“Aim for the head!” cried Chandra.
Hall reached the edge of the trench above the creature as it trained its cannon on a group of soldiers whose rifle fire was ricocheting off its armour. He lifted his rifle and opened up on full auto against the top of the creature’s armoured suit. It spasmed sharply and smashed its cannon into the Corporal. Hall was launched into the air and tumbled back down to the ground hard. He rolled across the muddy surface until coming to a dead stop.
The Major turned to shout her orders but found Silva stood with an ARMAL launcher held at the hip. She leapt aside as he fired. Smoke filed the trench, and a split second later a huge explosion tore through it. Metal shrapnel burst across the area, hitting several of the troops. Chandra yelped in pain as a sliver of metal impeded into her left arm. She turned away as the heat from the explosion blasted past.
As the dust settled, the Major turned to look at the carnage in the trench. The Mech had been blown apart and scattered across the bodies of the four dead soldiers. Gunfire continued to rage in the nearby trenches, and artillery fire still roared overhead. Silva rushed to her side and quickly checked her wound.
“You okay, Major?” he yelled.
She nodded back but could not yet get any words out. Her eardrums had popped, and she was still in shock at the devastation. She turned and stumbled, slightly falling back against the wall of the trench. The Major could see the distraught faces of the troops around her. The war was taking them face-to-face with their enemy, and it wasn’t a pretty sight.
“We don’t get our gear back soon, and we are fucking goners,” whispered Silva.
She climbed back up to look over the trench with Silva. The Mech forces lay in ruin, but they could see columns of the enemy in the distance and heading for them.
“That was just the beginning,” said Silva. “Within a few hours, those armies are going to roll up these hills, and there will be nothing we can do about it.”
“Alright, Sergeant, gather up any wounded and head back to re-supply.”
“Re-supply what, ammunition that can barely touch those bastards? The launchers we got early on this war finally gave us a fighting chance, but now we may as well throw stones at them!”
She grabbed the Sergeant’s webbing and hauled him in close.
“I am well aware of that, Sergeant, but what am I to do?”
“Whatever you have to! This isn’t just about us. If our armies fall here, it could be the end of the war in Europe.” He pointed to the line of tanks behind their positions, several of which were engulfed in flames. “That armour and artillery is all that is keeping them from running us into the ground, and how long do you think it can last?”
She looked back to see Captain Becker kneeling down beside one of the wounded tank crewmen as medics were doing the best they could. She wished she could have his resolve, but she also knew that deep down he was as scared as the rest of them. The tank commander looked up at her and instantly recognised her even over the distance. He gave a friendly and informal salute that she acknowledged. Silva carried on.
“Reiter’s equipment has gone into production. I hear some units in the US have already been issued it. Whatever is needed, it must be done. We need that gear, and we need it now!”
Chandra turned to look at the flood of enemy swarming towards them and prayed for it all to be over. Let it all be a bad dream, she thought. It can’t be real, none of it. She felt numb from the misery and loss she had witnessed. Then her attention was drawn by a cough and a splutter behind their trench. She turned to see Hall rolling in pain.
“He’s alive,” exclaimed Silva.
Chandra clambered out of her trench and rushed to the Corporal. He rolled over onto his back and looked up at her with a smile, even though she could see the pain in his face and blood pouring from his mouth. She knelt down beside him and looked for any wounds. His rifle lay splintered in half beside him, having taken the worst of the impact. She could see that his right shoulder was dislocated and slung low.
“I’m still here, Major, still in the fight,” he smiled.
She lifted his other arm and looked for any wounds. He winced in pain, but she was relieved to see his wounds did not extend further.
“You’re a lucky bastard, Corporal. We’ll get you patched up and back in no time,” she replied.
He sighed in pain once again and spat blood out onto the dirt where his broken rifle lay.
“Major, we gotta sort this out. We’re getting fucking killed out here. What happens when they get here in greater number?”
She heard footsteps as the mud squelched beside her and saw Sergeant Silva step up to her side.
“He’s right. We haven’t got the firepower to stop them at a distance, and at this range, we were god damn lucky no more got through. Two or three of those in the trench, and we could have all been done for.”
“Alright, I hear you loud and clear. I’ll do what I can. You get the Company back for re-supply.”
“What are you gonna do?”
“Whatever I can to get us what we need.”
Kelly strode through the corridor that was lined with eager troops waiting to re-take the ground they had been losing on a daily basis. What was left of the Moon government still did their utmost to stop him going into combat, but he would not be swayed. He could never ask his fellow citizens to fight while he watched from safety.
The Chinese transport has taken back their remaining children and wounded. Those left knew they were stuck there for the foreseeable future. It was a grim reality, but at least now they had hope. Kelly reached the intersection where Martinez and Chen were awaiting him. All three officers carried the M97 launchers with armour piercing rounds that had proven so effective in their last major battle, even if it was ultimately doomed to failure.
“I’m heading north to take the passages we lost last week,” stated Kelly. He pulled out his Mappad with a layout of the passages. “Chen, you go north-west through 49B. Martinez, you’ll follow me until you reach this intersection, at which time you’ll take this section, corridor 38C.”
“That’ll have us crossing paths within hours. We could cover more ground than that if we work further afield,” claimed Chen.
“In an ideal world, Colonel, but this isn’t an ideal world, or at least not anymore. We underestimated the strength of their forces once, and I will not do it again. If we fail again, it could be the end of us all. I appreciate your troops are eager for action, but we know all too well the horrors that we face.”
Chen nodded in agreement. Kelly could see the Colonel didn’t agree with his assessment or tactics, but he was loyal enough not to contradict them.
“Your being here is greatly appreciated and will never be forgotten, Colonel,” said Kelly to reassure the Chinese officer.
“What is the estimate of remaining enemy forces?” asked Martinez.
“A hell of a lot left for Earth, so I can only imagine they have left what they believe is enough to keep us suppressed.”
“That’s reassuring,” he snarled.
“What do you want me to say, that this is going to be easy? These Krycenaeans, or whatever they are called, didn’t come here to take power. They came to take our lands, and they will not rest until we are dead. Remind your men of that. It’s us, or them. The Earthers have opened up an opportunity for us, so let’s not screw it up.”
Kelly turned back to Chen who still looked less than enthusiastic about his plan. The Commander couldn’t tell if it was their mission, or the fact the Colonel had to fight on the Moon which bothered him.
“The colony may mean nothing to you, Colonel, but that shouldn’t matter. You have seen the pressure Earth forces have laid down that has opened up the gates for us. Know that in fighting here, you can do the same for them.”