Maddie woke from her nap as Walsingham alerted her. Across the yard, Katya's now full-strength platoon assembled, ready to push off for a mission of some kind. With renewed energy, she pulled herself to her feet and looked about. The orchard was not an ideal location for a defense. There were too many men here and not enough cover. Maddie didn't need the reports Walsingham had compiled over the last fifteen minutes to tell her that snipers were an issue. The tense atmosphere and several corpses out in the open was information enough. Still, sifting through Walsingham's data kept her hands busy and her mind settled as she awaited orders.
The losses were staggering. Half the Battalion was dead or missing, F company had been hit hard, and what little was known about companies A through D made for grim reading. Whole squads had been massacred according to the runners that actually had made it back from their location. Maddie herself hadn't lost any men yet, but that certainly wouldn't continue.
I've not seen Davenport or his squad yet either.
These kinds of losses were common in the ODST, but it was a lot of these troopers first drop, and Duggan and his privates seemed exhausted by the stress of their situation. Maddie had never known life on the right side of the front lines, so this was nothing new for her. She looked, to the others, as though stress and fatigue melted before her iron will. She hoped that would keep her men going, that she could drag them through this campaign if she needed to but she knew all too well what this life could do to a man. She needn't look further than Sergeant Davenport himself for that.
She stretched, trying not to groan as she woke her body up from the power nap and watched Captain Denning stride towards them. "3rd Platoon!" he shouted, "On me!". Maddie called her men and jogged over to Denning, who stood patiently as the men, and Major Seer, gathered into a circle.
"All right, listen in." the Major said gruffly. "Battalion is in deep water with no cover. Jammer's knocked out comms so we've had no contact with command since we made terra firma. Our only option is to do this the old-fashioned way. Now, we cannot stay here any longer so I'm tasking Fox Company to clear the way. I've sent scouts to find Braeburn and map out the grove but with him gone it leaves only two platoons to take out each objective."
He tapped a few buttons on his compad and projected a hologram of the area. "Second Platoon is to hit the artillery that shelled us earlier, we can't attack the Grove without taking that out."
"And our objective, Sir?" Duggan asked as the approximate location of the Artillery highlighted itself on the map.
"I was just getting to that, Private." he replied, sighing. Clearly Duggan had a reputation for getting on people's nerves.
"Apologies, Sir." he said, wryly.
Maddie admired the man's sense of humour but she was glad that he seemed a good soldier as well. She didn't suffer fools, not with so much at stake.
"Third Platoon," the Major said, continuing his speech, "your job will be to find and destroy the AA battery that hit us as we moved in. The jammer is likely in the Grove, and I want air cover ASAP, if those guns are still up when comms come online, we will lose men and support."
"What about Easy?" Maddie asked, eyeing the company around them.
"They're a bluff. We're hoping to take a long walk to the primary objective, draw the enemy away from your objectives and hit the Grove in force. Naturally, that makes this a time-sensitive op with a helluva lot of variables. We have a spare grenade launcher and some explosives, get armed up and be ready to go in two."
"Will Sergeant Davenport be joining me, where is he?" Maddie asked, looking about. Like it or not, she needed a full-strength platoon for a job like this.
"They're just restocking, they'll be over in two." Denning said, flatly.
Maddie nodded and sent Duggan and his friend to grab the extra kit. Before turning to the rest of the men. Sergeant Tansie and his squad seemed a little distant, they trusted their leader, they didn't seem to trust Maddie. Grayson's squad didn't quite have the same hostility, though, which was encouraging. His men sat closer and could bear to look at her without shuddering. That almost disappointed her, though she knew that it shouldn't. Her training told her to make nice, her ego liked that they feared her. She shook her head, as if to shake away such thoughts. Good people didn't think like that. Good people didn't want to be feared.
Davenport, his squad, Duggan and his friend returned quickly. Time was of the essence as Maddie tracked the map that Walsingham had compiled from her helmet feed and the reports before making her way to the front of the men, following Denning and Seer as they left them.
"Captain?" she asked.
"What is it, Harper?" Denning replied, looking her over.
"Will you be joining us?"
He shook his head, "you seem capable, and you have my best squad leader under your command. I'm waiting for Braeburn to get his sorry ass back here. Now get going."
Denning was obviously referring to Davenport, who stood beside her and grinned. She had once thought him handsome but now he just seemed slimy and arrogant as he stood there triumphantly. As Denning jogged after Seer like a loyal puppy, Davenport placed his helmet on his head and turned to her.
"It's good to get recognition for your efforts, isn't it?" he said.
"Maybe from people who matter, Sergeant Davenport." she replied, bluntly, before turning to the rest of the Platoon. "Okay, 3rd Platoon move out, Grayson, bring up the rear! Tansie, you're up, take point and lead us out."
The men organised themselves and Maddie vaulted the orchard's defenses, watching as her men slipped over them and started out into the field. Sergeant Tansie nodded as he passed her with his squad, and she felt acutely separate from them as she started off, hugging the hedge that divided the field and masked their approach from the enemy.
The sun was high in the sky now, and few UNSC ships were in the air to shoot at. Relying on only Walsingham's admittedly stellar intelligence, she led the men through the small hidden hiking pathways and roads that lead to the AA guns.
"Are we going the right way, Lieutenant?" Tansie asked as she directed them into another cut.
"Trust me, Sergeant, I know what I'm doing." she replied, bluffing.
"I don't doubt that, Ma'am, I just don't want to be the reason this operation ends in failure."
Maddie sensed there was some history there, but she didn't want to push it, she couldn't get attached to too many men in the unit. She had to believe in her ability and get the job done, whatever the cost.
"We shouldn't be too far, now. Reports stated the position is in an area used for camping, these old tourist trails should lead us right to the enemy."
"Or into them." he said, flatly.
"Perhaps, but the covenant doesn't study humans so they can never predict our movements."
"They're not that thick, Ma'am, they're dangerous."
"I'm well aware of that, but you need to trust me."
Tansie didn't seem won over, but he was quiet. The large man marched contentedly with his men, who talked amongst themselves quietly as they delved deep into the trails. There were artificial rises and ditches, all designed to challenge the budding hikers and outdoorsmen that favoured the area. Maddie suspected that true outdoorsmen got their kicks elsewhere, Meridian was unbelievably flat.
Duggan jogged to her side, panting. "Covenant spotted moving away from us Ma'am, the objective must be close."
"Do you think they spotted Easy?" Tansie asked, having overheard the conversation.
"Impossible to say for sure," Maddie said, halting the platoon. "Did you see where they came from?" she asked Duggan as Davenport and Grayson joined them.
"They were high tailing it down the main road, weren't they, sarge?"
Grayson nodded, "coming from just over there." he said, gesturing to their left a little, "I think we might come out on their flank."
Maddie couldn't help but grin under her visor as she glanced her eyes towards Sergeant Tansie. If he felt any shame or embarrassment for questioning her, he didn't show it. Rather, he seemed totally focused on the matter at hand.
"Alright, Grayson, take two men and scout ahead, we'll wait here for you. Send for us when you can."
The Sergeant nodded and took Duggan and a female Corporal with him. They were gone for a long twenty-two minutes, which the rest of the platoon spent in silence. When Duggan returned, he motioned for them all to follow. After a short but stealthy walk he pointed ahead to a field. Grayson and the other private were near a gap in the hedge overlooking the enemy. There were several other breaks in the hedges and Maddie had to crawl past them as she made her way to the men.
"This isn't good, Ma'am." Grayson said, shaking his head.
She scoped her DMR and looked out at the field. The AA guns were here for sure, she could see them. It was what obscured them that troubled her. A miasma of covenant barricades made for an above ground 'trench' network. Each funnel connected one AA battery to the other, which meant her men could use the network as cover as soon as the first gun had been taken.
This would take speed and discipline. Maddie grabbed the grenade launcher from Duggan and clipped it to her back before scoping back in. The area was swarming with Covenant infantry, almost fifty grunts and jackals guarded around ten Elites, who manned the guns themselves and commanded the camp. Despite that number, it appeared that Seer's diversion worked, because there was obviously space for a covenant force three times larger.
Running scenario's through her head gave her a pretty good idea of what to do. She had surprise, speed, forethought, and positioning over the enemy. Grayson had been right; the paths had brought them to the enemy's flank. Most of the guns and sentries were looking to her left, in the direction of the orchard they had originally set out from.
Maddie made her plan. It was simple, which meant it would be easier to stick to. Positioning her three scouts at the base of the field, she handed them MA5Bs, which were the closest thing she had to MG's and gave them spare ammo from the rest of the men. They would provide covering fire for the whole platoon. As the men listened intently, many of them seemed to relax, trusting her instincts.
Tansie and two of his men would be supported by the rest of the company as they rushed the first position. When secured, they, and Grayson would cover Davenport and herself as they moved up, taking each of the three guns in one swift movement. She was pleased with herself. ODST were highly trained men, they knew that she was capable, and their steely determination was a good sign.
They positioned themselves at the gaps in the hedge and waited. She took a deep breath, raised her hand and signalled the start of the attack. Tansie and his men broke from cover as the entire platoon let off a volley of fire. The first salvo was deadly as the enemy were caught unaware, some sleeping, some without their weapons and some too busy to be watching the flank. A wave of enemy combatants fell as her forward team charged down the first objective.
She gripped her gun and felt it kick as she slotted a grunt reaching for its grenade belt. The men gunned the grunts and the Elites guarding the first gun down in moments, their weapons deadly in such volumes at such ranges.
Tansie went first, rolling over the barricade and helping his men over the side as they secured the area. Maddie watched, hungrily as he covered his men, giving them time to set a charge on the turret, and blew it up. The explosion rocked the earth as plasma, debris, and mud peppered the area in a swirling cocktail of destruction.
"Covering fire!" she shouted as the rest of Tansie's squad dashed out into the field. Everyone fired, ignoring the panicked and inaccurate flashes of plasma that flew their way as they helped their men across the field and into the network of defences. Maddie checked Davenport, who nodded, and ordered his men across the gap. The run was short but the covenant was rallying, shots clipped at their feet, growing closer as they made for the flank, shoring up their defenses and organising.
Maddie vaulted the barricade and rolled into cover, diving next to Tansie as his men slowly pushed into the second position, using their momentum to force the aliens back. Spotting an Elite, she picked at its shields with three shots from her rifle before it was gunned down by one particularly brave ODST as she moved up.
"Grenade!" someone cried out.
Maddie felt a wave of warmth engulf her as she ducked, only to see an ODST's burned armour slumped over the barricade.
Damn.
Recognising that the pressure needed to be kept up, Maddie holstered the DMR and took the grenade launcher in her hands as the second turret exploded. She crouched, moving up as plasma spat and splat against the defences placed to protect them.
Tansie's men waited for Davenport to catch up and steady the advance.
"We need you to clear the way, Lt!" Tansie shouted, "enemy fire is too intense!"
She nodded, and primed the round, "On my go, rush them, stay inside the barricades. Is that clear?"
"Hoo-ah, Ma'am!" he said, grinning.
"Okay." she breathed, popping her head up. It was met with a volley of small arms fire.
With a deep breath, and with the right place to put the grenade in mind, she stood. Plasma seemed to curve towards her as she sighted the middle of the enemy defenses and squeezed the trigger. With an almost comical clunk, the grenade flew through the air in a slow and lazy arch, landing squarely beside the AA gun and blowing it up.
Maddie dropped as a pink shard screeched passed her head, "Go, go, go!" she shouted.
Tansie and his men burst forth as Davenport ordered his men to cover them. Tansie led, storming off, but his second was hit in the chest by a needle, speared through the heart. The others followed but were losing steam, scrambling forward as best as they could.
Time to bring in Davenport.
As Second Squad cleared out the pit, Maddie pushed forward, with Davenport and his loyal troops following behind.
"We have a problem!" Tansie shouted, pointing ahead.
Maddie saw it. The last two positions hadn't been completely connected to the rest of the barricades, meaning that they would have to cross open ground.
"Okay. Davenport!" she barked.
He stiffened.
"You're up."
He took a look over the ledge and ducked as green plasma peppered overhead.
"No way, that's suicide!" he shouted.
"It's an order! We have to keep up the attack or lose the initiative."
"We can't maintain the initiative if we're dead!"
Maddie hadn't expected this so soon. She had expected Davenport to act up, she knew he held a grudge for what happened on Skopje, but she thought she had more time to win him over. It was their first firefight and he was refusing her orders!
"Tansie's men have led the way until now, it's our turn to take the heat and destroy that position." She spoke to his men, who had less nerve than him and seemed to listen a little better. "I'm going over there, if none of you follow, I'll come back here and kill you my goddamn self, is that clear?"
One nodded, the others looked about nervously.
Close enough.
She pushed another grenade into the tube and looked around. Covenant littered the ground, there must be less than a third of them left now. She aimed the launcher. Fired, and ran. With her training, her DMR was back in her hands in a swift movement.
"Cover her!" was shouted from behind, "what are you waiting for? Go!"
Maddie didn't look back, if they hadn't come, she would be dead. As the smoke cleared, she rushed into the area, three grunts were bleeding out and a jackal wheezed, clawing for its shield. The Elite was unharmed but it was trying to run, something flashed in its hands as gunfire ricocheted around them.
Ignoring the jackal, she shot through the Elites shielding and bundled into it, pile driving it into the barricade as ODST shouted from close behind. The Elite kicked at her, knocking the wind from her chest and sending her rolling backwards. Acutely aware it was coming after her, she ignored the rigging in her ears and uncropped the axe on her chest, swiping at the monstrosity as it came for her.
With a mighty crunch, the blade slinked into its neck and the Elite seemed to gurgle as its yellowy eyes rolled back in its head.
"Lieutenant?!" Tansie asked, pulling the corpse off her.
"Keep pushing!" Maddie shouted, this time at Davenport, who seemed to lose his nerve. "Get to the last position and destroy it. Stay. Inside. The. Barrier."
Davenport nodded, and ordered his men on. Maddie sat, regaining his breath as another volley of UNSC fire erupted and First Squad assaulted the last position. It was then that Maddie noticed what the Elite was holding, a small covenant data pad was hidden inside its hand, which she scooped up and slipped into her pocket.
"Incoming!" she heard shouted.
She was on her feet in a second, watching as out ahead, Davenport led his men around the side of the barricade.
"Inside!" she said aloud, "get-"
She never got to finish. A shade turret let rip on the now exposed squad. Its rapid plasma fire caught one man in the chest and head, killing him instantly. It was only when a second was struck in the legs that they knew they were in trouble.
"Pull back!" Maddie shouted, cursing James and his recklessness. They dragged the wounded man back at a painful pace. All around them, grass burned and mud flew, thrown up by the impact of plasma rounds. They got the poor soul back, but at the cost of another member of Davenport's squad, who was struck several times in the back as he hauled himself over the barrier, collapsing into a heap in front of James.
"We need to take out that shade turret!" Someone cried.
Maddie loaded another grenade into the tube, and steeled herself for another go at the covenant. All around her, the men and women of third platoon seemed to hesitate as they buckled, the Sergeant's error throwing them off.
James let out a great howl of anguish behind her and she knew that her team's combat effectiveness was dropping fast.
Her body contorted, spinning and extending like a gazelle as she rose from behind cover and aimed, her mind screamed at her:
Get down! Get down!
Her training wouldn't allow it, keeping her feet planted as she found the turret and squeezed the trigger. Not waiting to see if it hit, she let her instincts take over and ducked as an explosion rocked the area.
"Good Shooting, ma'am!" Tansie shouted, firing a quick burst from his SMG, "we've got reinforcements though!" He added, hastily, as a fresh wave of grunts swept forth to meet them.
One or two of them seemed determined to push on without their elite masters and charged the open ground between the two sets of barricades, achieving nothing but their own deaths as her men gunned them down. With each burst fired from her weapon, Maddie took a mental note of the number of enemy combatants in the area. She figured that they had burned through half of the enemy at least, and killed at least six of the ten Elites stationed in the area.
The thought left Maddie keenly aware that the enemy they were now engaged in a pitched battle with was three times their size.
Damn it, James!
There was nothing to be done but dig in and fight. If the last Elites could be killed, then they had a chance to take the last gun.
"Call Split-jaws as you see them! Focus your fire one them, if they go down the others will flee!" She shouted down the line.
"Ma'am, we don't have much ammunition left, if we need to-" a corporal to her left said, quickly, the panic setting in to her voice was clear as the morning sky.
"Follow my orders, let me worry about that. KEEP. PUSHING." She growled in return, before popping out of cover to slam two rounds into a grunt as it found itself stranded in the open.
As she ducked to reload, she watched as Duggan sprinted out in the open and into the barricade network.
What now?
She groaned internally and waited as he ran as fast as he could through the fighting towards her. He seemed incomprehensibly stupid, but she found herself in awe of the man as he seemingly ignored the maelstrom of carnage around him and dove towards her, slamming into her with all his force.
"What are you doing, Duggan?" She said, seething, "I told you to-"
"Sorry, Ma'am, but you need to know." Duggan interrupted, panting, "Sergeant Baker is here to reinforce us." He said swallowing.
"Is that all?" She asked, amazed that he would run into fire to tell her that.
"Of course not!" He blurted, "uh…"
"Duggan!"
"Sorry! Baker has two wraith tanks, you needed to know they're allied."
The hell?
There was no time to think about that just yet, she needed to react.
"Tell the rest of the men and head back to your position."
He nodded and Maddie moved amongst the men around her, making sure that they knew who was actually piloting the tanks. Her men fired less now, choosing their targets even more carefully as they waited. Finally, it came, the low guttural whining of the wraith tank could be heard edging closer and the ODST had to rally as the Covenant threw themselves at their lines, believing the tanks were there to save them. They came up the road that ran parallel to the field, and from the direction of their own rear-guard and Maddie's heart soared as they lurched gracefully into view, the tops of the cannon creeping over the hedge. She watched as the wraith's spun in place, slowly lining up their cannon to the covenant as they marked their targets.
They never noticed the ODST sat in the gunners seat and none of them ever would, because as they came into view behind them, the tanks gave no quarter, pounding their ranks so thoroughly and so quickly that the covenant mob were reduced to a crispy blue paste inside a minute, the world rocked and shook as the covenant were pummelled into oblivion.
Breathing heavily, the men rose to their feet cautiously after the rumbling subsided.
"Hello Baker!" Duggan called from way behind them.
The Sergeant, who seemed to roll his eyes, nodded in the private's direction as he sat in the gunner seat of the wraith tank.
"Good to see you Lieutenant." He said, changing the subject, "it seems like you've got everything in order."
"Just about, Sergeant." she replied curtly, shooting a look of anger towards James as he sat with his squad, laying his men to rest.
"Lt. Volkovskaya said she sends her regards, she figured you might need the help."
Maddie scowled, groaning internally. She was thankful for the helmet at that moment, she and Katya had to present a united front or they would lose their credibility as ONI operatives.
"When you see her again, tell her I said thank you, but that we had it well under control."
"Oh, I don't doubt it, Ma'am, I saw you in action." he replied, happily. "Regardless, you'll need us for the next phase so you'll definitely be glad of us in about an hour."
"Why? What's going on?" she asked as the Sergeant jumped out of the tank.
"Denning met up with us after we secured these tanks, had reinforcements for us but we'd already taken the objective, can you believe it?"
Maddie could. Katya was proving herself every bit the field commander her time at Luna suggested she would be.
"Just get to the point, Sergeant." she replied, trying her best not to let her fury drip into her voice.
"Oh." he said, shortly, "Denning said that Easy company has engaged the enemy, they're pushing slowly ahead but they need us to hit them from the side with the tanks or we just aren't taking the grove."
The sun began to grow warm in the sky and its heat irritated Maddie to no end, her brow was furrowed and she felt a keen sense of annoyance and hopelessness. Sure, her attack had been a success but Katya had managed to capture enough tanks from the enemy to send two to help her. It didn't help her mood to know that she'd needed Baker's assistance, either. James' screw-up had cost her the momentum she had needed to make the plan a success.
"Thank you," she replied, noticing the Sergeant becoming frosty, his back straightening like a freshly pressed uniform. Maddie turned to her men and gave them three minutes to gather weapons and ammo, ensure that the turrets were out of commission, and ready themselves to head out. They fell out and began their work, men scurrying about the place like ants at their queen's call but Maddie pulled the data pad from where she'd tucked it away and muted her helmet.
"Walsingham?"
"Already running the translation software, Ma'am." he said, scanning it as she sifted through the pages, letting Walsingham see and translate the words at the speed of light.
"What would I do without you," she said, grinning.
"You doubt yourself, Ma'am? I wouldn't worry about Miss Volkovskaya, your performance in that last engagement was exemplary."
"Thank you." she replied, not really believing him. Now that Katya was on this mission her own performance didn't matter, only her performance compared to Katya mattered. The thought made her even more glib, because until the situation changed and they had cause to go beyond the frontlines, she would be on the back foot, the front was where Katya would shine.
There was no free ride this time, Skopje was a long time ago and she now had the training and the age to make her a cog in the machine.
"Ma'am?" Walsingham asked, quickly. She unmuted the helmet.
"Hey!" she shouted, running towards James, who had his hand around Duggan's throat, "what the hell do you think you're doing?"
James' helmet was on the floor, and she glared at his ragged face with disgust, pulling her own from her head as he loosened his grip.
"I asked you a question, soldier." she growled, as the rest of the platoon slowed their business to watch.
"Nothing."
"What was he doing?" she asked Duggan, who glared back at James.
"He blamed you for the death of his men." Duggan said, flatly.
James frothed at the mouth, he seemed livid, ready to strike out at Duggan the moment Maddie turned her back to him.
"you always do blame other people for your own mistakes, don't you, Sergeant?" she spoke quietly, her voice full of malice and scathing venom. Davenport didn't reply, he just stood there, his chest heaving as he glowered into the horizon. No one else seemed to hear her as she stood back, looking around. "My orders were to stay inside the barriers. Why didn't you follow my orders, Sergeant?" she asked him, loudly.
"I made a bad call." he said, flatly.
"Are you calling, Duggan a liar?"
"I am."
Maddie shook her head. "Follow my instruction or I'll shoot you myself, is that clear?"
"Yes, Ma'am" he replied, his eyes darting from her as she moved to face him.
Looking around, she could see the men stopped in their tracks, with a huff, she ordered them back onto the road for a quick march to Katya's location. The rest of the work was completed quickly and quietly, they'd salvaged some fuel rod cannons and beam rifles, which would come in handy as they attacked the grove. They also reduced the AA guns to smouldering wrecks, which meant when they did destroy the jammer, she could finally get some air support. There was a long history of failure in military history, when a force failed to effectively wage combined arms warfare against a force that had the capacity to do so.
As they began their march, the men were silent. Duggan was nearby again but he said nothing and barely glanced her way as they walked onwards, everyone was deep in thought it seemed. They hadn't been fighting for more than six hours and already people seemed exhausted. Maddie knew that was just a feeling, ODST were too good to flake so soon. Still, the atmosphere could be just as damaging as actual fatigue if not fixed quickly.
"Ma'am, the translation is complete." Walsingham said into her ear.
Maddie hit mute and spoke, "what is it?"
"Well, there's a lot here, naturally. Some of it makes sense but I require further data."
"Start with what you do understand, then." she said, watching her step as the trail they walked became a little muddy.
A map flashed on HUD, "well, I can confirm that there is a jammer in the Grove, as well as at these locations, here." he said, lighting up locations all over the region. "There are also defenses here" he said, adding arrows and defensive lines to the map.
"Jesus..." Maddie gasped, looking at the map, "It's got the grove, and the artillery stations marked, this is all military intel?"
"It's a geology report."
"A what?"
"A geology report. A series of surv-"
"Wally, I know what it is, I mean," she chuckled, "It seems odd that the covenant would be interested in the geology of a world they're systemically glassing, don't you?"
"Oh," Walsingham said, coming as close to blushing as a 'dumb' A.I. could, "well, that's what I don't understand either, Ma'am. They seem to believe the continent's flatness is significant, possibly in regards to their faith."
Maddie frowned, "how on earth does religion come into a geology report?"
"They reference cleansing fires, artificial worldbuilding, and an 'ancient heresy' as well as us too. There are a number of references to an "ancient enemy" as well, although what that means is anyone's guess."
"An enemy of the covenant?" Maddie wondered, aloud.
"Inconclusive, Ma'am."
She sighed, "All, right, this is good, though. We take the Grove, destroy the jammer and get this to Drake. He'll need to separate the intrigue from the intel."
"Good idea, ma'am."
Maddie unmuted the helmet and looked across the achingly flat continent, marvelling at the almost perfectly cut lawn of a continent as the sun peaked in the sky. It seemed as though Meridian might just have her answers after all.