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was as bereft of hope as its people.
Eventually there would be no more valleys to pull back to. Then they would
have to flee in transport shuttles, running the dangerous gauntlet to an
evacuation fleet darting in and out of Underspace, hoping to avoid the
Amplitur attacks which would surely follow their flight. They would leave
behind a miserable world populated by an abandoned, confused people. The
Amplitur would at least resolve their confusion.
Preparations for withdrawal were nearly complete when the subofficer came
running into the command center. He was breathing hard and his body armor was
scored from several near hits. His left ear was missing. Field hospitals on
Kantaria were not equipped with such luxuries as regeneration facilities.
Honored Commander.
What is it, soldier? A transmitter dangled from the long slim fingers of
Caldaq s right hand.
We cannot get away.
Explain yourself. Caldaq s calm arose from the not unwelcome possibility
that his spirit might soon be reunited with that of his beloved. Jaruselka,
Jaruselka; I am tired and I miss thee.
Monitoring has located a hitherto unsuspected Crigolit strike force in a
canyon behind us. They apparently have surface-to-air weaponry with guidance
to match. given our present situation I& I am familiar with current
conditions, soldier. Request a tactical strike from Support.
Is there no other way, Honored Commander? The enemy is close upon us. I fear
it may be impossible to hit them from long range without suffering damage
ourselves.
If what you say is true then we have no choice. Caldaq commented quietly,
almost indifferently.
Without a strike they will pick us off one vehicle at a time. We cannot go
forward because the enemy is advancing in strength and we cannot go anywhere
else because our arrears will not surmount the peaks that surround this
valley. It may be as you said that we cannot get out at all, but we can try.
At least we
will take many of the enemy with us. I would like to know how they slipped
through our defensive perimeter. It has been suggested, Honored Commander,
that they may have been dug in there all along, only waiting for us to retreat
in order to spring their ambush. Or they may have only just arrived in this
sector. Some of the new floaters they ride are so fast and travel so close to
the surface that they are almost impossible to detect by traditional means.
I have heard of them, said Caldaq tiredly.
The subofficer watched his commander uneasily. Caldaq looked exhausted,
drained.
Finally the younger Massood felt moved to prompt his elder.
Sir? The strike?
Yes. Call for it. Tell Support not to sacrifice firepower for precision. He
looked down to make sure his sidearm was in place. For years he d worn it more
for ceremony than anything else. Now he might actually have to use it. A check
showed that it was fully powered. One could not take that for granted ever
since the Amplitur had introduced into some battles a genetically engineered
bacterium which found
Weave power cells the perfect place to breed. Inform all units, officer, to
hold their positions for as long as they can. We will try to coordinate strike
timing with Support. I will request a ten-minute pause at a time to be
determined and communicated. During that time all units will attempt the
downcanyon outrun.
If we are lucky, the Crigolit will be concentrating on shielding themselves
from the strike and some of us may be able to slip past before they have time
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to react.
The strike request was met with some hesitancy on the part of Support.
Concurring in retreat was never easy. Caldaq loudly explained that the longer
the strike was delayed, the less was the likelihood of any of the valley s
defenders escaping.
The success of the enemy s tactics did not embarrass him. In this hellish
terrain it was hard to tell what one s own troops were doing, let alone the
enemy s. Someone had made a mistake, but there was no time for recriminations.
There was time only for flight.
The command vehicle in which he rode was slower than most but more heavily
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