“Get the armour surrounding the building, the APCs remain on the south side for loading, I want eyes on the roof ASAP.”
The men immediately moved forward. Far from the lines of the EUA forces it was eerily quiet. The guns raged in the background but all around them was quiet, like sunrise before commuters had risen to go to work. The building was protected by nothing more than a wire fence and a locked door that presented little resistance to the troops.
Captain Jones went into the building where he immediately found more doors. They were huge steel doors as tall as the building. A keypad entry system was at eye level. Fortunately the Colonel had already supplied Jones with the codes. He quickly tapped them in, sceptical as to whether they would even work. He wondered if anyone had accessed the building in a few decades, they were a reminder of the days of fragile peace amongst the major powers on Earth.
The keypad flashed as the doors prized opened twenty metres wide. They could see crates of weapons and ammunition. The rifles were obsolete compared to what they now used, but the ammunition was still the same.
“We’re in business! Get the APCs up here and get to work!”
The first vehicle backed up against the structure as the heavy tanks rolled on around the perimeter. The Captain had not yet seen the effectiveness of their armour against the invaders. However, by the fact that they still held Brest, he speculated that they had played a major part.
“Make sure we have eyes on all quarters! I want to know the second we hit any trouble!”
Jones pulled his rifle sling around until the weapon hung on his back and his hands were free. He reached out for the first crate, hauling it off the stack and towards the vehicle. Doctrine had taught him to never dig in with the labour of the rank and file, but experience had showed him that they didn’t want to be in enemy territory a second longer than they had to.
“Taylor, give us an update!” shouted White.
“The boats are on the way as we speak, General, we expect them to hit the ground in thirty minutes.”
“You think they’ll deliver the goods and get out okay?”
“Yes, Sir.”
“Then let’s deal with the next shit storm at our door!”
“Sir?”
“A new front has opened in North Africa. Reports suggest that the African nations’ forces have been pushed back at an alarming rate, along with the UEN forces stationed there. Spain is also falling at an alarming rate.”
The General tapped his screen and brought up the latest map before them. It was received with a gasp as each of the top brass saw quite how fast the world was falling.
“Towns and cities are falling so quickly right now that we can barely keep track of the current lines, let alone get much intel!”
“What’s our next step here, General?” asked Taylor.
“I want a full report from Moon colonists on the effectiveness of the weapons we are sending them. Meanwhile, relying on the reports you made for us, we are equipping as many of the units as possible.”
“So we do nothing?”
“I will not risk ground troops until we have re-equipped as best as possible as per your recommendations, Major.”
“And what about Europe? Africa? We are just going to let them all die?”
“At this stage we’d just be adding more bodies to the pile, Major. Let’s make sure that when we move we have enough muscle to make a dent.”
Taylor lowered his head. Yet more inaction and delaying on the General’s part was a depressing and ever more common experience. He knew that every action would be on the General’s shoulders, but he also knew that the time had come to act.
“I want reports the second those weapons have seen action, Major.”
“Yes, Sir.”
Lt. Rains looked amazed at the readings on their equipment. He had been space trained as per regulations, but he never envisaged the speed at which they were blasting towards the Moon. Beside him sat Lieutenant Perez, who’d been his co-pilot for several years.
“Never thought to be in this seat, Eddie.”
“We got the best seats in the house, my friend. Delivering help to the needy and riding in probably the fastest ship that has ever existed. We’re having a blast!”
“Let’s just hope its fast enough,” Perez replied wearily.
The Moon colony was now in sight, a vast ugly city to their Earth dwelling eyes. Like Taylor, they could never understand why anyone would want to live there. They still had no idea on the sort of scanning and surveillance equipment the invaders used. They had never travelled into a combat situation without a thorough understanding of their enemy, let alone such a fear of them.
Speed and surprise were the only tools to hand for the few brave pilots rocketing towards the Moon at speed. Taylor had already predicted they would have an absolute maximum of five minutes on the ground before encountering trouble. Previous experience showed that they would have the guns to take on a small group of fighters, but not any great numbers.
The landing zone was a barren and desolate area a kilometre from the edge of the colony. To even the well-trained eye it was every bit as untouched by humanity as it appeared. To anyone who knew better, beneath the surface was a military bunker and tunnel system leading to various parts of the colony.
“What if we get hit by ground troops, Eddie? We haven’t planned for that possibility.”
“Then we’re fucked. Planning has been as good as can be, now it’s down to luck.”
“Hardly reassuring!”
“If you wanted certainty, Perez, you should have worked at a desk.”
Perez nodded with a grin. They both loved their work, the thrill of the high-speed combat aircraft and exhilaration they experienced through much of their work. Now for the first time ever their stomachs churned as their own mortality become uncomfortably apparent.
“This is it!” shouted Eddie.
The two craft tore across the lunar landscape at blinding speeds just a hundred metres above the surface.
“Be ready on the guns!”
“They better be ready for us!” screamed Perez.
Eddie closely watched the heads up display in the cockpit, carefully timing their rapid drop onto the landing zone. Just a hundred metres short of the target area, and still with no sign of life, he put the thrusters on full reverse bringing the ship to a sudden and violent landing exactly where he’d been told to land. All four of the men were still doubtful of the intel and the ability of the surviving colonists to be there waiting for them.
He immediately powered down the engines to silence the scene and draw as little attention to them as possible. They could only hope that their presence had gone unnoticed but they knew that was too much to hope for. Rains reached forward and tapped the display, bringing up the under slung cameras on the craft. For a moment they saw nothing but the same boring rocks that spread as far as the eye could see beyond the colony.
“Think we hit the right spot?” asked Perez.
“We hit the right co-ordinates, that’s for sure.”
“Great, suits fucked it up again…”
Before he could say another word the ground opened between the two vessels, just metres away from the landing sleds.
“Holy shit!”
The opening was thirty metres wide and disguised the man-made structure below. On the cameras they could see a platform rising to the surface with dozens of people suited up and ready to get to work.
“We are in business, Eddie!”
He hit the cargo doors as the massive platform rose to the level of their side doors. The pilots had been ordered to stay in their seats at all times. They wanted nothing more than to greet their comrades, but they had to be ready to leave or operate weapons at a moment’s notice.
Eddie watched the screens intently, rocking back and forth with the stress and excitement of it all. Perez scanned the skies with his monitors and camera displays, sneaking a peak at the colonists every few seconds. They set on the supplies like a swarm. They were highly organised and efficient, just as the pilots had hoped, but never expected.