Chapter Eleven
by LordCoake

"OK men, lets do this! Jones, Smith, you two got my back, and Lucas, you take up the far rear." Chief Mike Clancy and his boys arrived in the jeep at "The Hangar". Lucas parked the jeep several yards from the tavern, and they quickly unloaded. Not knowing what they were up against, they packed light, each carrying the standard issue Triax Ion Pulse rifle, vibro-knife, 9mm pistol, and dressed in medium weight, white Bushman armor.

The officers made there way through a wave of people running from the bar. Several of the patrons were wounded, though not seriously. Clancy new that the real injuries would be within, where it was reported that energy weapons were being used. Carefully approaching the threshold of the bar, Clancy checked his rifle, and began up the steps. Jones, Smith, and Lucas followed quietly behind him.

The scene was eerily silent. A slight breeze blew down the street behind them, stirring dust and dirt. The sun cast long shadows as it set beyond the horizon.

Lucas spotted a charred hole in the wall of the bar, burnt cleanly through, still smoking from the intense heat that caused it. "Chief," Lucas said quietly, and gestured toward the hole. Clancy immediately recognized the hole as laser damage and slowly walked to the door, Smith close behind on his right side. The smell of ozone permeated the air, lingering with the odor of burnt flesh. Clancy and Smith took positions just beyond the door frame. Lucas took a backup position several feet behind, and Jones stood just behind Clancy, waiting for the signal.

Chief Clancy checked their positions and, holding up one hand, began counting down from three. Smith acknowledged the signal and stood at the ready. Clancy reached zero, and quickly rushed into the tavern, ready to fire his rifle at whatever lay beyond. He stopped quick when he discovered what had caused the damage.

Standing in the center of the bar, with its back toward him, stood a nine foot tall borg. It stood directly in front of the slowly closing dimensional portal as if contemplating the two steps that would take him to who knows where. Blast marks covered its body and limbs, showing internal damage in some areas, its right arm nearly blown off. Laying around him were the remains of several patrons, gunned down or beaten by the metal behemoth. The borg stood still, not acknowledging their presence at the door. In what was left of its right arm, it held a large vibro sword, its power cords severed and useless. Pointing his pulse rifle at the center of the borg's back, Clancy shouted out, "Drop your weapon! You are under arrest!"

With a speed that belied its massive size, the borg quickly turned to face him. Chief Clancy barely had time to react as the borg raised it's left arm and fired a blast from a particle beam weapon housed in its forearm. "Oh shit,!" he shouted, leaping to the left, narrowly avoiding the devastating blast. The weapon vaporized the air where Clancy once stood, and instead hit Smith squarely in the chest, knocking him to the ground several feet behind. Clancy leaped to the floor just in time to dodge another blast which took out a large section of the wall above him.

Jones and Lucas ran up to the doorway, taking the place of Clancy and Smith, who slowly rose to his feet and made for cover back outside behind the jeep. Firing repeatedly at the borg, they walked forward into the tavern. Beams of light flashed repeatedly, burning large holes in the body of the metal beast. Tossing aside the useless vibro sword, the borg only walked through the laser blasts toward the armored humans.

Clancy finally climbed to his feet and looked up in time to see the borg lunge forward, grabbing Jones by the arm. At this range, the particle beam nearly blew Jones in half. The borg casually tossed the smoking body aside, and went for Lucas. Two blasts came from its particle beam, one catching Lucas in the left side, as he dived for cover. Clancy quickly looked for his rifle.