Rev revolution, p.3
REV- Revolution, page 3
part #4 of REV Warriors Series
The tall, square-jawed five-star general was shaking his head, even as he displayed a thin smile. “I can’t get over what a difference a year has made,” the CWO began. “Not only is the war going increasingly in our favor, but the REVs have finally become what we always hoped they would be when Slater first showed us his work.” Clausen laughed. “That was a little before your time, Jack, but I’m old enough to remember. And most of the credit for this turnaround goes to you.”
Diamond flinched a little at the word most. He thought he deserved all the credit for the new direction the program had taken since he wrested command from David Cross. But he didn’t push the point. Afterall, his success came from the fact that he’d stolen most of Cross’s research and turned it over to his own scientists. And then there were the unreported contributions by the mysterious Howard Summerlin. Even Clausen wasn’t fully aware of the impact Diamond’s fabulously-rich benefactor had on the development of AC-3.
“Thank you, sir. All it took was a fresh perspective. David was too close to the subject to see how a slight change in the formula could make such a difference.”
Clausen nodded. “I’m just letting you know you have the whole town buzzing back here. There’s even talk of no-cap funding for your program. Pretty soon, we could be on the way to building that army of REVs we’ve talked about.”
Diamond grimaced, an expression caught by Clausen. “What’s wrong?”
“The same as always, sir. It’s not the REVs we lack, it’s the trained operators. It’s great that we now have a division of compliant supermen ready to take orders. We just don’t have enough qualified people to issue those orders.”
“Do you not understand the meaning of no-cap funding, general?”
Diamond laughed. “Yes sir, and that will help. But it will take time. We had a thousand REVs when I took over the program, and with the lower metabolic rate associated with AC-3, we can find twice the tolerant candidates than we could with NT-4. That just means we’re going to need a hell of a lot more operators at the controls.”
Clausen nodded. “I understand that, Jack, and you’ll have all the support you need, especially as we gear up for the invasion of Antara.”
“So you’re going ahead with it?”
Now it was Clausen’s turn to grimace. “Looks like we won’t have a choice. Every overture we’ve made for peace talks has been rejected outright. The damn yellow-skinned bastards still think they can win the war. Belief in the Order won’t let them accept anything less.” Order was said in finger quotes. “We just have to get past Iz’zar and Ekin’bor. The inner world of Simblaus is mainly a manufacturing center. We want to preserve that, if we can. We may need the facilities later on. So two more worlds and then it’s on to Antara.”
“Wouldn’t it be best to blockade the planet and let them come to their senses that way, rather than spend Human lives on an invasion?”
“That’s the same question Truman faced when considering whether to drop a couple of nukes or a full-scale invasion of Japan. Right now, the plans are to go in, but one thing you have to realize, Jack, we don’t give a damn about the Qwin. Unlike the natives of the Colony Worlds—which we need to build an empire—the Antaere are expendable. We’ll go in with all we’ve got, including nukes. Hell, a little over a year ago they were about to do the same to us. They don’t deserve any more consideration. So to answer your question, there may not be as many casualties as you think, at least not on our side.”
“That’s good to know, sir,” Diamond said. “Although I believe in my REVs, I also wouldn’t want to see a bunch of them get slaughtered, not when we have alternatives.”
Clausen laughed. “Damn, Jack, you just shattered my impression of you as a cold-hearted bastard. You actually care for your men!” Clausen held up his hand before Diamond could respond. “Don’t worry, I won’t let anyone know. Your secret is safe with me. Now, give me a—”
Alarms sounded aboard the warship, interrupting the conversation and prompting a mad dash to battle stations by the ship’s crew.
“What’s going on there?” Clausen asked.
Diamond took a moment to scan the tac screen on his office computer.
“Incoming ships detected,” he told the CWO. Clausen would be getting the same data any second now, beamed back to the homeworld from the fleet above Menkar.
“The Antaere don’t have a substantial fleet in the region,” Clausen stated. More than anyone, he knew the enemy’s capacity and recent ship deployments. “How big of a force?”
Diamond studied the screen. “Ninety-plus ships.”
“But the Antaere don’t have ninety—”
“Sir, they’re reporting trouble identifying the energy signatures,” Diamond interrupted. “They’re not matching up with any known vessels, theirs or ours.”
“Well, we sure as hell know they aren’t ours, general.”
“Sir, I’m going to break the link now. You’ll be tied into everything I have in a matter of seconds. I need to get to work.”
“Of course, Jack. We’ll—”
Diamond cut the link and then opened a line with the bridge. “Captain, this is General Diamond, give me an update.”
Diamond wasn’t the only officer of flag rank onboard the battle-carrier. In fact, he was one of four, including a three-star who was in charge of the ground forces and a full admiral commanding the fleet. Still, he got a response, although it sounded as though Captain Crane was speaking over a party line, updating a number of people through a single conversation.
“Now one hundred twenty incoming bogies. Unknown origin. They’re approaching the planet from low orbit on the opposite side and launching atmospheric attack craft, hundreds of them. They’re closing on the battlefield.”
Diamond was at a loss for words. Fortunately, it wasn’t his job to make decisions at the moment. That was up to the captain and the naval officers aboard. But what Jack did know, the Human fleet above Menkar was only twenty-one ships in strength, and most of those were troop carriers. The main part of the Human fleet had chased away any sizeable Qwin forces three days before and was still in contact with them, keeping tabs. If the Antaere had turned back to Menkar, there should have been a warning. If not, then someone dropped the ball, and it was about to cost thousands of Human lives.
Diamond thought of the troops on the ground. Reports showed hundreds of attack vessels racing toward the Human lines, and probably with thousands of reinforcements for the beleaguered Antaere forces. The Humans did have a battle-carrier group in orbit to help support the troop ships, but even under perfect conditions, it would take a full day of constant shuttle flights to evacuate fourteen thousand combat troops from the surface. It was clear to Diamond that those on the ground were on their own, including his remaining REVs.
4
Admiral Jerica Armitage was in the Eldorado’s Combat Information Center when the incoming ships were first detected. Now she studied a myriad of data screens and inputs, trying her best to figure out what the hell just happened? Where did one hundred twenty warships come from? Her forces supposedly controlled the Menkar star system and the space beyond for up to twenty light-years. But that didn’t seem to be the case at the moment.
Maybe this new enemy fleet had been lying in wait, concealed from detection by what was called dark status, with nearly all shipboard energy turned off. But why attack now? Thousands of Antaere and their native allies had already died on the surface. Besides, the Human ground forces were in almost complete control of the planet, and the Eldorado’s task force was still a formidable deterrent. It didn’t make sense.
And neither did the energy signatures of the bogies.
The admiral tensed. Could this unknown fleet represent a new generation of Antaere warships, a secret weapon they’ve only now deployed? The Antaere did have the most-advanced technology in the Grid; they were certainly capable of developing something unknown, revolutionary…and deadly.
“Commander, get me numbers for our attack craft on the surface,” Armitage called out. “Can they repel the incoming with what they have?”
Commander Brian May shook his head. “No ma’am. There are sixty-five fast-attack aircraft operating with the ground forces, along with ninety moderately-armed shuttles with limited maneuvering capabilities. At last count, there are three hundred eighty enemy ships incoming, all of unknown capability and firepower. We have to assume the Antaere know what they’re up against and still they aren’t holding back with their attack.”
“Can we get into position to cut them off?”
A master chief answered. “The motherships are still on the other side of the planet, but should they elect to cover the battlefield, they would do a better job of it than we can. Besides, only the El, the Sydney and the Frankfurt, have any effective offensive firepower, and certainly not enough against a fleet of that size. We might be able to defend our forces in space, but not for long. And as for the units on the surface—”
“Connect me with General Powell.”
A link was opened a moment later with the operational commander on Menkar.
“Danny, you have a shitstorm coming your way,” said Admiral Armitage.
“Yeah, I heard.” The general’s face was contorted from a combination of stress, fatigue and anger, yet it was his eyes that conveyed the most rage. “I’ve ordered our troops to seek shelter wherever they can. Fortunately, the Antaere and the natives are doing the same, although they were already in the process of doing that the darker it got.”
“The Antaere are breaking off as well?”
“Not surprising, admiral. They probably don’t want to be anywhere near us when the shit hits the fan.”
“I’m recalling the rest of the fleet, but it will take two days for them to get here.”
“We’ll do the best we can to hold out. We do have some air cover, plus shelter in the cities we control and the remains of the spaceport. That should give us some protection. It won’t be pretty, but some of us will be around when the fleet arrives, guaranteed. It will take more than airpower to take out fourteen thousand mad-as-hornets Humans.”
“They’re probably bringing in reinforcements.”
“From the size of the dropships and the aircraft they have on the way, they can’t carry too many. We’ll be fine. You just cover your own ass, admiral. You have a much larger force to contend with compared to what you have to put against it. Don’t worry about us down here.”
“I’m way ahead of you, Danny. Just don’t be surprised if we have to do a strategic advance to the rear until the fleet arrives.”
General Powell laughed, a forced laugh. “Very good, Jerica. Let’s just make sure we all live to fight another day.”
5
Brigadier General Jack Diamond was back in the tac bay, along with over a hundred curious and nervous REV operators and techs, most staring at him, looking for guidance. The order had gone out a minute before to suspend all action on the ground and return the REVs to Twilight Zones. The regular Army and Marine forces were also ceasing operations and taking cover. What was curious, the Antaere were doing the same, and not taking advantage of the ceasefire to gain territory or strategic positions.
“Colonel Khatri, where are the recovery crews?” Diamond asked his ground commander.
“Still in the field and doing the best they can. They’re about the only troops moving out here, our forces or otherwise. Looks like we’re about to get a whole lot of bricks dropped on us.”
“The main fleet is being recalled but they won’t get here for two days.”
“We’ll do the best we can, general.”
“Can you get to the spaceport? Some of those bunkers we took out were pretty deep.”
“Way ahead of you, sir. I already have the wounded being evacuated and the recovery crews have orders to take their REVs there.”
“Good. My operators still have contact with their REVs. Any with Run time left can still fight.”
“Sir, just get them to the nearest recovery team. A few REVs with limited time available won’t make a difference. Let’s save some lives.”
“Of course, colonel; I was just stating a fact. I’ll get all the REVs heading for TZs immediately.”
***
Sergeant Joanie Hollis sat mesmerized by the rythmic movement of Private First Class Marc Roberts as he ran through alien city streets heading for the Twilight Zone. She kept a wary eye on her other screens, noting where the enemy ships were beginning their strafing runs. All across the battlefield, explosions were going off, ripping into buildings, canals and other fortified locations. The curious part, the bombs and missiles were indiscriminate in their targeting. The entire city was under siege, not just the Human-controlled areas.
In the end, the bombings did their job, forcing thousands of troops to abandon their hideouts and scurry into the open. It was dark on this part of Menkar, but infrared sensors lit up the landscape for both allies and enemy alike, turning night into day. What was curious: the aircraft ignored most of the fleeing troops, instead maintaining a disciplined attack on the buildings.
When the strafing ended, landing craft arrived in droves, dislodging their shock troops, before immediate dust-off and return to the motherships. Soon the ground in and around the city of Dooer was swarming with aliens. Drones swept in, spotlighted and nightscope cameras focusing in on the enemy troops.
“Who the hell are they?” someone asked from another part of the tac bay.
Joanie isolated one of the aliens and froze the image, enlarging it on her screen. Shocked silence filled the chamber. The creature was not an Antaere, nor was it Menkarean. It was muscular, dark-skinned and with boney plates running up the sides of its angular, almost cat-like head. It wore very little armor to hide its form—which was odd in these times of mechanized warriors. Even still, there was a fierceness in its eyes, a savage, fearless look. Joanie shivered as she paraphrased the previous question. “What the hell is that?”
Every world within the Grid with an advanced form of life had been surveyed by the Antaere centuries before, be they Earth-like or not. Besides the Colony Worlds, there were dozens of others, although the Humans and Antaere were only interested in those similar to their homeworlds. A quick check of her computer resources came back with zero results. This was a completely new species. Joanie’s skin turned cold from the implications. That meant this thing came from outside the Grid. That in itself wasn’t revolutionary; there had to be millions of alien species spread across the vast galaxy. Yet it was the unknown nature of the revelation that frightened her the most. Who were they? Where did they come from? How many were on the way? The empire of the Antaere may encompass a sphere a thousand light-years in diameter, but what about one that covered half the galaxy or more? No one knew what lie beyond the Grid, they could only speculate. And now the first contact had been made with something outside. And they didn’t come in peace.
Having run the last operation in the bay, everyone was gathering around her station, including General Diamond. He stood to Joanie’s left, transfixed by the alien image.
“It’s moving,” someone said. Joanie unfroze the image, catching up with the drone’s recording. People gasped at what they saw. The previously upright alien bent over and began to run on all fours, it’s impressive-looking black-metal weapon now held securely against its chest by restraining straps. But running was not the proper word. Instead, it leapt in great strides and at even greater speed. Someone put a monitor on the leaps and a moment later a number of one hundred kilometers per hour came on the screen.
The incredible speed was impressive enough, but what made the people in the room gasp was what it did with that speed. A group of the leaping creatures was closing on the Human troops, who in desperation were firing wildly at the dark figures as they fled, using nightvision goggles as best they could. But the aliens were quicker and more elusive and descended on the Human troops with savage abandon. They didn’t unsling their weapons; instead they fell on the Humans with wild slashing from both their arms and feet. Wide cuts opened up on the soldiers, even with their light armor. Whatever the aliens had on their limbs was sharp and tough, tougher than the armor.
Joanie squinted, trying to see what weapons they carried, but it soon became apparent the aliens were using claws, even on their feet, to slash at the troops. They struck with lightening quickness and accuracy, bounding between targets with agility and ease. Although some of the attackers went down from Human gunfire, that didn’t change their strategy. They preferred physical combat in such close quarters to their more conventional weapons; however, a few resorted to their guns only to reach Human targets outside their reach. It was a slaughter.
Joanie turned her attention back to PFC Marc Roberts. She checked his relative location to the exfil point.
“Fuck!” she called out. There was a line of aliens between him and the recovery crew. He wouldn’t make it without fighting through them.
She checked the time clock. Two and a half minutes before terminal cascading. It would be tight, depending on how long it took him to fight through the aliens—
“Recall the recovery team,” General Diamond ordered. “Get them out of there.”
“Sir!”
“He won’t make it, sergeant.”
“But you don’t know that for sure.”
“Do as I say. Your REV is already gone. Now his value to the Corps is to help us learn as much about these new aliens as we can.”
Joanie hesitated.
“Do it, Joanie,” said Lt. Bennett. “Send out the recall code to the team. Prepare your REV for defensive actions. It’s important for us to see how the aliens do against a REV.”
