"I'm convinced that the infantry is the group in the army which gives more and gets less than anybody else."- Bill Mauldin
London, England
August 11th, 2011
Corporal Willis' heart was thumping in his chest as a stray burst from a Tinnie flew over their heads. It was nowhere close to hitting them yet it still put the fear of God into him. Major Flemming saw them approaching and motioned them to his position.
"Thank God you blokes are here. Our radioman got crushed by a fuckin train. Things are bloody FUBAR over here. The Tinnies have more than half the bridge and we are taking heavy casualties. The Challengers are supposed to be here in about twenty minutes with infantry not far behind. Can your men support me?" Major Flemming said once they all ran over.
"Roger that." Corporal Willis said turning towards the men. "Rifleman Anton, take your LMG and set up on the right side of the bridge by that tractor. Rifleman Andrew you accompany him. Rifleman Eric, Kyle, and Lance Corporal David I want you on the left side. I want intersecting fields of fire so intense the crabs from a flea couldn't get through it. Rifleman Justin, you and I are gonna stay with Major Flemming and keep in contact with the armoured support. Oi?" Corporal Willis said making a quick map on the concrete with a few rocks.
"Oi!" was the unified reply. Corporal Willis nodded dispersing the men. They darted from one piece of cover to the next praying they wouldn't get hit. They were careful to step over the numerous wounded as they made their way to the middle of the bridge. Rifleman Anton found the tractor with ease. There was just one problem. A Tinnie stood on the driver's seat pinning down men barely five feet away. He stopped, dropped to one knee, and pumped six rounds dead center in the Tinnie's chest. The invader fell backwards still firing its gun in the air.
"Good shot." Rifleman Andrew said as he darted past him. Rifleman Anton nodded and set up his L110 on the padded seat of the tractor. He had to crouch a little to get it to work but he could manage. Rifleman Andrew sat with his back against the exposed engine block leaning over from time to time to take shots at the advancing Tinnies. "Cover me." Rifleman Andrew said as he stood up and pulled the pin to a grenade.
Rifleman Anton temporary abandoned his burst fire method and put up a wall of suppressive fire. "You're covered!" Rifleman Anton yelled over the firing of his own weapon. Rifleman Andrew nodded in acknowledgment and let go of the spoon. He threw the grenade overhand and watched it arc through the air and land behind a group of five Tinnies taking cover behind a bright red double decker bus. It bounced twice before rolling to a stop right at the feet of the Tinnies. They scrambled from cover and directly into the crossfire of Corporal Willis' section and other soldiers from 2nd Rifles. They were mowed down like blades of grass but not without some return fire from other Tinnies. A stray round smacked into the engine block of the tractor spraying the still standing Rifleman Andrew in the face with a dark green liquid.
The first thought that ran through Lance Corporal David's mind was, shit Andrew's hit. When he saw Rifleman Andrew rubbing his eyes and Rifleman Anton squat down to help him flush his face with water from his canteen he let himself sigh in relief. A flash of fire that lanced past his head brought him back around. He brought his rifle up to his shoulder and put two rounds in a running Tinnie about fifty yards away. The Tinnie spun around and fell. It started to lift itself up when a grenade rolled right under it. The concussion threw the Tinnie ten feet in the air before it returned to the bridge in a mangled heap. He would have to buy whoever threw that grenade a pint or two at the pub when this was all over. If he lived through this however.
Rifleman Kyle had the barrel of his L129A1 poking through a broken car window. He leaned against a car behind him allowing him to be comfortable in a semi-sitting situation. The Tinnies were coming almost as fast as he could pull the trigger; key word almost. He had his sights on a particular Tinnie that he had fired half of a magazine at and hit nothing. The little bastard was cunning taking cover and waiting for him to move on to another target before moving again. He clipped the Tinnie's shoulder as it slid behind the tractor Rifleman Anton and Rifleman Andrew was behind. It fell backwards and didn't get up for a bit. He went to move his rifle to get a better shot of the Tinnie when the barrel got caught on the seatbelt. He yanked it a few times not getting any results. As the Tinnie peeked his head over the tractor's seat Rifleman Kyle yelled, "Marshal!" An explosion muffled the sound of his voice and distorted it beyond recognition.
"This shit burns!" Rifleman Andrew screamed wiping the last bit of coolant from his eyes. Suddenly his ears were ringing and bits of his friend were all over him. He blinked a few times staring at the bloodied pulp that was once Rifleman Anton Marshal. A Tinnie was standing on the seat aiming its graphed on weapon at him. He grabbed the alien's deadly extension and pulled it ground. The Tinnie was a lot heavier than he thought and took a lot of force to pull him off the seat. As the Tinnie lost its footing and fell, a round from Rifleman Kyle's rifle zipped through empty air that the Tinnie had occupied only a second ago. Rifleman Andrew tore his bayonet from its sheath and stabbed the Tinnie in the weirdly shaped head. It let out a high pitched wailed and pushed Rifleman Andrew off of him. He was launched fifteen feet in the air coming down hard behind a large piece of concrete.
"Cover me!" Lance Corporal David barked as he bolted forward towards the Tinnie. It was just getting up when he launched himself at the alien knocking it back down. Lance Corporal David's new rifle skidded a few feet coming at a rest under a car. "You son of a bitch!" he snarled as the Tinnie rolled over on top of him. He felt the squishy remains of his former section mate underneath him. It only fueled his rage. The Tinnie raised its graphed on weapon and went to bring it down on his head. Lance Corporal David jerked his head to the side not a moment too soon. The Tinnie left a dent in the concrete where Lance Corporal David's head was.
"Should I shoot?" Rifleman Kyle asked frantically. He had the Tinnie's head dead center in his sights.
"No! You saw how some of em explode!" Rifleman Eric barked firing a few bursts from his rifle. It seemed to be a never ending wave of Tinnies. He looked back at several other 2nd Rifle soldiers and yelled, "Cover us! Make sure no Tinnies sneak up on our arses!" He darted forward with Rifleman Kyle not two steps behind. He ducked his head holding on to his helmet with one hand and keeping a firm grasp with his rifle as he heard rounds crack past his head. Corporal Willis had taught him a trick during one live fire exercise in the Scottish Highlands. If he heard a crack than take cover because a bullet just zipped past you but if you heard a whizz then still take cover because the enemy is shooting in your general direction. At the moment it sounded like Rifleman Eric and Rifleman Kyle was in a microwave while someone popped popcorn. Rifleman Eric heard a wet thump and a scream right out of a horror movie. He didn't stop running but he looked over his shoulder. Rifleman Kyle was on his side clutching a steaming pile of intestines in his hands and screaming.
"Help!" he screamed. "Help!" His voice got more high pitched and ten times as desperate. "HELP!"
Rifleman Eric let his L85A2 hang limp on its sling and slammed into the Tinnie with his right shoulder driving the alien clear off of Lance Corporal David smashing its head into the side of the bridge. Lance Corporal David was up on his feet almost immediately with his Browning Hi-Power cocked and aimed. Rifleman Eric had his rifle aimed at the alien. The Tinnie flipped over on its back and stared up at the two men. It made no attempt to raise its weapon; it just looked back and forth at the species it had been sent to wipe out.
"The piss do we do?" Lance Corporal David asked panting heavily.
"I don't know." Rifleman Eric murmured.
Then the wails of a dear friend lifted above the chaos of combat.
"I don't wanna go, mum! I have to stay here! I can't leave these guys!"
Rifleman Eric didn't wait for orders. He kicked the bayonet in the Tinnie's head driving it deeper and pinning it to the ground. The Tinnie began to twitch violently and make high pitched squeals. They both emptied what was ever left in their magazines into the alien silencing it for good. As they loaded magazines into their respective weapons, they heard a strange noise. It wasn't any noise they were familiar with. The closest thing they could place it to was the buzzing of bees. To make it worse it was coming from above them. They both looked up at the same time.
"What…the…fuck…are…those?" Rifleman Eric stammered.
"I have no bloody idea." Lance Corporal David replied as multiple shadows passed over them.