John Ringo - Against the Tide

As he said it the pipes of the legion began to swirl and the battle hymn of the Blood Lords was roared from six thousand throats.

“Blood to our blood, General,” Lepheimer said, saluting. “We’ll get it done.”

“Breakfast for the general,” Cruz said, waving the tray in front of the two guards’ faces so they could smell it clearly.

“Secure room,” the left-hand guard said. “Nobody goes in.”

“Blast,” Cruz replied. “If I don’t get this to him quick I’m in trouble.” He held the tray out to the left-hand guard. “Hold this for me.”

“What?” the guard said, automatically taking it. As he did Cruz swung a roundhouse punch into his face with his right hand and followed it up with a left to the right-hand guard. What looked like light gloves against the morning cold had steel inserts and lead palms for weight. It still hurt.

“Good thing they changed the helmets,” Cruz muttered, shaking his hands to get feeling back in them. “Never could have done that with a barbute.”

He palmed a dagger, then slipped the latch on the soundproofed door.

The room beyond was about ten meters long and occupied mostly by a large conference table. Harry Chambers was standing at the far end, holding a long dagger in his hand. Elnora Sill was sitting in the end chair, facing the door. Her head was tipped back revealing the gash in her neck that went almost to her spine. General Lanzillo was on the floor with a dagger in his back.

“Good,” Cruz said, closing the door and bolting it from the inside. “You managed it. Have you contacted higher, yet?”

“What?” Harry said, reaching down and pulling the necklace that held Elnora’s key from around her neck. “No.”

“Do it, quick,” Cruz said, going over to the general. “Good thrust. Nice technique. In the future, though, do the kidney first. It paralyzes them.”

“Who are you?” Harry said, clearly flustered.

“Your backup ,” Cruz snapped. “You don’t think you’d be sent on a mission with no backup do you?”

“But I didn’t tell anyone…”

“What? You think we don’t watch you?” Cruz replied, shaking his head and going over to check Elnora. “Call Conner. We’ve got to get out of here.” He reached down to touch the councilwoman’s neck and then punched back, driving the dagger into Harry’s stomach then ripping down. He twisted it as he withdrew and then punched the Undersecretary For House Relations in the face, hard.

“Fucking traitor ,” he said, kicking the dagger out of the man’s nerveless fingers.

He picked up the key and turned to the door, opening it just as one of the response guards was running at it with his shoulder. The guard sprawled on the floor and then bounded back up, sword in hand, swearing at the bodies in the room.

“I am an agent of the UFS Counterintelligence Service,” Cruz said, arms outstretched, holding up the key in one hand and the dagger in the other. “This was an authorized termination…”

“Herzer,” Sheida said, appearing in the air as the major was getting ready to mount his wyvern.

“Your Majesty,” Herzer replied, startled. He slid back to the deck and bowed.

“No time , Herzer,” Sheida snapped. “Where’s Megan?”

“Here,” Megan said, stepping away from the mast where she’d been keeping out of the way.

“We need to talk, fast ,” Sheida said. “Somewhere secure. Where?”

Herzer thought about that and shrugged. “Landing platform. Wind’s from for’ard, it will carry our voices away.”

Herzer and Megan hurried up the companionway as Sheida wafted behind them. Captain Karcher bounded up to the landing platform and Sheida waved her hand.

“Make sure we’re not overheard,” Sheida said, calmly but definitely.

“Yes, Your Majesty,” Karcher said, bounding back down to the quarterdeck and clearing the rear. She took the wheel herself, the only position that might overhear.

“Elnora Sill is dead,” Sheida said, rapidly. “Assassinated. We retained her key, thank God. But someone has to activate the portals.”

“Oh,” Megan said. “A council member.”

“I’d go myself,” Sheida said, nodding, “but there would be… complications…”

“I’ll go, of course,” Megan said. “We have the two for the front here. If I have the authority?”

“You do,” Sheida replied. “I’ll port you to Raven’s Mill…”

“This is outside the blocks, Your Majesty,” Herzer pointed out.

“Damn!” Sheida snapped. “Damn, damn…”

“I wouldn’t have taken the port anyway, Your Majesty,” Megan said, softly. “I’ll go on Joanna.”

“Like hell you will!” Herzer said. “It’s going to be a madhouse!”

“There will be you, Joanna and Bast to protect me,” Megan said, defiantly. “And that is what I’m going to do.”

“Joanna can carry you to inside the blocks,” Sheida said. “From there you port to Raven’s Mill. That’s safer , Miss Travante.”

“Too bad,” Megan said. “I’m going.”

“No, you’re not ,” Herzer said.

“We don’t have time to argue,” Megan replied, smiling. “Get moving, Major.”

“She’s right,” Sheida said. “We don’t have time to argue. And Travantes are stubborn as the day is long.” She sighed and shook her head. “Get going, you two. Herzer… keep her alive.”

“I will, Your Majesty,” Herzer said, wishing he could be sure of it.

“Don’t worry,” Megan replied, sadly. “ I’ve got a personal protection field. You don’t.”

“Go,” Sheida said, vanishing.

“Not even a good luck,” Herzer groused, climbing back down to the maindeck. He grabbed Megan’s hand and they threaded their way through the cluster of crewmen who were arming the dragons. Taking her hand was a necessity as much as anything; the crews were highly drilled and moved in a synchronous fashion. Someone with no experience moving among them was as likely as not to be run over by a group carrying highly volatile bombs.

They made their way to Joanna, with Bast already seated on her neck, and Herzer picked Megan up, tossing her onto the dragon.

“New passenger, Commander,” Herzer said, angrily.

“What?” Joanna replied, turning her neck. “Why?”

“Change of plan,” Herzer said, running away through the organized chaos. “She’ll explain.”

“UP THE GEESE!” the archers shouted as the first flight of arrows sleeted into the orc formation.

Edmund was watching the progress of the battle from a platform at the rear of the legion lines. As expected, the New Destiny forces reacted poorly to the sudden appearance of the archers.

The legionnaires had been holding the line for nearly an hour, but they were taking relatively few losses while piling up a ton of bodies in front of them. The legionnaires were arranged in a checkerboard formation, rather than shield to shield, the first rank taking the brunt of the fighting, the second rank taking the few who made it past and the third only handling “leakers.” As he watched, the lines shifted and reformed, bringing forward the second rank to take up the battle while the front rank retired, in stages, to be the third. This was one of the secrets that made the legion so effective, the ability to continuously replace their front-ranked fighters with fresh troops and wear the front rank of their enemy down.