Harry stood in the back of the super bee and checked his helmet’s map function as the

attack wing formed up around the landing craft. His fellow contractors stood around

him. Everyone seemed ready and calm. This second drop would be safer than the first

one thanks to Junior reaching out and touching anything in his range with the energy

fingers he liked to poke at things.

The xenos still tried to overwhelm him with their brainless fury. Their aggressive

suicidal tendencies were no match for the output of energy he used.

He was surprised that none of the xenos had tried to dig up from underground. He

didn’t know if they had diggers. Maybe he should think about weaponized moles to

go with his bees.

“Junior?,” said Harry, activating his radio.

“Yes,” said the battlestation.

“Have the xenos tried to get to you through the sewer systems under the city ruins?,”

said Harry.

“Some,” said Junior. “The bees protect my base. They like using the tunnels too.”

Harry nodded to himself. He should have known his bees would protect their bigger

brother from harm. Anything trying to get access would run into some angry

customers.

That was also good for any contractors who wanted to use Junior for a base. The bees

would let them sleep at night, because they would be protecting the sewer system and

any exits on the other side of the fence.

He didn’t want to think about how many hives were being placed down there to keep

his army expanding.

“Guys,” said Guy. “We’re about to go in. Everyone have their life support? Everyone

ready to jump in case I crash?”

“We’re ready, Guy,” said Harry. “We’re going to have the gate put down as soon as

we land so we can get Howitz’s armor so we can get started.”

“Our cover is assembling around us,” said Guy. “John?”

“The Jordan is ready,” said John. “We’re ready to hit the star whales when you go in.

Hopefully we can knock another one out of the sky before we fall back.”

“Fall back if you guys can’t handle it,” said Harry. “We can’t lose the Jordan. If

we have to cover for Guy until we get the gate down, we will.”

“Don’t worry, Harry,” said Cat. “I’m a much better pilot than when all this started.

I can show these things some moves.”

“The systems are all online,” said Delmar. “We’re ready with the scanners, guns,

shields, and Damage Control. Howitz’s mech is on the gate here. Marques wants it

if you get killed, Howitz.”

“No,” said Harry. “We’ll get him some body armor.”

“Thank you for that,” said Nick. “We’re watching you. Don’t get killed.”

“Get my ten million ready,” said Harry. “And get Delmar’s money ready too. He’ll

want it as soon as we’re done. He’s been going back to Earth for tacos and stuff.”

“It will be put in his account as soon as we confirm you have a viable firebase,” said

Nick. “Savvy?”

“Junior will hold for anyone who comes in,” said Harry. “I admit I didn’t think he

would be this successful, but he’s making me a proud papa.”

“Thank you,” said Junior.

“He is doing excellent, better than you,” said Nick.

“I know,” said Harry.

“All right, guys,” said Guy. “We’re heading in. Expect some turbulence.”

“Here we come, Junior,” Harry radioed.

“I’m marking your landing zone, clearing the way,” said Junior. “I think the bees

are going up to their maximum ceiling to give you some cover. Asked secondary

forces to push.”

“Bringing us in,” said Guy. “We lost the fighter cover. That’s some aggressive lizards

there.”

“Power down, Guy,” said Harry. “We’re sending you back up with the gate. No

point in taking the risk if we don’t have to do that.”

He opened the back bay door so they could drop out of the bee. Junior’s guns boomed

overhead, burning the air as they flashed anything coming at him. Ashes answered the

Bolo’s assault.

“Junior,” said Harry. “I’m going to have to put the gate out in the open so we can

get Howitz’s mech, and send Guy back to the Jordan. Mark a clear spot for me.”

A diamond appeared on his helmet visor. He ran to the spot and summoned the

equipment gate. He ignored the sounds of combat around him as he paid the points

and set the gate up.

“Jordan, the gate is set up,” said Harry. “Fall back and assess the damage.”

“All right,” said John. “Sending the message out to the PDO that we can instantly

send contractors here to die.”

“Notifying agents,” said Nick. “Looks like your money is getting put in your

account.”

“Does anyone know if that second gate is still active?,” asked Harry.

“The one in the mountains?,” asked Marques. “Hold on. I have a signal. The xenos

didn’t tear it up, but the area is covered with them.”

“All right,” said Harry. “I need a switch up to that gate. Can do?”

“What are you thinking, Harry?,” asked John.

“I thinking about giving Junior some more help,” said Harry. “We need Howitz’s

armor, and for Guy to be taken back to the Jordan. Then I need to get to that gate.

I’ll take Milla with me. I’m going to make things easier for us.”

“All right,” said John. “The star whales are chasing us. We’re going to try to evade

until Dock Four starts throwing their ships out in the system. I don’t know when we’ll

be able to circle back and help you.”

“We got it,” said Harry. “Send the armor.”

“Right,” said John.

The massive armor that Howitz had built appeared on the gate. It was powered down,

kneeling on one knee, arms hanging down. The hovering orbs would return as soon

as the mech powered up.

“Howitz, come get your baby,” called Harry. The moth man already stood at his side.

“Oh, you’re already here.”

“I’ve been ready,” said Howitz. He climbed into the machine and closed it up. He

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started the reactors and it stood up. The red orbs snapped to life in their orbits around

it. It stepped off the gate.

“Howitz, see if you can start shooting stuff in the direction we’re going to be

traveling,” said Harry. “Guy, bring the bee over to the gate so we can send it back up

to the Jordan.”

The mech walked off. A few seconds later, the gun arms and orb beams added to the

noise of killing around them.

“Guy?,” said Harry. “Let’s get your butt back up in space. Then we can get to work.”

“All right,” said Guy. “Let me get buttoned up.”

The bee closed up its doors. The machine floated over and settled on the gate. Guy

shut the engines down. It vanished as the gate projected into space.

“All right,” said Harry. “Milla, I need you to help me and be ready to fight. The

rest of you guys get ready to move when we get back.”

“What are you planning?,” asked Milla. She floated over to where he stood by the

gate.

“We already have a second gate to the planet,” said Harry. “We just need to fortify

it.”

“Obvious,” said Milla. “I should have thought of the same thing.”

“If you can keep the xenos off of me, I can do the rest,” said Harry.

“I am ready,” said Milla.

Harry whistled and a bunch of his bees flew over. They zipped around their creator.

He smiled under his helmet.

“Ready to fight?,” Harry asked.

The bees lit their particle guns in answer.

“Nick, we’re stepping on the gate,” said Harry. “Switch us to the second gate.”

“This is not the same as not dying,” said Nick.

“I’m saving the galaxy here,” said Harry. “Switch us. The faster we get this done, the

easier the rest will be.”

“Switching,” said Nick.

Harry blinked and found himself on the mountains above Junior. He didn’t have the

time to think. Xenos rushed him. His bees began to blast at targets all around him.

“Cover me, Milla,” said Harry. He realized he had spoken too slow. A beam of energy

swept the top of the mountainside to give him room to move.

He worked his menu as fast as he could to create a wall fabricator to put up a barrier

around them. He let it work as he went through the options he had used to build

Junior. He had the points, and Junior and his buddies were earning him more with

their constant barrage of weapons. He placed the nest of fabricators down at the

center of the closing wall.

He activated the fabricators and stepped back. A keel lifted up and pushed him back

further as it expanded to tower above the short wall. Guns, mortars, missiles, and

sensory apparatus built out from the hull as he watched.

“Betty Lou?,” asked Harry. “How do you feel?”

“Optimal,” said the smaller Bolo. “I am clearing the area.”

Xenos puffed up into ash as Betty Lou began to cycle through her weapons as fast as

she could. Suddenly there was a cleared area of burning trees rolling downhill after

she went to work.

The other bees that had been holding the mountain appeared. They hadn’t been

enough to hold the mountain by themselves, but now they were in the presence of

their queen.

“Can you hold this position, Betty Lou?,” asked Harry.

“I will hold,” said the machine.

“All right,” said Harry. “I am going to make some automated army troops to help you.

There should be replicating hives downslope that will keep sending bees to help with

the flying monsters. I think I will also build some flying troops to help out. Then I

have to go and build another sibling for you and Junior.”

“Sharing data with unit Junior, and lesser units,” said Betty Lou. “We will hold this

position until we are ordered to move.”

“Thanks, Betty,” said Harry. “Let me start with the super bees, then I will start the

beetles moving downhill.”

“There’s not much cover for anyone coming in off the gate, or for your aircraft

fabricator,” said Milla.

“Anyone coming here is extracting from whatever their fight was,” said Harry. “This

isn’t a gate site for contractors trying to live in the lap of luxury.”

“It’s something that needs to be considered,” said Milla. “They will need minimal

cover to treat their wounded in an emergency.”

“I didn’t actually build a door either,” said Harry. “Maybe the super bees could be

used as an extraction force.”

“I got this, Papa,” said Betty Lou. One of her cannons blew the front of the enclosure

out. The wall making roller extended the wall out to a courtyard with a force door at

the end. “It just needs an aerial cover for protection from the weather.”

“Good job,” said Harry. He jogged over to the wall and pulled himself up to the top.

He let the bees keep him safe as he measured the space with his helmet. He created

a hut with a door to allow visitors into the courtyard after the force door went down

to let them inside from the outside. He dropped down when he was done.

“It’s minimal but if a contractor came up here, they knew they were going to have

trouble trying to descend the mountains on either side,” said Milla. She pointed at a

winged thing, and a beam of white light set it on fire.

“Let me add the fabricators to give Betty Lou her support, and then we have to get

back to the others,” said Harry. “We’ll be able to set up the third Bolo. Then we can

figure out how we want to push to take this planet back.”

“Go ahead,” said Milla. “We’re as safe as we can be with your creation throwing

down fire on the enemy.”

“Let’s start with the bees,” said Harry.

He walked over to a cleared area. He could see the burning tops of trees over the top

of the wall. He supposed some of the more monkey-like xenos had tried to use them

to invade the marked area. That had been a mistake for them.

He summoned two of the fabricators for the bees. He set them up next to the wall

on either side of the courtyard. He nodded as the aircraft took shape and took off.

They started adding their fire to Betty Lou’s and the normal bees he used.

He caught Milla nodding in approval. The more he could push out here, the more

he could drain the xenos manpower. And that would help the army of contractors

that wanted to go there and farm for points to buy better equipment or, in Howitz’s

case, dream equipment they would never be able to use on their home battlefields.

And he didn’t have a problem with that.

He placed the triad of automated platforms he liked to use near the opening to Betty

Lou. He nodded as they built themselves and rolled off the platform. Missiles from

the missile launcher fired into the air, chasing targets in the distance. The fabricators

in the racks started making more.

“They are going to advance as more come off the fabricators,” said Harry. “They

will circle the outside of the wall and expand that ring, covering you and the bee

hives I threw down. The super bees will help with air support until the sky is clear

and they are simply orbiting the area.”

“Understood,” said Betty Lou. “We will hold this position.”

“All right,” said Harry. “Time to time, contractors might show up and try their luck.

Try not to let them get killed.”

“I understand my position,” said Betty Lou. He could sense the virtual nose in the air

from a mile away.

“If you need me, I will come for you,” said Harry.

“Understood,” said Betty Lou. “I will be watching, Papa.”

“I’ll try not to embarrass the clan,” said Harry. “Come on, Milla. We have to set up

with the others.”

He slid around the huge hull to reach the gate. He stepped on it with a flight of his

bees. Milla stepped on after him. They switched back to Fort Junior.

“Jordan, share all scans with unit Betty Lou,” said Harry.

“Sharing scans,” said the Jordan.

“What’s going in the mountains, Harry?,” asked Howitz. “I am picking up energy

exchanges like Junior’s.”

“I set up a second Bolo up there to control the mountains,” said Harry. “Automated

forces are making it where she can extend her reach down to the tracks.

Eventually, we will have a triangle of machines that will keep this central area clear

of xenos.”

“You’re talking about holding a giant area from any combatants,” said Howitz.

“And that’s what we want,” said Harry. “Anyone who comes here will need some

minimum level of protection. It’s the best I can do.”

“We put the truck together so we can roll out,” said Har. “Once we reach the target

area, the rest will be scutwork.”

“I’m ready to go,” said Harry. “Milla and I can hold off anything we face.”

“Junior,” said Harry. “I’m going to set up some aircraft as promised. Then we’re

going to make our push.”

“I am watching,” said Junior.

Harry picked a spot away from the force walls. He didn’t want the enemy to get lucky

and stop their air calvary from doing what they needed. Minutes later the first pair of

fighters took to the air and crashed against the xenos they ran into in the air.

Another pair took to the air and chased after winged aliens. Burning bodies and

cracked metal hulls hit the ground together.

Another set of super bees rolled off the assembly line minutes later. They exchanged

fire with their opponents and then maintained their patrol around the ruins. Eventually

they would be forced down too, but it gave Junior free shots if he wanted to take

them.

“All right,” said Harry. “Let’s see if we can do this breakout without getting killed.”

“The truck is over there,” said Detrac. “We loaded the back with weapons to help us

keep the enemy from the walls.”

“All right,” said Harry. “We have some air cover while we’re rolling. All we need to

do is take down one of the force walls and start building our corridor to the launch

site for Junior’s other sibling.”

“We might have to contend with crashes,” said Yema.

“We’re not in a hurry now that we have two touchstones for offworld contractors

to land,” said Harry. “The main thing is how hard can we push now that we have a big

enough stick to get rid of the xenos.”

“A third would be enough to rebuild a city,” said Har.

“It would have to be a short city with Junior blasting away,” said Harry. “On the other

hand, it might be enough for a spaceport for people traveling around to other planets

and not wanting to use gates.”

“Either way, this planet will not be a threat,” said Yema. “And that’s what we want.”