Chapter 38: Buzzbomb Morning

            Colonel Alan Kitao hated mornings as a rule. It didn't help his already frosty disposition that he'd been kept up the better part of the night going over reports of the Hunter attack on Seraph Castle. It only made matters worse when a fairly jumpy private interrupted his brief sleep.

            "Colonel, sir," the young aide said, not missing his superior's scowl. "They're calling for you in the war room." Kitao mumbled something the private didn't catch. "What's that, sir?"

            "Of course they are," Kitao repeated loudly, getting slowly to his feet and waving the private off briskly. It took the colonel a few minutes to reorient himself, and then he reached for the dark green army coat he was rarely seen out of. His hair was a mess, he noted sourly, and so he took his time combing it. Whatever mess was afoot, it could wait. Kitao, finally satisfied, left his quarters and started down the nearest hallway. Chartreuse was waiting for him at the end.

            The tall, spry Reploid seemed devoid of his usual energy, Kitao noted at once. Normally during a time of conflict Chartreuse would be practically jumping with excitement, dying to get in on the action, which he sometimes got to do. This time, though, there was no excitement, just a look of deference and…was that…embarrassment?

            "What do you want?" Kitao asked at once.

            "I decided to walk you down," the Reploid replied, turning to follow his master. "Don't need you falling asleep in midstep like last time."

            "Shut up," Kitao snapped, sharply turning and heading down the hall leading directly to the war room. "What's going on that was important enough to bug me over?"

            "It's Virdelko's order," Chartreuse protested.

            "Klementi? Who is he to give such an order? HE got to sleep!" Kitao fairly spat. "What happened?"

            "It's about the Hunters' BROKEN HALO plan," Chartreuse began, his voice trailing off at the end.

            "…And?"

            "There have been some…" He fumbled for the right word. "Complications?"

            "Don't ask me, tell me!" Kitao ordered as they arrived at the door. "What kind of complications?"

            "It's quite interesting," Chartreuse said with a trace of embarrassment.

            Kitao stopped and looked hard at his bloodhound. "Don't tell me…" When Chartreuse's face remained static the colonel found himself enraged, and all drowsiness evaporated. "You…you incompetent bucket of bolts! You let them have nukes…and you couldn't stop them!"

            "What was I supposed to do?" Chartreuse snapped back, regaining some confidence. "Waltz into Seraph Castle myself? I'd be gunned down before I walked ten feet."

            "Do I care?!" Kitao fairly bellowed. "It was YOU who arranged for them to get the Buzzbombs, so you could spur us to act or some such rot. You told me the Buzzbombs were useless, that they were little more than scrap!"

            "I may have been wrong," Chartreuse admitted, again sheepishly. "They're in a position to attack now. The Hunters have failed, and…" The door slid open. "Well…our special guest can fill you in." Kitao blinked once, and then both men entered the war room of the Megacity Army's floating base Icarus.

            Icarus had its roots in the Repliforce program. When Cain Labs was developing the Repliforce artillery, they were tasked with providing aerial commander Storm Owl with a sufficiently powerful air force. However Storm Owl himself became directly involved with the program. He and his chief architect and second-in-command, one Sergeant Candela, assisted Douglas in designing the blueprints for two motherships to lead the air unit. Candela named them Daedalus and Icarus, after the figures in Greek mythology who fled from the Labyrinth using wax wings. The Megacity Army, however, intervened and commandeered Icarus for its own uses, converting it into the floating base it was now. Candela, spiteful but persistent, had revised her plans and created Impervious, a substitute mothership to partner with Daedalus. In time Storm Owl, Sergeant Candela, and the rest of the unit joined General's fight for independence, and the rest is history. The major note here is that after before X brought down Storm Owl, Icarus assisted in a direct assault on Daedalus, crippling the ship enough to allow for X's infiltration—Impervious fell earlier due to a covert sabotage assault by a Hunter secret task force called Aegis. Icarus had proven its capability as a weapon as well as a base, and that is what caused the worried Maverick Hunters to knock over the first domino in the events leading to the greatest aerial showdown since the Repliforce War. Now there was a new enemy encroaching from the skies…Gallagher.

            General Klementi Ily'ch Virdelko was already talking, and wiped a bead of sweat dripping from a strand of his still-thick white hair when he noticed Kitao. The colonel came up next to the general and saw to his surprise that his superior was speaking to a hologram…a hologram of a Reploid Kitao knew well.

            "I don't know how much longer we can hold out," Signas was saying, his image flickering somewhat. "Hell, I don't even know how long this holography will hold out! We have no power sources, we're all evacuating as we speak…"

            "Evacuating?" Kitao interjected, much to his own surprise. "What's going on?"

            "Oh, Colonel, are you there too?" Signas asked with a blink. "Well…"

            "It's long, and there's not much time," Virdelko interrupted briskly. "The Mavericks pulled a fast one, Alan. They hid units in the city and have completely devastated our Army Headquarters on the ground."

            "WHAT?" the Colonel exploded. "How--"

            "Man, be quiet and listen!" Virdelko fairly shouted. "They immobilized Alden Base somehow, and now they're surrounding Maverick Hunter Headquarters, which is bad, because…"

            "Because all the Hunters are off at Seraph Castle," Kitao finished.

            "Yeah," Signas's image piped up. "We thought we could hold them off, but an airship showed up out of the blue. We think it's carrying those Buzzbombs, Colonel."

            "Holy Christ," Kitao breathed. "They have activated them, then?"

            "We have to assume that," Signas said glumly. "I've ordered an evacuation but we can't go far. The Mavericks are surrounding us and there aren't enough of us to push through. We need some help."

            "I don't know what help we can give!" Virdelko protested, something he seemed to have been doing for a while now. "I've already ordered Icarus to approach the HQ, but we're a good distance away and we move slowly. I don't know if we'll get there in time to help."

            "Don't you have ground forces up there?" Signas was grasping at straws now. "Don't tell me you have a whole floating base full of secretaries! There has to be soldiers up there!"

            Chartreuse stood respectfully behind the two humans, his head slightly bowed and his arms crossed behind his back. He looked as though he were mulling over options and making a decision. Then he nodded and raised his head and cleared his throat. "We do have some Dragoons."

            "What's that?" Signas asked, hearing what might be the golden bit of hope he'd been looking for.

            "I said," Chartreuse repeated louder, "we do have some Dragoons. A squadron, at least. We could hop a transport, though I still don't know if it'd be in time, and I don't know if there are enough soldiers to make a difference."

            "All help is good help!" Signas pointed out. "Our plan is to push through the weakest link, the most sparsely guarded part of the Maverick perimeter. We're about halfway there now…I think everybody's out of the HQ, except the woun...." He trailed off as though physically struck. "Anyway," he said after shaking his head quickly, "we need more people to have a chance, and…what's that…?"

            It was as though every sound in the world had ceased. Computers stopped humming, people stopped whispering, the air stopped circulating, ambient sounds ceased to exist, and even the drone of Icarus's engines didn't seem prominent anymore. Signas was joined in the holoscreen by a shorter Reploid in midnight blue armor and a brown trench coat, who was frantically pointing at something in the distance.

            "Caligula," Kitao identified him with a whisper. "But what is he…oh, my God…!"

            The Hunters were starting to shout. The humans could hear it. Even Signas's face fell. "Run!" the Hunter Commander finally shouted. He turned back to whatever was projecting his image. "We need help, and we need it now! It looks like they're activating a launcher! Repeat, the airship is preparing to launch, and it could be a Buzz…" His voice trailed off as a new sound was transmitted…

            …The telltale hum of what sounded like an approaching hornet.

            "It's over," Signas whispered, just before his image flickered and died and the holoscreen switched off. For a while all noise crashed again, and no one in the Icarus war room dared speak.

            "God help us all," Klementi Virdelko finally whispered. He turned slowly to Alan Kitao, who stood aghast. "It's them, isn't it? The ones from Terrornova?"

            "It is," Kitao whispered hoarsely. "The ones that killed Peter and Timofey. They're coming now with nukes."

            "We should never have done it," Virdelko said quietly, shaking his head. "I was never really in favor of it…why did we go ahead and…?"

            "It was the right thing, Klementi," Kitao assured the Russian. "Reploids are…you see what they're doing now! They'd have done it anyway no matter if Terrornova had existed or not. They can't be trusted. We were right to deactivate the strong ones. Look at Sigma!"

            "No," Virdelko said. "I don't think we were…I don't think it was needed…" He looked up at the ceiling, inhaling slowly and laboriously. "God help us," the general repeated, his entire frame drooping with apprehension.

            Chartreuse had heard every word, and he quite easily discerned the differences between the two men. Virdelko was defeated, shamed, and ready to throw in his cards. Kitao was equally deflated, but deflated was a lot different from defeated…and Kitao had retained the flinty stubbornness Chartreuse had come to expect from his boss. There was still a fight left to be fought, and Kitao was going to fight it no matter what. And that meant…the Reploid couldn't stop a tiny smile from creeping onto his face. It really was amazing. All his preparations, all his maneuvers…they were all working out according to plan. And now he could tie up the only loose end that remained to choke him…and he could do it personally. All he had to do was convince one of these two pawns to give him the Dragoons…

            …And that was all the humans really were to Chartreuse. Pawns. It was all anyone was to him. The world consisted of pawns, but Chartreuse was a player…and he'd just surrounded the enemy's king.

            "General Virdelko," Chartreuse said forcefully, "Colonel Kitao! With all due respect this is not over. Give me the order, and I will assemble all the Dragoons present and we will organize a counterattack."

            "With what?" Virdelko asked dismissively. "The Hunters are gone. Where are you going to find troops?"

            "The bulk of the army was going to Seraph Castle," Chartreuse continued, annoyed at the interruption. "We will find and link up with them, and we will secure the area."

            "And the airship?" Virdelko asked, turning to look the Reploid in the eye.

            "Keep Icarus on its present course," Chartreuse suggested. "Enter the battle and shoot down the enemy ship. Only Icarus has that firepower. A surprise attack on that ship will be the death of it. Sirs, all we need is one good shot!"

            "I agree," Alan Kitao said throatily, regaining some flint in his voice and standing straighter. "This is most certainly not over."

            "Alan," Virdelko protested, "we cannot fight an army with a single ship!"

            "Alden Base is still there," Kitao pointed out. "Colonel Jones will work out the bugs in time, and we'll have reinforcements then."

            "Alden Base," Virdelko said as the name reminded him of something. His eyes widened. "And Marauder, Alan? What if they use it? What if they use Marauder?"

            Kitao had to stop at that. Marauder X74, the Megacity Army supermecha that had been stolen from Alden Base earlier, was probably in Maverick hands. If they used such a weapon…

            "We don't have a choice." The colonel nodded forcefully. "If they have it, we will just have to deal with it."

            "With what?" Virdelko snapped, standing straight and looking his subordinate in the eye. "We have a few missile batteries and a handful of Dragoons, few of whom know how to fly our Dark Clouds! And what makes you think that there's even anything left to protect?!" Virdelko's voice dropped a few notches. "That was a Buzzbomb, Alan. They fired a Buzzbomb."

            Kitao's flinty expression didn't change. "Are you saying you want out, Klementi? Is that what you're telling me?"

            Virdelko stood ramrod straight, looking down at this shorter but far more arrogant, far more racist, and far more violent man. "I will not lead these men on a suicide mission."

            "Then I will," Kitao said simply. "And it won't be a suicide mission. It will be a success." He motioned to Chartreuse. "He'll meet with the rest of the Hunters…X and the others. If anyone can stop the Mavericks, it's them. We in Icarus will destroy that airship and the ground war will be decided in our favor. Unless, of course," he added, looking up with mocking deference, "you order me to stand down."

            Klementi Virdelko's eyes smoldered with rage, but at the same time they wavered in indecision. On one hand, he could lead the attack and probably kill off most of his men, the young soldiers who he'd guided along what he considered a decent path. Yes, he was somewhat of a racist towards Reploids…well, he had been, he decided. But that had been when they were new, different, and therefore untrustworthy. Now they just…didn't bother him. And Terrornova had been Kitao's brainchild; it had just needed Virdelko's seal of approval, which the then-colonel had given because he understood the program to be beneficial to the population's security. He'd never fully understood Kitao's methods of instilling obedience until well after the program was underway, and to compensate for it he'd made more of an effort than any other of his comrades to minimize the discrimination of Reploids in his personal ranks, a gesture that while mostly empty did help him sleep better at night. He could send those men and women, both organic and robotic, to war and probably death. But…could he really? Despite Kitao's assertions to the contrary, Virdelko just couldn't see how they would win this one.

            "I will have no part in this," General Virdelko finally said, turning and walking towards the door.

            "Then leave," Kitao said, gently. "Leave, Klementi."

            The general wheeled around. "Excuse me?"

            Kitao set his lips in a straight line, a gesture of understanding. "I know how you feel, comrade. Your position is different, and you have a lot more to worry about. Let me handle this." He smiled weakly. "It's not a good situation, but let me make it right."

            Virdelko found himself not buying it. Still, the colonel had a point. "I am going to the Sub-City 8 barracks." He looked hard at the colonel, his partner for many long, tiresome years. "Goodbye, Alan." Then he turned and left for the docks.

            Colonel Kitao shook his head when the door shut. "A weak man."

            "And a stronger one is in charge now," Chartreuse said anxiously. "Now can I mobilize the Dragoons, or will we stand here with our dicks in our hands until Gallagher comes for us? Figuratively speaking," the Reploid added with a slight grin.

            Kitao kept his smile internal. "Get going." Chartreuse nodded and left, leaving the colonel and now base commander alone with his thoughts.

            Not once did Kitao think to wonder how Chartreuse knew the airship's name.

            For Gredam, the sight was almost like the actual realization of the goal he'd striven for during the past year. Stretched out before him was the skyline of Megacity 5 on the dawn of a new day, and the last day for the building in the center of Gredam's sights: Maverick Hunter Headquarters. Gallagher was still about a mile away from the target, which was the optimum firing distance. The Buzzbombs had a blast radius of perhaps a half-mile according to Greenback, but Gredam approved of the "better safe than sorry" doctrine; any closer and they might get scorched. It was now or never, the Maverick field leader thought with a twinge of anticipation.

            "Chuck," he said to the Maverick manning the nearest mainframe. "What's going on?"

            "Everything," Chuck and Revolver answered together.

            "Boomer Kuwangner reports that Frontline is in position. Nothing is wrong, for now." Chuck smiled and looked up. "Are we ready?"

            Gredam's eyebrow rose at the bluntness but he couldn't make himself get angry. "I believe so." He turned to Storm Eagle and Gravity Beetle. "Are you two ready?"

            "Everyone in the hold is ready," Gravity reported. "We're ready to deploy and rendezvous with Frontline as soon as the order is given."

            "Good." Gredam smiled and turned to the frog perched on a stool, literally bouncing with excitement. "Greenback?"

            "Greenback has told you!" the Maverick blurted. "Greenback has the Buzzbombs ready to fire. The propulsion systems are working perfectly, and diagnostics reveal no-" He stopped to spear an insect with his tongue, much to the resentment of Gravity Beetle. "No errors."

            "And the Buzzbombs themselves?" Gredam pressed.

            The frog sighed. "Again, Greenback has told big green bossman! Buzzbombs are fixed as much as Greenback can fix them. Buzzbomb programs are repaired, but fragile. Greenback thinks he makes good weapons, but Greenback can make no promises," he finished, waggling a webbed finger.

            "You mean, they might work, they might not?" Gredam said dryly.

            "Well…" Greenback looked as though he were reconsidering. "Greenback spoke too pessimis…pessi…pepsimistically." He nodded his bulbous head, proud of his language mastery. "Buzzbombs SHOULD work. All odds point to big red fire. Still, is chance that nukes won't work. But!" Greenback cackled eagerly. "Greenback added lots of regular boomers in the missile shaft, like bossman knows. Greenback thinks there will be a lot of fire no matter what happens."

            Gredam smiled again at that. "Sounds good to me. Now, have we heard from Scythe? I'd like to assume that he's doing his job, but-"

            "Uh oh," Chuck blurted out. Revolver was at his side immediately, punching in the command to turn on the viewscreen. A monitor flickered on to reveal the angry face of Boomer Kuwangner.

            "We've got a development," the Frontline commander rasped.

            "Go on," said Gredam apprehensively.

            Kuwangner's already slitty eyes narrowed more. "Tetra's unit reports that the Maverick Hunters are evacuating."

            "Dammit!" Storm Eagle swore. "Scythe must have failed!"

            "No," Gredam shook his head. "No, he kept them in there this long. How far are they, Boomer?"

            "Not far," Kuwangner said at length, not even trying to disguise the lack of respect he held towards Gredam. "They only just started moving. I know Signas, their leader, brought a holographic device with him. He might be calling for help."

            "Well we can't allow that," Revolver pointed out, gesturing anxiously to Greenback's computer.

            Gredam didn't hesitate long. "Are your men out of the way?"

            "What does that matter?" Kuwangner asked scathingly. "Accomplish your mission, Maverick. Now is the optimal time. Forget extraneous data."

            "Extraneous…" Gredam stiffened and his eyes took on a steely look. "Report as ordered, Underling. My mission is to defeat the Maverick Hunters, not to kill off my own men."

            "Underling!" Kuwangner scoffed, unaffected by Gredam's monstrous glare. "Who are you to give me an order? I answer only to Lord Sigma!"

            "Yes," Gredam said, his voice dripping with irony. "And you know how Lord Sigma feels about insubordination, and I outrank your scrawny ass, so tell me what I want to know or I'll send the nuke down your throat. With Sigma's blessings!"

            Boomer Kuwangner did not visibly recoil, but he blinked his eyes, which was enough to show that he'd been put in his place. "Frontline is out of the line of fire," he rasped finally. Then, malice dripping from his words, he went on. "But don't think you'll keep your rank long. It's not like Sigma to hold on to a man who started out as a human's bitch."

            "Your mission awaits you," Gredam said, smiling eerily. "I wish you the best of luck."

            Kuwangner bristled, but didn't reply. He cut the connection and the smile faded from Gredam's face.

            "My brother is…an asshole," Gravity Beetle explained meekly. "But he…he is dedicated to the cause, and he started off with Sigma, and he doesn't much like change-"

            "I understand," Gredam nodded, silencing Gravity's rambles. "And I won't grudge him his opinion. His insults are another matter." Gravity absorbed this, weighing Gredam's character, and decided his brother's life was probably not in danger. He nodded, and Gredam turned to Greenback. "Arm the launchers."

            Greenback cackled. "It's already done. Greenback did it while bossman was talking to the big ugly bug."

            "Good. Revolver, let's have an EMG pulse. No sense letting them teleport away."

            "You got it," Revolver responded. Seconds later a thunderbolt of sorts flew from a pointy cannon under the ship's right wing and blasted MHHQ, creating a barrier all around it that disabled mechanical devices.

            Gredam cracked a smile and looked back to Revolver. "Do we have a lock?"

            "Of course," Revolver responded with a lopsided grin. "I've been ready for five minutes now, commander. Let's get this show on the road, y'think?"

            "Yeah," Gredam nodded at length. "I think." He looked over to Greenback, who was bouncing like a kid at Christmas, anxious as hell to see his pet project in action. All the preparation, all the practice…the quarry battle, the Blackstar raid, the Sub-City 3 kidnapping, and the attack on Hunter and Megacity forces the previous night…it all came down to this moment. And in this moment, Gredam knew, he, Malevex, Teytha, and Mortar…and Redmond, and Grate, and Saybir, and everyone else who'd died in Terrornova…they would all be avenged.

            "Do it," Gredam ordered. "Launch your missile now."

            "Talk to me, Ledyard. What's happening on your end?"

            "Everything in the green, Tiberius," Dr. Sidney Ledyard responded, monitoring the vital signs for a very special doctor named Cain. "It was a very minor heart attack, which is surprising given the circumstances."

            "Indeed," Tiberius noted without emotion, working hard on Krysta's monstrous side wound. The Huntress was unconscious on the operating table, her face displaying a vague peacefulness that was nevertheless tainted by a pained grimace.

            "This looks familiar," another woman said with a mirthless smile.

            "It's ladies night for getting mutilated, Commander," Tiberius explained just as blandly.

            "So it would seem," Commander Damia murmured, resting a hand on her own very sore side. Her whole stomach was on fire, but she viewed that as a good thing because it just meant that all the sedatives she'd been given to null her pain sensors during her operation were finally wearing off.

            "I've almost finished with this one," Tiberius reported, looking for something to patch the hole Scythe's namesake had punched in Krysta. "How's things at your end, Carlton?"

            The Reploid working on Nightchaser looked up and frowned. "This guy's pretty well cut up. I've saved his vitals but as far as his frame…"

            "I can help," Damia volunteered. "Unless you think that stuff you doped me up with will interfere."

            "At this point who cares?" Carlton shrugged. "C'mere and do what I tell ya, and we may fix this guy yet."

            That was the end of conversation for perhaps seven minutes. That was when Dr. Carlton finally decided to speak his mind about the situation. "Guys? Anybody else think we shouldn't be here?"

            "We've fixed them up as much as we're going to," Tiberius agreed. "Sidney, why are you still here, anyway? I told you to evacuate with the others a long time ago."

            "I had a job to do," Ledyard said, indicating Cain.

            "You also can't teleport," Tiberius made his point.

            "Neither can Cain," Ledyard made his counterpoint.

            Tiberius frowned and looked to Carlton and Damia while indicating Chase and Krysta. "Teleport these two patients out of here with yourselves. Find the main units. I'm going with Dr. Ledyard to get Cain out the long way."

            "And face the Mavericks alone outside?" Damia shook her head. "You'll need some protection."

            "I can fire a gun," Tiberius reminded her. "Very well, actually, milady."

            "Well I can fire one better," Damia was unflappable. She turned to Carlton and motioned to Krysta and Chase. "Teleport out with them."

            Carlton bowed to the Huntress's wishes and rested his hands on the patients' shoulders. Five seconds later he was still standing there.

            "Uh…Carlton?" Damia prodded.

            "I'm trying!" Carlton snapped. "But it's not working!"

            "What do you mean, it's not working?" asked Ledyard.

            "Something's interfering with teleportation," Carlton explained hastily. "I don't know wha…oh, no way…"

            "Electromagnetic pulse." Tiberius shook his head. "Holy shit, people, I think we're in really hot water here."

            As if to confirm his suspicions a loud buzzing sound was heard, even deep inside Hunter HQ. Everyone inside stiffened, connecting the buzz with the bomb.

            "Godammit Tiberius," Damia whispered. "I hate it when you're right."

            The panic was really kicking in now, Caligula noted sourly.

            The intelligence chief rubbed the side of his aching head and tried to ignore the dread that was building up in his stomach like a volcano. Everything, absolutely everything was falling apart around him. First, the hacker incident. Then, Alden Base and the Megacity Army went offline. Finally, they had no contact with their field troops. And now, the worst thing of all--they were leaving their home base to the encroaching enemy, the enemy Caligula had hated for all his years of activation…the Mavericks.

            And that wasn't even the worst part, he noted as he marched at the head of the rapidly moving party, leaving Hunter HQ in their wake. They weren't just leaving a base behind…they were leaving comrades.

            "Tiberius," Caligula thought aloud, while scanning the horizon for any apparent threats. They were moving ever closer to the Maverick ranks, and who knew when an attempt to drive them back would come? Tiberius was alone now, for all intents and purposes. The chief medic had refused to evacuate with the others, remaining with his patients--the critically wounded Nightchaser and Krysta and the catatonic Dr. Cain. The only bright side Caligula could think of was that Damia was rapidly recovering from her earlier wounds, and should be able to help Tiberius keep any enemies at bay…provided they weren't nuked first.

            They weren't the only ones left behind, Caligula knew. Kevin Seitz hadn't turned up yet, and that worried his boss more than a little. Seitz knew a hell of a lot. If he fell into Maverick hands… And dead it would be just as bad, Caligula knew, since Seitz was one of the best controllers the Invisible Men and Aegis in particular had ever come across.

            Aegis…god, he wished he had it now! But he'd disbanded it after the fourth uprising, as per course, and hadn't thought it necessary to reassemble the covert team to aid in BROKEN HALO. So, now he was stuck with this ragtag bunch of Hunters, most of whom lacked any fighting experience whatsoever except maybe Alia and that Xu chick. And then there was Caligula himself. Caligula had always considered himself short. He was perhaps 5'2, but in many cases the slight weasel was more dangerous than the giant bear, and Caligula epitomized that analogy. The dark blue Reploid--armored now, though still in his trademark brown coat--knew enough martial skills to devastate anyone in close quarters combat, which was what he as a former field spy had been used to. He could also fire a gun very well, though he had no built in weapons and all he had with him now was an energy pistol that while powerful was still just a pistol. He sorely hoped he wasn't put into a situation where he had to rely solely on that.

            "Caligula."

            The Reploid turned; it was Douglas. "Yeah?"

            The clunky green Reploid mechanic frowned and motioned towards the horizon. "It's a Nova class airship. I've worked with those…Death Rogumer was Nova class, too."

            "Nova," Caligula said, catching the symbolism behind the name. "Cute of them."

            Douglas didn't avert his gaze or quash his frown. "Those things have a pretty nice firing range, Cal. I'd definitely say it's within firing distance now."

            "Why do I feel the sudden urge to shoot the messenger?" Caligula asked with a helpless half-smile.

            "I'd shoot me too," Douglas agreed, though he didn't smile. "What the hell are we going to do? We'll never make it out of the area in time."

            "Just keep moving," Caligula suggested weakly, keeping his eyes on the airship. "Where's the boss?"

            "Signas? He had me hook up a portable holograph unit. I think he's calling Icarus."

            "Fat lot of good will come of that," Caligula snorted bitterly. "What are the pen pushers gonna do, clap a writ on 'em?"

            "Who knows?" Douglas said, resuming movement. "Anyway, we've still got a good ways before we hit the Maverick lines, so let's think of how we're gonna break through."

            "We're still heading towards the weakest concentration, right?"

            "Hell if I know," Douglas shrugged. "I didn't exactly have time to pack a radar station with me."

            "Shit," Caligula observed. "So we could he heading straight into a hornet's nest. Could this night get any--Douglas, what the hell is that?"

            The mechanic spun immediately, encouraged by the sharpness of his comrade's voice. What he saw froze him. Underneath the wings of the approaching airship, the thick tubular launchers were coming to life. The right launcher began to give off a whine that was heard even a mile away where the Hunters stood. Then it began to flare to life.

            "Jesus," Douglas breathed. "It's gonna fire."

            "Is that a Buzzbomb?" Caligula asked, taken by the same panic that had seized the other Hunters. "Does that look like a-"

            "Yes," Douglas affirmed. "And I don't know if we'll be far enough away…oh, my God…what the hell do we do now?"

            But Caligula wasn't listening anymore. The intelligence chief raced back towards Signas, who was very involved with his Icarus transmission. He roughly directed Signas's attention skyward, breaking his commander off in mid sentence.

            Signas's eyes nearly bugged out of his head. "Run!" he ordered all the nearby Hunters, and he and Caligula started to flee together. It was at this point that a trail of fire spouted from the launcher, speeding towards Hunter HQ like a little comet. Then came the worst sound of the night: a buzzing.

            It was like a hornet was buzzing in every Hunter's ear, and they all connected it with something bad, even those who didn't know that the nukes were named "Buzzbombs". The projectile came closer and closer, heading directly towards Hunter HQ, though Signas couldn't help but wonder if the blast radius would take the fleeing Hunters as well.

            "It's over…" the Commander whispered despite himself, and then his holograph machine went out.

            Buzzbomb One launched without any complications, leaving the Gallagher perimeter without the premature detonation Gredam and the others had long been terrified of. It sped through the air directly towards its target with its trajectory in tact all the way. The warhead's internal functions activated ten seconds after the launcher began, and at the same time the ordinances Greenback had installed as backups came online, waiting for the instant of impact to trigger detonation.

            The warhead was to go through three strokes while the proper components activated to create the nuclear blast. The first stroke went off without a hitch, bringing the bomb online and readying the plutonium within. Greenback, try as he might, had never been able to fully comprehend the connector units that tied some of the more minute devices together, his problems spawning from confusion over what to do with a single connector rod. The absence of full connections caused some parts of the warhead to go offline…and then come back online, and go back offline, and come back online, and so on and so forth due to the constant rattling of the missile as it fought air pressure. Nuclear detonation was literally a fifty-fifty chance; it all depended on when the missile hit something. The Buzzbombs were set to detonate at impact, unlike some other missiles that were rigged with devices that detonated the warheads when sensors detected that the projectile was a certain distance from the target. The Maverick reasoning for going with the former method was that there were a lot of smaller buildings around MHHQ, and if the Buzzbombs were rigged with sensor-detonators, they might go off when they got close to one of the other building, and the relatively small blast radius the Buzzbombs gave off might not reach MHHQ. Therefore, the warhead awaited the strong jolt of impact that would jar the final connector piece into place and trigger detonation--and Greenback had gotten THAT connector up and running without a hitch.

            The missile propulsion was working just fine, alleviating another Maverick fear: that the missile wouldn't travel as far as it was supposed to and crash in some other part of the city on its way to the MHHQ. Buzzbomb One showed no such signs, and sped straight at the target building, its telltale buzz filling every nearby ear.

            There was no action taken against the missile, though some Ravens were certainly doing their best. Bale had taken off from the hangar shortly after Signas gave the first order to evacuate, and had went to rendezvous with Alec Tremont and company, who had been examining the Maverick ranks and in some cases actually dropping ordinances on larger Maverick concentrations. In the chaos caused by Gallagher's appearance no one thought to radio Bale or Tremont, and so no one came running. The pilots, however, happened to be on the return loop, and so they were just in time to see the Buzzbomb streak towards their home base while knowing that they were too far out of range to shoot the missile down.

            And so it was that Buzzbomb One now hovered over the street leading directly towards MHHQ, an unstoppable speeding bullet. Signas froze in horror, Caligula paled, Alia gasped, Xu covered her eyes and ears, Boomer Kuwangner cackled viciously, Gredam smiled thinly, Greenback rubbed his hands together in anticipation, Revolver and Chuck held their breath, and Bale turned off his radio because Alec was screaming obscenities as loudly as he could. With all the players watching, the nuclear missile slammed into the front of Maverick Hunter Headquarters…

            The explosion was the most horrific thing any of them had ever seen.

            A huge bang resonated throughout all of the gigantic Megacity 5. The entire front wall of Hunter Headquarters collapsed, and flames shot throughout the building as it was slowly ripped apart. The foundation rankled and the upper floors collapsed on each other around the building's front. Waves of white light flew out around the rising fireball, and the ground shook a half-mile in every direction.

            And then those who witnessed the chaos were stunned as the facts caught up with their minds. The huge bang they'd all heard was actually a series of many bangs in rapid succession. What could THAT mean? But it wasn't a time for meditating on details. All anyone, Hunter and Maverick alike, could do was look at the flames rising from the site of Maverick Hunter Headquarters, each waiting to see what had happened.

            "Migod!" Kuwangner couldn't help himself. "Look at that blast!"

            "YEE HA!" Tetra's voice boomed from Kuwangner's radio. "We ready, boss?"

            "Yes," Boomer replied without hesitation. "Get moving! Frontline, close in!"

            "Good lord," Revolver breathed, surveying the carnage from his vantage point aboard Gallagher. "What a fire!"

            "The place is a wreck!" Gravity Beetle exclaimed. "That missile ruined the headquarters!"

            "Indeed," Gredam said breathlessly. There was silence for a few respectful seconds before Gredam continued. "With carnage like that…can you imagine what it would have been like if it had been nuclear?"

            Storm Eagle whirled on his clawed heel and fixed Gredam with an incredulous stare. "What?!"

            "He is right," Greenback croaked sullenly. "Buzzbomb warhead did not activate."

            "Wha…" Eagle shook his head. "No way. Look at that place! You're telling me it wasn't nuclear?"

            "Wait for the dust to clear," Gredam suggested. "Were it nuclear, there would be nothing left. Besides, even now there is no mushroom cloud, and nukes are famous for those, right Greenback?"

            "But Greenback doesn't understand!" The frog had tracked the Buzzbomb's status during its flight. "Why did it not work? Greenback worked so hard…Greenback should have been able to—" He stopped and his eyes bugged out at something on the screen. "Of course…the connector rod! So that's it!"

            "What's what?" Revolver asked, finding his voice.

            "Greenback has it!" the frog repeated. "Greenback knows how to make the Buzzbombs…yes, yes, it will work! It will work!" The frog was bouncing with glee. "Revolver! Open the gate to the wing, Greenback will fix Buzzbomb Two!"

            "Who needs a nuke?!" Eagle went on. "Greenback, your reserve ordinances are just as bad! Who needs overkill?!"

            "We do," Gredam pointed out and nodded to the frog.

            Greenback bounced towards the door after grabbing his toolkit. He stopped and threw a weird look at Gredam. "Don't fire missile while Greenback is working on it."

            "Of course not!" Gredam had to laugh. "Get to it." He turned to Revolver. "Call up Frontline." A few seconds later and that was done. "Kuwangner. Have your troops move in."

            "We're not going to nuke the HQ?" Revolver interjected, surprised.

            "It's already done," Boomer Kuwangner rasped back. "Looks like it went off without a hitch."

            "Not quite," Gredam said, waving Revolver off. "It didn't go nuclear on us."

            "Not nuclear…" Kuwangner was audibly stunned. "Jesus."

            "Execute Plan B," Gredam ordered. "Close in and occupy what's left of Hunter Headquarters." He hesitated, but then went on. "Kill anyone you find on the way."

            "No fear there!" Kuwangner said ghoulishly and signed off.

            "We're not going to nuke the HQ?" Revolver asked again.

            "No, we're going to do one better. We're going to live there." Gredam grinned and turned to Gravity Beetle and Storm Eagle. "Take the troops in the hold and head down. Rendezvous with Frontline and take over Maverick Hunter Headquarters."

            "Roger," the two Mavericks said together before turning and leaving.

            Gredam turned back to Revolver. "It'd be a waste to use the second nuke. Look, the dust is starting to clear. See the damage?"

            "Yeah," Revolver snorted. "Half the building is still there."

            "But half of it isn't," Gredam pointed out. "We'll use normal ordinances if we have to. Until then—" He stopped. "What's that?"

            "Enemy aircraft moving in, sir!" Chuck exclaimed. "Looks like the Ravens are mad at us!"

            Gredam blinked and nodded. "Let them come. We need to buy Greenback all the time we can."

            "But why?" Revolver asked, very confused. "What's left? What target could possibly remain here?"

            "Nothing," Gredam answered simply. "Nothing, Revolver, but only because it hasn't arrived yet."

            Tiberius was very surprised to learn that he was still alive.

            After the initial shock of that fact wore off, the chief medic shook his head a few dozen times to clear the numerous cobwebs and tried to sit up…a gesture that he aborted almost immediately when he realized that he was buried under a pile of rubble. With a grunt of dissatisfaction the Hunter converted his right fist into an arm cannon and pressed it against the piece of the wall that pinned him to the floor. He charged for a few seconds before shutting his eyes tight and firing.

            The wall parted down the middle and Tiberius pushed the halves apart, his face cut by the pieces of rock sent flying by his shot. The medic sat up successfully and fell into a fit of coughing that lasted a full minute. Then he stood and looked over himself. He was covered in soot and dust, and scratched up in more than one spot. Shaking his head he surveyed the medical ward. The damage wasn't quite so severe, though the north wall had caved in and crushed the bodies of Scythe's victims in the computer lab, who had been moved to the supposed safety of the medical ward where their corpses could be kept intact. So much for that, the medic thought sourly.

            "Tiberius…" a weak voice cried out.

            Tiberius immediately bent down to help Dr. Cain to his feet. Cain remarkably had held onto his walking stick, and though his body was slick with sweat he seemed otherwise all right…except for his eyes. They were wide and full of apprehension. "Tiberius, what was…?"

            "We were attacked," Tiberius said simply.

            "Oh, God," Cain whispered hoarsely. "Was it…?"

            "No, it wasn't a nuke," Tiberius responded forcefully. "If that had been a nuke we wouldn't be here now." He blinked at his mention of "we". "Damia! Y'dead?"

            Cain grimaced at the bluntness of Tiberius's inquiry, but it served its purpose. "Tiberius! Good to hear your voice!"

            "We can't find Cain!" Dr. Ledyard cried out from where Damia was.

            "That's because I'm over here!" the old man managed.

            Ledyard was quiet for a second. Then, "You decrepit asshole!"

            "Enough!" Damia snapped, moving towards the chief medic. "I think I just found Carlton."

            The Reploid Dr. Carlton was sprawled over the motionless forms of Krysta and Nightchaser. Apparently he'd shielded them with his own body, and had been hit hard with an I-beam for his troubles. "This sucks," Carlton said with no emotion whatsoever. "This sucks really, really bad."

            "Can you move?" Tiberius asked, kneeling down beside him.

            "Not until you get this thing off me!"

            Tiberius and Damia exchanged glances and began the process of lifting the I-beam off of the pinned doctor. "What about the wounded?" Tiberius asked.

            "They're fine," Carlton winced as he rubbed his sore back. "As they damn well better be. The chick is recovering and the other guy looks like he'll pull through."

            "Can we teleport yet?" Damia asked.

            "No," Tiberius replied after checking. "And Cain and Ledyard can't in any case. We have to go out the long way."

            "And can you carry them?" Cain motioned to Krysta and Chase.

            "Not for long," Tiberius said. "Especially since it's probably a warzone out there." He motioned to a cabinet that was miraculously still standing. "Sid, in there you'll find the counter for the tranquillizer we gave them. Let's inject them with that and carry them until they wake up. Then they can fend for themselves."

            "A bit crude, don't you think?" Cain asked with a raised eyebrow. "Asking the wounded to fend for themselves?"

            "In this case, doc," Tiberius responded, "what choice do we have?"

            All the Maverick Hunters had clustered in one spot now, hidden under a ruined highway road that might shelter them for the time being, but no one knew how long that might last.

            Signas was recovering from the shock of the moment, but his recovery was hastened by the fact that the Buzzbomb was not nuclear, and that Hunter HQ was still standing if not badly damaged. His hopes were dashed, however, by the sight of the Maverick forces closing in on the building's position.

            "Those sons of bitches," Alia hissed, next to Signas. "They kick us out and move in!"

            "Until Zion returns," Signas said quietly, "I don't think we have a choice."

            "And then what?" Alia persisted.

            "And then…" Signas frowned and shook his head. "Well, I suppose everything depends on what's happening in the air now." He looked up to where Tremont's Ravens were bombarding Gallagher with what firepower they had. "Taggart should be back any second, and Zion won't be far behind him. Then…then I guess we fight for our lives. And our home," he added.

            Alia said nothing and returned to her crouching, sulking position. More than ever she wanted to run out there and kill as many Mavericks as she could. But she was no longer combat-ready, and could do nothing but advise from afar now. And so she started setting up the portable radio she'd taken with her, not knowing who she might have to work with but wanting the option to be available when the time came.

            Signas saw it and nodded. "That's it…don't give up yet. If they don't have their nukes, they don't have the ultimate edge."

            Alia had to frown at that. "I don't know, sir." She looked up at the floating menace on the horizon. "Somehow I have the feeling that those guys up there are just getting warmed up."

            Signas said nothing, turning away and reflecting on his own thoughts, or at least trying to. The truth was, he didn't really want to. That was because he was quite afraid of what he was thinking…

            He was afraid Alia was right.