Titan's Fall by Zachary Brown Page B

still under attack.”
    â€œVery much so. For now,” I said. Then on the command channel: “Amira, can you get me a big boost on the common so I can get a message out to everyone?”
    â€œThinking of replacing HQ?”
    â€œYes. We have the power plant. Now let’s start securing the base.”
    Amira raised an eyebrow.
    I gave the mental command, and my helmet snapped open and slid into the back of my armor. “If we have the plant, then the hills are secure. Get me on the common channel, Amira.”
    I couldn’t tell if she shrugged, but her silvered eyes looked upward, as if she was recalling something. “You’re live, Lieutenant.”
    Ignoring her slight mocking tone, I said, “All platoons, this is Devlin Hart. We have the power plant secured. The hills are still ours, even though the Conglomeration has taken the tunnels. But now it’s time take back Shangri-La.
    â€œI need volunteer squads to get down here. It will be door by door, but we have a systems specialist that you can coordinate with. Let’s flush them the hell back to wherever they came from!”
    +  +  +  +
    Amira broke out of her trance, mind running deep inside Shangri-La’s networks.
    â€œHow many?” I asked.
    â€œThree thousand got into the hills,” she said wearily. “Platoons agreed to send down a thousand to try and secure the tunnels.”
    â€œAnd?”
    â€œI got them in,” she said. “Staggered opening doors to let them clear through by sections. Most of the cable tunnels are secure. A few hundred are fanning out from those points. They’re breaking back into HQ, but it’s heavy with drivers and raptors there. And that’s about as far as we can go right now. And, Devlin?”
    â€œYeah?”
    â€œStop pacing. You’re in armor. You’re making the engineers nervous.”
    I stopped and looked around. The civilians were staring at me.
    â€œWe need more boots in the tunnels,” I said.
    â€œThe other officers won’t,” Amira said. “They want the hills covered. A way out.”
    â€œWell, we get HQ back at least,” I muttered. “But we can pull this all back.”
    The sound of gunfire interrupted me. I moved up toward the doors and glanced up the tunnel at Lana Smalley. “Smiley?”
    â€œClear!”
    I stomped back to Amira. “HQ? Anyone alive?”
    She smiled. “They found only bodies. They’re holding it now, though.”
    For now.
    This was all a balancing act that could go horribly wrong so quickly, I realized. And it would take days, or weeks, to clear everything out down here.
    But it was possible.
    It was damn possible.
    â€œHQ incoming,” Amira said.
    â€œWho’s taken command?” I asked.
    â€œThe officers are still in the hills. Privates who volunteered to push through,” she said. “They have a link upstairs. They’re saying other bases are scattering to the plains; they’re managing to get uplinks and orbital bombardment support.”
    â€œAre we expected to abandon the base as well?” I asked.
    â€œNo. If we can hold, we are to stay put. However, other officers on the plains and some Accordance chatter are rumoring something big is up from everyone upstairs.”
    â€œLike what?” I asked.
    â€œIt’s fucking alien high command,” Amira said. “They’re not going to tell us ‘apes,’ are they?”

7
    Ken popped back into the command channel. “We can’t call down orbital strikes on Shangri-La itself; they won’t engage until we’re out in the open and headed for rally points.”
    I looked over at Amira. “But HQ is still telling us to stay put?”
    She’d been glazed over, off in a world of networks to help coordinate clearing out the tunnels for hours. She looked exhausted.
    â€œAmira?”
    â€œWe’re still staying put,” she said,