“Nova, are you where I think you are?” Hunter asked with barely contained amusement as the Dusk Guard and the surviving members of Strike Two made their way to Nova’s IFF marker.
“I don’t know where you think I am, but I’m at a party. Wicked beats, great atmosphere. You should join me, there’s plenty of room,” Nova answered with a palpable amount of snark in his tone.
“Comm discipline!” Steel snapped and the banter immediately stopped. “Nova, we’re near your location and I see your IFF, but I don’t see you. Where are you?” True enough, the unicorn’s IFF appeared to hover in the center of the street but he was nowhere to be found.
“I tried hitting the Sectopod from several different angles and got nowhere. It’s too well protected for a conventional attack from any of the conventional angles, so…”
“…you’re in the sewer, aren’t you? And you’re going to attack it from below?” Hunter interrupted.
Nova’s groan preceded his answer, “Way to steal my thunder. Seriously. There’s an access hatch directly above my position. What I’ll need you to do is lure the thing directly over me and I’ll hit it from below. Can you manage it?”
“I have eyes on the Sectopod two blocks east and one block north of our current position,” Hunter reported, and a volley of rockets launched as if on cue to mark its position. “I think I can act as a rabbit and draw him to our position. The small fries around the thing might cause problems though, especially for you if this doesn’t work, Nova.”
“If this doesn’t work then a lot of people will die, including any reinforcements XCOM might send our way,” Roland finally chipped in. The human had been mostly silent during their trip from the shelter, and even though his expression was hidden behind his helmet it wasn’t hard to imagine the determination that was no doubt there. “I say we go for it.”
“I agree. Sergeant Eversman, command authority was given to Captain Uther and with his death that responsibility has passed to you,” Steel nodded to the crew chief. “If you have no objections, I will assume command until the area is suitably secure.”
“No objections here,” Eversman shrugged, and a relieved look crossed his features.
“Right then. Eversman, Roland, I want you two on the rooftops nearby so when we engage you will have clear lines of fire on the enemies behind the front rank. Bolt and Dawn will join you. Sabra and I will engage the aliens the moment Nova disables the Sectopod.” Steel turned to the golem and addressed it by name for the first time. “Beowulf, I want to keep you in reserve. If Nova isn’t able to disable or destroy the Sectopod, we’ll be relying on you to handle it.”
Steel gave each of the assembled soldiers a look before turning back to the street. “Get its attention, Hunter. Everyone else get to your positions.”
Like clockwork, the team split up. The two humans kicked in the door of one of the nearby buildings with Bolt and Dawn close behind. Beowulf chose a larger building and shot to the upper level on a pillar of fire and smoke from its feet before hunkering down and out of sight. Sabra slipped into the shadows of a nearby doorway, which left Steel with ample places to set up his own place to ambush from. A collection of twisted cars occupied the center of the road which seemed to be just the right match for him.
Hunter’s form was barely visible in the night’s sky but the bolts of plasma he shot down at the Sectopod gave Steel some indication of where he was, and the impressive volume of fire that answered him was more than a little disconcerting. “I’ve got their attention now, leading them over to you,” The former ranger added somewhat needlessly. Judging by the angle of fire, Hunter descended to street level before sprinting around the corner and making his way further down the street.
True to his word, the aliens began to creep around the corner. A hooffull of Sectoids were first but were quickly followed by several Mutons moving between cover. Last but not least were the Sectopod and two Mechtoid vanguards. Every one of them split its time between firing at Hunter’s retreating form as well as keeping as close to cover as they could. Over a dozen red markers appeared over the aliens to mark their positions and Steel could hear Nova draw a breath through his teeth as the Sectopod approached his position.
The Sectopod continued forward, oblivious to the ambush. The turret mounted on its dorsal surface continued to fire on Hunter as it stomped down the street. The armored plates along the alien machine’s body split and folded into its sides to reveal the massive cannon that had erased Captain Uther from existence, and crimson energy began to gather as it prepared to fire a blast down the street. It set its legs in a sturdy firing position… directly above an access portal to the sewers.
Nova’s frost beam leapt out of the access portal like an icy geyser and began to engulf the Sectopod from the bottom up. The alien machine attempted to adjust its position but by then it was already too late. Solid ice had jammed every gap in it, inside and out, leaving it helpless on the street and it’s weapons useless.
“Dusk Guard, engage!” Steel shouted into the radio, and planted his strongest buck into the car he was hiding behind while again engaging his shockwave mod. The car flew several meters before tumbling into the alien formation like a bowling ball. Steel followed quickly behind it before charging directly at the closest of the Mutons without even bothering to finish off the Sectoids he trampled to get there. The Muton saw the Captain’s charge, but rather than use the weapon in its hands it slammed a fist against its chest armor before charging as well.
Rather than allow the melee to resort in a grappling match, Steel struck out with one hoof against the Muton’s leading knee which locked the limb before bending it backwards. The charge became an uncontrolled fall as the limb failed to carry the alien’s weight, and Steel helped the fall as he planted his next hoof strike in its face before leaping over the stunned monster and charging the next.
The second in line didn’t make its predecessor’s mistakes as it stood its ground and raised its rifle to fire only to catch a plasma bolt in the face from a high angle. The next in line suffered the same fate, and the third had fast enough reflexes to look up to see Hunter fire a precise shot into its face as well. “I’ve got your back, boss!” He shouted before breaking off his attack to avoid volleys of plasma from the two Mechtoids.
A loud crunch to the side announced Beowulf’s entrance into the fray. It took two steps before setting one foot underneath one of the cars at the curb and kicking upwards. The car lofted into the air before the golem landed a solid punch on it with its left fist which sent it flying. It collided with the first Mechtoid with enough force to wrap around the alien golem and carry it off its feet. The second golem turned its cannons unleashed a dozen blasts against Beowulf to try and stop its charge.
The green flames struck the human golem’s arms, legs and chest but its charge continued unhindered. As they pair closed, the alien golem raised one of its plasma cannons to try and crush it’s opponent but the strike met Beowulf’s blocking arm. The block prevented the attack from landing on its head or body but it twisted and shattered the human golem’s right arm in the process. Beowulf let out a roar that was part battlecry and part pain as its glowing left fist shot forward and connected squarely with the Mectoid’s chest. Its chest crumpled like a tin can before it flew off the street and into the storefront nearby.
Steel finished off the first Muton he had encountered with a quick buck before turning to survey the battlefield. With their armor and leaders dead, the Sectoids had broken and fled in all directions but were picked off by Hunter or the soldiers on the rooftops. As Steel watched his subordinate initiate the pursuit, he caught sight of something that filled him with dread.
“Fall back and get to cover! Enemy airship is approaching!” Steel shouted as he charged for the nearest alleyway. A massive wave of heat chased him into cover, and a glance behind him showed the street was now awash in green fire. A second shot from the ship struck the rooftop the others were using, and Steel caught sight of Dawn’s shield mod activating moments before the attack struck. Steel opened his mouth to again order them to fall back when new voices half masked by static could be heard.
“All QRF, Sky Eye; local units report engagement with enemy armor and personnel at the indicated coordinates. Saucer confirmed approaching their position. Fire mission danger close air support, how copy?” “Papa Gator, solid copy and oscar mike.” “Mobius, solid copy. I have eyes on the saucer, it’s firing!” “Pixy, solid copy and I have eyes on. Tally ho!”
Before Steel could try to decipher any of it, a cacophony of noise came from the saucer and a fourth of it seemed to evaporate from some unseen attack. It tried to rise or move away from the area but whatever had initially attacked struck again and it exploded spectacularly. A sound not unlike a growl filled the air, and a pair of human airships shaped almost like dragons cut through the sky before banking out of sight.
“Sky Eye, Pixy; confirmed one saucer down. I can confirm bodies and wreckage at the coordinates but no sign of friendly forces. Must have went to cover.” “Copy, Pixy. Sending you new target coordinates…”
“Dusk Guard, report in. Anyone hurt?” Steel asked as he tuned out the rest of the radio chatter.
“This is Hunter, I’m fine but the others might not be. The building they were in collapsed under fire from the saucer. Sabra and the golem are helping me clear the rubble.”
“This is Dawn. I have Sky Bolt with me and we’re mostly unharmed other than a few bruises and scrapes. Roland has dislocated his shoulder and Eversman’s leg was broken in the fall. As for the structure, we fell into a lower floor when the building collapsed and we should be able to limp out without having to dig through the rubble.”
“Nova here, and I’m perfectly fine. In the sewer. I’m assuming we won?”
“I think ‘winning’ in this situation depends upon our return to base safely, and that has yet to happen.”
“Strike Two, Command. Report status.”
Bradford’s voice coming through the radio was an unexpected but not unwelcome surprise. “Command, this is Captain Song. I have assumed control of Strike Two. Captain Uther…” Steel started, and was a bit surprised when Bradford interrupted.
“I know, Captain. Skyranger Harbinger is en route to your location with Strike Five, and National Guard reinforcements will be close behind them. When the Skyranger lands, you and your squad will return to base while Strike Five secures the city,” Bradford said, and Steel couldn’t help but note the relief that was present in his voice. “You did an excellent job, Captain, but it would be best if you weren’t there when the National Guard arrives.”
“Understood, sir,” Steel agreed before addressing the Dusk Guard. “You heard Bradford. Regroup at the shelter as quick as you can.”
------
The Skyranger landed in the church’s parking lot, and pair of MECs stomped down the ramp followed by ten black-armored figures who quickly linked up with the civilians inside the shelter. While almost all eyes were upon the new arrivals, the Dusk Guard and Strike Two’s survivors shuffled into the aircraft helmets came off and the six ponies shared a round of tired and relieved smiles before the crew cabin disappeared as the ramp closed behind them.
A nondescript businessman in a tattered suit and tie tapped his smart phone to stop the video recorder before tapping several more buttons and bringing it to his ear.
“Yes, Vide, they showed up,” he said, “They also brought friends with them…”