The team was able to put down the minimal resistance without gunfire. Everyone stayed nice and quiet. Most of the time it went smoothly like that. There was one other incident. I suppose we should include that in the Journal.
Just a minor skirmish, right Rock? All right, don’t get testy, I’ll spill it.
It was the very last ship of course. I may have let my guard down because of that. Letting my guard down was a mistake, especially since we ran into an odd circumstance. Several bugs were in the storage room and needed clearing. There had only been the two other instances, with bugs wandering in the storage area. But there were several bugs on this occasion. Roll popped out and gave us a sitrep. He said it would only be a minor holdup, then he popped back to the ship.
Rock and I were having some trouble with the arming mechanism for the bomb anyway. The circuit showed yellow, jumped to green, then yellow. It cycled like that several times, then finally stayed green. But we weren’t in the mood for a moody circuit.
Roll soon appeared and reported they had cleared the room. Rock asked Roll to help him swap out the arming mechanism from a spare bomb, just to be sure. I pointed out there were two perfectly good bombs just sitting there. Why not just use one of those? With that it would only be a simple timer setting. No need to swap an arming mechanism. Obvious, right? That’s what happens when you’re tired and worn out. I set the timer on a fresh bomb, all systems were green, so we ported onto the ship.
Rock is jabbering at me. What are you complaining about now? Why am I writing all that? It’s what happened! Don’t worry, I’ll get to the skirmish. I am not ... setting the mood. Look, we’re all tired. That’s why I made all the stupid mistakes that almost got me killed. I was tired. I am tired. You’re tired too. And that’s why you were going to swap out an entire arming device instead of just setting a stupid timer. Well, I was not trying to make myself look good. It’s just what happened. Oh, all right. Let me finish this so we can get some sleep.
The rest of the group had moved down a passageway to check on a noise. I had one of those niggling feelings. I was sure I had set the timer for 09:00. But did I choose September 7th? Or did I choose September 6th? It would take two seconds to wander to the other side of the wagon and check. No big deal. The room had been cleared. We were sloppy, so tired, that no one bothered to run a scan to make sure no bugs were hiding. I asked Rock to check in on the rest of the group while I verified the timer date.
That was the start of a series of mistakes. It’s good to learn from mistakes, right? The first mistake, never be without a squad buddy. If it’s at all possible, someone should be watching your back. But I was left alone in the room, at my own insistence. And there was a bug hiding on an overhead girder. We think he must have snuck away for a bug-nap. Those other bugs that the team cleared out were probably looking for their buddy. Well, he or she, it, woke up. I never saw it until the thing dropped to the deck.
Clank. Clank, clank. It was coming for me. Nice and slow, like it was savoring the moment. Or maybe it was afraid. I’m just not sure. But I was alone with the bug. Unarmed. Stupid me, I had unslung my rifle, laid it on the deck, and moved to the other side of the wagon to check the timer.
That was my second mistake, leaving my rifle out of reach. The bug was moving toward me. I looked at the rifle and so did the bug. Bugs can move quick, no way to get to the rifle in time.
Third mistake, no side arm. That was too many mistakes to live through in a combat zone. Instead of being afraid, I was mad at myself. Then I blamed it all on lack of sleep. I could have cloaked for crying out loud. I did pull my knife. Rock had heard the clanking of the bug over the open comms (and I might have squeaked just a little). He popped in to see what was up.
The bug looked a little shocked. Where had THAT human come from? The bug turned its head toward a “button” on the wall. Form fits structure. It was obviously an alarm. Rock shouldered his 6.8. Snap. Jammed. Are you kidding me? The bug started for the alarm. Rock pulled his .45 and ported between the bug and the alarm. The bug slapped Rock’s hand with a serrated claw, knocking the gun away and drawing blood.
Hand to claw then. Rock took a step back and pulled his KA-BAR. Knife against claws, jaws, and stinger. Close enough.
The bug accepted the challenge, pumping his head up and down. Something was different though. There was reluctance. This bug wasn’t looking forward to the fight. It was more duty than desire with this one. Probably no berserker drug involved.
The bug leaped high to take Rock in his upper torso. Rock did a front roll under the bug and came up fast slicing with his KA-BAR, impacting at the base of its stinger. Soft tissue with the stinger extended. The bug shrieked. It was eerie, sounding
