10
Carl watched with baited breath, as the battle raged in the valley below. The Bolo was going at it hammer and tongs, employing nearly every weapon in its formidable arsenal. Unfortunately, it didn't seem to be having much effect. Reconfiguring itself to face this new threat, the crystalline torrent had split into a swarm of smaller constructs, which danced, weaved, and even seemed to wink in and out of existence, in order to avoid the Bolo's most powerful armaments. Everything else was apparently being absorbed by some kind of energy screen. However, the crystal forms' own barrage of flickering lightning and incandescent beams also appeared incapable of penetrating the Bolo's battle screen. They had reached a stalemate, Carl realized, one that resolved itself all too quickly a moment later, upon the arrival of what was surely the strangest thing he had ever seen.
With a humming resonance, it emerged from the far hillside, passing through the solid rock with scarcely any effort. Even as he observed the entity's astounding entrance with awe, Carl realized at once that this was the pyramid he had seen at the bottom of the great chamber only a short time earlier. Of course, it had never been a pyramid at all, but merely the top half of an enormous octahedron, which now hovered over the valley like some enraged deity. The air around it glowed and shimmered with barely contained energy, while within its semi-transparent form, Carl thought he could make out what appeared to be roiling thunderheads, which flickered and flashed with intermittent lightning, like a tempest waiting to be unleashed.
Hovering in place for but a moment, the octahedron suddenly began shifting and morphing, with dizzying speed, through a series of truly alien geometries that were painful to behold. Indeed, the various tesseracts and other impossible shapes provided ample evidence that under the touch of this being, formerly immutable laws of physics became as malleable as wet clay. Even now, extensions of itself were materializing from out of thin air, as the entity's reconfigurations stabilized into a cruciform arrangement, one that's spinning facets seemed to be charging a pitch-black singularity at its center.
All at once, with an ear-piercing shriek, the swirling singularity unleashed an incandescent beam of pure annihilation, which struck the Bolo's battle screen in a spectacular explosion. Destructive energy surged across the screen's protective bubble, but nevertheless, it continued to hold. The blast hadn't even completely faded away, when the Bolo gave its reply: an equally impressive beam unleashed by its 90cm hellbore, which was supplemented by a sustained barrage from its eighteen ion-bolt infinite repeaters and a mighty salvo from its missile batteries. Under normal circumstances, the concentration of such incredible firepower upon a single target would spell its utter destruction, however, as the crystalline entity had already demonstrated, it was quite far from what anyone would consider normal.
In a flash, it returned to its original octahedron form, and generated a defensive screen that easily deflected the hellbore blast up into the zenith of the clear sky, it's impact upon the encapsulating field producing a bright flare of purplish light. Simultaneously, the array of lesser constructs all reconfigured themselves into rapidly spinning pinwheel forms. These seemed to serve as a frighteningly effective type of point defense, their numerous facets shooting forth thin beams of energy, which swept across the sky to annihilate all of the incoming missiles. Then, reconfiguring again, the great crystal entity assumed a form that alternately resembled a flower and a starfish. A rising shriek built to a deafening crescendo, while several beams shot out from each of the star's points to converge in a dazzling sphere of energy.
Although her mind reeled from the impossibility of the scene before her, Hanna was still cognizant enough to note that the giant entity's current configuration was identical to the one assumed by the first construct they had encountered, albeit on a far grander scale. Even so, that knowledge did little to prepare her for what happened next.
As with the original construct, the sphere of energy was unleashed in a blinding beam, one far more impressive than any yet displayed. It shattered the Bolo's battle screen in an instant, and struck its war hull with unimaginable force. Even three meters of duralloy was no match for such power, the armor sloughing away in cascades of molten metal. By some miracle, the Bolo continued to function, slewing away less than a second after the terrible beam made contact. Nonetheless, it was clear to see that even such a short time under its dreadful touch had reduced the mighty war machine to near ruin, the smoldering husk of the Bolo falling back as quickly as its damaged tracks would allow.
"Holy crap…" Hanna whispered dazedly, "I thought Bolos were supposed to be invincible."
"Maybe they're supposed to be," Hal replied somberly, "but the truth is, they can die just like anything else."
Then, in a lower voice he added, "And they can sure as hell feel pain."
A wave of searing agony washes over my cerebral cortex, as my enemy's latest attack breaches each of my defenses in rapid succession. Fortunately, I am operating in hyper-heuristic mode, and so am able to respond with equal rapidity. Employing what evasive maneuvers my damaged tread units will permit, I perform a fighting withdrawal at best possible speed. Although I am loath to concede the field of battle to my opponent, I am left with no viable alternative. The offensive and defensive capabilities of this entity are truly staggering. Its energy beams are vastly more powerful than my 90cm hellbore, as evidenced by the substantial damage I have sustained, while my own weapons seem thoroughly incapable of penetrating its point defense network and battle screen.
There is also the highly disturbing evidence that this entity is capable of manipulating various physical laws, bending reality itself to its whims. I fear that against such a foe, even the power of a Unit of the Line may prove insufficient. Therefore, I must reevaluate the tactical situation and formulate a plan of attack that will prove effective against this threat. Unfortunately, I do not have much time in which to accomplish this, for I estimate that there is an 89.9938 percent probability that my foe is very near to completing its objectives. Whatever those objectives may be, there is a 99.9975 percent probability that they will prove highly detrimental to the population of this entire planet. As a Unit of the Line, I cannot allow this to happen. I shall claim victory over my enemy, even if I must perish to do so.
To Hanna's amazement, the Bolo had managed to successfully escape the wrath of the great crystalline entity, and had astonishingly sustained only a negligible amount additional damage in the process. However, that fact did little to dispel the sense of despair, which currently hung over the squad like a dark cloud. Indeed, with the Bolo's ignominious defeat, and subsequent retreat behind the hills to the south, Hanna observed that she and the rest of her squad mates had seemingly come to the unspoken agreement that all hope was now lost.
Although the entity had ceased its attacks, and reverted to its defensive octahedronal configuration, this only provided a small comfort. It was plain to see that the malevolent octahedron was simply preparing for its next great display of power, one that would almost certainly spell the doom of all present, along with possibly everyone else on Ozark. As Hanna looked on, the dozens of smaller constructs arranged themselves around the greater entity in the form of a rapidly spinning polyhedron, while a shaft of energy and swirling crystal shot out from the bottom of the octahedron and plunged into the lake bellow it. Simultaneously, an identical shaft shot into the sky, and upon striking the barrier above, filled the zenith with a purplish glow.
"What a magnificent display," Vincent murmured in hushed awe.
"W-we're done for!" PJ shouted hysterically. "I-it's over! It's all over!"
He, along with Marvin and Pete, had rushed out of the prefab base camp at the first sound of battle, but had apparently been too shocked to say anything, at least until now.
"I hate to say this," Pete added reluctantly, "but I think PJ's right. I mean, if a dang Bolo can't even hurt that thing, what chance do we have?"
"One so small, it probably doesn't bear thinking about," Hal replied grimly. "But it looks like we've been granted a slight reprieve, so let's try to make the most of it."
With that, they all made their way into the command post; a medium sized prefab structure that almost resembled a metal igloo. Upon entering the central chamber, which served as both control center and briefing room, Hanna whistled approvingly.
"This place is pretty nice, for a prefab," she remarked. "I'm impressed you guys managed to get it set up so fast."
"Well, we are engineers, after all," Marvin replied.
"What's that?" Hal asked, pointing to a console on the far side of the room.
A light flashed upon it, in time with a small beeping sound. Marvin walked over to inspect it.
"We're getting a transmission, sir." Marvin announced. "It's the Bolo."
"Patch it through," Hal instructed.
There was a short burst of static, then, the Bolo spoke.
"Greetings, fellow warriors of the Concordiat. This is Unit 896-PHN of the Line, although, for the sake of convenience, you may refer to me as Phineas."
"Phineas," Hal replied, "this is Sergeant Hal Abrams of the 3rd marine engineer battalion's 7th squad. On behalf of my command, I want to thank you for saving our necks back there. If you hadn't shown up when you did, we would've been goners, for sure."
"You honor me, Sergeant," the Bolo said deferentially, "but your thanks are unnecessary, for it is the duty of any Unit of the Line to do everything possible to safeguard human life."
At this, Marcus spoke up. He was sitting on a bunk by the far wall, while Vincent tended to his arm. His face displayed a look of simmering anger, which the supertank's modesty had only seemed to intensify, and now, he gave voice to it.
"Well, if that little display earlier was you giving your best," he said scathingly, "then everything possible ain't gonna cut it. I mean, I always heard you Bolos were supposed to be tough, but that thing just handed you your…"
"Bowman!" Hal snapped. "That's enough!"
"There is no need to rebuke him, Sergeant," the Bolo said somberly. "He is correct, I did indeed provide an exceedingly poor accounting of myself in the recent engagement. It is all too clear to me that I held my combat prowess in far too high a regard, and I have now paid the price for my overconfidence."
"How badly are you damaged?" Hal asked, the worry obvious in his voice.
"To provide a brief overview, I am currently operating at 58.7498 percent effectiveness. Defensively, my battle screen is inoperable, and my armor has been severely degraded. However, while only half of my infinite repeaters are still operational, and my hellbore is operable at a mere 52.9983 percent, my VLS array remains fully operational and I retain 75.9932 percent of my mobility.
"So you're still combat-capable?"
"Yes, but to engage my opponent once more, without additional knowledge in regard to the limitations of its abilities, or any potential weaknesses it may possess, would be a most unwise course of action at this juncture."
"You can say that again," Marcus grumbled under his breath.
"What can you tell us about that thing?" Hal asked. "You must have scanned it pretty extensively during the battle."
"Indeed I did, Sergeant, but I am afraid that the information gathered provides precious little insight. If anything, it seems to further support the theory that this entity is, essentially, invincible."
A holographic image of the entity appeared in the center of the room.
"For instance," Phineas continued, "it appears to possess the ability to phase in and out of our native space-time continuum. This alone provides it with considerable tactical advantages, but, as the battle progressed, a more worrying attribute was revealed. As evidenced by numerous observed occurrences, the entity can materialize entirely new extensions of its form, which leads to the distinctly unpleasant conclusion that this being is capable of projecting portions of itself into a hyper dimension."
"Meaning?" Marvin asked.
"Meaning," Vincent cut in, "that all the myriad constructs observed thus far are very likely to be parts of the same enormous entity, and that what we see now is merely the tip of the metaphorical iceberg. A truly fascinating creature…"
"Fascinating?!" Marcus asked hysterically. "Are you out of your mind?! If you're right, then that thing could be the size of this entire valley, maybe even the whole damn continent!"
"That is not all," Phineas added, "In addition, this entity is clearly capable of manipulating fundamental physical laws at will, in a manner that is currently far beyond current knowledge, but is presumably related to its nature as a transdimensional being. In conjunction with this, there is a 98.7764 percent probability that it can draw upon a potentially limitless hyper dimensional power source for use in its offensive beams and protective energy screen."
"Well shit," Marvin said, "how do we even fight this thing?"
"Phineas, you said that it's capable of manipulating physical forces, right?" Hanna asked.
"That is correct."
"Well, what if another manipulated force was applied to it? Say, gravity, for instance? If we manipulated the gravity in a localized area, made it stronger, might that disrupt the entity's connection to its hyper dimensional power source and destabilize its field integrity enough for your hellbore to punch through it?"
"It is indeed possible," the Bolo replied thoughtfully. "However, with our present assets, I cannot discern a way to create a gravitational pulse of the size required."
"I may be able to help with that," Hanna replied, producing a strange looking sphere, from a pouch on her utility belt.
"Most intriguing," Phineas said approvingly. "Although there are several differences, this device bears a distinct resemblance to the Concordiat military's prototype GXL-33 gravity pulse generator, an experimental weapon capable of drastically increasing gravitational strength in a localized area."
"That's right," Hanna confirmed. Then, with a smile, she added, "But it's officially called a crumply bomb."
"How do you even have something like that?" Carl asked incredulously.
"It was a gift," she replied, "from a very dear friend."
"Will that work, Phineas?" Hal asked.
"It is an excellent starting place," the Bolo replied, "but I fear that its strength may still be insufficient for the task at hand."
"No problem," Hanna said confidently. "I'm sure our resident demolitions expert can figure out a way to boost its power, right PJ?"
The demolitionist's eyes went wide at the sound of his name, as if he had been snapped out of a trance. It was quite obvious that he was still in shock from witnessing the recent battle, and he clearly had little interest in any plans about confronting the terrifying entity again.
"W-what?" PJ stammered. "No! I mean, I might be able to modify it, but… we're just a bunch of engineers and a damaged Bolo. You all saw what that thing did! And you all heard how powerful it is! Going up against something like that is suicide! It's crazy to even try!"
"You disgraceful coward!" Vincent spat. "Why such a pitiful specimen, so adverse to the rigors of combat, would ever wish to join a military service is simply beyond comprehension!"
"I'm sorry to say this, PJ," Carl added reluctantly, "but he does have a point. Why did you join up?"
"W-well," he began hesitantly, "I suppose the real reason is because of my brother. I've always lived in his shadow. He commands Bolos in the Dinochrome Brigade, and he's fought in dozens of battles. He's good at what he does, really good. He's confident, and fearless… and compared to him, I'm a complete failure."
"See, my family's served in the military for generations," PJ continued, "and I've always been looked down upon, since I decided to join a new colony as a civilian engineer instead. I'll be the first to admit I'm not very brave, and I've never liked the idea of being in combat, but when the Dappies invaded Scarsdale, I figured I'd try to show everyone that I could be just as good a soldier as my brother, so I joined up. I guess I just wanted to prove that to them, and to myself… But I was so stupid for thinking that! I'm nothing like my brother! Doctor Steinworth's right, I'm a total coward! I've failed my family, and now… now I've failed you guys too…"
"No, PJ, you haven't," Hanna told him encouragingly, "and you're not going to, either. Do you want to know why? It's because we're all here for a reason. Now, that reason might be different for each of us, but whatever it is, it's still lead us here, to this moment, where we have a chance to save a planet. Call me crazy, but I think that means something. I think it means that we all have a part to play, and that includes you, PJ. We need you. Only you can do this."
"No, I can't!" he pleaded desperately. "Look at me, I'm a nervous wreck! I'll just let you down! I'm not like you, I just don't have that kind of courage!"
"And you think I do?" Hanna shot back. "You think I'm not afraid of dying? That I'm not scared out of my mind by that thing out there? Of course I am! But I refuse to let that fear stop me from doing all I can to protect the people I care about."
"Listen, PJ," she added wearily, "I'll be honest, whether we fight that thing or not, our chances of survival aren't very high. My question for you is this: would you rather die cowering under a desk, or fighting with everything you've got, for a cause that truly matters?"
For long moments, PJ sat in nervous silence. Then, mustering his courage, he spoke up.
"A-all right, I'll do it. Count me in."
Hanna smiled and nodded approvingly. "You know," she said thoughtfully, "as good as Maddie's work is, I'll bet you can make it ten times better."
"Th-thanks for the vote of confidence," PJ replied, "but I don't actually think a souped up crumply bomb is really necessary. This one will work just fine. The problem is that we need three of them."
"Three?" Everyone seemed to ask at once.
"Well, yes," PJ answered nervously. "You see, a single super charged device would probably work if it was deployed directly beneath the target, but since the entity is hovering over the middle of a lake, we'll have to deploy three devices, in a triangular pattern, around it."
He illustrated the positions on a holographic map of the valley.
"Like this."
"But PJ," Hanna said somberly, "I only have a single device."
"That's okay," he replied confidently, "With the equipment we have here, I should be able to reverse engineer it. In fact, I think I can probably whip them up in under thirty minutes."
"You really think you can manage that, PJ?" Hal asked skeptically.
"I think so, sir. I mean, I've never tried to do anything like this before, so I have no idea if it'll work or not, but I'll give it my best shot."
"That's the spirit!" Hanna told him encouragingly.
"All right, but that still doesn't address the problem of those deployment points being well within the entity's defensive perimeter," Hal pointed out, "and I reckon getting past it is gonna be quite a challenge."
"Leave that to me, Sergeant," Phineas announced. "I shall provide you with a missile barrage, which should serve as a suitable distraction."
"Phineas," Hanna said, her voice filled with concern, "in your damaged state, one good shot from that thing, and…"
"Do not be concerned for my safety," the Bolo told her reassuringly. "I shall remain in concealment and only engage the enemy via long-range bombardment. Moreover, I shall instruct my missiles to position themselves at various points along the perimeter of this valley, before moving to converge on the target. Thus, the entity will have great difficulty in discerning my true location, and I shall not be placed in any unnecessary danger."
"And you're sure this bombardment will be enough to divert its attention away from us?" Hal asked.
"Unfortunately," Phineas replied, " I have no way of knowing for certain, as the unknown variables involved are quite numerous, but I believe that this course of action offers the highest probability of success."
"Hey, one momento," Pete called out. "Won't that put the teams planting the crumply bombs smack dab in the middle of your missiles' crosshairs?"
"That is true," the Bolo acceded, "but there is no need for concern. By my calculations, there is a 99.9888, repeating, percent chance that the entity's defensive network is more than capable of destroying every missile I fire upon it."
"Let me get this straight," Carl asked, "we're actually relying on the impenetrability of that thing's defenses to keep us from being vaporized by friendly fire?"
"Correct," Phineas confirmed.
"Not the craziest thing I've ever done," Hanna reflected, "but it definitely comes close."
"To be sure," Vincent concurred, "But I would worry less about that, than about whether the Bolo's barrage will even be sufficient to fully distract an entity of such enormous power."
"That's a good point," Hanna said thoughtfully. "If we do run into trouble out there, what kind of assets do we have to work with?"
"Well," Marvin began, "aside from our personal weapons and various explosive devices, we've got a gun drone mounting twin power rifles, the light infinite repeaters on the skimmers, which we can supplement with a pair of missile launchers…" his voice trailed off as he unlocked a sturdy looking case. "And then there's this baby."
Hanna's eyes went wide upon seeing what he had pulled from the case.
"Is that a…"
"An IPH-79 infantry-portable hellbore?" He finished for her, with a grin. "It sure is. "
"I hope you don't mind, Sarge," he added, turning to Hal, "but I thought it'd be a good backup, you know, just in case."
"How did you even manage to get that thing, anyway?" Hal asked, more curious than angry.
"Let's just say Pete here has some information our quartermaster wouldn't want becoming public knowledge," Marvin replied, as he and the pilot exchanged a sly smile.
"Blackmail, huh?" Hanna said, with a hint of amusement. "You guys sure are full of surprises."
"Not that I'm complaining," she hastened to add.
"No kidding," Carl agreed, "A portable hellbore could be a real game changer."
"That may well be," Hal replied, "but let's hold off on bringing it along for now. Our primary concern is speed, not firepower. Right, PJ?"
"Right, sir," the demolitionist confirmed. "But even more important than speed is timing."
"See, in order to have the maximum effect on the target," he continued, "the three devices will need to be detonated simultaneously, so perfect timing is critical. However, since the interference generated by the entity prevents the devices from being remotely detonated, we'll have to use timers. That means the three teams need to be completely synchronized, starting each device's countdown at exactly the same moment."
"All right," Hal declared, "Then here's the plan: Three teams of two will take the skimmers and deploy one crumply bomb each, at the coordinates PJ specifies, while Phineas's missile barrage distracts the entity's defenses. Once deployed, we activate the crumply bombs' timers simultaneously, and then get back here as fast as possible."
"Upon the crumply bombs' detonation," Phineas continued, "I will immediately emerge from concealment and engage the entity with every weapon at my disposal."
"With any luck, that should be the end of it," Hal concluded. "And if it isn't, well, like Hanna said, if we're gonna go down, let's go down fightin'."
"PJ, get to work on those bombs," the sergeant instructed. "Everyone else, prep the vehicles. We need 'em as fast as we can make 'em."
With that, Hal watched as everyone rushed off to their assignments. However, while the preparations for their last ditch operation were now underway, the sergeant knew that he still had one more urgent matter to take care of, and this would be his last chance to do it.
Hanna had scarcely left the briefing room, when her father took her aside.
"Listen, Hanna," he began somewhat nervously, "Can we talk for a moment?"
"Of course," she replied, following him to a small room near the back of the command post. After entering, Hanna closed the door behind them.
"Okay, so what's on your mind?" she asked.
Hal took a deep breath.
"I've been putting this off for a while now, but seeing as how we may not make it out of this thing alive, I figured this might be the last time I'd get a chance to clear the air between us. I just wanted to say, that is, I wanted to apologize for…"
"It's okay, Dad," Hanna said, placing a hand on his shoulder. "None of this is your fault. I know that Mom never told you that I'd been born, and I never hated you for not coming back to Passamaquoddy. How could I? And how could I be angry with you for being so afraid to talk to me now, when I was just as scared myself?"
"Really?" Hal asked, clearly surprised. "Shucks, what would you have to be scared about?"
"Oh, I don't know," she replied, feeling more than a little embarrassed, "I guess I just wasn't sure what you'd think of me, how you'd feel about having a daughter. Would you be angry that I never tried to find you? I know it all sounds pretty stupid, but I couldn't stop worrying about it."
"Like father, like daughter," Hal said with a chuckle. "Just the same, I want you to know that I've really admired the way you've handled yourself these past few days. You're one hell of a leader, and I couldn't be more proud."
"Thanks, Dad," Hanna said with a smile, as she and her father embraced.
"You know, I'm really glad we got the chance to talk like this."
"Me too," Hal agreed. Then, composing himself, he added, "Well, we'd better get movin'. We've both got jobs to do."
"Right," Hanna acknowledged.
"Good luck out there," Hal told her as they headed for their vehicles.
"You too," she replied.
He'll need it, she thought grimly. We all will.
As much as she hated to admit it, there was every indication that they were embarking on a suicide mission, but even so, she still couldn't help but feel a measure of relief. The small amount of time she had been able to spend with her father had been a true blessing, and she was immensely grateful for it. At least now she could die knowing that he loved her, and that he knew that she loved him. Then she fiercely pushed those thoughts out of her mind. Those were the kinds of thoughts that got people killed.
Supreme confidence and exultation resounds throughout the spectrum, for the Lord of All's transcendent will at last nears fulfillment. The feeble soft life flee in terror before the manifested splendor of the Lord of All. Even the formidable metallic intelligence cannot stand before such a display, inevitably yielding victory to the Lord of All. Soon the entire sphere shall feel the sublime touch of the Lord of All and thus be transformed into a state befitting Its multifaceted glory, a most splendid gift for the Lord of All upon Its glorious arrival in this plenum. Soon now, very soon It shall…
Hold! What is this? The soft ones and their metallic servant dare to further conspire against the transcendent will of the Lord of All? Amusement fills the spectrum. Their foolish plans shall come to naught. Little do they know that their confabulation is perceived, and that measures to thwart their plans are already in place. Indeed, an agent is now in their midst, one who shall ensure their utter failure, with only a negligible amount of exertion. Contentment fills the spectrum, and thoughts are turned to other matters, namely, the sublime contemplation of the multifaceted glory made manifest by the Lord of All…