The next three days were not spent fruitlessly. A plan was hashed out about how best to prepare for the attack to come, positions were scouted both inside and outside the walls to set up a good ambush, gear was checked and loaded, everyone was outfitted, and Adam spent a good amount of time cleaning and checking every gun that was going to be utilized in the defense of the town. He was more than willing to ensure every man's rifle wouldn't jam on them before the fight began. As it turned out a lot of them needed it too, so it was a timely suggestion. In addition, in thanks for his help both with cleaning and the coming defense, his fees for the Inn were waived against Mandy's objections, but it seemed as though some sort of deal was struck behind the scenes.
On the third day the team was gathered, the 9 volunteer guards of the town, Salvatore, Adam, Grant, the outsider in the football gear who was called Deccanus, and another outsider who was a self-proclaimed bounty hunter. In all 14 fighters were gathered for this coming battle.
The outside of the North wall was mostly ruins of once formidable buildings. However a few of them were just collapsed husks, most though were still standing albeit as a far cry from their once majestic exteriors. Still these husks made amazing vantage points when looking at the North Gate. People took up positions along the rooftops and top floors going down a few buildings up the street outside the wall.
Every man was given one grenade, courtesy of Chuck, and one stimpack courtesy of the Doc, even Adam who had his own supply of stimpacks. The town was as ready as it could be. Children were out of school, kept inside their homes, windows were sealed, doors locked, and the town stood quiet and still. It was almost eerie. The only sound that was heard throughout the town was the Jukebox that had been put outside and turned up at full volume. The music not only would draw the attention of the raiders when they arrived and make them less liable to look around for a possible ambush, but more than that, everyone was nervous, the music helped calm the nerves.
Well, not everyone was nervous. Salvatore seemed to have his head on straight, smoking quietly from his vantage point next to Adam. Deccanus also seemed unbothered, sitting quietly and not saying a word as he waited for the battle to commence. Though the bounty hunter looked at least a bit unnerved, though definitely not as nervous as many of the guards. They were, after all, just volunteers, most hadn't left their town, they just helped keep the place safe, today would require them to be willing to prove that.
Adam for his sake was about as nervous as the bounty hunter. He had been in many gunfights back in the war, but that was back when he served, and even then the sounds of bullets whizzing by your head never gets easier, a healthy dose of fear is to be expected in this situation.
They sat on the rooftops for about an hour, uncertain how long they would be waiting until they saw the reflective mirror from the forward most building shining light at them, a sign that the raiders were coming.
Moments later Adam saw them. Raiders. Truly they looked just the same as the last two he fought and killed. They wore a mishmash of gear without cohesion, spikes protruded from random parts of their clothing, they looked unwashed and unkempt, their gear was as hodgepodge as their clothing: an array of rifles, pipeguns, and even a rocket launcher. There were about 15 of them in total. Well at least they had almost the same number, 14 defenders to 15 raiders, with any luck the fight will be evened out easily within the first volley. But no one would know until the bullets started firing.
The group of raiders slowly approached the wall, guns out, carrying themselves menacingly while the defenders on the roofs and inside the buildings hid themselves and waited for an opportunity. They seemed completely unaware of what they were walking into, by the way they carried themselves they figured showing up in force like they were was enough to cow the town into submission. At least that's the impression they gave off as they strode up to the gate where the one visible guard was in position on the palisade where he would be expected to be standing. All to give them the impression it was business as normal.
"Hey loser!" One of the raiders said to the guard on the wall with a cocky grin. "We are here for our… 'tax'." He continued as a few in the back laughed to each other.
"Boss said money is owed today and if you can't pay then… well…" He grinned menacingly and brandished his assault rifle, waving it around lightly. "We might have to get violent." He finished as he turned back to the rest of his group and laughed along with a few of them.
"Oh! And women, you got any pretty women in there? If so tell them to expect us, we are feeling awfully cold right now! I need the warmth of a woman right now!" One of the raiders from the back shouted to the guard only for a woman from the raider group to elbow him in the stomach hard enough to make him clutch his stomach in pain.
"Fuck the woman. I'm here for caps and booze!" She said uproariously as she raised her gun into the sky followed by a cheer from the other raiders.
"So, you got our tax? Or do we gotta show your town a bit of hospitality?" The raider at the front spoke again to the guard.
It was just now dawning on everyone that there was one problem with this plan they had established. Everyone had positions, either on roofs, inside the buildings, or at the wall. Everyone had guns, armor, grenades, and stimpacks. They were well geared. Everyone had steeled themselves to kill these intruders as this was the only way to ensure the safety of the town. The town was also about as locked up as tight as it could be. The issue was that there was no "go" signal.
In all their planning there was no decision made for how to coordinate the start of the fight, everyone had assumed an opportunity would present itself but without a plan everyone seemed to be waiting for the others to make a move. No one wanted to be the one to fire the first shot and start the fight. This fear was assuaged quickly though.
As the jukebox began to play the next song "We'll Meet Again" by Vera Lynn the situation finally changed. As the raider spoke his last sentence, clearly indenting action on his part if nothing were to change, Deccanus stood up, his long spear in hand and yelled:
"For the son of Mars!" He then chucked his spear from his rooftop position as hard as he could down at the raiders. The battle had begun.
[Vera Lynn's We'll Meet Again]
We'll meet again
The Spear impacts the group of raiders hitting one of the men in the middle. The spear embeds itself into the chest of the raider leaving him with a spear sticking straight through his whole body. He dropped to his knees, and then a moment later to the ground.
Don't know where, Don't know when
There is a moment of panic as the raiders seem to realize what is happening. The man at the gate ducks behind the chest high metal wall to get cover as the bullets begin to rain down from above.
But I know we'll meet again some sunny day
As the bullets fall they rip through the lightly armored raiders spraying blood up into the air as the few with the wherewithal begin to fire back at the unseen attackers haphazardly.
Keep smiling through, Just like you always do
A lucky bullet lands a meter from Adam's position embedding itself into the thick concrete support struts below where he was balancing his gun. He fired his hunting rifle accurately hitting one of the men in the back who went down holding down the trigger of his automatic rifle.
'Til the blue skies drive the dark clouds far away
The raider's rifle fired off wildly as he hit the ground hard. As soon as he hit the ground, the gun tilted off to the side and riddled his friend who was next to him with hole after hole, turning him into a mess of a carcass within moments.
So will you please say "Hello" to the folks that I know
There is a scream from the raider group as another gets hit in the shoulder. He went down with a heavy thud but not before he fired his own gun off. Adam could just barely see one of the volunteer guardsmen get tagged by the bullet and then go down. He had no idea if he was dead or just injured, but he didn't have time to worry about him, he had to keep firing.
Tell them I won't be long
The man with the rocket launcher fired his rocket towards Adam. It fell short and hit one of the floors below him. The whole building rocked violently with the force of the explosion. Luckily Adam was laying down to take his shots otherwise he might have been thrown off balance.
They'll be happy to know that as you saw me go
However another man was not so lucky. A guardsman hiding in cover in one of the floors below him was thrown out of the building towards the street hitting the ground hard. Adam watched as he fell from his position below him and hit the ground but didn't give himself enough time to process. He knew he had to deal with the rocket launcher man before he became a bigger problem.
I was singing this song
It seemed as though Salvatore next to him had the same idea as, a moment later, he shot a clean hit right through the head of the man with the rocket launcher with his rifle. The raider hit the ground without a single moment's delay, his head splayed open.
We'll meet again
Deccanus was fearlessly standing up firing his lever action rifle into the crowd below with a look of anger in his eyes. Bullets whizzed past him but none seemed to hit him.
Don't know where, don't know when
However, while Deccanus seemed to have a guardian angel on his shoulder, his partner next to him in his position, the bounty hunter, was not so lucky. A bullet ripped through the right side of his head, taking his stetson clean off his head. His dead body just slumped over, hitting the short concrete railing he was using as cover.
But I know we'll meet again
Adam's rifle clicked as he pulled the trigger, he was out, and in the middle of this firefight he didn't have the time to reload. Throwing the rifle off to the side he pulled out his laser pistol and resumed firing not a moment later. The distinct sound of the laser rifle was notable in the cacophony of bullets ripping into the ground, the distinct red light of the laser practically illuminating the raiders below.
Some sunny day
Just as he saw one of the raiders begin to get turned to ash by the laser fire from him, the guard at the gate pulled out the light machine gun from the palisade and then planted it on the wall. He wasted no time opening fire. By the time he had emptied the belt, there were no raiders standing. Well over half of them were dead, the remaining ones were either dying or too injured to stand or move. The battle had not lasted long at all. The song had yet to even finish and all the men on the ground in front of the gate were defeated. It was over.
"Clear!" One of the guardsmen called out from his position.
"Clear!" Another responded back.
"Clear!" Adam shouted in response. There was a tense moment of silence that followed as the song began to wrap up before the sounds of pain and anguish from the raiders below began to become clear. The few that could move at all were writhing in pain on the ground groaning and moaning in agony from the multiple bullets that hit them. Meat, carcasses, blood, and viscera lay pooled together in a pile where the group had, not but minutes ago, stood confident.
Adam stood up slowly, his laser pistol still in his hand pointed generally towards the pile of dying raiders before he let off a deep sigh. He then was startled when he felt a hand on his shoulder. He damn near jumped out of his skin as he turned to see Salvatore patting him on the shoulder.
"You did good kid." He said with a grin. "Come on, let's head down, we still got work to do."