"Just bear in mind, Sir, that we're in German airspace, not a place we want to be, considering."
"Got it, Ryan. We'll be quick."
Magnetic clamping arms extended from the Deveron as they came in close and took a hold on the hull. Taylor could see an access door now. He lifted his rifle and fired a dozen shots at the hinges.
"Do the honours," he said to Jafar.
The alien leapt onto the roof of the Deveron and got his grip inside the damaged door. With one big heave, he ripped it from the hull, and it flew off into the distance.
The two ships rocked as the transport shook violently.
"Sir, they're onto us. We can't keep them locked like this for long!" Ryan called over the comms.
"Let's move!"
He leapt out onto the roof and jumped up into the ship. Jafar and Hughes got inside with him, but as the other two were getting out onto the roof of the Deveron, the seal broke from the docking arms. The transport banked hard to get away from their ship. Malok was thrown overboard, but Waters managed to stay safe.
Hughes looked in horror as his crewmate descended rapidly.
"He'll be okay. The suit will get him down safe!"
"Safely into enemy territory, Sir!"
"We've got bigger things to worry about, right now! You stay here."
He readied his weapon and rushed up the ramp where he found Jafar already firing his weapon. The body of a soldier lay between him and them. It made him sick to see a human dead at their hands, but he knew it was unavoidable. He took up position beside Jafar and peered around the corner carefully. Three German soldiers lay in wait for them. One was using President Mertens as a human shield. The other two held rifles at the ready. All were equipped as they were.
"I am Colonel Mitch Taylor of the 2nd Inter-Allied Battalion, United States Marine Corps. Lay down your weapons!"
"You have no authority here!" one shouted back.
"Think about this. You're kidnapping a head of state!"
"We're at war, and we are under orders to detain President Mertens!"
"At war? Belgium declared independence from the UEN, a voluntary union!"
"And sided with those who are trying to kill us!"
"Do you want to die here?" he asked.
No response came.
"Because the only options here are we kill you, or you kill us and that ship out there blows you out of the sky. Handover the President and leave with your lives!"
"That's not happening!"
Taylor shook his head.
"Remember, you wanted this, not me!"
He pulled out a magazine from his webbing and threw it around the corner as if it were a grenade. He heard them shout in German and duck for cover. In that moment, he leapt out and fired two shots into one of their rifles. The rifle was smashed in two as the rounds penetrated his chest armour.
Jafar fired the next two shots doing exactly the same. Only the man holding the President remained. He still held a pistol beside her, but now it was pointed at Taylor.
"Nobody else has to die here. We're taking the President whether we have to go through you or not. Hand her over and you can survive this."
"And if I give her to you, what stops you shooting us, anyway?"
"That's Colonel Taylor," said one of the men.
He could see they all knew his name even if they didn't recognise his face. For once his fame was working in his favour. He lowered his weapon and relaxed his body language, although he knew Jafar and Hughes had him covered.
"You must know this is wrong."
He could see in the man's eyes that he'd made up his mind.
"The President is coming with us or not at all. Those are our orders, and I am following them!"
His pistol turned towards the President. As the barrel touched her head, a shot zipped past Taylor from the barrel of Jafar's weapon, hitting the man just off centre between the eyes. Blood burst out from the exit wound and sprayed across the wall behind him. His body slumped, and the President remained frozen in fear.
Two more soldiers went for their pistols, but Taylor's rifle was up in a flash.
"No!" he shouted.
It was too late. The guns were in hand and being raised towards him. He fired at one, and Jafar took the other. They didn't stand a chance. But as one of them dropped, two shots rung out from his gun and hit the ceiling above. Sparks flew out and the lights cut out. Cries of panic came from down the corridor to the cockpit, and Taylor knew they were losing power and altitude.
"We gotta get out of here!"
He grabbed the President firmly and threw her rather unceremoniously onto his shoulder, hauling her back towards the hatch they had come from. The ship shook violently as the crew fought for control, but they were plummeting fast to the ground. Hughes was at the opening but frozen stiff. Taylor booted him out and leapt after him. He held on firm to Mertens as they fell. He could just about hear Hughes screaming and Waters alongside him.
Taylor looked around the sky for the Deveron, and then from out of a cloud it burst and soared towards them, plunging deep below where they were falling.
"Hit your boosters!"
The ship's nose lifted and came to hover a hundred metres below them. They fired the boosters and descended onto the hull. Taylor landed hard, and his knee buckled out as he hit the deck, but he put all his effort into maintaining his grip on the President. They fought the wind to get back to the opening and leapt inside. The hatch shut behind them, and he took a deep breath in relief.
"Get us the hell out of here, Captain!"
"Give me a direction, and we're gone, Sir."
"Paris!"
The engines roared once again as he took a moment to reflect on what had just happened.
"I underestimated Armand," he said.
"But we survived," replied Jafar.
"Just about."
He turned his attention to Mertens who was only partly recovered from the shock of all she had been through.
"Colonel, I thought you were for the other side."
"So did I, but let's just say I was wrong."
"Thank you. You've done me a great service, but I fear it will do little to keep my country free."
"One step at a time."
"You killed those men back there to save my life."
"And if I could have avoided it in any way, I would have."
"I know."
It brought a sombre tone to them all, Taylor above all else. Those were soldiers he could well have been fighting alongside in the wars. He told himself it was necessary. He'd killed the Krys without quibble, but this was entirely different. Killing humans left him feeling sick to the stomach.
He got up to his feet and helped the President up. "Come on, let's get to the bridge."
As he said it, an explosion rang out, and the Deveron rocked.
"We're hit," Ryan said over the comms.
Another explosion ignited, and they began to drop from the sky.
"We're going down! Get off the ship, Colonel!"
Taylor punched the door release, and it slid open above them. They all knew what they had to do. He grabbed hold of the President and jumped, with the others close behind. Seconds later, the ship crashed to the ground below them. They had exited at a hundred metres above the ground, in time to save them.
Debris and dirt erupted into the sky around them as they descended down on the crash site. The hull had buckled over a rocky riverbank edge, and Taylor could already see a gaping hole that had been torn in the starboard side.
It had all happened so fast, and none of them could believe their eyes. A few bodies of the crew were strewn across the grassland beside the wreckage where they had been thrown out through the damaged hull. Dust filled their lungs, and a sickly electrical burning smell filled the air. Taylor looked around. He didn't recognise where they were at all, but it was nowhere near civilisation. They all looked to him for answers, and all he could think was,