Furnace (Hunter-Killer #1)

Chapter 18 - Face of the Enemy

The creature in the chamber loomed over them, easily twice the size of a normal Scraegan, far larger than even an Alpha. Instead of the dark browns and charcoal blacks of its fellows, this monster sported a thick hide of silver fur that gleamed viciously in the burning light of the chamber. An extra pair of trunk-like arms curved out from its flanks, one clutching some kind of enormous lantern, and a huge golden chain dangling from the other. At the base of the chain loop a circle of silver the size of a dinner plate hung, emblazoned with an ink dark symbol that looked like a multi-headed serpent.

In its primary set of arms something altogether more frightening was held. The weapon was the length of a Hunter-Killer; a colossal mace forged of black metal, its head made up of a blizzard of serrated spikes. The monster took a step forward; hefting the mace high and unleashing a roar that made Ryke's earpiece crackle as the sheer volume was clipped off by the Hunter-Killer's auditory filters.

He waited for a second for orders to come through from Aggathor, but only static crackled in the earpiece. Brow furrowing in confusion, he instinctively stepped back from the gigantic Scraegan and glanced at his HUD. Amber light blinked on the indicator for his comm link – temporary system overload, rebooting in a matter of seconds.

Those seconds proved fatal.

With a second roar of indignant rage, the beast lunged forward and swung with shocking speed. That first swing of the mighty mace hit Aggathor's mech with the force of a bomb, breaking the colonel's shoulder shield in half and crushing into the vital mechanisms behind it. The comm blared back into life in time for strangled howl of pain to come tearing into Ryke's ear. Aggathor was thrown across the room as carelessly as a child might fling a doll, smashing into the far wall with a clang of shattered metal.

A moment of shock froze the remaining mechs in place until the huge Scraegan took a thunderous step forward, bellowing defiantly and rearing back for another swing.

"SCATTER!" another voice roared through the radio and he saw the mechs of HK-Warlock trying to put some space between them and the giant. The next swipe shattered the right side of one mech, the pilot a fraction too slow to move aside.

"All units open fire!"

Ryke's brain lurched back into gear. He dimly recognised the voice; it belonged to the lieutenant in HK-Warlock, Aggathor's battle-hardened second-in-command quickly taking control of the situation with their colonel out of action.

His cannon whirled into life and he strafed to the left, spraying armour piercing shots into the behemoth as it lashed out with feral fury at the metal bodies around it. HK-Rupture traversed the space with him, trying to edge towards the wall of the room and circle to the creature's flank, spitting fire as they went. The surviving mechs from HK-Warlock split apart leaping and diving to avoid the massive mace head that went cleaving through the air around them. Shots peppered the beast, taking chunks out of its thick hide, but it hardly noticed, the shells spiking it like meaningless pinpricks.

Suddenly the Scraegan wheeled around and charged, roaring defiantly as it lowered its head. His squadron tried to part around it, but two of them were right in the monster's path. Ryke could only watch helplessly, still pumping shots into the thing's hide as it thundered past.

In a Raptor mech, Scantlin El'Vahari just barely hurled himself clear. Shayse was not so lucky. A fraction slower in her bulky Riot pattern machine, she made it two steps before the Scraegan's enormous shoulder hit her dead centre and pulverised her mech against the solid rock.

Her scream was abruptly cut off.

Blood boiled in Ryke's ears as he stared. The Scraegan shook itself loose of the divot it had put in the wall, leaving behind the ruined, bloody carcass of Shayse Maloore's mech. The body plate of the Hunter-Killer had been completely caved in by the tremendous impact, crushed almost flat, and even from this distance he knew she would have been killed instantly.