TTO Episode 9.3

9.3

I fell but landed on my feet with my arms spread out. The shot had hit my chest but the armour I wore beneath the gown stopped the energy blast. I saw more troopers went down from the shots that came from above the tree trunks. The Resistance fighters were in the trees. The troopers recovered from the initial shots and started fighting back. They took cover and shot at the fighters on the trees. I saw two Resistance fighters fell after being shot. There was too many of them. I spread out my arms and then swung to toss the sickles. The pair of sickles shot out like energy projectiles into the canopies of leaves. The sickle removed the leaves and branches in its path before it get embedded into the fighter there. The sickle does not wound but it will kill with the dark energy that will spread into the body. The dead fighter will fall off the tree to the ground or left hanging there with the cables.

The other Resistance fighters were all among us at the ground soon after. They had descended to carry the fight to the troopers. I rushed forward to recover my sickles and it was then I saw Renair had joined in the fray. She have used her ‘sai’ like a dagger and was leaping from fighters to fighters. I had recovered the sickle from the fallen body and then tossed the sickle once more from the left hand at the fighter hiding behind the bush. He went down with the sickle in the back. Darth Asoka had leaped into action with his shield up to block the shots.

“Withdraw!” Darth Asoka called out and we all ran for the bikes. I picked up the sickle in the fighter’s back and climbed on the bike. I looked for Renair but she had ridden off without assisting her master. The later was still bravely fighting off the fighters while the troopers withdrew. The metal arm with the double blade was slashing at a fighter who was in the path. I gunned up the bike and soared it up to the hanging body to recover my second sickle. I then sped towards Darth Asoka.

“Get on.” I called to him. He did for the Resistance fighters had grown in numbers. The reinforcement had emerged from the ground like the ground burrowing inhabitants. It seems our intelligence was in error. With the reinforcement, the five Trekkers at the flank were under attack.

It was all in the open tracks of communications from the Trekker Commander Kilstrom and the other Trekker’s crew.

“Trek Two, I want you to be my left flanker. Trek Four to hold the right flank.” Commander KIlstrom snapped out the orders. “Trekker Three, I am at your flank. Fire at will on the treelines.”

“Affirmative, Trek One.” The mini cannons on the Trek Three opened fire at the treelines.

“Trek Five, I need your status.” Trekker Five had strayed back due to a faulty gear set on the left extended joint. The crew was re-calibrating the system there. The Trekker was at a standstill then

“Trek One, we have fighters on our right.” Trek Five gave the update. “Troopers engaged.”

“Trek One, we have to assist.” Trek Five crews had then open the rear hatch to rappel down. “We are under attack.”

“Trek Five, rescind the assistance. Stay in your position.” Trek One called out but the crew of Trek Five was not responding. Then the late reply was heard.

“Trek One, we are in need of….” The signal went dead. It was soon followed by the exploding Trekker codenamed Trek Five.

“Trek Three, watch your right…” The warning came too late for Trek Three when the missile hit the right joint. The armoured vehicle with the damaged right joint stopped there. The crews in Trek Three continued on the firing but it was soon ever for them when the second missile hit it on the front.

“Trek Two, formed up and find the missile launchers.” Trek One called out before it was hit by another missile on its main frame. The Trekker split open and then exploded.

“Trek Two, Trek One is down.” Trek Four voiced out the desperate call. “We are being …”

Trek Four which was near to the trees then had its vehicle hijacked. The Resistance fighters have rappelled to the armoured vehicle and boarded it via the rear hatch.

“Trek…” The crews of Trek Four died in the shootout. Trek Two saw the boarding and trained it cannons on the other. It blasted the left joint of Trek Four to cripple it.

“Trek Two withdrawing.” Trek Two then reversed back to leave the valley.

Overhead the surviving Stingers were reinforced with another six Stingers from the frigate. The eight re-assembled Stingers went into action in two formations on the slopes. The cannons ripped into the treelines and then veered off for the second squadron of four Stingers from the frigate. Those were the upgraded model with the cluster bombs on its wing. The cluster bombs were mini bombs that will embed into the ground before it exploded.

“Cluster deployed.” The Stingers Bombers confirmed the drop. The slopes went up in flames when the bombs exploded. It looked like a moving wave of flames with the bombs triggered in sequence. The fire spread to the tree tops and the bushes. It then revealed to me the hidden threat of the Grecian.

Sections of the ground opened up and the armoured vehicles appeared. They were of the odd designs salvaged or modified from the Federation of Planets units. There was the six wheeler armoured transporter but it have a twin sets of double mini cannons on the top. I counted four of those and there was one modified with the missile launcher. The biggest shock was the heavy armoured with the long barrelled cannon tank. It was double the dimension of the six-wheeler and it moved on the band of metal tracks. I counted three of the tanks emerging and then fired the cannons. They were aiming for the hover bikes. I counted three more tanks and more than a dozen armoured vehicles.

We were outnumbered and outgunned.