RECCE II (The Union Series Book 5) (3 page)

The commander glanced back at her, irritated at the
interruption, and then frowned deeply as he spotted us. ‘What are you doing
here?’

‘The Guard have some of their men as hostages,’ the
guide explained on our behalf, and I nodded in confirmation.

The injured soldier was pulled backward along our
line, wailing as he went. There was no chance to ignore his tormented agony as
the tunnel was so tight that he was literally brushing against our knees where
we crouched, and we had to squeeze ourselves against the walls in order to let
his comrades get him past.

Several weapons fired at once, and somebody ahead of
us screamed.

The commander glared at me intensely. ‘What do you
want to do?’

‘We’re here to assist you, if you need us.’

Somebody shouted something unintelligible from
around the corner, and the commander lifted an arm and gestured with a sweeping
motion.

‘Next team!’ he bellowed.

There was a loud commotion behind me as the next
section of FEA pushed their way up the tightly packed tunnel.

‘Let ’em through!’ I heard the sergeant major shout.

Everyone in the platoon pushed themselves against
the tunnel wall once again, making as much space as possible to allow the FEA
section to charge past us.

‘Go on, lads!’ somebody within our platoon shouted.

‘Go get ’em, boys!’

There was a flurry of support from the platoon as
the FEA passed. It didn’t matter that they weren’t our own, they were still
fighting on our side, and their continued plight had earned them more than just
our pity, they had earned our respect.

As the first man reached me I looked over my
shoulder at him, catching his eye. He had the same steely-eyed look of
determination I had seen in the faces of my own friends and comrades. It was
the look of a man who knew that there was no choice but to advance, no option
other than to attack. I nodded at him respectfully, knowing what courage it
took to fight in the warrens, whether a man was FEA soldier or Union trooper.

The FEA section rounded the corner, stepping over
the bodies of their fallen comrades as they joined the battle.

‘I am the commander of Third Company,’ the commander
told me, raising his voice over the noise beyond the junction. ‘We have managed
to push the traitors back, but we have lost many men. As long as they hold onto
the headquarters, we cannot defend this warren from the Militia. We
must
defeat
the traitors before they get us all killed.’

‘How many of them are there?’ I asked.

He shrugged. ‘It is hard to be sure in this
labyrinth of tunnels. A platoon, I think, but I am guessing.’

‘Have they used explosives?’

‘No. They have used some grenades, but that is all.’

That was a good sign. Often in tunnel warfare the
instant response to an attack was to detonate explosives, bringing tonnes of
rock down upon the attackers and forcing them to dig their way in. If the rogue
Guardsmen hadn’t used explosives already, then they might not have any at all.
Perhaps they had used all of it when they had sabotaged the FEA defensive
positions in the village, just prior to the Militia’s attack. Then again, perhaps
they were saving what explosives they had for the final moments of their
defence.

‘The fighting has been fierce,’ the commander
summarised, ‘but the traitors are losing ground. If you join us now, then they
will not be able to stop us.’

Suddenly an arresting hand gripped my shoulder and I
felt a tap against my helmet. I realised that the sergeant major had moved up
to me and was pressing his visor against mine.

‘Don’t commit to anything yet,’ he whispered, the
sound barely audible but for my headset. ‘I want to get a feel for how the
battle is going. The FEA already seem to be sapping the Guard’s strength. They
might win without us.’

‘Roger,’ I agreed, reluctantly, understanding his
thought process. It made sense to let the FEA either defeat the Guard on their
own, or at least weaken them sufficiently to allow us to swoop in and finish
the job. It made sense, but it still didn’t feel right. Some might have said
this wasn’t our war, but so long as the Guard held our men captive then that
was exactly what it was.

‘How many more of them are back there?’ Myers asked,
jerking a thumb over his shoulder.

‘Not many,’ I answered.

‘We might as well just get on with it, then.’

‘Shut up, Myers,’ the sergeant major snapped.

Myers had developed an annoying habit of expressing
his opinion, especially since his friend Skelton had been severely wounded, but
I understood the sentiment. The thought of holding back and leaving the FEA to
fight on their own left a bitter taste in the mouth.

The FEA commander leant forward, stealing a glance
around the corner of the tunnel. A few loose shots were fired, however they
mustn’t have been directed at him because he made no effort to duck back into
cover.

‘I will move into the next tunnel,’ he announced,
and then rounded the corner in pursuit of his men, his entourage following
closely after him.

I looked over my shoulder.

‘Follow him,’ the sergeant major ordered, sensing my
uncertainty. ‘Leave a ten-metre gap, though, so he can call up his reserves.’

I gave a nod, exaggerating the movement so he could
see it in the dark.

‘Come,’ the FEA guide urged me, gesturing after her
commander. ‘Follow him.’

I didn’t have the heart to tell her that we weren’t
going to attack until they had exhausted themselves. The harsh reality was that
we weren’t prepared to take more casualties than we needed to, not when we had
already lost so many.

I edged up to the junction, and then looked around
the corner to see what was happening.

We had reached the Guard headquarters. I recognised
the long, wide access tunnel lined with entrances to various caverns and
chambers. It was the same place that the platoon commander had used to brief us
following the Militia’s resurgence. All of the light sticks that once
illuminated the tunnel had been extinguished, possibly to spoil the FEA’s night
vision. It wouldn’t affect us, however. The access tunnel was much wider than
the one we were presently occupying, though not much higher, and its floor had
been flattened so that it could be paved with large, solid metal panels -
presumably to create a smooth surface that vehicles of some description could
use to move equipment to the surface.

The FEA had managed to clear twenty metres along the
tunnel, although it was apparent that the multiple connecting entrances were
slowing their advance. A key principle of tunnel fighting was thoroughness, in
other words, you couldn’t bypass junctions without clearing all of the connecting
tunnels and chambers, a process that could rapidly sap manpower and reduce
momentum.

At least a section of FEA lay dead or injured in the
main tunnel, some of whom were being tended to by their comrades. At the frontline,
three soldiers were bunched by one of the chamber entrances, exchanging fire
with an unseen enemy.

‘What can you see up there?’ the sergeant major
asked me.

With a few taps to my datapad, I captured an image
of the tunnel and then sent it over the platoon net for him to see. There was
no need to keep net silence anymore since the battle was already raging ahead
of us.

‘They’ve broken into the Guard headquarters,’ I said
without looking back, ‘but it looks like they’re losing momentum. They could
use more reinforcements.’

There was a moment’s pause before the sergeant major
replied testily, ‘What are you suggesting?’

‘The enemy are on the back foot, but they’re not
beaten. If we join in now, then we’ll make short work of them–’

‘Another section coming up!’ somebody shouted, cutting
me short.

I turned to see more FEA reinforcements barging
their way up the already packed tunnel behind me.

‘Let ’em through!’ the sergeant major ordered, and
once again we let the FEA overtake us. Kit scraped against my helmet as they
pushed past me, and boots clanged against the steel panels as they followed the
access tunnel. They hurried toward their commander, who promptly directed them
into one of the entrances that hadn’t yet been cleared.

‘Is there another section back there?’ the sergeant
major asked as I watched the fresh FEA soldiers pour into the entrance. Several
shots were fired, the shrill scream of magnets echoing through the confines of
the warren.

‘One more!’ Corporal Stanton shouted from the rear
of the platoon line.

The sergeant major fell silent. I could sense the moral
battle he was fighting inside his head. He could allow the FEA to send that one
final section forward, launching them into battle, but what difference would so
few men make? We were already in the perfect position to attack, less than
twenty metres from the frontline. We could sweep through the rogue Guardsmen
before they managed to recover. Perhaps that final FEA section would be more
useful kept alive.

The guide looked at me, almost pleadingly, and said,
‘You must help us now.’

Still the sergeant major said nothing.

‘Fuck it.’ I made the decision for him. ‘Let’s just
get this done.’

The two of us stared at each other whilst the
platoon watched us both nervously. I couldn’t tell if the sergeant major was
mad at me for having spoken my mind or not, but I doubted it. He might be a
cruel, cold-hearted man, but he was a trooper like us, and certainly no coward.
He wanted to go in, he wanted to attack, but he also wanted to avoid risking
his men unnecessarily. I often didn’t see eye to eye with him, and I often
didn’t even like him, but I did understand him. As commanders we didn’t fear
for our own lives in combat . . . not because we were incapable of being
afraid, but because we were already awash with fear - fear for the men under
our command.

‘Alright,’ the sergeant major finally surrendered.
‘Let’s go.’

2

The Guard Headquarters

To contents page

Boots clanged against metal as my section ran after
the FEA commander, light flickering in our visors as weapons spat and grenades
detonated in the chambers either side of us. We kept to the right hand edge of the
access tunnel, our tight formation bristling with weapons as every man scanned
for threats.

There were at least five or six adjoining tunnels
and chambers between us and the commander, each one occupied by several FEA
soldiers. Some of them appeared to have been cleared, torchlight dancing across
the walls within as the victors searched for survivors, while other tunnels
still echoed with the sound of battle. Rather than clear each section of the
Guard headquarters individually, the FEA commander had split his forces, effectively
opening several frontlines either side of him. It was a risky strategy with
such limited manpower - he had virtually no reserves at all behind him - but if
the rogue Guardsmen really were on the back foot, then it might be enough to
finish them off.

The commander was waiting just inside one of the
entrances, using the junction as cover whilst his lead section attempted to
clear another connecting tunnel ahead of him. Several more soldiers were taking
cover along the access tunnel at the same time, holding back any potential
Guard attack whilst they waited for their comrades to finish their clearance. I
knew by my map that there were several more chambers and tunnels ahead of us,
and sensed that the FEA no longer had the manpower to maintain their momentum
into the headquarters. We had arrived at just the right time.

One of the commander’s aides saw us approaching and
alerted him with a quick tap to the shoulder. I took cover inside one of the
entrances just behind him. The entrance led into a small chamber containing
stacks of crates. A couple of FEA crouched inside the chamber, their torches
flashing like strobe lights at a nightclub as they busied themselves with some
frantic task, but I paid them little attention. My mind was focused fully onto
the task at hand, preparing my section to launch past the FEA and continue the
assault onto the rogue Guardsmen.

‘Get in here, Myers,’ I ordered, sweeping my arm
inward.

The young trooper obeyed, followed by the rest of my
fire team. They packed themselves into the chamber, making use of whatever
space remained in order to keep out of the access tunnel. In tunnel warfare,
unlike in the trenches where the threat came from all directions, troopers that
weren’t in battle often had little to do other than keep out of the way until
they were needed.

Puppy automatically ordered his own fire team into
another tunnel further back, keeping them away from my own. There was no sense
in us all staying in the same place where a single grenade or explosive device
could kill us all.

As I watched my Delta fire team move into cover, I
heard gurgling sounds from within the chamber behind me. I realised that the
FEA were busying themselves around a wounded comrade. I couldn’t see his
injuries, but he bulked and convulsed as if he had been hit somewhere in the
gut. At such short ranges, no body armour could stop a direct hit from a
molecularly sharpened dart.

Ignoring their plight, I turned my attention back to
the access tunnel - just as the commander looked back to me and the rest of my
platoon.

‘We are ready to assault,’ I said decisively.

He nodded. ‘Very well, but you will fight under my
control.’

‘No we fucking well won’t,’ the sergeant major growled
from somewhere behind me, having heard the commander’s demand. He then spoke
over the net, sending his instructions to the platoon. ‘One-Two, move up! You
will take the left hand side of the tunnel alongside One-One!’

‘Roger!’ Corporal Kamara responded.

Metal panels clanged as he brought Two Section up
toward mine, keeping to the opposite side of the tunnel.

The sergeant major continued, using the net to avoid
making too much unnecessary noise. ‘Keep your men spread out,’ he said, ‘and
make use of the chambers cleared by the FEA. One-Three, you will remain a
tactical bound behind in reserve. Stay out of the access tunnel until called
for.’

‘One-Three,’ Corporal Stanton acknowledged. There
was no need for all of us to be in the access tunnel in direct line of fire to
the Guard.

The FEA commander watched over his shoulder as the
platoon of troopers rapidly spread itself along the tunnel behind him, making
use of whatever cover they could find. If he was beginning to wonder how much
control we were actually allowing him, he made no show of it.

‘Contact front!’ one of Corporal Kamara’s men
shouted suddenly.

I didn’t pause to check what had been seen,
instinctively ducking back into the entrance moments before several darts were
fired by the FEA ahead of us.

The rest of the platoon did the same, using the
numerous connecting tunnels to avoid being hit in the crossfire that followed. A
thunderous roar reverberated through the warren as a ferocious battle was
fought along the access tunnel between the FEA and the Guard. Then, as suddenly
as it began, the noise of gunfire abated, to be replaced by a stunned silence. Somewhere
an injured man moaned, his agonised cries joining the gurgles of the man slowly
dying in the chamber behind me. One of his comrades began to sob.

‘Abu, have you cleared the tunnel?’ the commander
asked, his question snatching my attention away from the sound of suffering.

There was a commotion in the tunnel ahead of us, as
if the FEA soldiers clearing it were arguing with one another. Perhaps their
leader had died, leaving them unsure of what to do or who was to take his place.

Finally, one of them spoke, and my headset
translated. ‘We have cleared several tunnels, but we don’t have enough men to
keep going.’

‘Have you taken too many casualties?’

‘No. We have enough men to fight, but there are too
many tunnels connected to it. They head in all directions. We do not think they
go anywhere.’

‘They must all go somewhere.’

‘Not necessarily,’ I uttered under my breath.

I had spent enough time fighting underground to know
that the inexperienced FEA soldiers could be describing a fighting tunnel, dug
in such a way that it wove its way around the various chambers that made up the
headquarters. Fighting tunnels didn’t need to lead anywhere. They were used to
make certain sections of warrens near impossible to capture without taking
casualties, and were often packed with explosives and directional charges to
enable a defender to blast new tunnels and collapse others, opening and closing
fronts as they wore their attackers down to nothing.

‘FEA Commander!’ the sergeant major shouted, making
himself known for the first time as his patience ran out. He pointed toward the
tunnel. ‘Focus your forces onto holding that tunnel! We will then advance past
you!’

‘We do not take instructions from Union troopers!’ the
commander responded.

Beneath my headset’s impassive translation, his
voice sounded angry, as though our offer to take over the battle was an insult.

The sergeant major threw up his arms in
exasperation. ‘Do you want our help or not? I’ve got a whole platoon here,
while you appear to be running out of men!’

The commander fell silent. He must have known that he
and his men were completely outclassed by our platoon, but pride was often a
dangerous and powerful demon in the minds of the FEA leadership.

‘Well? What’s it gonna be?’ the sergeant major
demanded. ‘If you don’t want me here, I’ll leave you to it!’

Another burst of darts roared through the tunnel, as
if to add weight to the sergeant major’s argument.

‘Very well,’ the commander relented. ‘I will stay
with you, so that I may remain in control.’

‘Whatever,’ the sergeant major said with disdain, and
then spoke on the net. ‘One-One, I don’t have the fighting tunnel the FEA are
clearing on my map, however, I see two chambers either side of the access
tunnel which I presume are just beyond it? Do you see them?’

I leant back out, peering through the smoke and dust
that hung in the still air. My visor used the light of the FEA torches that
still flashed within the chambers around us, magnifying it to help me scan the
darkened access tunnel. Sure enough, there were indeed two further entrances
just beyond the fighting tunnel.

‘Yeah, I see them,’ I confirmed.

‘Me too,’ Corporal Kamara added.

‘I also assume that they aren’t clear?’

I shook my head. ‘I can’t see anyone.’ I then raised
my voice. ‘FEA Commander, are those two tunnels ahead of us clear?’

‘No,’ the commander replied, and I relayed his
response onto the net.

‘Roger,’ the sergeant major acknowledged. ‘One-One
and One-Two, you will move up and assault both sides simultaneously. One-Two,
your Delta fire team will cover the tunnel. One-One, your Delta fire team will
remain in cover and will be used as an initial reserve. Naturally, this plan
will remain flexible.’

‘We could use some fire support from the FEA before
we move up?’ I suggested.

He shook his head. ‘I’ll provide you cover, but
nobody will fire unless they see something worth shooting at. If we spray the
tunnel, then our Guardsman friends will know we’re up to something.’

I nodded slowly, accepting his argument.
Indiscriminate suppressive fire was often a useful tool for preventing a foe
from popping out from cover, but we weren’t the only military unit to mask its
movements with fire. The Guard would know that we were coming and simply toss a
grenade out, assuming they had some left.

The sergeant major addressed the FEA commander. ‘Provide
us cover until we pass you, but do not fire unless we come under attack.’

‘Yes,’ the commander replied, finally accepting his
place within the food chain. ‘I understand.’

‘All call signs, prepare to move!’

‘Prepare to move . . .’ The sergeant major’s message
was repeated in hushed voices. The enemy were close, and their headsets could
translate our speech as easily as ours could theirs.

The sergeant major left a prolonged pause, allowing
us time to ready ourselves. I braced myself for action, my fingers flexing
around my rifle’s pistol grip. Across the platoon, muscles tensed, heartrates
raised, and minds focused.

‘Move!’

We launched forward, moving as fast as we could whilst
keeping our weapons trained onto the numerous tunnel openings ahead of us.
Myers took the lead, with me following just behind and to the left, so that I
could still engage targets if I needed to. None of us could run, for it would
spoil our aim, so instead we moved in a fast walk, hunched over our weapons to
present a smaller target.

The FEA soldiers who had been covering along the
access tunnel moved out of the way as we approached, taking refuge within the
cleared chambers and caves as they handed the battle over to us.

As we neared our objective, I was able to see across
into the entrance on the opposite side of the access tunnel - Two Section’s
objective. I switched my aim, using my vantage point to help cover their
approach.

My visor identified a target long before my eyes
did. Using both thermal imaging and image intensifier to spot recognisable
shapes and patterns, my targeting system flashed red, indicating a figure stood
within Two Section’s chamber.

The magnets in my rifle shrieked as I fired several
darts at the figure, the powerful recoil jarring the butt against my shoulder
with every round.

I didn’t know if I hit the figure, for he
disappeared as suddenly as my visor had spotted him. It didn’t matter, though,
for his appearance barely slowed our advance. Both our sections continued their
charge toward the corners of both entrances, all weapons zeroed onto the
opposite chamber - except for those of our lead men, who instead covered along
the access tunnel.

Without warning, several of Two Section’s men opened
fire into our objective tunnel, causing me to jump backward in surprise.