Relias: Uprising (29 page)

 “I want a fully loaded supply pack with three thousand Infiltrator rounds, an entire regiment of thirty-thousand calorie Power packs, food rations for the Ditrinity and Rush, grenades, tents and armor.”

 “How are you going to carry all that?” Alighieri asked with short breath.

 “Hi ho.” Morlo chimed in.

 “And how many Striker jets do we still have?” Luke asked. Price’s Battlecraft was close.

 Alighieri hummed as he thought. “Ten, possibly eleven.”

 “Good.” Luke said. “Take them out of combat and reserve them for an airstrike.”

 “They’re in Styne!” Alighieri cried. “We can’t-“

 Luke stopped and grabbed Alighieri by his ruffled shirt. “Get me those Strikers! This is our last chance at survival now make the call and get them!”

 Alighieri nodded immediately.

 “Now what kind of equipment is Rush packing?” Luke asked, continuing on towards the Battlecraft.

 “What ammo they could scrounge before escaping Praemon.” Alighieri replied shakily. “Some swords, and a lot of explosives.”

 “Why so many?”

 “That Demolitionist Kristik is obsessed with explosions.”

 There was an amused huff from Hendrick. “Who isn’t?”

 They reached the side of the Battlecraft and Luke stopped. “Get those supplies together, Sam. I want to be gone within twenty minutes.”

 There seemed to be a renewed hope within Alighieri. He looked towards a Dark soldier watching them from another Battlecraft. “Get them a supply pack!” He shouted. “With everything in it! Stuff it till it bulges!”

 Alighieri turned back to Luke excitedly. “Now we’re not sure where exactly Rush is going to be. We’re getting pings from their GPS unit but they’re still running through the Byfayne mountains so there’s going to be quite a bit of interference.” 

 Luke nodded and hopped in the craft. An anxious Ditrinity hopped in behind him and sat down. Hendrick went up to a slumped and sleeping Price, woke her, and told her what was going on. She readjusted her helmet on her head, flipped down her flight goggles and started initiating the Battlecraft’s launch sequence.

 “Keep an operator listening out for us.” Luke said. “Make it his only job. You can’t miss anything. If we need extra supplies then you send us extra supplies. We ask for that air strike then I want those Strikers there within ten minutes. You got that?”

 Alighieri nodded.

 “And none of this pathetic prejudice crap I’ve had to go through. You better not short us on an airdrop because one of your pilots doesn’t like me.”

 “I’ll keep you refilled.” Price said from the front seat. The Battlecraft’s engines roared to life and there was a sharp burst of air from the thrusters.

 “The supply pack sir.” Said a Dark soldier. It took several soldiers to carry the pack. Morlo got up from his seat and hopped out, picking the bag up effortlessly and slinging it over his shoulder.

 “Much obliged.” He said with a grin. He gave Alighieri a hard pat on the back and hopped back in.

 “And keep advisors on hand.” Luke said while removing his sword from his back. “I have no idea what we’re going to run into.”

 Alighieri nodded.

 “Get clear!” Price cried harshly.

 As though he were forgetting his firstborn, Hendrick moved to the door and tossed out a burlap wrapped bundle and pointed sternly at Alighieri. “Those better be fixed by our next supply drop. And don’t think I won’t walk all the way back here and give you a colonoscopy with my boot if anything happens to them!”

 Alighieri took the bundle and nodded, stepping away from the Battlecraft as he watched it. It rocked slightly as it left solid ground and became airborne. With a hand shielding his eyes from the sunlight Alighieri watched the Battlecraft get higher and higher. The Dark immigrants began to gather all around him, watching the craft elevate above the trees and turn its nose back towards Praemon. It was a direction that they all feared, yet watching the Battlecraft fire up and zip off towards the thick, thunderous clouds on the horizon was a galvanizing sight. They watched the sky well after the Battlecraft had disappeared beyond the tree line and kept their eyes aloft until the sounds of the engines faded out. Then, one by one, the crowd dispersed, returning to the tasks they were tending to before the arrival of Luke and the Ditrinity. Building shelters and organizing their rations, the remaining Darks could only hope that, whatever it was that Luke and the Ditrinity was doing, they were successful at it.

 Alighieri was the last one standing there, watching the sky in the direction that the Battlecraft had disappeared. For a brief moment, Alighieri regretted having ever left the Ditrinity in favor of politics. But they were the best at what they did and it gave Alighieri hope. But the only uncertainty he had was on exactly how many Legionnaires they’d have to take on. After all, there were over two million active members of the First Legionnaire. And with prospects as tempting and tantalizing as they were, Alighieri knew that Frenz would gather as many of those soldiers as he could and send every last one of them after Luke.

Chapter 16

 “We’re gonna be goin’ in hard and fast!” Price shouted above the commotion.

 Legionnaire mortars exploded all around the Battlecraft, ripping it side to side in jarring motions. Despite the brain-rattling turbulence the Ditrinity checked and rechecked their gear in preparation for the drop.

 Luke sat holding his sword point down in front of him and his modified Infiltrator slung across his back. He looked around at the others checking for fear or anxiety. It was a pointless gesture and Luke knew it, but though they were as dangerous and fearless as a person could be, Luke still felt compelled to check on them. It was habit. Luke would’ve rather been oversensitive than insensitive to the needs of others. Everybody was talking except Sable, who sat by herself in the corner and peered through the window in the side of the Battlecraft.

 She was calm, collected. Not at all jittery as she had been when Luke first saw during his rescue in Styne. In fact, at the time Luke was convinced that something traumatic had happened to Sable since they had last spoken. She had never been that anxious or fearful. It’s something he’d have to ask her.

 “Rush is approximately thirty-five miles to the southwest of Praemon!” Price yelled through the noise. “We’ve got Legionnaire Helios coming up on them so I’m gonna drop you off a quarter mile to the north!”

 The Ditrinity heard it. They were ready.

 “I’m picking up a massive Legionnaire signature!” Price declared as she checked her radar. “Be careful out there.”

 There was an alarm that sounded. Legionnaire anti-air rockets had a lock on them. Price cursed and accelerated. 

 “I’m gonna have to drop you off here, boys!” Price shouted. “I’ll get shredded if we go further. Landing doors opening. Stay back!”

 The doors on the side slid open and the sounds outside the Battlecraft hit them like a dull burst of wind. It was windy outside and the skies were darkening fast. Luke got to his feet and stood at the edge of the Battlecraft.

 His vision was white with spots of blue here and there which expanded and contracted haphazardly like an amoeba; they were armed with stabilizers. There were Legionnaires everywhere and they were all converging on one spot. It was like his birthday; the Legionnaire were actually
coming
to him.

 Hendrick got to the edge of his seat with a persistent smirk of excitement. Sable had her Infiltrator held to her shoulder and was waiting patiently for a target to present itself. Pontious had a rifle as well, not planning on transforming into a wolf just yet. Vyvyr meditated quietly to himself, dressed in the garb of an armored sniper while Morlo happily sang a song to himself.

 “We drink and fight and smack our wives if they burn our Quo ham. We tell the wench to try again before they feel our backhand.”

 There was a resounding thud and the craft shuddered as it landed on solid ground. The Ditrinity got to their feet and went to leave the craft.

 “I’ve got you on your command!” Price yelled to Luke. “You need an airdrop anywhere, and I mean
anywhere,
I’ll be there hot and ready!”

 “Hot damn.” Hendrick commented. Luke gave Price a respectful nod which she returned with a salute.

 Luke was first off the craft, landing in the tall grass and walking forward, surveying the surrounding area. The others followed, forming up and getting into attack positions with Morlo’s booming singing as their soundtrack.

 They all ducked down as the Battlecraft took off, tilting forward and zipping off with glowing lead shooting up from the ground and following just behind her. Luke made a gesture with his hand and the group fanned out, each watching in a different direction ensuring they wouldn’t get snuck up on.

 They entered into the trees and it was darker. A mist had begun to build up and the Legionnaires in the forest had become dark grey shapes against the foggy backdrop.

 “Only fire if you have to.” Luke said. “They don’t know that we’re here yet. Move.”

 They crouched as they ran, concealing themselves the best they could, using the plant life and the fog to their advantage.

 They ran in a wedge formation with their Infiltrators ready. Luke ran point, with Hendrick and Sable covering the left side and Vyvyr, Morlo and Pontious watching the right. Leaping over logs, threading through the trees, they kept themselves as discreet as possible, only firing when they had to.

 The Legionnaire squads had spread themselves out. The more they ran the more shapes appeared in the fog. The more shapes that appeared the more convinced Luke became that the Legionnaire had circled Rush entirely.

 Everybody was running in the same direction, and with the low visibility Luke and the Ditrinity blended exceptionally well with the other soldiers.

 “Left.” Luke said only loud enough to be heard. Hendrick raised his gun and popped off a shot into a Legionnaire that was coming too close. The shot was sharp and loud but blended in with the other gunshots that echoed through the forest.

 The Ditrinity were expert marksmen. For every target they saw it was one shot, one kill.

 Luke kept point and maintained his pace, putting his trust in the Ditrinity entirely.

 The fog was thinning out. Luke could see the edge of the trees coming up ahead.

 It was a cliff. Legionnaire soldiers had lined up all along the top of it and shot down into a rocky ravine. Luke raised one hand and motioned to his left and right. The Ditrinity dispersed in both directions, Hendrick and Sable going left and Vyvyr and Pontious going right. Morlo, with his cannon, went off by himself to do something that Luke had no clue of. Luke picked up his pace and sprinted ahead towards a spot he’d been concentrated on since it came into view.

 It was a gap in the Stabilizers.

 There was a Phantom laid down beneath a bush that Luke nearly tripped over. The Phantom rolled onto his back to attack but Luke already had his sword drawn. He shoved the tip of the sword through the Phantom’s chest and turned his attention towards Rush.

 He could see six people sprinting through the quarry, five of them with guns firing up at the soldiers on the cliffs. The largest man, a truly massive guy, had a particle cannon. There was a shorter, stockier man firing a grenade launcher; there was their Demolitionist. And before Luke did anything else he found Tess, packing an Obliterator that was almost as big as she was. But then he saw Seraphine, a younger looking girl keeping her head down and clinging to Muldoon’s pants, using him as cover. It was then amidst his righteous anger that he took a rare moment of positive reflection. He couldn’t wait to teach Tess to use Elemental.    

 It was a large rocky quarry with exiting valleys on both sides and Rush was tearing like hell from one end to the other. It was obvious that they were completely overwhelmed; most of them were shooting without even aiming. For the Demolitionist and his grenade launcher that was a legitimate tactic, but for the rest of the group it provided shoddy cover fire that had barely an effect on their attackers. But Luke wouldn’t judge; they were in the perfectly wrong situation. They were outnumbered, out gunned, and they had the low ground. Luke shook his head at Rush’s poor strategic choosing and did a quick evaluation of the surroundings.

 There was a large rocky spire that came up in the center of the quarry. Surrounding it was a mish-mash of large and small rocks which provided adequate cover for the group. Cover was always a plus, obviously, but in this situation it was a necessity. Their covering fire wasn’t worth crap.

 The Legionnaire still didn’t know they were there, even considering that the Ditrinity was picking them off along the upper parts of the quarry. Along the sides of the cliffs nearest to him he could see the Ditrinity peering through the scopes of their Infiltrators, sniping soldiers, finding a new target, and repeating. Whenever a soldier went down the others would simply assume it was caused by retaliatory fire from Rush. And Luke was still in unstabilized territory. As much as he hated to do it, he couldn’t use Elemental; not if they could kill the Legionnaire without being detected.

 Luke sheathed his sword and drew his Infiltrator. Looking through the scope he could see everything in regular, infrared and thermal filters. With the Phantoms’ camo Luke set the scope to thermal. Looking through the scope the Legionnaires were perfectly visible; what could’ve been over three hundred Legionnaires glowed in white silhouettes in countless places around the quarry.

 He found his first target; it was a Berserker wielding a mortar cannon. Luke centered the crosshairs on the glowing outline of the Berserker’s head and squeezed the trigger. There was a burst of white that exploded from the back of the Berserker’s head. Luke had already picked out his next target. With the large rounds he was using Luke stopped worrying about headshots and knew that a round like that would be fatal wherever it struck. Just above where the Berserker had been Luke found a Phantom perched high in a tree.