Solar Warden, Jakob Waechter [book club suggestions .TXT] 📗

now over the sea. They already accelerated to supersonic travel. But still they were too close to raise up and go hypersonic and then into space.

 

SW-3 arrived at the possible exit. While two of them searched for it, Yamada and the rest continued to trace down the aliens. The updates showed them where to go. So they planned a route to intercept them through the information they had now.

The exit was found and did not open. They avoided to use C4 and closed the opened panel again. Then they headed to the direction of the aliens.

 

SW-2 got the dirty work they pulled one of the turtle faced aliens to the room where Ryan and Caine were found. After getting him on the table they waited for Watkins to connect. The medic Jones got assigned for the next part to come and had also the needed skills.

 

“Samuel is there any way we get control of the generator room doors?” Knight asked.

“I tried everything. They must have cut the cables. We have no access to it. That means if we come from the other side it might be possible. But I don't know if we get the train to work,” Samuel replied.

“Well, I think we should wait for SW-3. On the other side if we send a team including you, we can speed up things and secure our position. It could be also possible we can use our bikes there if the exit door is big enough.” Knight was tempting to send a team. He was with Samuel in the tower hall.

“If they reinforce we might be cut off. I don't know how long it takes and even if I can open the doors. Also I have to close one at least and cut the cable. This will take time.” Samuel was worried.

“Exactly. So we should hurry.” Knight switched to wireless communication. “SW-7 get your gears and report to me.”

Seven minutes later they were at the Commander.

“I have a mission. You will escort Archer to this back entrance. Locate it and open it. If possible silently. Then enter with or without bikes. Get to the train destroy it if you can use the bikes. Secure the area before the generator doors while Archer tries to open them. But secure the area first. Two bikes should cover the entrance outdoors as long the generator doors are closed. Then retreat. If you cannot hold the position outdoors, also retreat. I think the bikes Gatling gun will give enough firepower to hold a while. Keep in mind SW-3 is also out there. So if you have to engage the enemy also report after. We will inform SW-3 over broadcast. Good luck and hurry now.” Knight was finished with the briefing.

“Affirmative,” Major Davis, the leader of SW-7, replied and the team went with Samuel to the bikes.

 

Two Grays with hand guns were walking through the woods. Following them did a turtle face without a weapon. He seemed to be a bit wounded but had no problems to keep up. It was dark in the woods and normal eye sight would not help too much. The Grays seemed to have not too much difficulties. Also the other one had no problems to follow them.

They were on a grass and moss like ground at the moment and therefore their walking was very silent.

Suddenly a crack was to hear. One of the Gray seemed to know where it came from, targeted into a certain direction and fired a shot. Then he saw something and fired again. This let the turtle face look into the direction of the shot. The head from the shooting Gray fell to the ground then it's body. Hearing that let the other Gray change the target direction. Now seeing someone moving he was aiming at him. The backside of a sword hit his hand and his weapon fell to the ground. It made a noise while running away. The turtle face at once charged into the direction of the last attacker. He saw to late the one closing in to him from a nearby tree. The sword hit also a bit below his head. His body ran a bit further uncontrolled and fell then to the ground. The Gray was on the run trying to look right and left. He went to the end of the forest. Which was now in reach. A noise was to hear. Then the Gray fell to the ground.

A man in a black suit with a microwave rifle stepped closer to check. His sword was on his back. There was an icon on his display showing him there was a mission update. He had now time to read. Another one of his team joined him.

 

Davis team had reached the destination. They found the exit in a tunnel with plants grown around to covered it.

With Samuel's help and manual force with a crowbar, they were able to open the door without using explosive. It was big enough for using the bikes. They went in. The information was already sent minutes ago. Two were covering outside. Samuel and the other reached the trains position. It took them some minutes to destroy enough to be sure it won’t drive again. Also they tried to do it most quietly. The tunnel of the train seemed to go a bit further but was unfinished. With a bike the other two of his team took the lead. Davis with Samuel followed them at a distance. They reached the position where they found the drone. Still there was no one to see.

Davis and Samuel joined them. One of them stepped down and headed forward while the driver of the bike followed on the other side ready to use the Gatling gun. Davis also stepped down and waited with Samuel who picked up the drone and put it into his trunk. Then Davis also advanced forward letting the empty bike follow him. Samuel was a bit behind.

They found no one. The area was clear but also there was no control room. At least they saw nothing what looked like it. Samuel went for the door, there was no panel just nothing. He searched with his scanners the walls to the other door. There he found a panel to open. He used his fiber optics spy connector. Then scanned the communication. There was none. But he knew now some commands from their hacks. He tried some and there was a response.

Still it took him over twenty minutes then the door to an unknown room opened. His escort went at once in a cover position. They looked around the opening door and found no one in sight. Davis controlled his bike in, while he waited outside. The bike would be to slow to respond if someone was hiding there, but an acceptable trade. Because the targeting system of the bike could only access a limited angle of 10 degrees. It was not build for indoor use it had to be further away to cover an area as sentry. In the room were a lot of tower like structures and a probable control room. Samuel didn't need to go there. He already found the commands for the other two doors. They opened.

Davis informed the other squad members outside to retreat. Then he reported to Commander Knight.

Samuel worked now on the secure door closing. While the rest of SW-7 fortified the train tunnel as long as Samuel had not finished his part.

 

“They are sending reinforcement we have to hurry,” one of Yamada's men informed.

“I check that. You get the Gray on the bike and return to the facility at once,” Yamada ordered and walked to the border of the forest. He was a bit higher than the cave. Five turtle faces with their rifles were coming up the hill. The others of Yamada's team packed the Gray on a bike. Then two bikes left and one waited with a driver. The aliens were about 200 meter away. Yamada took the microwave rifle, set it to full power, targeted the first one and fired. He went down. Imminently the others returned fire not knowing the exact position of the shooter.

Yamada left and rushed to the bike. The other were already out of sight. He jumped on the bike and they also left while Yamada made a report.

 

“Mark them as target,” the Captain ordered.

One of the turtle faces was reaching the forest. A combat drone appeared out of nowhere and started to fire while flying over them. Two more were down. Now shots headed to the leaving drone. A second drone appeared and another one went down. The one at the forest targeted the drone and fired. He hit the drone while the drone was firing at him. There were no survivors. But one drone crashed into the mountain. The first drone returned and scanned the area then left to the facility and continued the patrol.

 

The Captain let a status update broadcast.

“Now monitor the area of the cave and the downed drone. If they try to retrieve it we have to attack them,” the Captain ordered.

“There are only two drones in the area. Should we send more?” the drone officer asked.

“Not now. But somehow it would be good to scout the cave and update the combat drones for a more efficient ground support. Losing another combat drone is too expensive.” Captain Fisher needed a different solution but with the upcoming retreat there was no sneak back and send a smaller drone.

“Contact Knight I need a discussion,” the Captain ordered.

“Captain what's up?” Knight replied.

“We need to scout the cave can we do that? I know all of your drones are destroyed. But you have some in the shuttles.” The captain needed a plan.

“Well, I have to check with Archer about the programing and control stuff. One shuttle with drones is on the Icarus. That is the shuttle of SW-5. But the shuttle of SW-3 also has some. That means the shuttle can pick up SW-3 and Archer where they dropped our reinforcements. The rest I have to check now. I inform you when I have more. Knight out.”

 

Knight went down to Samuel. He didn't want to talk over wireless. They had power again and the lift was working. Samuel was on the controls in the new room they opened.

“Commander you need an update?” Samuel asked.

“Yes and I have a new task so the update first.”

“This energy storage has power for over a month. At least for that what we need. I found out how to activate the generator if we would need it. We also can close the doors now. Even turn on the generator. But without the control room it is worth nothing. The generator needs the storage system as buffer. I can lock down this control room only with our wireless connectors. That means it is hackable. The generator doors can be controlled by our side only. But if they get the control room they can cut the power. So the generator doors stay in the status of the power loss,” Samuel reported.

“We can live with that as we leave anyways. So close down the doors after I recalled the troops. The next mission is to scout the cave we found with drones. Is that possible at that long range. We will fall back to the shuttles in the meantime,” the Commander explained what he wanted.

“If we have drones, yes. But we need a nearby relay like a combat drone or our communication relay. Depending how many drones we have they can also relay and fly deeper into the cave. Also there is an option to scan and fly back and transmit. That might be a problem if they get shot,” Samuel replied.

“That means it works. You have some time to work that out. A shuttle will pick you and SW-3 up near the canyon. They have some drones on board. The exact number I don't know yet. Do you need to do something here?” Knight asked.

“No, I already have prepared everything. Just