Wizard Cadet (Intergalactic Wizard Scout Chronicles Book 2) Page 20

  The young girl said nothing. She hooked the holster to her belt. Then she pulled the magazine and checked the energy readings on the cartridges. They registered full. She put the magazine back in the Deloris blaster and made sure the blaster’s safety was on. Richard had to admit, she looked competent.

  “I’ll be back as soon as I can,” Richard promised. Then he took off in the direction of the ruins.

  * * *

  Richard ran quickly through the grass and scrub brush as he made his way to the valley floor. As he ran, the sky got increasingly darker. He tried to follow the green path his battle computer had marked for him on his heads-up display as much as he could. Occasionally, he deviated to one side or the other. Nickelo’s idea of a good path was not always the same as his. Nickelo thought like a computer for obvious reasons, while Richard thought like a human.

  You’re deviating from the path I marked, Rick, said Nickelo.

  I know, Nick, Richard said. But, I don’t know what we’re up against. If it’s a group of unthinking undead, that’s one thing. If it was a group of marines, and I was in charge, I would put a stay-behind-ambush in that corpse of trees to the right. I wouldn’t want to leave my rear exposed.

  That doesn’t seem like a very logical place to put an ambush, Rick.

  I know, Nick. That’s why I’d put it there. They might think illogically like me, so I’m just being careful.

  Well, said Nickelo, whatever they are, they have pretty good stealth shields. I can’t tell anything definite about them. We could probably penetrate one of the shields with an active scan, but I don’t want to risk it.

  It’s also risky going up against the unknown, Richard said as he veered back to the right to return to Nickelo’s path.

  True, Nickelo said. But, they don’t know you’re here either. I’d say there is a seventy-two percent chance there is a skilled magic user or demon in each of the groups. We’re pressed for time, so any scan we made might be a little sloppy. They’d have a good chance of sensing your scan. Besides, if we get in a fight, and it definitely looks like we will, you’ll need every drop of Power you can get.

  I hear you, Nick, Richard said. How far out are we from the largest group?

  One point six kilometers, Rick, said Nickelo. I’d advise switching to your best stealth shield now. We’re getting close enough that something might penetrate your lowest-level shield.

  Richard dutifully switched his stealth shields the way the instructors at the Academy had taught him. He put up his best shield before he shut down his lower shield.

  Power, Nick?

  Eighty-seven percent, Richard, said Nickelo. That’s actually pretty good, but don’t waste any. We may have more than one fight before this battle is over. Try to use technology whenever you can to save your Power reserve.

  I heard you the first time, Nick, Richard said. And, I’ll try. But the enemy doesn’t always cooperate with me. By the way, I’m still only picking up the two gnomes with my passive scan. Ask Brachia if he can tell what’s happening from the drone.

  He says the gnomes must be getting suspicious. They have left their fire and moved further into the rubble of the ruins. He thinks they are seeking cover.

  How close are the blobs?

  According to Brachia, the larger group is five hundred meters from the gnomes. The smaller group is only three hundred meters away. From what I can make out of the video feed, both groups are still bunched tight. I’d say whoever is creating the stealth shields is limited by distance. Whatever creatures are being camouflaged by the stealth shields can’t spread out yet. That’s an advantage for us.

  I didn’t think stealth shields could make things invisible to normal vision, Richard said.

  Yours can’t, said Nickelo. But, from the information in my databanks, some magic spells are capable of doing so.

  It figures, Richard said. What’s my distance now, Nick?

  You have seven hundred meters until we make contact with the largest group.

  Boom!

  The darkening sky lit up in the direction of the gnomes.

  What was that? Richard said. Whatever it was, it had to be one heck of an explosion.

  According to Brachia, the gnomes sent a ball of energy at the smaller group, said Nickelo. It caused the explosion. The gnomes and the smaller group are now in full battle. I think the larger group is still maintaining their stealth shield. I don’t think the gnomes know the larger group is there yet.

  Distance to target, Richard said picking up the pace as fast as he dared without making an unacceptable amount of noise.

  You’re down to four hundred meters, Rick.

  The night had come on fast, and only a few stars lit the sky. Richard imagined a bag of strobe lights along with some flash-bang grenades. His Power dropped slightly. He reached over his shoulder and pulled the bag out of his pack. The strobes and flash-bang grenades weren’t weapons. However, Richard had a strange feeling weapons wouldn’t help him at the moment. He had a feeling the shield that was hiding the creatures ahead would also protect them from his current weapons.

  What are you going to do with those? Nickelo asked with a hint of curiosity in his voice. They’re meant to be early warning devices for a camp perimeter.

  Watch and see, little buddy, Richard said. Please link into the devices’ control frequencies. I’ll need you to set them off when I tell you.

  Roger, said Nickelo. I think I see what you have in mind. I concur.

  A series of booms and bright flashes once again lit up the night sky in the direction of the gnomes.

  From the drone’s video feed, said Nickelo, I’d say the smaller group is counterattacking. Dren says they can now see a group of about twenty humanoids. So far, neither side has taken any casualties. I’m going to correlate the video data with what you can sense with your passive scan and put it on your heads-up display.

  Richard risked a glance at his display. Two bright red dots were surrounded by almost a score of yellow dots.

  Magic users, Richard said. They look powerful. I think the gnomes have their hands full.

  Your hands are going to be full in about ten seconds, Rick. The larger group will probably have the most powerful magic users. On top of that, there will probably be more of them as well.

  Understood, Nick, Richard said. I assume you are using yellow to mark the orcs. Why not the standard orange for unarmored enemy?

  I’m saving orange for oddities like the ogres once I can pick them out, said Nickelo.

  Roger that, said Richard.

  As he watched the heads-up display, Richard realized he was running out of time to make plans. The larger group was closing in on the gnome’s position. Richard knew they would be making their own attack soon.

  Nick, Richard said, if they drop their stealth shield when we attack, scan them with your electronics. I need you to find out everything you can about them. I’ll open an active scan for you as well. They will know we’re here anyway, so there won’t be any need to hide. By the way, should I drop my stealth shield as well when we attack to conserve Power?

  I’d say no, Rick, said Nickelo. I’d recommend leaving it up. It will keep the smaller group guessing. And, the larger group is only one hundred meters to your front. If you speed it up a little, you can be there in about five seconds.

  Richard kicked the battle suit into high gear. The suit’s assisters made every stride a full two meters long. The ground passed quickly beneath him.

  Switch to radiation filter, Nick. I’ve got to see some kind of target before I can attack.

  The red tint of the battle suit’s normal night vision was replaced with a blurry-white vision of the surrounding area. He headed straight towards the center of a large white blob. It stretched out about thirty meters each side of center. Richard flung his bag in a large swinging motion flinging strobe lights and flash-bang grenades towards an area above the center of the blob. He wrapped the lights and grenades in Power and gave them a boost with his telekinesis. They
spread out from one end of the white blob to the other.

  Activate, Richard mentally yelled. He did not see the flashes of the strobes with his radiation filter, but he did hear a series of sharp booms as the flash-bangs exploded.

  Switch to night vision, Nick, Richard commanded.

  The red tint returned to Richard’s vision of his surroundings. The bright, flickering lights of the strobes gave an otherworldly look to the scenery. Several of the flash-bang grenades continued to go off as their staggered time delays activated.

  Richard saw a flickering group of humanoids to his left. A group of yellow dots along with an orange and red appeared on his heads-up display as Nickelo fed in the results of his passive scan.

  That’s only part of them, said Nickelo. Those creatures you see are orcs according to the information in my databanks. And, they’re not undead. The larger creature I have marked in orange is an ogre. I’ve marked the magic user in red on your display. You must have spooked him a little. He’s dropped his part of the stealth shield. I’d guess there are three other magic users spaced along the line working in tandem. Their stealth shields are holding. Everyone’s defensive shield is still solid. Don’t waste ammo trying to get through it. You’ll notice the shield’s frequencies are tuned to both physical and energy attacks.

  Richard was always amazed at the speed of communications with his battle computer. They used few words. Their conversations were more a series of images and feelings than they were words. Their entire conversation had taken less than a second.

  It does no good to see them if I can’t attack them, Nick. Can I bust through that magic user’s defensive shield with a burst of Power while he’s distracted?

  Negative, Rick, said Nickelo emphatically. It’s too strong. All you’d do is empty your Power reserve with nothing to show for it.

  A memory popped into Richard’s mind. He immediately latched onto it.

  Nick, he said, the Crosioian scout was using her Power to drill through my defensive shield. Do you think I could do something like that against this magic user’s shield?

  It’s worth a try, Rick, said Nickelo. I’m feeding the specs of how she did it to you now. Try to emulate it as much as possible.

  Richard’s mind filled with the memory of the scout’s Power concentrating on a small spot on his defensive shield as it twisted and attempted to drill its way through. Richard had no idea how much Power it would take to emulate the maneuver. And, he didn’t have time to try and fail and try again until he got it right. He had to succeed on the first attempt.

  Drawing half the Power in his reserve, Richard concentrated it on a spot in the group’s defensive shield nearest the magic user. The magic user was at the rear of the orcs in relation to the gnomes. That meant the magic user was the closest enemy to Richard. Apparently, he had not expected an attack from their rear.

  Richard drove his Power against the magic user’s shield as he twisted his Power in a screwing motion. With each twist of his Power, it drove deeper into the defensive shield.

  The magic user turned with a look of surprise on his face just as Richard’s Power broke through the shield. It only created a small hole in the defensive shield, but it was large enough. Richard fired a stream of plasma rounds from his M12 into the hole. One of them struck the magic user square between the eyes. His lifeless body was flung against the backs of several of his orc companions. The defensive shield at this part of the blob disappeared. The stealth shields of the other magic users in the other parts also dropped, but their defensive shields remained in place.

  Richard had a grim thought that it wouldn’t matter. They were soon going to have a raging lion in their midst.

  Richard ran forward spraying a nearly solid stream of plasma rounds into the mass of humanoids ahead. Several of the orcs dropped to the ground. Their leather armor was no match for the plasma rifle. Richard fired a 20mm grenade into the back of the head of the ogre as it was turning to face him. Its head exploded in a shower of blood and gore.

  Richard chambered another 20mm round into the grenade launcher located under the barrel of the M12. He activated his phase rod in destructive mode and entered the fray at close quarters. Staying in the thickest parts of the mob of orcs, Richard swung his phase rod at anything within arm’s reach. Everything else, he fire at with his M12.

  Conserve your ammo, cautioned Nickelo. That’s an M12, not your M63. You’re already down to two hundred and twelve rounds.

  Piss on it, Richard said. I’ve got to take out as many as I can while I can. If I give those other magic users time to regroup, I’m going to be screwed. And, a total count of what I’m facing would be very useful, Nick.

  Complying, said Nickelo. There are two hundred and twenty-six orcs, two more ogres, and three more magic users in this group. I’ve marked everything on your heads-up display. The ogres are in orange, and the magic users are in red. You are down to forty-one percent Power in your reserve. Penetrating that defensive shield cost you plenty. I believe you could have gotten by with less Power, but I know you couldn’t afford to play around. Assuming we get out of this alive, we’ll have to practice that little ‘Power drill’ maneuver. It could come in handy again.

  Yeah, Richard said as he swung his phase rod against the shield of an orc. The wooden shield exploded as the phase rod made contact. Richard’s swing carried the phase rod through the shield and shattered the orc’s arm. Richard jammed the barrel of his M12 into the orc’s exposed eye. Richard didn’t bother to pull the trigger. The orc fell to the ground dead.

  Richard registered one of the orange dots closing in from behind. He spun to the left swinging his phase rod at waist level. His waist level was the ogre’s knee level. The ogre was wearing chainmail, and its knees were protected with steel-knee guards. However, the metal was not magical. When the phase rod made contact, the subatomic explosions basically disintegrated the knee joint behind the steel. As the ogre fell forward, Richard sliced downward with his phase rod at the back of the ogre’s neck. He aimed for and hit the weakest part of the armor just below the ogre’s steel helm. The ogre fell to the ground with its neck twisted at an unnatural angle.

  Where are the magic users? Richard said.

  The two on the right side of the group have joined forces, said Nickelo. They have put up another defensive shield protecting them and thirty-eight of the orcs. The other magic user is to your left. That one was cut off when you killed the first one. It looks like she’s trying to work her way around you to join the other two magic users. I would highly recommend you not allow her to succeed at her endeavor.

  According to the elf Richard had worked with on his previous mission for ‘the One’, some magic users could combine their Power to form stronger shields and more powerful attack spells. Richard was determined not to let this third magic user join the other two.

  Working his way over to intercept the single magic user, Richard sensed Power forming behind him. He could feel the two magic users combining their Power into a single ball of energy. Somehow, the formation of the energy seemed familiar to him.

  It’s one of the spells you helped the elf improve upon last year, said Nickelo. It’s a lightning bolt. There’s only a thirteen percent chance your defensive shield is strong enough to resist it.

  Richard reversed directions and threw up a defensive shield between him and the two magic users. The ball of energy formed into a lightning bolt just as Richard dived behind the ogre he had just killed. He made sure he was a good two meters behind the ogre’s body. The lightning bolt was drawn to the ogre’s metal armor. The lightning bolt exploded in a shower of sparks as the blackened body of the ogre was thrown into the air. What little energy reached Richard was easily absorbed by his defensive shield.

  Jumping to his feet, Richard immediately shut down his defensive shield. He resumed his run to intercept the lone magic user. Richard fired a long burst from his M12 to clear out a group of orcs who were apparently braver than they were smart. Their interlocking shi
eld wall did nothing to stop the high-energy plasma rounds. The orcs dropped where they had stood.

  Richard saw a female in a long robe running ahead. She turned and looked at him. Her eyes were wide, and Richard sensed her fear. Nevertheless, she started moving her hands and mouthing words Richard could not hear. He aimed his M12 at the magic user and pulled the trigger. About a dozen rounds fired before the M12 went silent.

  Richard cursed. It’s empty.

  I told you to conserve ammo, Rick, Nickelo reminded him. That’s not your M63 where you can load it in the morning and fire it all day.

  Ignoring his battle computer, Richard pulled the trigger on his grenade launcher. The 20mm round streaked towards the magic user and exploded about two meters to her front.

  Darn it, Richard said. Her defensive shield stops physical attacks as well as energy.

  What did you expect? said Nickelo with what sounded a lot like a laugh to Richard. You know nothing ever turns out easy for you. You’ll just need to think of a different way to do it.

  The magic user completed her spell. Richard sensed a ball of energy streaking towards him.

  Fireball, commented Nickelo. It looks big.

  Richard had a fleeting thought that his battle computer was taking things a little too calmly. He supposed if he was embedded in a solid brerellium casing deep inside a battle helmet that he would be a little calmer as well.

  When the ball of energy got closer, Richard dropped face down to the ground and surrounded himself with Power in a defensive shield. He shoved his M12 underneath his body to give it some additional protection. The fireball exploded. Just as Nickelo had predicted, it was a large fireball. Some of the heat penetrated Richard’s defensive shield as well as his armor. Richard felt as if someone had placed a hot iron on his back and legs. The fireball dissipated.

  You have second degree burns on your back and legs, said Nickelo. I’m administering a painkiller now. You’re down to twenty-six percent Power. Now go get that bitch before she gets off another spell.