Behind the Lines: Ganog Wars Book 1 Read online

  The elite slashed at Nolan with his axe, which hummed through the air as it lashed out. The weapon had to be immensely heavy, but the Ganog swung it like it was plastic. Nolan hopped backward, using a slash from his plasma blade to knock the axe away. The Ganog reversed his blow, and this time Nolan was too slow. The weapon carved a fiery furrow in his mech's left arm, severing the end of the cannon.

  Diagnostics went red, and the weapon was flagged as inoperable. A quick glance showed that Hannan was still tussling with her opponent. T'kon had moved to engage the elites on the left flank, so at least Nolan didn't need to watch his back. He could focus on this opponent--which was a good thing, since he was getting his ass kicked.

  "Nolan, be wary," T'kon roared, delivering a wicked slash with his axe. It forced his opponent back, giving T'kon room to flank him. "Your opponent is Krekon himself. He is one of the most feared duelists in the Imperium."

  "Yeah, I kind of gathered that," Nolan yelled. He fell back a step, knocking away another blow. The mech was fast, but the Ganog was faster. Each blow came a little closer to landing, and it was all Nolan could do to keep Krekon off of him.

  "Is that you, T'kon?" Krekon roared, launching another slash that Nolan just barely parried. "I never thought I'd hear your voice again. I don't know how you arrived here, but I promise you I will take this treachery out on your clan. You think the Azi have suffered? When Takkar learns of this, he will burn your home world."

  Krekon never slowed, his gaze locked on Nolan as he taunted T'kon. Nolan was outmatched, and he knew it. He needed a way to even the odds, to put Krekon off balance.

  Yeah, that might work. Nolan grinned. Somehow Krekon understood English. He popped open the tubes to his missiles, engaging his mech's speakers. "Get clear, get clear."

  As he'd hoped, his opponent disengaged. Krekon dove behind a pillar, clearly anticipating the missiles' destructive force. Nolan fired two missiles at the base of the pillar, to Krekon's right. The detonation sent up a spray of shrapnel, but Krekon hid safely behind the pillar.

  Nolan circled left, slipping in behind the elite. The Ganog spun to face him, but too late. Nolan rammed the plasma blade at where he hoped a Ganog heart was. The blade pierced the armor, but Krekon rolled with the blow. He tumbled backward, blood flowing from the wound.

  "You are skilled, human," the Ganog growled, backpedaling. "More skilled than any I have faced from your world." He lanced out with his foot, knocking Nolan's arm out of alignment. Then he lunged with his axe, but Nolan fell back far enough to use the pillar as cover. The blow went wide, drawing a line of sparks as it skittered off the pillar. "Stay your attacks a moment, and I'll do the same."

  Nolan took the opportunity to risk a glance around the battle. Hannan had finished her target and was climbing to her feet. T'kon had finished both his opponents, and was circling back into the shadows.

  Only three Ganog were standing, including Krekon. No wonder he wanted to talk.

  "How do you speak our language?" Nolan called through the speakers. He directed a scan at the corner of the room where Edwards had disappeared. There was still an active power source under all that stone. That was a good sign.

  "I took your tongue from the human who led your 1st Fleet. After I delved into her mind, I feasted on her flesh. She was delicious," Krekon taunted. He stepped from behind the pillar, twirling his axe lightly in one hand.

  "You're losing, Krekon. You're playing for time," Nolan taunted back. "Why shouldn't we just wipe you out?"

  "What color is your honor, human?" Krekon called back. "I stopped the combat, because I want to kill you myself. Let us fight, just us. If you win, my men will take their own lives. If I win, your men do the same. Your pet Azi will attest to my word. Tell him, fallen one."

  "He speaks the truth," T'kon admitted. "If you do battle and win, his men will honor the arrangement."

  "Sure, let's do it," Nolan lied. He didn't care how this played out. If he lost, Hannan would finish the job. He keyed in text instructions for her, copying Annie on the transmission. "You've already killed one of my friends today. It's time for a little justice."

  Chapter 36- It's Over

  Sissus slowed his pace, dropping a bit farther behind his clutch of red-scales. They accepted him, and his leadership, without question--yet if they glimpsed his true scales, they'd turn on him without hesitation.

  "Move with care," he yelled. "They may already be entrenched." The warning was more for the humans than his own men.

  Red scales darted around the corner, and there was a flash of blue light. A Saurian body was flung back into his field of view, still smoking. Sissus smiled grimly.

  "Attack them, you ka'tok," he roared. His men ran around the corner, charging an entrenched position. It was a suicidal assault, with little risk to the defenders.

  Sissus withdrew a pair of pulse grenades. He tossed each at a knot of Saurian defenders. His men, focused as they were on the enemy, had no chance. The pair of explosions cut down the last real defense, and Sissus finished off the wounded with a few well-placed plasma shots.

  He trotted around the corner, willing his scales to change color. He raised his rifle in the air, walking slowly toward the glorious war machine. It was a little smaller than an elite, but the humans had shown them to be every bit as dangerous. Humans were close enough in size that it might be possible for a Saurian to use such a device.

  A female voice boomed from the speakers. "Yer one of the lizards the captain made friends with, right?"

  Two shadows detached from the wall, both humans. One was male, the other female. Both had strange reddish hair, suggesting they were from the same clutch.

  "Come quickly," Sissus called. He released his rifle with one hand, pointing back the way he'd come. "The battle rages. You must assist your captain, or Krekon will certainly slay him."

  Another explosion boomed above, and the walls shook. The thunder of crashing rock came from above. Sissus crept quickly back up and plastered himself to the wall at the corner, peeking around to size up the combat.

  Saurians could be deadly, and they could go places elites could or would not, yet wise Saurians survived by avoiding fights between giants. Fights like the one he now witnessed.

  Most of the elites were down, and the humans had only lost a single war machine. One of the mechs had squared off against Krekon, and seemed to be holding its own. The other mech was wrestling with Joko, one of the few close to Krekon's level of combat prowess.

  Joko dropped his shoulder, ramming it into the mech's midsection, a move that would have knocked the breath from a living foe. Armor crunched, but the mech pilot was unfazed, and rammed a crackling blue plasma blade through Joko's temple.

  T'kon had seized one of his opponent's blades, and was using the thick-bladed weapon to keep a pair of opponents at bay. At first, Sissus wondered why he wasn't pressing the attack, then realized that T'kon was slowly edging his way toward Krekon.

  That was hardly surprising. Sissus knew the role Krekon had played in T'kon's downfall. Ganog honor demanded that he retaliate.

  T'kon reversed his motion, lunging with the sword. It caught his opponent in the neck, parting armor and bone. T'kon released the blade, ramming his elbow into the second opponent's face.

  Sissus was impressed. The move toward Krekon had been a ruse. He turned his attention back to the battle between Krekon and the mech that he now guessed belonged to Captain Nolan. Krekon had backed off, and was talking with Nolan. Sissus was unsurprised. Nolan had stood far too long against him, and Krekon no doubt wished to savor the death of such an opponent. He'd want no interference, and a clean kill.

  The garage rumbled as the war machine from below pounded past Sissus, moving to join T'kon and the pilot who had killed Joko. That must be the tiny human female with the straw-colored hair.

  The copper-haired warriors came in the wake of the war machine. They trotted in Sissus's direction, taking up covered positions on either side. No accident, that. If he turned to eng
age one, the other could easily eliminate him. Sissus approved.

  He turned back to the duel, mildly surprised that Krekon hadn't executed Nolan yet.

  Krekon took the offensive, slashing at Nolan's mech with his broad axe. The mech blocked the weapon with its plasma blade, a shower of blue sparks illuminating the combatants. Krekon pressed the attack, driving the captain back. He launched blow after blow, and the mech frantically struggled to keep them from connecting.

  Sissus despaired. It was too much to expect a random line soldier in an alien army to overcome a victor in the Imperial Games. Krekon had won twice, and been invited nine times--more than any other warrior in a generation.

  The mech suddenly reversed momentum, stepping inside Krekon's reach. It rammed a metal shoulder into Krekon's chest, knocking him into a pillar. The mech wrapped its arms around Krekon, but Krekon managed to free an arm.

  He raised the axe, bringing it down in a wicked slash. The weapon slammed into the mech's head, shattering the visor and sinking deep into the chest.

  It was over.

  Chapter 37- Surprise

  A sharp, humming blade punched through the top of Nolan's mech. It stopped inches from his face, blocking his view of the screen. The internal lights went red, and a soft chiming echoed through the cockpit.

  Sweat trickled down his face, and his heart thundered. If Krekon moved the blade even a few inches, the cockpit would get a whole lot messier. He leaned back in the command couch, getting as far from the blade as possible.

  "Captain, we've lost--" Kay began

  "Not now," Nolan interrupted. He jerked his mech backward, releasing Krekon, and swung his right arm up blindly, knocking the Ganog away. Nolan groped for a moment, his hand settling around the haft of the axe still embedded in his mech.

  He wrenched it free, allowing him to see the screen again. "Oh crap."

  The damage was immense. A V shaped chunk was missing from his mech's head and chest, and the viewscreen had gone dark. He could see Krekon through the hole in his mech, and was painfully aware how easily the Ganog could ram an arm inside the mech and crush him to paste.

  Krekon launched a roundhouse kick. The blow caught Nolan's mech in the chest, and he was suddenly in free fall. He slammed into the ferrocrete, the force of the blow carrying him across the floor in a shower of sparks. Somehow he kept a grip on the axe.

  Nolan flipped into the air, landing in a crouch.

  "You've fought well, but it is time to die, human. I will see that your body is treated with honor." Krekon charged, leaping into the air. His back slammed into the ceiling, showering them with rust as he came down on Nolan's mech. They tumbled to the ground.

  "Kay, open tubes two through four, and fire," Nolan ordered, releasing the mech's control gauntlets. He leaned behind him, seizing the helmet from the netting where he'd left it. He slammed the helmet into place, sealing it with a hiss.

  "Tubes, open Captain. We've suffered--"

  "Halt all damage reports," Nolan ordered, seizing the control gauntlets. Football-sized fingertips seized the hole in the mech's chest. "Kay, fire. Now."

  Three missiles shot from Nolan's right shoulder into Krekon's side. The detonation sent out a wave of flame and debris that flung Nolan and Krekon apart. Fire filled the cockpit, washing harmlessly over his environmental armor. The heat leaked through his faceplate.

  Nolan rolled to his feet, circling warily as Krekon did the same. The elite approached cautiously, feinting toward him in an attempt to provoke a reaction. Nolan ignored the feint, waiting for Krekon to commit his whole body.

  He knew he was on the defensive. His visibility was now limited to seeing through the gap in his mech's chest. As alarming as looking directly at Krekon was, he was happy he couldn't see the damage indicators. The fact that his mech was still at all functional was a testament to Kathryn's incredible engineering.

  Krekon finally realized that Nolan wasn't trying to trick him, and he sprinted around to flank Nolan. Nolan lost sight of him, fighting to turn the mech quickly enough to see his opponent. Something slammed into his mech's back and he stumbled forward, then lashed out blindly behind him with the axe.

  The blow whistled harmlessly through the air.

  "I must commend you, Captain." Krekon's tone was all smugness. "I thought I had you, but you surprised me with those missiles. If my species were as frail as yours, I would be dead now."

  Nolan spun toward the voice. Krekon waited half a dozen meters away, hopping back and forth from foot to foot like a boxer.

  "May you escape the gaze of the Nameless Ones." Krekon juked to the left, then sprinted at Nolan.

  Nolan tossed the axe at Krekon, whose eyes widened slightly. Krekon's hand snapped up, plucking the weapon out of midair. He raised it high over his head, bringing it down in a tight arc toward the hole he'd already made.

  "I hope this works," Nolan breathed. He urged his mech forward, tackling Krekon in another bear hug. The move put him inside Krekon's reach, and the axe overshot his shoulder, hitting nothing. "Kay, override the firing controls on the particle cannon."

  "But Captain, if--"

  "I know, just do it," Nolan ordered. He rammed Krekon against a pillar, pinning him in place. Krekon had the arm with the axe free, which was the truly crappy part of this plan.

  That axe punched into the back of Nolan's mech, making a hole similar to the one in the chest. Nolan shrank down into the couch, the humming blade like a nest of angry wasps right behind his ear.

  "Cannon online, sir," Kay said.

  Nolan fired.

  The weapon was trapped between Krekon and the pillar. Since the end had been cut off, and the barrel damaged, there was no way for the weapon to fire properly. Instead, the cannon exploded. The force of the explosion created a wave of shrapnel and superheated particles, which had nowhere to go but through Krekon.

  Nolan leaned into the blow, keeping Krekon pinned against the remains of the pillar--not an easy feat in a mech that suddenly had one less arm.

  Krekon's eyes lost focus, and he coughed up a mouthful of blood. Nolan rammed the shattered remains of his mech's head into Krekon's face with a sickening crunch. Krekon's nose shattered. His face was a mass of blood.

  "Y-you are...quite surprising. Ask T'kon...to say the rites," Krekon whispered, each word weaker than the previous. His body went limp.

  Nolan dropped him, bending to pick up the axe as he stepped away.

  Everyone was staring, particularly the surviving Ganog elites. They eyed Nolan with horror, their mouths working as if they sought a way to blot out what they'd just witnessed.

  "Honor your word, Ganog," T'kon bellowed. "Krekon's body will be left with carrion, but yours will be treated with honor."

  The surviving elites dropped to their knees.

  T'kon turned toward Nolan. "Captain, normally it would fall to you to execute them."

  "I'm not sure my mech can even walk that far."

  "Very well." T'kon moved to stand behind the pair of elites. "Go into oblivion with placid minds. I will attend to your rites." He raised the sword he'd commandeered, and beheaded them with two swift strokes. Neither cried out.

  Nolan leaned back into his couch, closing his eyes. It had been a hell of a day so far.

  "Captain, reactor shielding has been damaged." Kay's voice warbled, the result of a damaged speaker. "I recommend shutting down. I hate to say it, but your mech is no longer viable in combat."

  "Noted. Eject your core, Kay. Let's rescue Edwards and get the hell out of here."

  Chapter 38- The Fate of Edwards

  Nolan climbed from the remains of his mech, dropping heavily to the ground several meters below. His armor absorbed the shock, but he still stumbled.

  Hannan had already exited her mech, and moved to support him. "Easy. I've got you sir."

  He started limping toward the caved in area of the garage where Edwards had gone down. "I'm fine. Get Lena and the Whalorian up here," he ordered, the exhaustion making his body hea
vier than it should have been. His vision was unfocused, and he struggled to bring it into clarity. He paused to lean against a pillar. "Burke, you around?"

  "You look like shit, Nolan." Burke came trotting over, Nuchik in tow. "Let's get that helmet off." Burke pulled Nolan's helmet over his head, peering first into one eye, then the other. "Yeah, I figured. You're fatigued from the planet's higher gravity. It's just exhaustion. You should be fine."

  "We don't have time for this. We're going to need to get out of here, ASAP. Sissus, I see you lurking back there. How long until they send another kill squad?" Nolan unzipped a pocket on the wrist of his suit, removing a pair of stims. He popped them, the pills instantly dissolving on his tongue. A wave of energy washed through him, though he knew just how temporary it would be--an hour, maybe?-- and then he'd have to deal with the exhaustion.

  Sissus hurried over, darting nervous glances at each of them. It couldn't be easy being surrounded by potential enemies. "It will take time. Krekon was one of our finest warriors, and his death will be very unexpected. His cruiser will set down nearby, and it will wait for his orders. They may wait hours before attempting to communicate with Krekon, as they cannot know the defiler's mind. He is harsh with failure, and may kill for being interrupted. That will work to our benefit. The warriors he left behind will be fearful. When they finally act, and do not get a response, they will be unsure how to proceed."

  "Won't they inform Fleet Command?" Nolan asked. The enemy's lack of protocol was baffling, but it didn't stop them from winning battles.

  "More likely the Fleet Commander will eventually summon them to answer for Krekon's absence, and may be...displeased regarding Krekon's death. The messenger doesn't always survive." Sissus blinked those slitted reptilian eyes, chilling Nolan.