“Geez, he bought that malarkey,” the stocky holotech remarked, as the officer walked off to continue overseeing the refueling operation for the truck convoy his platoon was guarding.
“Keep it down, will ya? These Dracs can get touchy,” Norris hissed.
“Aw, he can't hear me over them engines.”
“Well, he might have friends who can. We don't want him back asking more questions.”
Berger looked annoyed. No wonder the wags at the network called this guy Nervous Norris. The reporter was always worried about something. “We ain't spies. We're legit newsmen. He can't touch us.”
“If he decides we're spies, he'll touch us all right,” Norris retorted with an air of authority. “I once spent two weeks in a Davion cell waiting for the network to prove I was legit. The Dracs don't bother with cells. They shootspies.”
Berger didn't quite go pale, but he quit grousing. “Think that tip we got on a Davion push for this town is straight?”
“We'll know soon enough. If it is, we'll get an exclusive.” Norris leaned down to whisper in Berger's ear as though to include him in a secret. “I know just where I'm gonna spend my bonus.”
“I'll bet.” Old Nervie would probably blow it on a racy novel, Berger thought.
Before Norris could enlighten Berger as to his plans, the Kurita sentry in the watchtower sang out, “Mechs coming in!”
Kurita troops scrambled to take defensive positions. Local citizens scrambled for cover. A team of Draconians unloaded a tripod-mount laser from one of the trucks and headed for the edge of the village. The Tai-ilit out for the watchtower, making only a short detour to grab a pair of binoculars.
Norris turned, intending to tell Berger to find a good spot for filming the action. The holotech, meanwhile, was already on his way up an exterior staircase on a nearby building. A quick glance around told the reporter that he was the last person standing in the street. With a half-vocalized bleat, he scurried after Berger.
The vantage point the holotech had chosen offered a clear view of the nearby fields. Advancing from the west were the BattleMechs. Because of their solid black paint scheme, all four stood out starkly from the green of the crops they trampled. In the lead was a Warhammer.Close behind came a Marauder,and moving wide on either flank were a Crusaderand a Griffin.Even the Griffin,the lightest of the four at fifty-five tons, would be more than a match for the Kurita soldiers.
Norris could feel the sweat roll down his back, and he knew it wasn't because of the hot sun. No man could look at those mountains of aligned-crystal steel and destructive weaponry without feeling a chill of fear down his spine. They were behemoths of a lost age, nightmares come to life to devour innocent men. A voice calling from the watch-tower broke his reverie.
“Stand down,” the Tai-icried. “They're friendlies.”
Around the village, the Kurita soldiers emerged from their hiding places. These troops were ill-equipped to take on BattleMechs, and so relief was evident even in the way they stood. The two troopers carrying SRM launchers began to fold away the sighting ‘Mechanisms. The laser team gave up assembling the cannon and began to break it down again.
“Stay put,” Norris ordered Berger. “Davion's using mercs too. Maybe the Drac got his ID wrong.”
Berger gave Norris a look that made no bones about what the reporter could do with his orders, but he. did stay put. After all, there was no point in taking unnecessary—that is, uncompensated—risks.
The Tai-idid not seem to share that attitude. He had descended from the tower and was advancing across the field to meet the oncoming machines, his right arm raised in a friendly greeting.
In that pose, his torso suddenly exploded as laser fire from the Warhammersuperheated the water in his body's cells. Then the other 'Mechs opened fire.
The blue lightning of particle beams scorched the village, blasting the startled soldiers. The explosive fury of missiles and autocannon shells mowed down groups of troopers. Laser sought out and struck down the stragglers. Large-caliber slugs made short work of those the lasers missed.
“Damn!” Norris screeched in a voice high with fear. Without taking his eyes from the carnage, he whispered, “Berger, you getting this?”
Berger didn't answer. He was too busy filming the onslaught of the 'Mechs. Sweat beaded his forehead and slimed the grip of the holocamera.
Below them in the village, terror reigned. The first 'Mech to reach the buildings was the Griffin.The laser cannon crew died then, as the BattleMech's foot crushed them and their weapon into an unidentifiable smear.
One Kurita trooper stood directly before the advancing Warhammer,an SRM launcher slanted over his shoulder at the rampaging 'Mech. When he fired, the soldier disappeared momentarily from Norris's view in the smoky back-blast of the missile's exhaust. The rocket struck the BattleMech cleanly in the left leg, pitting the thick armor.
Leaning back slightly as though affronted that anyone dared fire upon it, the Warhammerhalted its firing as its torso twisted to find the offender. By the time the Draconian's second rocket had impacted against the 'Mech's glacis, scarring the armor, the Warhammerhad turned to face the lone man.
Whether rooted in fear or driven to insane defiance, the trooper stood his ground. In a gesture of utter futility, he dropped his empty launcher to the ground, drew his sidearm, and began firing at the Warhammer.No handgun could hope to penetrate the armor of a seventy-ton BattleMech. He was still firing when the Warhammer'spilot opened up on him with the machine's antipersonnel guns. The man's body jerked and tumbled as the heavy-caliber slugs tore through it, but the Warhammer'spilot continued to fire long after life had fled the body of the defiant soldier.
Back and forth through the village stalked the marauding 'Mechs, tearing into buildings where they suspected Kuritans might be hiding. If they found one, the trooper didn't last long. Though they showed no concern for civilian casualties caused by their hunt, the marauders did not go out of their way to chase down those villagers who fled from their path.
Before long, the four war machines turned their attention to the convoy trucks that had survived their onslaught. Using its hands, the Griffinbegan to load crates into containers attached to the backs of the other 'Mechs. Before loading the Warhammer'spack, however, the Griffinremoved a bulky object from the container and handed it to the Crusader,which headed with it to the outskirts of the village. The Griffinresumed its looting.
“Look what that Crusader'sdoing,” Norris said, poking Berger to get his attention. “What's he got there?”
Berger focused his camera on the machine Norris indicated and zoomed in. “Geez, it's a BattleMech arm.”
“What?”
“Wait a minute. There's some kind of marking on the arm.” Berger fiddled with the controls on his camera. “Yeah, that's it.”
“Frackencrack! It's a Federated Suns crest! What the hell is going on here?”
A loud, ‘Mechanically augmented voice boomed behind them. “Nothing you ought to know about.”
The newsmen froze. Slowly, they turned to face the Maraudertowering above their perch. Neither had any wish to excite the pilot of the machine that had come up behind the building where they stood. Norris and Berger exchanged hopeless looks while the ‘MechJock, forgetting he had his external speakers on, called to his leader. “Widow, got me a pair of rare birds over here.”
The Marauderpilot ordered them to descend to the street while the black Warhammerapproached.