James Axler – Keepers of the Sun

“Got us cold,” Ryan said. “Anyone see where they got the blaster located?”

Krysty nodded. “Yeah. See that bald rock, yonder, splashed with white? Go about twenty yards left and there’s a hollow. Gun’s in there.”

Ryan looked where she pointed. “Yeah. Got it.” He looked around the area. “If I got a little higher up on our side, I could see them. Hit them with the Steyr. Slow them some.”

J.B. rattled off his knowledge of the hidden piece of light artillery. “Built just before skydark. Fires thousand rounds a minute. Thirty-five mm ammo. All sorts. Anti-aircraft, armor-piercing, full and subcaliber. Linkless feed. Real major triple-power. If they got enough ammo, they can wipe us all out here. Too heavy to move easy and quick.”

A third burst of shells whistled through the torn air, exploding to the left, far back on the trees.

“Not the finest marksmen in the world, are they?” Doc commented.

“Don’t need to be with a gun like that,” Ryan said. “Like J.B. says, if they got enough ammo” He let the sentence trail away into the morning air.

Mashashige had also spotted the concealed blaster, and was pointing to its position, calling out to his samurai to charge it.

Ryan crawled across the clearing, wincing as another volley rattled overhead, the 35 mm shells bursting just above the lead wag.

“What you planning?” he shouted to the shogun.

“They hold the highest ground,” Mashashige replied. “We must go and stop them from shooting at us.”

“Just walk up there, nice as pie, and ask them to stop? That the idea?”

“We are men of honor. Though they are ronin, they are not without honor.”

The air vibrated around them as another five seconds of shells crashed into the ground about thirty yards in front of them.

Everyone, including the shogun, dropped to the earth, hands over heads.

“Let me and my people handle it,” Ryan said, feeling his ears ringing from the concussion of the explosions. “We can probably take them out.”

“With your rifle?” Yashimoto asked. “It will be another page in the book of betraying.”

“You might die,” Mashashige said.

“Life is not worth a feather,” Hideyoshi said with a laugh, slapping Ryan on the shoulder as they scrambled to their feet.

“One way of looking at it.”

He turned to Mashashige. “Try and get your men and the wounded back into the trees. Give them some cover from the Oerlikon gun.”

The shogun hesitated a moment, then nodded. “May all your gods go with you, Cawdor-san.”

“Yeah. Yeah, thanks.”

Chapter Twenty-Two

The plan was simple.

“I go up behind us and find a sighting place. Let the gunners have it. Once I start shooting, the rest of you go down into the valley fast as you can. Up into the forest the far side. And try and get close enough to the Oerlikon to take out anyone left with it. Destroy it and then straight back here.”

“Want me to try with the revolver?” Mildred asked. “Range could be too long.”

Ryan nodded. “I reckon so. Getting on for six, seven hundred yards. Should be easy meat for Steyr. Anyone got any questions?” There was a short pause. “No? Then, let’s get on with it. Good luck, everyone. Do it to them before they do it to you. See if we can level up the odds some.”

IT SEEMED THAT THE ENEMY wasn’t all that experienced in using the heavy armament.

The shooting came in irregular bursts, and each time they were obviously having trouble aiming the Oerlikon. The 35 mm shells scythed overhead or sent up great bursts of dirt and splintered stone from well in front of the trapped expedition.

Ryan ran as fast as he could, ducking instinctively each time he heard the crackle of the revolver cannon, twisting and turning between the trees, working his way uphill. He glanced behind him to see when he could get in a clear shot across the valley.

Behind him J.B. let Jak take the lead, the rest of them strung out behind him as the white-haired teenager zigged and zagged between the trees, taking the narrow stream in a running jump. Doc was the only one who found the leap difficult, but he made it with a little help from his friends.