Chapter 69: Review For A Test
"I hope that was rhetorical, and you aren't inquiring out of genuine curiosity." If there was one sure way for someone to find themselves on the Third Headman's thorny side, all they needed to do was question the capabilities of his ray. He defended each one of his servicemen like they were family--and they were. He glared back at In-3.
"As we speak, my people are editing new records and files releasing to the public data archives, and anything that may escape Ardiseg Hall through word of mouth is being dealt with much the same way," he inclined his head toward Eighth Headman, "with the Eighth's assistance."
"And our general defensive capabilities?" In-3 crossed his arms, and not two seconds later, the Fourth Headman mirrored him.
The information rolled off Eighth Headman's tongue; she pulled it from memory with the same ease that he would've Pa-5's date of birth. "Though the guardian towers have yet to receive testing in an official capacity, I'm confident that when the time comes, they'll perform as we envisioned. We have hundreds dispersed at every intersection, behind the maintenance and main gates to the city, and around every civilian or government property with outsized importance."
"The emplacements on the walls number in the thousands, with a skewed distribution in favor of cylinders and netting, and my and your men are finding room for more, but it will take time we don't know we have. There's room for more on the exterior of the wall facing the Aud, if we must."
That was wasteful, especially considering once the Aud scaled the walls, they would tear apart anything in their path, including those newly mounted emplacements.
"As for the wall itself, we run maintenance and inspections on the regular to ensure all the internal machinery and external additions on the inside of the wall function as per specification." She ran through the list while counting off with her fingers.
"Heat shunting, the energy grid, the concussive absorbents, the lifts, the resupply stations, the workstations for field engineers and techs, the elevated scanners, the portable assistive programs…" She looked over at the Prime Beacon. "I've not left anything out, have I?"
"Only the Titan perches." Ironic that she should forget one of the largest items on the list.
"And those." Her chin jutted up in approval. "I don't need to summarize much of the WAV garages. We're all familiar with them." At some time or place, every headman present had been a conscript in the FIrst's military, after all. "Of note, though, WAV production as of late works toward more defaults and lights."
"Yes, I noticed that as well, though at the time I saw no reason to dispute the change in production priority." In-3 pinned him with another signature stare. "Is there anything you're in the mood to share?"
The Prime Beacon withheld the urge to shrug, settling for clasping his palms together. "I knew sooner or later the Aud would come. And I was also the person to recommend more emplacements receive installations not on top of the wall exclusively, but on its exterior too," Eighth Headman confirmed this with a conspiratory grin, "because I wanted to establish our first defense on the exterior of the wall, not its top."
He watched the others' reactions with caution laced in the way his eyes would make a casual visit of their silhouettes, then dart in another direction to repeat the process elsewhere.
"The WAVs all own modular sockets for additions to make each unique and more varied, suited for different purposes and tasks. One such socket in the lower back could serve as the anchor for a cable--scutumsteel, if possible. I intend to position the first defensive line of WAVs hanging--or rather, standing, with their feet against the wall's exterior surface. The heavy class of WAVs would be too heavy to achieve this even with more anti-grav nodes in other sockets or generators in the vicinity, so I downsized to the next classes, the defaults, and lights."
There was grumbling, but none of his opposition could develop a concrete reason about why this was a terrible option. Not to say it wasn't, but no matter what defensive structure they oriented their assets around, people would die. That was inevitable.
In his eyes, the longer they could stall the Aud on the city's wall, or better, the exterior of it, the more time they could bring themselves to invest their resources into further countermeasures. Besides, there would be plenty of Aud that survived this strategy to meet the lines of heavies that'd wait at the top--not that they couldn't fire down beforehand.
There wouldn't be a lack of targets, and the targeting programs would ensure that emplacements, WAVs, and guardian towers could all pool their munitions in a way that produced the demise of the most Aud possible.
They adjourned their de facto meet to split off. They didn't know how long they had left until the Aud presented themselves to the city, and after, how soon those on the ground--or traversing the ceiling--would initiate the first attack.
At the distance the Aud covered under the watchful surveillance of the drones, it couldn't be longer than a day. Yet, knowing this, as the Sixth Headman had said, habits were "dastardly things." Habits like trusting predictions pertaining to the Aud.
Each headman and their associated ray had plenty they still needed to do, and with the uncertain time constraint over their heads, this lit a fire under them. Though he was already nursing a headache at the stray thoughts of tasks Ni-6 would thrust upon him the moment he stepped foot inside his office, he was still grateful he directed the actions of a ray involved with Directory and military matters.
He pitied the Third and Ninth; the mere visualization of what they'd need to do to keep the civilian populace calm when the moment of truth arrived made him wince.
As per his expectations, Ni-6 had arrived in his office before him. And as per his expectations, there were tasks no doubt waiting to travel to his ears, hidden from sight by the cover of that screen he seemed to always have pressed to his chest.
But against his expectations, the first item on the agenda wasn't to review the results of some new reform or to travel to the wall to check how affairs would look during the first attack. Ni-6, respectful yet firm, patted his shoulder and led him from the room. "We're visiting medical."
"Why?"
"When was the last time you went on your own volition, sir? I know you still ignore their regular invitations for a routine examination." At the current moment, their regular invitations--coming every hour and growing close to becoming offensive to read--for routine examinations--complex and very thorough full-body examinations--were the last thing he wanted to waste time considering.
Before he could voice his disapproval, Ni-6, again, respectful yet firm, rebuked whatever was on the tip of his tongue. "The Seventh issued a verdict that 'to the best of its abilities, the Directory-exclusive medical industry is to examine all carriers of the Old Man's Blessing before the inevitable skirmish between human and Aud forces on account of their majority aging demographic.'"
"That's a mouthful."
"I can't disagree. And medical is that way, sir."
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