Chapter 34: Leave 'em Laughing

Chapter 34: Leave 'em Laughing

Slallm’s reaction to Paulie’s suggestion to strike it out into the great unknown of the surrounding industrial park was about as reactionary as Jakiikii had expected, the alien’s large frill-like skin folds erecting out in surprise or anger as he replied that they had no backup, no supplies and no secure lines of communication back to the complex.

Apparently there had been a powerful portable radio on the shuttle, but it had been damaged to uselessness in the heavy landing.

Paulie nodded. “So, that is exactly why we need to go and find a new connection. You are saying that there are no relays close enough to where we are now for our communicators to work?”

The smaller alien shook a boneless arm in frustration. “Yes, none. That is precisely why we need to stay put and await backup or a rescue.”

Paulie cocked his head, “And are we expecting backup or a rescue?”

That seemed to give the sillo’an pause. The man’s triangular jaws snapped shut and their three orange eyes blinked slowly. “Not as simply as such, no. But it is standard procedure to rescue downed soldiers in any protracted engagement if possible.” They seemed to be grasping at straws.

Paulie had to agree with the alien in principle at least. The smart move would certainly be to hunker in place, ward off any outside engagement and wait for a possible rescue. But given the amount of residual terrorist activity in the city still it was no guarantee the manpower could be spared for a full scale rescue operation. He wanted to think that Mack would have to pull to mount one, but then again he also needed to get into contact with the miriam senior detective to get information on their target anyway. Otherwise they could wander this endless maze for weeks and still not be able to find the gangster.

He just shrugged then asked, “Why can’t we get a signal to the city anyway? These things don’t have 4G?” The alien looked at him like he was a particularly insane bug that had learned to talk. Paulie reiterated, “What is the range of these things?” He shook his wrist, the commie device on it conspicuous.

Slallm seemed to understand. “Well, depending on the type and the local environment, they have a signal carrying range of only a few kilometers at ground level. Unfortunately we are surrounded by large obstructions, even were one of the medagoonian guards to fly up to the top of one of those towers they would not be likely to get an unobstructed signal back to the city. We are too far away and too deep in the shit for that to work.”

Paulie pursed his lips. After a moment he nodded. “Okay, well.. we need better cover and we also need to get back in communication with the city. The best way I see to do that while also still being able to accomplish the main mission objective is to go and find a working transmitter.” He paused. “I am not saying we run out into the open like idiots, of course we need to be tactical about it.”

Jakiikii, who had been standing slightly beside and behind him with Mursk, made a small noise. The conversation’s attention was turned her way. “I possess abilities in stealth and tracking that might be useful for scouting out a possible safe pathway forward.”

Paulie nodded and then pointed at the termaxxi woman behind him. “Yeah, she could do that with almost no risk to your soldiers. All we need to do is try and spot a likely position for one, the medagoonian scouts could probably spread out and try to spot a likely target in the vicinity. In fact, I was so confident in this plan that they were already dispatched to do exactly that.” He nodded smugly and crossed his arms.

Commander Slallm might have frowned, though with his unique facial structure it was a little hard to tell. “Well, you certainly seem to have thought it through at the very least. How will the scouts that you dispatched know where we are if they do not get back before we leave?”

It was a good question, and one that Mursk had already asked Paulie before the plan was set in motion. He smiled wide and tapped his communicator. “They have a set time limit, if they don’t spot anything in ten minutes they are to return immediately for new instructions.” Mursk made a small noise, a satisfied hiss as Paulie countered the PFD commander’s doubts. It was quiet enough that he barely heard it, the sillo’an in front of him did not so much as twitch an eye, it was unlikely he had even noticed it.

Slallm looked around, his dark, slit-like pupils looked back towards Jakiikii and he nodded. “I am familiar with that one's cloaking abilities. And your plan seems thought out, if a bit brash. But sometimes a bad situation requires bold action.” The alien’s mouth worked strangely, as if he were chewing his next words before he said them. He spoke carefully, “I will go along with this plan insofar as it yields a desirable outcome for the men under my command, but if things get too hot and advancing would result in the loss of those under my watch I will not hesitate to fall back into a defensive posture once again.”

Paulie put out a hand. “Sounds fair, you have a deal."

Commander Slallm looked at the offered hand and then at Paulie’s huge human frame as if weighing the disaster that taking it could bring. Finally he touched Paulie’s fingers in the same way the nerivith trooper had done earlier, making Paulie chuckle.

“Again, no handshakes for me I guess. Alright, the scouts have about fourteen minutes left on their runs, if not before then they will be arriving back around then. Not much time no matter the outcome, we should get ready to move.”

Paulie nodded towards Mursk and Jakiikii. “We have everything ready to go, how are the guard, Mursk?”

Mursk checked his wrist, tapping at the small display screen there with armoured digits for a second. “All are ready and accounted for with the exception of those sent out on scouting duty. And guardsman Guuigu, they are still treating the last injured. But they report they should be all ready to move in less time than is required.” They made a gesture with their hands to signal satisfaction, then a more complex series of motions whose meaning slipped past Paulie.

Jakiikii seemed to understand though and she spoke, “Well, I had better get moving too. I want to check the immediate perimeter around the side exit in case we are unable to slip back out through the front door. If I remember the last scouting report right, there is still a lot of movement outside, some small skirmishing seems to have broken out between rival factions over the control of the crash site.”

Paulie nodded slightly. It made sense, with the groups out in the industrial wastes looking for any advantage over their fellows, having the weapons of the downed sukk-sou as a ace in the hole would certainly make for an enticing honeypot to attract a swarm of attention. And attention was the last thing they needed at that moment.

He turned to Commander Slallm, the man was speaking rapidly into his communicator. Likely making plans and telling his men to assemble and prepare to move out soon. He noticed Paulie looking and stopped, “Yes, what is it?”

Paulie stepped a little closer, one hand wringing the edge of his coat subconsciously as he mentioned, “The sukk-sou. What are we going to do about it? Surely we cannot just leave it there for anyone to have?”

The alien’s face scrunched slightly as they made a low growling sound. “Yes, we can’t.” he seemed to muse over the issue for a moment longer then passed a hand over his head, orange eyes closing for the smallest moment as he did so.

His frill fluttered, yellows and greens and black patterns flashing briefly in his consternation. “We will scuttle it then. I will move the demo team out there now, set charges.” He paused then seemed to straighten on those three tripodal legs of his. “Oh, I have a nasty idea.”

Paulie saw the grizzled commander smile slightly. “What.”

Slallm moved his head a little side to side, “A little surprise. We will rig a long delay timer and a tamper-fuse. They will either go off twenty-two minutes after we leave..” he tapped his two hands together, the fingers curling into fists a second later. “Or as soon as anyone tries to get through the main hatch or side door.”

“Well, that would certainly be a surprise.

The alien nodded his head strangely. A bobbing, almost bird-like motion. “Kaboom.”

Paulie watched as he made a final mention of preparing his soldiers and then rushed off on that strange tree-legged gait. That left Paulie alone again with Mursk and Jakiikii. He blinked, not alone. There was another figure in the room.

“Oh, I didn’t see you come in.” He said to the nerivith man standing in the far entrance.

Trooper Eyme ducked his head, short black hair just visible under the sides of his standard-issue helmet. “Oh, I only just walked up. Commander Slallm directed me to assist you, he seemed to think you could use a sniper nearby. Seeing as how it worked so well the first time.” The man’s strangely calm and stoic demeanour from earlier was now gone. Replaced once again with the almost shy and timid nature so completely at odds with what he had been like in the moments leading up to the fight.

Paulie almost snorted. Battle trance indeed. Instead he just waved the man over. “Sure, glad to have you. Trooper Eyme right?” The man nodded his horned head, face flushing a pale lavender as he did so. “Okay, well.. we are making preparations to move the entire troop out into the industrial zone. Jakiikii is going to do some scouting with Mursk’s guards on overwatch. I want you to stay light on those elf feet of yours and keep your longbow handy.”

The alien cocked his head at the remark and Paulie just grinned. “What I mean to say is to keep your rifle ready. We might need your sharpshooting skills at a moment’s notice.”

Eyme nodded his horned head. “Yes, yes I am ready.”

“Good.” Paulie said flatly while checking his commie. Four minutes till the scouts were all due back. One had returned already after taking fire, remarking that the direction they had traveled was just far too hot for them to pass through safely.

It was what it was, there was no use arguing about the scenario, now was the time for bold action as Commander Slallm had stated earlier. Paulie gripped the handle of his weapon through the greatcoat he was wearing. A habit he had taken to in the weeks he had been living on the strange alien world of Gike. He lifted one foot, the gravity was still too light for him, but after all the time he had spent in it he was learning what he could and could not get away with.

He rolled his neck and then started walking towards the main exit of the small little adjoining cabin-like room they had been standing in. As he stepped through the rusting portal into the factory proper he was once again struck by the sheer scale of the mighty edifice that had surrounded them. He heard the feather-light footsteps of Eyme behind him but kept looking ahead.

He smiled, it almost reminded him of home. There was a factory district on the outskirts of his home town, he had gone there many times as a youth to marvel at the degradation of industry. The monoliths of concrete and steel that had laid dormant for decades by the time he had chanced to look upon them. No, these were much larger and had the feeling of being far older. An air of deep neglect and systemic rot, a sort of creepy sense of malaise like they were in a forbidden area. A place no longer fit for the tread of man.

He sighed and then chuckled at his own overactive imagination. He looked again and saw simple rusty walls and cracked mortar. Nothing but old metal and dust. No greater comic import, no dark ghosts of the past vying for their souls. Nothing but rot and red iron.