AMP Private War (7 page)

I thanked Barg for his letting me know and then sent him on the next run of Tantric ore out to the Prassi. Their fleet had rapidly grown to more than 7,000 ships as their hive mentalities were perfectly suited to manufacturing. Gy had also worked up a few tips for them to apply to their forward Tantric armor. It would cut the damage the Milgari could do from straight on, a position they liked to fight from.

The Colonel was pleased with the Ghouls training progress, it was decided that we would journey out to the Felgar sector to see what the Milgari were up to. At the same time, if we came across one of the Milgari pickets, we would attempt an assault to take her over. The Marines marched aboard our transport and we were soon on our way.

The Colonel joined us on the Swift for the ride out. "Bumbalee. Hmm. One of my passions back home is genealogy. I can't recall ever coming across that name. It wasn't picked up off-Grid somewhere was it? It's unusual."

I squirmed as the question was one that I had not planned for and therefore did not have an immediate answer to. The Colonel dug a bit deeper.

"Well Rex, aside from your name there is something else that has been bothering me; it's your face. I see something familiar when I look away, but I can't quite place it when I am looking directly at you."

The Colonel reached out and grabbed my chin with his big hand. As he turned my face from side to side he continued. "I'd say you've had some work done... by a real pro. When I look a man in the eyes I can get a good feel for what he's made of. There is something about yours that is throwing that instinct off a bit. Hmm... I can't quite place it though."

As the Colonel released my chin from his firm grasp I rubbed it. "You really are something colonel. George back there is a surgeon, or used to be one anyway. He took me on as a kind of payback when Frig and I did a number on some pirates that had been harassing their world. I'm sure back on the Grid you've heard of Don Grange?"

The Colonel sat forward in his chair and again grabbed my chin. "Well I'll be. Hmm. He did a magnificent job on you. But I have total recall when it comes to faces and if something doesn't seem right to me it's usually because it's not. Don Grange... you caused quite a stir back there. Had I caught up to you when that all first broke I'd have probably just snapped your neck right there. Spies are like the lowest scum there is."

I pulled back from the Colonel's grasp. "I can assure you Colonel that I was never a spy for the Milgari. But we did destroy some of their weaponry and for that I was branded as a spy, just so the Milgari supporters on the Grid could punish me for throwing a wrench in their plans. The Grid is covered with spies Mr. Harper, spies that have infiltrated almost every level of our government. I hate to say it, but I am sure there are some in our military too."

The colonel rocked back in his chair and spit a wad of Omega root on the deck. "I've been hearing stories for a while that just... just make my blood boil Don. Our government is a mess right now and the people are just like sheep being led to the slaughter. I just get a burning rage inside when I think about those who would sell us out for a credit or for some dumb ideology." The Colonel pounded his big fist on his leg.

After several seconds of grinding his teeth he looked back at me. "You know I served with your father Don. We were on the same barge for a year before he got reassigned to the Tantilis. I never bought that whole story of mutiny and surrender. I knew too many of those Marines on that boat and it was something that they would not have stood for. That evidence that was presented was a sham, too full of holes."

"And your father, I can tell you right here and now that there never was a better soldier, patriot... never a better Human as far as that goes, than that man. He walked the walk and talked the talk. Defense of the Grid was what he lived for." The Colonel lightly pounded his fist against his chest. "Hurt me right in here when I heard those charges."

"But we were in the middle of a war then, otherwise, I know hundreds of other officers that would have stood up for him. He was a hero that one, your father. Chewed steel and spit out nails with the best of them. I often though he might have made Sergeant Major one day. With his toughness and working the intel side of things he was headed for the top."

The Colonel reached out and squeezed my shoulder. "John Grange was a good man."

When we arrived in the Felgar sector, the transport was parked on a large asteroid while we took the Fist and the Swift in to check on the Milgari progress. The base had been abandoned. We signaled the transport and our three ships departed on a heading towards the Prassi worlds.

During the ride out the Colonel began to tell stories of the 42nd Milgari war. Frig and I listened as the Colonel's deep voice and hard gestures told of the triumphs and hardships that had been encountered. I was again gaining respect for my father. "Your father once told me that it's not until a man steps into battle that he knows what he is made of. It was my first time fighting those foul beings and your father was right up front of our squad."

"I almost lost it when the Marine next to me got blown in half. Your father reached back and grabbed me, kept me moving, I would have otherwise just stood there like a nineteen year old idiot until I got picked off. The real fight is not something any simulator can prepare you for. But your father, let's just say I never saw him flinch, even when he was covered with the guts of his own men."

"A bolt strike to the chest from one of those Milgari rifles is a nasty, nasty thing. They take about two seconds for a recharge, but they pack a punch like no other. Our G7s have a half second recharge, but they don't do the damage of one of those ‘busters’ as we called them. We save that punch for our ion grenades."

"Speaking of grenades, I can't wait to roll one of Jeb's down the hall to a whole pack of those tri-heads, especially if I know there's not one of those heavy bolts waiting for me. I'm really looking forward to an assault Mr. Grange. I know I haven't asked yet, but what do you plan on doing with a Milgari frigate when you get one?"

I turned around to my console to check our location. "I haven't figured that out yet. For starters though, I want to get Gy and Rita on one, they need to determine why it can take a positive bolt from us from head on. That is something we need to learn how to defeat. Especially if it is also on their big ships, which I suspect it is."

I spun my chair towards Frig. "Hey, where did you put that data cube I gave you? I want to know if the Colonel here has ever seen one." Frig retrieved it from his locker and handed it to the Colonel. "Hmm. I have seen these once or twice. Only spooks like your father had them. How did you get it?"

I looked longingly at the device before I replied. "My father gave it to me just before he left for that final engagement. He said he wanted me to hang onto it and that someday I would be old enough to know what to do with it. He was adamant that I not trust anyone with it. Up until a short time ago I had no idea of what it was. I got it in my head that it was a brain teaser puzzle of some sort and then put it away for a long time. If you know how it works I believe you would be someone that I could trust with it."

The Colonel flipped the small data cube around in his right hand. "I can't say that there is anything I could do with this Mr. Grange. But we do have a couple spooks on our team. Rachael Searman and Bob Colter may know what to do with it. When we get back to base I can ask them. Until then, I think it best that you hang on to it yourself."

We soon arrived at the Prassi worlds to a landscape of devastation. Half of the surface of the smaller of the two planets was scorched black. The massive Milgari cannons had been used to annihilate any ground resistance. The space surrounding the Prassi system was littered with debris from thousands of ships, including what appeared to be the remains of four of the five massive ships.

The Prassi had put up an impressive fight, but from what we could see they had lost. Frig did several deep scans before coming back with more information. "Sir, the sensors have detected a high amount of debris that has come from Grid hardware Sir. Specifically, ships from Zimmerman's camp."

The Colonel then grabbed me on the shoulder. "Zimmerman? What is he doing out here? Rumor had him as retired. I tried to look him up on more than one occasion, but he was never accessible. And if those are Grid ships then we would have known about them. We have a lot of active connections Mr. Grange. A fight would not have happened without our knowledge."

I replied, "Well, Colonel, it's like this... Zimmerman thought the Grid politicos were overrun with Milgari sympathizers, including some in the military. He has had a side operation for the last couple years, trying to create a stealth fleet that the Milgari are not aware of. They aren't flagged and they don't look like your standard Grid ships. Otherwise, you would have heard about several skirmishes with them by now."

"We were here the last time the Milgari attacked the Prassi. They had it won, but I guess they got antsy and decided to run before they finished. Both sides had taken a fierce beating. We took some hits and managed to all fly home. We have lost others in our engagements before that."

I looked at the Colonel. "I know the pain of losing your men Colonel. So far it hasn't been something that fades."

The Colonel rocked his head. "It's not anything you get used to. You have to turn that grief into anger Don. Take it out on the tri-heads. It is never easy killing another sentient being Mr. Grange, but when those beings are foul and evil, and when they are bent on killing you, it gets a whole lot easier."

The Prassi had either fled or they had been annihilated by the Milgari. The system was abandoned, that is, until we spotted a lone Milgari frigate. "Frig! Get us over to that transport to drop the Colonel! Then lock in on that frigate and let's go get her. Colonel, tell your men to prepare. It's time they had that fun they have been training for!"

We transferred the Colonel to the transport and then made a beeline for the frigate. It was poking around in the largest of the debris fields, probably logging anything that was worth salvaging. We were almost on top of it before it noticed our approach.

The frigate turned hard in our direction and Frig fired an early shot. Just as it happened to Malcom in the Saxon, the bolt was absorbed into the forward hull and the ship continued to come toward us. I turned hard right and switched the cannon to negative ions. We circled back around coming in behind the frigate. Our first negative bolt dropped their engines offline.

I spoke, "OK Colonel, we are going to hit those engines one more time as soon as they come back online and following that we will pop that ion bomb on her. Our best guess is that you will have 22 minutes of ion free happiness in there. If you can do it in 15 I would do so."

The Colonel came over the comm. "You knock 'em down and we'll take 'em out. We are ready whenever you give the word Mr. Grange."

The Colonel turned towards his men. "Listen up! We have trained for this and it's time to put that training to use. Get your butts in gear and check the kit of the man to your right. When you are finished do the same for the one on the left. Make sure those boots are tied and your zippers are up. We are going in heavy to kick some tri-head ass!"

"Billings! You will have point on squad one. You have left flank, Riggs you have center and I'll be clearing out the right. We are going to breach that top deck and then work our way down. Remember, communicate, communicate, communicate! I don't care if you are stopping to take a fart! You get on that comm and let the rest of us know. And as always, no idle chatter and be aware of your fellow Marines, we don't wanna be killing our own!"

Twelve seconds after the Colonel finished his speech the frigate's engines came back to life. Frig was ready with another negative bolt and the frigate once again went idle. He then released the ion bomb which floated in close to the Milgari hull before it detonated. The entire ship went black with the loss of power.

The transport landed on the top of the upper deck and the Colonel and his men laid out plasma charges in a two meter diameter circle. Seconds later a short flame could be seen followed by a quick out-gassing of the frigates atmosphere. When the pressure had sufficiently dropped the Colonel and his men could be seen jumping into the hole. The video feeds on the comm channel quickly came to life.

The Colonel yelled at his men. "OK, I count 42 in! Squads take your stance. Miller get that hole sealed so we have some atmosphere left to ride home with."

Miller and Morse remained behind for any Milgari who attempted to exit the ship to attack the transport. They dropped in several crates of extra rounds before sealing up the hole that had been made.

The Colonel spoke, "Awe Moses! I can smell that foul odor already. Billings, you are a go, Riggs, you are a go! Let's go kill some Milgari boys!"

The Colonel carried a custom pump shotgun with a twelve round clip.

Boom! Ch-ch Boom! Ch-ch

"Clean up any that you come across that aren't breathing. I don't want these freaks coming back to life behind us. No sloppy kills boys. Everything counts!"

The interior of the ship was pitch black due to the absence of any power. The Colonel's squads were wearing helmets with a combination of infrared and doppler detectors. Both had been modified to work on a small negative ion supply. For the Marines, the pitch black was crystal clear due to the high resolution sensors and displays built into their helmets.

The first Milgari they encountered seemed confused, but they soon revealed their acute sense of smell.

Boom! Ch-ch Boom! Ch-ch!

"OK team. Back of Deck-1 is clear. Let's move forward and clear this floor! Check every nook and cranny, open every door. And don't let them get that tail near you. Those spikes will poke a mean hole and leave you with a nasty rash and infection. I saw a fellow Marine take one of those to the crotch. So keep your balls at a distance, if you got 'em!"

I switched monitor feeds continuously as I wanted to see each and every action. The Colonel continued to bark orders. "Deck-1 is clear! We have isolated two elevators and two stairwells. This one in front of us should be the only way up or down from this deck. Billings! Post one man at the top of these stairs. If he sees anything moving on the deck have him kill it! It ain't ours!"

"And listen up! Before we go down those stairs keep this in mind. Most Milgari ships of this size in the past held their Marines on Deck-2. I doubt this one is any different. These are trained killers coming up here. They will attempt to use anything and everything they can to get a crack at you. They are crafty so keep your eyes peeled and take that shot if you have it. We aren't looking for any prisoners on this level. Save thoughts of those for the bridge on Deck-4."

The Colonel was the first onto the stairs.

Boom! Ch-ch Boom! Ch-ch Boom! Ch-ch! Ak-ak-ak-ak-ak!

The Marines quickly crowded down the stairwell, dropping Milgari Marines who were coming at them with chairs and knives. The video feeds would scramble momentarily as the Marines turned and ducked, checking every corner and kicking in every door.

When the first room was cleared Billings tossed a grenade into the hall. "Nade out!"

The squads all dropped their stances and hugged the walls.

Boooom!

The grenade cleared the way as two Milgari met their maker.

"Hall is clear! Move up!"

The Marines moved into the hallway.

Ak-ak-ak-ak! Ak-ak-ak-ak-ak!

Two more Milgari fell as they attempted to move out into the now occupied space.

"Rolling nade left, nade right!"

Booom! Booom!

Billings rounded the corner of the left room.

Ak-ak-ak-ak!

The Colonel moved to the right. As he rounded the corner, he was met by an injured but angry Milgari. The trooper charged the Colonel knocking him to the floor and digging his left wrist claw into the Colonel's right shoulder. The Milgari's right arm had been blown off below the elbow.

The Colonel held the Milgari and his razor sharp teeth just above his head with his big hands on either side of the Milgari's face, keeping its gnashing teeth at bay. In one quick move the Colonel plunged his left thumb into the Milgari's right eye socket and with his right hand drew his .45 caliber sidearm.

Boom! Boom!

"Yack! Someone get this greasy thing off of me! Grrr! That claw hole is deep, but not lethal. Harris take point!"

"On it Sir!"

The next two squad members rounded the corner of the right room.

Ak-ak-ak-ak-ak-ak-ak-ak!

The room was cleared as three other injured Milgari met their end.

"Left clear!"

"Right clear!"

"Ok people, let's move up. Same drill only drop a few slugs around the doorway before stepping in people. Keep 'em peeled!"

The three teams continued down the main hallway. Several more Milgari attempted to charge, but the Marines cut them down before they made any progress. At the end of the hall was the door to the main bunkroom, the place that most of the Milgari Marines would likely reside. Billings strapped a small plasma charge to the door and the squads emptied the hall.

Bang!

The door blew open.

Billings and Harris stepped briefly into the hallway, just long enough to toss two grenades through the newly opened door.

Booom! Booom!

The Colonel yelled, "Move up people! Pop anything that moves! Keep frosty! Check every locker and under every bunk."

Twelve seconds later the bunk room had been cleared. "Nobody here Colonel! Looks like our fun is going to continue!"

Harris kicked open a door to a bathroom.

Ak-ak-ak-ak-ak!

"Ho Colonel!"

Harris placed his hand over his external air filter.

"That is the rankest thing I have ever..."

Harris knelt as he threw up in his helmet.

"Awwwwg! Awwwg! Awe crap Sir... sorry!"

The Colonel leaned down and pulled him to his feet. "You aren't the first Marine to do that son, has happened to yours truly several times. Step back to the hallway and clean yourself up. We'll be waiting at the next stairwell."

Harris moved back to the hallway and removed his helmet, pouring out his puke onto the floor, he grimaced and gagged while attempting to not throw up again. He pulled a water line from his pack and flipped off the drinking tip. Using the line, he rinsed out his helmet before placing it back on his head. He locked it in place.