And then, from inside Camp Apollo, the guns of Earth fired.
Cannons boomed.
Shells flew.
A balisong exploded. Another. A third.
The burning jungler flew over the palisade.
The artillery fired again and again, pounding the enemy, and the last balisong exploded.
But those are just a few drops in the ocean, Jon knew. The rest of that ocean is roaring forward in a tidal wave.
One engine aflame, hull seared and dented, the jungler crash-landed inside the camp.
Jon and George leaped from the burning vehicle.
"Enemy approaching!" Jon shouted. "Where's Pascal? Enemy approaching!"
A jeep roared toward them. The white-haired colonel hopped out.
"What in tarnation is going on?" Pascal shouted.
"Sir, they're only moments away!" Jon said, panting. "A combined Bahayan and Santelmo army. Warships. Fighter jets. Blimps. A huge army, coming in from the north. We tried to call. They fried our radios with an EMP attack. They're almost here."
Pascal grabbed a megaphone. His voice boomed from speakers across the base.
"Red alert! All soldiers—to your positions! Red alert!"
Klaxons blared. Thousands of soldiers ran to the walls, cannons, and tanks. Attack helicopters took flight. Artillery batteries swiveled north. Guards raced along the walls, manning machine guns.
Pascal looked at Jon and George. "You two. With me. Onto the northern wall."
They ran toward the palisade, climbed a ladder, and manned the battlements. Other soldiers stood along the wooden walkway, guns in hand.
From up here, Jon could see the jungle spread to the northern horizon.
And he could see the enemy.
The tentacled blimps floated above the trees like storm clouds. More balisongs flew around them, protecting their larger brethren. The strange arachnids loped forward, their bodies rising above the canopy, their slender legs piercing the forest.
And from the trees, the foot soldiers emerged.
Countless Bahayan infantrymen marched, wearing black battlesuits, holding rifles. With them floated orbs of light—Santelmos furious over the loss of their comrades.
It was the largest army this war had ever seen.
With blaring horns, with howls and shrieks and roaring engines, the Luminous Army stormed toward Camp Apollo's wooden walls.
Goodbye, Maria, Jon thought. I love you.
He loaded his rifle, aimed at the enemy, and prepared to kill and die.
The story continues in . . .
EARTHLING'S WAR
SOLDIERS OF EARTHRISE III
Click here to read Earthling's War.
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NOVELS BY DANIEL ARENSON
EARTHRISE
Earth Alone
Earth Lost
Earth Rising
Earth Fire
Earth Shadows
Earth Valor
Earth Reborn
Earth Honor
Earth Eternal
Earth Machines
Earth Aflame
Earth Unleashed
SOLDIERS OF EARTHRISE
The Earthling
Earthlings
Earthling's War
I, Earthling
The Earthling's Daughter
We Are Earthlings
CHILDREN OF EARTHRISE
The Heirs of Earth
A Memory of Earth
An Echo of Earth
The Song of Earth
The Legacy of Earth
KINGDOMS OF SAND
Kings of Ruin
Crowns of Rust
Thrones of Ash
Temples of Dust
Halls of Shadows
Echoes of Light
THE MOTH SAGA
Moth
Empires of Moth
Secrets of Moth
Daughter of Moth
Shadows of Moth
Legacy of Moth
REQUIEM
Dawn of Dragons Requiem's Song
Requiem's Hope
Requiem's Prayer
The Complete Trilogy
Song of Dragons Blood of Requiem
Tears of Requiem
Light of Requiem
The Complete Trilogy
Dragonlore A Dawn of Dragonfire
A Day of Dragon Blood
A Night of Dragon Wings
The Complete Trilogy
The Dragon War A Legacy of Light
A Birthright of Blood
A Memory of Fire
The Complete Trilogy
Requiem for Dragons Dragons Lost
Dragons Reborn
Dragons Rising
The Complete Trilogy
Flame of Requiem Forged in Dragonfire
Crown of Dragonfire
Pillars of Dragonfire
The Complete Trilogy
ALIEN HUNTERS
Alien Hunters
Alien Sky
Alien Shadows
OTHER WORLDS
Eye of the Wizard
Wand of the Witch
Firefly Island
The Gods of Dream
Flaming Dove