The roar on the comlink was deafening, a cacophony of cheers and screams of, “We will not fail.” They are as ready as I can make them, Marek thought as he listened. I hope I am as well.
The cheering fell silent as someone began shouting. “Vehicles outside!” The voice was shrill, stressed. “John, they’re coming through the outer gate!”
“Troy?” Marek thought the voice was Troy Evans. Troy was barely 18, and Marek could hear the youth in his voice. “Is that you reporting?”
“Yes, John.” His voice was softer, but still shaky. “It’s me.”
“Identify yourselves when you report. All of you.” Marek snapped the command. The time for speeches was past. “I need data, Troy. Numbers, types of vehicles. Are they disembarking?”
“Umm…I understand, John.” He was scared, and it came through loud and clear. Marek wished they’d had time to set up a more complex communications net. Everyone didn’t need to hear everything.
“Focus, Troy.” He was firm but patient. That’s all he can take, Marek thought. I’ll just push him over the edge if I pressure him too hard. “Just concentrate and get me hard info.”
“Yes, John.” His voice was a little steadier. “It looks like at least a dozen vehicles. They’re stacked up at the gate, so it’s hard to tell how many.”
“Good, Troy. Keep me posted.” Bad tactics, he thought, lining up at the gate like that. They had to expect us to resist, so why would they make themselves easy targets? Are these Feds so arrogant they think they have nothing to fear from a bunch of colonials? He muttered softly to himself, his hand over the mic on his headset. “If they force us, we’re going to teach them a hard lesson.”
Marek walked toward the front of the building. The armory was a large plasti-crete structure, very solidly built, with two frontal access points and a big loading dock on the side. The loading area was enclosed within heavy ‘crete walls, and he had the outer gate heavily garrisoned. He had a team on the roof, positioned to provide a good field of fire no matter how the Feds approached.
“Attention.” The amplified voice was almost deafening, even inside. “You are illegally occupying government property and holding federal personnel hostage.” Marek looked around the room. All his people looked steady so far, at least the ones he could see. “By order of His Excellency Arlen Cooper, Planetary Advisor of Columbia, you are to lay down your arms and surrender at once.”
There was a long pause. This is where we’re supposed to get scared, I guess, Marek thought. He snorted. I’ve faced a lot worse than you before, buddy. He was standing behind a workstation with screens displaying the input from the outside cameras. He could see the shadowy figures disembarking from the lead vehicles, deploying to the left and right.
“Failure to comply immediately will result in immediate action. You have one minute to respond.”
Marek almost ordered his non-existent AI to connect him to the outside speakers, but he caught himself. He realized how accustomed he was to having the very best equipment, how different this fight would be than the ones he’d been in before. Compared to the way a Marine assault force was equipped, his people might as well have sharpened sticks. He reached down and flipped a switch.
“Attention federal commander. This is Major John Marek, commander of the 3 rd Weston Battalion. I am duly authorized by the Planetary Assembly to conduct all operations I deem necessary to maintain the readiness of the force under my command. Your people have not been harmed, and they will be released to you at once.”
Marek flipped off the switch and turned to Aaron Davis, who’d been standing behind him outside the door to the room where he’d locked up the captive Feds. “Get the prisoners. Bring them to the front entrance.”
“You’re going to release them?” Davis blurted out what he was thinking and immediately looked sorry.
“Just get them,” Marek snapped. If we get through this, he thought, we’re going to have to a long talk about military discipline. This is starting to feel like a commune. “I want them outside in sixty seconds. Move!” Davis was already on his way to get the prisoners, but Marek decided to add the last bit anyway to make a point.
He flipped the switch and reactivated his microphone. “Federal commander, your personnel will be released in one minute. Stand by.” No threats or interruptions, Marek thought. At least this Fed isn’t a totally unrestrained jackboot. He’s cool enough to wait until I release his people before he starts threatening me again. Maybe, he thought, just maybe we can get through this without fighting. But he didn’t really believe it.
“Attention all personnel.” Marek spoke slowly and clearly into the comlink. “The federal prisoners are being released. Hold all fire. I repeat, hold all fire.”
Marek waved his arm toward the door. Davis just nodded, not saying anything this time. He pushed a button and the plasti-steel door slid open. “Ok, get moving.” His voice was sharp, clipped. He was following Marek’s orders, but he clearly disagreed. He pushed the prisoners toward the door, hitting the button and closing the hatch as soon as the last of them was out.
Marek watched the released prisoners walk through the gate then flipped on the speaker. “All personnel have been released. This is a lawful Columbian militia installation occupied by forces under a duly-appointed field officer. You are respectfully requested to withdraw at…”
“You are ordered to disarm and surrender at once.” The federal commander interrupted Marek. “In thirty seconds we will take the installation by force.”
“Federal commander, you have no right to attempt to seize this facility.” Marek knew it was a waste of time, but if there was a chance to stop what he could see coming, he had to try. “Withdraw at once.”
There was no response. Marek flipped on his headset. “All personnel, prepare to repel an assault.” He paused. “Stay focused, stay calm. Just do the work.” Stay calm, he thought…that sounds great. Who the hell has ever stayed calm in battle?
He watched the whole thing unfold on his screen. The police came forward, rushing for the front entrance. Marek couldn’t believe what he was seeing. The assaulting troops had no heavy weapons; they just rushed the building. He was going to have to make a decision. Open fire or let them get to the door. He flipped the switch on his headset, still not knowing what he was going to say, and then he heard it. A single shot – Marek couldn’t tell which side had fired it. For an instant the sound hung in the air, a solitary crack in the night. Then both sides started firing wildly.
The Feds in front of the building were caught out in the open and raked by fire from Marek’s carefully placed troops. Marek couldn’t understand what they were thinking. “Arrogant fools,” he muttered to himself as he watched his people on the roof massacre them. They thought they’d just walk up to the door, he thought, and we’d all panic. The federals fired sporadically up at the roof for a few seconds before they broke and ran.
“Cease fire.” Marek barked the order into his headset, but the shooting continued. “Cease fire, goddammit!” Marek screamed into the mic. The fire sputtered to a halt, a few more shots ringing out until he yelled one last time.
The field in front of the building was strewn with dead and wounded. The rest of the federal force was running away or desperately climbing into their vehicles, throwing down their weapons and abandoning their wounded comrades.