Chapter 344 (1/2)
--OPEN FIRE RED DEVILS-- appeared in Palgret's vision.
”OPEN FIRE, SWORD HOOF!” Lieutenant Mu'ucru'u yelled out.
”Pew pew!” the sarcastic black mantid yelled.
”BRRRT!” the other one yelled.
Palgret glanced and saw the Terran was just standing back with everyone else, swinging his arms slowly, breathing heavily. The sarcastic black mantid was firing his short rifle, every shot a streak of light that caused a bright white flash of antimatter.
Palgret aimed his weapon, pulling the stock tight against his shoulder, looking down the holographic sight, and pulled the trigger. He kept tapping it and letting up, tapping the firing stud and releasing it. His weapon burped out three to five rounds a show.
BRRRRRRT! the roar made Palgret looked over.
The black mantid's abdomen wasn't as thick as Palgret had thought, the top of his armor turned out to be a an armored housing that had unfolded to reveal two quad-barrel miniguns that were spitting fire and smoke, the barrels already red. 281 was on the back of the setup, doing something, Palgret had no idea what.
The corridor filled with explosions as two solid bars of light jumped from the mantid's back to down the hallway. The bright white and blue flashes of antimatter rounds slamming into the clankers filled the hallway.
Palgret let off his trigger, just watching as his holo-sight overloaded and his visor's light amplification overloaded. His armor struggled for a moment, then compensated for the visor, but his holo-sight stayed overloaded.
”BRRRT! BRRT!” the mantid yelled. ”BRRT BRRT!”
Palgret saw the other three Maktanan had stopped firing as well. Even the Lieutenant had stopped firing, just staring at the sheer firepower going out.
--FIRE IN THE HOLE-- 030 broadcast. He triggered the small missile launcher, no longer than the width of Palgret's hand.
The two black mantid stopped firing as the missile, no bigger than Palgret's finger, flew out and into the tunnel.
The whole tunnel went white, lighting the entire chamber the shrieking array had been in. Debris blew out of the tunnel as 030 cocked the rocket launcher, feeding another missile into it.
Palget just blinked, staring.
”Cease fire,” Lieutenant Mu'ucru'u said in the suddenly silence.
”No movement further back. All my sensors for about three hundred meters are gone now,” the sarcastic one said.
--head on swivel-- 030 ordered.
”Check your weapons. Look for barrel, coil, or shroud stress,” Lieutenant Mu'ucru'u said. He followed his own instructions by disassembling the forward hand-grip and giving the components a quick Mark 1 Eyeball. ”Remember to check the connectors between the power bar and the last magnetic ring.”
281 scurried over, climbing up on the damaged piece of machinery and motioning. --let see--
Lieutenant Mu'ucru'u held out the weapon. 281 looked at, then tapped a few spots. --can fix ten mikes--
”Um, all right,” the Lieutenant said. He turned to his troops. ”One at time, come up and get your weapon adjusted. They'll be here soon.”
281 moved over the black mantid with the gunnery harness that held the two snub nosed quad-barrels, making some adjustments.
”Penetration wasn't that good. See if you can up the armor penetration on my rounds, will you, 281?” the black mantid asked.
Palgret just knelt down behind his makeshift barricade, watching.
”No signals yet,” the sarcastic one said.
Palgret couldn't remember his name for the life of him, and all it said on his visor was ”L98-A Three” and that was it. Palgret found it odd that the other Maktanan and the Lieutenant were listed as ”L98-A Auxiliary” with a number.
When it was his turn he watched 281 replace several parts in his rifle. Two of the coils of his rifle looked fine to him but the little mantid put them to the side.
”I couldn't see when the miniguns opened up,” Palgret said.
281 opened up the sight, looking at it, then told Palgret to stay there. He came back a minute later with parts and replaced the chipset in the sight. After Palgret moved back to his position the little mantid replaced everyone's holosight molycircs.
”Getting movement. Looks like at least a dozen. Judging by interrupt time, they're the size of ground cars,” the sarcastic one said. ”They didn't trigger all of them, looks like they came off a side corridor since they triggered the entry detectors.”
--repositioning-- 030 said. --everyone to rear exit--
”They might have prisoners,” the Lieutenant said, his tendrils curling with anxiety.
--affirmative-- 030 said. --will kill us we hesitate--
”True,” the Lieutenant said. ”Why to the back?”
--if pull back pull back deeper in-- 030 said.
”Our reinforcements?” the Lanaktallan asked.
--not here yet-- 030 said.
Palgret followed as everyone repositioned past the destroyed shrieking array, walking around the thick ash that had once been living people as well as the equipment they had been connected to. At the rear of the room the big human grabbed large pieces of equipment and placed them at 030's direction to provide cover.
030 motioned at the big human to come over. Palgret wasn't privy to the conversation but the human moved over to the side, crouching down beside a huge piece of equipment that went two third of the way up to the ceiling.
--all personnel hold fire until orders-- 030 said.
”They're a two and a half clicks out,” the sarcastic one said. ”Moving slow.”
--go-- 030 said.
Palget watched 281 streak across the room toward dark hallway.
The quieter one, L98-A-2, moved position, crouching down, the guns on his back pointing at the entryway.
Palgret tabbed up another piece of stimgum.
281 came streaking back, his jet firing with enough power it was making noise, the shimmering of a graviton generator beneath him. He banked hard, moving up by the ceiling, then cut the engine, spiraling down.
--light combat vehicles-- 030 told everyone. --the SIA knows we here--
”Pew pew,” the sarcastic one said, hefting his rifle. He cocked the attachment on the bottom. ”Might have to move to something heavier.”
A low growl sounded through the chamber.
”Do they have prisoners?” the Lieutenant asked.
--not applicable-- 030 said. --combat vehicles--
Palgret had served under Lieutenant Mu'ucru'u long enough to tell the officer was distressed, but also knew why the Lanaktallan stayed silent.
Precursor vehicles were tough. Inches of battlesteel, usually with battlescreen, point defense, antipersonnel, rockets, missiles, multiple weapon systems.
And Palgret knew nobody was carrying anti-vehicle weapons.
”Remember, men. Let the Confederate troops handle the vehicles. Provide support by aiming at weapons, antipersonnel strips, and any running gear. Engage smaller units and any non combat units with priority fire,” the Lieutenant said. He pointed at Culvit. ”Use your grenade launcher when you can. Watch out for the human.”
”Yes, sir,” Culvit said.
The Lieutenant felt a flush of pleasure at his men using the Terran rank system. It sounded more professional, like the formality that his peers so loved had been stripped away. Like removing the decorations from an overly ornate weapon to find a wholly serviceable mag-rifle beneath the opulence.
”There's more coming. It's steady. He knows we're here,” the sarcastic one, Three, said. ”I've got a hundred and counting.”
--wants us bad-- 030 said. He jumped off of Palgret's shoulder, taking cover next to where Palgret had his rifle steadied. --let him come see the red devils-- He checked the rocket launcher with the small round ball on the side.
From behind the equipment the human gave a low growl that echoed through the room.
”Sixty seconds. They've slowed down,” Three said. ”Looks like the vehicles are waiting for their support.”
The human knelt down, one fist against the chamber floor, the other fist pressed against his forehead. Palgret could see the human was whispering to himself. At the end of whatever he was saying he opened his hand and slid his flat hand down his face like he was wiping it off. He then straightened up, stretched, and gave a low growl, one hand on the top of the equipment.
Has he gotten larger?
”Ten seconds, they'll be inside the room,” Three said. He spit his cigarette out of his mandibles and onto the floor, his helmet unfolding and covering his head again.
Palgret saw the red eyes come around the corner. He leveled his rifle, licking his lips. His mouth was dry and he suddenly had to urinate. His arms, his trigger finger, suddenly felt tired.
--hold--
The eyes widened into large IR sensors.
--hold--
The vehicle came into the room. It was tracked, only a little taller than the human, twice the width. It was followed by two more.
Palgret licked his dry lips as three more came in. All were tracked vehicles, bristling with weapons. They started moving into the black ash. Palgret could see their IR laser ranging devices probing the room, looking for whoever had destroyed the shrieking array.
--NOW-- 030 transmitted --GIVE IT TO 'EM FRANKY--