CLOSING IN

Gunfire rattled against their mechs for a brief second before they were off. Trapper veered them through the maze of fire, charging toward the haulers. Ahead, the haulers' turrets tracked them with unnerving speed, their sweeping barrels close on their heels.

"Dip left!"

The formation lurched in a violent sideways dash. Will ducked low, feeling the air above his helmet shear as a line of rounds screamed over their heads.

The reprieve lasted only seconds before a fresh barrage came from the turrets. They dodged again, but something was already waiting for them.

Bullets came screaming from behind. Shots hammered into their backs with violent, sudden clangs.

Trapper's field surged to the rear to block the rounds, and Will gasped as the ever-present grip around his mech vanished. Remy and Becca stumbled too as the trio were left rudderless.

Cursing, Trapper reasserted control. His field snapped back around them and yanked the trio out of the fire of another barrage that tore across the asphalt they'd occupied moments before.

Sweat trickled down Will's forehead. As they zigzagged up the ruined highway, he risked a quick look over his shoulder.

The jeeps were closing fast.

The grey-uniformed Revenant fighters sent sporadic bursts their way. Most shots went wide, for now. That would change the moment the gap closed.

"We finish this quick," Trapper barked. "The longer this goes on, the harder it's going to get."

The older pilot's voice was tight, strained with effort. Will felt a chill. Even Trapper had his limits. They had to turn this around, and fast.

There had to be some way to flip the script.

A thunderous bang shook the air. Metal screamed as sparks burst from the leftmost hauler.

The massive truck had plowed through a car. The smaller vehicle folded on impact, dragged across the highway with sparks spitting where its twisted frame scraped the asphalt.

The shrill grind lasted only seconds before the frame gave way with a hollow clang. The ruined vehicle was launched upward, hurled like scrap sheet metal.

Will's eyes widened.

"Oh sh—"

The car came hurtling toward them, spinning end over end like a rolling dervish.

"Duck!" Trapper roared.

A violent pulse from his field slammed them forward in a burst of speed. The world narrowed to a tunnel as they shot under the spinning wreck.

For one suspended instant, time compressed.

The vehicle's shadow washed over them as its warped underside passed inches above Will's visor.

Then the moment snapped.

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The wreck roared past and slammed into the road behind them, erupting into a fireball of crumpled steel.

"Holy shit!" Remy yelped, voice cracking. "What the hell was that?!"

Another bang echoed from ahead, and Will's breath hitched.

The haulers had smashed through another car, sending it careening into the guardrails in a spray of sparks.

People screamed. Vehicles swerved, some jerking to a halt, others sliding into the shoulders. Doors flew open as passengers bolted, sprinting toward side alleys.

Will cursed under his breath. The roads were a lot livelier now that they were closer to the city. The Undercity was only a few miles out, and they were running out of time. If they didn't stop this soon, the casualty count would explode.

Gunfire resumed, and rounds hammered into Will. The impacts slammed into his back-plating, rocking him forward.

"Damn!"

A new field snapped into place behind him as Becca intervened. Her field flared in a wide, shimmering arc, scattering the incoming rounds before they could chew through their armor.

"Becca!" Will exclaimed.

She dragged in a ragged breath and pushed harder. Her field thickened, stretching across their entire rear as the jeeps behind them opened fire.

Bullets rained down in a relentless torrent. Her wavering field couldn't stop everything, but the rounds slowed enough to thud harmlessly against their mechs.

Becca gasped, feeling the drain on her reserves.

"Becca, switch with me!" Will shouted over the cacophony.

Unable to speak, She simply shook her head, sharp and stubborn, while forcing more strength into the field.

Will opened his mouth to argue, but Trapper cut him off, one gauntleted hand clamping down on his shoulder plate.

"Trust your team, she can handle herself," he said. "Becca, you're rear guard."

"Yes," Becca panted, her field rippling behind her.

"As for you two," Trapper continued, glancing at Will and Remy, "I need to get closer to those trucks. That means you provide suppressive fire. Keep them busy so they don't have time to focus on me. Clear?"

"Right," Will breathed.

"Roger that!" Remy echoed, already raising his rifle.

Will unslung his own weapon. He sighted down the barrel, aiming for the turrets jutting from the haulers' open panels. The massive guns spat fire at a vicious, unrelenting rate, forcing Trapper to weave through the barrage.

Their constant motion made aiming hellish, but Will stayed patient and sent a burst through the open panel. The turret faltered, the stream of fire cutting off, but before he could keep it pinned, the other haulers forced him to break away under heavy return fire.

"Dammit!" Remy hissed as his own shot went wide.

"Again!" Will shouted, and together they opened fire.

Will hammered the middle hauler while Remy took the one on the right. Their suppressive bursts stilled both turrets for a few precious seconds, until the untouched hauler on the left swung its guns toward them.

Gunfire erupted, and they were once again interrupted.

Will gritted his teeth. It was like playing whack-a-mole with high-caliber artillery. Keeping all three trucks suppressed for more than a heartbeat was impossible. One was always free to break their rhythm and force them to reposition.

Still, he and Remy didn't relent. They kept firing as they steadily gained ground, and inch by inch, they clawed their way closer to the haulers.

"Close enough," Trapper growled.

He slammed a fresh cartridge into his shotgun, snapped the barrel up—

—and fired.

A white blur tore from the barrel, streaking toward the leftmost hauler and striking with a sharp metallic clang as it embedded itself in the outer hull.

It was only after a closer look that Will saw the shotgun round for what it really was. Stuck fast to the armored rear of the hauler was a small white disk.

While the disk was unfamiliar to Will, the ones in the truck clearly recognized the puck.

Panic erupted inside the hauler as the gunners yanked their turrets back. One of them shoved an arm through the side panel, fingers clawing for the puck, but he couldn't quite reach it.

The disk began to hiss.

White smoke poured out of it in thick, choking plumes that quickly swelled to engulf the hauler. The panicked gunners fired blindly into the fog, muzzles flashing uselessly through the haze.

They hit nothing.

Will allowed himself a thin, grim smile. The remaining haulers still spat sporadic fire, but without their fogged-out partner, their overlapping fields of fire fell apart.

They couldn't keep them pinned anymore.

"Let's take care of the rest." Trapper racked the shotgun, ejecting the spent cartridge.

Will's fingers tightened around his rifle as he braced himself. Trapper's field erupted, and they shot forward. A sonic boom cracked in their wake as they accelerated so fast Will's vision began to tunnel.

His sole focus was the two remaining haulers. Gritting his teeth, he readied his rifle.

One down. Two to go.

Together, they charged straight into the hail of fire toward the remaining haulers.

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