Metal and Ash (Apex Trilogy) (41 page)

***

Campbell pushed the dogs on and maneuvered the sled between the legs of one of the Cans. She was Canadian and she knew the mechs almost better than anyone else. She’d helped with their design over the years and had been part of a hundred field tests. So even though she was a just a small speck to them, she didn’t feel completely hopeless. Or completely helpless.

“Keep steady,” she yelled at the dogs as they jerked to the side when one of the Cans’ feet stomped down next to them. “Stay the course!”

As the sled whipped between the legs of one of the Cans, Campbell looked up and tossed a sticky pack right where the mech’s junk would have been if it had junk. Not that the spot wasn’t equally as vulnerable. Campbell knew that a well placed detonation in a specific spot could lead to an explosive chain reaction in the mech’s power system. She just hoped her aim was good enough.

Campbell kept the dogs moving, pushing them, egging them on, calling to their aggressive nature and competitive breeding. The canines understood her urgency and dug deep, blocking out the battle sounds and imposing sights of mechs rushing towards them. They turned on her command as if they knew where she wanted to go before she did. They intuitively adjusted course, knowing that they only had a split second before being crushed underfoot. Fueled by the excitement and adrenaline of battle, the dogs came alive as they never had before in the snows of Canada.

They had become a wasteland team and they were loving it. Their tongues hung from their mouths as they barked and yipped their way across the packed earth of the wasteland. They didn’t even flinch when the mech they’d just run under exploded in a shower of BC particles, ripped apart by a complete power system detonation. Even a BC mech couldn’t self-repair from that many fragments.

***

The smell of blood was what brought Harlow back around. Her guess was that she was only out for maybe a couple of seconds, judging by the attack that was still coming down on her mech. She unstrapped and squeezed past a broken strut that had come loose and was only a couple inches from impaling her. She reached behind her seat and grabbed her own long blades and affixed them to her back.

The constant attack on her mech made it near impossible for her to get to where she needed quickly, but after a few painful moments she was able to get to a hatch on the floor of her cockpit and wiggle her way into the storage compartment below. She yanked off a panel and keyed in a code on the small number pad. She held her hands over her ears and waited. After a count of three an explosion shook her mech and bitter smoke drifted into the compartment.

Not wasting a second, Harlow wiggled back up into the cockpit and out the front where the cockpit hatch should have been. Smoke drifted up from where explosive bolts had detonated, shooting the hatch directly into the crowd of Cans. It had knocked most of them back and she took the opportunity to scramble from her cockpit and drop to the ground.

She wormed her way through mech legs and was in a dead sprint for the Hybrid before she was noticed. A blast to her right sent her flying through the air, but she tucked and rolled when she hit the dirt, coming up on her feet. She shook her head and ignored the intense ringing in her ears and just kept going. Another blast sent her flying forward and the breath was knocked from her lungs when she slammed into the ground. She pushed herself up and saw plumes of dirt puff up about her.

Harlow realized she was being shot at, but that didn’t scare her one bit. She’d been shot at a thousand times. The fact that she couldn’t hear the gunfire was what sent terror through her. As she struggled to her feet she reached up and felt the warm wetness trickling from both ears. She hoped that whatever damage had been done could be repaired.

With nothing but the ringing in her head to keep her company, Harlow zig-zagged across the wasteland towards the Hybrid. It took her a moment to realize that the Hybrid was getting smaller and smaller instead of bigger as she got closer.

They were leaving her behind and she couldn’t do a thing about it. She tapped at her com, but the blood pooling about it, and the fact she could hear absolutely nothing, meant the thing was worthless to her.

She doubled her efforts and pushed her legs past the point of exhaustion. The odds of catching the Hybrid were pretty small, but Harlow hadn’t made it as far as she had as a mech pilot by just giving up.

***

Campbell angled the sled to the right and cut between five mechs. She tossed her last sticky pack at the center mech, but missed the sweet spot. The sticky pack still exploded and shattered the mech’s legs, sending it toppling into the mech next to it. It gave Campbell just enough breathing space to whip the sled around and head back to the Hybrid.

To say she was surprised to see a sprinting figure in front of her was an understatement. It didn’t take her many guesses to figure out who the person was.

“Harlow! Hop on!” Campbell yelled as she came up on Harlow’s left. The mech pilot didn’t respond. “Harlow! Get on!”

It wasn’t until the dogs passed Harlow that the mech pilot turned to look over her shoulder, her eyes wide with disbelief. She stared at the dogs, the sled, Campbell and shook her head.

“Get the hell on the sled!” Campbell shouted. Harlow pointed at her ears. “Oh, Christ!”

Campbell pointed in turn at the sled then ahead at the receding Hybrid. Harlow looked at the mech transport then back at the sled and nodded. Without losing a step she leapt onto the sled and crouched down. She grabbed the rails and held on as Campbell pressed the dogs faster. The animals’ tongues lulled and foam frothed at their mouths, but the creatures didn’t slack. Instead they lowered their bodies and stretched their legs further, adding just a little more speed to their drive.

Campbell could hear the incoming RPGs and she prayed they’d be wide. The first was well off target, but the second impact was too close for comfort, showering them all with clods of dirt. Campbell risked it and opened her com.

“Hey!” she shouted into the com. “We’re still alive back here!”

There was no response.

“Goddammit!” Campbell snapped. “I have Harlow and we are in pursuit! Slow the hell down so we can catch up!”

There was still no response, but Campbell could see the Hybrid slow ahead, it’s legs skidding to a stop.

“I said slow down, not stop!” Campbell yelled. “I have mechs on my ass and they’ll catch up in seconds! You have to keep moving too!”

The unresponsive Hybrid didn’t budge and Campbell wondered if it had suffered a malfunction. But as she grew closer, and the RPGs nearly blasted the sled to pieces, she saw that there were forms in front of the Hybrid.

Harlow had noticed the forms also and she squinted into the distance. Here eyes went wide when she realized what she was looking at. She motioned for Campbell to stop, but the engineer ignored her. There was no way they could stop with the Cans on their butts.

Harlow drew her sidearm even though she knew it was pointless, and took aim, ready to do her small part to fight off the mechs ahead.

Forty-Seven

Not wanting to risk using the com, Lt. Murphy jumped from the Hybrid’s ramp and approached the group of strange mechs. She raised her hands in peace and slowly walked forward.

“I’m Lieutenant Nancy Murphy, leader of the Special Ops team for the-,” she started.

“I know who you are, Lieutenant,” Shiner said as he raised his cockpit. “We have met before. I am here to help.”

“You got me at a loss,” Lt. Murphy responded, not recognizing the BC form inside the mech cockpit. She looked from mech to mech and shook her head. “You’re gonna have to help me out here.”

“We fought side by side as Capreze took the Stronghold,” Shiner responded. “I am Shiner. I was the AI that was with Mech Pilot Mathew Jespers. Remember?”

Lt. Murphy cocked her head and watched Shiner for a moment. “Weren’t you blown up? Coming back from the dead a new thing for mechs now?”

“My CPU was ejected and retrieved by a team of Canadian operatives,” Shiner said. “I have been reborn in this biochrome form. So, yes, in my case, mechs can come back from the dead.”

“Canadian operatives?” Lt. Murphy asked, hooking her thumb over her shoulder. “Just tangled with some Canadians. Not sure telling me that puts me at ease.”

“Yes,” Shiner nodded. “Intentions were hidden by some. Just as with all governments, the true colors are never shown until it is too late.”

The other mechs shifted from foot to foot, their focus obviously on the Cans that were heading their way.

“There are life forms pulling a sled with two humans on it,” Awl Good said. “Should I go crush them?”

Shiner turned his attention to the far off mag-sled that was coming at them. He adjusted his sensors and would have smiled if he could have. “No, Awl,” Shiner said. “That is Mech Pilot Harlow. She appears to have been rescued by Engineer Campbell. I am pleased to see Engineer Campbell alive.” He looked back at Lt. Murphy. “Not all Canadians have proven to be treacherous.”

“Yeah,” Lt. Murphy agreed. “We have a wounded Commander LaFrance in the Hybrid. I guess he’ll be glad to see you.”

“As I him,” Shiner said. “But reunions will have to wait. There is a threat approaching and it cannot be put off.”

“Can we go kill something now?” Thunk asked. “Standing is stupid.”

“No more talking, Shiner,” Hollow Eye said. “Time for action.”

“Been waiting for this,” Bad Shell said. “Were wasting fighting time.”

“Lt. Murphy, I would advise you wait here until Pilot Harlow and Engineer Campbell arrive,” Shiner suggested. “Then get moving as fast as possible back to the Stronghold. You will be needed there.”

“Sounds like a plan,” Lt. Murphy said. “Good to see you again, Shiner. Dig the new body.”

“Thank you, Lieutenant,” Shiner said as he started to close his cockpit. “We will catch up later as soon as the Cans have been put down.”

Without another word the mechs stomped past Lt. Murphy and the Hybrid and started to run towards the oncoming Cans, weapons hot.

***

CMP Esther watched as the new mechs took the field. Her scanner showed that they were old metal and armaments were basic. And that they didn’t have human pilots. She shot the scan to the other CMPs and watched as the acknowledgments came in. Even with the superior BC, there were only twenty-two Cans left. She messaged for ten to move forward and engage the new mechs, sure that the tech at their disposal would wipe out the antiquated machines.

And positive that human abilities would easily overpower the AIs any day.

***

“Fools,” Hollow Eye stated. “They send only half their numbers at us? Why even fight.”

“Half of their numbers are twice ours,” Awl Good said. “They may not be foolish. Should we call in the minis?”

“I believe we can easily each take two of the Cans,” Shiner said. “In fact I believe Hollow Eye, Bad Shell and I should take lead. We will disable and destroy while Awl Good and Thunk clean up and make sure the BC doesn’t reform.”

“I don’t want to be the garbage mech,” Thunk said. “I want to crush.”

“You’ll get to crush,” Hollow Eye explained. “You’ll get to crush every last bit of these intruders.”

“Intruders?” Awl Good asked. “Where they intruding?”

“The wasteland,” Hollow Eye said. “It belongs to real mechs. Not shiny abominations that come from the north.”

“I believe we have to get past the thoughts that the wasteland only belongs to one set,” Shiner said. “It is a varied space filled with many different types of survivors and cultures. All have their place.”

The other mechs were silent for a moment.

“As long as I get to crush,” Thunk finally said.

***

The Cans split into two groups, five going left, five going right. Coming at them from two sides, the CMPs figured the mechs would have a hard time keeping the fight up. Mini-cannons raised and RPGs ready, the Cans attacked without hesitation.

Hollow Eye juked right then came up hard to the left, his right fist slamming into the first Can, cracking BC and sending the machine flying back past the others. Without missing a step, Hollow Eye used his momentum to spin about and jam his left elbow into the cockpit of the next Can. He grabbed the Can as it stumbled and tossed it towards Thunk.

Thunk timed his hit just right and when the Can was close enough he leapt into the air and then came down hard with both fists, driving the Can into wasteland dirt. Awl Good was right behind him, his massive drill spinning and screeching. The tip pierced the fallen Can and Awl Good pressed down with all his weight, shredding BC, sending it flying in all directions.

The CMP inside screamed as the drill ripped her to shreds. Blood sprayed from the cockpit and splattered everything within ten yards. Awl Good pulled back and looked for the next victim, completely unaffected by the gore that covered him.

Shiner tucked and rolled, firing his mini-guns at full speed as he strafed the legs of two Cans that rushed him. He knew the bullets would only slow them down, not really harm them as the BC self repaired. But slowing down was all he wanted. It gave him time to move in close and grip both Cans with his mech. He lifted his cockpit hatch and disengaged from his mech. Leaping into the air he landed on the hatch of one of the Cans and punched a hole straight through.

The CMP inside screamed as Shiner yanked him from his harness and tossed him to the ground below. A soft thud could barely be heard as Shiner took control of the Can. He worked his BC skills and the mech started to morph and change for him, turning into the form he had preferred when he trained in Canada.

The second CMP saw what was happening and blasted the mech arm apart that had held him in place. Shiner’s old mech fell to the ground in a crash of rust and metal. The CMP turned his mech and tried to flee; tried to put space between himself and Shiner. But he was too slow.