Chapter 54: Mounting Damage
Just before the Bulldog finished aiming, a smoky grey mass slammed into its flank. The Fury struck the machine feet first with a flying double kick. The sheer force of the impact collapsed the weakened shields and knocked the Bulldog Cybrid over. The Fury, roaring with rage, tore into the machine with animalistic power, just like the creature it was based on would have done. The massive jaws of the Fury bit deep, tearing great chunks of armour and internal components out. At last the Cybrid stilled and lay inert, but the Fury continued to tear into the machine for a few seconds, making sure.
As Leena heaved her zoid back onto its feet, she saw the Fury's animalistic assault on the Cybrid. Smiling with joy, she loped over to where Bit was still struggling to get up. "Need a hand?" She asked, her playful joke failing to cover her relief.
"Sure, Liger can't get a grip in this mud." Bit replied. Smirking, Leena coached her zoid to reach out and bite on the Ligers forepaw. Once she had a grip, the vastly heavier Iguanosaur easily pulled the Liger Zero onto firmer ground.
#Thanks for that# The Liger bellowed, shaking off some of the dark mud.
#Anytime# The Iguanosaur roared back, before turning away to fire a volley of missiles at another Cybrid.
Derek smiled as he watched the two pilots work together. He had always been a romantic. A nearby detonation snapped him back to the battle.
In the skies above, Jamie and Pierce had a few moments to catch their breaths. Both pilots were nearing the point of total exhaustion, and their zoids weren't much better. Together the pair of them had accounted for almost a quarter of the Cybrid flyers, easy pickings just as Christian had said. But over a thousand more were in the air, and their constant attacks were hurting the City Guard badly. "Jamie, once we get out of this, I'm staying in bed for a week." Pierce moaned.
"Same here." Jamie's voice was just as filled with exhaustion as hers. Sighing, the pair of them rolled together and dived back down onto the aerial armada that was hammering the City.
X-X-X-X-X-X
Stoller cursed as another Bulldog pushed towards him and Michael. Christian hadn't been kidding when had said that these things were the Cybrids primary siege/heavy assault units. The strength of their shielding was almost unbelievable! Slowly both his Elephander and the Gordos were being forced back. Jacob continued to fire into the oncoming mass, his heavy shells churning up the ground and sending ripples through Cybrid shielding. Several hits on the same target had caused the shields to collapse, but so far he had been unable to capitalise on the fact. 'At least it weakens them for the others…'
All along the wall the zoids continued to hammer away. While the Dibisons rained a constant barrage of shells onto the Cybrids, the Gojulas units fired salvo after salvo into them. Direct hits with their main guns were powerful enough to destroy the machines, but many more simply emerged from the detonations barely harmed. And the return fire was getting thicker. The Bulldogs had been firing back with particle beams, cluster missiles and hyper-velocity plasma bolts since the start, but now the lower level Cybrids were coming into range. Some of the gaps in the firing line had been filled with Rev Raptors, but their lighter guns were struggling to hurt the machines. It was only around the gatehouse that the Cybrids were being held back, by the combined fighting prowess and firepower of the Blitz and Raider teams.
Captain Cortez snarled as she swept her charged particle beam across the front rank of Cybrids closing on the wall to her left. No human force could take such casualties and not break, but these machines didn't care how many units they lost! They just kept on coming, fighting a battle of attrition. One that only the Cybrids, with their overwhelming numbers, could win.
Leon and Anna combined their charges to slice a Diablo apart, before racing towards where Bit, Leena and Vega continued to tear the heart out another subgroup of Cybrids. "Guys, we have to fall back! We're being surrounded!"
Bit glanced down as his tactical display, cursing as he saw Leon was right. The Blitz Team was becoming cut off from the gatehouse, with Cybrids on three sides now, and rapidly sweeping round behind them.
"He's right. Leena, Vega, back to the gate!" As one the five zoids turned and raced towards the gateway, while Brad triggered his smoke dischargers as they passed him. He left a thick black smoke screen behind him as he followed the larger zoids.
Derek watched as the others fell back towards him. 'Smart move, their position was becoming un…'
Suddenly one of the Bulldogs carrying a massive plasma cannon fired, the barrel rocketing back into its mounting. The high-density ball of super-heated plasma smashed into the head of Derek's Genosaurer. The thunderous detonation vaporised the zoids head, while the kinetic energy of the bolt pitched the whole zoid backwards. The Genosaurer was thrown upwards to land heavily on its back, out of the fight. "DEREK!" Anna screamed when she saw her husband's zoid take the hit. Bit gasped in horror, before his eyes narrowed dangerously. Spinning around, he quickly located the Bulldog that had fired the shot. Liger planted his feet while the cheek laser generators charged up.
"ALPHA STRIKE!" The Liger bleached forth the last of his missiles, the masses of micro-missiles hammering the Cybrids shield, before the LRMs hit. The first three struck the shield, their explosive force dissipated by the energy field. The last one hit the rear left hip, damaging the joint. The Cybrid began to crank the massive barrel round to target the Liger, but a bright beam of light slammed into the turret ring, punching right through. The gun stopped as the Cybrid retargeted the great threat, Leena's Iguanosaur. It triggered the cannon…
And in a flash the rear half of the machine disintegrated as the compromised cannon misfired. The plasma conduits from the reactor failed, and the Cybrid suffered the plasma equivalent of an internal ammo explosion. The front half was pitched forwards to thud into the ground, smoke rising from the charred, half molten end.
"Good shot Leena." Brad commented, as his nimble Shadow Fox dived around a Cybrid, using it as a shield against another's fire.
"How's Derek?" Bit asked, his earlier rage fading fast.
"He's alright." Jacob called, his words causing Anna and Nicholas to sag in relief. "He's climbed out of the zoid, and he's fine. Except he looks hopping mad." Bit could only grin at the thought.
X-X-X-X-X-X
In the capital of the Guylos Empire, the Emperor strode out of his chambers, pulling on his gloves. Since he, the Helic President and the ZBC Commissioner had agree to assist in the battle being fought right now at the Great City, he had changed from his usual robes of office to a battle uniform similar in cut to his generals, except his was made of the finest materials and intricately embroidered. Outside the palace, and across the empire, zoid battle groups were marshalling rapidly. It was expected that the entire force would be crossing the sea to Europa within the hour.
"Nicholas, don't go…" The Emperor turned to face his wife, a sad smile on his face. Now almost eight months pregnant, she was forced to wear loose clothing, unable to fit into the robes of her station. She had allowed her brown hair to grow longer, and the Emperor liked it that way. Her sea-green eyes were filled with a mixture of fear and pride, while a single tear ran down her cheek.
"Love, I have to." Nicholas stepped close to her before gently wrapping his arms round her shoulders. "What kind of Emperor would I be if I sent my men to face such a monster alone?"
"A safe one…" She whispered quietly, her eyes downcast.
"Maybe for now, but if 'It' wins the battle, then no one would be safe anymore." He gently lifted her chin up so he could look into her eyes. "No matter where they were, nobody could hide from him forever. Or their children."
"I know… but I'm afraid!"
"So am I dear heart, so am I," He let his forehead rest on hers. "But I have to do this."
"I know you have to… so come back to us…" She hugged him even tighter, her eyes pressed shut.
Behind Nicholas, the captain of his guard arrived, dressed for battle. He sighed when he saw them both. Their passion for each other was the main reason the people loved him so much, not just because he was a kind and fair Emperor. The man had watched over the lad for almost his whole life, and he knew how hard this was for him. But the Emperor would never shrink away from what had to be done. "I'm sorry your highness, but it's time."
Slowly the Emperor pulled out of his embrace with his wife, looking deep into those eyes that he loved so much. "I love you." He whispered.
"I love you…" She whispered back. They always shared this little reminder of their love whenever they had to part, even at the end of a long distance transmission. She kissed him on the cheek, before turning away and hobbling into her room, tears running down her cheeks.
Emperor Nicholas turned about sharply and strode towards the captain. "Let's be off then."
"Emperor, you should do something about that." The captain nodded towards Nicholas's cheek. He looked into a wall-mounted mirror, before raising a hand to the lipstick mark on his cheek. But he stopped the motion before he could wipe it off.
"No, leave it. Maybe it'll bring luck."
"Aye sir. We'll need all the luck we can get."
X-X-X-X-X-X
Leena had long since stopped laughing when she took down a Cybrid. Now her arms ached, primarily her right. While the cuts in her arm had been all but closed up that morning, she didn't need to roll back her sleeve to tell that the battle was tearing them open again. Nor did she need to see the slowly spreading red patch.
The City Guard were being hammered, and the Blitz weren't doing much better. After Derek had been taken out, Brad had been caught in a crossfire and the Fox was nearly shredded. Only a combined attack by herself and Bit had saved him, and now the Shadow Fox was limping to the nearest zoid workshop. Michael and Stroller had been forced right up to the gateway, and the rest of them were not far out. Bit and the Liger were doing wonders, and she wasn't doing much worse. But Leena had to rely on her lasers more and more, since she was nearly out of missiles and 60mm rounds. The others were not much better off, Bit was clean out of missiles and the other's weapons were getting dangerously low.
Never the less, they all continued to fight back against the swarms of machines that assailed them. The Cybrids sheer weight of numbers was driving them back, and it didn't seem to matter how many they destroyed, there was always a half-dozen more to take its place. All their zoids had taken varying degrees of damage, though as of yet none enough to seriously affect them, except of course Brad and Derek. The cities outer wall still stood strong, despite being charred and the top lip crumbling. Of more concern was the fact that the shield that protected the city inside from artillery attack was failing, allowing the Land Skimmers and some of the warheads from the Bulldogs cluster missiles to slip through. Already several fires burned within the walls, the smoke rising to join the thick cloud that blanketed the battlefield, smothering the stars and moons.
The only bright spot on the whole battlefield was across the plain, where Christian, his team, Van and Raven were engaged with the Death Saurer. Leena shivered every time she looked up at the monster. With night fallen and the storm overhead, the only lights were fires, weapon flashes and the cities own lights. But the air around the Death Saurer was lit with a red light, tingeing everything near it the colour of blood.
There was one exception to that though. Mnementh continued to flirt around the monster, peppering it with missiles and lasers. Ever since the start, he had continued to exude a pale, whitish glow. Every golden blade, claw, spike and tooth glowed brilliantly, and his blue hide seemed to almost pulse. Although the attacks against the monster appeared to have no effect at this range, if they could bring that creature down…
"Leena, your left!"
She snapped back to the battle, her primary guns spinning round and firing even before she looked. The hail of cannon rounds exploded on the Cerberus's shields, while the machine fired back. Laser beams scarred the once gleaming hide of her zoid, while cannon rounds sparked off or carved furrows into the armour. A few struck off the main armour, and tore inside the Iguanosaur. With her newfound relationship with the zoid, Leena could feel its pain. At last the Cerberus's shields fell, and her Vulcans sawed the Cybrid in two. The machine exploded apart, collapsing into a pile of wreckage just as with an ominous clicking, her guns ran dry.
Swearing to herself, Leena quickly checked her displays. The Vulcans ammo was expended, and she was down to just a half dozen volleys of missiles. The shock cannons still had plenty of rounds, but they were almost useless against the Cybrids shields. "How bad is it?" She asked the zoid, since they had a bit of clear air for the moment.
#I'm okay…# Leena however could hear the pain in the zoids roar. #But I don't know how much longer I can hang on…#
"You and me both…" Something made her look up, to see a Bulldog running full pelt towards her.
"SHIT!" She screamed as she triggered her remaining missiles and the lasers. Cassandra poured laser fire into the machine from her position on the wall, and slowly the Bulldogs shields began to fail.
In desperation, Leena fired the shock cannons. The shields were on the verge of collapse when she did so, allowing the heavy shells to punch through and slam into the Cybrids legs. The armour cracking shells shattered the Bulldogs front legs, pitching the machine to the ground. Leena continued to pour laser fire into the thing, after seeing one that had been taken down like this continue to fire its turret weapon until totally destroyed…
Her finger fell away from the trigger as she suddenly realised that this Bulldog had no turret. And there was no sign that there had even been a turret on this one. 'What's going on here?'
Her silent question was answered a moment later when a ramp thudded down from the Cybrids backside, and a swarm of man sized Cybrids charged out. Spilling out and around their downed transport, the tiny Scarab Cybrids swarmed upon the Iguanosaur.
"GET OFF ME!" Leena yelled as the diminutive Cybrids began to climb up the zoids legs, the soles of their feet magnetised to latch onto the larger machine. The Iguanosaur bucked as its unwanted passengers fired into cracks in the outer armour, into joints and pivots, into the gaps between plates. Dozens still on the ground were flattened by the zoid as it thrashed about, but those already attached refused to be dislodged. "Somebody help me here!"
Naomi swore viciously when she saw the state Leena was in. "Leena, hold still." She said as she swung her sights around.
"WHAT? Are you crazy? These things will tear me part if I do!"
"I need you to hold still so I can knock them off you!" The Iguanosaur stopped pitching, standing still facing the gateway. The tiny Cybrids renewed their assault.
"Hurry up Naomi!" Leena's voice was filled with panic as a Scarab climbed onto the zoids forehead, the concussion of its footfalls resounded right over her head. It was walking right over her!
Taking a deep breath, Naomi set her sights, and began to aim and fire faster than she had ever done before in her life. With Leena and her zoids life in the balance, every second counted. But if she missed by even a small amount…
Round after round spat out from the Snipe Masters tail, streaking across the city to pick off the tiny Cybrids. Each Scarab simply shattered as the hyper-velocity rounds struck them; the legs remaining attached for a second after the body had gone before the electromagnets in the feet lost power. Quickly Naomi plucked off every one of the machines. "Leena, turn through ninety degrees, so I can get the others!" Leena wasted no time in doing so, and Naomi quickly knocked off the last few. "I think you're clear."
Leena looked down at her displays. "Are we?" she asked, as she took in the damage that the Cybrids had managed to do.
#Yes, but… I don't think I can take anymore. We have to… get help…# the zoids voice was even more strained and pain-filled than before.
"Okay… Guys, I need some cover here!" Leena called out as she turned the zoid back to the gate. The Iguanosaur was sluggish, the right foreleg dragging.
"Don't worry sis, we've got your back!" Leon's red Blade Liger appeared to one side, the lasers mounted along the side blades already stabbing out. Anna Calisto's Blue Liger was on the other side, the rain hissing against her almost white hot blades.
The Liger Zero smashed another Diablo to the ground before rocketing over to pace the limping Iguanosaur. "You okay in there, Leena?" Bit's worried voice accompanied his face appearing in a comm window, lined with worry.
"I'm all right." Leena kept the pain she was feeling from her right arm out of her voice. "But my zoids battered."
"I can see that." It was true; the hide of the larger zoids was pockmarked with impact craters, charred and mangled. The right elbow joint was a mess and mud was splattered all across the zoids belly and legs. The ends of all the barrels were soot stained, as was the region around the missile pods. "Get inside and have someone take a look at your zoid. At the very least get a reload and that joint fixed. We need all the firepower we can get."
"I'll do that…" Leena sagged in her seat, raising her hand to swipe sweat from her brow.
"Leena! Your arm!" Leena suddenly realised she had used her right arm out of habit, and the bloodstain was clear. "Please have someone look at that too!"
"It's fine!" Leena snapped back, but her voice lacked her old aggression. The injury was beginning to hurt like hell.
"Please Leena, for me." She felt the fight run out of her, and nodded in compliance.
#Make sure she does, for Bit's sake if nothing else!# The Liger roared to the larger zoid as they passed between the stationary Gordos and Elephander.
#Oh I intend to…# With one last growl of sympathy, the Liger Zero turned and raced back out to the fight, to where the Fury was stamping down on a Cerberus with both feet.
X-X-X-X-X-X
In the skies above them all, Jamie sent another Land Skimmer spiralling downwards trailing black smoke. Between himself and Pierce, they were tearing a bloody hole in the Cybrids aerial force. But they were just two zoids, with all so human pilots…
Suddenly the Raynos was buffeted about as a hail of cannon fire tore into the zoids belly. A flying wedge of Land Skimmers had formed up and had taken advantage of Jamie's brief lack of attention. Pierce, screaming in rage and fear, dived right through the wedge, her laser blades carving almost half of them apart. The remainder scattered from her attack. Filled with worry, she pulled up alongside the Raynos. The slim green zoid was now trailing a thin cloud of smoke itself, with ugly cannon damage running almost the length of the zoid, even onto the lower jaw…
"Jamie, you alright?" His reply was barely audible above the howling of wind.
"I'm still here…" Jamie coughed as the cockpit was filling with smoke from the ruined controls. A couple of rounds had punched right through the zoids jaw and had cut up just in front of him. How none of them had struck him was incredible, but the damage was equally as terminal. He looked over his shoulder to the ejection system, before sighing deeply.
"Pierce, I'm going down. The Raynos has had it. But…" He was interrupted by another fit of coughs. "…But the ejection systems totalled. I'm not leaving the zoid. At least, not safely."
Pierce's heart leapt into her throat at Jamie's words. 'No, this can't be happening! Not to Jamie! He's too good and honest to die!' She hadn't felt such emotion since the death of her mother. "Don't you have any control at all?" Pierce felt tears run down her cheeks, her lips quivering. Fortunately the Cybrids weren't taking any notice of them for the moment. Otherwise she'd be in the same straights as him now.
"Pierce, the controls have been wrecked. I have no flight control at all." Already the Raynos's nose was dropping, the beginnings of a death dive. "Goodbye." He said sadly, his voice filled with regret.
"NO!" Pierce screamed as the Raynos rolled over and plummeted towards the battle below…
Shadow: Not another one!
DR: Yep, another cliffe. Don't think there's any more...