He could see they had a solid defence, and his people were more than capable of holding. It was his opportunity to get back to Chandra and check on any news. Just after a pulse flew past his position, he rushed out and quickly dived around the corner where Chandra was waiting.
“I’ve already had word sent to Jones to box them in the other end!” she shouted.
“So they are jamming us?”
She nodded in response.
“Are the hard lines still working?”
“For now. Do you think you can hold them in that corridor?” she asked.
“No problem, but it’s not this breach I’m worried about. It’s the next one and the one after.”
Chandra dipped her head and sighed at the desperation of their situation, and Taylor could already see she knew more than she had said.
“What is it?”
“We already have two other breaches.”
“Christ, I bloody hope Schulz gets a God damn shift on! How are the other breaches holding?”
“So far they’re holding. But Mitch, I don’t know how many more of these we can take. Info is still sketchy on the enemy strength, but clearly what we have in the air isn’t enough to hold them off.”
Taylor thought back to Rains for a minute. He knew the pilots and Navy personnel were their first line of defence, and so would be getting it the worst. Part of him hoped they had beaten a hasty retreat and saved themselves from the bitter onslaught of the aliens, but more than anything he prayed they had stayed. Corporal Hall rushed up to stand between the two officers and blurted out his news before they could ask his purpose.
“Colonel, we have another two breaches, one on this deck and one on 2A.”
“Alright, Kelly will have to handle one. We’ll take this level.”
She turned to Taylor. “Can you handle this, here?”
He nodded quickly in response.
“Alright, we’ll head to the other breach. Pray for us all, Major. Pray we make it through this. Pray the enemy are in few numbers, and pray Schulz is as quick to respond as we might hope.”
“Too much to chance, Colonel. I’ll rely on me and my own, first and foremost. Let’s show these bastards why you don’t mess with the human race!”
He turned and rushed back to his positions to peel off half the platoon to continue on to the new destination. He knew he was spreading their troops thin, but there was little else to do.
“Hall, we’ve got to move, now!”
The Corporal turned to look at the battle ensuing ahead where Jones had clearly flanked the enemy and engaged them with a brutal salvo of fire.
“The Captain can handle this, come on!”
Taylor led just twelve men to the next breach. Hall led the section he now commanded; a corporal was all they could muster anymore.
“Sir, we can’t keep covering so much ground!” yelled Hall as they rushed down a narrow corridor.
“We have to. We have to hold!”
“Spread this thin, one break in our line, and we’ll be fucked!”
“That’s a chance we’ll have to take, Corporal. Now haul ass and give ‘em hell!”
“Morris! Get down that corridor and cut them off!” Kelly shouted.
The Commander was stood at the entrance to the command centre with rifle in hand. A fallen Mech lay just twenty metres down the corridor. He shook his head in disbelief at how close the enemy had got. Martinez rushed to his side. The officer had blood splattered across his face, but it was clearly not his own.
“Sir, you must get back in to the CP. We can handle it here!”
Kelly looked around and initially thought to lash out at the man for tell him what to do. But he thought for just long enough to appreciate it had to be done.
“Alright, but you get back to the fight. Don’t let any of those bastards near the holding cell. Those prisoners may be the only reason we’re still alive!”
He quickly turned and rushed back into the command post to see Lewis receiving frantic communications from around the station. Kelly could do nothing but stand beside him and await the news. Eventually, the comms officer looked up and reported with a stunned and grim tone.
“Sir, we’ve got five breaches. Two are within the containment areas, but I have lost the video feeds.”
Then you can bet your arse they’ll be banging on the doors soon enough. Where are they likely to try and break through?”
Lewis leapt to his feet and strode over to the projected map of the station.
“The enemy craft that breached within the confinement areas are here, and here. Captain Nichols will have to face one, the other force is coming for us.”
“Alright, let Major Achen know. How is Perera doing?”
“Only light contact so far.”
“And the Navy boys?”
“From what I can see, they’re still slugging it out. They have been able to stop a number of the assault ships, but clearly they’re still getting through.”
The room shook violently as a blast rang out just ten metres from where they were stood. The two of them ducked instinctively as items on the desk beside them were launched onto the deck.
“What the fuck was that?” yelled Kelly.
He heard a myriad of shots and screams ring out from the corridor outside, and it was followed by automatic weapon fire.
“They must have breached the adjacent corridor, Sir,” replied Lewis.
“God damn it! Get Taylor and tell him we need assistance, now!”
Chapter 10
A comms unit flashed on the wall opposite where Taylor was huddled.
“Hall! Get that call!”
The Corporal looked at the Major for a second in astonishment. Dust and debris still floated around the corridors, and they were still taking fire. A pulse had hit the wall next to the unit just twenty seconds earlier.
“Get the God damn call, Corporal!”
Hall didn’t hesitate a second time. He leapt across the open corridor, and hit the open channel key.
“This is the CP, we need immediate assistance. I repeat, immediate assistance! We have a breach at 2A, and Achen is tied up!”
Taylor could hear the desperate call, even from the other side of the corridor and over the noise of the battle.
“We’re on our way! Hold on!”
He turned to Chandra, but she responded before he could ask the question.
“We’ve got it here, go!” she shouted.
“3 ^rd platoon, on me!” he cried.
Taylor rushed to the stairwell, knowing none of them could risk using the elevators. He leapt four steps at a time and rushed so quickly through the automatic doors that he buckled them as his exosuit caught the frame either side. As he burst into the corridor, he caught sight of a Mech and quickly fired as he passed to the other side of the corridor, unable to stop himself with the momentum. Mitch saw his round land wide of its target, but it was enough of a distraction to get him safely behind cover.
As he smashed into the far wall, he lifted up his hand to signal for the others to stop as three energy bursts rushed down the corridor between them.
“Jesus Christ!” Hall screamed, and he stopped just in time to save having his head blown off. He backed up against the side of the doorway Taylor had only moments before smashed in passing. He quickly reached for a grenade, but Taylor noticed as he was about to twist the firing cap.
“No grenades!”
Hall looked down at the grenade, looking sheepish for a moment for not remembering. He slipped the grenade back onto his webbing as pulses continued to fly down the gap between the two men. They could tell the enemy were advancing towards them because the pulsating of their weapons was getting louder with each shot.