was a tiny gash in it, tiny at this distance, and it was beginning to seep red fluid.

”Water and iron oxide perhaps?” The Great Most High of Power Armor asked.

”I'm unsure,” the Great Most High of Artillery said. ”Second battery is ready to fire.”

”Permission granted,” the Grand Most High stated.

For long minutes the artillery pounded the glass covered monument.

Then a shell hit just to the side of the lemur's nose and a huge chunk of glass fell hundreds of feet to shatter on the ground. The guns kept firing, exposing animal hide on the strange mount, exposing skin beneath the glass on the chest and leg.

The guns stopped. It was silent for a moment before a loud KA-RACK filled the air when another massive chunk of glass fell from the face of the monument.

Revealing a closed eye.

That opened.

It was the color of storms.

The Grand Most High stared in shock as the eye slowly became bloodshot and began to look around. The glass shuddered and squealed as it began to crack and fall from the figure.

With a roar that sounded like the world was ending the glass shattered and a vast figure raised up, blotting out the sun. It was a bronze skinned Terran, his black hair held beneath a bonnet of colorful feathers, his flashing eyes the color of storms, his muscles rippling as he twisted and flexed to break his way free of the glass.

The Lanaktallan artillery opened fire, the explosions smashing into the massive figure as it looked around. Astride the great mount he was almost two thousand feet tall. He looked down at the Lanaktallan.

Most of the Lanaktallan were just staring in shock.

Some were running away.

A handful died of fright when the massive figure had shook its way free of the glass.

It raised its hands up, lightning arcing down from the clouds to wreath the figure's hands and arms, even as it stared at the Lanaktallan.

The Grand Most High of the Task Force just stared, his nose and one ear starting to bleed.

The vast creature opened its mouth and roared in rage.

A third of the Lanaktallan died when their psychic shielding gave out and their brains boiled from their ears or their psychic shielding itself killed them.

It threw an object at one of the dropships.

A tomahawk.

Or rather... a Tomahawk.

The dropship exploded into fragments and the spell was broken. Lanaktallan started shooting even as the huge figure surged forward, throwing Tomahawk missiles with one hand and gathering lightning with the other.

The hooves of the massive horse shattered troopship armor, crushed tanks and Lanaktallan alike. The Tomahawks thrown by the massive figure blew apart dropships, warmechs, artillery pieces.

In the gift shop the VI watched and shook his head as he watched the Mad Titan Crazy Horse, driven mad by the Spirit of Jack Daniels, rout and then pursue the Lanaktallan forces.