Hounds of Orion

The cockpit shook with a thunderous crash as Cameron drove the Squire’s armored shoulder into his opponent's shield. He could hear the metal strain to hold the impact as Cameron put his thrusters on full blast, trying to barrel through Captain Merril’s guard. He looked out through the windshield to see Merril in his own cockpit, face red from pain and pressure before the man cried out and dashed back, pulling his shield arm in as Cameron careened forward, nearly toppling over while Merril brought his Squire’s sword up in a vertical slash, attempting to bury the metal slab into the underside of Cameron’s mech.

“Shit!” Cameron cursed, bringing his own sword down to meet Merril’s. A loud clang rang out, followed by a painful vibration that rattled his body as Cameron strafed to the left, raising his sword high and cutting down in a diagonal arc that clipped Merril’s mech at the shoulder joint. Sparks flew as the blade carved into electronics running through the joint, but Cameron couldn’t celebrate yet. He could tell by the way his sword had impacted, that Merril had turned away at the last second, turning a likely dismemberment into nothing but a slight inconvenience.

The pair sparred for a few moments, exchanging parries and punishes in equal measure, neither on able to land a critical blow, before they broke apart, with Cameron rapidly dashing back to create some space while he tried to come up with a new approach.

“Good way to start it off kid, keep up the pressure.” Logan’s voice crackled in the headset, reminding Cameron that he wasn’t completely alone in this fight.

“I’m trying to,” Cameron said, moving forward slowly, “But he’s fast, and he’s got an answer for all my attacks.”

“Well, there’s a reason he’s a Captain, kid. He’s not just going to stand there and let you beat on him. Dance with him till you get an opening. When you find one, exploit the hell out of it. You can do this.”

“Roger that.” Cameron said, his voice slowly dissolving into a whisper as he squared up with Merril once more. The two circled each other, their shields up and swords at the ready as the thunderous foot falls of their mechs kicked up dirt and debris, each waiting for the other to strike. Cameron jumped first, dropping the squire low and swinging its shield arm out to bash the legs of Merril’s squire. Merril reacted, swinging his own shield to block as he took a step back, planting the Squire as he braced for impact.

Exactly as Cameron had planned.

He waited until Merril’s swing had reached the apex of its arc, before using his momentum to fall forward, lunging out with his sword, and piercing the Squire’s midsection. There was a high-pitched squeal as Merril’s Squrie shuddered and jerked, before dropping to a knee. Cameron rolled, reaching his feet quickly, standing behind Merril’s Squire raising a sword to strike the cockpit. Then he heard Logan’s voice yelling in his headset.

“Kid, watch O-” Cameron didn’t hear the rest. He was too busy being tossed around the cockpit, reeling from a shield bash that hit his right side hard, sending him fly before impacting the ground with a loud crash.

“W-What the hell…” Cameron growled out through gritted teeth as he howled in pain. His head felt foggy and heavy, a not forming on the back where it had hit the ceiling when he’d taken the fall. But that wasn’t the worst part. The worst part, was when he stood back up and found out where the blow came from.

Standing thirty meters away, Sergeant Kurz had fully engaged his Squire, the unit leaning down and helping Captain Merril to his feet. Merril’s Squire was heavily damaged, with sparks flying off the chassis and midsection, stray wiring and scrap metal peeking out from inside the hole Cameron had stabbed into it, but overall it was still functional, as was its pilot, who was staring death at Cameron through a cracked windshield. Kurz mimicked the look of his superior, as both men piloted their mechs towards Cameron.

“Two on one doesn’t exactly seem fair.” Cameron said, opening the speaker on the outside of his Squire to amplify his voice.

There was a pause before Cameron could hear the feedback coming from Kurz’s Squire before the man replied. “Since when has war been fair Prince Pellyn? We’re simply taking advantage of the situation. I promise not to drag out turning that Squire in a slag heap though. That’d just be cruel.” The radio cut out with the sound of Kurz’s laughter echoing in Cameron’s mind.

“Logan… Any advice here?” Cameron called into the headset, fear welling up in his voice as the two mechs dashed at him, blades drawn. He was met with silence for the briefest of moments as he activated the boosters on his Squire, feeling the cockpit shake as his speed increased exponentially, backpedaling down the field as Kruz and Merril engaged in a tandem barrage of slashes and stabs.

Cameron weaved in between the blows, dodging the most of them with a frenzied grace, but the volume of strikes was too much, and pieces of the Squire were sheared off in quick succession. The alarm blared inside the cockpit and Cameron had to fight to remain conscious as his head bounced against the bulkhead for the third time. Blood trailed down his nostrils, and it took him a minute to focus through his double vision before he grabbed the headset from where it had been flung in the last impact, quickly putting it on his head as he screamed into the microphone like his life depended on it.

“Fuck! Logan! Help me!”

***

Logan was currently being held by a struggling Augustus and Darwin as he was reaching to strangle a cowering Lendrick.

“Two on one?! That’s how it’s going to be you fucking snake?!” He yelled, taking another few steps toward the dignitary, despite Augustus and Darwin’s best efforts.

“Logan calm down!” The king said, his face red from exertion and strain. “What’s done is done! There’s no changing it now. We all knew the risk and so did Cameron! We both know this was allowed!”

Logan growled in anger and pushed both men off of him like they were mere children, watching as they fell into a heap and looking at Augustus with fury in his eyes. “Fuck that.” He spat, saying the words as if they were a curse. He then pointed a finger at Lendrick, who was struggling to keep an impassive face, his body shaking from fear and anger, eyes wide and skin tone going pale.

“What do you want from me mercenary?” Lendrick yelled out, trying to put on a brave front.

Logan shook his head, his teeth showing as spit flew from his lips, growling in response, “I’m warning you now. If he dies, so do you.”

“Logan you can’t do that and you know it.” Augustus said, trying to catch his breath and looking between Lendrick and Logan, “That’s not part of the assessment.”

“Do I look like I care Augustus?!” Logan shouted back, a look of shame on his face as he gave Augustus a hard look, walking past him to where the headset lay, whispering in his ear as he passed, “Maybe stop being a king for a moment and be a fucking parent.”

Logan left a speechless Augustus, quickly walking to grab the headset to focus on the assessment once again. He pulled it on his head and pulled the mic to his lips, watching intently as Cameron attempted to dodge the incoming blows from the two veterans.

“Kid! I’m here, you okay?”