Fight to the Death

"Ratatatat…"

As soon as he saw his comrade fall, Ryan and the surrounding mobile infantry instinctively turned their guns toward the massive armored bug. Their electromagnetic rifles spat tongues of fire, a steel torrent of bullets crashing against the insect's body, forcing it to retreat and halting its rampage.

"Hiss… ROAR!"

The giant bug let out an unwilling roar. Despite its tough exoskeleton and immense strength, it was no match for dozens of blazing gun barrels. Under the relentless assault, it was torn limb from limb by the bullets, a brutal yet just retribution for their fallen comrade.

"Watch the flanks! Charge!" Sergeant Ralph bellowed. They were now completely surrounded by the swarm. Staying put meant certain death. Their only hope lay in breaking through to the monstrous behemoth ahead and marking it for the incoming bomber squadron.

What would happen after that wasn't something Ralph, or any of the soldiers including Ryan, cared to think about. Even if they succeeded in marking the target and the bombers hit it, making it back through the thousands-strong insect horde to High Ground Z3 was nearly impossible.

"Ratatatatata…"

The electromagnetic rifles thundered nonstop as Ryan and his unit charged forward. With every step, another soldier fell. By the time the massive beast's thick limbs came into view, only five soldiers remained in the second company—Ryan, Ralph, and three other mobile infantry.

Before the mission, the second company had over 130 men. Only about 60 or 70 made it to Z3. Now, that number had dwindled to just five, including Ralph.

"Move! To that cliff on the left!" Ralph quickly surveyed the battlefield. The rocky cliff couldn't be tunneled through by the giant bugs. If they reached it, they'd only need to defend the front—no worries about attacks from behind.

"Yes, sir!" Ryan and the others responded, following Ralph across the battlefield at top speed.

Though the three remaining infantrymen had been rookies before the operation, the battlefield had been their grim tutor. Anyone still alive by now had been personally vetted by Death—they were veterans, through and through.

Thirty seconds later, they reached the base of the cliff.

"You three, set up defenses with me. Ryan, take the laser designator!" Ralph barked out orders.

"Yes, sir!" The three used their powered exosuits to quickly erect a makeshift barricade. It wasn't much, but it was better than nothing.

Ryan took the laser designator from Ralph. This wasn't his first time operating one—he'd marked targets for airstrikes before. That experience was why Ralph entrusted him with their most critical task.

"Click-click-click…" Ryan's fingers danced over the controls. In moments, the designator was calibrated and locked on the beast in the distance.

"Target locked! Transmitting signal!" Ryan shouted over the noise.

"Good!" Ralph had already ditched his uniform jacket. Shirtless, muscles taut, he hefted a man-portable energy cannon and fired into the swarm.

"BOOM-BOOM-BOOM!"

The cannon's heavy blasts suppressed the bugs, giving Ryan's team some breathing room. The other three infantry opened fire as well, picking off anything that slipped through Ralph's barrage.

"How's it going?!" Ralph roared. The energy cannon had limited power. Even as tough as he was, carrying the cannon alone was a feat—there was no way he could lug around extra power cells.

"Still transmitting! That black fog seems to be interfering with the signal!" Ryan shouted back. On a battlefield this chaotic, shouting was the only way to communicate.

"Hurry it up! I'm almost out!" Ralph yelled again. Truth was, they were all nearly out of ammo.

"Ratatatat… BOOM…"

Gunfire and explosions merged into a deafening wall of sound. The swarm was closing in fast. Ryan didn't even glance up—he had put his life in the hands of his comrades, trusting them to watch his back while he focused on his task. That's what trust looked like on the battlefield.

"Done!" Ryan suddenly shouted with excitement.

"Hell yeah! Tell air support to nuke these motherfuckers!" Ralph laughed.

Whoosh!

Thud!

Out of nowhere, a spike shot through the air and drove straight into Ralph's chest.

"Ugh…" Ralph looked down. The spike had pierced deep into him, and green fluid oozed around the wound.

"Ryan, hold the line!" Ralph gritted his teeth. His sheer physical toughness was the only thing keeping him on his feet.

"Yes, sir!" Ryan rolled over and took Ralph's place, grabbing the energy cannon and unleashing fire upon the swarm. The designator was locked now—it no longer needed an operator.

"BOOM BOOM BOOM…"

The cannon roared in Ryan's hands. Normally, a regular soldier wouldn't be able to wield such a heavy weapon—but Ryan had a cybernetic arm. It wasn't agile, but it was strong. Strong enough to lift and fire the beast of a cannon one-handed.

Bang! A single gunshot rang out behind Ryan. He didn't need to look—he knew Ralph had pulled his sidearm and ended it on his own terms.

"Kill them all!" Ryan and the remaining three were now fully consumed by rage. None of them expected to survive. Their only goal was to protect the designator until the airstrike hit. After that? Kill as many bugs as they could, and drag them down to hell too.

Thirty seconds later, the unmistakable roar of aircraft engines filled the sky.

Whoosh… The scream of a falling bomb tore through the air—the bombers were dropping payloads.

"Get down!" Ryan shouted instinctively. They were too close to the beast. A blast from the super-heavy ordnance could easily hit them too.

But the other three didn't move. They kept firing, gunning down bugs with grim determination. They all knew—even if they weren't caught in the blast, they wouldn't make it out. So why hide? Better to go down fighting.