Текст книги " The Price of Glory"

Автор книги: Уильям Кейт

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Текущая страница: 7 (всего у книги 25 страниц)

9

Static continued to crowd the tactical frequencies, growing louder and harsher as Grayson's 'Mech column closed on the DropShips. There was no way a message could be punched through that interference even to alert Use Martinez that his 'Mechs were on their way. The interference was so bad that communications between the 'Mechs of the two lances was becoming difficult.

"Motion, Gray," Lori warned from her Shadow Hawk.He could barely hear her through the jamming noise. "Sector front-center. Reads like a skimmer, at range . . . eight hundred meters."

Grayson's Marauderpaused, its weapons-heavy forearms swinging into combat attitude. An armed skimmer posed little risk to a BattleMech, but it was never wise to take chances. Skimmers loaded with plastic explosives had been known to make suicide runs that had shattered 'Mechs or caused massive damage to control and actuator systems.

Brush thrashed aside 500 meters ahead, and a small, two-place skimmer whipped into view. Grayson removed his hands from the Marauder'sfiring controls. The skimmer was a Legion scout craft. The lone pilot wore the camouflage greys of a Legion trooper.

"All units, hold fire," Grayson ordered. "It's a messenger! “

The messenger echoed the sentiments with a message of his own. "Don't shoot, Colonel!" he yelled, his light voice transmitted by the Marauder'sexternal audio pickups. "I've got a message from Captain Martinez!"

It was easier for Lori to unbutton her Shadow Hawk'scanopy and hope to get it sealed again than it was for Grayson, whose Marauder'segg-shaped body was massively armored and sealed. The hatch on top of her cockpit swung aside, and Lori's helmeted head appeared in the opening. "We recognize you! What's the message?"

"The Captain says the DropShips are under attack! She says the infantry line isn't holding, and the 'Mechs at the ship aren't going to last long! The enemy's attacking with at least ten 'Mechs, maybe more! She sent me to try to find you ... to warn you ..."

"You did well," Lori said. "Fall in behind our column, and stay clear when the shooting starts." A moment later, her voice came across on the tac band, heavily filtered by the static. "We don't have much time, Gray."

"I know. Let's pick up the pace." He could hear the firing, like the distant rumble of summer thunder coming from straight ahead, over his 'Mech's pick-ups.

As his Maraudersurged into motion again, Grayson fretted about the lance of BattleMechs he had left on guard with the DropShips. Lieutenant Roget had some combat experience, as did Graff, but Vandergriff and Trevor were unknown quantities. Though they were no longer apprentices, their lack of actual combat experience meant Grayson could not rely on them in a BattleMech firefight. That was why he had left the lance behind to mount guard. He had expected a fight at Durandel.

He had not expected the Marik forces to respond as quickly as they had, however, with this headlong race to seize his DropShips.

The 'Mech column crested a low ridge, and suddenly the battle noise was louder, a thundering roar that rumbled on and on, the crackle of small arms fire interspersed with missile explosions and the rapid-fire thud of BattleMech autocannons. The DropShip LZ was less than a kilometer away now.

The jamming was louder, too. Grayson heard Lori saying something over the radio, but he couldn't make out her words. He recognized other voices as well—Davis McCall's and Hassan Khaled's among them—but the words were drowned in the hissing sea of static.

Grayson thought furiously. It was obvious that the enemy had elected to fight according to a set plan. Indeed, that was the only possible approach when using jammers, for there was no way either side could communicate changes of plan or issue new orders. Though the jamming put the Gray Death at a disadvantage, the attackers were operating at a handicap as well. With no way to issue new orders, they would be slow and cumbersome in reacting to the unexpected.

And Grayson Death Carlyle was a master of doing the unexpected in battle.

His motion sensor was chirping a steady, monotonous pinging at him, showing something large moving across his front. He twisted the Marauderfive degrees right and stepped up the speed. The land here was gently sloping, but heavily screened by light woods and boulders, some of them as big as a house. It was impossible to see more than a few tens of meters in any direction.

Trees parted for Grayson's Marauder. A Thunderboltrose above the low-twisting trees eighty meters ahead, its out-sized arms hanging apelike on either side of its massive, black-painted body.

Grayson's Marauderoutweighed the other 'Mech by ten tons, but the Thunderbolthad the edge in armament. Its right arm-mounted Sunglow Type 2 heavy laser was one of the largest lasers ever carried by a BattleMech. It was backed up by a massive, tube-shaped LRM rack slung across its left shoulder, a battery of medium lasers and short-ranged missiles in its torso, and a pair of heavy machine guns in its left arm. The Thunderboltwas armored to match its weaponry, with heavier armor than the Marauder'sin some key places.

Grayson knew that the Thunderbolt'sweakness was that so much weaponry generated a hell of a lot of heat. Thunderboltssuffered more from heat build-up than many other 'Mechs, and that fact would work to Grayson's advantage.

Or rather, it couldwork to his advantage, if he had the time to exploit it. Grayson's immediate concern was the situation back at the DropShips. This Marik Thunderbolthad obviously been thrown past the LZ positions to block just such a movement as his. Grayson did not have time to play tag with the Thunderbolt,and it would take time to wear his opponent down to the point where heat became a serious concern.

The one certain way to knock out a heavy 'Mech fast was to concentrate overwhelming firepower against it. Grayson knew that such a maneuver took quick timing and good communications. The Gray Death Company had no communications at all at the moment, but they did have a considerable body of shared experience and training to draw on. It might work, but it would have to be done quickly.

There was a rippling flash, and long-range missiles lanced from the Thunderbolttoward Grayson's Marauder.Grayson twisted at his 'Mech's controls and trotted to the left. Savage explosions shredded trees and ripped across the floor of the woods. A giant boulder ahead offered shelter, and Grayson made for it.

More explosions shattered through the woods behind him. Lori's Shadow Hawkwas in the Thunderbolt'sline of fire now. Her autocannon dropped across the shoulder of her 'Mech as she engaged the heavier 'Mech in a stand-up slugging match. McCall's Riflemanstepped into line at her side, his paired autocannon and lasers hurling fire into the larger 'Mech. The Thunderboltresponded. Missiles exploded on the Rifleman'sflank and on the Shadow Hawk'sright shoulder and leg. Autocannon shells slammed into the Thunderbolt'supper chest, scoring the armor and gouging it with deep, ragged craters.

Grayson paused behind the boulder, checking his weapons systems and estimating the Thunderbolt'sposition from the sounds of gunfire and explosions. Then, when the T-Boltwas concentrating completely on Lori and Davis, he lunged around the boulder.

The Thunderboltfilled his sighting scanners, barely ninety meters away. Grayson's 120 mm autocannon began slamming high-explosive armor-piercers at the enemy machine, scoring hit after hit on its arm and upper chest. Grayson's PPCs cut loose with a twin torrent of blue-white fire that barked and crackled as discharged electrical current leapt like blue lightning from the stricken Thunderboltto the ground.

The Thunderboltturned to face this new challenge, but Grayson was already pulling back behind the boulder. Lori and McCall continued to pour fire into the enemy 'Mech, with both Khaled's Warhammerand Delmar Clay's Wolverinealso joining the action.

Grayson saw missile fire strike Clay's Wolverineon its left arm, leaving scarred and broken plates of armor. The T-Bolt'sheavy laser fired, lighting up the woods with a supernatural radiance that edged every leaf and limb in blue-white light. Grayson winced as he saw that fire touch McCall's Rifleman,melting armor across the Scotsman's torso. Swinging his Marauderaround the rock again, he targeted on the Thunderbolt,and opened fire with everything he had.

Smoke billowed from a savage gash in the Thunderbolt'sside. Autocannon shells smashed into the heavy 'Mech's right arm.

The Thunderboltpilot was quick to respond. His heavy machine spun, the right arm heavy laser swinging up to point directly at Grayson's cockpit. Looking down the black maw of that lethal weapon, Grayson knew what it was to stare into the throat of Death.

But nothing happened. Sparks arced and snapped at a power connection high up on the T-Bolt's laser mount. Either Grayson's autocannon shells or perhaps an earlier hit scored by one of the others had damaged the laser and made it inoperable.

Grayson shrieked a victory yell and fired his PPCs again. Great chunks of armor spun from the stricken Thunderbolt,which was now backing slowly toward the cover of heavier woods to its rear. Grayson urged his Marauderforward.

The two antagonists stopped, facing each other across fifty meters. For a moment, Grayson thought the other 'Mech was going to rush him, putting Grayson at a severe disadvantage in hand-to-hand combat with a handed 'Mech.

Then the Thunderboltlurched to the left, turned, and vanished into the woods in full retreat. Grayson couldn't be sure, but the 'Mech had probably taken enough hits that even this brief combat had begun to threaten the pilot with heat overload and an automatic shutdown.

The way was clear. Grayson and his seven Warriors swept through the woods and up the hill.

The DropShips were down in the valley beyond.

Accepted military doctrine had DropShips ground in a broad, open field with an unobstructed field for fire. The reason is obvious. Typical military UnionClass Drop-Ships mount as many as twenty lasers of various sizes, as well as missile launchers, PPC turrets, and autocannon. Though the range of those weapons is sharply reduced from what it would be in the free reaches of space, in strategic terms, a grounded DropShip still represents a small fortress that BattleMechs treat with great respect.

Grayson had ordered that the Deimosand the Phobosset down in the rocky notch of a saddle valley for a reason, however. With no sure knowledge of how strong were the unknown but probably hostile forces on the planet, he had to assume that an open landing could result in the LZ being surrounded by enough BattleMechs to eventually overwhelm even the DropShips' firepower and armor.

The presence of a storm system over the area around Durandel had given the DropShips pilots their chance. By plunging into the clouds during the final moments of their approach, they had been able to mask the exact point of their landing among the confusing ground clutter echos of the ridges and hills in the region. Use Martinez had spotted the rocky saddle, and Grayson had agreed to it. The DropShips' fields of fire would be sharply restricted among those boulders and ridgelines, but there was a good chance that the location of the LZ would remain secret until the Legion could figure out what was going on. If the enemy ships tracking his approach to Helm in the first place could be kept in the dark about the Legion crafts' identity and exact LZ, the DropShips might never be found. DropShips stand out like flashing red beacons in the emptiness of space, but it was a different story on the ground. Surrounded by hills, woods, and boulders, the ships became insignificant and almost impossible to find unless the searcher were using extremely sophisticated instruments with square-kilometer-by-square kilometer finesse, determination, and patience.

Altogether, it had seemed a worthwhile gamble.

As Grayson crested the ridge east of the LZ, he knew the gamble had failed. There had always been the chance that one of the Marik ships in orbit would tag the two ships by radar or other means. Perhaps they had been spotted by an orbiting picket suspicious enough of the "ducal party" to survey the area where the DropShips had gone down after the storm cleared. Or perhaps a long-range infantry patrol had seen the flare of their jets and reported it to headquarters. Any of a hundred minor giveaways could have revealed their precise LZ to the Marik forces on the planet.

And now those forces here here.

Both the Deimosand the Phoboswere fully engaged in the battle in the valley. The two ships were grounded 500 meters apart from one another, which gave them excellent control over the ground between them. Inevitably it also created "fire shadows" on either side, which meant that one ship could fire some of its weapons while the other was blocked by the first ship. The attackers were making use of this, with two groups of BattleMechs engaging the DropShips, one in each fire shadow on opposite sides of the pair. More BattleMechs still struggled along the crest of the valley's western ridge. The 'Mechs of the Gray Death's recon lance were there, firing wildly at several light enemy 'Mechs, but it was obvious that the main enemy force had swept around both flanks to attack the DropShips.

A Marik Archerand a Wolverinemoved among the boulders 300 meters in front of Grayson's Marauder.Missiles arced up and across and into Phobos'shull, smashing at laser turrets, and flashing among the damage that had already marred the armor along the Dropship's flank. A Centurionand a Panthercrouched nearby, providing supporting fire. Grayson's Marauderkicked up boiling clouds of dust as it raced down the valley's slope, his autocannon hammering into the battle's din.

His first rounds struck the Centurionin its right side, smashing armor plate and tearing a gaping hole high in the 50-ton 'Mech's shoulder. The Marik 'Mech spun to face him, its right arm Luxor D autocannon barking fire in return. The Centurion's80 mm rapid-fire rounds struck home on the Marauder'supper hull. The sound inside Grayson's cockpit was hellacious, a crashing that would have deafened him except for the high noise cutouts in his neurohelmet earpieces. He took the fire rather than trying to dodge, bringing his 'Mech's forearms to the point. Twin medium laser bolts lanced out and caught the Centurionside by side, high on its chest. Grayson's PPCs fired an instant later, knocking the Centurionbackward off it feet as gobbets of half-molten armor sprayed from blossoming impact craters in its torso.

Lori's Shadow Hawkdueled with the enemy Wolverine.With the two 55-ton 'Mechs so closely matched in both armor and weaponry, a stand-up battle between the two could have gone on interminably, until both machines were reduced to scrap. McCall's Riflemanstepped down off the hillside seconds later, however, and added his massive firepower to Lori's. Side by side, the two Legion 'Mechs began to advance on the Wolverine,drifting apart slightly to force the enemy pilot to choose between one or the other for his targeting. After multiple hits on the Wolverine'slegs and lower torso, the Marik pilot decided that discretion was the better part of valor, and fired his jump jets. The 'Mech vaulted backward across the boulder field, landing eighty meters farther on and partway up the west slope of the valley.

* * *

Farther up the valley, Charles Bear's Crusaderand Hassan Khaled's Warhammerengaged a Marik Shadow Hawk,a Warhammer,and the Thunderboltdamaged moments before by Grayson. The two Warhammersseemed bound for a toe-to-toe struggle, each massive machine delivering bolt after searing bolt of star-hot energy from their heavy PPCs, scoring hit after armor-boiling hit.

Then the Marik Warhammerbegan to withdraw, backing up the slope step by step, and the 'Mechs with it followed.

Charles Bear followed, too, his Crusader'sarm mounted medium lasers burning away at the Warham-mer’smassive body. Inside his neurohelmet, his features remained as stonily impassive as ever, but the muscles of his jaw clenched in anticipated frustration.

Charles Bear's ancestors had been colonists on Tau Ceti IV, a loose coalition from among eight of the surviving Amerindian tribes of North America. On Tau Ceti's South Continent, the People's Nations had established a federation dedicated to preserving and continuing the ways of life of their ancestors. That cultural heritage rode with Charles Bear. He was a warrior and the son of a warrior, though his sense of the word was subtly distinct from its use in 31st-century technic society. For Bear, "Warrior" was a spiritual concept that could be fully realized only through hand-to-hand combat with one's personal enemy.

In the vast majority of battles, however, a Mech-Warrior fought unknown foes, and he remained unknown in return. Indeed, there was a comforting anonymity within the steel hull of a BattleMech. So few Mech-Warriors survived long enough to become well-known that most of a warrior's opponents were reduced to the level of targets. Dangerous targets they might be, but targets on tracker screens and HUD displays, nonetheless. It became easier to press the fire button when your target was a 50-ton steel monster, and not a man of flesh and blood, with his own hopes, fears, ambitions, and berserker's battle lust.

MechWarrior Bear's training and cultural conditioning had given him the need to face a known enemy, to prove himself in hands-on combat between worthy foes. Bear's ancestors on Terra had kept the custom of "counting coup," a way of winning glory, status, and warrior's rank by actually touching an opponent. In the past seven years, since his apprenticeship under his father in the Ceti Rangers, Bear had served as a mercenary MechWarrior with both the Ceti Rangers and the 21st Centauri Lancers. He had racked up a score of seven kills and five assists, but never, never,had he destroyed an enemy 'Mech in hand-to-hand combat. Until he had counted coup, however, Charles Bear would never consider himself a true warrior, the son of a warrior.

Now once again, the enemy was withdrawing as he advanced, pulling back beyond the reach of his Crusader'soutstretched mechanical hands. He triggered laser fire again, scoring hits on the Warhammer'sleft arm and side. The Warhammerdodged left and returned fire, a PPC bolt striking Bear's Crusadersquarely in the chest, knocking him back a step.

This was a worthy opponent, one skilled with his weapons, and courageous in battle. The scars in its armor, the evidence of patches and old repairs, a line of white-stenciled kill marks on the 'Mech's armor to the left of the cockpit all spoke of this warrior's prowess in combat. Bear ignored the other Marik BattleMechs, concentrating on this one machine.

They exchanged fire again. The Warhammerretreated, placing itself close beside a house-sized boulder. Bear triggered his Magna Longbow long-range missiles, sending a salvo lancing across the valley and into his foe. For a moment, smoke and swirling dust blocked out that portion of the hillside. Bear urged his Crusaderforward at its fastest speed, thundering across the valley floor toward the enemy's last position.

When the dust settled across ground torn and cratered by Bear's salvo, the Warhammerwas gone. Before Bear had a chance to wonder where, missiles smashed into his Crusaderfrom behind. Bear dropped his Crusaderin a roll toward the giant boulder. As rocks and dirt flew around him, he brought his machine around to face the rear, prone on the ground. In that position, supported by his left arm, he could only bring his right-arm weapons to bear, but he was targeting and triggering both the LRMs and the medium laser mounted in his right forearm before his 'Mech had stopped moving. The enemy Warhammerhad moved with superhuman speed and agility, ducking behind a nearby boulder and circling around to hit Bear from behind. Now he circled again, moving and firing with lightning speed. Bear's 'Mech took another hit across the right shoulder, while his own fire missed. Dust from the explosion began closing in again. Bear pulled his Crusaderto its feet, but rather than charge the hidden enemy, he circled to his right, seeking the shelter of the rock the Warhammerhad used moments before.

Hoping to catch his enemy while he was moving, Bear readied his weapons, composed himself, then moved with lightning speed back into the open.

The dust was clearing, the Warhammergone. Sharyl's Shadow Hawkmoved across his line of sight several hundred meters farther on, dueling with an enemy Commando.

Bear remained expressionless, but his hands closed slowly into rock-hard, tendon-strained fists above his controls.