Chapter 50: Chapter 50

They say no plan survives contact with the enemy, but how badly the plans are fucked varies. In our case, it took stealthed Eversors to relay the information that a chunk of their supposed vanguard were actually prisoners with bomb collars on them, something our eyebots in the sky couldn’t tell.

Survival of the prisoners was added to our list of priorities for the coming fight, and so more effort was spent to prepare the battlefield. We chose to set up just outside the remains of a suburban neighbourhood, just because its surroundings were clear enough to allow a perfect net. Centurion sentry bots were moved via teleport beacons to serve as anchors at the flanks and rear of the raider horde. The Eversors would fill in the gaps and serve as silent hunters for any wannabe deserters.

As for our battleline? Other than the seven hastily symbols of power, I had my troops behind me along with Curie and a few Eversors. The Caladan 1st Platoon were all armored in the newly developed ‘Sardaukar’ power armor.

Each sleek, tacticool looking suit was adjustable to some degree, allowing the smaller teens to snugly fit into it, though the semi-fishbowl helmets being fixed size looked a bit odd on them. It also came with a modified Zetan force field, which could tank a lot of damage before the armor needed to do its job. Save for myself, everyone had our new white laser rifle and a blade.

This was supposed to be both a show of force and an official declaration of my state. The Nexus Severalty had a ring to it, and our observers adopted it quickly enough.

General Becker and his retinue was ferried over via Caladan to represent the Minutemen, standing nervously at a distance in the watchtower I built the night before. Gwen and her advisors were calmer, but understandably still a bit worried at having a horde of raiders so close to home. Deacon and Desdemona were also observers on behalf of the Railroad, which was unexpected because I expected them to reject the invitation and start hunkering down after I gave them the news.

The eyebots above had already cleared out the airspace of crows, so unfortunately the Institute couldn’t join us in this momentous occasion.

Standing on the Glossu, I watched as the slaves were sent forward. Now that I knew who they were, the plan to just incinerate the front line was replaced with waiting for them to get close enough. Thankfully for their sake, the raiders were moving at a slower pace, opening up a greater distance between both groups.

Once they cleared my three-sided pillars, I entered console mode and sent out the orders. Sentinels swarmed out from behind and over our heads like locusts, the high-pitched whines of their engines scratching at my brain a bit.

They swept above the panicked prisoners and then flew up into the sky, drawing fire from the raiders.

Then Mr Handy bots were sent out to free the prisoners from their collars and usher them behind our lines. I gave a stomp on Glossu’s main hatch, signalling Nat to start the tank before turning to my people. Do I need a speech?

…

Should’ve written one up last night. Ah well.

“We’re here to hunt down some raider scum,” I simply said through my helmet’s speakers. “Stay close to each other and don’t do anything stupid. Anyone stupid enough to get wounded gets sent to Diamond City for a month, anyone stupid enough to die deserves it.”

I joined in the choir of chuckles and giggles, then raised my beam gun up in the air to get everyone’s attention. “Citizens of the Nexus! Are you ready to exterminate?”

The chorus of eager affirmatives lit warm fire in my heart. These were my people, willing and happy subjects under my rule. They looked up to me and took pride in being a part of the Nexus Severalty. I promised myself once more to make sure to not disappoint them, disappoint my people.

I turned back to face the approaching raiders, now running towards our position and lowered my weapon.

“Dalek.”

The red-capped tips of the seven curved pillars glowed, giving off an audible hum as they grew to near-white intensity. And then as one, each Obelisk of Light discharged a beam of red light that swept the ranks of the incoming horde.

I already had a Mammoth Tank, why not balance things out with a few Obelisks, right?

Glossu growled as it moved forwards, and the small platoon followed along at an almost casual pace. Nat was in the tank along with Benji and Sasha, who both had the highest grades that beat even the vaulters'.

A fair reward, no?

The cloud of Sentinels in the sky dove down towards the rear of the raider mob. I heard the crackle of gun and laser fire echoing, saw some of it directed towards us. A few lucky rounds bounced off the shields of the troops, while missiles failed to leave a mark on the Obelisks.

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Glossu stopped once we got at a hundred yards from the panicked horde, and I let Nat do as she liked while I led the platoon forwards. The thunderclap of twin railguns stunned the raiders briefly as two rounds shredded through their ranks and detonated deep in their formation. I could see the Sentinels in the distance rise and fall like a starling cloud, pinpricks of explosions flashing underneath them occasionally.

“One vision! One purpose!” someone shouted, a call echoed by the others as they got into a firing stance. I let that line slip as a joke to myself when explaining the Obelisks to my people. It quickly stuck and became one of several slogans the teens eagerly used amongst themselves and, now it seems, as a battlecry. What's another slogan you ask?

“Peace through power!”

Yeah, let slip that line too… Gotta be more careful with my references now in public, these kids have good ears.

Then the kids opened fire, spitting white lances at their targets. My helmet’s HUD lit up as each weapon tagged its target to minimize redundant fire. I didn’t join in yet, this was more for the kids to vent anyway. I heard Tim and some others yell as they incinerated raider after raider, even Piper was screaming murder as she mowed down her helpless victims.

Return fire was ignored easily enough. Edward caught a missile that sent him and those nearby stumbling, but the shields did their job properly and they got up to return fire with a renewed fury.

Once the rangefinder hit fifty yards, I gave a needless wave of my hand. Curie and her pack of Eversors soared up on the jetpacks to dive into the shattering horde. Then the screaming really started. Amidst the red beams from the Obelisks of Light, the white beams from the platoon, Glossu’s air-burning railguns, the Sentinels at the rear tearing people down to their base components, and the Eversor’s carnage, I say we were doing a pretty good job of slaughtering our way through this.

“First squad, to me! Let’s gut ‘em!” Sylvie roared her orders and led her squad into a frenzied charge with their blades out. The poor raiders in their way didn’t stand a chance. I left them to their fun but I’ll still have to tell her off later though, no sense risking the chaos of melee when she still had a solid advantage from ranged pew pew.

Edward and his squad were happy enough to just sit back and steadily lay down a stream of death at the backs of the fleeing enemy. They were mostly running from us by now, through the ashes and bloody mist of their obliterated comrades. The few that stood to fight died just as effortlessly.

I watched Eversors leap from victim to unfortunate victim, pulling off kills that were worthy of Mortal Kombat fatalities. Curie, for example, tore off a man’s lower jaw and jammed the thing teeth-first into the rest of his face, before clawing into his throat and tearing downwards. An Eversor gored another raider with his horns, then lifted him up and yanked him by the legs, tearing them out even as he was shredded by the horns. A poor fuck in power armor was torn limb from limb, then had his chest piece stomped on hard enough that he burst like a flattened orange.

Nasty stuff, but they were raiders, and they were about to attack us. Preemptive violence is fair play, I say. Good thing console kept my sanity and stomach in check.

The thin columns of smoke from far away shooting up in the sky signalled the entrance of the other Eversors who were tasked in keeping the raiders from escaping. The muted energy discharges were the Centurions who mowed down anyone the Eversors missed.

As I kept up with the rest of the platoon, I noted the prisoners we’d be taking back. These lucky few gave the secret password after all. The secret password was to drop their weapons and raise their arms in the air while keeping still, with optional soiling of pants. The bots and troopers ignored them, and good for them that they remained whimpering in place as we continued past them. Some Mr Handys should be coming out now to process them.

*****

Colonels Marbury and Trevor were still puking over the tower’s rails as the hologram paired to the telescope provided a magnified and detailed view of the battle...no, slaughter. The rest of the Minutemen watched along with quiet horror like General Becker.

Sev’s show of force was overwhelming. His ‘obelisks’ dominated the view, their thick beams raking the ground and rendering anyone caught in it to a cloud of ash. Sev said he was ‘only’ able to build seven of them overnight.

Joe Becker shuddered to think of how many he’d see surrounding Sev’s borders. His Nexus Severalty would be nigh unassailable. And seeing his Eversor assaultrons at work, the general pitied any spies or saboteurs that would likely get caught.

Beside him, the mysterious duo of unknown allegiance took in the sight with equal paleness and horror as the Minutemen. Whoever they were, this was probably a message of sorts for them and their group. The remaining viewers were a group of vault dwellers who observed with quiet grimness, occasionally nodding amongst themselves. Supposedly they’d be joining the Nexus soon. Guess this was a good demonstration to tell them that they picked the right choice.

Joe wondered just how much could the Minutemen do if they took up Sev’s offer for full sponsorship. Supposedly, the militia would remain free and not answer to him, but being anchored by possible embargoes for pissing Sev off would easily shift any decision-making to the Nexus’ favor. At least Sev understood and was willing to just keep relations as is.

Everyone in the watchtower watched the slaughter drawn out to a sadistic thirty minutes before a chime from the hologram brought Sev’s casual declaration of victory in a bit of a sing-song tone.

“Mission completed. No injuries, minor damage to robots. All raiders accounted for. Prisoners taken: ninety four, until someone starts running. General Becker, you want any of them since they did kill some of Minutemen?”

There was an uncharacteristic pause and a sudden shift to seriousness in Sev’s voice. “Desdemona, Deacon. You might want to come down and see this.”

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