Unknown enemy, p.16
Unknown Enemy, page 16
part #1 of Broken Earth Series
“Don’t move!” Ross shouted.
The soldier ignored them and tried to climb back up into the vehicle.
“Stop moving, now!”
It still carried on. He looked over to Ramos, who simply shrugged. They’d never had to deal with a situation like this. Combatants always resisted or complied with their commands. But this was different. As if it were following orders to the letter, no matter what. “What is this thing?”
Ross took aim at one of its shoulders and fired. The arm went limp, and the enemy fighter slumped down against the vehicle. A moment later it was trying to haul itself up again with its remaining good arm.
“This is crazy,” said Ortiz.
Ross had no idea what they were dealing with, but he had a simple solution to the problem. He took aim at the shoulder of the enemy’s one good arm and put a round right through it. The arm stayed in place gripping the doorframe of the vehicle, but the body of the solder dropped down to the road.
“Oh!” Ortiz yelled.
Payne looked at him in disgust for being so weak-willed.
“All the blood we’ve seen, and this is what freaks you out?”
“Arms just falling off doesn’t freak you out, Max?”
“We were trained to deal with anything. So were you,” replied Payne.
“Yeah, well this ain’t anything, this is crazy shit!”
“Come on, we don’t wanna be out in the open for long.” Ross went to the vehicle to investigate. He was looking for anything that would help them understand their enemy. But the interior of the vehicle was as stark as the exterior.
“What the hell are we even looking for?” Ramos asked.
Payne was standing guard over the incapacitated enemy soldier. It was still looking around as if try to assess how it could go on fighting, and yet had no limbs left working with which to move.
“I guess we’ll know when we find it, Max,” replied Ross.
“This tech, it’s…”
“Like nothing we’ve ever seen before?”
“Yeah. What do you think that means?”
“That whoever or whatever hit us is also something we haven’t seen before.”
“But who?”
Ross shook his head.
“To be able to launch an attack on the United States, you’ve got to have some heavy hitting strength, and numbers, too.”
“Unless…”
“Unless what?”
“I don’t even want to think it.”
“Spit it out.”
“A far reaching tactical Nuke attack. Hit our major cities and bases, then deal with the stragglers on the ground?”
Ross took a deep breath, imagining what that could mean, but he soon shook his head.
“There’s no evidence of that. We’d see a nuke attack from hundreds of klicks away, and somebody would have some news. We’d know if that happened.”
“And yet we know nothing?”
“That about sums it up, yeah.”
He reached all around the vehicle for something, for anything. There were no storage compartments. No markings, nothing. It was positively clinical. A short-barrelled rifle was mounted beside one of the seats. He grabbed hold of it, and it released as if held by magnets. He looked at it for a few moments with a concerned look upon his face. The fact that all this was so alien to them worried him most. He’d seen plenty around the world, but this was all new to him. He backed away and took it with him.
“All right, let’s clear the road!”
The Tuckers’ truck reversed up the road and slid to a halt. Donny raced up beside it, pulled a chain out from the pickup, and lashed it around the tree lying across the road. He tapped the back hard, and the engine roared as it hauled the trunk out the way.
“How the hell do you get these things to roll?” Ramos tried to push one of the bullet-ridden vehicles.
Ross leant in and could see a single lever on the dash. He pulled it down one notch, and the vehicle rocked forward as if it weighed nothing more than a small hatchback. He leapt out as Ramos pushed it singlehandedly to the edge and over. It thundered down the steep slope, vanishing into the foliage. A loud crash rang out as it struck something hard and came to a standstill. The other slid past them as Dunn and Ortiz followed their lead.
"Someone is gonna miss them," said Ramos.
"Yeah, and when they figure out they didn't just get lost in the woods, we're gonna be in a world of trouble," replied Ortiz.
"Anything else you want to complain about?"
"Sure, I can go on all day."
"Well, don't," snarled Ross.
Payne hauled the wounded enemy soldier into the truck and climbed in. Ross took one last look around. The vehicle tracks leading to the edge were clear to see close up, but they didn't have time to do anything about them.
"Sun's coming up fast," said Ramos.
Ross nodded in agreement as he reached up, and Ramos helped him up onto the truck. He knelt down at the back of the vehicle, watching like a hawk. The truck pulled away, but he didn't take his eyes of the scene. Not until they'd taken a bend, gone up and over an incline, and were completely out of view. He breathed a sigh of relief, finally sitting back into the vehicle.
"What the hell is that thing?"
"Not the same thing that attacked my team a few nights back, Lee. I mean, it's similar, but it ain't the same," replied Donny.
They were all looking at their wounded prisoner. It was a bizarre experience. It looked more machine than anything living, but its eyes were open, and it was watching them.
“No blood, no reaction to any pain, is this thing even living?”
Nobody said a word, as they had no more idea Ortiz.
“This thing, how do we know it isn’t transmitting everything it’s seeing, or our position at least?” Donny asked.
Ramos lifted a pouch on his webbing and pulled out a small electronic device.
“No chance, he ain’t getting a signal out.”
“What is that, some kind of jammer?”
“Yeah, it sure is. Fifty-metre range.”
Donny looked impressed.
“You lads get all the toys, don’t you?” Lee asked.
Ross look annoyed.
“These are tools to get a job done. If you’re in hostile territory, and extracting a valuable target with little to no support, when the shit hits the fan, you better be able to manage with what you got.”
“So what, you use this for capturing enemy leaders in like, Afghanistan?”
“Lee!” Donny snapped at his brother.
“No, it’s okay.”
“Our work is covert. On any normal day you’d never see us or know who we are. But this isn’t any normal day, is it?”
Ramos looked concerned that he was saying so much.
“These kids are a part of this as much as we are. No point in holding back. We owe them that.”
“And when we get out of this? How’d we explain it to Rains?”
Ross sighed.
“If we get out of this, and if Rains is even still alive, well I guess we’ll worry about that when the time comes.”
“You think things are this bad across the country?”
“I think if this was an isolated incident, we’d have a damn sight more help dealing with it.”
That was all Lee needed to hear as he slumped back.
“We’re at war, aren’t we?” he asked his brother.
“I don’t know what this is.” Donny looked to Ross for answers.
Ross knew little more than any of them, and yet they were all looking to him for answers.
“I don’t know what this is, but does it matter? I wish we knew more, and I plan to find out in time, but all that matters is that we keep fighting. Something or someone is trying to take our homes. It wouldn’t be the first time. Our ancestors have had to fight for what was theirs many times. Whatever has come for us, it doesn’t matter. We can’t change that. All we can do is fight, fight to survive. Fight for what is ours.”
Lee shook his head, as if disagreeing.
“You’ve got something to add?” Ross asked angrily.
“I say the same kind of thing when we play football.”
“And?”
“And sometimes there are games you can’t win. Sometimes the odds aren’t in your favour, or you meet a team leagues better than you are. You play because you can’t give up, but you know you can’t win.”
“Life is a bit more complex than football,” snapped Donny.
“Not really.”
That took both brothers by surprise.
“You always have a chance, no matter the odds. You don’t go on playing to see the game to the end. You go on playing because you know there is still hope of winning, until the last second of play. You don’t give up, do you?”
“No, but if you still know you’re gonna lose.”
“Then you make sure you lose like a man, not like a pussy,” replied Ortiz.
Ross couldn’t help but smile.
“So that’s it?”
“That’s life in a nutshell, Lee,” replied Ross.
The truck pulled off the road and onto a narrow strip between trees that had no vehicle tracks at all. In seconds they were in amongst a dense forest and hidden from the world.
“This sucks, doesn’t it?”
“Oh, yeah,” Ross smiled again.
Chapter 2
Burns handed Olsen a glass of water as he winced trying to get up. He looked in pain, but halfway recovered from the heavy hit he’d taken on his armour.
“How long was I out?”
“All night.”
He looked around in a panic to find the rest of his team. None of them were in the small cabin, just Pope, who was still sleeping, and Emma and Kim busy cleaning weapons.
“Where are they? Where’s Ross?”
“They’re fine. They’re out looking for information.”
He relaxed a little, but still didn’t look happy.
“You should have woken me. I slept too long. I should be out there with them.”
“Right now you’re no good to anyone. Sleep and time is what you needed. That night of sleep has done you a world of good. Another like that, and you might be back on your feet and out there with them.”
He didn’t seem to agree. He was shaking his head as he reached for his belt and holstered pistol. Burns didn’t like to interfere, and he wasn’t going to keep the soldier from his weapon. He was smart enough to know what a tremendous mistake that would be.
“Ross wanted you here. You need to recover ASAP, and you aren’t gonna do that without rest.”
The stubborn soldier shrugged it off, wincing in pain, as he got upright.
“Keep going like this, and you’re gonna hurt yourself.”
He limped to the door and hauled it open. A man was silhouetted in the doorway, with a rifle in hand. Olsen staggered back as he drew his pistol.
“Wait!” Burns yelled.
But Olsen slipped and didn’t have enough strength to stay upright. He crashed down onto his back, and a shot fired off from his weapon, striking the doorframe.
“What the hell is going on here?”
The man in the doorway stepped inside.
“It’s just Miles for God’s sake. And you’d have known that if you damn well tried to walk before you ran!” Burns shouted angrily.
"What the hell are you doing? You nearly took my damn head off!" Miles strode towards Olsen.
Olsen looked shaky and backed away, sliding his handgun across the floor and out of his own reach.
"I'm sorry," he said softly, appalled by his own actions.
Burns stepped in between them, forcing Miles to stop.
"Easy now, son. He didn't mean you any harm. He's still got some way to go, and you startled him, is all."
"You know what I did to the last asshole that startled me? Blew his ass to hell with dynamite!"
Burns nodded and shrugged, as if he'd provided the answer to his own question. Miles looked over his shoulder to see the state Olsen was in.
"You went all out against a threat. He thought you were the same thing. He'll be kicking himself for weeks. He doesn't need anyone to do that for him," whispered Burns.
"Aren't these guys supposed to be the best?"
"They are, but they're also human like the rest of us."
There was an uncomfortable silence until the sound of an engine filled it, and they both rushed to the door. The Tuckers' truck was coming up the track, and Burns breathed a sigh of relief. Donny and Lee were the first to leap off the back as it came to a stop.
“You get one of those bastards?” Miles asked.
“Bet your ass we did,” replied Lee.
Payne picked up the wounded enemy soldier and tossed him over the edge. It landed hard on its back beside Miles, who jumped back in surprise.
“Jesus!”
He drew nearer for a better look. That’s when he noticed the eyes, mechanical-looking and following him.
“Unsettling, isn’t it?”
“Too fucking right, Donny. What is this thing?”
“That’s what we’re here to find out.” Ross landed beside them.
“This ain’t the thing that attacked my bunker. It’s too small.”
“Yeah, we know. Not what attacked us either,” replied Donny.
“Whoever these guys are, they clearly have different soldiers for different tasks,” replied Ramos.
“The big ones, we’ve only seen ‘em at night, right?”
“That’s right, Miles,” replied Ross.
“And the thing they hate almost as much as dynamite?”
“Light,” replied Donny as it finally struck him.
“You think that’s why we don’t see ‘em by day?” Ortiz asked.
“It makes sense, I guess. These things are the size of a man, and they go down easy. But the others we’ve all fought are bigger, stronger, faster, and tougher. They’re something else,” replied Donny.
“Those things seemed like they were alive, but this looks like a freaking robot,” said Miles.
“What the hell are we looking at here?” Kim stepped up beside Miles.
“The kind of equipment, this is your world, I thought you could help out.”
She threw up her hands at Ross.
“I fly fast jets, what the hell do I know about…that?”
“You wanted answers, so let’s get them,” said Miles.
“How?” Ramos asked.
“Try asking?” Emma joined in.
The whole lot of them looked a little sheepish for not having thought of that. Ross picked up the enemy soldier by the torso, dragged it to the edge of the cabin, and propped it up. He took a deep breath and went to speak, pausing as he realised how strange this was. He’d interrogated plenty of fighters before, but he couldn’t even tell what this was. He could see the others were waiting and expecting him to go on. The mechanical eyes were staring right back at him.
“Identify yourself,” he said sternly.
There was no response.
“What are you doing here, what is your mission?”
That seemed to spark a response. The soldier’s mouth finally opened, and it spoke.
“Lay down your weapons, and you will not be harmed.”
The voice was deep, and the lips didn’t quite match the words coming out of its mouth. It was like watching a dubbed movie. Ross didn’t know how to respond. It was like trying to communicate with an answering machine.
“Lay down your weapons, and you will not be harmed.”
It replied in exactly the same tone, as if it was indeed a pre-recorded message.
“Let me at him.”
Payne pushed Ross out of the way, swinging his fist like the hulking slugger he was. His huge clenched fist smashed into the steel face of the enemy solder, knocking its head aside, but the head soon turned back to face him.
“What are we doing here?” Emma pleaded at the seemingly senseless violence and torture.
“Enough!” Kim yelled.
But Payne got in one more blow, and the top of the soldier’s head split open. It smashed against the cabin and slumped forward. Emma cried out in horror.
“What have you done?”
“Well done, you cracked him right open,” Miles smiled.
“Yeah!” Ortiz shouted in support.
Ross didn’t look impressed, but didn’t do anything to stop them celebrating. Donny was first to approach the body. He was the most curious after having seen what this mysterious enemy had done to his comrades. He knelt down besides the body. He was cautious and suspicious, but also curious enough to keep investigating.
“What are you doing?”
“I want to know who these assholes are, and where they came from.”
“Well he’s not gonna tell you now, is he?” Lee laughed.
Donny didn’t respond as he was concentrating. He reached for what looked like the soldier’s split open head, although it was metallic, and there was no sign of blood.
“This is crazy, all of it,” said Emma.
“What’s crazy, is these things turning up in our town, trying to kill us.”
“I’m not so sure that’s what they were trying to do,” said Ross.
“What do you mean?”
“That they only attack people who are armed, that are a threat,” declared Burns from the doorway of the cabin.
“And…the rest? What about people that don’t threaten them?”
“Back at school…”
“What about it, Lee, what did you see?” Ross asked.
“They were rounding people up, kids, teachers, everyone. I thought they were putting them against the wall execution style. But…”
“But what?”
“I…it all happened so fast, Donny, but maybe…maybe they were taking prisoners.”
“Your classmates and teachers were under attack, and you didn’t even try to help?”
“Wow, easy now,” Ross stepped in between them.
“This is our town, and he wouldn’t even fight for it!”
“You know what these things can do. Your fireteam, what chance did they stand? These are kids in a school, what were they supposed to do?”
Donny looked over to his brother, realising he could have lost him as easily as he lost his friends.
