Chapter 1 Call to arms
I staggered out of the rubble of my now destroyed house. I called my sister's name.
"Grace, where are you Grace." I yelled. I picked my way through the rubble until I found her. Or rather one of her legs, I didn't need the other I ran from my house and home leaving my brothers and mother behind dead or alive. I staggered after the fleeing refugees the alien race called the Hexalian was right behind us everyone was frantic. The Hexelian were a race of aliens determined to exterminate all of humanity and where winning so far. Standing at a little under six feet the Hex where ugly creatures in encased in a thick hide of mottled browns. Little is known about the Hexalian race only that one day it showed up and obliterated an outer-space mining station, the fight for survival has been ever since. I picked my way past the civilians to the rally for the North Bridge military academy students. Stepping threw a pair of reinforced durra-steal doors I came to the first security sector where a detachment of marines where waiting guarding the door. Moving past it into the armory I passed Cobalt squad's leader Sam Degtree suiting up in full gear, I knew what that meant. I ran to my locker putting on my pressure suit and armor I also snatched my A12 Carbine and Colt.66 pistol and tucked my helmet under my shoulder. As I walked through the door to the hanger Havoc, Echo, Sierra, and Cobalt Squads all in full Gear fell into line behind me, all the 6 man squads contained 4 riflemen a specialist and the squad leader. We piled into our Stinger Assault Ships 1 squad per sleek agile insertion fighter-bomber. Cobalt squads Stinger touched down first 2 clicks from Eastern Barricade and the minute it hit the ground the left wing flew off in an explosion sending the entire craft spinning out of control. 5 people made it out before the explosion. Their friendly signature showed up as the squad leader Sam Degtree and Warrant Officer Ben Williams and 3 other troopers. I attached my self to a fast rope to go down to the ground, hitting the red tab on the sliding door it flew open and it made me hold onto my rope for dear life as it flung me toward the ground. I crashed through a roof and picked myself up, only to find a girl rushing me with a kitchen knife. I frowned inside of my helmet, taking it off I smiled at her.
"Look theirs nothing to be afraid of I'm human," I said reassuringly. Her face seemed to soften at this and she jumped up and hugged me. I stood there while she hugged me and waited for her to finish. When she was done I stripped off my pistol and the holster and gave it too her.
"All civilians are supposed to be able to use this can you," I asked hopefully.
"Yep," she said confidently taking the pistol out of my hand. I breathed a sigh of relief as she slipped the knife into the jacket she had grabbed, and shoved the pistol into the Jackets inside pocket. We exited the building and found ourselves in the middle of a desperate firefight. The ID tags that came up in my helmet designated the humans as the 9th Military Guard Division or MGD. I checked the safety off my A12 and pumped 4 rounds into the head of the nearest Hexelion riflemen dropping him. I soon found myself alone cut off from the bulk of the remaining 9th division and surrounded. I tried to fall back to the main line but it was too late.
"Where are Degtree and the rest of his men," I thought. I dropped six more Hex riflemen with my A12 before it ran out of ammo I didn't have time to reload so I dropped my hand to draw my pistol.
"Shit I gave it to the girl," I cursed my stupidity as I drew my boot knife. I dodged a Hex rifle but as it flew toward me jamming the blade into the bearer of the rifles neck. I fought off three more Hexalions before a rifle butt slammed into the back of my helmet. I went down on one knee and tried to get back up but one of the Hex slammed his foot on my back forcing me back down. I felt a hand on the back of my neck as I was picked up by what looked like a Hex Clan leader. He spoke to his troops in a foreign tongue I couldn't understand. I stood through his speech not understanding him until he pressed his pistol against my helmet smiling. He kept smiling till a bullet splattered threw his brains. He dropped me as he fell and I grabbed his pistol (which was more like a sawed off shotgun in human hands) and got to work. I turned after about the seventh dead Hex riflemen to see Degtree and Cobalt squad working their way toward me. I kept fighting my way to my A12 and reached it the same time A Hex Warrior did. A Warrior is an 8-11 feet tall Hexalion wielding in one of his four hands a Gatling gun in the second a rocket launcher and the top too wielded a huge Power Hammer.
"Shit," I cursed as I shot the warrior in the face three times then tossed the out of ammo hand cannon away. Then a voice crackled to life on my HUD as well as the face of a brown skinned man who had on a helmet with the mark of the 66th sniper recon division.
"Special Forces," I thought with surprise their wasn't supposed to be a spec. ops team in this sector.
"Don't worry Sir I gotcha covered," he said. Before I could ask where he came from a sniper rifle round ripped through the air and slammed straight threw the warrior's eye and I could have sworn I saw it come out the other side. I turned in place and gave the building I knew the sniper was in thumbs up. I picked up my A12 and slammed a clip home hearing a satisfying click as I jacked a round into the chamber. I was glad to have my rifle back but the Hexelions probably didn't, seeing Sam and some commandos taking cover behind a car not far away I sprinted toward it. I slid behind the overturned car were Degtree and 3 men from Cobalt squad and 2 men from Havoc squad where hunkered down. As I blind fired out from behind the car I yelled, "Where's the rest of my squad Sam," I asked Cobalt's squad leader? "2 MIA 1 wounded Echo squad is all missing and all of Sierra squad except their squad leader are all dead I'm sorry sir." "Where's the squad leader," I groaned. "He's helping the 9th lead their men," Degtree said with a sigh. "Alright were gonna take up positions in this strip of houses and hold of the Hexelion assault until the 45th artillery can get to the East Barricade and keep shelling this place nonstop," I ordered the two men from Havoc unto the 1st floor of the sniper's building and I went upstairs.
"Who are you," I asked.
"Lance Corporal Kevin Ryan 66th Recon Sniper division," he responded not taking his eye out of the scope.
"Alright you good in hear alone."
"Ya I'll be fine," he answered still not moving his eyes out of the scope, oh and I'm not alone." With that seven more green lights winked on in building all along the strip.
I sighed special forces where always more trouble then they where worth they always had their own agenda, "Whatever," I said giving up, "just defend the Strip. I ran downstairs to find the two men from my squad engaging the Hex infantry trying to enter the house. P.F.C. Mac Walker was holding the door, which had already been filled with 5 bodies for him to hide behind. I sprinted to the door frame slamming a fresh clip into my carbine as I swung the rifle around into my hand using the butt of it to close line the next Hex riflemen I smiled as I heard his neck snap with a crunch. I blind fired three rounds out of the door before I switched to the other side.
"How we doing Mac," I asked the soldier.
"Well I've got enough rounds to last another 3 hours and the nearest significant reinforcement are at least," he checked his watch ", 5 hours away."
"Alright we need an ammo fix real fast," I replied. I hollered into the next room where Sergeant Jacob "Sledge" Talbert was.
"Talbert you got anything."
"No sir all clear," he replied walking into the room.
"Alright look at this I said pulling up my holographic map attached to my arm. "We have enough ammo to last us for half the time we need to be hear so we need a quick way to get ammo any ideas," I asked.
"Well for starters we need to find Echo squad and have them strip all those downed stingers for weapons and ammo that'll give us a lot more defensive capabilities," he replied looking at the map.
Mac looked up at me ", I think I know where Echo squad is," he chimed in.
"Show me."
"This mansion has fighting reported inside and it's also a where communications gets lost, It's also only a few minutes from where Echo and Sierra squads landed and Sierra's squad leader said Echo was moving in the opposite direction as them, If I where Echo's squad leader that's where I'd be," he finished fixing the bayonet to his carbines bottom slide rail.
"Mac you and Talbert are going to stay hear and the rest of Sam's squad are gonna be in the house across from you guys," I said filling my satchel with a med kit food ammo 6 grenades 4 claymores 2 mines and my holo map. Slinging it across my shoulder I stood by the door.
"Suppressing fire on 3 alright boys," I said to my men. They nodded, I held up my fingers 1, 2, 3 bursting out of the door as Mac pumped rounds out of his A12 barking like a dog but as I looked back I saw Sledge totally silent pumping round after round out of his M90934 .75 Caliber machine gun. I reached Cobalt's house throwing my body strait threw the window. Two of the three squad members where at the windows facing the on coming Hex assault shell casings and grenade pins where strewn everywhere. I went upstairs to find the third squad member and Sam crouched down the commando had an SMG and Sam was Cradling a C476 Precision fired sniper rifle. The gun its self was a work of art each inch crafted perfectly to give its rocket assisted slug prime accuracy. Sam himself was precariously perched on the edge of the right side of the blown out top of the house. Most of the houses where blown out in some way shape or form due to the Plasma Bombardment that always came right before the Hexelions invaded a planet. Tapping on Sam's shoulder I got his attention enough for him to give me a hold on sign. I switched my gun from full auto to single shot and balanced my self on the edge. I picked my targets with precision looking for the larger the alien and the more vibrant the colors of his armor where would determine his rank. Picking a random Hex with red and black armor I squeezed the trigger dumping 4 rounds into his face. The empty magazine alarm whined on my rifle I took my eye out of the gun sight and hit the clip release. It took me a second or two to reload and when I did I surveyed the to the Government building just south of my position I didn't need my binoculars built into my helmet to notice the billowing cloud of smoke coming from the left tower. I grimaced in my helmet thinking
"That much smoke and damage means they must have armor in the city." This was bad all the men in this sector weren't equipped with anti-armor. If the Hex wanted this strip so bad they sent armor his men were basically powerless to stop them My mind fixed on one of my Tank Instructor's out of basic training Jimmy Seruka he worked for one of the 173rd armored's M78 Reaper tanks. He was a gunner and he was probably giving the Hex a run for their money. Taking my mind off my friend I turned to face the oncoming Hex assault to find myself staring at a Hex Grav. Tank. Sam and the other soldier had seen it and were running for the door.
"Come on Izzy let's get the fuck outa hear," Sam yelled. I turned to run but I heard the incoming whine of a shell from the Grav. Tank then I felt a searing pain on my back, then just darkness.