Chapter 25: The First to Fight

July 1st, 3234, 2104 hours

The Flying Factory

Former Carson City

/Begin Entry/

Entry for July 1st, my first recording in a little while. It's approximately...9:04 PM. Sumarizing our current situation, we are en route to the main bridge. This involves approaching another tram located on the starboard sector of this CONYARD. We need to move quickly. When we accessed the terminal, I'm sure that sent a ping to Robotnik. That 404 error didn't help things.

Status of crew: Nominal. Sally seems to be back up on her feet. She seems to be a quick healer, cutting the expected healing time in two. Still seems a little shaky. Excess radiation needs to be purged. Morale is slowly lowering I'm afraid; I don't want people to be depressed.

Not now.

/End Entry/

The heat of the CONYARD was still hot on their backs. They left the control center far behind and was hugging the starboard side of the hull. Some Marines were still shaky about the destruction of the whole battle group. One of the men, a young Corporal named Blaustein began to crack. the Corpsman carefully looked him over.

"Did you see? Right outta the fucking sky! They just...bang! They're all dead, all dead."

"You're in shock. You need to clam down, Marine."

"The fuck with that! I...I..." he then began to whimper.

Chris hung back. "Do you need a moment?"

"No. I'll get him stabilized. A little relaxant will calm him." The Corpsman took a small needle out of her pouch and flicked the tip off. She inserted it into Blaustein's arm and pushed the plunger. Almost immedietely Blaustein shook slightly and exhaled.

"You feeling good?"

"Yeah...yeah...I'm fine."

Almost immedietely after he said that, a shot rang out and blew the top of Blaustein's head off. He stumbled back and fell over the railing to a death far below. The Marines took cover.

"Where the hell did that come from?" Joe Little asked.

"I can't see anything! There's lattice everywhere!" Sally reported.

Chris formulated a small plan. "Little! Up! Take a quick sweep and report back in.

Joe slid the scope off his sniper rifle and placed it over the railing. He sighted it slightly and picked out a few locations.

"OK, I have five hostiles. They've got a fix on us, probably thermal vision. They have big guns."

"How big?" Sonic asked.

A few bullet holes appeared near their position, these things punched through the metal rails.

"Big." Joe said.

"Come on! We need an idea!"

"Like what?" Sally asked. "We stay here, we're dead. We stand up, we're dead! Come on Human, use that evolved brain of yours!"

Chris couldn't shake the feeling that he had just been insulted.

"Sir, you need help?"

The Lieutenant recognized the voice. Urso from Team Three was following him. Chris tapped his COM set nestled around his ear.

"Yeah. Glad to hear from you Master Sergeant."

"Uh huh. Sir, we are not far behind your position. I have two men as snipers. Call the shots, sir."

Chris tapped his arm computer. "I'm uploading the locations of the hostiles. Be advised we do not have the line of sight, they may have moved."

"We'll compensate." Urso said.

Chris had to admire the Mobian's casualness, although this behavior was not typical of a field officer. Generally, the better you were, the more prone you are to harm. Chris was twitchy after the war, glancing behind him in case he was getting flanked. He did not take his job lightly anymore.

"Alright, my boys have positive sight. Sir, you know they're using fifties?"

"Machine guns?"

"Sir, assault rifles."

Suddenly the human was sick to his stomach. Generally fifty caliber rounds were used for machine guns or anti-material rifles. The fact that these were simple assault rifles was gut-wrenching. A well placed .50 could tear a target apart. What would it be like with a 900 round per minute speed?

"Take the shot." He advised.

There were two small cracks of sniper weapons. He had to assume that Urso's men had hits as they didn't report otherwise.

"Two down. Little bastard is running for it." One of the snipers reported.

"No running!" The second laughed as she took a shot. "Tango down!"

"Good shot, good shot. Two left!"

"Copy I see them!"

crack

"Boom! Headshot!"

"Last one's taking potshots at us."

"Let him; range is too great."

crack

There was silence over the channel. Not once since Team Three's intervention did the robots re-engage the squad .

"See anything Helen?"

"Negative. Spectrum's clear. You're good LT."

"Copy that! Thanks!"

"We'll keep a good distance, sir." Urso said. "You keep going. We'll relay status to Team 4 which is somewhere behind us."

"Team 4's responded?"

"Yeah, ten minutes ago. Sergeant Bromwell's supposed to check in any minute now."

"Alright. Again, thank you."

"Don't mention it sir! Urso is out."

The COM snapped off.

"Come on, move up as quiet as you can."

The weapons the robots dropped were special. The UNSC had experimented with large caliber assault rifles but the immense weight had made the concept impractical. Eggman however seemed to have worked some magic. These weapons were light, probably entirely made of a carbon nanotube weave, the same material used to create space elevator cables. Extremely durable and just as lightweight. The bullets were large yes, but it wasn't much heavier than a sniper rifle. Sally picked one up.

"Wow, these things are incredible!" She tossed one to Knuckles and one to Sonic.

"Hey! Don't give me those things!" The hedghehog complained.

"Oh yeah, that's right, you don't like guns." Chris said yanking the weapon from his hand. "More for me." Chris turned to the rest of the Marines "The rest of these are samples for the spooks. Nobody touches them, clear?"

There were a few groans from the Marines but they agreed, albiet grudgingly.

"Found some ammo." Sally said looking in some pouches on the robots' utility belts. The princess tossed the boxes of .50 BMG ammo to the Lieutenant and Knuckles. Tails gripped his stungun tighter. He was not happy about the size of those bullets. They were as thick as his finger and as long as his hand.

"What sick twisted mind would make such a big gun?"

"Assault rifles that fire high caliber bullets? Now I know I've heard this plot before."

"Focus..." Sonic said growling. "I'll check up ahead."

Sonic sprinted for a hundred feet but then came to a stop.

"Got a directory!" He called. "Tram is located roughly five hundred meters ahead! Whoa!" Rounds ricocheted off the metal walls. Sonic ran full tilt back to the group. "More of those fifty guys!"

Chris looked the strange gun over in his hand. He was unfamiliar with the look, but it shared some distinct features of ancient automatic shotguns that he glanced at during training. He checked the drum, which was about three-quarters full and yanked back on the cocking lever. A strong and satisfying clack resonated from the internal mechanism.

"Lock and load. We need to get the drop on these guys."

Bishop pointed out, "How? They have heartbeat sensors!"

Chris noted this. "Sonic. You're playing rabbit (in a manner of speaking). When I give the signal, run as fast as your fucking legs can carry you!"

"Yeah, you got it." He said nodding.

Feet don't fail me now! He thought to himself.

"Go!" Chris shouted.

Sonic blasted from the spot, running at a speed that would shame an Olympian. The robots verified what they were looking at and aimd at him. He was the prime target after all. When they were shooting at Sonic, they were presenting themselves to be shot.

Chris took aim on the commander, a robot easily recognizable with a death's head. This achieved the desired effect on the young human but he nevertheless kept his aim. He fired without thinking.

The force of the fifty caliber round going off rammed the stock into his shoulder at a speed of nearly thirty miles an hour. He heard a sick mix between a crack and a pop as his right arm separated from his socket. He grunted in pain and dropped the gun.

"Medic!" He screeched as he gripped his shoulder.

Sally saw this and braced properly. She got a noticable kickback but managed to take down the leader. The other robots kept the fire. One of the Marines was hit by the round and lost an arm, which he died from immedietely.

"Grenade up!" Callard called as he tossed a frag.

The spherical explosive detonated and blew the remaining robots off the catwalks.

The Corpsman looked Chris over.

"OK, dislocated shoulder. Hold still. This may hurt; grit your teeth."

Chris did as told as she slotted the arm back in place. The feeling was painful.

"What?" Tails said half surprised half disappointed. "No advanced medical treatment?"

The Lieutenant rotated his newly-fixed arm. "Hey, they have a saying in New York: 'If it ain't broke, don't fix it!'" He got back up and plucked his Desert Eagle from the holster. He inserted a magazine of magnum rounds and racked the slide.

"Hey! What about the rifle?" Sally asked pointing to the fifty cal.

"I ain't touching that thing again!" The Lieutenant said as if the thing was now taboo.

Knukles and Sal continued their use though. gigantic fifty caliber shell casings ejected from the gun and made deep brassy pings as they hit the metal of the catwalk. Sally's bolt shot forward.

"I'm out!" She said dropping into cover and grabbing the magazine. She tossed it away and inserted another fairly quickly despite the size. She cocked the gun and got back into the action. She completed this action in less than four seconds.

Callard ordered the men, "Marines! Split into two groups! Each one flanks the enemy from the left and the right! Do it people!"

The soldiers did as told. Two teams split and hid behind the pillars. The Mobians with the fifties drew the aggro. Since they had the bigger guns, the robots paid more attention to them.

"They have their backs to us." Rico said on the other side of the room.

"Fire when ready."

The Marines poured fire on the unarmored robots. They seemingly danced as they sucked up lead. They fell and clanked on the floor.

"Tangoes down."

"Hang on, one's still moving."

Bishop shot the straggler in the head. It spat sparks and died.

"Bugger ain't moving no more!"

Chris got up. He rotated his shoulder still in slight pain. "Good work everyone. Casualties?"

"Just Blaustein and Quincy."

"Alright. It could have been much worse. Where's that tram?"

"Just a little this way." Little reported.

"OK, ODSTs, take point." he ordered.

The group moved farther down the hall until they came to an identical tram station. There were no guards here. There was once an ancient saying that was only in the minds of a few Marines: 'If it sounds too good to be true, it just might be.' That was what was going through their minds.

"I don't like this." One of them said.

The tram doors silently opened.

"Alright...everyone in...carefully."

Tails did a quick scan and breathed a sigh of relief. "I'm not reading any detonation codes or infrared signatures. The place isn't mined or has any guns traced on it."

"Regardless, keep an eye open."

The tram was similar to the other one, only this one seemed more for Officers. The seats were padded for their intended future occupants, there were cup holders, and even video screens. They were blank at the moment but they did show the logo of Eggman, the smiling skull-like image that surrounded them on all sides.

"Ugh...get this crate moving." Sally insisted.

Tails ran to the central controls. He checked the route the car would follow. "OK, according to this route, the tram should bring us right to the Command Deck."

"Makes my life a hell of a lot easier." Rico said leaning back on the padded seats.

The car lurched forward.

"Uh...be advised everyone, we might have a slight incline-"

Everyone suddenly stumbled as the tram started to climb. A few near the back actually fell.

"Attention, you are entering...Command Deck. Please be patient for a message from our leader."

"No problem, it does this all the time." Shadow said.

"Greetings my fellow hostile boarders."

"Or not..."

"I bid you welcome to my humble abode."

Julian's face appeared on all of the viewscreens.

"I admit you've given me quite a run. I was taken off guard from that first squad. I thought that was you brats. Hmph. I thought they were the best of the best. Now...who's wearing the pants in this outfit..."

Robotnik took a few glances around the tram and then stopped.

"Oho! A Lightswitch! Lieutenant!' Robotnik snapped off a horrible exaggerated salute. It made Chris' blood boil to see him abusing this.

"I am impressed by your resolve, boy. You've gotten far. That diversion upstairs got me off balance. Rest assured I will not make the same mistake again!" He tapped the intercom and spoke into a microphone. "Attention all operating units, this is your captain speaking! It appears that we have a couple of rats aboard. All units are to divert operations and intercept at Command Deck Junction. Robotnik out!"

He gave a sweet yet deadly smile to the Marines. "Won't this be fun!"

Sally shot the fifty caliber assault rifle until the clip ran dry. She blew out every single video screen and reduced them to smoking scraps. By the time she was done, there was only the whisper-quiet gliding of the tram's wheels, and the floor was filled with brass casings.

Chris grabbed the front of her bulletproof vest and yanked her to within a centimeter of him. "Have you gone insane?!"

She stammered. She was afraid, afraid that this human would kill her. It was one of those times that you respected your 'elders'. "Wh...what did I do?"

"Fired a fifty caliber weapon inside a space that has the equivilant area of a large van!" He helt up one of the casings. "These things would have ricocheted off the walls until they hit us!"

"Don't remind me." Someone said. Sonic was staring at a spot between his legs where a deflected bullet impacted just five centimeters from his pelvis.

"Case in point." Chris said. "Congratulations princess, you almost commited third degree manslaughter.

"I'M SORRY!" She said.

"Sorry don't mean much here, highness!"

Sally sighed in defeat and sat on one of the couches and hid her face.

"Hey," Callard said. "Sorry to break up this little spiel here but we just passed the nine-klick marker. We're getting bloody close to the Command Junction."

It was a crack in the window that caught the Lieutenant's attention. "Knuckles...can you break this window?"

"A more appropriate question is can I not break it."

"Do what you do best."

Knuckles wound up a punch and sent it onto the weakened crack. The window shattered in a thousand pieces and a wind cut through the tram.

"Miles, slow this thing down!"

Tails nodded and ran to the forward control panel. He plugged in his spoofer and ran through the subroutines.

"OK, good news and bad news!"

"What's the bad news?" The LT asked.

"I can't stop the tram. I'm locked out."

"What's the good news?"

"I can slow us down to a degree."

"Well don't hold back, how slow can you do it?"

"Fifteen miles per hour."

"OK, we might get a couple scratches. Knuckles, get the other windows."

The echidna punched out the other windows, the sharp digging spikes fitted on the end of his gloves shattering the glass. The markers outside the tram went by slower, but still a fair bit fast.

"OK, watch your step, roll as soon as you land!" Chris ordered. "Four men up! Who's ready?" Vennettilli extended a hand to Sally, but she didn't respond. She gave a quick look to Chris that said, 'Fuck you'. Chris then averted his eyes. Sonic, you have good legs?"

"Yeah."

"Alright. You, Shadow, Knuckles and Callard go first."

Tails called from the front, "What about me?"

"You need to stay and keep the brakes on! Don't worry, I'll take care of it!"

The fox nodded. He really placed a lot of trust in this human.

"Alright! Go, go, GO!"

They all vaulted over the broken windows and landed in between the rails on a service walkway.

They rolled as they were told and had their weapons up. Sonic basically hid behind Knuckles as he really had no form of protection save for the M6 that was on his holster. He didn't need it anyway. This hallway was as quiet as a graveyard.

This was exactly what worried Callard. As an ODST, he had had many vacuum insertions as part of the job. More than once he had heard the sound of silence. "Stay alert." He whispered. "Report any noises."

Up the tunnel, they saw other Marines jump from the tram. They also rolled to absorb impact.

Chris saw the next group jump from the tram. It consisted of Rico, Little and the Corpsman. he turned around to see that only he, the princess, and Miles were the only ones in the tram. "Alright, lets get while the getting's good. We're way too close to that junction.

He walked over to Sally and extended his hand again. "Your highness, are you ready to go?" She sniffled a little, and uncovered her face. The fur around her eyes was damp.

Did you make her cry? Oh, you are a real jackass, C.

She didn't take the hand and walked to the window. Without another word, she flipped the Lieutenant off and leapt backwards through the window. With the grace of a professional gymnyst, she did a mid-air somersault and landed on her feet without wavering.

Chris' mouth was agape. "Tails, for a real bitch, she has a fine pair of brass balls on her. I could never do that."

Tails kept an eye on the display. "Yeah, she has her ups and downs."

"Are you ready?" Chris asked.

Tails sighed sadly. "You know, once I unplug this thing, the tram is gonna speed up again, right?"

"I understand. The sooner, the better. Come on, kid. Let's get a move on."

Tails nodded and uclipped the spoofer. "Lets go."

The two felt the deck shift underneath their feet. They just kicked it into high gear. Chris helped Tails onto the precipice of the window. The fox looked to the ground which was speeding by. "Should I use my tails?"

"If you want to overshoot and catch the 10:15 going in the opposite direction, sure. Just do as I said."

"I...I don't know if I can do it!"

Chris caught something coming up the tunnel.

"TAILS! PILLAR!"

He gave the fox a good shove in the back and sent him yelping out of the tram. He did this just in time as a large steel pillar went right past him. If Tails had not been pushed, they would spend hours scraping him off the side of it. Not pretty. This didn't happen though; he did just as the Lieutenant wanted and rolled on impact. "Atta boy."

He realized the position he was in.

"Oh hell..."

That pillar marked his passage into the Command Junction, an oval-shaped room with multiple tram stations going in multiple directions. He tapped his COM set and hastily said, "Attention everyone recieving this message. I will not be able to exfil in time. I am in the Command Junction and ready to give myself up, and for Christ's sake, nobody had better come for me!"

"Attention Marines, place your weapons on the floor and put your hands on your head!"

Chris took his cap off and flattened his hair.

Time to meet my public.

"Is he serious?" Sally asked.

"Think so. Has he finally snapped?" Callard asked.

"Good riddance." Sonic muttered before someone gave him a whack in the back of the head.

"We need to find a way to get him." Tails said. "I...kinda owe him."

Callard laughed. "Oh, you son of a bitch, you."

Bishop was confused. "Mind filling me in here?"

"He's the only one in that tram. They're going to bring him to the big boss. That's where the master controls are. Smart."

"He's still not going to be able to do this on his own." Knuckles said.

"Wanna put some money on that?" The sergeant asked.

the echidna huffed in amusement. "As a matter of fact, I think I may take your word for it."

Callard nodded. "As of this moment, I am commanding officer of this squad with the possible exception of Her Highness if she demands it."

"You have more experience than I do, Human."

"You heard the lady! Let's find a way onto that bridge! Oorah?

"OORAH!"

Chris set his pistol and his assault rifle on the floor of the tram. He also unclipped his Combat Knife and whatever grenades he had left. A couple of tiny robots rolled forward and grabbed his weapons.

"Hands up."

Chris complied and placed his hands firmly on his head.

"Walk towards us, keep them where we can see them."

Once out of the tram, Chris could see around thirty robots, half of them being fifty caliber riflemen and two snipers were waiting. If he so much as coughed, he's be Swiss cheese in two seconds.

"Where are the others?" Came a voice. He wasn't entirely sure which robot it was coming from.

"It's just me."

"Corporal, zap him."

The Lieutenant felt a burning pain in his side. A robot had hit him with a stun baton.

He fell to his knees slightly shivering as the current worked through him.

"Up."

He was grasped around the arms and brought down the hall. He saw the commander, a robot with a death's head faceplate. Chris shivered as he set his eyes on the faceplate, knowing that this particular unit had to be a shock trooper of sorts. He then averted his eyes.

The robot gave itse version of a chuckle.

"Like it?"

"Hate it."

"That's alright, you worm. You'll get yours."

Chris looked past the fact that he was having an extensive conversation with a robot.

The elevator doors slid open and shut as they walked in. There was one robot on each side of him, staring into space.

Chris was smiling though. Even though he had literally walked into his own imprisonment, he knew one thing that would give him the edge in this situation:

They forgot to cuff him!