Crimson Worlds: 04 - The First Imperium by Jay Allan

Author:Jay Allan [Allan, Jay]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: System 7 Publishing
Published: 2013-04-14T05:00:00+00:00

“Get those autocannons set up NOW!” McDaniels’ voice was hoarse, her throat raw from shouting. Skarn Island had become an inferno, a manifestation of hell for the Marines desperately trying to hold out on its rocky slopes.

She still had all six of her autocannons, but most of them were on their second crew, and one of them was on its fourth. Casualties had been heavy, and the enemy had been targeting the weapons teams in particular. The regular mag-rifles of the Marines could take down one of the battle robots, but it took a lot of concentrated fire to do it. The HVMs and heavy autocannons were a much bigger threat, and the enemy had adjusted its fire priorities accordingly.

McDaniels had abandoned her mortars – they were more or less ineffective anyway – and turned the crews into replacements for the autocannon teams. She’d lost two of her four HVMs. She could replace lost crews, but there was nothing she could do about missile launchers that were blown to bits. She hated to think of her people as more replaceable than equipment, but in the cold mathematics of the Battle of Cornwall, they were. There was time for self-loathing later…if she ever got off this miserable planet. For now all she cared about was keeping the maximum amount of fire on those things.

McDaniels was a cold realist - most of her colleagues would say a pessimist - and she generally expected things to get worse rather than better. Her years of combat experience had only confirmed that point of view. But even she was unprepared for what happened next.

“Lieutenant! What the hell is THAT?” It was Sergeant Jones, but he only beat the rest of the section leaders by a few seconds.

She saw it too. The enemy robots were fearsome adversaries, two and a half meters tall, with four large appendages bristling with weapons. But the thing she saw now froze the blood in her veins. It was close to four meters tall and jet black. Its legs were wider than an armored Marine, and its massive body supported six huge arms.

McDaniels was transfixed, but only for a few seconds. “HVMs, target that thing. Now!” She tried to keep her voice calm, but she didn’t quite manage it. She took a deep breath, forcing back the urge to turn and run. She was having a hard time dealing with these things. She’d faced enemies before, and she’d always been afraid…anyone sane was afraid in battle. But this enemy was different. There was a coldness, a relentlessness about them. A human enemy was frightening enough, but at least you knew he felt the same things you did – fear, pain, uncertainty. But that equilibrium was shattered here. She didn’t think these foes had any of those weaknesses. And these new monstrosities were like some nightmare conjured up from the darkness.

She saw two HVMs impact just in front of the thing, and she watched in horror as it lumbered forward through the maelstrom.

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