The Reaper’s Legion

Chapter 71

Reaver

There were many things that were categorically unusual, and to some extent alarming, regarding the Reavers. Each of the three pilots were bonded with an artificial sentience that framed themselves after their bondmate. It was a deeply ingrained process in which the individual would have their own co-pilot, not just in flying, but for the rest of their lives.

‘That sounds like… Smith? But how?’ I balked upon reading into the general information given. It seemed, however, that the answer would be less than forthcoming. There was no information available on the topic itself in the information they’d submitted, likely either a secret or not deemed necessary for their operations.

It was the only guess I could come up with, but that would mean that they’d somehow interacted with him, and it would have had to have been after I was incapacitated. Unless they came to this technology on their own, but I had my reservations that was the case. I suppose the counter argument could be made that this exact approach had worked very well for me, and others might have been eager to replicate it.

Gradually I parsed the rest of the data granted me. Everything else was quite interesting, but still plainly overshadowed by that particular strain of information.

Each vessel was designed to be streamlined, with a particular touch towards offensive actions. Their bodies were extremely light weight and faster than any jet we’d made to date, using a generous touch of advanced technologies that were not available on earth prior to the apocalypse. Each one was also designed to be able to restock and refuel with smaller modules attached to the containers they carried, which would be drained into an inner reservoir. This allowed a Reaver to make repeat strikes, needing to return to base only long enough to pick up a replacement weapon kit.

Of which, there were many different types. Arguably the combinations were limited only by the imagination and capability of the RR&D back at base. Currently, they had three flavors, the chemical thrower, the auto-cannon nest, and the smart missile hive. Each of them had their own merits, though it was clear that modifications would need to be made in the future to create a deadlier combination. Moreover, each kit could be dropped in the case of an emergency, allowing the Reaver itself to reach base faster to rearm if the situation demanded such.

With this, we could finally have fire support outside of Gilramore’s artillery range.

“Reaver One, standby to execute,” I spoke over the radio, hearing the affirmation from above. The trio pivoted over the base like angry wasps, the dull drone from their engines reinforcing that image in my head.

I turned my attention then to Strauss’ team and to Richard beside me. “Ready?”

“Always,” came Strauss’ reply as he gave a sly grin. Richard and I chuckled, before turning our attention forward. Ten Determinators stepped forward with us as the gates opened wide, the remaining five active Carriers to either side past the Raijin Field.

“Lay out the carpet, Reaver Squadron.” I gave the order, feeling the pulse of something flow across the vague connection I felt to each of the A.I.’s.

Excitement.

[We’ll make it red.] I heard Reaver Two speak, Augustus Francesco being the pilot. The chemical thrower pivoted three of its nozzles towards three separate targets.

The moment the gleaming golden liquid spewed forth, hell followed. Bright flames, almost white when it came from the nozzle but turning a furious red as it reached its target, shot out with a pressure less like a flamethrower and more like a watercutter. The landscape was alight from the light cast from the gout of liquid, and just as suddenly three Carriers were walking fireballs. The shriek of the flames cut through any other sounds, devolving into a roar upon the carapace of the biotics.

My helmet dimmed my vision in response, protecting my eyes from the bright light. In the mass I could pick out black blots that crackled and fell to the ground unmoving the moment they emerged from the Carrier. The three behemoths let out earth shaking cries, running in panic, the heat undoubtedly extreme.

The fire would burn hard and fast, designed to stick to the target and melt through steel, but to also burn so hot that any fuel in the area would be nothing but coke and ash by the time the chemical slurry was expired. It wouldn’t do us any good to set a city on fire on accident.

“That’s our path.” I pointed forward, the middle of the Carrier formation in shambles. There was a slim area in between the now raging fires, ten meters across.

Richard grimaced, “That fire’s too hot for anyone with skin exposed.”

I nodded, “It’ll go out in fifteen seconds or so, after that, we go.”

[Drop the base!] I heard the cheery voice that has spoken first earlier call out through the comms, followed by a much more stern version, “Firing ordnance.”

Reaver Three rattled off five auto-cannon turrets, bombarding each of the three targets with as much gusto as our entire artillery array had been. No, quite in fact, as I watched the rate of fire increase and the destruction each shell caused, I had to begrudgingly admit the fact that it was much more damaging. The three that were on fire let out guttural moans, their armor punished beyond reason. Our artillery continued their volley on a target that was getting far enough away from the Raijin Field to limit collateral damage.

Silver dripped from cracks in the carapace, each of the three taking the punishment from the Reavers. The one taking combined fire was looking far worse for wear as artillery fire punched through a leg, dismembering it.

Reaver One, however, held onto its kit, knowing that it’s role was elsewhere. These weren’t our primary priority, and we could easily outrun them.

Finally, the fire waned, all save for the constant deluge that Reaver Two spewed down upon the three Carriers, keeping them cooking.

“Go!” I shouted, darting forward, flanked by Richard and five Determinators. On our heels was Strauss’ team, consisting of himself and four other members, not including the five Determinators that would be with them. The ambient heat in the area was incredible, but with our speed we made it through the worst of it without damage, however I did note that there was some terrain nearby that was looking molten, like glass. I couldn’t help but feel exasperated at how lethal these Reaver’s were. If we unloaded their entire arsenal on these Carriers, they might have well been capable of killing five on their own, or at the very least dismembering them, in the case of the rocket hive kit.

“We’re on Overwatch, Reaper.” Lani Barton of Reaver Three spoke as she hovered high over our right flank, the auto-cannons still hot. Behind us, the Carriers were taking shelter as they could amidst the coral formations further afield, giving us more space to work with. It was alarming how effective their strikes had been already.

But the drawback of experimental technology also came up. “Uhh, Reaver Two reporting, the compressor units fried, I’m half full with no way to continue assault. Permission to return to base to rearm.”

“Reaver Two, permission granted,” Emilia Barman, Reaver One, assented, “remember to leave ‘em with a parting gift.”

“Roger that.” A dark chuckle rolled from the comms then as Reaver Two hovered high over the most punished of the three Carrier’s he’d lit on fire.

I frowned as I saw it, and then comprehended what they were doing, “Oh, that’s dirty.” A grin plastered itself on my face as he disconnected the chemical thrower kit, reservoir and all, directly over the top of the Carrier a hundred meters below.

The half full transparent canister of golden fluid tumbled end over end through the air. I could almost hear the collective breath taken by the base at the sight, the realization of what was about to happen coming to everyone.

It didn’t land precisely on the Carrier, around the corner of the coral ridge that it had sheltered behind.

Unlike what we’d expected, it didn’t explode. The container withstood the strike, built to be able to take sustained weapons fire without breaching. It wouldn’t do, after all, to have one of those explode high in the air and take a Reaver with it.

It did an admirable job of that, up until a smart-rocket struck it like a spear from an angry god.

Fire filled the air with the explosion, the surge of white hot fire blooming upwards for thirty meters before spilling out over a massive area, easily fifty meters in diameter. Speckles of the material burned rapidly, but the plume was only growing upwards, grey smoke soaring high into the sky.

I could feel the heat on my armor even from here, and once more experienced my helmets capacity to dim vision in response to overly bright light. The area around the Carrier wasn’t so much land as a sea of fire, so much so that I couldn’t even make out the massive biotic that was within.

Whether or not it was even still alive was in question, one that I wouldn’t be surprised if the answer was ‘like crispy chicken.’

[Ah, I love the smell of a good barbeque.] Reaver Two spoke, [Returning to base.]

I shook my head, still not sure how to feel about these Reavers. At the very least, they enjoyed their jobs, that had to count for something.

We moved forward, streaming over the ground in a double phalanx formation. There weren’t any instances of Spindlies in the area here, this time at least. It seemed between the Carrier’s assault and Reaver One’s smart-missile barrage, there weren’t many targets left.

“Alright, so according to the old maps,” Richard began, “the cove seems like the place to find these hives. If they’re not underwater.”

“Don’t even joke about that,” Jeremy made a disgusted face, “I’m not going in the water for these things.”

“He doesn’t like to get wet.” Yomar helpfully added, “he’s had a near death experience involving a lake recently.”

“It wasn’t a lake, it was a pond.” The sniper, Allendra, said with a near stoic expression, the briefest of tugs at the corner of her lips betraying the joke.

“Oh, hardy har har,” Jeremy spat, “I’m still not going in.”

“Well, that’s what Reaver One can check for us.” We made good time to the cove, no interruptions in sight, only a few minutes of running due to all of our gear. “Emilia, give us a quick scout.”

“Roger that, birds loose.” She stated, three rocket slipping out of the spinning disk and streaming downwards. They were much slower than the previous projectiles, but they dove down, streaming towards the cove and disappearing over the lip of a cliff ahead of us. A video screen fed the footage to us, and already I couldn’t help but click my tongue in annoyance.

The upside was that the rocket that shot underwater couldn’t see any obvious underwater entrance. The downside was that the cliff face and part of the beach was positively pock-marked with holes large enough to fit four buses into at the same time.

Far more than what eight Carriers would need.

Jeremy and I slowly came to a stop, turning to each other with grim expressions.

“Well.” He said, letting out a helpless sigh, “At least it’s not underwater.”