Re-up

Allison stood before the motor pool guard as the man went over her checklist. She had donned the neural integration suit that was meant to be worn when operating the ARES units. It was tight, but thermally insulated and padded at key areas like the elbows and knees. It would protect her body from any sort of harsh movements she made while linked to the machine. It had her old unit decal on her shoulder and her flag on the other, just like her coveralls. Even her rank and name were denoted in their standard places. But even so, she felt like the whole ensemble was a bit suffocating. Even four years later, she could never get used to wearing them. Thankfully, she only had to be conscious about it for a minimal amount of time.

“Everything’s good to go. Put it all together right on time. Have a good one.” The man said, waving her off.

“Thank you, Sergeant.” Allison replied as she passed by him and started towards the machine.

“Bring her back in one piece, Jackrat! I don’t have insurance on these things!” He called after her.

Allison didn’t reply. “Jackrat” was one of the many colorful names the rest of the task force had for the demi-machina. The joke was they couldn’t pronounce the word right so they made their own names. In response, demi-machina resorted to referring to the rest of the combat troops as “crunchies” when they pissed them off. The tankers were more than happy to share their dislike for the “Queen of Battle” with the demi-machina. As it went, the jabbing and ribbing would never cease. The practice was as old as the institution of the military itself. There would be very little crunchies on the current mission though, so they were thankful for that.

As Allison walked down the line, she noted the ARES units the others were operating. The olive drab paint was enhanced with personalized camo patterns of browns, tans, blacks, and many different shades of green. The first one was Hideo’s. It was done up with a square pattern with dark brown, white, and a light gray. The scheme was certainly not something she had ever seen before on a vehicle, though she had heard it was used in Berlin on their MBTs. It was also very common to give a name to your ARES, and Hideo had appropriately named his “Tokugawa’s Blessing” as a nod to his heritage. She noted the 50mm chaingun for his ARES’s main armament that had a feed system hooked around to a large box on its back. It was a gold-standard in ARES team operations to have something that could fill most roles with a large ammunition capacity.

In contrast, Charlotte’s ARES was much heavier looking and more what she was used to with a standard woodland paint and pattern like she had seen on the Abrams tanks and other vehicles. While most opted for Explosive Reactive Armor (ERA) or cage armor for lightweight protection, there was always someone who just wanted more metal added on. Something that could soak up damage at a heavier punishment aside from standard High-Explosive Anti-Tank (HEAT) rounds, which were shaped charges and easily defeated by ERA and cages. A large 105mm cannon sat across its arms with a box hanging off it. An auto-loading mechanism to facilitate ease of use. They were exchanged in order to reload the weapon system. On the shoulders were tubes in square housings, ATGM launchers lifted straight off the Bradley IFV (Infantry Fighting Vehicle). They were an upgrade of the TOW (Tube-launched Optically Tracked Wire-guided) missiles with longer range to be able to reach out and kill a tank up to three miles away. There was a small weapon mounted on the left side of the back, which she guessed was a rotary pistol shotgun that could serve as a backup should she need it. The words “Bad Intentions” were scrawled on the chest.

Next was Franziska’s ARES unit. The camo scheme was familiar as the black and drab brown splotches on a green base was a very popular paint job across multiple NATO nations. Her back unit was outfitted with extra antennas for her EW role. It was also equipped with a usual heavy carbine that she had been familiar with. 35mm bore with extended box magazine. With the standardization of telescoped ammunition, the weapon systems could be made much more compact than thought possible while still retaining their lethality compared to their conventional counterparts. No doubt that she was also outfitted for support and jamming systems. EW ARES units were uncommon but present on large operations to ease target acquisition in a crowded operations space. With Hideo’s status, it wasn’t hard to guess that the military attached a designated EW ARES to their team to make sure they had everything they needed. She noted the word “Vorschlaghammer” written on it, which she recognized as the German word for sledgehammer.

Carwyn’s ARES was done up in a simple black splotch on a green base. It was a very simple pattern that she recognized immediately, as the British military put it on just about every single military vehicle they adopted, from their MBTs and artillery pieces, to recon vehicles and even troop trucks. His flamethrower and grenade launcher were held in each hand with feeds leading back along their respective arms into their ammunition boxes. It was almost comical to think but the flamethrower was very effective at clearing out infected, as well as area denial to make sure they stayed out. Plus it excelled at burning out a nest if you could take them by surprise, which was no small feat to accomplish in a giant walking machine. The grenade launcher was a new system with a new ammunition load. Instead of the standard 40mm, these bad boys were chambered for the new 70mm grenades that could easily decimate enemy fighting positions. Neither infantry nor lightly armored vehicles were safe from it. It was rather impressive to witness, and doubly so with the ability to use it in tandem with the flamethrower. No wonder Carwyn had the word “Paladin” painted on his unit. He was certainly putting the effort in.

That only left her own ARES. She had adopted a rarely used camo pattern that had only been seen on the old M551 Sheridan tanks in the early 1980’s as opposed to the camo most commonly seen on the Abrams and Patton tanks. Her ARES was a bit newer than most others, but the Bushmasters seemed to be outfitted with some of the best gear. The more she dwelled on it, the more she figured that Hideo’s mother was lobbying the military to give her son preferential treatment. The Golden Boy. She pushed the thought aside. Now wasn’t the time to be jealous. She was here with him and his team, and she was the odd one out. She looked at her own unit. The words “Bear Hunter” were scrawled on it with a little caricature of a dead bear wearing a Soviet ushanka next to an eagle with a US helmet. She thought it was meaningful at the time, but now it seemed a bit silly. She had also been equipped with one of the large-bore carbines in 35mm. She noted the extended barrel length on hers compared to Franziska’s, meaning she would be responsible for getting those just out of her range.

The ARES units were all kneeling down in a line with the demi-machina ready to step into their cockpits. But to call it that was a misnomer. A cockpit had controls, switches, buttons, and instrument panels. The demi-machina came to call it the “casket.” As her ARES opened up, Allison clambered up its form. The back pushed out and a hatch opened. She pulled it up and slipped inside, letting it close and retract. It wasn’t very spacious at all, which was done so in order to maintain the ARES units smaller target profile. She settled into the cramped and padded bench. It had areas for her arms and legs to go in order to keep herself from making any erratic movements. Locking mechanisms helped to keep her still from any involuntary muscle movements. Before she could go into operating mode, she had to link with the machine. She pulled out two large plugs and slotted them into ports located at the back of her neck on either side of her spinal column. Once that was done, she settled back and let the machine pull her out of her first body and into her second one.

The ARES unit, activated by her neural link and controlled wholly by her, stirred and stood up. The initial vertigo passed quickly and her running lights went green to show her mood as nominal, content, and neutral. She turned her head to look down the line and saw all the other units in the team getting up. Some made movements like stretching to test their joints. Others fiddled with their weapon systems. Allison noted her readout of her weapon showed it had a full magazine. It was also equipped with a targeting sight and a laser designator for any indirect fire support from artillery, or a payload drop from an overhead aircraft. She was filling a bonus role in the team, which meant she would most likely be stuck with Franziska if she would hazard a guess. Or they could pair her with Carwyn and see how she handled being up front again. It would be a fifty-fifty chance.

“Bushmaster Team all set? Right, to death or glory!” Hideo said over his ARES’s speakers.

“Aye, but I’d rather have glory if that was the choice.” Carwyn replied snarkily.

“Each man is responsible for his own glory, isn’t he Carwyn?”

“Ah sod off ya twit. I’ll have your share o’ the glory too.”

There were a few laughs by the others but Allison knew to stay quiet for now. The time to open up would present itself, but she wasn’t going to make herself the star of a scene if she could help it.

“Right, cover off and let’s get moving. Those trucks won’t escort themselves.” Hideo ordered.

The team formed a wedge and moved beyond the front gate where the supply convoy was waiting. There were a total of four trucks, which was a very manageable number. The driver of the lead vehicle waved at the team as they passed and took the lead. The ground shook under their stomping legs as the ARES units headed towards the large wall that established the quarantine zone. It kept the infected in and people out, mostly. Sometimes someone would find an old vehicle or plane but rescue attempts were made with only the utmost supervision. No one could tell if it would be a trap or not, so every precaution was taken. The heavy blast doors moved to the side and the demi-machina set off into the German countryside with the convoy trailing behind. It was going to be getting dark soon, so they were moving with a purpose. After all, no one really wanted to be caught out at night should an infected nest be nearby. Some groups were active during the day, but the ones at night were a different breed altogether. More aggressive and physically capable. It was the main reason why there was a mission curfew in effect year round.

Allison turned back to look at the wall slowly getting smaller and smaller in the distance, and then turned back to keep the wedge formation off Charlotte’s right side. Carwyn and Franziska were heading up the left with Hideo at the front. One thing was for sure, no one would be able to miss them on the horizon. But even so, Allison scanned her sectors to keep herself alert.

“Anything on the net, Miss Franziska?” Hideo asked over their intra-team radio net.

“Just some sermon from some crazy preacher type.” She replied.

“Again with that shit.” Charlotte added, her tone full of loathing. “Someone should go over there and shut him up.”

“No can do, Miss Charlotte. We’ve got a big enough job as it is.” Hideo said, reeling her back in.

“Yeah yeah. But one day I’m gonna go over there and rip his antennas off. That’ll show him.”

“I’m sure it will, but until command authorizes the mission you’ll have to do as I say.”

Allison thought of trying to tune into the radio herself but decided not to. People were all trying to make a new life in the wake of the sudden onset of the apocalypse. Good or bad, they were just trying to make it to the next day. But there was still order to be brought to the lawless wastes of the world, no matter if people were using them to escape their past lives or legal repercussions, or even their own boredom. The old ways would have their say, and she let this thought ring in her mind as they marched in formation across the plains towards the Rhine.