First Contact - Fourth Wave - 471 First Telkan (2/2)

”Negative. Just the ”this message will not be repeated' message again,” the same person said.

Vuxten disliked the current situation. Marine doctrine stressed mobility, advancing into the enemy, overwhelming firepower. It was the Army's job to hold it once it had been taken.

Opening up a notepad he made a quick annotation to suggest that Marine Training have a section on digging in for more than just hunkering down during artillery storms, as well as suggesting more cross training with the Confederate Army.

”11th is firing,” Markal said, his voice flat and dead.

Vuxten turned back to watch. In the few minutes that there had been no counter from First Telkan the Dwellerspawn and the Type-IV's had swarmed into the city. Vuxten clenched his fists at the sight of entire crowds being 'harvested' and their bodies left behind for the next wave to devour. In the parks the Dwellerspawn were wading into the decorative lakes and ponds, the water starting to bubble and fizz. Around a Dwellerspawn the size of a cargo hauler a thick layer of reddish fungus seemed to be spreading out around the floating creature, covering the water.

”FOOF that,” Vuxten said, tagging that particular lake.

The detonations started. The High Impulse Thermobaric rounds exploded in white fire. Windows shattered, more than a few skyrakers shuddered and began to collapse. Fuel air explosions went off and more buildings began to collapse as the windows shattered for blocks around.

Vuxten picked up his helmet, turning it over in his hands as he watched.

The chemical rounds streaked across the city, deploying their nozzles from the shells and spinning. Some exploded, the trinary chemicals mixed by the spin of the weapon.

Vuxten squeezed his helmet, watching.

More HIT went off, lower now, flattening smaller buildings. Fires had started.

The Lanaktallan Most High of the city was frantically calling for a military base and a military Most High that had existed over a million years ago.

This time the, the third time, the Dwellerspawn started going at the bodies, then pulled back from them, pawing at the air, gnashing their jaws. It was obvious to Vuxten that they wanted to eat, but something was preventing them.

The mechanical attackers avoided the bodies, instead sweeping out of the city, running for the edge of the 'bump'.

Vuxten could feel the cold rage.

”Tell 17th to hold off on loading the nuclear rounds,” Vuxten snapped. ”Put out the T-Shift warning.”

”Sir?” One of the analysts asked, looking up. ”It should be another fifteen minutes.”

”Do it,” Vuxten snapped.

He could hear the warning being passed on.

The city wavered and dissolved with a sigh. Vegetation surged up out of the ground or appeared from mid-air.

The drones immediately began to do topography and thermal comparisons.

”6th Field Artillery is firing,” Markal said.

Vuxten just nodded, turning to where 471 was sitting up on a holotank with nearly two dozen other greenies.

”Anything?” Vuxten asked.

--limited temporal equipment templates beyond stabilizers-- 471 said. --doctrine hole--

”I know. Do what you can,” Vuxten said.

471 stared at the templates as he slowly, for him and his people, flicked through them. First Telkan had access to the full library of templates that Active Duty Confederate military forces had access to, but the Temporal section didn't go much beyond temporal stabilizers.

The air around him shimmered with equations and he looked at his fellow greenies, who were all looking around. Some had detectors cobbled together, others had on goggles, some had devices built to gauge levels.

471 looked down at the device in his hands of his own making.

There was temporal energy being released. The kind you got down past the event horizon of a black hole, where the chronotrons had been almost worn out by the time dilation of the intense gravity.

He looked at his fellows and they all compared data as they temporal shifting of the landscape finished. 884 was pointing at his own meters, which was ticking at the far end.

--temporal upspikes just like end of last shift-- 884 said.

--can see 'spawnies on thermo-- 369 said.

--first part delete old area-- 471 said. --release temporal hold old area go poof--

--natural temporal autocorrection-- 740 said. --still keeping spawnie and clankie--

--easy enough-- 884 said. --saw that with 2nd telkan division--

--next bring forward same spot but different time-- 471 one said.

--bring more spawnie next-- 884 said. --bio only. can only bring up clankie version during city--

471 stared at the equations that danced around in the air. --repeat repeat repeat--

Silence for a moment, broken only by the humm of the hologram projectors and the tiny nanoforges embedded in the greenie's abdomens.

--each pull is chronotron decay same-- 539 asked.

--yes-- 884 answered. --temporal shimmering by chronotron energy equalization from flat chronotron and energetic chronotron interaction shimmy shimmy--

471 suddenly reared up, pulling his bladearms close and raising his arms.

--YES-- he broadcast.

He threw up the equations fast, the others nodding.

Vuxten didn't see it, turned away and looking at the map of the battlefield. He reached up and slowly slicked back the fur on his head with one gauntlet clad hand. He felt like he'd run a mile in unpowered armor.

”There has to be a controller somewhere,” Vuxten mumbled, staring at the map. ”They shifted their tactic. Not much, but enough to try to counter us.”

It was raining outside, where before it had been clear. This time, when the jungle had appeared, dark heavy rainclouds had arrived with it. The defoliant was water soluble to keep it from contaminating the ground water, which meant it was having limited effect on the rain soaked and covered plants.

--need fab unit-- 471 said.

Vuxten looked down the list. ”Three nine two alpha isn't being used. Have at it.”

--too small. need class 5 or better-- 471 answered. --engine not forge--

Vuxten frowned and checked. ”Alpha two nine three is free. Use that one.”

--need spooky and strange particle engine that one not-- 471 said.

Vuxten checked again. There was an ammunition creation engine for the heavier rounds that wasn't in use. ”Use Echo Bravo six two five.”

--good good good-- 471 said. --gonna find em--

Vuxten nodded. Echo Company, 5th Battalion, 3rd Brigade was in contact with nearly twenty of the super-heavy class. He saw that 8th Battalion of 6th Armor Regiment was going to the assist and simply ordered them to do it anyway so they were covered.

After putting in a single complex order, 471 and his fellows went back to building the template. They'd need to use three drones instead of one, the equipment would interfere with each other if they were too close. It took several times, having to break when the dustbowl came back.

The drones going to check on Casey ran face first into a hellstorm of plasma fire that seemed to fill the entire bubble, that incinerated the Dwellerspawn as they crossed the bubble wall.

The heavy duty creation engine spit out two surface to air launchers, the heavy 120mm missiles gleaming dully in the sunlight.

Vuxten was about to order the defoliants to be used when he saw the fab that 471 requested go to work.

--wait wait wait-- 471 said.

Vuxten looked over and saw that all the greenies were cleaning their antenna while broadcasting smug emojis over their heads.

”All right,” Vuxten said. He ordered the field artillery units to hold off.

The fab produced nearly seventy drones, ejecting them so that they immediately took off on the slow graviton engines and nearly silent electrical turbines.

Vuxten noticed they were marked with psychic shielding, phasic suppressors, stealth material, optical camouflage system, and completely unarmed. They slowly climbed to roughly five hundred meters and deployed into a steady pattern in groups of four.

--now now now-- 471 said.

Vuxten turned and ordered the field artillery units to open fire, going to petroleum napalm, which would barely change the temperature on modern armor and shelters.

The jungle began to burn, the Dwellerspawn inside exposed as the steam and fire filled the air.

--almost-- 471 said.

Vuxten glanced over. All the greenies were flashing emojis of excitement and watching the drone feeds. He took a quick peek and his eyes almost crossed. It was raw data, not put in any semblance of anything he could understand, just steady streams of numbers.

Again Vuxten felt the rage and hatred, cold and icy, slide down his spine.

”GET READY!” he yelled.

--yes yes yes-- 471 said.

There was a ripple and the jungle vanished, to be replaced by the howling dust and particles.

--NOW-- 471 called out.

Outside the entire sky rippled.

--gottem gotten gottem-- 471 gloated.

884 tapped the pad and grabbed control of the two launchers.

Outside the launchers fired, all eight missiles, four launched by each launcher, screamed into the air. They immediately spread out, angling for different areas.

--looky looky looky-- 471 said, taking over the holotank.

Vuxten turned to look in time to see the drone feed off of one of the mapping drones appear.

A missile flew up, racing nearly eight hundred meters up.

It went off in a staged detonation. The purple flash of phasic energy, a weird golden-white flash.

A half dozen beings appeared, surrounded by a rippling purple nimbus, the energy thick at their feet. They were all grabbing their heads.

Vuxten noted with disgust that they looked almost as if they were covered with slime.

The last part went off.

No standard or exotic explosion. No explosively forged penetrator. No directed nuclear blast.

A four foot long carbon steel rod with a barbed end and cruelly barbed fins was deadfired from the missile.

One of the creatures got a hand up, as if he could ward off the harpoon, right as it hit him. The energy shattered and it fell to the ground.

The others vanished.

Vuxten looked over at the greenies, who were all jumping up and down.

--we see we kill-- 471 broadcast smugly.

”Good. Now do it again when we force them to phase shift this place again,” Vuxten said. He turned to the holotank and gave the orders to the VI helping him run the operation.

On the ground, every gun that could fire aimed upwards in a carefully coordinated fireplan. Canister rounds were loaded into mortars and artillery. Each round was tagged to be able to track trajectory and distance.

The Atrekna looked down, working together to increasing their personal shielding.

The enemy was up to something but what could they possibly do to possibly...

All the guns opened up.

Invisibility didn't help as every square meter had at least a dozen bullets or flechettes or canister rounds flying through it, all tracked.

Any round that exploded or went dead before hitting the previous ceiling had a dozen sent after it from different angles.

If those quit reporting, all the guns in the sector immediately focused on the area.

The Atrekna increased their attention to protecting themselves, reaching out to another Conclave that wasn't required to use their full power.

The landscape changed again.

The drones cycled again. Looking for any energy transfer between exhausted chronotrons and more energetic ones. Looking for the edges of any field found. Looking for any phasic energy leakage.

They found it, right where the exposed Atrekna were located.

The surface to air launchers on the ground fired again.

This time the harpoon was deflected every time.

But the pounding of the guns kept the Conclave in the air from bringing up reinforcements, instead requiring the vastly more inefficient method to be used outside the summoning area.

Vuxten smiled, for the first time in what felt like days.

”We can't hurt them, but they don't seem to be moving. Now they're just as pinned as we are,” he smiled. He turned to the gathered greenies.

”Nice job,” he smiled.

471 stepped forward and bowed.

The ones in back showed an image of Vuxten using his ration card to get a steaming hot turkey from a food dispenser.

”After we win this, I'll cook it myself,” Vuxten promised, turning back to the holotank.

The greenies all slapped bladearms and cheered.