Battle Earth IX (18 page)

He went silent as they continued on their path and hoped.

"You know how hot it is in here? Goddamn sauna," Taylor complained.

"Yeah, can't say the compressors work too well. We got air, but that's about it."

"You really did find a piece of junk this time."

An uncomfortable silence crept in once more, and Taylor could see even Rains was starting to worry a little.

This is going on too long,
Taylor thought.

"If he tries to contact us, you ignore him, you hear? Pretend our comms unit is down."

"Well, it is," replied Eddie.

Taylor grimaced. "That figures."

"What's wrong with talking to them?" Robinson asked.

"Two Brits and two Americans trying to cross over the border into Germany, the key member of the UEN, how d'you think that would go down?" responded Taylor.

"It's okay. He's moving on!" Eddie yelled jubilantly.

Taylor signed in relief.

"All right, then you know where to go. Keep a steady pace, and don't draw any more attention than we need to."

"How many men does Kelly have, Sir?"

"Not entirely sure, Robinson."

"And their loyalties?"

Taylor shook his head. "Officially, Ramstein was still US soil, despite it being allocated to the Moon colonists, but I can guarantee it will have been annexed by Germany early on in this war."

"So, who knows what state we'll find them in?"

"Kelly is our only hope now, so I'm willing to take that chance."

The sun was going down, a fact Taylor was glad of as they approached Ramstein.

"That's it," Rains said, pointing to a set of landing lights and marked landing zones. The lights of a main street were also lit up, as well as several other residential roads nearby.
 
"What do you want me to do?"

"Put down as if it were any other day. We aren't trying to hide anything."

"Aside from our weapons, our intentions, or our mission?" he asked.

"Just do it."

"They're not even in blackout, Sir," Robinson said.

"Why would they be? They've got nothing to fear."

The area was quiet, and they could see no sign of a military presence. Rains brought the copter down to a perfect and smooth landing.

"What now?"

"We roll into town. We're just civilian refugees from France who aren't looking for any trouble.

"We don't exactly sound very French," Lewis replied.

"No, we are reporters working out of Paris. At least Eddie looks the part."

"Yeah thanks," he replied.

Taylor once more heaved the door with his own body. He'd gotten so used to living in the Reitech suit that it felt bizarre to have to use so much of his own bodily strength for common actions.

"Going into hostile lands without our gear, without intel, and without backup, I don't like this."

Taylor nodded. "I know, just follow my lead, Robinson."

There was no one there to greet them at the landing port. Fifty metres away, they could see a guard station and a few local officers hanging out inside, but they paid them little attention.

"You see," said Taylor, "We're just a few guys rolling into town."

"Whatever you say, boss."

Taylor led them on towards the main street. Everything around them was new, not a building more than three years old. The structures were simple and mostly concrete. Bright colourful lights scattered about every building made a poor attempt at livening the place up. There was no grass, no trees. It was a concrete hell.

"Hell of a place to live," whispered Lewis.

"Walk in the park after living on the Moon," Rains joined in.

"It's true. Those colonists who established the Lunar colony, and their children after them, are people with simple tastes. They wanted to pioneer a new simpler way of life after all the complexities of Earth. Or that's how Kelly once explained it to me," added Taylor.

"And here they are, slap bang on Earth in the middle of it all," Rains said.

In a hundred metres to the main street, they only saw two people who were on the far side of the road. Taylor put it down to the weather, as it was certainly chilled.

"Got a plan here?"

"Kelly invited me here many times between the wars, Eddie. Every time I was too busy or working, or that's what I told him. Now here I am wishing I had come visiting. Then we'd know where the hell he was. As it is, we'll find the most popular bar in town. I'd bet good money we'll find him there."

"Can't be many bars round here. Population’s probably no more than a thousand or two."

The road branched out into a thoroughfare, and groups of teenagers were scattered about drinking and talking amongst themselves. Taylor and the others stopped and could not help but staring. It was as if life was going on like nothing had ever happened. Taylor surveyed the rest of the scene. There were three bars about the centre of the town.

"All right, so which is it?" Rains asked.

"We'll hit the nearest one and work from there."

They strode into an establishment called The Moon Dweller.

"Subtle," muttered Rains.

"More than you are," Taylor grinned.

They stepped in to find it half full, and utterly alien to them. The concrete theme of the street continued into the establishment itself. Even the bar was cast from concrete and part of the structure itself. Stools and tables were made of minimalist metal design, and a lack of decor hardly made for a welcome appearance. The light was fairly low and casting long shadows.

Most patrons turned to face the newcomers with suspicion, all but a pair of soldiers sitting at the bar. It did not go unnoticed by Taylor. It was clear to him the soldiers were not locals, for they could not recognise residents over strangers. A tune played in the background that sounded like artificial electronically created garbage to Taylor, and it made his brain hurt.

"What can I get you?"

Taylor looked to the bar, and a middle-aged man behind it greeted them with a smile, though he did not recognise him.

"I'll take four of whatever you recommend."

"Hey, we ain't got time for this," whispered Rains.

"We don't have a choice. You see those two soldiers over there. Look a little closer. They're UEN."

Rains shot a quick glance over and was shocked he hadn't noticed before.

"Right then, so what do we do?"

"Play it cool, Eddie."

He looked back to the others. You call me John, okay?"

They nodded in agreement as they reached the bar, and the barman began passing over the first two drinks. They were served in tall thin glasses and were a vibrant blood red, almost metallic. A metal stone of some kind sat in the bottom of the glass, and the beverage was warm to the touch.

"Redrock. Invented and brewed by the first of the Moon colonists, and popular ever since," added the barman with a smile. He passed over the other two drinks, and then put a credit chip scanner on the top beside them with their bill. Taylor reached into his pocket to pay but stopped, realising he could not use his name for anything. He looked to Eddie.

"Your time to pay, my friend."

Eddie sighed, and it was not at all put on. He pulled out his card and held it up before the scanner.

"I thank you kindly... Edmund Rains, how do I know that name?"

"Eddie Rains?" a voice called out.

Oh shit,
Taylor thought.

They turned around. A man with a smile on his face was approaching. Taylor instantly recognised him as Doyle, one of the MDF soldiers he had fought alongside years earlier. He turned away and tried to hide his face.

"Rains, you're the man who flew food and ammo to us in our darkest days. I never got to meet you in person. You did good by us!"

He reached out his hand and shook it but stopped when he noticed Taylor trying to hide his face behind Lewis. Doyle stopped and had to make a second take. "Taylor?" he whispered. He leaned in closer, "What the hell are you doing here? You can't be here."

Taylor turned and faced the man, knowing he could no longer hide.

"Good to see you, too, Doyle."

"I don't think you understand, Sir..."

Taylor interrupted him before he could continue.

"I get it. I'm in UEN territory. I know. But are you not neutral?"

Doyle shook his head. "MDF signed up with the UEN when all this began, but once the EA broke away, Kelly told them where to stick it, and we've been disbanded."

"So you're being kept prisoner in your own town?"

Doyle nodded. "Pretty much."

"And Kelly?"

"Under house arrest. He caused some trouble early on, and now he's under constant watch."

"I knew it was a waste of time coming here," Rains muttered.

"Excuse me!" an authoritative voice called out in a German accent.

Their conversation immediately halted, and they turned to see the two UEN soldiers standing a few metres away in a clear attempt to confront the newcomers.

"They're with us, old friends," said Doyle.

The man who had spoken was a corporal; he stood tall and proud, with a square jaw and a formidably strong build.

"We'll be the judge of that," he replied, "Let's see your ID cards."

"We're just passing through. We aren't here to cause any trouble."

"ID cards now!" yelled the Corporal.

Taylor could already see there was no chance of talking their way out of it. He looked around the room at the antipathy and hatred towards the soldiers from most of those in the room. He recognised a few faces, and he could tell as he presented his face to them, many recognised him, too. He smiled, seeing he had the support of the room.

"Well, no problem, Corporal," he replied.

He was deliberately over friendly as to try and have the Corporal relax. He took a few paces closer, drew out his card from his pocket, and handed it to the Corporal. The man pulled out an e-reader from his chest pocket but stopped just before he scanned the card, looking at the name on it. He looked up just in time to see Taylor's fist connect with his nose.

To Taylor's horror the impact barely moved the Corporal’s face, and he quickly returned a punch of his own that felt like a freight train. Taylor was knocked back, and he sprawled over against the counter of the bar. He got back up and shook it off.

Damn!

The giant German rushed towards him in an opposing fashion. He stood a good bit taller than Taylor and looked more like a bodybuilder than a soldier. The exact moment he reached Taylor, a bar stool seemed to come out of nowhere in the hands of Robinson. It smashed into the man and broke his nose. He stumbled back unceremoniously. As he did, Lewis jumped towards him, kicked his kneecap out, and then struck down on his collarbone to drive him down further.

Despite the pain, the German got back up and drove a heavy uppercut into Lewis' stomach and another to his face that forced him back towards Taylor. He had now righted himself. The German Corporal reached for his sidearm, and that was all the indication Taylor needed. He ripped his pistol from his holster and fired a quick shot that struck almost dead centre between the man's eyes. The Reitech round went right through and hit a wall the far side of the room.

The man dropped dead like a stone, and Taylor quickly took aim at the second as he reached for his pistol. He stopped and froze.

"Don't even think about it!" Taylor shouted.

Rains was quick to slip past the man and grab his pistol from him. They looked around. At first the crowd in the bar ground didn't appear to know what to think until Doyle finally began to clap and cheer. The rest then joined in. He looked over to the two Brits who had leapt to his aid.