Alien Mine Ch. 19

"Heavies, rake the walls, floor, and ceilings," he managed to get out before he was again fighting for his life. He heard the roar of the chain guns and the autocannon, but the red dots surrounding them continued to increase as his squad was attacked from all directions. The drones were all that was keeping them alive as they deflected the attack. He heard men screaming behind him, "Jake is down," someone shouted as one of the autocannons ceased firing.

Torres fired three grenades through the floor, momentarily slowing the fire from below. He had extras in his armor webbing, determined to use one of them on himself rather than being dragged off by the alien monsters.

"Fire into the walls," Torres ordered, sending his tiger drone into the wall, the mechanical beast ripping through the sponge-like material and into another similar space, but this one already crawling with the robotic insects. Torres heard fire behind him and then on both sides. He killed one of the Trangrods, and a bird drone got the second, but then the left side of the wall opened up, and one of the monsters was suddenly among them. It grabbed Lewis, one of his riflemen, and disappeared back through the wall of the tunnel before anyone could react. They could hear Lewis' screams as he was being dragged away, then suddenly silence. There were shouts of incoming over local comms. Someone picked up the auto-cannon and cut loose again, accompanied by grenades shredding the sides of the tunnel, momentarily stopping the assault.

"Cover your zones," Torres snapped; Delta is on their way, so watch your fire." There was a pause in the attack, and Torres could hear firing and command chatter as Delta and the major's command squad fought their way forward. Tac-grid showed their immediate area clear, but a cluster ahead and below was moving fast his way. Delta had better arrive quickly, or there wouldn't be anyone left.

Yaneta moved into a defensive position with the rest of Delta squad when the order came from Kiania. She was new, but her symbiont absorbed the inflowing tactical data quicker than the normal humans giving her an extra few seconds to react. Yaneta could see the Trangrods moving on tac-grid and raised her weapon and fired a long burst on automatic just as a Trangrod came through the top. The rounds tore into its underside and showered them with parts as a grenade from one of the others blew it apart. Then everyone was firing as mechanical insects pushed the barrels of their weapons through the wall, firing point-blank into the squad. Yaneta felt her armor take hits, one of which knocked her to the ground. There were shouts of "I'm hit," amid the roar of auto-cannon and chain guns, and then a drone leaped over her to attack a Trangrod. Yaneta killed it with a bird drone, rolled onto her back, and fired upward as another came from the top. At the same time, the volume of fire seemed to increase dramatically, shrapnel clanging off her armor, and then an explosion knocked her sideways. There seemed a pause in the fighting, and a hand extended from above; seizing hold of it, she was pulled to her feet by Amancia.

"Sergeant Russell is down; take command of the squad," Amancia brusquely ordered her. Push forward to relieve Echo; they are about to be overrun. We will hit the Trangrods from behind. Then the Binary turned, sprinted through the wall, and disappeared. Yaneta looked around; only seven of the ten-man squad were still standing. Yaneta had started to protest the order; she didn't know how to lead men and had never fought until recently, but with the binary gone, the men were looking at her, and she could see the fear. She didn't have a choice; it was a command from the Binary; she had to obey.

The sergeant was alive but missing a leg, and Roberts, who carried the chain gun, was missing his head, and another soldier she didn't know was gone. The sergeant would survive and even grow a new leg, but it was too late for the others. That left her with six, the auto-cannon and five drones, one of them the heavy designed for the centipedes. They hadn't seen any of those yet, but she expected they would soon. Picking out a soldier, she said, "Corporal Tanner, get someone to take the sergeant back to the shuttle." Then Yaneta paused for a second. "Rhys, how do I do this," she asked while trying to gather her wits and control the creeping fear that she would let Rhys down.

"Put the senior corporal in charge of the men, but you have to lead; they will need you," Rhys ordered.

Yaneta ran through the surviving but shaken men in her mind. They had two dead, the Sergeant had lost a leg, and they had to send one to help him back. This meant the squad was down four men. "Tanner," she ordered firmly, but in a calm voice she did not feel, "organize the squad; if we stay here, we are dead. Get the men ready to advance. Echo is in trouble, and we need the additional fire support to stay alive." Yaneta shouldered her rifle and picked up the chain gun. She had never used one but wanted the added firepower.

Corporal Lang pulled his sergeant up and helped him hobble back up the tunnel. "I'm good," the Sergeant said to the surprised Lang, "the armor stopped the bleeding just like they told us it would, and I am pumped full of painkillers and stimulants. If we are attacked, just let me go; I can cover from the ground."

" OK, Sergeant," said the surprised corporal. He didn't know rather to be glad he was returning or terrified the Trangrods would get them on the way. He hurried as best he could, thankful they had practiced this in the simulators. Tac-grid looked clear for the moment; everything was centered around Echo. He felt sorry for them, but Delta would be there to relieve them; he just hoped there would be enough men still alive to relieve.

"Follow me; Echo is in trouble," Yaneta shouted so the men could hear her voice as she took the front position. "Heavy behind me; watch for my targeting,'' she added as the corporal got the rest of the soldiers organized, reassigning fire teams on the go. The soldier with the autocannon joined her. Together, they started blowing everything in front of them to hell, alternating the lead to let the other one reload and cool barrels. She led them at a run; speed was of the essence now. They didn't bother to clear corners; instead, grenade air blasts accompanied the heavy weapons that tore into the sides of the tunnel and the ceiling with equal ferocity. The Trangrods were fewer in number here, and the few that tried to attack were blown up, slammed by drones, and then shredded by the auto-cannon.

Sandy, Thea, and Mei/Bao watched with mounting concern as the squads came under attack. The shuttle was close to the ground, making it difficult for any weapons the Om might have to target them. The Binary analyzed the data feeding it back to the AI; the link was slow compared to what they were used to. Still, there was little return information except for the data being fed into the tactical grid showing the position of the Trangrods.

The Binary frowned as it collated sensor data from the ship and fed it to the AI. The Om had succeeded in degrading their sensor information, so they were letting the AI analyze the incomplete data. The return information was clear. "New targets, larger power source, they reported; centipedes are now on the move," the Binary told Rhys.

"I see it," Rhys responded, ducking back through a tear in the tunnel as another alien roach fired while slipping around him, trying to get into his rear. Rhys feinted right, then spun left, ripping through the soft tunnel wall hammering the roach before it could react. "We will destroy the ones attacking Echo, regroup, and deal with them, but first, we will need to resupply. Have Thea send us the remaining drones."

"Acknowledged," Sandy replied. The Binary turned, and both faces stared at Sandy. Thea's hair linked the three of them together and then with Sandy as information was exchanged at the speed of thought and decisions made. Thea withdrew her hair, put on her helmet, and selected an auto-cannon. The Binary took two heavy rifles, and an additional twenty drones unpacked themselves. "Ready?" Sandy asked, knowing the answer.

Thea nodded, and Sandy brought the shuttle down to the ground. She would send the drones and then pick up the injured. Rhys had not asked for Thea and the Binary, he preferred to keep them out of combat, but Sandy could see the swarm of centipedes heading his way, and Rhys would need all the help he could get. Sandy prepped the weapons and brought the shuttle down. Twenty drones led the way, followed by Thea and Mei/Bao. "Hurry," Sandy said, looking at the hologram showing the Om nest. The three of them examined the 3D hologram displayed in the control room's center. The tunnels branched and rejoined in what seemed like random fashion.

Further down, there were open spaces, but all the tunnels funneled down to one place in the center, that was obscured by some kind of shielding. "The centipedes will probably reach them before Rhys can kill the Trangrods and reorganize. Slow them down; the men will need the time to reorganize," Sandy Ordered Thea. Thea and the binary acknowledged and then leaped to the ground, following their drones.

Sandy examined the hologram, picturing where she could use the shuttle's weapons. Her missiles could blow a deep enough hole for the laser beams to be effective, or she could use the dissipators to dissolve much of the upper surface. Then strike with the missiles or lasers. First, she needed to get the wounded on board, then move into position to provide fire support. Her hair reached out, taking the wounded man from the soldier carrying him in. Sergeant Russell was missing a leg, another one from Charlie Squad, Corporal Richards had terrible wounds to the torso, but he was still walking somehow. When wounded, unless it was an extremity, normal humans didn't typically live through an encounter with a Trangrod. If the armor didn't protect them, the destruction caused by the Trangrod to the unenhanced human body was violent and usually fatal.

The other man, Corporal Lang, who had carried the sergeant, started to return, but Sandy stopped him; he probably wouldn't survive the trip back alone. Sandy closed her eyes, Hair extending in multiple directions, melding herself into the ship; the sensors were now her eyes. She started to take the shuttle up, but before the boarding entrance could close, the smell and foul taste of the Om rolled over her. Jerking her consciousness back from the ship, Sandy threw herself to the side as a violet beam tore past her and into the shuttle. She felt the damage to the vessel, sharp pain as the energy bolt struck. Sandy only had a moment to register the attack before the ship's control room became a sudden combat zone; the two Om who had followed the men inside fired. Despite his wounds, Corporal Richards cut loose with his weapon firing on automatic, missing the first creature who had come aboard, but his rounds caught the second in the throat, almost decapitating him. As the creature fell, his own energy weapon discharged, the beam piercing the corporal's heart.

Sandy was shocked that they were not fighting Trangrods but something much more hideous. Something that had started life as human but now looked like an alien monstrosity. The head of the one attacking her was, at best only half human, with large bug-like eyes and what looked like mandibles in place of the mouth. Streaks of a metallic substance ran lengthwise down the forehead and across the face. The arms were longer than they should be, metallic looking, with giant claw-like hands, and the legs were equally transformed but bent the wrong way. The feet were unnaturally large with long toes designed to grip, and there seemed to be a carapace covering the torso.

Corporal Lang had carried his Sergeant back from the battle, and now he tried to bring his rifle up to fire, but he was cut in half by a third Om coming into the ship. Sandy watched him fall as time slowed for her, blood and intestines gushing forth as each half fell to the deck. She desperately sealed the ship and lunged for her weapon as her tiger drone leapt for the first Om. Sandy grabbed her weapon, but the violet beam fired again, and the drone exploded into pieces, knocking both of them down. Sandy didn't try to get up but rolled to her side, bringing her rifle to bear. Then, firing on automatic, she sprayed rounds in the direction she had seen the Om creature fall. It staggered up, wounded, and raised its weapon, but her bullets found its head blowing it apart.

Looking desperately for the other one still alive, she turned with her rifle in time to see its weapon aimed at her. Sandy sprang right while firing wildly, knowing she couldn't bring her gun to bear in time, but the killing blow never came. Instead, the beam intended for her cut her rifle in two. Dropping the damaged rifle, the monoblade sprang out, and she lunged at the creature but was thrown backward as several rounds impacted her chest. Sandy shouted in pain as she rolled to her feet only to be shot at again by the short projectile weapon held in its other hand. Bracing herself against the impacts, she knew only a few seconds were left before the energy weapon would be ready to fire again. Sandy lunged forward in a desperate but probably futile attempt to reach the creature before it could fire, only to hear gunshots. The Om staggered as the wounded Sergeant on the ground fired several shots with his pistol, but the rounds didn't penetrate. Sergeant Russell shifted his aim to the head, but the gun was empty, and the Om turned and brought its weapon to bear on the now helpless Sergeant. Sandy screamed in rage. Focusing her mind, Sandy sent her hair streaking at the Om; over one hundred thousand individual strands of hair curled around its body and struck the creature from behind, instantly penetrating its head and spine. The Om jerked, limbs flailing wildly as the stands drove into its nervous system and pushed up through the base of his spine and into its brain.

Sandy shuddered as the connection was made, then gasped in horror when she realized there was still something human alive, but it was overlain by another presence, something incredibly alien and evil. However, in that first connection, she had detected something else, another alien presence, stronger and more malicious if possible. It also sensed her, and Sandy could feel it rushing toward her. It was as if she was standing on a railroad track and a freight train was bearing down on her, but this was not a train; it was a cold alien mind seeking hers. It wanted the symbiont. With a shout, Sandy jerked her hair back from the creature, ripping out its spine and most of its brain, killing it instantly and breaking the connection.

"What the fuck, was that?" Sergeant Russell asked fearfully, still holding the empty pistol.

"THEY MUST BE DESTROYED BEFORE THEY INFECT ANOTHER HUMAN," the AI told Sandy, and her necklace dissolved. The nanobyte cloud flowed to cover the aliens.

"I don't know, Sergeant, but thank you for saving my life; it would have killed me if you hadn't shot him."

"What are you doing to them?" he asked, gesturing towards the silvery cloud surrounding one of them.

Sandy watched, equally transfixed, as the cloud dissolved them, one at a time. "Don't worry, they are just taking care of the trash," she said as her hair reached out again for the ship. The shuttle was in pain from the attack inside the ship, hurt but not seriously.

Sandy took them slowly and rose above the side of the nest, but there was no fire from the ground, and missiles spat from the shuttle. She would start at the furthest end from Rhys and blast a hole into the nest. The two explosions exposed enough of the Om nest that Sandy could see some of the tunnels. "There they are," she thought and began using the lasers and dissipators to go deeper, systematically destroying and sealing off tunnels. It was better with Thea and the Binary operating the weapons, but this was something she could handle herself.

Sandy would give whatever Om was in control down there something else to worry about than Rhys; she intended to dig her way down to the bottom of the nest. Whatever had been coming for her was in there somewhere, and it had terrified her more than she wanted to admit. Next, it would be coming for Rhys or one of the girls, and Sandy was determined to kill it first. But then missiles erupted from the nest, and the shuttle was too close for evasion. The shuttle shook from explosions as the point defense lasers got the first of them. The initial Om counterattack was light; only a few missiles or the shuttle might have been destroyed. Full thrust took Sandy out of immediate danger, but revenge would have to wait; Sandy was too busy trying to survive.

Rhys and Amancia/Leslie raced through the tunnels from different directions to converge on the Trangrods that had Echo Squad surrounded. They moved faster than the Om could react, slicing through the walls of the tunnels, only stopping to kill Trangrods when they couldn't go around. Rhys frowned when Thea and Mei/Bao appeared on the tac-grid with twenty additional drones. He didn't want them in combat, but he recognized the necessity. If the centipedes reached Echo Squad before they could regroup, they would be overwhelmed, and it was going to be close, too close. "Take up position here," he told Thea, mentally pointing out where he wanted the drones deployed. If you can delay them there, Kiania will flank them, then we will come in from above, Rhys said as he dodged through the right wall of the tunnel, but firing back through the wall hitting the legs of a roach, the heavy rounds throwing it onto its side where his droned attacked the underbelly ripping it apart. Rhys did not even slow down, the bird drones flying ahead and the AI providing targeting information to his tac-grid.

"Don't let Thea and the binary get pinned down or cut off," he told Kiania, concerned at what he could see coming; fall back if you have to. Sandy will start blasting her way in; that should distract them."

Then he said to himself, "right about now," as he burst through a tunnel and into a massive firefight. He was above and behind to the left of the Trangrods attacking Echo, and Amancia/Leslie had just appeared from below and to the rear on the right side. At the same time, Delta Squad, undermanned but led by Yaneta, had fought their way through and added their own firepower as they deployed into adjacent tunnels. "Get to cover as best you can, and get your crossfires! Use your tac-grid and watch for friendlies," Rhys told Yaneta, his voice so calm it sounded like he was ordering a drink.

Amancia/Leslie came through a tunnel wall in two places, taking the Trangrods in the rear. Simultaneously they hit them with a sawtooth blast of jamming, cutting through the Om communications and isolating the attacking Trangrods. The jamming also disrupted the swarm-like communication between the individual Trangrods and their tight coordination. The effect was immediately noticeable as the closely orchestrated attack by the Trangrods broke into a disordered, chaotic fight. A few continued to attack Echo Squad, while others seemed unable to pick an opponent, instead moving randomly until fired upon. The binary took ruthless advantage of the confusion by alternating her exposure. The Amancia half of the interlaced mind would pop up and rapid-fire grenades that exploded in a row of pyrotechnics and shrapnel before fading back to cover. Then the other half would take them under fire with her heavy rifle, the rounds punching large holes in the Trangrods. Return fire was sporadic and uncoordinated as the Om bio-machines came under fire from three directions.