Beset by colossal centipedes

Howling 60 kph winds whipped up sandstorms across the dark red land, blurring vision. As dust storms swept over the undulating mountain range, six 3-meter tall humanoid mechs in black emerged, racing across a mountainside.

Though massive, they seemed insignificant amongst the towering peaks - as though they could be swallowed by the swirling grit at any moment. However, the six mechs moved steadily, each grasping fantastically designed high-tech weapons representing unbelievable firepower. Anyone who dismissed them as ants would meet a terrible fate.

As they advanced, the mechs maintained a brisk 60 kph pace, constantly scanning their surroundings - clearly textbook tactical maneuvering to anticipate threats.

After rapidly covering several kilometers, the lead mech surveyed the area then waved its right arm, bellowing clearly in English: "Faster, faster everyone! Only 300 km to home and I have no desire to miss a sumptuous dinner!"

"A week of survival training finally done! I must have a hot shower before dinner, I stink to high heaven after a week without washing!" a young man's voice responded.

"After dinner I plan to sleep beautifully, my skin has practically dried out these past days!" came a woman's reply.

Another gruff male voice guffawed loudly: "Pent up for days, f***ing painful! I swear after dinner I'll head to the pub for some fine Halo Planet wine, then find a few nice looking birds with big jugs and arses to laugh with!" He then laughed uproariously.

"With a face like yours, you think you can land beauties like that? Dream on mate!" came another female voice.

Indeed, ensconced in the six mechs were several people.

And these were no mechs, but basic Single Soldier Armors issued by the Earth Federation forces to cannon fodder infantrymen.

Compared to mechs...well, there was no comparison at all. They weren't even close to the same league.

The squad leader's voice rang out again: "Your fantasies can only come true once we're back at base. Come on lads, run!"

"Sir, yes sir!" came the unanimous cry.

As one they gunned their engines to 70 kph. At this speed they were barely affected by the howling winds, while allowing relatively economic battery usage - an economic cruising speed, so to speak.

Soon they crested the peak and raced down into the valley below.

Deeply secluded, the shrieking winds blocked by the summits, the valley seemed especially tranquil, dotted with peculiar vegetation in an ambience of desolate magnificence.

The squad leader was first to step into the valley, surveying their surroundings. Things seemed quiet enough and he breathed a sigh of relief: "Brilliant, finally a chance to rest! Nearly suffocated from the tension!"

Just as he moved to unlock his helmet, a shrill alarm suddenly screamed in their ears. The leader froze, bellowing: "Activate radar overlay!"

In a flash, the radar display activated within his helmet. A semi-transparent virtual screen flickered into view before his eyes.

His gaze swept over it - nearly a hundred red dots emerging from halfway up the valley sides, from three directions, swiftly moving to surround them.

The leader swiftly gripped his rifle, shouting: "Bloody hell, everyone fall back up the slope!"

The rest yanked their gun bolts back with sharp metallic scrapes, swiftly retreating towards the peak.

But before they even reached the base, several hundred more creatures emerged from the mountainsides, swarming inexorably to seal off every valley exit.

At first glance the creatures resembled Earth's centipedes, albeit over two meters long, with hairy legs, armored exoskeletons, sprinting over 50 kph. Not to mention dual pairs of wicked metal mandibles – leaving no doubt that the mechs' alloy armor could withstand a mere 20 seconds against their rending.

"Damn itme, it's a swarm of Giant Shagfoot Centipedes! Everyone on me, energy rifles at level three!" bellowed the leader as he discharged flickering blue beams from his rifle.

Standard Earth Federation issue with four settings. At level three, up to five rapid shots per second. Two to three hits on vital organs spelt doom – enough to take down a Shagfoot.

The dozen lead creatures writhed under the barrage then lay still, swiftly expiring. But even more daunting was the teeming horde - hundreds of two meter insects charging like armored cavalry, the sight tremendous and chilling.

The leader roared: "Wilkins, fall back and cover our rear! Farrow support him! The rest of you, with me - we break out through the swarm!"

"Leave it to me!" A gruff voice called out as one of the soldier armors abruptly retreated several steps, raising a bizarre weapon.

"Bzzz bzzz bzzz..." Dense beams of light shot out, burning gaping holes into everything they touched.

The close-range rotary laser cannon, nine 12mm barrels firing at 2000 rounds per minute. The firepower of each shot was weaker than an energy rifle, but the staggering rate of fire required massive external power sources and heavy duty converters - likely inside the bulging backpack this soldier wore.

However, the Shagfoots' unbelievable durability rendered the cannon's power below expectations. At this close range, Private Wilkins had no way to contain the shockingly dense swarm.

Over the shrieks, two Shagfoots burst through the barrage less than 30m away, closing in with disturbing speed. Unless he swung the cannon around, there was no stopping their approach.

But turning the cannon would mean the endless horde behind would breach the barrage within five seconds. Then they'd all be done for.

Terrified, Wilkins retreated steadily, desperately firing into the densest concentrations and leaving the few nearby beasts to his squadmates!

The creatures had closed to within 8 meters, froze briefly in a flash, then pounced at lightspeed - Farrow heard their approach upon his vulnerable flesh, his life hanging by a thread...

"Bang! Bang!" Came two muffled blasts.

The two beasts exploded midair, semi-transparent azure blood drenching Wilkins and his armor.

"Nice shooting, Farrow!" Wilkins yelled.

"Boom! Boom!" Farrow gave no smug reply, his .75 heavy sniper unrelentingly fighting back.

Custom built for soldier armors with a 19mm bore, braced by powered exoskeletons and assisted targeting to negate the weapon's monstrous kickback for two aimed shots per second.

The sabot rounds' hidden HE charges turned each bullet into a mini-shell, detonating a Shagfoot with every earsplitting blast.

But the ceaseless tide exceeded imagination, the five soldiers firing and retreating while still outnumbered three-to-one even nearby, then hundreds more emerged from below.

"F*** me, don't tell me we met the migrating mega-horde?! We're screwed!" one of the women blurted in a rare outburst.

"Astra, frag grenades, bracket that cluster!" the leader yelled, hurling twin blue fireballs from his rifle to obliterate a nearing creature.

The previously shouting armor yanked what looked like a gyroscope from her waist, slotting it into the rifle barrel aimed at two hundred plus meters below. She pulled the trigger.

"Whoosh!" the spinning device disappeared in a wisp of blue smoke, too fast to follow.

A blinding flash then a twenty meter tall curtain of flames roiled forth, immolating all it enveloped.

A hundred meter radius was consumed by the churning blaze, dozens of Shagfoots reduced to cinders and more blasted away - grievously wounded or killed outright by the shockwave alone, casualties catastrophic.

But Private Astra was clearly unsatisfied: "Pity we don't have man-portable tactical fusion warheads, the kill ratio is too low!"

The squad leader admonished harshly: "Don't even imagine it! We'd never be issued those outside of war - stay alert and use grenades the moment they mass!"

"Sir, yes sir!" Astra crisply acknowledged, scanning intently as she fired energy beams while monitoring her radar, but the low cliffs hindered effectiveness.

She shouted: "Nova, what's radar looking like?"

A voice responded from a nearby suit: "Too much ionized particulate in this valley, level four interference - can't connect to the early warning satellites!"