Lieutenant (The United Federation Marine Corps Book 3) Read online

  “Sgt Timothy, move two teams up to cover Staff Sergeant Mourka, then back to the plan. I want your squad in and in fast. Secure the front office. Second squad’s going to be on your ass,” Ryck told his First Squad leader over the platoon command circuit. “All three of you squad leaders, get your Marines moving. We don’t know if there’s anyone in the lab, but we need to mass our forces if we meet resistance. Watson and Ariana, no gap.”

  Then, over his platoon circuit, “We’ve got a slight delay here. As you can see, the combination we received is worthless. We’ve got Staff Sergeant Mourka now about to create a breach. As soon as he does, we’re back on track.”

  “Joshua, I really need you to push. Make sure Ariana gets Third in. Keep an eye on him, and let me know after this is over if you still think he’s got what it takes,” Ryck passed to his platoon sergeant after switching to a P2P.

  Ryck wasn’t sure Sgt Tand Ariana had it in him to be an effective combat Marine. Joshua, though, wasn’t ready to give up on the squad leader. This was Ariana’s chance to prove himself. If he fell short, Ryck was ready to get Ariana transferred. Ryck felt that Cpl Kerrick Howell, the squad’s Third Fire Team leader, was more than capable of leading the squad if it came to that. A gung ho aggressive corporal was better than a weak sergeant any day of the week.

  Ryck turned his attention back to SSgt Mourka. The PICS Marine, flanked by four others, was at the double doors leading into the building. He stood there a moment, studying the entrance. Taking a step forward, he put his gauntleted arms, one on each door, and pushed. To Ryck’s surprise, the doors crashed in. He’d expected the SSgt to be able to break them down, but these didn’t offer even a hint of resistance. Then again, this wasn’t a military installation. A simple retina scan and lock would have been more than enough to keep unauthorized people out of the building.

  SSgt Mourka stumbled in, probably surprised the doors had collapsed so easily as well, followed immediately by his security.

  “Go First!” Ryck sent, even though Sgt Timothy had his squad right on the PICS Marines’ asses.

  There was a burst of automatic fire, then several answering bursts and one explosion. Ryck was slaved into Sgt Timothy, but by the time his squad leader made it into the building, the fight was over. Icons appeared on Ryck’s display as the AIs analyzed what the PICS and First Squad Marines were able to pick up. There were four more mercs inside the office: all were down, but only one was zeroed. Sgt Timothy was already calling for Doc Camp.

  One of the PICS Marines was out of action. LCpl Vance was unhurt, but he was out of the fight with a fried PICS. One of the mercs had taken him out with what the AIs identified as a DIF-3 “Diablo” rocket.

  Ryck had heard of Diablos, but he was not completely familiar with them, so he popped up the specs as he ran forward to the building. The Diablo was a small, relatively inexpensive 6mm rocket, a semi-smart fire-and-forget. It was dual-use, with both a small shape charge and pulse warhead. The shape charge could pierce armor, depositing the pulse warhead inside the outer layers of defense of its target. The little rocket had taken a PICS out of action. From what Ryck read off the specs, just the shape charge alone could wreck havoc on a Marine in skins and bones. Ryck flashed the spec summary to the platoon. He hoped the mercs wouldn’t have too many of the rockets, but his Marines had to be aware of them.

  Ryck dashed through the smashed entrance. Sgt Timothy had his squad deployed to cover the entire outer office. Two of the PICS Marines were at the entrance to the lab floor while two more were assisting LCpl Vance out of his PICS. The office itself was in shambles. The Killington rep was going to be royally pissed.

  Fuck him, Ryck thought. Take it up with the lawyers after all this is over.

  “Hold on Sgt Ariana,” he passed to his Third Squad leader. “It’s getting crowded in here, so secure the entrance for now.”

  This was a 180 from Ariana’s previous orders, but flexibility was a key to combat. Nothing went according to plan, and Ariana had to be able to adjust.

  “What about me?” Joshua asked over the P2P.

  Ryck knew that Joshua was itching to get into the fight. But he needed his platoon sergeant with Third.

  “Stay with Ariana. Make sure no one comes up our ass here. Once I get my bearings, we’re pushing on, and I’m going to need you to bring up the rear,” Ryck passed.

  “Sergeant Timothy, get a probe through the hatch into the lab, then I want you and Sergeant Watson over to me,” he sent on the platoon circuit.

  “Lieutenant Ward wants to know if you still need us,” SSgt Mourka asked him.

  “Hey Donte, Mourka was a big help,” Ryck said after switching to a P2P with the First Platoon commander. “You need them back now?”

  “Is Vance OK? Mourka says he’s fine, but he’d say that no matter what,” Donte asked first.

  Ryck looked over at the lance corporal, who was laughing at something one of the other Marines had said. He looked naked in his longjohns, but he had his Ruger out of the leg holster and in his hand.

  “He looks fine. I’ll have Doc check him out, though, after he stabilizes the mercs.”

  “OK, that’s good. About Mourka, I’m in a holding pattern now. The Killington rep is on my ass not to let my guys get too aggressive. But if you need him, you got him,” Donte said.

  Ryck’s display suddenly lit up with more data. Cpl Goddard had run a probe through the entrance to the lab floor, and it was picking up more data. The AIs were trying to analyze that and decipher it into usable intel. The mercs inside were shielded, but there were enough tiny leaks to be able to start to form a picture of what awaited them.

  Ryck was tempted to ask Donte to task Mourka and the squad to him to assault the lab, but the ROEs were pretty clear. Like it or not, he had to minimize damage.

  “No, I don’t need them to be taking anything out of my salary to pay for stuff they destroy. A year’s pay probably wouldn’t take care of the broom and shitcan they use to clean up the place. If you don’t mind, though, I’d like them to secure our six so I can use all three squads to assault,” Ryck responded.

  “You got it, bro. Let me tell Mourka. This is Donte the Great, out.”

  Ryck had started to key in the platoon command circuit but stopped as he broke out in a laugh. Donte was still Donte, whether back at the O-Club or here in combat.

  “Doc, how are the mercs?” he sent to HM3 Campomanosi, Doc “Camp.”

  “We’ve got three WIA. One is a Code 3, but the other two are Code 1s. Lots of regen for all three, but the Code 1 needs to get casevac’d ASAP,” Doc told him.

  Ryck didn’t have the merc’s bioreadouts, of course, but Doc uploaded his own findings. Ryck had basic first aid training, but not much of what Doc sent really meant a lot to him. That is, except for the Code 1. Code 1 meant a life-and-death situation where a WIA needed immediate evacuation and advanced care. The UCFMJ required that all prisoners receive medical care as required.

  Tactically, Ryck didn’t want to give the mercs inside any more time to prepare or plan. Waiting for a casevac would give them that time. On the other hand, the mercs inside knew they had a KIA and three WIA, and they probably knew that one of the WIAs was serious. They would counter-attack when it wouldn’t put their comrades in danger.

  There was also the moral side of the issue. These were men, just like his Marines. Ryck would hope that if the situation were reversed, any wounded Marines would be afforded proper care. The moral issue trumped tactics.

  “OK, call it in,” he told Doc.

  He wasn’t just going to call a timeout in the battle, though.

  “Staff Sergeant Mourka, can you get parole from the two Code 3s, then stand by with the Code 1 until he can get casevac’d?” he asked the First Platoon sergeant.

  Ryck knew a Kracivik merc would honor his parole, even if he wasn’t wounded. The two Code 3’s would pose no problem.

  “Roger that, sir,” SSgt Mourka responded. “I’ve got the rest of Second Squad providing
security now, and I’ll leave two Marines in here with the mercs.”

  It would still be crowded inside the office, but that freed up Ryck’s Third Squad and Joshua. Ryck called them in. The AIs kept trying to firm up the intel, but things were still hazy. They estimated that there were between eight and 15 mercs inside the two main QC labs. They seemed to be pretty spread out, probably around the major pieces of equipment. The mercs would have guessed that Killington would try and protect its assets and make sure the ROIs were limited.

  Ryck needed to keep up the momentum. He couldn’t let the mercs adjust to the flow. But Capt Portuno had given him a direct order to get into the building, then assess the situation. This screamed against all of Ryck’s instincts, but orders were orders.

  With his four key Marines, he quickly went over the newest intel, sparse as it was, and their original plan. Not much of the plan had to be adjusted, which was both surprising and frustrating. It was surprising because no plan survives the actual start of a battle, and frustrating because they could have flowed right into the second phase of the assault without hesitation.

  Ryck’s “assessment” took all of 45 seconds. The captain may have wanted a more detailed assessment, but Ryck had at least obeyed the letter of the law. The only change Ryck made was that after First and Second cleared the two main labs on either side of the building with Third in the middle acting as a reaction force, he tasked Third, with Joshua, to clear the environmental lab at the far end of the building. The sensors were not picking up anything from that area, and Ryck thought that might be a safer opportunity to see how Ariana—and Joshua—would react.

  He was about to give the order to blow the doors into the lab floor when he had a change of heart.

  “SSgt Mourka, I think I need two of your Marines for a little breaching. Can you spare them?”

  The staff sergeant readily agreed, and a few moments later, two PICS Marines lumbered up, their heads almost touching the ceiling. Ryck told them what he wanted, and both moved into position. Ryck put First and Second Squads right off the PICS Marines’ hips. At his signal, both PICS Marines simply punched out two entries into the lab, then stood aside as Ryck’s two squads poured in.

  Always make your own entrance was the rule, and with simple, non-structural walls separating the office from the lab floor, Ryck knew the PICS Marines would have no problem creating new entrances, and that with no real resistance, there would not be damage to any equipment on the other side.

  For a moment, as the Marines poured in, there was no response. For only a moment, though. Just as Ryck was following First in, the mercs opened up. An automatic weapon opened fire from an elevated position and in back of the lab. Several Marines were hit before they could get in among some of the bigger pieces of equipment in the room, but no one was taken out. Their bones had worked as designed.

  Shadows flitted between the testing equipment as his Marines took them under fire. Ryck could see sparks as darts rebounded off of plate armor, but enough found their way through, and several mercs went down. One was down hard in the middle of an opening, yet at least one Marine continued to pour fire at the merc. Ryck checked his display to see who that was, but Sgt Watson cut in on the net, telling PFC Julian to cease fire. Ryck held no love for the mercs, but he hoped the man hadn’t been killed after being put out of action. Marines weren’t supposed do that kind of thing, but Ryck was also experienced enough to know that in a firefight, some things just happened. Julian was a newbie, and as Ryck saw when he checked Julian’s bioreadouts, was hyped up on adrenaline.

  “Sgt Timothy, I want someone on that automatic weapon,” he passed.

  Now that they were in among the huge pieces of testing gear near the entrance, the machine gun was more of an annoyance than a danger, but as they progressed to the smaller banks of equipment, they would move back under the gun’s fields of fire. Someone had placed the weapon well, and it had to be taken out. Unfortunately for the gun team, the Marines had the means to do that.

  A few moments later, a HGL off to Ryck’s right fired. Ryck caught a glimpse of the grenade as it arched to the far back, then exploded low on the far wall. The gunner adjusted his aim, and fired again. This time, though, the grenade hit the overhead as it arched up, exploding right there, only half way to its target. Maybe the merc commander had been smarter than Ryck had initially thought. The low overhead precluded anything like a grenade launcher from traversing the length of the lab.

  “M76, Timothy,” Ryck passed.

  The M76 Bunker Buster had a flatter trajectory. It would also cause more damage. But grub that. Ryck was not going to move his Marines forward into a line of automatic fire before he could employ an HGL. He didn’t care if it brought down the entire far side of the lab.

  A round of some sort ricocheted off the pulling arm of the machine Ryck was using as cover. He felt a small piece of something hit him in the chin, stinging him. Jumping back, he had to remind himself that the mercs were still out there, trying to bring him down. He wasn’t invincible.

  “Watson, Timothy, get ready. As soon as the machine gun is taken out, I want you two to move itt. Rush the bastards before they can react,” he passed.

  He turned around and caught Joshua’s eyes. With Third Squad, he’d moved up and was right in back of the other two squads, ready to go. He leaned out to give Ryck a thumb’s up, only to jerk back as two rounds impacted on his bones.

  Stupid shit! Ryck thought. Hannah will kill me if I let you get hurt!

  He had to laugh, though, when Joshua made an exaggerated face, holding his forefinger up to his temple, mimicking shooting a handgun. The near miss hadn’t even fazed him.

  There was the sharp report of the M76, then a second later, a blast reverberated from the far side of the big lab. A huge hole appeared where an office or storeroom had been and from where the machinegun had been firing.

  Immediately, the two Marine squads rushed forward firing as they went. Ryck got caught up in the moment, and he rushed as well, his M99 in the assault firing position. He didn’t have a target, but simply by firing, he was helping keep the heads down of any mercs. On his display, one of his Marine’s icons went light blue. Cpl Keisen was down, but not KIA. Keisen was only a couple of meters to Ryck’s right, but out of Ryck’s line of sight.

  Ryck made it across the open area in the middle of the lab where overhead cranes and rails carried larger items to be tested from the loading bays to the test machines. Ryck wasn’t sure why his mind noted this. To a Marine, it was simply an open area. Its purpose was really immaterial.

  Ryck stopped to kneel beside what he recalled was a tensile strength tester, something that came unbidden to his mind from the list of equipment he’d studied before the assault. Running and firing interfered with his ability to process his display. He focused on what was happening. Two Marines were down, but not seriously hurt. At least one merc was KIA, and another three looked to be WIA. That was not counting the automatic gun team. AI’s were notoriously inaccurate in assessing enemy information without more sophisticated sensors than infantry Marines carried into combat, and the gun team was not registering yet.

  There was a flicker of red in his display which corresponded with a position just off to his left. Timothy’s squad had just passed through that position, so Ryck figured it had to be another merc casualty, only now showing up on the sensors. He glanced over his shoulder and was shocked to see a merc who had obviously just climbed out of the base for a mandrel bend tester. He had a smile on his face as he leveled a Diablo rocket at Ryck. From this distance, the merc couldn’t miss. Ryck tried to spin around to take the merc under fire, but he knew he would be too late.

  A line of darts hit the merc just as he fired, jerking him up just enough so the Diablo blew over Ryck’s shoulder, the heat singeing his cheek as it passed. More rounds impacted the merc, who dropped his launcher and fell to a sitting position, one hand raised up in surrender, one arm rapidly become a bloody mess.

  Ryck touched h
is chin which tingled from the rocket’s blast past him, his heart pounding from his close call. He looked back up to see Joshua covering the merc while he sent Pvt Gilliard forward to disarm the man. It wasn’t until the private signaled the all clear and zip-tied the merc’s hands, wounded arm and all, that Joshua looked over to catch Ryck’s eyes.

  He had a huge smile on his face, and he pointed at his chest, then at Ryck. He had Ryck’s back, he was saying. Ryck had been so concerned about keeping Joshua alive, so concerned about Hannah and Hope and little Ester, but it had been Joshua who’d saved Ryck’s life.

  Ryck gave Joshua a little salute, then got back to the task at hand. He’d thank Joshua later. He’d almost gotten killed because he’d reverted to being a fighter, not a leader. He’d gotten caught up in the fight, and he’d lost sight of his job. When he’d tried to get back on track, it had been too late. He’d been targeted. Gunny Meader would have his ass on a plate if he knew what had happened.

  Time to act like a leader of Marines, not some grubbing super warrior! Shitcan that ego! he admonished himself.

  He motioned for Third Squad to move up, giving him a bit of security as he brought his display back up so he could take control of the platoon again. But suddenly, more and more red icons appeared on the display. For a moment, he thought they were under a counter-attack, and he got ready to issue orders. But then it became clear. The mercs were surrendering. They had turned off their shields and were coming out. They had done enough to honor their contract, but now it was over.

  Nine mercs walked forward, hands in the air. Coupled with three KIA, two being the automatic gun team, and seven WIA, they had only started with 18 men to face a better-armed Marine platoon. Make that 14 men and four women. Ryck had been surprised to see that one of the WIA, two of the ones who surrendered, and the merc leader were all women. Ryck knew that many merc companies had women in their ranks, but as a Federation Marine, he was not used to the idea. Yet the mercs, as they were both given medical treatment and giving their parole, treated each other, men and women, seemingly without regard to gender.