The Alpha Protocol: Alpha Protocol Book 1 by Duncan Hamilton (read more books .txt) 📕

He loosed a few rounds, and the exchange of fire continued a little longer, but it was clear to Samson that they were at an impasse. The aliens were safely hunkered down behind a solid bank of soil, and Smith and his people were likewise. They could spend all day exchanging fire and achieve nothing. Everyone and everything seemed to realise that at the same time, as the rate of fire going in both directions slowed to little more than the occasional signal to let the other side know they were still there.

‘What happens now?’ Samson said. If they had a frigate in orbit, they’d have been able to order down a bombardment. As it was, Samson was way out of his comfort zone.

‘Manoeuvre,’ Price said. ‘Either them, or us, or both. Them, as it happens.’ He sighted down his rifle and fired off three rounds in quick succession.

An alien was knocked back out of cover. Price must have spotted the smallest of targets, and had hit it at least once. Never one to be late to the party, Samson fired two short bursts at the alien Price had shot and knocked out into the open. At least one round hit, then Price put another burst in to finish it for sure.

Another barrage of alien rounds zipped through the air, this time smattering the bank of soil Samson and Price were taking cover behind. Price returned fire to even the balance, but didn’t hit anything. Out of the corner of his eye, Samson saw two of Smith’s men break cover and advance, leap-frogging over one another and moving from cover to cover, firing all the while.

‘Now would be a good time, sir,’ Price said. ‘A little covering fire never hurt anyone.’

Samson focused back on the enemy and continued firing shots at the top of the mound. They were having little effect other than kicking up a dust storm, but it gave Smith’s men the breathing room they needed to flank the aliens. There was no way to know how many other alien ships there might be in the region, and the longer this little firefight took, the more chance there was that alien reinforcements would arrive, forcing Samson and the others to retreat and making him fail his mission in the process. The only certainty he had was that his own reinforcements were still a very long way off.

Smith’s men reached the last bit of worthwhile cover between them and the aliens’ position, and hunkered down. Samson knew rushing things would only get people killed, but he was impatient nonetheless. He didn’t want to be sitting there under suppressing fire when the big alien ship arrived.

‘Looks like Smith’s men have them pretty distracted,’ Samson said, noticing that from their position, they could flank the aliens while staying in cover pretty much the whole way. ‘Come on, Price. Let’s get this finished with.’

Samson crouched low and ran up over the mound they were behind, dashing to the next as quickly as he could. He heard Price move behind him, and was relieved to reach his target before any fire was redirected from Smith’s men to them.

‘A little warning next time, sir,’ Price said, as he dived into the cover beside Samson.

‘Sorry about that,’ Samson said. ‘Saw the opportunity and took it.’

There was a rattle of rifle fire from Smith’s men, and Samson made his next move. Keeping as low as he could, he ran toward a hollow, which he dived into headfirst. He crawled up to the lip and took another look. He still had some way to go before he was able to get a sight of the aliens—but he hadn’t been shot at, which he took as a good sign. Over to his right, Smith’s men were laying down heavy cover fire. Samson picked the next berm of soil that would give him cover and ran to it. Still no one shooting at him, although he heard the zip and thud of the aliens’ guns a number of times. Smith’s men still seemed to be taking the brunt of it.

Samson scanned the scene, and fought to catch his breath. His legs and lungs burned, and sweat beaded on his forehead even with the cooling system in his suit. He wasn’t at all sure this infantry life was for him. Still no view of the aliens, but he could see Price in the position he had just left. He caught Price’s eye, and got a disapproving shake of the head for his efforts before Price moved to follow.

As soon as Price arrived, he got up and charged for the ridge, to the left of where he reckoned the aliens were hunkered down. Finally the aliens spotted the movement to their right, and they opened fire in that direction. Several plumes of dirt kicked up behind Price as he followed. His body twisted and Samson could see him grimace behind his visor, but he kept coming and dived headfirst alongside Samson.

As soon as he was settled behind cover, he grasped his left upper arm, and Samson could see blood ooze out between his gloved fingers.

‘You all right?’ Samson said.

‘Just grazed me. Hurts like a bastard, though.’ He squeezed the wound, but the strained look on his face lightened. ‘Still, first man to be shot by an alien and live to tell the tale. That’s got to be worth something.’

Samson shrugged. ‘You’re welcome to that one. They’ve realised we’re moving now. I doubt we’ll get a clear run to the next cover.’

‘No need,’ Price said. He pulled a grenade from his belt pouch, primed it, and lobbed it toward the aliens. Samson followed it with his gaze as it looped through a lazy arc up into the sky before dropping down right on top of them.

Samson ducked down just in time. The concussion blast pounded Samson’s ears, and they were showered with dirt and grit. When he looked up over the berm, there