Chương 388: Book 6 - Chapter 49 - Armored Warfare (Dusty POV)

"Dusty, do you think you can handle that thing?" the boss asked as she weaved between cover, trying to avoid the Antithesis hunter.

"Don't worry, Boss, the Mauler and I have this!" Dusty replied as he adjusted the Mauler's turret slightly to bring the second barrel to bear upon the giant scorpion thing.

"You have this? What about the rest of us?" the driver grumbled.

"You're all artificial personalities created by extending my presence through the command network," Dusty replied.

"Wait? So you're talking to yourself?" one of the sponson gunners asked.

"Technically yes, but… shut up!" Dusty snapped.

"I prefer to talk to my troops rather than silently issue orders like a soulless machine!"

"You get that from the boss," the main gunner muttered as they fired the second cannon. The entire tank shuddered violently. Even though it weighed as much as a small building, the Mauler needed all that mass to remain anchored whenever one of the heavy coil cannons fired. Although they weren't as strong as the UHRs mounted on Bear Force One, they were still several magnitudes stronger than any of the other weapons in the bear's arsenal.

"The target adjusted at the last second and took the round on a different part of its body. Its carapace is cracked, and the creature is bleeding, but it's otherwise undamaged," the spotter reported.

"It's a tough son of a bitch," Dusty grumbled.

"We're going to have to double-tap it if we want to crack that shell. How long until the main guns are ready to fire?"

"Thirty seconds! The capacitors still need time to charge!" the loader reported.

"I don't think we have that long," the loader hissed.

"It's turned towards us."

"Extend the coil cannon sponsons, and bombard it with the missile launchers," Dusty ordered.

"We need to delay it as long as possible!" At his order, the two missile arrays on top of the tank began spitting out a slow but steady barrage of missiles. They streaked across the cavern, smashing the scorpion in the face. Despite being strong enough to punch straight through a Twenty-Eight, the explosives didn't seem to be doing any real damage to the colossus. In fact, they barely seemed to slow it down.

It appeared that the colossus did not appreciate getting pelted in the face, because it started returning fire. Every time one of the massive spikes impacted the Mauler, the tank shuddered, but the spines didn't quite manage to penetrate the armor. The shield generators began emitting warning sirens as they struggled with the intense barrage.

"Full reverse! Try to keep some space between us and the target!" Dusty yelled.

"Keep up the pressure while I consult the others." [Bandit! I need some help here. We need to find a chink in this thing's armor, a weak point I can exploit long enough to rearm the main guns.] [I hate to tell you this, but I haven't had time to analyze that thing. I've been too busy reconnecting to the recon teams to observe it,] the fox replied. If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it. [Just wonderful,] Dusty grumbled.

[Does anyone else have a suggestion? I told the boss I'd handle this thing, and I don't want to let her down.] [The front line and the Kodiaks are coming back online. We could use them to slow it down. Deadbeat suggested. [And how do you suggest we do that? That monster has been throwing the Kodiaks around like toys?] Dusty asked. [You asked for ideas, that's the best I've got,] Deadbeat replied. [Now, if you'll excuse me, Heavy and I need to hold back the horde until we can re-establish our defensive lines.]"I guess that was a bust," the driver said." Quiet! Can't you see the commander is trying to think?" the copilot hissed." Well, he'd better think fast. The missiles aren't going to keep that thing back forever," the driver muttered." We just need a couple seconds…" Dusty whispered. [Don't worry, friend Dusty, I've got it!] Bob declared. [Uhhh… Thanks? Where are you? What are you going to do?] Dusty replied. [I'm going to do what Deadbeat recommended, and use the Kodiaks!] Bob said. Dusty's subpersonalities all looked at each other in confusion. [How? The ones that have come back online still need time to restart their engines,] Dusty asked. [I'm giving them a little boost,] Bob replied. A moment later, one of the crashed Kodiaks shot forward, the back end completely mangled, and slammed into the side of the scorpion with enough force to completely wreck the vehicle. Although it didn't seem to have injured the monster, it was enough to cause the beast to pause and look to see where the vehicle came from. When it did, Bob casually waved to it, stepped behind another one of the overturned transports, and slammed it in the back with one of his pile drivers to send it sailing across the room towards the monster." Well… I guess that's one way to use the Kodiaks," the spotter said." Do you think Bob knows that all the Kodiaks are filled with extra ammunition?" the loader asked." If he hits one the wrong way, it might explode."" I think it's less a question of 'does he know' and more a question of 'does he care,'" Dusty said." And the answer to that is no, no, he doesn't. If one of them explodes on him, he'll just walk it off." He shook his head. Bob was as predictable as he was terrifying." Bob's bought us some time, but I doubt we'll get another chance at this. We're going to have to fire both cannons simultaneously."" You've seen the specifications; the Mauler isn't designed to fire both at once. It would cause intense stress to the turret and could flip us if we don't line the tank up properly," the gunner said." Then we'll just have to make sure we're lined up properly," Dusty declared." Look at that fucking monster right now; the wounds we inflicted with the first volley are already closing. If we don't finish it, or at least mortally wound it, we won't get another shot." He jumped to his feet and turned to face the gunner." Prepare to fire! Let me know the instant you have a shot!" The other bear saluted before sticking its face against the range finder." You want me to aim at anything in particular?"" Wait until it turns back towards us, and aim for the head. If we only get one shot, we'll make it a decapitation strike," Dusty said. Outside, the Scorpion flicked a couple of spines at Bob, trying to pin him down. Once it realized that throwing spikes at Bob was about as effective as Bob throwing Kodiaks, it began to lose interest in the bear. He hadn't proved to be a massive threat, unlike the Mauler, and could be dealt with later. As it turned back towards the tank, Mauler's main cannons focused on the creature's head." Target acquired!" the gunner declared." Open fire!" Dusty immediately shouted. When it fired this time, the Mauler didn't shudder; it lurched violently backwards, the turret and hull screeching in protest as they tried to handle the intense stress of absorbing the kickback from both coil cannons at once. Dusty clutched the armrests of his chair, desperately holding on while he waited for the rocking to subside." Report!" he ordered." Unable to ascertain the status of the target," the spotter replied." The blast knocked out the periscope."" Shit!" Dusty swore, popping up on his chair and clutching at the hatch above his head." Keep reversing until I determine the situation." He heaved the heavy superalloy plate out of the way as fast as he could and stuck his head out. The Scorpion's head had completely caved in. While the desperate gamble had nearly crippled the Mauler's primary weapon, it had been successful. The left side of the scorpion's head had completely caved in, and there was a thick furrow dug deep into the beast." Hey, nice shot!" Bob declared as he wandered up to the corpse." It's not going to be able to regenerate from that, right?" Dusty asked." Don't worry about it, I'll take care of it," Bob replied. He pantomimed rolling up his sleeves and wandered into the wound, punching everything in sight. Dusty sat there for a moment, watching the big bear work, before finally uttering the word that had been at the forefront of his mind." Ewww."