Kelly signalled for them to hold their fire. They needed to know the effectiveness of the new weapons before unleashing a volley of fire. The men at the front knelt down, so that they could all have a clear line of sight at the opening just twenty metres ahead. They waiting silently as they could hear the heavy footsteps of the lumbering armoured Mech stomping towards them.
As he held the new launcher firmly at his shoulder, Kelly could feel his pulse racing and his heart pounding in his chest. A week before his wife had been warning him of the risk of a heart attack with all the stress he faced at his age. Now she was anxiously waiting in the make shift dormitory blocks as he fought on the front line.
Then it appeared, the ugly metal monster. It turned quickly as it caught sight of the soldiers. Before it could raise its huge energy weapon the Commander fired a single round. The large projectile hit the Mech just off centre of what would be the chest armour of a human. Landing like the punch of a heavyweight boxer, the enemy soldier stumbled back a step before catching its balance.
Kelly could see that the impact had hurt the alien, but it was far from dead. It quickly regained its composure and tried to lift its weapon again to target them. He didn’t wait a second longer, quickly firing off two more shells. Each hit the creature square centre in its mass. The metal suit went limp as whatever was inside collapsed onto the broken glass with a crash. The soldiers stared at their fallen enemy.
“Holy shit,” said Martinez.
Kelly turned to his number two with a smile. Finally they had a chance.
“General White! Report is in from Commander Kelly!” shouted Taylor.
He blurted out his words before he’d even got through the door of the Command Centre. The Generals immediately turned towards him. Any other time they would have disciplined him for his rudeness, but they were all more anxious to hear what he had to say than to how he told them.
“Speak, Major.”
“At twenty metres, a single round hurt the Mechs bad, second and third finished it immediately!”
The Major had a broad grin on his face. He wasn’t just satisfied that he had been right about the weapons, but that it would be enough to get them distributed and put into action right away.
“That’s damn fine news, Major, good work! However, I must tell you that I have already ordered the release of all stores to be allocated to combat troops and a further mass scale production to commence immediately.”
“Sir? I thought you were waiting on the combat report?”
“For final confirmation, Major, yes. In all honesty, we didn’t have time to wait for it, and we have all come to rely on you in these past days.”
The Major gasped, realising how much responsibility lay on his shoulders.
“The United States will no longer stay out of the conflict in Europe, but our location and our allies, are best served by a direct attack on the enemy. We are about to mount the greatest assault that has been seen in generations!”
“General, the South American Union is willing to commit five thousand troops, as well as ships and aircraft to carry them,” said liaison Flores.
“I have been informed that my government will match that commitment,” said the Canadian envoy, Commander Brown.
“Thank you, then we have a great task ahead of us. We have been planning such an operation for days now. The Air Force has been carrying out almost continuous strikes against the western edge of Tartaros. Our job now is to organise a ground assault.”
“How big are we talking here, General?” asked Taylor.
“Twenty thousand men will be deployed by a combination of air and sea following the last aerial bombardment.”
“How much damage is the Air Force actually doing?” General Smith asked.
“They’re having an effect, that’s for certain. Breaches have opened up all along the monstrosity. Their casualties are high, but they’re getting the job done. Ground forces will enter through these breaches, or blow their own where necessary.”
“What kind of resistance are we expecting?” General Richards asked.
“Honestly we don’t know. The enemy is powerful and in great numbers, that’s for certain.”
“We are throwing twenty thousand men into an unknown situation?” shouted Smith.
General White looked at the man with a pained expression. He was sick of dealing with the indecisiveness of many of his senior officers.
“The fact remains that this is going to be an unknown enemy in an unknown situation for a long time. Till we either get the upper hand and some real understanding, or humanity is wiped off his planet!”
“Major Taylor! Give us your opinion!” General Richards ordered.
“The Major is not authorised to deal with command decisions!” shouted Smith.
“I want to hear the Major out. So far he has been the one constant in this time of uncertainty,” said Richards.
Taylor looked to General Richards. He had plenty to say on the situation but also knew how far he was stepping over the line by doing so. White looked at him, glad that Richards had requested his opinion. White had every confidence in the Major, but doubted the others would take him seriously in command decisions. Finally one of his peers had pushed the Major in the direction he wanted. White nodded to the Major to continue.
“Europe is getting a beating. North Africa is having it worse. We have all but lost the Moon colony, its surviving inhabitants hiding from the enemy. Safe in the Americas, not one of you can imagine the unrelenting horror that the world is facing. Way I see it, we either weigh in and fight alongside the rest of the human race, or we wait out our turn to be whipped.”
“That’s a grim picture you paint, Major,” said Richards.
Taylor pushed his chair back and stood up with a sigh. His leg joints were aching from sitting around for so long, he was not at all used to life at a desk. He walked down to the end of the table where the huge display screen showed the conflict of the world.
“Look at this, all of you. It’s not a map. It’s a document of our losses as a species. We have to join the fight. Our options are to attempt to join the forces in Europe, which are quite frankly a mess. Or, we can open a second front. Hit back at the enemy. Right now, Europe needs us. But in the coming weeks and months, we’ll need them just as much.”
Richards nodded, he hated the planned operation just as much as before, but he was beginning to accept the Major’s words. “If this is the only way, then so be it. But God help us all if it fails.”
“Thank you, Major,” said White.
Taylor went back around the desk, carefully studying their faces as he did. He knew that he would have to fight in the planned operation, just as the Generals knew, it was the overriding factor in their support of his outline of the situation. He took his seat as General White took a deep breath and continued on in a calm voice.
“There it is. We are making the best of a crappy situation, the plans have been drawn up. Major Taylor, report back to your battalion to prepare. I want marching orders sent within the next fifteen minutes to all operational commanders. Let’s get this moving!”
The Major stood and saluted to take his leave as the others continued to begin the process of amassing the resources to make the assault a reality. Taylor had no idea when they intended to carry out the mission, it was above his station. He did however know that he would be able to count in hours the time before they deployed.
The sun was already going down as he reached his battalion drill square. Trucks were lining the previously clear training zone. They were at urgent deployment status. Two men of his company stood guard outside the building with his office, many more patrolled in every direction. The men saluted as he wearily stepped through into the hallway to be greeted by Lieutenant Suarez.
“What’s the word, Major?”
Taylor didn’t respond, he only signalled for the Lieutenant to follow him into the officers’ mess. He opened the door to find it remarkably empty considering it served the entire battalion’s staff. Captain Friday was sat alone and staring at a datapad. He leapt to his feet as he saw the Major enter, but he didn’t ask the inevitable.
“Sit down, Captain.”
The two officers took a seat beside the other.
“You know that I am bound by oath to not divulge any information that was shared in command. All I can do is repeat what you already know. Be ready, be vigilant. Deployment is imminent.”
Friday nodded, but Lieutenant Suarez tried to probe further. Taylor lifted his tired head and put the officer in his place.
“You’ve done your time today. Major, get some rest,” said Friday.
Taylor nodded in agreement and gratitude to the Captain.
“Have you handed out the new weapons yet?”
“No, Sir, they still remain top secret.”
“Alright, I want the company formed up at 0700 hours on the square. Have the hardware ready for an introduction and issue.”
“Yes, Sir.”
Taylor stood up and strolled out of the room. He thought he would go right back on duty and to work, he had never appreciated quite how tiring it was to sit at a desk with the responsibility of the top commanders.
The Major barely remembered walking back to his quarters or even opening the door. Entering his apartment he sat down on the sofa to relax for just a moment. Within seconds he dropped into a deep sleep, still wearing his uniform and gun.
Hours later, Mitch’s watch alarm rang violently, snapping him out of a deep sleep. For a moment he was disorientated, not even remembering having got to the sofa or falling asleep. He reached over to his watch and clicked the alarm off. It was set for 0600 hours every morning, unless he’d turned it off the night before.
Cupping his hands around his face he stretched the skin below his eyes downwards with his fingers, trying to wake himself up. His face was rough with stubble from the lack of shaving in two days. Running a hand over his shaven head he suddenly remembered the events of the previous day. He felt like crap, like he would after a solid day of heavy drinking. In an hour he would greet his company with new equipment and likely lead them into combat soon after. He knew that he had to clean himself up, even if it was the last thing he felt like doing.
He took off his gun and stripped his clothing off, throwing it down the laundry chute. Mitch stood in his shower, dazed as the water beat down on him. He could feel his state subsiding as the fresh water cleansed his skin and finally made him wake up. He stepped out of the shower, being hit once again by the morning heat.
Air conditioning was a luxury that nobody on base was afforded. General White felt that every man should be conditioned to the heat to enable them to operate effectively in such conditions. He moved up to his mirror wiping off the condensation. Taking his electric shaver, he removed all the stubble and hair within seconds. He went over to his wardrobe and pulled out a freshly cleaned and pressed set of combats, quickly putting them on.
For a moment he felt like a new man. Having gotten almost ten hours sleep and now finally awake, he had shaken off the fatigue of the previous days. Finally he felt ready to go forward with confidence and pride. He strapped on his pistol and strode out the door. Despite not being told when they would deploy, he knew it would be that day. The Generals had been given enough time to prepare and General White was raring to go.
Taylor was rested, smart and more determined than ever. He strolled confidently to the drill square, where earlier he’d ordered his men to form up. He smiled as the square came into sight. Friday knew the Major well and had formed up the company fifteen minutes early. He called them to attention as Taylor approached.
“Stand easy!” Taylor shouted.
He paced up and down the lines inspecting the troops. He passed Sergeant Parker who gave him a playful grin that went unnoticed to all but him. It brought a warmth to his heart as he remembered who he was dealing with. D Company were not just the troops he commanded, but his family, his friends, everything he loved.
“We will shortly be receiving our marching orders! Most of you have first hand experience of the enemy, and I am sure you have brought the others up to speed. The enemy is strong. They are powerful, intimidating and alien. Don’t be fooled! They can be killed, they will be killed!”
“Oorah!” they cried.
“The most obvious deficiency in our last engagement was found in the lack of effectiveness of our weapons against the thick armour of the Mechs. It’s time for that to be resolved!”