Adrian Saunders
Reaching the settlement by nightfall would have been ambitious at the best of times, but the Agwarens moved slowly in spite of their size, and carrying a partially crippled companion was more of an impediment than he’d expected. Given their relatively poor night-vision, walking the jungle at night was out of the question, and Adrian would be damned if camping in the open was an option. Animals with brain bugs were bad enough, but mind-controlled Hunters was worse, and he would be on edge all night without a solid wall between him and the horrifying outside world. As things stood, they’d stumbled across the crashed Hunter ship at the last possible moment, leaving them in little doubt as to where they’d be staying the night.
“You want us to sleep in one of those places?” Aladyn asked sceptically. The vessel had once been similar in configuration to Spot, but only part of it had survived the crash landing. It looked abandoned, though he was paranoid enough that appearances counted for little, and was overgrown with such extensive vegetation that it seemed an ancient ruin; none of that mattered, though, because while it was useless as a starship it still had a solid metal hull and they were light on options.
“It’s got four walls,” Adrian replied, “and it doesn’t look like anyone’s home. If you’d prefer to sit around in the jungle like a painted target, though… well… that’s on you.”
“He has a point,” Dalon replied, speaking to Aladyn. “And Kalen could use the safety for his rest.”
Adrian nodded, the decision seemingly made. “Sit tight then, I’ll go check it out.”
For a moment it seemed like they might argue, but they quickly relented and Adrian left the cover of the foliage for the lengthening shadows of the wreck. He could see the damage more clearly as he drew closer—massive punctures where the coilbolts had punched their way through, and wide fractures where the hull had shattered on impact—and that was the end of any speculation on its flight worthiness; this wreck was here to stay.
The actual entrance was buried somewhere in the ground, but one of the cracks widened enough that even an Agwaren could crawl inside. It reminded him of a shallow cave: gloomy, heavy with humidity, and filled the scent of rich earth. The floor, patched with rust, was angled upwards at roughly twenty-degrees with a tilt to the left, so that the lower side was slick with water and algae that trickled in from further up the corridor. He kept to the high side, avoiding the slippery areas, and moved as quietly as he could with one hand to the wall and the other gripping the fusion blade that lighted his way; knowing the layout of the ship, he set out for the nearest section that served as a form of communal area.
That was not the nearest room, however. Most rooms were mostly sealed shut, broken by the warped hull so that they could never again be opened by conventional means. Others were open and empty except for the technological detritus that lay everywhere, most of it thoroughly destroyed. His destination was the last surviving room, quiet except for the gentle trickling of water that inspired one of nature’s oldest needs. Taking a piss, however, was going to have to wait until after he’d confirmed the room was empty of Hunters. Taking down a couple of those things would be a lot fucking harder if he had his old fella swinging in the breeze.
Figuring that they’d know he was coming by the glow of the fusion blade, he suddenly leapt into the room, flashing the blade wildly through the air. Its demonic glow cast deepened the horror that greeted him, the twisted visages of the Hunter crew all the more dreadful when rendered in deep shadow and orange glow. Adrian recoiled instantly, blade flashing up to face the attack and his back to the wall. He was halfway through springing into action when he stopped, realising that the Hunters—or what was left of them—weren’t going anywhere. They were nothing more than husks; only the soggy, dark-brown carapaces remained of the nightmares from beyond the stars. It was doubtful that they had survived the crash, and anything edible had eventually been harvested by the native fauna. Once cursory sweep of this final room had confirmed that there was nothing left to worry about, he finally answered nature’s call, and returned to the Agwarens.
“We’re good,” he told them. “Nothing much left in there, and the former crew aren’t in any state to complain.”
“How fortunate we are,” Aladyn responded cynically as he and Dalon helped Kalen into the wreckage. It was true in spite of his cynicism, however; if it hadn’t been for their timely discovery, they would have been spending the night in the ever-darkening jungle.
Adrian scrutinised the tree-line with one last, lingering gaze, wondering if any malicious eyes were watching him. If there was, then it was nothing he could see, and nothing he could hear, and didn’t bear thinking about. “This way,” he said, rejoining the others with his blade once more lending the light. “I have a cosy little room already picked out, but I reckon I’ll have your help to evict the current residents.”
“I thought you said it was fine?” Dalon asked warily.
“He said they were dead,” Aladyn replied. “He wants us to move their corpses.”
Adrian’s lack of sleep was as much as he’d expected. He laid down in darkness, but the fusion blade was always at hand, and his ears were always pricked for the slightest sound. The walls were no protection against an overactive imagination, but it’d been a long time since he’d slept somewhere he hadn’t first rigged with booby traps and alarms. That meant that, on all of Agwar, the Shelter was more or less the only place he could get some proper shut-eye.
“What is it?” Aladyn asked.
After a moment, Adrian realised whom the Agwaren was addressing. “What’s what?”
“I can feel your tension from here,” Aladyn replied. “You’ve been on edge since I’ve met you, but it’s somehow worse in the dark.”
“Paranoia,” Adrian said. “You spend enough time in constant danger, and you’ll never stop looking over your fucking shoulder.”
Part of it was, of course, that he didn’t entirely trust the wreckage as a defensible position, no matter what he’d actually told the Agwarens, but he also had little trust for his companions themselves; they’d tried to kill him once, and that sort of thing was hard to forget. There was also the matter of Kalen’s pain-filled moans and groans, which reminded him altogether too much of his deployment to the Middle-East.
“A tortured spirit can twist a man’s mind,” Aladyn replied, sounding as though he was quoting something. “We are not blood-kin, Adrian, but it is a common belief amongst my people that shared survival forges deeper bonds. You do not need to look over your shoulder when you have comrades to protect your back.”
“Yeah,” said Adrian, feeling strangely settled, “we have something like that too. It’s important.”
Dawn came sooner than expected, and Adrian realised that he must have slept a little bit at least. It’d been a matter of closing his eyes one moment, and opening them the next, only to discover that time had passed in-between. Even with the cool mist that settled on everything, the morning light was a welcome reprieve, and Adrian stepped outside as the first few rays were breaking their way through the canopy. It was these moments, when the jungle began to stir for the day, that he found it easiest to forget that he was beset with problems, and was stranded on an alien world. Sensing it as the calm before the storm, he leaned back against the hull of the Hunter ship and gazed out into the chirping and croaking jungle; he knew this would be the last moment of pleasantness he’d experience for quite some time.
“Long way from Mildura,” he said to himself, thinking back to how far he’d come from his hometown. He wondered whether it would have changed, now that alien life and space travel were established facts, and figured it’d probably be much the same; even big things moved slowly in rural Australia, probably owing to most people just not giving a fuck.
Aladyn emerged from the split in the hull and over at him. “Say something?” he asked, as he stepped out into the sunlight and began a series of stretches.
“Just waxing nostalgic,” Adrian admitted. “I’ve been away from home for a long time.”
Aladyn nodded. “It looks like this place, then?”
Adrian snorted. “Fuck no, mate. We do have jungles like this, but my home itself couldn’t look more different. More plains, fewer trees, and a lot more heat.”
“There were plains here, recently,” Aladyn replied as he finished his stretches. “Not that you’d ever know from how it looks now.”
He grunted as he released his waters against the side of the ship. “I take it you intend to return to your world once you’re done with mine?”
Adrian considered the jungle for a while. “Nah,” he finally said, “don’t think I’d fit anymore. Christ, you drink a fucking lake or something?”
“Some of us have the decency to go outside,” Aladyn retorted. “I understand your meaning. I was once a leader of my city’s fighting men. Now my city is gone, my people are gone, and both I and my world have changed beyond comprehension.”
Aladyn had, without knowing it, highlighted another reason Adrian couldn’t go back to Earth; the same reason he needed to stop Jen from doing it as well. He could see what was happening here, and it didn’t take a genius to figure that something similar would be unfolding on Cimbrean and Affrag. Maybe it wouldn’t be the same in each case, but the consequences of letting the same plague loose on Earth were too horrifying to even consider; anything that had the potential to completely up-end a planetary ecosystem was not something he wanted to introduce back home. He sighed, wondering whether he’d ever run out of shit to worry about.
“I’ve got a few things to deal with before I can even think about going back home,” he told the Agwaren.
“Yes,” Aladyn agreed as he tucked himself away, “the other settlement to begin with. When we get there, I should be the one to do the talking. Your mere presence will confuse things enough.
“Seems like the right idea,” Adrian replied, and turned towards the crack as Dalon emerged with Kalen in tow; the latter looked worse for wear, but it was clear that a night of sleep—and the Cruezzir that covered everything—had worked wonders. “You’re good to go?”
Dalon nodded. “We are.”
“That way,” Aladyn indicated, pointing in the general direction they’d been heading the previous day. “We should reach by afternoon, provided we have no more mishaps.”
Adrian began walking, taking the lead as he had the day prior, and froze on the second step. He couldn’t tell you how he knew, but something was out there.
Dalon understood immediately. “Where is it?”
“Not sure,” Adrian admitted, staring intently at the jungle in search of anything that was out of place. He let his eyes take it all in, knowing that they’d seize on what was important, while his ears quested for something to pin the strange sensation on. Understanding dawned the very moment that he saw the shine of plastic and glass: a V’Straki drone had found them, and that meant its masters would soon be on their way. “Shit.”
One moment later and Aladyn’s bolt punched straight through its fragile chassis, pinning the remnants to a tree.
“That thing was of the enemy,” the Agwaren said. “But the star-bird is now dead.”
“Not a bird,” Adrian corrected, “just bad news. It means they know exactly where we are.”
“Ah,” said Aladyn, taking his meaning. “Then we should really start moving.”
++++
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Sector Six, Crash Zone
Razen
“That is not a good sign,” said Razen, in what he imagined must be the most significant understatement this backwater planet had ever seen. The Comms Tech had been conducting basic surveillance of their objective while the rest of the Expeditionaries were making preparations for their day, but Skizer had been checking the local crash sites for signs of recent habitation, not trying to discover alarming news about who their neighbours were. Skizer barely had time to reach Razen before contact was lost with the drone, but by then the video feed had already been sent back to Oversight.
Given that the footage had shown the ‘Predator’ colluding with the primitives, Razen expected he’d soon receive a very agitated comm-link from whoever was currently on duty. It really wasn’t the best start to his day.
“Let me impress upon you, Comms Technician Skizer,” Razen hissed quietly, “just how much you want to remain silent about your discovery. There is no need to incite a panic.”
He turned to Kama, that wretch who’d somehow survive the last encounter with the strange creature. “Do you not agree, Kama?”
Kama hesitated. “Yes, Squad Leader… we should focus on our true enemy. Interacting with the Predator will just cause further problems.”
Razen thoroughly agreed, but gave a simple nod to the affirmative. It was bad enough that the primitives kept disrupting the mission, but the Predator was another matter entirely. The recordings already confirmed that its clothing greatly reduced infra-red emissivity, countering one of the main visual aids the V’Straki used in their visors, and the fact that the group of troublesome creatures had numerous fusion weapons in their possession strongly suggested that they’d just discovered cause of death for the A.I.’s bio-drones. However it added up, camping in the jungle was going to be even more unpleasant.
The communications request arrived mere moments later, long before he could deliberate any further, and Razen answered without delay. “This is Squad Leader Razen.”
“Overseer Jark,” came the reply, and Razen winced. He knew Jark personally, and while Razen generally got along with everyone, Jark was a different story. He was the opposite of personable, and was about the last person Razen wanted watching his back. “Please confirm your status.”
“Breaking camp now,” Razen dutifully reported. “Secondary objective has been identified, but became aware of our observation. We are now down to four scout drones. Distance is significant, including challenging terrain, so pursuit is likely futile at this time.”
“That is our estimation as well,” Jark replied. “Attend the noted location, and inspect the area for anything that might provide us with further information about the ‘Predator’. A bio-sample, if possible.”
“Understood,” Razen confirmed.
“Given the nature of the footage,” Jark continued, “you should refrain from clearing the native population where possible. There is no need to antagonise the Predator further.”
“And if we confirm they have advanced technology?” Razen asked, knowing that the normal policy was to purge the group in question; the V’Straki could not allow another faction to interfere with their war efforts.
“Remove it from them,” Jark replied. “Minimise native casualties if possible.”
Once more indicating that he understood the instructions, Razen terminated the communique. It had not been as bad as he’d expected, but that was probably due to the interest in the ‘Predator’. He’d half-expected Jark to send him after the creature at the barest hint of an opportunity, but at this point that was probably just a matter of time. He turned his attention back to Skizer and Kama, who were still waiting for his orders. “Attend to your duties. No word of this sighting is to circulate amongst the men.”
“Squad Leader…” Skizer began.
A sharp look from Razen was enough to cut him short. “Remain vigilant, Comms Technician,” he said tersely. “Kama, you will ensure the others act in accordance with an increased threat level. Weapons readied at all times; engagement protocol ‘Overkill’ is in effect. I do not intend for this Expedition to become an imitation of your previous debacle.”
Kama snapped to attention, then turned to convey the orders to the rest of the force. The Overkill protocol would ensure that just about anything they encountered would be shuffled off the mortal coil with extreme prejudice, and would probably lead to speculation amongst the men, but Razen judged that it would also make them more focused.
He was proven right by how quickly they broke camp. The usual chatter gave way to functional silence, with each man focused on getting his weapons readied for instant use, and they were soon ready to force their way across the river.
A simple scan was enough to confirm that wading was out of the question. “Water exceeds safe depths,” Skizer reported, “but there are no shallows within easy distance. Line-crossing is the recommended option.”
“No threats detected?” Razen checked, though he was certain Skizer would have let him know if something had appeared.
“No threats detected,” Skizer confirmed. “It should be safe to deploy a line.”
Razen nodded, and turned to Artez, the smallest Expeditionary in the force. “Take a guideline across and mount a bridging line,” he told the red-chip. “Kama will ensure your equipment pack is carried across.”
Artez moved without complaint, first giving over his personal equipment to Kama, and then setting about getting the guideline across the river. It was a matter of securing one end, firing the other at a suitable target on the other side—in this case a tree—and scrambling across with a more reliable cable wrapped around his waist. Artez was small, and this gave him the advantage for this type of task, so that he had no trouble where Razen and other larger V’Straki would have simply fallen into the river.
With only a little more work, a simple line bridge was constructed, and the crossing would be made in stages while the other Expeditionaries would provide fire-support from whatever side of the river they happened to be on. It was a tactic that had been developed on Hannyth, the world of many rivers, where the native tactics had made crossing a river a dangerous affair.
“Leave the line here,” Razen commanded, once the last of the Expeditionaries were across; odds were good that they’d be coming back this way, and that they may be moving with haste. “We shall pick it up on the way back.”
Their first stop was the site where the ‘Predator’ had been sighted. All the scout drones were sent to scan the area as they approached, documenting everything in absolute detail. That was more than enough to confirm the absence of just about anything, but the A.I. could be tricky, and the ‘Predator’ was a total mystery, so there was no harm in being overly cautious.
There were precious few positive things to be said about the crashed starship. Even from the wreck it was easy to see it had been designed for appearance more than function, and the considerable battle damage did little to redeem it. It had clearly been rapidly overtaken by the jungle, with no signs of continuous habitation, and Razen was reasonably certain that the ‘Predator’ had only been visiting.
“I have a drone inside,” Skizer reported. “I am noting elevated levels of uric acid in the main corridor, and two aged corpses of bio-drones deposited in a small room. Some genetic indicators to confirm that the primitives were here.”
“Shelter of convenience, then,” Razen interpreted.
“It appears that way,” Skizer agreed. “Oversight concurs with that assessment.”
Good to know, Razen thought with some annoyance. “I think we have seen everything there is to see. Return your drone for immediate departure.”
He turned to Kama and gave instructions to have the others prepare for the journey towards the settlement, privately hoping that the ‘Predator’ had elected to go somewhere else entirely. Razen knew the creature had value, and that capturing it was a secondary objective, but he would be happier if he never saw it again; however it might feel about the A.I., it clearly favoured the natives over the V’Straki.
Kama delivered the orders immediately, leaving Razen to wonder when he’d started relying on the disgraced red-chip. Kama had been considered to be a dependable soldier before his shameful encounter with the ‘Predator’, but that incident had effectively ended his military career, and it was only due to the continued presence of the ‘Predator’ that he had any use at all.
“Oversight,” Razen began as he opened a link back to the Dastasji, “do you receive?”
“This is Overseer Jark,” the Overseer replied. “Please confirm your next objective.”
“The settlement is the closest significant objective,” Razen replied. “The Expedition will head there first, and scan and interrogate the natives. Further decisions will be made with the resulting information.”
“Action approved, Squad Leader,” Jark confirmed. “We will be monitoring.”
Razen signed off in time to find the Expeditionary force ready for another hard march; the settlement awaited.
++++
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Sector Six, Crash Zone
Adrian Saunders
One maddening thing about the Agwarens was that their formal introductions took way too fucking long. The request was simple enough—medical aid for Kalen, and lodgings for the rest—but the whole thing seemed to be taking forever. It wasn’t completely unexpected, given that the settlements hadn’t been entirely peaceful with each other, but Adrian had never been the patient sort and he was still on edge after the scout-drone incident; it was probably smart of Aladyn to have him wait in the jungle, but hopefully he’d be somewhere more comfortable before the afternoon rainstorm arrived—he could already smell it in the air.
Adrian tried to think about other things, making use of his vantage point to watch the jungle as well as the settlement. Preferring the trees to the ground, he was perched in the branches of a smooth-barked giant with both of his legs swinging freely, but concealed by enough foliage that he’d be hard to find even if you knew where to look. It was far from comfortable, but he had more important considerations than the well-being of his own arse. Seeing that Kalen got the help he needed for one, and seeing the settlement prepare for the V’Straki for another; if this was their destination then their time was very limited. No matter where you went, it seemed like nobody took existential threats seriously until it was already too late.
Finally he saw progress: a pair of larger Agwarens broke from the crowd and took support of Kalen, leading him away towards the huts while Aladyn stepped aside to allow Dalon room to demonstrate the fusion blades claimed from the Hunters they had slain. Simply activating it was enough to stir the crowd, but slicing clean through a solid wooden post sent a wave of conversation through those present. Seizing on their interest, Aladyn returned to speak once more, and it was obvious that the spectacle had sped things along.
The meeting was still in progress when a familiar sensation swept over Adrian. It was the same as it had been before, but this time Adrian knew what he was looking for, and quickly spotted a formation of three small, glossy shapes flit from the jungle and sweep across the settlement to the great alarm of the locals. It took only a moment for them to circle the village, after which they sped away as quickly as they had arrived, long before anybody could load up a crossbow.
At least it had been enough of a shock to move things along, and it was clear from Aladyn’s wild gesticulations that he was explaining what they had all just seen and why it was a problem. He hadn’t needed a detailed explanation to know that the ‘star-birds’ meant the V’Straki were on their way, and that’d be what he was telling the locals, but only Adrian really understood what had just happened. Knowing the V’Straki sensors, it seemed likely that they’d now have the settlement layout, its population, and details on any defences they might have. That, unfortunately, also included the fusion-blades that Dalon had just finished demonstrating.
Slipping between branches, Adrian dropped to the ground with as much speed as he dared; judging by the flightpath of the drones, the V’Straki approach would pass nearby, and it’d be a really bad time to be stuck in a tree.
Acting fast, he planted the cloaking device that Mando had built for him, covering it under some jungle debris in a shallow depression beside a thick tree root. It wasn’t reliable as cloaking devices went—even with just their drones, the V’Straki were certain to detect it—but used properly it could still be helpful.
Under other circumstances he might have headed for the settlement, but that would only confuse things right now, and give the V’Straki something else to take advantage of. In any event, they had seen him with the Agwarens and had no reason to suspect he’d be hiding in the jungle, and there was nothing to be gained by putting yourself exactly the enemy expected you to be. Adrian had relied on stealth, surprise, and their own hubris to fight them on previous occasions, knowing that a stand-up fight would be completely stupid.
Right now he was just trying to put together some options. The cloaking device would distract them, giving the Agwarens a few extra minutes to prepare, and Adrian the opportunity to… do something. It was a plan in progress, and he could think about it once he wasn’t standing in the open.
At least he still had the benefit of the modified vacuum suit. Granted, it wasn’t in any condition to help him in hard vacuum, but it was a serviceable rain-coat to which he’d added a hood. Having created it after one particularly miserable excursion, Adrian had mainly intended it to cope with the sudden downpours, but he’d also discovered that the insulation was heavy enough to let him blend in with the humidity, and the depressing brown was surprisingly similar to that found throughout the jungle. It just went to show that sometimes good things did happen.
He pulled the hood up over his head, tightening it so that only his eyes would show, and slowly picked his way through the heaviest bit of vegetation he could find—a squat bush-like bit of ground-cover with big, droopy leaves—while his senses remained tuned for that telling sensation. He felt it a lot sooner than he would have liked, while he was still within sight of the cloaking device, as he crawled from the bush and into the hidden spaces between the rampant roots of a towering tree.
Peeking out to get the lay of things, he saw the V’Straki progressing as a group, with four drones flying in an overhead formation. It was hard to judge their number through the heavy jungle, but he’d counted thirteen in the group responsible for purging Aladyn’s village, and there’d been thirteen in the group he’d encountered that other time, and there was no reason to expect a difference here.
He laid out his equipment in front of him, frowning at how little it seemed when presented that way. A cluster of makeshift knives, a fusion blade, and some smooth and flat river stones were all he had, in addition to the remote control for the cloaking machine. He peeked out once more, ducking back in almost instantly as he saw the inbound scout drone, and snatched up the remote control. It looked like things were getting started a little sooner than he’d bargained for.
++++
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Sector Six, Crash Zone
Kama
Both Razen and Skizer had been on edge, so any movements in the jungle were followed by a quick survey with a scout drone, if only to give them peace of mind. It had happened five times now, with each prior time turning out to be some hideous form of native life. This time the drone was halfway there when a sudden power fluctuation flared up before completely vanishing, but fortunately not before the drones had triangulated the position: too damned close for comfort.
Razen was clearly unsettled by the procession of events. It was bad enough that he’d discovered the primitives had functional fusion-blades—certainly the result of the Predator’s interference—and that Razen’s force was now required to forcibly confiscate them. Kama knew this meant the Predator had picked a side, and that the V’Straki were about to start shooting at it. This had seemed like a bad idea before the sudden power fluctuation; now it seemed like it not only knew they were coming, but that it knew where they were coming from, and that was a big problem by any measure.
Kama stood nearby, listening to Razen’s quiet conversation with Skizer.
“This location,” the Squad leader said, tapping at it on Skizer’s datapad, “was not fully mapped in the drone fly-over?”
“No, Squad Leader,” Skizer confirmed. “The focus of their reconnaissance was on the settlement and the immediate surroundings. This area was outside of that.”
“It seems unlikely that the primitives have set a trap for us,” Razen mused, “but it is not the only thing out here. Given that we performed the fly-over at the last possible moment, we are faced with one of two options: that our enemy is simply incredibly fortunate, or that he has a disturbingly deep insight into our tactical thinking.”
Skizer grew visibly tense. “Then should I send the scout drone to investigate?”
“Send two,” Razen instructed. “The second will observe the first. If there is a trap, it is vital we know what we are dealing with.”
The Squad Leader waited impatiently while Skizer executed the order, and Kama noted that the rest of the force were growing increasingly agitated by the unplanned delay. Naturally they’d been told nothing, but they were beginning to speculate, and some of their guesses were uncomfortably close to reality. It didn’t help that Kama was being included in things that should otherwise be outside his area of concern, and Skizer’s uncharacteristic reticence was raising questions.
“The scanners are not reading anything,” Skizer reported grimly. “To be more specific, they are failing to report what should actually be there. It is almost certainly a small cloaking device.”
“The drones are unable to penetrate it?” Kama asked, speaking in a low voice as he edged closer to the pair.
“Not easily,” Skizer replied as Razen glared at Kama. “With both drones, I am able to generate a low fidelity sound-map that should, in theory, give us a three-dimensional picture of what is hiding in there.”
He paused, suddenly looking even more worried. “Which is what I would have done, had I not just lost contact with both drones.”
“By the shining light of the Emperor!” Kama cursed; this was starting to look a lot like his previous Expedition. “Squad Leader, I urge you to keep the remaining drones in reserve!”
“I do not need instruction from you, Kama,” Razen growled, and returned his attention to Skizer. “What happened? They must have detected something!”
“Whatever it was must have been quiet and able to avoid triggering the standard alerts,” Skizer replied, skimming the detailed sensor logs. “Ah. They were damaged by environmental debris.”
“Rocks,” Kama interpreted. “They were smashed out of the air by rocks. That explains why they did not evade.”
“Explain,” said Razen, looking to Skizer.
The Comms Tech frowned. “It is a limitation in the software,” he said. “Our programming is complex, since we do not allow our software to learn, so the drones assume the natural environment is static for the sake of simplicity. It was a perfectly acceptable solution against Igraen tactics and weaponry, which they will automatically evade.”
“Less helpful against thrown rocks,” Razen replied, neatly summarising the design flaw that gave the primitives the upper hand. He growled. “I do not like being on the defensive. It is time to take control of the situation! Kama, you will select three red-chips to be deployed here, here and here”—he tapped the screen indicating where they should be positioned relative to the target zone—“while Skizer will use the remaining drones to provide them with a targeting solution. We shall see how the enemy likes a concentrated blast of Zheron pulse-fire!”
Kama didn’t even hesitate when making his selection, and a moment later his three least favourite members of the Expeditionary force were scuttling through the vegetation towards their allotted vantage points. Perhaps they’d succeed, and the deadly threat would be negated, or maybe they’d all die horrible deaths; either result worked for Kama.
With the drone supply down to these last two, however, Skizer was being much more careful. Losing these would mean the failure of his role, and that wouldn’t look good for his career. The drones remained as far back as he dared keep them, so that they would overlook the snipers as well as the target coordinates, and beamed out targeting information a moment later. It was a standard tactic amongst the V’Straki ground forces to use this for long-range shots, but it served equally well when blazing a deadly path through a mess of obscuring foliage. Smoke rose from the incinerated vegetation as the three opened up, and the target erupted into a sea of red fire as a wave of Zheron annihilated everything near it. As per the Overkill protocol, they did not stop for some time.
“Mission is a success,” Skizer reported once it was over. “The cloaking field has been eradicated. Unfortunately nothing was detected inside.”
Kama kept his eyes on the jungle, raising his gun ever so slightly. A quick glance towards the Squad Leader confirmed that Razen did not look pleased, and Kama could guess why: if there wasn’t anything being cloaked, then the whole field was only a distraction, and they’d played straight into the enemy’s hands.
“Return to the group,” Razen instructed the three soldiers, speaking quietly over the group’s communication network. “Keep your weapons ready for anything.”
“Squad Leader…” Skizer ventured.
Razen turned to him. “Use the drones to scan for movement, and get me an open link to Oversight.”
Skizer shook his head. “Communications just went down. I suspect the wind might have knocked out a comm-disc.”
Kama agreed, but it was clear that Razen wasn’t taking anything for granted. “By the Emperor!” he snarled in frustration, “of all the times… we must assume this disruption is intentional. You will need to re-establish communications.”
Skizer blanched; that meant he’d be venturing back the way they’d come, trying to find the point of failure, with only a handful of soldiers to protect him. “Yes, Squad Leader.”
“And Kama,” Razen added, “you will lead his escort”
It was hard to say what Kama would have enjoyed less. Escort duty had him traipsing back through the jungle with fewer allies, but it also meant that he was headed away from the settlement and the likely position of the ‘Predator’. Razen had delegated command of the scout drones to another red-chip, using them to protect the group that remained while they fortified an elevated position against attack. Somehow an attack had turned into a defence, and Kama wondered whether this had been the enemy’s plan all along.
It didn’t really matter; he could only try and control his own situation. “Keep watch for any motion,” he told the clueless red-chips who accompanied them, although they made a show of ignoring his every command. Things might have been different if they knew what they were really up against, but Razen had been terrifyingly clear on the consequences for divulging such information. Now that the threat had apparently been dealt with, this was, as far as the others were concerned, a routine maintenance exercise, and they were very obviously bored.
At least Skizer wasn’t bored; he knew enough to be scared stupid, and he stuck close to the only person he could speak freely around. “Do you think it might be watching us?”
Kama ran his tongue across his teeth as his nerves tingled. “I sincerely hope not. For what it is worth, I do not believe it caused this outage.”
“The timing cannot be ignored,” Skizer reminded him.
Kama nodded. “I know.”
He knew something was up when Skizer’s eyes remained fixed on his datapad, rather than on the jungle. “Find something?”
“Lost something,” Skizer replied bleakly. “The connection to Razen. We are currently cut off from our Squad Leader and Oversight.”
Kama stared back towards the settlement, knowing they were too far to hear anything on a good day, and right now the wind was carrying the sound away from them. If something had happened to Razen, then they now had no way of knowing what it was. “Our orders,” he said carefully, “are to re-establish communications with Oversight.”
“Agreed,” said Skizer. “No doubt we will receive further orders from the Dastasji once we have done so.”
Kama nodded, and picked up the pace a bit; hopefully the broken link would be a long walk away. “Then let us not keep them waiting.”
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