"ETR" drabbles by Jeff Taylor

Enemy Tech Research Lab Tour #2

ETR #2

The reporter peered through the glass of a frost-covered case.

"And what's in here Doctor Maven?"

"Oh, that's Lieutenant Pierce."

The reporter paled. "What's left of him?"

"Oh, no! He's really all in there. He stepped on the enemies latest anti-personnel mine."

"Oh my God! What could do that?"

"It's called a Dimensional-inversion mine. It, quite literally I assure you, turns you inside out. It's one of the nastiest pieces of anti-personnel tech that we've come across so far. The enemy are becoming very proficient at protecting their boundaries, and also performing their land grab strategy."

Enemy Tech Research Lab Tour

ETR #1

The reporter pointed at the pile of slag in one corner of the lab.

"So what did that?"

"Induction mine. Straight-forward tech. Let's out a massive EM pulse to disable the mech, then follows up with a high frequency, sustained, sequence that then melts it in place."

"Wouldn't it be easier to blow the mech up?"

"This is about fear. No mech-runner wants to be cooked alive inside their mech. The initial pulse kills the onboard electronics, so they can't eject, and then turns the cockpit into an oven. Not the way I'd like to go, most certainly."