“Can I have one of those?” asks Mia.
Drej spits up some blood. “There are two more entering the reservoir. They’re coming to us.”
“We can’t survive another attack like that,” says Verge.
Rennin removes a grenade from his ammo belt. “This should do the trick.”
Verge shakes her head, “That’s a NAPA bomb. It’ll bring the whole tunnel down on us.”
Rennin shrugs. “At least it’ll be a tie.”
“What are you suggesting, Rennin? We can’t trigger them remotely.”
“We throw it. All we need to do is slow them down,” he says arming it and setting the blast zone to five metres. He shakes his head with a regretful expression on his face. “Five metre radius… what a waste.”
“Use some regular grenades,” suggests Verge.
“Might not work. NAPA bombs cause enough residual seismic shock to ensure a collapse,” says Rennin.
“That’s very interesting, Professor, but you might want to hurry it up,” says Verge checking her ammunition.
Antares snatches the grenade. “I’ll throw it, you lay down some cover-fire.”
Caufmann puts Drej’s arm around his neck and hauls him up the tunnel. “Don’t wait until the perfect time, just throw it when you see an opportunity.”
“Verge, cover William and Arca,” says Rennin readying his sniper rifle. “Saker, we take one each in the head to stagger them, then Antares will throw the bomb.”
Caufmann and Verge move away with the limping Drej, leaving a nasty trail of Drej’s blood. Rennin and Mia kneel and wait for the Suvacoes. Antares’ face is completely neutral. “I won’t be able to shield you this time, Sergeant Farrow.”
“That’s okay, Mum.”
The first red-eyed monster comes into view and Antares readies her throw. Rennin and Mia both adjust their stance, preparing to fire. The Suvaco has stopped walking towards them, looking down to study the ruins of its brother units.
The second comes into view. Both observe the two Suvaco corpses, surveying their damage before turning to face each other.
Rennin can swear some form of communication is passing between them but his scope is registering no communication signals of any kind. He also notes an absence of Substance 6.
So they’re not made with Thermosteel.
Antares calls for them to shoot and both snipers obey, snapping out a round each, Rennin shooting the left Suvaco, and Mia the right. Both shots hit their respective targets in the head, only to glance off their helmets. While they are stunned, Antares throws the NAPA bomb. Mia and Rennin turn away, making their retreat up the tunnel towards Whitechapel. Antares provides cover-fire for the final second before the detonation knocks all three of them over. The grid sphere of the NAPA bomb appears, and everything within is incinerated in one intense blast of white light, followed by a devastating concussive force.
The tunnel begins collapsing almost immediately. A chunk of stone falls on Antares but she strikes it aside as if it were a cushion and runs away from the falling debris. She grips both Rennin and Mia by their webbing, hauling them to their feet. The rumbling from the NAPA detonation ceases but the sounds of falling rock are loud enough to keep them running at full sprint.
Rennin never has been one to back down from a fight and he doesn’t like running away but seeing Antares, Drej and Caufmann all badly wounded from a single encounter rams home the simple fact that he’s far and away out of his league. He sees this is doubly true when he remembers what Isfeohrad did to him the night of the GA rally.
So many stories he’s seen over the years, regardless of the medium, have lied to him. There is truly no way a human can stand toe to toe with an android.
In Whitechapel, the station for the underground train system is a mass of the immune queuing to evacuate. They are boarding but progress is slow due to the sheer exhaustion of all involved. Some of them look like they don’t even care if they get out. Barely any are talking to each other.
Commander Croft watches the exodus on the surveillance system. He switches the view to a camera on street level, watching the people remaining on the surface go about their business. Only the ones selected to leave have been taken to the trains. The others are just going to have to remain here to outlast this crisis.
He wipes the sweat from his forehead and wonders how he’s going to tell his troops that all military personnel have to stay in Whitechapel indefinitely. They are not immune. Priority persons are being evacuated and that is all.
His troops think the trains will be coming back, that this load of evacuees is the first of many. If the locals find out about the evacuation, he will tell them the same. But the trains will not return. No one would risk keeping the gates of the city open for this contagion to escape. The people leaving will be ‘extensively examined’ by the Godyssey base outside Raddocks Horizon. Perhaps staying isn’t the worst that can happen.
He’s pondering this when a report appears on his screen that Doctor Caufmann has been brought in by a badly wounded HolinMech. Several others have also emerged from the underground tunnels from Blackhaven.
He’s out of his office in a heartbeat, sprinting towards the standoff that’s happening up the street. Arca Drej, thought-to-be missing HolinMech, is apparently refusing to stand down. He finds a crowd of soldiers around the small band of Raston Squad. Caufmann is on his knees with a gun pointed at the back of his head, held by Arca Drej. Another gunman with strange eyes and a Godyssey branding on his forehead is holding a gun on the doctor from a few steps away. Others stand at the ready but their weapons at their side.
The commander takes in a firm breath and feels his back straighten with confidence. “Welcome, Raston Squad!” he announces, indicating for his men to relax their aim on the human element. “And Doctor Caufmann, I’ve been looking forward to this.”
Caufmann looks shocking. His wounds no longer steam, though he looks like a decidedly weak and beaten, almost organic man. “I will cooperate.”
“Ease your aim, HolinMech, we have him now.”
Drej is swaying slightly but when he faces Croft he does so in a smooth movement that is too fluid for any full-orga. “Directive: HolinMech Operation. All orga-commands are overridden. To you and your men I am Commander Arca Drej. You will issue all commands from here on out through myself. Interfacing with me is your highest priority. Cooperation will be rewarded.”
Croft is on the back foot immediately. “If I refuse?”
Drej’s red eyes shine but with a deadness that clearly says there will be no negotiation. “You may refuse. As per my core directive you will be shot.”
“On what grounds?” Croft screeches.
“Mutiny. Under the HolinMech Deployment Code, section one-oh-one-seven-oh-seven you are now the property of Godyssey and I am their extension in the field. Disobedience will be judged with zero tolerance. What I ask next will be asked only once, with no second chances and no exceptions: Is this a declaration of mutiny?”
Croft feels his whole world turn inside out and his throat fill with sand. This thing thinks it’s in charge? “Your kind are not even supposed to be here.”
“Answer my question, immediately,” says Drej in a rasping tone.
Croft’s heart is beating so hard it feels like it’ll burst through his ribs. He glances at his troops to see some are shifting their body weights uncomfortably. “How many do you think you can kill?”
“My core is hardwired to detonate should an uncontrollable act of sedition occur. I am currently on standby for detonation. My core is a Gamma Drive capable of levelling fifteen city blocks without damaging the people boarding the trains beneath.”