Gunny fired his weapon as he cut to the right, spraying a good thirty rounds downrange at their pursuers. He saw it with his own eyes, bullets bouncing off the armor as if he had blasted them with paintballs. A grenade went off near them, but whoever threw it didn’t get it close enough to make a difference.
More life signs winked out on his scanner. He was down to four people. Andrews came roaring in less than a mile off. Time on the scanner showed less than twenty seconds before he’d be in position. Gunny felt a burning pain in his left leg. He went down, a fall that probably saved his life as a beam whizzed by over him, scorching his back from proximity.
Hans seemed to still be alive, but all the others were done. Gunny crawled as the shuttle opened fire, turrets blazing with their familiar high-pitched pops. Those beams seemed to do the trick or at least they stopped the assault from the enemy. He tried to look, but the grass was too tall to see through while prone.
A strong hand grabbed the scruff of his armor, dragging him toward the shuttle. It was Alon. He didn’t have a weapon anymore but he seemed to be carrying Hans over one shoulder while dragging Gunny. That put him in a different category… at least in the soldier’s eyes. He thought he might’ve just been a coward before.
Perhaps he still was, but at least in that moment, the man stepped up and risked his own lives to save others. I’ll owe him one if we get out of here.
The shuttle set down. Andrews shouted into the microphone, but it distorted too much to make out the words. Gunny knew what he wanted. He was telling them to hurry… as if they were having a stroll. He didn’t bother to respond. The pain in his leg turned numb. He began to wonder if he had lost the limb… he refused to look.
Firing his weapon wildly behind them, it clicked as he spent the magazine. Dropping it, he reached for another. Gunny’s vision swam. He struggled to remain conscious, fighting through the pain. Enemy ships lifted off, dark boxes against the blue sky. Alon got them on the ramp.
“Take off!” Alon shouted the words, crying out again and again to get moving. He dropped Hans next to Gunny then slammed the panel to seal them in. “We’re on board! Door’s closed! Go! Go! Go!”
Gunny felt the ship lift off. He fought to sit up… struggled against the pain but eventually succumbed. Letting his head tap the floor, he turned to Hans. The man was still breathing, but otherwise didn’t move. I think we barely survived. He blinked at the HUD… couldn’t make out the tiny letters.
The only thing that remained clear were the flat lines by each name of his team… all the men gone. Cut down during their run. Murdered by the invaders with the most advanced technology Gunny had ever seen… or even thought of, for that matter. Such equipment changed the game of combat.
And we’re on the wrong side of this revelation. God help us… we’re going to need it.
Chapter 3
Red lights flickered on the hulls of the enemy ships, throwing out thin lines in their direction. The destroyers took the brunt of the assault. The Haley’s shields lit up briefly before winking out. Blobs of orange flame burst from long, melted lines of hull. They drifted forward, as if on the verge of spinning then exploded.
Debris flew in every direction, some of it entering the planet’s atmosphere while other parts drifted off into deep space. The force of their reactor going up threw it out there. Several smaller pieces connected with the Triton though the shields protected them from harm. The second destroyer went mere moments later, torn apart by a heavy barrage.
“Evasive maneuvers!” Rudy shouted. “Get us and above those things!”
That’s not going to help, Titus thought. The bristles over the enemy hull, all beam weapons… extremely powerful and apparently located in such a way as to keep them safe from any direction. They were offensive platforms, turrets with thrusters. He wondered if their shields had the potential to hold them off. Ours are stronger but will they be enough?
Ronin took the ship high, giving them altitude on the vessels before tilting their nose in their direction. He opened fire again, blasting away with everything they had. Enemy shields reacted to the attacks but only briefly, flaring up but quickly dimming again. Scans showed their energy readings remained off the charts.
We’re not doing a damn thing to them. Titus turned to his comm, reaching out to the ground crew. “You guys don’t have much time to get out of there. Andrews, are you on your way back yet?”
“I’m in the midst of coming back for them!” Andrews shouted. “There was some kind of trouble. A big ass explosion in the colony. I don’t know who’s alive and… wait. I’m seeing all kinds of activity. Muzzle flashes. Strange flickering lights. Sir, they’re reaching out to me. I need to go.”
“Get them back here as quickly as you can,” Titus said. “Captain, we need to plan our retreat. The shuttle’s coming back with our people. Recommend we plot a rendezvous using the curve of the planet to provide some cover from the enemy weapons. We can keep out of harm’s way…”
“We can’t outrun beams,” Rudy said, “and we’ve still got a job to do.”
“Sir, with all due respect…”
“Hold tight!” Jane’s shout interrupted him. A full attack slapped them in the bow. It didn’t cause them to shake, not like they
