The Lotus Eaters (73 page)

All this was known to both the Taurans and the UEPF. Indeed, it was knowable, in broad terms, to anyone who cared to study. Without the threat of those reservists, and hundreds of thousands more like them, waiting for the trumpet's call, the Taurans would probably never have jumped.

Not everything was known though. Carrera would have bet—in fact
was
betting—that six secrets had been kept. Inside the ammunition bunkers was one of those six real secrets. Hidden away, as they had been for the last three days, roughly eleven hundred young Balboan troops waited, unknown to anyone outside of a very small circle. They were little more than boys, most of them; the average age was just under sixteen.

The boys had been painstakingly smuggled in from their military academy just after the most recent outbreak of tension between the Tauran Union and Balboa. They had found in the bunkers a complete set of all the equipment needed for them to form a mechanized cohort, a very
big
cohort.

* * *

"But it's as perfect as I can make it." Carrera turned and left his post outside the bunker, going inside to speak with the commander of the hidden force.

Once out of possible observation, Carrera lit a cigarette. The smoke drifted up and hovered about the ceiling of the bunker. "Rogachev, are you ready?"

Unseen by the light-blinded Carrera, former Volgan Army Major, and current legionary Tribune III, Constantine Rogachev nodded in the affirmative. Rogachev was a typical, even a stereotypical Volgan; a short, stocky, hairy bear. Above his round head and light blue eyes, was a thatch of blond bright enough to gleam in the flash from Carrera's lighter.

"We're as ready as we're going to be, sir," the Volgan answered. All of the vehicles that are going to start are topped off with full fuel tanks. The ammo is loaded. My cadre knows its mission . . . well, the mission is simple enough. Let the Taurans land. Pop out of these shitty bunkers. Get in formation. Drive off their close air support, and crush them with armor.

"The only thing that has me worried is the traffic jam we'll have trying to get out of this place and into formation." Rogachev shrugged, ruefully. "Couldn't really rehearse
that
. If the Taurans notice us, or the UEPF does, and a couple of thousand tons of steel moving is very noticeable, sir, they could destroy us before we're properly deployed."

"I know the risk, Legate. There is nothing to be done about it, except get your air defense systems out first, before anyone really notices."

Rogachev nodded, briskly. "Yes, sir. We know that's the plan." He chuckled, apparently at himself. "Maybe I'm nervous about it because that's all that could go wrong. A soldier has to worry about something after all."

Carrera laughed a little. "Indeed we do. Fine. I'm going back out. I suggest you get your boys into their tracks now. It can't be too much longer." Carrera threw his cigarette to the ground and stepped on the glowing ash.

* * *

Outside again in Balboa's thick, even stifling, air, Carrera did climb to the top of the earth-covered bunker. He lifted his night vision goggles to his face before turning them on, lest their green glow betray him to a possible sniper. He then scanned the sky through the grainy, green image.

Was that a flash
? he wondered, looking toward the west.
Maybe.

From this position he could even see part of the airstrip itself, one spot where an air defense gun's radar dish spun on its axis. Even if its radar picked up something, there was no one on board to see and report it.

Carrera's question of a moment before was answered. He saw the first impact of a homing missile—
Radar Homing? Contrast Imaging? Terminally guided? Who knows?
—as the SP air defense gun disappeared in a great flash. The echoes of other explosions told of similar bombs hitting elsewhere around the field. Each concussive blast was felt in the form of rippling internal organs at least as far away as the bunker.

Carrera hated that feeling. Even so, he looked up and smiled.
If you were planning a long war
, he mused,
these bunkers would be the better target. But you're not; you're planning for a very short one. Amazing how often such plans fail to quite work out.

Overhead the screech and sonic crack of the jets was nearly loud enough to drown out rational thought. In Carrera's view, one of the barracks expanded and crumpled from a direct hit by an aerially delivered bomb. Vainly, a lone and very brave Balboan gunner fired his air defense gun into the sky. Carrera could see his tracers rising in the black night and then more as another gun joined him. He made a mental note to check the boys' names for later—Carrera assumed they would be posthumous—awards.

The Balboans' tracers didn't rise for long. What Carrera had almost seen a few moments before was the shadow of a Federated States of Columbia-built aerial side-firing gunship. This now poured down a stream of fire.

Like something from a science fiction movie
, thought Carrera. The defenders' guns went silent, both of them.
And gunships. Hmmm. So it'll be the Anglian paras, not the Gauls'. They're the only ones outside of the FSC that has gunships. That's a pity
, he thought, and meant it.
I'd hoped they'd stay out of this.

The air shook as more fighter-bombers raked over the legionary base. Down came regular unguided—dumb—bombs, twenty millimeter cannon shells, rockets, cluster bombs. Had there been any serious opposition on the ground around the airstrip these might well have broken it, even though well dug in troops were not terribly vulnerable to air attack.

Joining the air armada now came a flight of half a dozen helicopter gunships, presumably flying out of the Tauran-held Transitway Area, or perhaps even from something at sea.

Hmmm . . . more proof of Anglians
.

The helicopter gunships didn't carry anything like the airplanes' firepower. They made up for that lack, however, in the attention to detail they could apply to a mission. By the glow of the burning buildings, Carrera could make out the gunships' track as they shot down legionaries attempting to flee from them.

Holding a fist in front of his chest, Carrera spoke out loud to himself. "Now" he commanded to no one who could hear. "Now! Report that the area is clear enough to jump."

Carrera's order, or prayer, or wish, was quickly rewarded. Under the bright moonlight, he saw the outlines of the first of twenty-four medium and fourteen large cargo transports and troop carriers, approaching the Lago Sombrero airfield. Coming in low, Carrera thought maybe just over one hundred and twenty meters, these planes began disgorging their loads—over fifteen hundred Paras of the Royal Anglian Airborne Regiment. At that altitude the Paras didn't even bother with reserve chutes. If their main parachutes failed there wouldn't be time to open the reserves anyway.

I wonder what friends I have up there, jumping to their deaths.

The first of the medium transports made its pass over the airfield and surrounding cleared area in about forty seconds. Then, duty discharged, it turned to head for home. Others, in a long double trail behind it, were still dropping troops. Hundreds of these were already on the ground struggling to free themselves from their parachutes and harnesses. When Carrera was sure that enough had landed to guarantee the others would also land despite any danger he shouted down to Soult, "Jamey, radio silence off. Get on the horn to fire the caltrops. Tell Rogachev to roll."

The boys must have felt the shuddering bombs even deep down in their concrete hides. Carrera heard song, boyish voices supplemented by older ones, coming from the now opening vault doors:

"A young tribe stands up, ready to fight.
Raise the eagles higher,
mis compadres
.
We feel inside the time is right,
La época de los soldados jóvenes.
High, from His Heaven, the God of battles calls us.
Ahead, in ranks, march the ghosts of our slain.
And in our hearts no fear of falling.
Legion
,
Patria
, through the steel rain!"

Carrera looked skyward, past the incoming transports, and whispered, "Enjoy the show, Marguerite."

AdC

Aide de Camp, an assistant to a senior officer

Ala Plural: Alae.

Latin: Wing, as in wing of cavalry. Air Wing in the Legion. Similar to Tercio, qv.

Amid

Arabic: Brigadier General

Antania Plural: Antaniae

Septic mouthed winged reptilians, possibly genengineered by the Noahs, AKA Moonbats

BdL

Barco de la Legion, Ship of the Legion

Bellona

Moon of Terra Nova

Bolshiberry

A fruit bearing vine, believed to have been genengineered by the Noahs. The fruit is intensely poisonous to intelligent life.

Cazador

Spanish: Hunter. Similar to Chasseur, Jaeger and Ranger. Light Infantry, especially selected and trained. Also a combat leader selection course within the Legion del Cid

Chorley

A grain of Terra Nova, apparently not native to Old Earth.

Classis

Latin: Fleet or Naval Squadron

Cohort

Battalion, though in the Legion these are large battalions.

Conex

Metal shipping container, generally 8' x 8' x 20' or 40'

Consensus

When capitalized, the governing council of Old Earth, formerly the United Nations Security Council.

Corona Civilis

Latin. Civic Crown. One of approximately thirty-seven awards available in the Legion for specific and noteworthy events. The Civic Crown is given for saving the life of a soldier on the battlefield at risk of one's own.

Dustoff

Medical evacuation, typically by air

Eris

Moon of Terra Nova

Escopeta

Sp. Shotgun.

Estado Major

Sp. General Staff and, by extension, the building which houses it.

Federated States Drachma.

Unit of money equivalent in value to 4.2 grams of silver

Hecate

Moon of Terra Nova

Hieros

Shrine or temple

Huánuco

A plant of Terra Nova from which an alkaloid substance is refined

I

Roman number one. Chief Operations Officer, his office, and his staff section

Ia

Operations officer dealing mostly with fire and maneuver, his office and his section, S- or G-3

Ib

Logistics Officer, his office and his section, S- or G-4

Ic

Intelligence Officer, his office and his section, S- or G-2

Id

Adjutant, Personnel Officer, his office and his section, S- or G-1

Ikhwan

Arabic: Brotherhood

Jaguar

Volgan built tank in legionary service

Jaguar II

Improved Jaguar

Jizyah

Special tax levied against non-Moslems living in Moslem lands.

Karez

Underground aqueduct system

Keffiyah

Folded cloth Arab headdress

Klick

Kilometer. Note: Democracy ends where the metric system begins.

Kosmo

Cosmopolitan Progressive. Similar to Tranzi on Old Earth

Liwa

Arabic: Major General

Lorica

Lightweight silk and liquid metal torso armor used by the Legion

LZ

Landing Zone, a place where helicopters drop off troops and equipment

Maniple

Company

Makkah al Jedidah

Arabic: New Mecca

Mañana sera mejor

Balboan politico-military song. Tomorrow will be better.

MRL

Multiple Rocket Launcher

Mujahadin

Arabic: Holy Warriors (singular: mujahad)

Mukhabbarat

Arabic: Secret Police

Mullah

Holy man, sometimes holy, sometimes not.

Na'ib 'Dabit

Arabic: Sergeant Major

Naik

Corporal

Naquib

Arabic: Captain

NGO

Nongovernmental Organization

Noahs

Aliens that seeded Terra Nova with life, some from Old Earth, some possibly from other planets, some possibly genetically engineered, in the dim mists of prehistory. No definitive trace has ever been found of them.

Ocelot

Volgan-built light armored vehicle mounting a 100mm gun and capable of carrying a squad of infantry in the back.

Meg

Coastal Defense Submarine under development by the Legion

PMC

Precious Metal Certificate. High Denomination Legionary Investment Vehicle

Progressivine

A fruit bearing vine found on Terra Nova. Believed to have been genengineered by the Noahs. The fruit is intensely poisonous to intelligent life.

Push

As in "tactical push." Radio frequency or frequency hopping sequence, so called from the action of pushing the button that activates the transmitter.

PZ

Pickup Zone. A place where helicopters pickup troops, equipment and supplies to move them somewhere else.

RGL

Rocket Grenade Launcher

RTO

Radio-Telephone Operator

Satan Triumphant

A hot pepper of Terra Nova, generally unfit for human consumption, though sometimes used in food preservation and refinable into a blister agent for chemical warfare.

Sayidi

Arabic form of respectful address, "Sir."

SPATHA

Self Propelled Anti-Tank Heavy Armor. A legionary tank destroyer, under development

SPLAD

Self Propelled Laser Air Defense. A developed legionary anti-aircraft system

Subadar

Major

Surah

A chapter in the Koran, of which there are 114

Tercio

Spanish: Regiment

Tranzitree

A fruit bearing tree, believed to have been genengineered by the Noahs. The fruit is intensely poisonous to intelligent life.

Trixie

A species of archaeopteryx brought to Terra Nova by the Noahs.

Yakamov

A type of helicopter produced in Volga. It has no tail rotor.