Sigma 16 T2 - Chapter 87 - Combined Arms (Patreon)

Talia hurried to the zoological module, her exo-suit’s footfalls clanging against the metal floor. Inside, the spiders stood alert, their eyes fixing on her.

“The Blues are on the move,” Talia explained, her voice steady despite the urgency. “We’ll be entering battle soon. There might be loud noises and booms as the weapon systems fire, and we could be attacked or hit, too.”

Dusky’s concerned chirp cut through the air. “Taker-Attack-Maker?”

Hot Pink’s response was fierce, her legs tapping an aggressive rhythm. “Kill-Takers-Kill-Kill-Kill!”

Dapple’s worried gaze met Talia’s. “New-Nest-Safe? Maker-Safe?”

Talia smiled at their response. “You have options. You can stay with the new nest, and it will provide some protection. Or you can stay with the old nest for a while until things calm down. Alternatively, you can head back to the jungle to be with the other spiders for a time.”

The three spiders exchanged glances, a silent communication passing between them. Dapple stepped forward, her voice filled with determination. “Where-Maker-Go?”

“I’m staying on the desert crawler—the new nest,” Talia replied, her resolve unwavering.

Dapple raised her forelegs, a gesture of solidarity. “Stay-Help-Maker!”

Talia nodded in acknowledgment.

[Confirmation: Desert crawler primary power activation complete.]

“I need to go into the ‘secret’ nest to control it,” Talia explained, her gaze lingering on each spider.

Sad whines echoed through the module as the spiders realized she was leaving them. Dusky’s voice was tinged with longing. “Maker-Come-Back-Soon.”

Talia approached each spider, gently petting their heads in reassurance. “I’ll do my best,” she promised.

She hurried across the platform. There wasn’t time for any more delay.

The command module hummed with activity as Talia strode inside, her exo-suit interfacing seamlessly with the advanced systems. The tactical screen flickered to life, casting an eerie glow across her determined features.

[Update: Additional scout units deployed, flying low towards suspected enemy axis of advance.]

Talia’s gaze narrowed. “Is the camp at the carcass still there?”

[Confirmation: Enemy camp at giant worm carcass remains active.]

“Begin bombarding them with the new heavy artillery,” Talia commanded, her voice steely.

[Notice: Standard artillery out of range. Only Desert Crawler heavy artillery capable of reaching target.]

Talia’s lips curled into a grim smile. “Load up an MXL-182 and drop it on them.”

[Warning: Bombardment may damage or eliminate resources in giant desert worm carcass.]

“It can’t get more dead,” Talia retorted, her eyes fixed on the tactical display. “Those forces reinforcing the enemy's advance could be problematic.”

[Confirmation: MXL-182 loaded. Firing sequence initiated.]

The desert crawler shuddered as the massive artillery piece unleashed its payload. Talia watched intently as the shell icon traversed the map, hurtling towards its target. Suddenly, it blinked out, just before impact.

“Neo?” Talia’s voice was tinged with disbelief.

[Report: Anti-munition fire from ground destroyed shell in transit. Updating enemy force capabilities to include mobile anti-munitions weaponry.]

“Fuck!” Talia slammed her fist against the console. Metal shrieked slightly and she winced. There was a new dent in the chair.

The tactical map shifted, new red icons blossoming as the scouts relayed updated information. The enemy force turned east, their trajectory aimed directly at the bootstrap module and the desert crawler.

Talia’s eyes widened with realization. “They saw where we fired from.”

The tactical map flashed with new data as Neo updated the enemy column strength report. Talia’s eyes narrowed, taking in the details—four enemy tanks, eight APCs, and eight support vehicles suspected of anti-munition and anti-air capabilities.

[Notice: Enemy force composition updated. Prioritizing support vehicles as primary targets.]

Talia leaned forward, her gaze fixed on the holographic display. “Hold back the Raptor drones until after our ground forces engage. We can’t risk losing them to those anti-air units.”

[Confirmation: Raptor drone deployment delayed until after initial ground assault.]

The desert crawler’s command module hummed with tension as the two forces hurtled toward each other on the tactical map. Talia bit her lip.

“Have our mobile platoon flank the enemy from the north before they reach the desert crawler,” she ordered.

[Confirmation: Flanking maneuver initiated. Ambush tactics planned and coordinated.]

Talia watched as the predicted navigation lines appeared on the map, a intricate dance of strategy and counter-strategy unfolding before her eyes. More scout units flowed toward the enemy, their movements precise and calculated.

Suddenly, several scout units crested a hill, their sensors gathering valuable data on the enemy’s position and composition. But just as quickly as they appeared, they vanished from the map, obliterated by rapid-fire kinetic weapons.

Talia gritted her teeth. Losing the scouts was a stark reminder of the high stakes at play. She glanced at the unit readouts. The enemy was definitely fighting back this time.

[Warning: Scout units destroyed by enemy fire. Kinetic weapon signatures detected.]

The command module fell silent. Talia’s gaze remained locked on the tactical map, her mind racing with possibilities and contingencies as the distance between the two forces rapidly diminished.

Talia’s leg tapped a staccato rhythm against the command module’s floor. The waiting gnawed at her nerves, each second stretching into an eternity.

[Notice: Dusky has exited the zoological module.]

Her fingers flew across the console, flipping to the external crawler feed. There, at the front of the massive platform, Dusky waved her forelegs in the air, a tiny figure against the vast expanse of the desert.

A knot formed in Talia’s stomach, a sudden realization hitting her. The spider’s shield belt power levels—had she checked them? “Neo, what’s the status on the spiders’ shield belts?”

[Report: The spiders have independently replaced the energy cells in their shield belts following the previous engagement.]

The tension in Talia’s shoulders eased slightly, a small measure of relief washing over her. Smart spiders.

[Update: LIRU ambush contact initiated.]

Her attention snapped to the tactical feed, the data streaming in from the LIRU units. The enemy convoy plowed through the desert, a plume of dust billowing in their wake. Talia leaned forward, her eyes narrowing as the LIRUs burst from the sand, their heavy machine guns and portable launchers unleashing a barrage on the rear support vehicles.

A rocket found its mark, striking the rearmost vehicle. It detonated in a fiery explosion, the force of the blast knocking it onto its side. Another rocket streaked through the air, but before it could reach its target, it erupted in a premature explosion, shattered by an active countermeasure.

The machine gun fire ricocheted harmlessly off the enemy’s armor, and the convoy returned fire with ruthless efficiency. The LIRUs shattered under the onslaught, their remains scattered across the sand.

“Shit,” Talia hissed through clenched teeth. “That didn’t work.”

[Analysis: The firepower, armor, and overall effectiveness of this enemy unit significantly surpass those of previously encountered hostile forces.]

The gravity of the situation sank in. She’d somehow expected things to remain as easy as they had been before. That was a bad thing to assume.

A damaged LIRU’s video feed flickered on the command module’s screen, a grainy window into the chaos unfolding on the battlefield. Talia’s eyes narrowed as she watched the enemy convoy accelerate, pushing forward toward her with single-minded determination.

“They’re not stopping,” she muttered, her fingers tapping against the console. “Tactically smarter, too.”

[Notice: Interception ready at prearranged point beta.]

Talia’s gaze snapped to the tactical map, tracking the enemy’s progress as they hurtled toward the rocky depression. The Panther-X1s lay in wait, their hulls down and railguns primed.

The moment the convoy entered the kill zone, the Panthers opened fire. Twin explosions erupted amidst the enemy ranks as the hypervelocity rounds found their marks, obliterating two support vehicles in a blaze of fire and shrapnel.

The enemy APCs retaliated, their machine guns spitting streams of tracer rounds toward the Panthers’ positions. Two enemy tanks broke formation, surging forward with their cannons blazing. A high-explosive round slammed into a Panther’s turret, engulfing it in a cloud of sand and dust.

Talia’s heart raced as the unit’s readout on the tactical screen blinked yellow—damaged but still operational.

[Warning: Enemy utilizing high-explosive rounds.]

“Wrong choice,” Talia growled, her eyes locked on the screen.

Through the haze of dust, a Panther’s railgun flashed, guided by the feed from an allied scout. The hypersonic round streaked across the battlefield, finding its mark in the center of an advancing tank. The armored behemoth exploded, its twisted remains scattering across the sand.

The rest of the convoy surged onward, their relentless advance unbroken. Talia’s jaw clenched, the weight of the battle pressing down on her shoulders as she watched the enemy force close the distance to the desert crawler.

The enemy line passed by an escarpment, and her HIRUs seized their moment, emerging from cover with heavy shoulder launchers at the ready.

Rockets streaked through the air, a swarm of deadly projectiles descending upon the rear of the convoy. Two more enemy support vehicles erupted in flames, their twisted metal carcasses left smoldering in the sand.

“Neo, send in the Raptors,” Talia commanded, her voice steady despite the chaos unfolding before her.

[Confirmation: Raptor drones deployed at maximum velocity.]

The aerial drones surged forward, their sleek forms cutting through the sky. Gauss cannons roared to life, spitting streams of high-velocity rounds at the enemy APCs from extreme range. The armored vehicles shuddered under the onslaught, their hulls pockmarked with impact craters. One APC veered off course, smoke billowing from its damaged engine.

The remaining enemy support units retaliated, their rapid-fire cannons filling the air with a hail of tracer rounds. The sky became a deadly lattice of crisscrossing lines, each one a lethal threat to the Raptors.

“Neo, prioritize those anti-air units!” Talia barked, her fingers dancing across the artillery icons on the tactical display.

[Confirmation: Anti-air units designated as primary targets.]

The desert crawler shuddered as its heavy artillery cannon unleashed an explosive shell, the shockwave rippling through the command module. The Lynx-M3s joined the fray, their higher rate of fire creating a deluge of smaller shells.

The Blues adapted swiftly, several support vehicles shifting their aim skyward. A stream of red streaks lanced through the air, intercepting the incoming artillery shells with pinpoint precision. The sky turned into a series of blossoming fire flowers.

The enemy tanks turned their attention to the HIRUs, their cannons belching more high-explosive rounds. The ground erupted in geysers of sand and shrapnel, the heavy infantry units weathering the onslaught with grim determination.

From the opposite flank, the MIRUs emerged, their heavy assault rifles and grenade launchers adding to the maelstrom. Explosions blossomed amidst the enemy ranks.

A Viper-S7 burst from hiding, its hover systems propelling it into the air.

The agile vehicle landed atop an enemy APC, its mobile shield crushing the vehicle beneath its weight. The Viper swerved, its plasma cannon swiveling to face the enemy tanks. Brilliant bolts of energy streaked across the battlefield, slamming into the tanks’ rear armor with devastating effect.

Talia watched as the melee unfolded, heart pounding in her chest.

What were they going to do when the full enemy force arrived?