Beginning Part-19

As he ran the short distance through the dying inferno and across an unbelievable wasteland of human suffering, Revitz was horrified to see what seemed to be a horde of insects scurrying across the valley, pouring down en masse from all western slopes. Larger machines moved among the troops, and a blaze of weapons assaulted the camp’s defenses from all quarters. Beyond their destination bunker, the first lines of western defenses were also crawling with friendly forces, which were issuing forth from protected underground staging areas to meet the assault.
Another wave of slag charges ignited along the eastern edge of the base. The towering flames climbed high into the dark sky, and the shockwaves at his back sent him flying.
Struggling to keep his feet, he managed to follow Wethers down into a dark hole in the earth, and then around a blast barrier to the munitions bunker’s main doors. They forced their way inside, and collapsed in the space beyond.
Wheezing and panting and coughing, they choked on their own terror and drowned in their own overwhelming sense of doom. Wethers checked him for damage, and Revitz followed suit. He discovered, much to his surprise, that he was bleeding from a dozen different wounds, and was bruised everywhere. A gash above his left eye was the worst, but he patched it up in short order.
“Let’s get to those fucking machines,” growled Wethers. The corporal came up to his knees, and, leaning heavily on the concrete wall, managed to stand on shaking knees.
“Hot shit,” cursed Revitz, once again following his non-comm. “I never ran so fast in my life! Jesus, I’m covered in somebody’s guts!”