Increasingly tired but increasingly confident, Chin’s group continued to advance.
Even in moments of direst distress it was in the nature of the Amplitur to remain calm, a characteristic which their allies found endlessly reassuring. Since the universe had evolved gradually, they were fond of pointing out, it similarly stood to reason that there was no need to concede emotion to haste. It required an extraordinary series of debilitating circumstances to reduce an Amplitur to agitation.
While distinctly nonplussing, the current situation failed to qualify.
“It would seem,” commented High-manyfold-Leaving, “that our position here has changed rapidly from dangerous to precarious.”
“That is unarguably so.” Place-bereft-Inward favored the speaker with one eye while the other swiveled independently on its stalk to study the slowly shifting topographical image that floated in the air between them. “An exceptional effort will have to be made if we are to stave off serious damage to local expectations.”
They would have liked to have conferenced with their colleagues at Planetary Headquarters, but the press of battle and Weave interference techniques had rendered that impossible. It was only by chance that they, the only other pair of Amplitur on Eirrosad, happened to be at the Southern Sector HQ when the Weave had launched its blistering and utterly unexpected attack. Both were acutely conscious of the demands their allies had subsequently placed upon them and determined to resolve the situation to the best of their abilities.
Unfortunately, the attacking Humans and Massood were disinclined to cooperate.
Though reluctant to expose themselves to the exigencies of a combat situation, the Amplitur had no intention of concentrating their efforts on securing their safety through personal flight. Such an action would have had a devastating effect on the morale of their allies. If they were cautious it stemmed from understanding of an underlying reality: there were not that many Amplitur in the universe and their survival was vital to the advancement of the Purpose. They did not run, but, rather, guarded themselves well.
The Ashregan and Crigolit officers who joined them in the chamber were neither calm nor composed. It might even be said that they had passed beyond agitation to panic.
“What are we to do?” The Ashregan spoke without offering so much as a polite greeting or casual honorific. The Amplitur understood and said nothing. Most other species had not yet begun to come to grips with the vagaries of their endocrine systems.
Besides, desperate circumstances did not permit time for civilized verities.
One of the Crigolit scuttled forward and employed its forelimbs to unfold a collapsing readout. “We have concocted a plan.” Chitinous digits traced glowing lines on the screen. “First we concentrate our forces much as the enemy expects.”
High-manyfold-Leaving commented dryly. “I do not see the reinforcement of tactical redundancy as extricating us from our present situation.”
The attempt at sarcasm caught the Crigolit unprepared, but it continued anyway. “The intent is to lull the enemy into false expectations of quick victory.”
“Given our present circumstances it will not be necessary to lull them,” the Amplitur murmured.
A sound akin to rusty whistling and air escaping underwater emerged from behind the Crigolit’s mouthparts. “I elucidate further, honored Teachers. Here,” and his digits moved, “we place the special squadron from Cossuut. Fortuitously they are among us. Only when the enemy finally attacks in full strength do we exert our utmost to hold them back, as the special Ashregan fighters stab into them from behind.
“Under ordinary battle conditions this would seem a futile tactic, but even Humans must grow tired from continuous fighting. They are spread out and their lines of communication and supply grow longer as they advance. In such a situation a small, irresistible force operating behind their lines might wreak considerable havoc.”
The two Amplitur consulted, leaving the representatives of their allied races to mill about in awkward silence. It was Place-bereft-Inward who finally replied.
“There is considerable risk. If the fighters from Cossuut do not have an impact then we will have reduced our defensive capabilities and gained nothing in return.”
“Then we should concentrate our forces here,” chirped one of the assembled Crigolit officers.
“Neither shall we do that.” High-manyfold-Leaving gestured absently with a tentacle. “It is our intention to put up only minimal resistance and abandon this place to our voracious enemy.”
Many of those among the assembled had thought themselves beyond shock. They were wrong.
“Honored Teachers, I ask you to reconsider,” pleaded the ranking Ashregan. “The distance to Planetary Headquarters’ perimeter and the safety it would provide is more than five days’ travel by fast skid. During that time we would not be able to use many of our heavy weapons and could not maintain an adequate defensive formation. Fast-moving pursuit could take us apart a little at a time.”
“We can defend this installation!” The ranking officer’s adjutant was as insistent as she was outraged. “Whether the Cossuut group is otherwise employed or not. Let the Humans and Massood come. They are effective in the jungle, but can they dig a determined defense out of this mountain? Tired and worn as they must be, I think not.”
“Our greatest weakness since Humans have allied themselves with the Weave has been our repeated underestimation of their abilities, in tandem with an unpredictability which verges on madness.” Place-bereft-Inward relied on logic to convince, though it would have been easier simply to “suggest” the decided course of action to those present.
“As you so bravely state we might well be able to defend our position here. However, after careful consideration of all relevant factors we postulate an equal chance of failure. Even odds are no odds at all.
“If we utilize our full strength to defend, and lose, then this entire region falls under the control of the enemies of the Purpose. Gathering Weave strength here would threaten our very hold on this world, rendering the security of Planetary Headquarters itself untenable.”
“Does not retreat allow the enemy to achieve the same goal at little cost?” The bold female Ashregan was unrepentant. “I fail to see virtue in flight.”
“I shall elucidate.” The Amplitur extended two of the four digits on the end of its right tentacle and impacted the drifting topograph. It froze. Colors appeared on its surface as High-manyfold-Leaving manipulated heavy air.
“We will put up minimal resistance before abandoning this installation, but neither do we propose complete retreat.”
“I don’t understand,” said the ranking Ashregan.
“The female is half-right. The enemy will be tired, but that does not mean they will be weak. We note that Humans have repeatedly demonstrated uncommon endurance under stress. It is almost as if they revel in personal suffering, as though pain and discomfort are required before they can reach great heights. According to a captured Human psychologist this ‘ennobling angst,’ as he called it, is endemic to the species and a requirement for its survival and advancement. Insane as it sounds it is nonetheless very real. We must try to comprehend it if we are to formulate successful strategies for defeating them.”
“Your pardon and understanding, honored Teacher,” said the Ashregan commander, “but I fail to see how this impacts on our present situation.”
Place-bereft-Inward took up the explanation. “This strange thesis holds that the more difficult the situation, the harder Humans fight. It is when everything is going their way that they are apparently at their most vulnerable. In order to make use of this knowledge we must for now accept this reversal of reason without trying to understand it.
“The Humans are superb fighters, but they are not superbeings, and they have their own unique weaknesses. It is through our comprehension and utilization of these vulnerabilities that they shall be defeated, not by any attempt to impose our system of values upon them.”
In the silence that ensued the two Amplitur perceived that their attempt to spread enlightenment had produced only bewilderment. “I shall be specific.” Place-bereft-Inward’s words were accompanied by a mental suggestion of badly needed reassurance. “The majority of our people will pull out, but not to retreat. Some will race toward Planetary Headquarters, giving the arriving enemy the impression that all are attempting to flee in that direction. It will seem the natural thing for us to do. Meanwhile the bulk of our forces will head not for the perceived safety of the headquarters perimeter but for the dense hilly jungle to the southwest.”
“That places us farther from potential safety or reinforcement than anywhere else,” one of the elder Crigolit was unable to forbear from pointing out.
“Precisely,” the Amplitur replied with cool confidence. “It is the last thing the enemy would expect of us. From a strategic standpoint it is an almost Human move. New problems require equally new and radical solutions.
“After the enemy has wrested this installation from the modest force which will remain to ‘defend’ it, and after they have begun their pursuit of the group which will be sent fleeing northwestward, but before they can consolidate their new conquest, we will counterattack. Not in an attempt to retake our position here, which would concentrate our forces dangerously, but all up and down along their line of assault. This time the element of surprise shall be ours.”
“Your pardon, honored Teacher,” said the obstreperous female Ashregan officer, “but this strikes me as strategy based on hope as much as knowledge. The Humans excel at the kind of fragmented combat you propose.”
“That is so.” Both Amplitur agreed readily. “But you forget the Cossuut unit. Surprise and support from the rest of our forces should enable them to make a much greater impact than they would be able to if attacking on their own. Remember also that our assailants are not all Humans. According to the reports there are Massood and noncombative species in the attacking force as well. If these can be thrown into confusion or panic, it will greatly complicate the Humans’ ability to fight, since they have come too far to quickly evacuate support personnel.”
“And our fighters will be fresh and rested,” High-manyfold-Leaving pointed out. “That counts for much.”
While there was some continuing discussion both Amplitur impatiently suggested that their allies put any remaining objections aside in the interests of speed, concurring that insufficient time remained for the luxury of independent debate. So it was not surprising when the assembled officers declared in a body, “We accept the plan of the Teachers.”
“We feel wellness at your decision.” The Amplitur replied simultaneously, gratified by the unanimous acceptance of the foregone conclusion.
XVI
Hidden deep within difficult, highly vegetated terrain, the forces which had withdrawn in hasty but orderly fashion from the interior of the mountain fortress were barely able to monitor the Weave attack when it finally arrived. Those limited Ashregan, Crigolit, and allied troops who had been left behind to mount a semblance of a defense fought long and hard before they were overwhelmed by the ferocity of the assault, bravely sacrificing themselves in the cause of the Purpose. The Amplitur could not have hoped for better results.
Holding alertly at their assigned position, Ranji’s group was aware of what was taking place only through infrequent and cautious internal communications. They were too far away to hear the rumbling explosions which issued with pernicious regularity from the interior of the tabletop mountain as its conquerors obliterated stores, equipment, and defenders with equal glee.
Soon squads of attackers were regrouping atop the jungle-clad butte. Espying fleeing enemy, small teams shot off in pursuit, intent upon running down and destroying every potential survivor before they could reach the distant safety of their planetary headquarters.
Ranji considered the Ashregan, Crigolit, and others who had accepted death in the service of a feint. It frightened him to know that there was a time when he might have done so with equal enthusiasm.
Now all he saw was the extinction of brave individuals whose deaths in no way enriched the universe. There was something inherently obscene in the notion of dying for a strategic advantage. For example, from what he had seen Humans who would readily sacrifice themselves in defense of their world or even a friend were much less likely to do so to preserve an abstraction.
Like the Purpose, he told himself.
He was finding it increasingly difficult to believe in much of anything.
The Amplitur, of course, did not readily sacrifice themselves for the cause. Though it was ostensibly because of their limited numbers, Ranji more and more had come to think of this as a convenient rationalization. The notion stuck in his conviction and would not be moved.
For reasons unknown, swept up in events he could not control in that uneasy time and place, he found himself thinking frequently of the Lepar.
Then the word was passed that it was time to strike, and his only thoughts were for survival.
Seemingly from behind every tree and rocky pinnacle the squads of Ashregan and Crigolit slammed into the conquerors of the mountain, most of whom were for the first time in several days just starting to relax. Their timing could not have been better had prognostication been other than a prehistoric fancy.
Innumerable firefights erupted in the terrain between the mountain and south-flowing rivers, consuming frantic members of varying species with inchoate impartiality. Humans and Massood frantically rushed to gather wits and weapons with which to defend themselves.
So furiously did they strike back that in places the counterattack was stopped cold, the attackers annihilated despite the advantage of surprise. Elsewhere it was Humans and Massood who were devastated, unable to mount an adequate defense or flee to safety.
Ranji fought to defend himself and, surreptitiously, his brother. It troubled him that he, likely Human himself, was compelled by circumstance to kill other Humans. Letting the natural killing reflex take over allowed him to ignore his initial inhibitions. This surprised him when it should not have. After all, Humans had been exterminating each other without compunction for thousands of years.
Saguio, Soratii-eev, Birachii, and the others charged into combat armored with the blissful balm of ignorance, unaware they had been called upon to slaughter their own kind, a task they executed with unalloyed vigor.
As for Ranji, under the pretext of essaying strategy he strove to avoid as much actual combat as possible. Cognizant of his recent experiences, those operating under his command considered his reticence prudent. He did manage to fire his weapon frequently, with an inaccuracy those who happened to be momentarily caught in his sights found laudable. Innocent succulents and trees suffered the consequences of his anguish.
Spread out over a huge section of swampy terrain, the conflagration would have struck an onlooker as natural rather than artificial in origin, as if some immense blaze had suddenly erupted in the heart of the tabletop mountain and spread to the surrounding forest. Indistinguishable as to source, plumes of smoke rose from burning vegetation, from burning machines, from burning bodies.
Amid heat and smoke and dense vegetation it was difficult for Ranji to tell Crigolit from Ashregan, Ashregan from Massood, Humans from his friends. Only differing armor and equipment types offered ready means for identification. One had to think fast and shoot faster if one expected to survive. He sought solace in delay and tried not to think.
By keeping his personal floater as close as possible to the ground he managed to avoid the bulk of aerial combat. It was while working his way slowly through a grove of massive, heavily buttressed trees that he came upon the two corpses.
They were Human, one of each gender. Great blackened gaps showed in their light field armor where energy weapons had struck home. Their own rifles lay nearby, punctuation marks bestriding lost lives. The right side of the man’s skull was missing. Though cauterization was extensive Ranji could still see part of the brain, dr
ying in the air like a wrinkled gray melon. The man lay crumpled on his side, his companion on her back. Her skin was pale, and he was very glad she did not much remind him of the woman he had known on Omaphil.
This close to the mountain the soil was more than firm enough to support his floater. He landed in hopes of learning what he could.
Close inspection of the corpses told him little he did not already know. He bent over the man. If he peered hard enough into the gaping cranial cavity, would he be able to see a small bundle of nerves, the nodule that Hivistahm and Human surgeons had assured him was alien to every unaltered Human mind? Since he sensed he would not his examination was cursory at best.
Rising, he resumed his seat on the floater and sent it forward, angling slowly through the grove. Every channel of his communicator was alive with orders and exchanges. Around him the jungle boomed and hissed like a gigantic reptile caught in the throes of violent death. He did not look back.
There was nothing he could do. If he tried to surrender to the opposition under battlefield conditions he would likely be shot on sight. The bulky, securely attached cephaloprostheses which had restored his Ashregan appearance could not be removed without the aid of a fully equipped surgery.
Thoughts of surrender passed quickly. That was not why he had returned to his friends.
He cruised slowly through environs becoming unnatural. Repeated clarion calls over his communicator heralded successive triumphs for the Purpose. Dull instinct dragged him along while his field equipment kept him alive, armor-shell protecting epidermal shell concealing … what?
Hammered at multiple points along their line of advance, the fatigued attackers were gradually cut into smaller and smaller groups. Expectations of glory gave way to concern for survival. Without orders, without direction, they began to retreat, fleeing back toward the meandering river they had so exultantly crossed the day before. Supplies from Granville and Shatenka’s joint command did not even have the chance to arrive before the retreat began, and could not in any event have prevented the disaster.