War Core, Book 3: Earth Siege by Dean Henegar

Author:Dean Henegar [Henegar, Dean]
Language: eng
Format: epub, azw3
Published: 2022-11-28T16:00:00+00:00

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Chapter 27

It took time for the Hive of the Widow to replenish its numbers, and all the while, the battle continued in a similar pattern. Hugh’s troops would push the Ssath back toward their base, only to be obliterated by the enemy core. During this time, resources continued to flow in, a few granted with each kill that was made. They kept all their piloted mechs well back from the Ssath core, not wanting to risk being run down by the faster enemy. Whether through some upgrade or with an ability the enemy core possessed, he began to exert some control over the automated mechs being produced at his base. Instead of marching toward the humans using the shortest route, the Ssath alternated which path they marched on, keeping Hugh’s forces busy.

When the Ssath command post hit level 9, new changes appeared, including an expansion of its production buildings to include a medium mech facility. Hugh’s opponent would enjoy a short time of dominance in both lanes of the canyon now that he possessed a firepower advantage. The advantage would be brief—Hugh’s upgrade to level 9 was likely only minutes away—but the enemy core was set to take advantage of that brief delay. To make matters worse, the enemy core had somehow bumped up the production rate on his infantry barracks, and despite alternating which path they were marching on, a steady flow of units made their way down each lane.

“Everyone pull back. Dalven’s team can hold their barracks, and we’ll stay behind the Hive of the Widow. Don’t engage the Ssath core if he approaches your lane,” Hugh ordered.

“Should we group up now?” Dalven asked.

“No, if the Ssath core decides to join the push, we’ll try and counter in the other lane,” Hugh replied. It did look like the Ssath was going to push, but he wasn’t going it alone. The glowing streaks of drop pods appeared in the sky, targeted just outside the Ssath base. Hugh counted ten that slammed into the canyon, and out of each stepped ten infantry mechs accompanied by a light mech. A second wave of five more drop pods landed as soon as the first units cleared the area, giving the enemy 150 infantry, along with fifteen light mechs to push the assault.

“This is it. He’s betting everything on this push,” Sergeant Marthman said. It seemed true; the Ssath had to have blown a huge number of resources on upgrading and activating the reinforcement drop ability, likely draining his funds to near zero. Normally, that would be a foolish move, but it looked like they were going to face an overwhelming number of enemy mechs, all of them heading toward Hugh’s side of the canyon. As they pulled back to the hive, Hugh tried to come up with a game plan to stop his opponent.

“Any ideas? I’m open to suggestions,” he asked. Conventional officer wisdom said that soliciting advice from your subordinates in the heat of battle was a no-go; he was the

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