(15)
Officer Jensen’s evening patrol had brought him to the far southern reaches of his jurisdiction in his search for the cause of a number of recent motorist complaints to the Highway Patrol.
Though sparsely populated itself, the area south of Pahrump, Nevada still hosts many tourist destinations and popular recreation areas in national forests. The complaints indicated a group of individuals were repeatedly seen driving recklessly at high rates of speed and at night, no less.
In the past, wealthy sports car enthusiasts from Las Vegas had been known to treat State Route 160 as though it was their own personal version of the Silver State Classic Challenge. In the process, they recklessly endanger the lives of thousands of motorists in the Spring Mountains and Pahrump areas.
Reports of lawlessness in Nevada’s pristine wilderness areas were dealt with quickly and citations often issued requiring court appearances. Severe penalties were routinely handed down to deter repeat offences and avoid a negative impact on the mainstay of the local economies, namely tourism. Officer Jensen had no intention of allowing a gang of hoodlums from the city to disturb the peace on his watch.
When cruising the highway failed to yield results, he elected to ‘stake out’ the area with the most complaints from a concealed position just off the highway where he could still monitor traffic. After holding his position for over an hour without incident, he was considering a move to another area when he received an unusual priority message on his radio.
“Unit 16, this is dispatch, I’m connecting you directly to the Sheriff, please stand by...”
“10-4 dispatch, standing by,” Officer Jensen replied.
“...Yes, of course I understand the implications and no, I don’t care if it violates protocol, he still needs to know..., Unit 16, this is Sheriff Browell, do you copy, over?”
“Yes, Sir. I read you 5 by 5. Is something wrong?” Officer Jensen asked clearly confused.
“Yes, very wrong, you are about to come into contact with hostiles. You will
not engage them under any circumstances. Do
not use your lights or siren. I am ordering you to stand down. You will observe only, is that understood?”
“Y... yes Sir. Don’t engage, no lights or siren, observe only. May I ask why though, Sir? I thought these complaints were for reckless driving and speeding violations.”
“Without going into details, I just received information from TVS that you would be outgunned in a fire fight if you were to engage these particular hostiles.”
“TVS? A fire fight, Sir? I seriously doubt a bunch of road racers would resort to..., wait, I think I hear something.”
“Officer Jensen! Do not engage! That’s an order!”
“I’m hearing a high-pitched whistle now, maybe more of a whine actually, but not like a turbine sound. If it’s a jet, it must be really low. I can’t tell what direction it’s coming from yet but it’s definitely getting louder.”
“Do not engage, Officer Jensen! TVS is in the vicinity to provide backup. Your function is to observe only! Is that understood?”
“Yes, Sir, but since when does TVS have the authority to interfere with law enforcement? To be honest, Sir, I don’t see how a vehicle manufacturer could possibly have the resources to provide backup. They obviously don’t have our knowledge or experience and they can’t be better armed than the Highway Patrol.”
“Observation only, Officer Jensen,” Sheriff Browell repeated in exasperation.
Rounding a curve about a mile away, a jet-black line appeared that quickly resolved into a group of sleek identical machines in tight formation approaching Officer Jensen’s position. As the first group of six machines accelerated into the straightaway with a screaming high-pitched whine, a second group rounded the curve behind it closely followed by a third.
From his cruiser, Officer Jensen peered at the rapidly approaching black machines with fascination. His attention was drawn to small blue lights that blinked rapidly back and forth between the machines in a code or a line of communication on some level.
As three brilliant green targeting lasers flashed from the lead group to ‘paint’ his cruiser, the young officer reacted without thinking by diving headlong from the open door and rolling quickly to cover. A rapid-fire series of thudding reports proved his involuntary reaction was correct when a terrific concussion deafened him and his cruiser exploded in a ball of flame.
Momentarily stunned by the blast, Officer Jensen raised his head to stare in disbelief at the furiously burning wreckage that remained of his cruiser. Somewhere very close by, the crunch of gravel under heavy road wheels caused him to freeze as a dark shadow silently eclipsed his view of the burning cruiser. Fearing another of the black machines had come to inspect the destroyed vehicle, the officer stayed motionless and held his breath.
“Corporal Jensen, I presume?” an amplified voice inquired over a public-address system from the dark machine. “Your cruiser appears to be out of commission. I am Colonel Temple from TVS. Are you injured?”
The officer slowly raised his head to stare incredulously at the dark hulk of the imposing Centurion looming above him.
“I..., I don’t think so, got the wind knocked out of me. I don’t think anything is broken, but I was afraid to stand up. What happened?” the officer asked without moving from his position.
“Well, the short version is you
survived an attack by a Strax pod when it closed on your position. The lead pod detected your cruiser and destroyed it with something like a mortar round by the looks of it. There’s not a whole lot left.”
“A Strax pod, Ma’am? Forgive me, but I’m not completely clear on what that is.”
“Never mind Corporal, you are, no doubt, still a bit groggy from the concussive effects of that explosion,” the Colonel explained. “That was quick thinking though, diving out of your cruiser like that; it was smartly done and no doubt saved your life.”
“...Thank you, Ma’am.”
“I have taken the liberty of contacting your commanding officer and ordering a medevac. He requested I stand by to provide cover until you are out of harm’s way,” the Colonel continued.
“Provide cover, Ma’am? I don’t understand.”
“Corporal, this is still an active situation because the Strax have not left the area. Believe me, I would much rather speak to you in person than over my PA, but this was an unprovoked attack on civilian law enforcement and Dominic would be upset with me if I left the safety of the cabin prematurely.”
“Dominic, Ma’am? Is he your pilot?”
“Multiple targets coming up on tactical, Colonel.”
“Corporal Jensen, I would love to bring you up to speed on the scope of the current conflict but I have a score to settle at the moment, please excuse me,” the Colonel stated with deadly seriousness. “You will want to take cover, Corporal.”
The young officer looked up in alarm as the dark hulk of the war machine pivoted a few degrees and a screaming whine filled the air. Remembering the Colonel’s precaution, he scrambled to cover behind a rock outcrop and covered his ears with his hands.
A blue corona enveloped the entire prow of the Centurion as aperture frames in the diamond iridium crystal hull opened to expose four hidden railgun muzzles. Not detecting the Centurion till it was within point blank range, the Strax machines were unable to maneuver or bring weapons online to counter the threat in time.
A blinding actinic flash enveloped the Centurion’s forward nacelle as a searing bolt of energy followed the hypersonic track of eighteen exotic rounds fired in such rapid succession that the volley appeared to be a single ignition.
With the brilliant blue after-image of the multiple railgun volley still etched on his vision, Officer Jensen rose to look cautiously downrange in confusion. Almost simultaneously, the Strax machines detonate with a blinding white flash as the exotic rounds fired into each of their fusion engines by the Centurion initiate cascade overloads and the roar of a single shock wave rolls across the barren landscape followed by a blast of hot wind that knocks the incredulous officer off his feet.
and a link to the start of the story. 
Hmmm.