Cooper met with her officers, platoon and squad leaders, briefing them on the EDF plan for the defense of the Mars Base. Her company was prepared for deployment when she started the briefing, and when the call came, they headed out at once across the unforgiving Martian landscape towards their predetermined line of defense. They trudged for over an hour, weighed down by their environmental suits, weapons and body armor, and each had a heavy pack with emergency equipment and supplies that was several generations beyond the ILBE and MOLLE systems.
The H.A.R.N.E.S. body armor or “Human Augmented Robotic Nano Exo-Skeleton,” was a sophisticated tactical defensive system. It incorporated a series of plates modelled after its medieval predecessor, designed to encase the entire body. However, each individual component plate was constructed of composite layers of diamondoid, aerogel and graphene. This combination of metamaterials was able to absorb and disperse both percussion and energy based weapons fire.
Along with the armor and its various innovations, each environmental suit had an insulated water bottle attached to the back of its belt, with a line than ran up inside the suit and into the helmet, where it terminated next to the wearer’s mouth. The bottles could be topped up externally, and this allowed the Marine to stay hydrated.
Cooper ordered her Marines to take up their positions, then had the entire company lay down to take a break. The battle ahead of them was going to be difficult, and they needed to conserve as much energy as possible. Many of them slept. Most did nothing more than stare up at the pale hue of the thin Martian atmosphere. Others pondered whether they would live to see tomorrow. All of them were determined to do whatever was necessary to defend their position as Colonel Chamberlain and his men had done. They would hold their own Little Round Top just as he and the original Twentieth Maine had held theirs on a similar hill so long ago, and so very, very far away.
The other companies continued to file in, taking up positions at their predetermined locations along the ridgeline. It took four hours before all of the Marine companies had arrived. The corps of engineers set up a parapet of large blocks made of metamaterial similar to the Marine’s body armor that would absorb particle beam and directed energy fire from enemy weapons, so they had a low wall of protection behind which they could crouch to receive the enemy assault.
The Mars Defense Force Armored Division rumbled in an hour after the Marine ground troops were in place, and positioned themselves along the line behind them. Cooper counted 20 tanks behind her men. She felt relieved they were there.
Following the MDF armor, the artillery company arrived and began setting up their field pieces. Not as many as the Marine companies would have liked, but welcome.
General Patrick was the last to arrive with his staff, and proceeded to review the line. He spoke with each company commander at length, discussing their deployment, offering suggestions and encouraging their men. He spent more time with Cooper than any other, discussing strategy, since her position was the primary target of the enemy forces, and holding it was crucial to the success of their defense. Then he spoke with the tank commanders and the artillery. Finally, he reviewed the placement of the shield generators, and walked no-man’s-land with the combat engineers to review the deployment of the mine field.
By the time he returned to the MDF line, an immense cloud of dust had formed on the eastern horizon.
They were coming.
“There’s definitely a lot of ‘em,” the first sergeant said as he walked up and stood beside Cooper. “Should I rouse everyone, Ma’am?”
“Not yet, First Sergeant,” Cooper replied as she surveyed the rising dust cloud through the transparent face shield of her helmet. Each H.A.R.N.E.S. helmet had an ARI, HUD-like display system on its face-shield much like the TR-3B’s VRI helmet, known as V.I.S.O.R. (Visual Interface System-Ocular Readout). Cooper focused her eye on the magnification icon, and whatever distant target she wanted to scrutinize zoomed into closer view. A scale beside the icon allowed her to magnify as large as desired.
“It’s going to take them several hours before they’re finally in range. Let the men get as much rest as possible. They’re gonna need it.”
Cooper and her first sergeant turned and watched as a squadron of ISR drones was launched. They flew up and over the MDF line, towards the advancing enemy troops. The drones cloaked themselves as they spread out to cover the entire enemy force, providing telemetry on their organization and movement.
An hour later, the dust cloud was much closer, and the MDF shields startled the Marine troops when, without warning, they activated with a loud crack, followed by a low hum. There were 40 generators along the line, each one in turn having a shield of its own. All were situated behind large, specially constructed, protective, three-sided panels that, like the parapet, were designed to absorb enemy fire. The larger generators, 15 in all, also had a cloaking system as an additional precaution. If by some chance the shield grid was penetrated by enemy fire, it was imperative that the generators were a difficult target. If a generator was destroyed, a hole would be created in the shield matrix through which enemy fire could pour.
“Keep in mind, Major, that these shields are designed to stop weapons fire,” General Patrick said as he approached to stand beside Cooper. “They’re not designed to stop personnel, including snakeheads. If those scaly monsters reach your position, they can push their way through. I’m told it’s not a pleasant experience–you might come out the other side without your ears. I don’t think the snakeheads have any ears, so they won’t be worried about that.”
“Well Sir, I can speak from experience that they don’t have ears. But they breathe. And we can sure stop them from doing that.”
Patrick switched to a private comm channel as he turned to peer at Cooper through their face shields. “I wish your father could see you, today. He’d be so proud.”
Cooper smiled. “I’d like to think so.”
“Count on it,” Patrick said as he smiled back. “I want you to know I didn’t give you this post because you’re Greg’s daughter. I did it because you earned it, because you’re the obvious choice.”
“Thank you, Sir.”
They stared at each other for a moment through their face shields.
“Alright, Major,” the General replied. “I’m gonna keep a close eye on you.” He jabbed his finger at her as he spoke, then smiled and turned to walk back to his command post at the center of the MDF line. Cooper spun around to check the progress of the enemy’s approach, adjusting the magnification on her V.I.S.O.R. as she gazed east.
“Alright, Lieutenant Philips! First Sergeant!” she shouted into the comm. She closed the magnification display as she issued her order. “Get the men up and have them prepare to receive the enemy!
“It’s time to dance with the devil!”
Cooper elbowed her way to the parapet to join her men on the front line. Her father had taught her that it was impossible to lead men from the rear–a lesson she literally took to heart as she pulled her FX-15 off her shoulder and switched to the ISR drone readout as line after line of enemy armor approached their position, followed by ranks of reptilian foot-soldiers, using the tanks as cover for their advance.
Then to everyone’s surprise, a group of three dozen Marines crawled over the low parapet, laid their weapons on top of it and walked out to stand just behind the MDF shield canopy. They were a contingent of Australians which included several women, serving with the Marine company stationed onboard Ironclad. The group lined up in two rows, drew their Marine issue machetes and combat knives, then proceeded to perform the “Haka,” the war dance of the Māori.
For ten minutes they danced, shouting inside their H.A.R.N.E.S. helmets so loud they could be heard by their comrades on the other side of the parapet without the use of comms. When they finished, the group turned, rolled back over the parapet and took their place among their fellow Marines.
After the Australians display, the entire line of EDF Marines remained silent, waiting.
A series of flashes appeared behind the multitudes of enemy ground troops. A barrage of brilliant starbursts rose slowly into the air and arched across the sky toward them. It was the enemy artillery’s opening salvo.
“Incomingggg!” the first sergeant’s deep, sonorous voice boomed over the comm.
All along the MDF line, every Marine braced for impact. As the rounds reached their apogee, the MDF tanks opened fire. More than half of the enemy mortars exploded over their heads, struck by particle beams. The remainder dropped with a deafening hiss to strike the MDF shields. The shield canopy was illuminated with brilliant flashes as each enemy round hit, and the ground shook with violence at each impact. Cooper felt her teeth crack with each strike, and she dropped her head to avoid the bright flash of each detonation.
“Shields are holding!” someone shouted over the comm.
Cooper looked up to see another salvo rise in a deadly arc and screech toward their position. I don’t think Chamberlain and the Twentieth Maine had to contend with artillery, she thought to herself.
The enemy armor opened fire on them. Once again, the electromagnetic wall flashed as beam after beam of directed energy struck and dissipated not 20 feet in front of them.
“Put on your sunglasses!” Cooper shouted to her Marines as she focused on the appropriate icon on her V.I.S.O.R., and a darkened protective screen emerged over her face shield. Everyone complied, as the remnant of the second artillery salvo not eliminated by the MDF armor struck the shields and shook the ground once more.
Then the MDF tanks opened fire on their enemy, who, to the surprise of the defenders, seemed to absorb their fire.
A third wave of enemy artillery rounds arced through the air, and the MDF tanks redirected their fire to arrest the lethal salvo. This time, they destroyed almost all of the artillery rounds before they struck the MDF shield canopy. The enemy tanks continued to pour fire on the human’s position, when the MDF artillery opened fire in response. A cheer rose from the Marine’s ranks as their own starbursts began landing on snakehead tank and trooper. Tanks hit by artillery and particle beam together began to ignite in deafening explosions, their shields unable to withstand the double assault. Fragments tore through the ground troops behind them with lethal effect.
At last the enemy tanks stopped their approach 200 yards from the MDF ridge. The reptilian troops began to file between the tanks and continue to approach the Marine position. Thousands poured through the gaps between the armor.
“Marines! Open fire!” General Patrick shouted over the comm.
Six thousand MDF rifles sprang to life and poured fire into the approaching mass of lacertilian combatants. Another barrage of snakehead artillery streaked across the sky towards them as the enemy armor continued to shoot over the reptilian soldiers heads.
General Patrick’s assessment was incorrect. The reptilian force did in fact have shields. Each tank was protected by its own shield canopy, and the reptilian foot-soldiers wore no clothing, no environmental suits to protect them from the harsh Martian climate, and no body armor. All they wore was a form of respirator on their snouts that enabled them to breathe, connected to an oxygen generator strapped to their backs. However, aside from their weapons, their only other accoutrement was a square device on their chests that appeared to be some form of personal shield. As a result, it took multiple hits from numerous FX-15s firing at once to bring one of them down. This meant the Marines’ rifles were expending a far greater amount of energy. As a result, they drained the power packs on their weapons much more quickly than they had anticipated. Instead of lasting an expected three hours, their power packs were exhausted within 30 to 40 minutes.
The Marines’ initial salvo stopped the enemy troops advance. However, they began to absorb the fire, and with slow deliberation, started to move forward once more.
Cooper and her company, along with the entire Mars Defense Force line, continued to pour fire into the enemy ranks, but it was soon apparent it wasn’t going to be sufficient. The MDF armor was busy neutralizing the enemy artillery, while at the same time targeting the snakehead’s tanks when they could, but they were grossly outnumbered. From time to time they would release a scorching salvo at the slowly advancing troops and stop their push forward, but when they would return to dealing with the artillery and armor, the reptilian ranks would resume their measured approach.
General Patrick was right about one thing, however. It became clear that the bulk of them were moving towards Cooper’s position. It was an obvious bottleneck, but the sheer numbers of enemy soldiers were all attempting to push their way up Little Round Top. Cooper and her Marines were struggling to halt their advance.
One thing that did offer some small assistance was the mass of reptilian bodies that were starting to accumulate at the foot of the rise. The enemy troops were beginning to have to crawl over their fallen comrades, making their progress up the hill to Cooper’s position more difficult, especially with the increasing press of troops who were all attempting to funnel up to engage the “Twentieth Maine.”
This is gonna be a long day, Cooper thought to herself as she continued a frantic rate of fire against the approaching enemy troops.