The Squad Novelettes 1-5 Read online

  The lieutenant growled. "Balls! Do you work for me or do I work for you? Or is there some hearing problem on your end? You hold position until your new squad members arrive! You understand?"

  "Yes, sir. We'll hold for Nellis and Montague."

  I gestured for the others to stop as I leaned back against the wall. The stogie came out of my pocket and was soon resting on my lip.

  Collins shook his head. "More rookies? We already lost the two he stuck us with this morning. We don't need any more cowards who just turn and run back to the ship at the first sign of trouble."

  I looked at the three remaining men in my squad. We had fought our way on and off at least fifty ships together. They were good Marines with good instincts and reactions. I trusted them with my life just as they trusted me with theirs. For whatever reason, the four of us had never had decent backup. Only one new recruit had lasted more than a few raids.

  Private Don Dunnegan had made it through five before a Maxan with a laser-blade lopped off his right leg as they tussled in a hand-to-hand confrontation. Barnes still carried the photon-induced-blade on his side as a reminder of Dunnegan's bravery. Despite our best efforts, new members just didn't seem to last. Most— quickly requested a transfer after their first assault.

  As Nellis and Montague approached, Collins gestured toward them. "Noobies... come over here for a hug!"

  Tanner laughed. "Collins, you’re an idiot."

  Montague spoke as he stepped up beside us. "Sarge, looks like you drew the short straw."

  I shifted the stogie to the other side of my mouth. "OK, listen up. You two will be covering the back door. You stay behind us, you keep your eyes fixed on where we've just been. If you see a Maxan, you don't pull that trigger until you are one-hundred percent sure that's what you are looking at. I've seen too much FF in my life and I have no desire to see more. Validate, verify, before you fire. Capisce?"

  Montague nodded. "You got it, Sarge."

  I stared at the two rookies. "Look. If you haven't already heard, the others call us the Death Squad. They call us that because noobs generally don't last in the situations we get into. I don't want to go to any more memorial ceremonies, so you two need to follow my orders exactly. Your job-one is to stay alive. Do as I say and that will likely happen. Get all cowboy on us and you get yourselves dead. Got it?"

  Nellis nodded. "We saw a dead Maxan in the stairwell. Was that your kill?"

  I knew by that question that Private Nellis would be difficult to keep alive. "Yeah, him and about twenty-five others this morning. You and Montague here keep yourselves safe and we'll show you how to kill Maxans. And just so you don't get any ideas about this being a glamorous profession, keep in mind the Maxans we kill have families, they have friends, they have kids, just like we do. We are taking lives here because they want to take ours. Killin's a dirty thing, so don't get your head wrapped up in the false glory of it."

  Collins stepped in. "Aw, don't let him scare ya! The Maxans, they are all like polite and gentlemanly. They might even blow you two a few kisses!"

  Collins laughed until he caught a glimpse of my angry stare.

  When his efforts at humor had ended, I nodded toward the stairs. "Mr. Tanner, it's your gig."

  Chapter 4

  * * *

  As we moved toward the stairwell, the lieutenant came back over the comm. "Balls! One of my grunters is missing a foot! What did you do!"

  I shook my head. "We're in combat, Lieutenant. Expect casualties. One of the Maxans must have gotten in a blow before they got their face ripped off."

  The lieutenant growled. "Don't expect to use my grunters again, Balls. They are too valuable to just be thrown at the Maxans without care."

  "Look, Lieutenant, I value the lives of my men over those lizards. If I can keep just one man alive I will throw a thousand of those belly crawlers at the Maxans... sir."

  The lieutenant was silent for a moment. "Hence the reason you won't see any more grunters, Balls. They are not toys, they are not ion fodder. They are valuable fighting weapons that we need to respect and make judicious use of. You push the limits of my patience, Sergeant. Get your men in gear and get that next deck cleared. Command wants the scientists back working as soon as possible."

  The comm channel closed. Barnes, Tanner, and Collins could see the anger in my bright red face. I began to despise a certain lieutenant’s command more with each and every breath. But I was a Marine, we took our orders and carried them out to the best of our ability, whether we agreed with them or not.

  I pushed my way past the others. "I'll be taking deck five. We'll pick up the rotation again on deck four."

  Barnes reached out for my shoulder. "It might be a good idea to let your blood settle for a few minutes, Sarge. Going in with a hot head isn't the best of ideas."

  I turned toward Collins. "Where's the mag-tag that was on your helmet?"

  Collins pointed back down the hall. "Should be just around the corner. I pried it off with my knife as I was running. Those bolts died out before they found it, so it should still be active."

  After a quick search, I picked up the tag. "Tanner, on the stairwell, the Maxan there had a repeater. Go get it."

  Montague hesitantly raised his hand. "Excuse me, Sarge, but why didn't we take their repeaters before?"

  I replied as I inspected the mag-tag. "The repeaters are worthless without these tags. The Maxans know that and somehow manage to make leftover tags useless before we get to 'em. That little something has been frustrating Command for nearly a year now, ever since the repeaters showed up. But see this tag? I think it's still active. If that's the case, we're gonna send it back to its rightful owners and then we'll follow it up with some free-ion bolts."

  Nellis raised his hand. "Why don't we just toss a few ion grenades up the stairwell?"

  Collins raised a finger. "I got this question, Sarge. All these ships have inhibitors on 'em. Our blasters have to make a direct hit. Grenades are only about a third as effective here as they are elsewhere. You might get lucky and take out a single Maxan with a grenade, but you won't take out his buddies. Sarge? How you plan on getting that tag onto one of their own?"

  I half smiled. "Don't care. All I want is for it to be near enough to 'em that we can send a stream of free-ion bolts their way. They'll scatter as usual. We use that moment to take the stairs."

  Collins nodded. "I like it."

  Tanner returned with the repeater rifle. "Still has a full charge, Sarge. Just tell me when you want me to pull the trigger and I'll let 'em rip."

  As we made our way back toward the stairwell going up, I stopped among the dead Maxans, picking up the severed grunter foot.

  Collins looked over my shoulder. "What you doin', Sarge?"

  "I needed something to stick this tag inside. I figure a grunter foot is gonna get their attention, so I'm stuffing this tag down in the meat of it. If I was a Maxan, I would feel compelled to stop to look at a grunter foot."

  Collins laughed. "You know, Sarge, you sure do make this gig entertaining sometimes. Almost makes it worth the risk of following along just to see what you come up with."

  I looked back at Montague and Nellis. "You two, stay here until I say it's safe to come up those stairs. If you don't hear back from me within twenty seconds, get your asses back to the pipe to defend it. And tell the lieutenant we didn't make it. You'll want to get back as fast as you can or we'll lose control of this whole ship as well as our own."

  I turned and then stopped. "Lieutenant Coddle and his timid approaches won't match up to the ferocity of the Maxans. If we don't make it, try to get on Sergeant Penelope's squad. She's tough and her squad can finish this if you can keep the Maxans contained. If they spread down through deck nine, you're probably all dead at that point."

  Barnes smiled. "You do have a way of putting a special importance on things, Sarge. Let's go take a stairwell so all these fine people can continue living."

  I nodded as I wrapped a piece of loose wire around the
grunter foot, securing the mag-tag I had stuffed inside. "Tanner? You ready?"

  Tanner gave a single nod.

  I stepped up to the stairwell and looked back at the faces of my vets. "On three."

  I slung the grunter foot up the stairs. It bounced off the high ceiling and out onto the floor of deck five. After a ten second pause I gave Tanner the signal. He opened up with the repeater. By the time I hit the first step a dozen free-ion bolts had entered the stairwell and were bouncing off the walls as they searched out the mag-tag surprise I had sent upward.

  As I reached the top of the stairs, I caught the first Maxan still scrambling for cover from the free bolts. With a direct shot, the ion energy from my blaster soaked into his skull, making his head turn to mush as it splattered about the walls. As I poked my eyes up above the floor level of deck five, four Maxans were taking cover with their backs against the walls of the adjoining hallway. I fired three ion bolts into the three on the right as Barnes, charging up behind me, took out the cowering Maxan on the left.

  Collins stepped up behind us as a remaining Maxan fired a mag-tag from down the hall. The tag again made a snap noise as it stuck to Collins' helmet.

  "Gah!" Collins turned to run down the steps as Barnes fired an ion bolt into the Maxan as he flipped his repeater to fire a free-ion bolt. A loud pop signified the bones of his chest exploding outward.

  I yelled down the steps at a retreating Collins. "Maxan's down, Collins! Pop that tag and contain it. We may have need of it further on. Tanner! Get up here and help Barnes do a room check! Nellis and Montague, you can come onto the stairwell! Stay out of sight until Barnes and Tanner give the clear!"

  A quick scan of the rooms along the hallway proceeded. Just that fast, deck five was secure.

  Chapter 5

  * * *

  With the rooms checked and free of Maxan fighters, we continued our mission. Four scientists remained missing with four decks to clear. It was evident to me the Maxans were now on the run. Just like so many assaults before, they crowded into the top deck where an all-out melee would be the concluding battle.

  The Maxans weren't the best of warriors, but they easily made up for that with superior numbers and weapons like their repeater rifles. Our ship, the Fracker, had a crew of four with three squads of Marines and our lieutenant. Command from that point upward came in the form of a video comm-link.

  "Lieutenant," I said, "deck five is in the bag. We're moving on to four."

  The lieutenant cleared his throat. "Hold up, Balls. Sergeant Werner thinks he can talk them into a surrender."

  I leaned my head back, bouncing it against the thin steel wall of the hallway. "Sir, the Maxans don't surrender, sir. I've been fighting them for many years and I have yet to see a single one give up. It's not something they do, sir."

  The lieutenant gave an angered reply. "I don't give a rat's ass about what you've experienced in the past, Balls. You hold your position there for Werner's squad. I'm coming up as well."

  I pursed my lips. "Sir, I beg you to let us proceed. They are backing up. This is the best time to push 'em. If we hesitate, we allow them to stop and think. They dig in, sir. They strategize. This attempt is gonna get men killed."

  The lieutenant could be heard stomping his feet as he moved toward our location. "Balls! Stop questioning my orders! I've had it up to here with your insubordination!"

  I sarcastically replied, "Up to where, sir?"

  The lieutenant was silent for a moment. "What?"

  "You said you've had it up to here, sir. Where is here?"

  The comm went silent as the channel closed. Two minutes later the lieutenant's forehead could be seen slowly peering up over the deck plating of the stairwell. After a cowardly gaze to see that the hallway was indeed safe, the lieutenant stomped up the remaining stairs and into the hall. Werner and his squad of five greenhorn Marines had arrived just before.

  I looked at the stairs behind the lieutenant and the noob private he had turned into his aide. "You have Penelope guarding the ship?"

  The lieutenant scowled. "What? No. She should be right up."

  I gave an apprehensive look. "Sir, protocol and common sense dictates that we always retain one squad at the pipe. If the Maxans take our ship and crew we have no way home."

  The lieutenant gestured. "Step aside, Balls. Werner, you’re up. Start the negotiations!"

  I let out a long sigh. "Sir?"

  The lieutenant rolled his eyes. "What is it, Sergeant?"

  "Sir, if you don't mind. I'm gonna take my squad and setup a defensive position on the stairwell."

  The lieutenant waved his hand back at me. "Just get out of my hair, Balls. I'll deal with you when this is over."

  I motioned to the others. "Barnes, get inside that door sill. If they make it into the hall I want you over the rail and heading down. Collins, take that tag, sync it to that rifle, go past the lieutenant and stick it on the wall to that stairwell going up. Tanner, you join me on the stairs. If you see a Maxan coming through that door, I want you to open up with that repeater. If one makes it down those stairs there is likely to be another thirty following. We defend on this stairwell. If they push us back, we do the same on the next one. My guess is we still have seventy to eighty Maxans up on those next four decks. If they start coming down they may all come down at once."

  As I took position on the stairs, Collins slapped the mag-tag on the wall beside the lieutenant. An angry scowl sent Collins back our way with a smirk on his face. Barnes settled into his position against the door sill, while Tanner squatted beside me on the stairs.

  I turned to look down. "Montague, you and Nellis go down to deck six and check that stairwell. If things get too hot, we'll be coming your way in a hurry. If the Maxans attempt a breakout, it doesn't mean they will all be coming down the stairs. They will use every maintenance tunnel, crawlspace, and any pathway they have available to retake this vessel."

  Sergeant Penelope and her six squad members came up the stairs behind us. "Balls? Can you tell me what's going on? The lieutenant called us off the pipe, said we needed to get up here ASAP."

  I shook my head. "He's about to get a lot of us killed is what he's doing. Him and Werner think they can talk the remaining Maxans into surrendering."

  The sergeant slowly blinked her eyes. "What? Argh! That's all Werner's doing. He was spinning the lieutenant on that idea all the way out here! Something to do with him coming over from the diplomatic corps." She growled. "What an idiot."

  "And soon to be dead."

  Sergeant Penelope held out her hand.

  I looked down at her outstretched fingers. "What's this?"

  Penelope frowned. "This is goodbye, Balls. At least do what you can to protect the ship. I don't want to die as a complete embarrassment to the Corps after being the first Alliance warship to ever get captured by the Maxans. Our names will end up in every bootcamp training lesson about what not to do. We'll be dead, but our relatives will take a beating for the rest of their lives."

  I half laughed as I took Penelope's hand in a firm shake. "Good luck, Sergeant. We're all gonna need it."

  Sergeant Wilhelmina Penelope turned, spat on the floor beside herself, and gestured to her squad. "Time to punch out, boys. Let's get up those stairs!"

  Chapter 6

  * * *

  I let out a long sigh as I settled into a firing position. "Ten seconds."

  Barnes glanced back. "What's that, Sarge?"

  Unblinking, I stared down the hall. "I give the lieutenant ten seconds from the time he opens his mouth until they start taggin' 'em."

  Barnes gave a solemn look as his focus returned to the hallway. As soon as Sergeant Penelope’s squad labored up the first set of stairs, the thumps from ion bolts being exchanged could be heard. Seconds after, blue flashes of light could be seen emanating from the stairwell thirty meters from our position.

  I readied my blaster. "Any second now, Mr. Tanner. Try to let at least a half dozen into the hall before opening up
with that repeater. And aim at the walls. I want to see those bright, blue, free bolts bouncing their way down to that tag. We need complete chaos covering that thirty meter stretch."

  Tanner grinned. "You got it, Sarge. Chaos is my middle name."

  Collins laughed. "I thought your middle name was Melvin."

  Tanner replied, "Stuff it, Collins."

  The first of our people down the stairs was Lieutenant Coddle. He turned the corner of the hall at a full run with a look of terror on his face. Five meters later, three free-ion bolts bounced off the stairwell floor and zoned in on the lieutenant. They entered his back. His upper chest and shoulders exploded, coating the hallway walls in red guts. His lower torso and legs flopped to the floor as his severed head bounced and rolled another five meters, stopping directly in front of us with his eyes wide open. A confused expression covered his face. The lieutenant was gone.

  The next ion bolts struck the floor in front of the stairs a moment before Wilhelmina Penelope’s body slammed hard into it, bouncing up a fifth of a meter in the process. My heart skipped a beat as I then saw the blue glow of repeated ion rounds leaving the tip of her blaster. Penelope was alive!

  I jumped from my position and raced down the hallway. The thirty meter journey seemed to take an eternity, my heavy boots hammered the deck as I ran. Penelope continued to fire as I approached. In another heart skipping moment, the headless body of one of her squad members fell hard onto her chest, absorbing an ion bolt from above as he came to rest. I dove, sliding just inside the door sill on my back with my blaster aiming upward. Five ion bolts blew apart three Maxan soldiers as they charged down the stairs.

  I rolled over, grabbed Penelope by the shoulder, and jerked hard to move her out into the hallway. Four mag-tags impacted the floor where she had lain only a second before. I continued to pull, bringing my fellow Marine to her feet as we began the long thirty meter marathon down the corridor.