streaking past
me until I reached the next tree. Brand held back, three others
came up behind me but one fell face down as a salvo blasted him
apart. Muzzle flashes lit up in front of me, I aimed and fired at
what I thought was the nearest. Brand's distinctive report sounded
behind me, then I felt her reach my side.
"Go!" She yelled and I made for the
next line. Wulfgar was urging others to follow his lead, Walker was
pinned down by bursts of sustained fire that were tearing chunks
out of the trunk of the huge tree and another of his men went down,
pitched off his feet by a head shot.
"Smoke!" Green was running down the
line hurling tubular bombs over the tops of the trees doing an
incredible job of avoiding fire from both sides. Flash blinded us
as they detonated, then great plumes of white smoke engulfed the
forward line and those able to got up and began running towards the
north where Burns and Phillips waved them ahead.
"Let's boogey, Lieutenant," said Brand
and I began to fall back. The enemy was still firing, but without
targets they were firing blind and white-hot slugs tore through the
protective cloud in all directions. Together we ran, heads down and
fell in behind the others, Green bringing up the rear and still
hurling bombs from a satchel. Others were stabbing incendiaries
into the ground, most likely on twenty second timers.
"Shit, that's the Bergen’s gone,"
Brand said as she slung her rifle and took up her pistol. In the
dense woodland the high precision tool was useless on the
run.
"How many went down?" Asked somebody
in front of us in a panic stricken voice.
"Forget it, we'll lick wounds later,"
I shouted hoping the firm voice might inspire him to press on.
"Keep your heads down."
A few seconds later and explosions
could be heard behind us as the timers went off. I looked back just
as a tide of super heated flame exploded around our previous
position, most likely destroying both the Bergen’s and the bodies
of the dead and dying. I had no idea how many we'd lost, but that
wasn't the priority now. We were running blind and it wouldn't be
long before they closed in on us. My hopes of finding David, of
even surviving the next night were fading fast.
"We aren't going to make it," Someone
in front said.
"They're going to slaughter us!"
Another cried.
"Shut it you girls! I'll have you dead
myself before I let them kill you. Nobody's taking my two bitches
from me, you faggot slags!" It was the Sarge coming back down the
line shouting his head off to the unit. He caught me at the back
and started dividing up those around him. "On me, east on the
double or I’ll personally burn your asses back to the stone
age!"
We divided up and headed east, away
from Burns' squad to try and confuse the enemy. Phillips was
checking the map when Brand and me jogged up to the
front.
"Sir, what's the plan?" I
asked.
"The Lieutenant has broken away to
draw fire to this point here." He indicated a narrow valley deeper
inside the forest - a good tactical position that offered an ambush
option. "We're to continue round in an arc, coming back round to
hit them at the rear. Then we'll rendezvous at this
outpost."
"Then what?" Phillips gave me a look
that said it all. The last stand. "Do you know how many went
down?"
"Out of the eighteen we had this
morning, there's only thirteen now."
"Jesus," Brand muttered. Five of us
here, eight there.
By the time we'd come back round as
Phillips had planned, we'd left our pursuers behind. That only
meant they'd concentrated on Burns' unit. As we began to crest a
rise in the terrain, evening was setting in and it wouldn't be long
before we lost the light. Already the canopy was blocking most of
it out, leaving Brand to take point with the thermal imaging scope
as our eyes. I walked with Phillips as the other two troopers
brought up the rear.
"We're here."
CHAPTER 6
The valley was a wash with gold and
red and orange, cordite choked the air as it rose up to meet us and
the brutal
me until I reached the next tree. Brand held back, three others
came up behind me but one fell face down as a salvo blasted him
apart. Muzzle flashes lit up in front of me, I aimed and fired at
what I thought was the nearest. Brand's distinctive report sounded
behind me, then I felt her reach my side.
"Go!" She yelled and I made for the
next line. Wulfgar was urging others to follow his lead, Walker was
pinned down by bursts of sustained fire that were tearing chunks
out of the trunk of the huge tree and another of his men went down,
pitched off his feet by a head shot.
"Smoke!" Green was running down the
line hurling tubular bombs over the tops of the trees doing an
incredible job of avoiding fire from both sides. Flash blinded us
as they detonated, then great plumes of white smoke engulfed the
forward line and those able to got up and began running towards the
north where Burns and Phillips waved them ahead.
"Let's boogey, Lieutenant," said Brand
and I began to fall back. The enemy was still firing, but without
targets they were firing blind and white-hot slugs tore through the
protective cloud in all directions. Together we ran, heads down and
fell in behind the others, Green bringing up the rear and still
hurling bombs from a satchel. Others were stabbing incendiaries
into the ground, most likely on twenty second timers.
"Shit, that's the Bergen’s gone,"
Brand said as she slung her rifle and took up her pistol. In the
dense woodland the high precision tool was useless on the
run.
"How many went down?" Asked somebody
in front of us in a panic stricken voice.
"Forget it, we'll lick wounds later,"
I shouted hoping the firm voice might inspire him to press on.
"Keep your heads down."
A few seconds later and explosions
could be heard behind us as the timers went off. I looked back just
as a tide of super heated flame exploded around our previous
position, most likely destroying both the Bergen’s and the bodies
of the dead and dying. I had no idea how many we'd lost, but that
wasn't the priority now. We were running blind and it wouldn't be
long before they closed in on us. My hopes of finding David, of
even surviving the next night were fading fast.
"We aren't going to make it," Someone
in front said.
"They're going to slaughter us!"
Another cried.
"Shut it you girls! I'll have you dead
myself before I let them kill you. Nobody's taking my two bitches
from me, you faggot slags!" It was the Sarge coming back down the
line shouting his head off to the unit. He caught me at the back
and started dividing up those around him. "On me, east on the
double or I’ll personally burn your asses back to the stone
age!"
We divided up and headed east, away
from Burns' squad to try and confuse the enemy. Phillips was
checking the map when Brand and me jogged up to the
front.
"Sir, what's the plan?" I
asked.
"The Lieutenant has broken away to
draw fire to this point here." He indicated a narrow valley deeper
inside the forest - a good tactical position that offered an ambush
option. "We're to continue round in an arc, coming back round to
hit them at the rear. Then we'll rendezvous at this
outpost."
"Then what?" Phillips gave me a look
that said it all. The last stand. "Do you know how many went
down?"
"Out of the eighteen we had this
morning, there's only thirteen now."
"Jesus," Brand muttered. Five of us
here, eight there.
By the time we'd come back round as
Phillips had planned, we'd left our pursuers behind. That only
meant they'd concentrated on Burns' unit. As we began to crest a
rise in the terrain, evening was setting in and it wouldn't be long
before we lost the light. Already the canopy was blocking most of
it out, leaving Brand to take point with the thermal imaging scope
as our eyes. I walked with Phillips as the other two troopers
brought up the rear.
"We're here."
CHAPTER 6
The valley was a wash with gold and
red and orange, cordite choked the air as it rose up to meet us and
the brutal
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