Chapter 37: S-21. Another Bug Hunt?!

As soon as Miette was suited up, and I had deposited my deactivated Doll body in a charging port in the hanger, she sealed my cockpit hatch and steered me towards the hanger’s airlock. 433 Eros’ Gravity Frame docking bays had liner accelerators build into either side of the bay; these weren’t as long or powerful as a carrier’s accelerators, but they still had enough oomph to get us going at a decent clip.

I was absolutely seething. My precious massage time with Miette had been rudely interrupted, and I was going to take my pound of flesh from the Sarcophage in revenge. When Laria convened a conference call with all the pilots, Zehra and the captain, everyone sensed my anger. My expression was intense.

“Sveta? Are you alright?” Laria asked gingerly.

“I’m fine, I’m fine! Those damned space monsters just interrupted something important, that’s all!” I said through clenched teeth. Everyone looked at me in confusion, but Laria seemed to catch on. I saw the light of recognition in her eyes.

“Well, please take your anger and direct it at the cruiser currently bearing down on us.” Laria said. “The sooner we destroy it, the sooner you can get back to your *ahem* important activities.”

She was trying to console me, and it helped me cool down a bit. I twisted my fury into determination. Miette was looking at me with a mixture of confusion and concern, and I resolved to keep an even temper.

Laria brought up a tactical plot. OPS-121 was currently taking potshots at the cruiser, but it was bearing down on us at an angle that would put the bulk of 433 Eros between itself and the Almaz station. The Sarcophage didn’t want a repeat of last time; they were specifically maneuvering into a position where they were shielded from the station by our own asteroid base.

The captain sounded worried. “In the last encounter, the Sarcophage kept their escorts close to their cruiser to ward off kinetic impacts. This time, they’re clearly maneuvering out of OPS-121’s line of fire. This is troubling. I’ve never known the enemy to adapt so quickly.”

The Sarcophage did change their tactics, and even manufactured new types of units specifically to counter human weapons. But those adaptations usually took place over months or years, much like an animal might slowly change its behavior in response to shifting external stimuli. Now they were adapting instantly to what we had done in the previous battle. It was something we had never seen from the Sarcophage before; indication of an intelligent tactical mind controlling their actions.

“Hmm. Is there any evidence of similar tactical thinking anywhere else on the Line, gao~n?” Zehra asked.

“Not from what I’ve seen. It’s only been observed here, at Eros.” the captain answered.

Zehra looked disturbed and started muttering to herself. “First a Beelzebub, now this… why are they so interested in us, gao~n? What are they after?”

The captain brought the discussion back on track. “Let’s leave the speculation until later. Because of the cruiser’s approach vector, the Radiolaria will be launching alongside our Frame squadron to provide artillery support. You will be following our modified anti-cruiser battle plan, but feel free to improvise once you have a clearer picture of the tactical situation. The Sarcophage are adapting their tactics, and we must too. We move out in 200 seconds.”

Zehra snapped her fingers. “Sveta, Sveta! I have a new weapon I’d like you to try out, gao~n!” She brought up a blueprint with a wave of her hand. “I call this an Impact Fin!”

I recognized the angular feather-shaped outline of a gravity fin. At the quill was attached a cylindrical battery pack, from which jutted five small reaction control fins at varying angles. It was a strange-looking weapon. “Ohh? What’s this for?” I asked curiously.

“I got the idea from your Sveta Maneuver! It’s basically a battery-powered drive fin you can remote control, gao~n. The operational time is limited to three minutes and it’s not as powerful or bulky as a Gravity Frame, so the force of the impact is lessened. But the lower mass means it can accelerate much faster and maneuver better than a Frame! Take these things and slam them into the enemy cruiser at high velocity, gao~n!”

As if on cue, a Construction Frame entered the hanger, holding a rack which stored six of the Impact Fins. It was designed to be mounted on the hardpoint between the drive fins on my back; after it was attached, I could fire the Impact Fins at will and guide them to smash into whatever I wanted.

Whoa. Fin Funnels? I’m getting my own Fin Funnels? I’ve transformed into the Nu Gundam! Of course they can’t fire beam blasts, but close enough!  The prospect of a shiny new weapon had cleared away the last of my anger from before.

As Miette knelt me down to allow the Construction Frame to attach the rack to my back, I thanked Zehra. “Wow, this is incredible! Thanks, mom!”

Zehra grinned and flashed me a thumbs up. “Smash them to pieces, gao~n!”

“Will do!” I saluted, grinning hugely.

Laria dismissed the briefing and we headed for the launch tubes. Miette seemed glad my mood had improved, but I was sure after the battle she’d be asking about my pissy behavior.

Oh well, it will be a good opportunity for me to follow through on that massage. Hurry up and die screaming, you Sarcophage monsters, so I can spend some quality alone time with my precious pilot!

At that thought, I wondered offhandedly if I was turning into a yandere.

*****

As our six Frames bore down on the cruiser, I got clearer readings from the LIDAR. As before, the escorts were sticking awfully close of the ship, probably wary of kinetic weapons. We’d have to thin out those escorts significantly before I could make good use of my new Impact Fins.

Something about the enemy LIDAR signature bugged me. I pulled up the image and displayed it to all the pilots. “Hey, everyone. Does this signature look funny to you?”

“Hmm, it does.” Maurice was the one with the most combat experience out of us all, and he recognized what I was talking about immediately. “The cloud of escorts looks more… splotchy than usual. As if the escort units are made from denser material.”

“Denser?” Miette asked. “What does that mean?”

“I’m not sure.” Maurice responded. “Be on your guard. This might be something we’ve never seen before.”

Ugh, today’s just full of terrible surprises! My foul mood from earlier threatened to return, and I focused on the tasks in front of me to ward it off.

I strained all my sensors, trying to get a better picture of what was going on. As the cruiser drew into visual range, I got my answer. I magnified the image and everyone stared at it in silent shock.

Sabina was the first to speak up. “What… are THOSE?!”

The cruiser’s escorts weren’t Spineballs or Clawteeth. They weren’t even the outdated Spiralvore units from early in the war. Instead they looked like miniature frame-class versions of the Beelzebub, albeit with more of a preying mantis body type. They had a long, thin insectile body sprouting gravity wings, with two scythe-arms and four smaller wriggly legs that seemed to be emitting gravity signatures of their own. If I had to guess, the blade-arms were for melee cutting and the legs were a Sarcophage equivalent of reaction control fins. Just like the Beelzebub, they had a mass of wriggling tentacles instead of mandibles, giving them a really creepy cosmic horror vibe.

“I’ve never seen those before.” Maurice said. “Sveta?”

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“No record exists of these creatures in the combat manuals.” I confirmed after a quick check of my databanks. “They are not any of the 48 Sarcophage species observed thus far. Based on their morphology, they seem most similar to the Beelzebub.”

“Miniature Beelzebubs? Let’s hope they’re not as tough to kill…” Sabina moaned.

I  continued my report. “Provisionally designating these new units ‘Bladebugs.’ They do not seem to possess projectile spines; they likely have no ranged capability.” The Sarcophage didn’t have charged particle or energy weapons, so their gravitationally propelled spines were their primary ranged attack. “The cruiser’s escort consists solely of twenty-six Bladebugs.”

“That’s damn peculiar.” Maurice mused. “Why would their escort consist of only melee units?”

“Based on the manuals, I speculate they’re planning on using the cruiser’s spines to provide cover fire when the situation permits.” I theorized.

“If that’s the case, is this a force deployment specifically designed to counter a squadron of Gravity Frames?” Miette asked.

“I… I think so. The Bladebugs are too small to damage a carrier much with their scythes. This formation seems like the Gravity Frame plus artillery tactics we use, relying on the escorts to thin out frame-class units and using the cruiser for ranged fire. If they take us out, the cruiser can bombard Radiolaria and Eros at its leisure.” I responded.

“That’s a disturbing thought. They’re adapting too damn quickly. Are they copying us?” Miette asked the dreaded question, and nobody had a response.

“Right. Well, let’s get our feet wet and see what they’re up to.” Maurice snapped everyone to attention. “Hexagonal-alpha formation by elements. We’ll start by lighting them up. Sveta, use the Impact Fins at your discretion. If anyone's position becomes untenable, form up with your element and retreat to waypoint beta. Weapons free in five seconds.”

Maurice and Miette were in element one, Sabina and Genevi in element two, and Alexis and Leonard in element three. Everyone tensed up, fingers on the trigger, as we silently counted down. I felt Miette gripping my controls tightly and tapping her finger impatiently against my firing switches.

When five seconds had elapsed, all six of our Frames let loose with both shoulder cannons and handheld rifles. A storm of positron fire surged towards the cruiser and its escorts. The Bladebugs, oddly, took no evasive action. As the positron blasts slammed into them, it became apparent why.

They were suffering no damage from our attack. Their exoskeletons shrugged off our weapons as easily as the Beelzebub’s had.

“Damn it! Elements, spiral approach pattern! Try to find a weak spot somewhere!” Maurice ordered. Everyone accelerated as we tried to aim our shots with precision.

Miette peppered one of the bugs with sustained fire, searching for a weak spot. After about fifteen seconds, the creature was suddenly bisected and spiraled out of control. The critical shot had hit it just below its head. “Aim for where the head joins the thorax! The exoskeleton is thinner there! It takes about three shots!” Miette shouted to the other pilots.

Sabina and Genevi each managed to take one Bladebug out with precision fire. Just then, ten of the creatures split off from the cruiser’s escort and accelerated directly towards us.

“Damn it! They’re fast!” I said, outlining the approaching units in red on everyone’s displays. “They have front-to-back acceleration of 22 Gs, and side-to-side of 17!” That kind of maneuverability outpaced our own Frames by a small margin. They were faster and tougher than us.

“Elements, split up by thirds! Keep them at a distance! Do NOT let them get in melee range!” Maurice ordered. It was a sound tactic; in a melee fight, the Bladebugs would be at a huge advantage. We’d have to score a precise plasma blade strike on their weak point to stop them, and they could chop us to pieces at any point with their blade-arms.

As we veered away from the creatures, we kept sniping at them. They dodged very well and it was difficult to land a hit. As they closed in, I realized we were being rapidly flanked by their superior numbers; we’d likely be within melee range in under fifteen seconds.

Just then, one of the creatures surged forwards at nearly 30Gs and dove straight towards Sabina’s Frame. With the element of surprise, it outmaneuvered her and sliced off her unit’s left arm. The severed arm was holding her positron rifle in a death grip, and both went flying. She quickly thrust backwards and spun towards the severed arm; she ignited the plasma blade on her remaining right arm and jabbed the positron rifle, causing it to start sparking and fizzling. She grabbed the severed arm, spinning around once and throwing it at the Bladebug. The arm whacked the bug in its tentacle face, and the attached rifle exploded a second later, vaporizing half of the creature.

Despite Sabina’s quick thinking, our tactical situation was deteriorating. The other Bladebugs were accelerating to 30Gs as well, trying to close in. We’d be chopped liver in a matter of seconds.

Damn! I was hoping to save our trump card for later, but this is looking bad!

With a brief warning to Miette, I quickly loosed all six Impact Fins and sent them careening towards the incoming swarm. The Bladebugs careened off in all directions to avoid my guided projectiles, abandoning their attack. However, my Impact Fins had a slight edge in maneuverability due to their power-to-weight ratio, and I managed to smash up two of them.

Hah! No matter how tough your armor is, you can’t escape Newton’s Second Law! Eat kinetic energy, you creepy space bugs!

The seven remaining Bladebugs regrouped, forming up once more. I used the opportunity to send my four remaining projectiles towards their formation, and they scattered to dodge once more. The pilots kept blasting away at them with positron fire, splashing two more with precision shots.

“Use the fire to hem them in!” I shouted. “I’ll take care of the rest!” The pilots obliged, directing suppressing fire in a cylinder around their formation to push them closer together.

As they accelerated towards us again through the gauntlet we created, I threaded my four remaining Impact Fins right down their throats. All four hit their marks, and one of the careening Bladebug corpses rammed into its sole remaining ally, destroying it as well.

With the enemy immediately in front of us gone, we all breathed a sigh of relief. “Sabina, are you alright?” Maurice asked.

“Yeah. Only the arm was damaged and the systems isolated the circuits in time. I’m missing my rifle but I can still fight.” Sabina declared. She was also missing the reaction control fin that had been attached to that arm, which would hamper her maneuverability; normally we’d direct a damaged unit to retreat, but the present circumstances didn’t allow for that.

Just then, the cruiser’s remaining thirteen escorts broke from their mothership and accelerated towards us. The cruiser opened up with spinefire as well.

“Ah… fuck.” Miette moaned.

“Damn. Were they waiting for us to exhaust our kinetic projectiles?” Maurice said through gritted teeth.

“There’s no way they could have known about them, right? It was a brand new weapon!” Miette asked, her voice uncertain.

Now we had thirteen more Bladebugs and one angry cruiser to deal with. One of our units was damaged, and I was fresh out of Impact Fins.

Oh shit. This is NOT gonna be pretty.

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