by Simon Haynes
Shrapnel rattled against the glass, and Harriet retreated. Someone had thrown the grenade from the side, out of her field of view, and this time they'd managed to land it much closer. Soon, she expected one of them would walk up and place a grenade right at the base of the door, and there wasn't much she could do about it. She just hoped Birch was tracking them.
Then she heard a roar from the roof, and she frowned as it grew louder, shaking the building. That sounded like … "Alice! What the hell is she doing?"
Chapter 16
Alice was just taking the stairs down to the office, with Ben in tow, when she met Birch heading up to the roof. "Where are you going?" she asked him.
"They're trying to blow the front doors. I've got to stop them."
"Give me the gun. I'll do it!"
Birch shook his head and pushed past. Alice glanced down the stairs towards the office, then changed her mind and turned round.
"I thought we were supposed to be going inside?" asked Ben.
"There's loads of them down there. Birch is alone." They emerged on the roof, and Alice glanced up at the apartment buildings. They were too far away for handguns to be any danger, but if the enemy got their hands on a rifle, the roof of the Peace Force station would become very unhealthy indeed.
She glanced around and saw Birch leaning over the parapet at the front of the building. She heard a bang, saw flashes as he fired, then flinched as several shots bracketed him. The angry blaster fire flashed past in a blur of red and green shots, and Birch was forced back.
Alice, unarmed, felt completely useless. Then she saw the rubble littering the roof. "Come on, give me a hand!" she muttered to Ben, and she set off at a run. They grabbed a couple of broken bricks and ran to the parapet, where Alice raised her head cautiously to get a look at the enemy.
There were half a dozen vehicles parked across the street, about forty metres away. She could see men and women behind the vehicles, about fifteen or twenty in all. They were carrying blasters, and when one of them spotted Alice looking over the roof she opened fire. The shots passed harmlessly overhead, but when the others joined in there was such a barrage Alice was forced to take cover behind the parapet. She pulled Ben down next to her, and they kept low as shots zinged all around.
Nearby, Birch was forced back from the parapet, his weapon useless against such overwhelming fire.
"Still want to throw bricks at them?" asked Ben.
"Yeah. Follow me." Alice crawled away from the parapet on all fours, and once they were far enough from the edge she stood up. She crouched to pick up a stone, then lobbed it over the parapet in the direction of the gunfire, estimating the distance. Ben followed suit, and soon they had a barrage of their own going. The enemy were helpless, and couldn't target the source of the bricks because Alice was too far from the edge of the building, and the parapet was in the way.
Birch saw what they were up to and joined them, and as the three of them rained stones on the enemy the gunfire tailed off, then stopped completely.
In the silence they heard the smash of breaking glass as a piece of brick found its target, and Alice grinned fiercely. She threw several more, and then they heard the revving of engines and a squeal of tyres as the enemy retreated up the road.
Alice ran to the parapet and risked a glance, shrugging her shoulder to ease the muscles she'd worked throwing chunks of brick. The enemy had moved much further up the road, and she grinned as she saw the broken glass littering the street.
"Well done," puffed Birch, as he took up position beside her. "Really good work, that."
"Do you think they'll give up?" asked Ben.
"No," said Alice, with a shake of her head. "But I'm not done yet."
"What do you have in mind?" asked Birch.
Alice nodded towards her ship. "Help me load up. Biggest stuff you can find."
"Ben can give you a hand. I have to cover the front of the building." Birch eyed the fighter jet. "Are you sure they can't shoot you down?"
"With those little popguns?" Alice made a rude noise. "Fat chance."
With Ben in tow she set off for the biggest pile of rubble, and they worked like crazy transferring the largest pieces they could find into the fighter's airlock. When she judged they had enough, she waved to Birch and climbed aboard. Ben followed, and once they were seated Alice fired up the engines. "Buckle up," she said. "This might get a bit hairy."
— ♦ —
"What happened up there?" demanded Harriet, as Birch returned to the reception area. "What's Alice doing flying again?"
"She's driving them off." Birch shook his head. "She's a warrior, that girl."
"She's going to get herself killed."
"No, she's way too smart. She got us throwing rocks from the middle of the roof, smashing up their vans. Then, when they retreated, she took off with Arnie to go and bomb them again." Birch grinned. "I hope Darting's vehicles are all rentals. She'll be up for thousands in repairs by now. Maybe a hundred grand or more, if you count all the cars Alice torched yesterday."
Harriet glanced at the street outside, which was empty. "They'll get people onto those apartment blocks. They have to. And then they'll be able to fire down on the roof."
"It's too far for pistol shots."
"They could get lucky. Or maybe they'll throw some of those grenades down."
"Well, we'd better make sure they don't get to the buildings, then."
"How? We have exactly two weapons between the lot of us, and we can't keep them off forever by lobbing bricks at them."
Birch jerked his thumb at the roof. "Well, with Alice up there, they won't risk driving back. They'll have to walk."
"Or use cabs. She can't attack those, there's no knowing who might be on board."
"Then I guess it's a stalemate." Birch rubbed his hands together. "Who fancies a bit of lunch?"
— ♦ —
The engines blasted into life, and Arnie took off vertically. Alice steered away from the enemy, keeping the Peace Force building between herself and the parked vans. Then she directed the ship high into the air, until the buildings were laid out like a map below them. "They can't hit us up here," she called to Ben.
"Are you sure?"
"Yeah, done this before." Alice flew a circle over the city, coming up on the enemy from behind. As they approached she got Arnie to paint the target, and once they were hovering directly above the parked vans she undid her harness and headed for the airlock. "Come on," she said to Ben. "Time to send them packing."
They ran down the stairs to the airlock, where Alice hauled the hatch open. Far below she could see the vehicles parked together haphazardly, sunlight glinting off their windscreens. She took a large chunk of masonry and eased it to the edge of the hatch, then pushed it over. It vanished instantly, and a moment later there was a puff of dust from the road. She reached for another, but before she could release it she saw the vehicles scattering. From her height it looked like a bunch of cockroaches scurrying for safety, and her lips thinned as she watched them run. She felt elated, but also disappointed.
"That was pretty easy," said Ben.
"Yeah, too easy," muttered Alice. She watched the vehicles weaving down side-streets, moving fast, and realised it would be impossible to track all of them. So, she closed the hatch and returned to the flight deck, where she took the controls and headed back to the Peace Force building.
— ♦ —
Harriet kept watch near the front entrance, gun at the ready. Birch seemed remarkably casual about the whole deal, and she couldn't help thinking he was enjoying himself just a little too much. If Darting's people got inside, Harriet had no illusions about the outcome. The grenades and gunfire proved they were shooting to kill, and so far it was a miracle nobody had been hurt.
She turned as Caldavir entered the reception area. He was carrying a plate, and he offered it to her with a smile. "Dave's omelette, with compliments."
The smell was enticing, and Harriet ate the food quickly, still keeping
her eye on the street. When she was finished, she handed the empty plate back. "Thanks," she said.
"Hey, you're saving our lives. Least we can do."
"I'm sorry about all this. Dragging you in, I mean. I had no idea they'd launch a full-on attack."
"Let them try. We're holding our own so far."
"Doesn't it worry you? They want to kill us."
"Then we'll just have to stop them," said Caldavir.
He left with the plate, and Harriet shook her head slowly. Then, with the gun still pointing at the street, she reached for her commset. "Bernie?"
"Good afternoon, Trainee Harriet."
"Bernie, we're in trouble."
"I know that, Trainee Harriet. Based on my analysis of your situation, you and your team are facing a very uncertain future."
"Oh, great. Thanks for that."
"I am merely stating the facts."
"How about merely getting some backup? A gunship, half a dozen riot troops … anything."
"You know my hands are tied. Headquarters barely know of our existence, and they would sooner close the office than waste valuable resources on this planet."
"Bernie, people are going to die!"
"Yes, that seems inevitable."
Harriet paused. "You really need to work on your bedside manner."
"I am confused. Which bed am I beside?"
"It's just an expression. Listen, anything you can do, do it. We're desperate."
"I will consider the problem at length. Bernie out."
Harriet swore under her breath and shoved the commset into her uniform.
"No good, huh?" said Birch, who'd just walked in.
"We're on our own." Harriet gestured at the doors. "Can you organise some of those boxes of files from the stairwell? We can pile them against the doors to stop any flying glass. In case they break in, I mean."
"Sure, I'll get onto it right away."
"Thanks for the omelette," called Harriet, and Birch waved in reply.
Chapter 17
Bernie's expression was serious as she considered the situation in Chirless. There was nobody she could call for help, since the Dismolle Peace Force was completely autonomous. Worse, headquarters were under the impression the Dismolle office was staffed by a brand new robot whose only function was to handle any phone calls from the public. The little answering robot had been despatched to Dismolle years ago, along with an order recalling Bernie. When she became aware of the plan, Bernie had switched the orders and sent the brand new answerbot off for recycling. She'd been waiting for headquarters to uncover the deception ever since.
So far, so good, but she daren't do anything to draw attention to the Dismolle Peace Force, because the moment they discovered she was still around they'd send a team to retrieve her … and then she'd be scrapped.
Bernie frowned. She needed to get to Chirless to protect her trainees, and the only possible way was to use a shipping company. So, she placed a call.
"Welcome to Trans Shippers. How can I help you today?"
"I have a consignment for Chirless," said Bernie.
"I can help you with that. What's the cubed weight, please?"
"Two point eight tons."
"Dimensions?"
Bernie reeled off her height and width.
"Let me calculate that for you."
Bernie's lips thinned as she endured to the hold music, and eventually she set up a filter to mute the discordant noises. Three minutes and forty seconds later, the employee came back on the line. "Thanks for waiting. Your quote comes to twenty-six thousand, four hundred and—"
Bernie disconnected. She'd been expecting a thousand or two, maximum, and even that would have been a stretch. Twenty-six thousand was impossible.
Well, if she couldn't fly there, she only had one other option. Bernie strode to the rear of the Peace Force office and opened a door. Beyond was darkness, but her extended vision picked up the inside of the undercover garage … and the sleek cruiser parked within. "Steve?"
"Yes Bernie?"
"What is your maximum range?"
"I have no maximum. My power source is a sealed unit which will run for decades."
"Some devices have all the luck," muttered Bernie, whose own batteries barely ran for ten minutes at a time. Still, no time for envy. She had a vital mission. "How long to reach Chirless?"
"At what speed?"
"Maximum safe."
"Three days."
Bernie pulled a face. In three days time she could be burying her trainees, and she needed to arrive in the nick of time to save them. "How long at maximum unsafe speed?"
"Eighteen hours."
"Then let us proceed."
Steve opened the rear door, and the entire side of the car swung open to let the huge robot climb aboard. As soon as Bernie was seated the car closed up again, and the big roller door leading to the street rattled as it rose out of the way.
They reversed out with a roar, spun through ninety degrees, then set off at speed. Other vehicles, buildings and pedestrians blurred past as they rocketed towards the main road, and when they got there Steve really opened up the taps.
"Your progress is acceptable," said Bernie, as they raced towards the outskirts. She reached for the charge cable and plugged in, keen to ensure her batteries were topped off. Then she activated her internal commset. "Trainee Harriet, what is the situation in Chirless?"
"We're keeping them at bay, but it's tough."
Bernie paused. There was a curious echo on the line, and when she analysed it she discovered something troubling. "Trainee Harriet, do you have anyone connected to this call?"
"No, just me."
"Then someone is listening in."
"We're being bugged?"
"Indubitably."
There was a crackle on the line, and a male voice broke in. "Give it up, people. Your pathetic little Peace Force isn't going to last, reinforcements or not."
"Who is this?" demanded Bernie. "You have no authority to—"
"I have all the authority I need," said the voice.
"Mike Dantriss!" snapped Harriet. "I should have known you were a damned plant. You tell your people they have no chance against us. None!"
Mike laughed. "Two trainees and a bunch of pensioners? I'm quaking in my boots."
"Trainee Harriet …" began Bernie. She wanted to explain about her plan, but it would be remiss of her to give the information to the enemy. "We must stay off the line. No more communications."
"Oh, why not?" said Mike. "I like listening to the panic in your voices."
Bernie disconnected, then shut down her internal comms system. If the enemy could listen in on calls, they could also use the network to triangulate her position. The enemy didn't know she was on the way to Chirless, and her arrival would therefore be a surprise. She wanted to keep it that way.
Bernie glanced out the window at the buildings hemming the street. They were blurring past so quickly they were a single, unbroken line, but she feared even that wouldn't be fast enough.
— ♦ —
Alice guided the jet between the apartment blocks surrounding the Peace Force building, and lined up for a landing on the roof. As she got closer, she saw a figure waiting for her, which turned out to be Duke Banville. The jet set down with a thump, and Alice took the ladder to the ground. "What's up?"
"Harriet wanted me to warn you. Your comms have been tapped. The enemy are listening in."
Alice stared at him. "Peace Force commsets are supposed to have a secure channel, completely unbreakable. How the hell did they manage that?"
"You know Mike, that maintenance guy you met? He's one of Darting's people."
"He was a spy?" Despite herself, Alice was impressed at their enemy's resourcefulness. "Cool!"
Banville frowned at that. "Yes, well we reckon he messed with one of your commsets while he was hanging around earlier."
"No chance. I barely saw him." Then Alice remembered where she'd first met Mike. The upgrades to her
commset! She'd left the device with the store owner, and Mike could easily have bribed the woman to install a backdoor. Realising she'd been had, she cursed under her breath.
"What is it?" asked Banville.
"I think I know how they broke our comms. Tell Harriet I'll be back in twenty."
"Are you sure? She won't want you running all over the city."
"No more than twenty minutes, I promise." They both looked round as they heard a clatter of feet, and they saw Ben stepping off the ladder. "Turn around," said Alice. "We're going to run an errand."
— ♦ —
"Nice line of upgrades you do here," said Alice, as she laid her commset on the shop counter. She'd sent Ben off to his grandfather's store, preferring to deal with this particular matter on her own.
"I do my best," said the store owner.
Alice studied the owner's face. "Do you know how many years you could spend behind bars for this?"
The woman blanched. "But you asked me to upgrade it!"
"It's not the upgrade I'm worried about, it's the little extras you plugged in."
"I have no idea what you're talking about."
"This commset has a secure Peace Force channel. Turns out it's not as secure as it should be, and I can only think of one reason." Alice reached behind herself. "You're under arrest. Turn around."
"He made me do it!" said the woman quickly.
Relived, Alice withdrew her hand. She didn't have anything to cuff the woman with, but the threat had worked. "Mike Dantriss?"
"Yes. After you left your commset here, he came back to ask me about you. I—I said you wanted your commset upgraded, and he made me install the bug."
"Paid you, you mean."
The woman shook her head. "I'm already paying them protection money. He waived a whole month's payment. I had no choice, they're bleeding me dry."
Alice leaned across the counter. "The Peace Force is here to stop them, but when you gave them access to our comms, you were making our job very, very difficult. And if they beat us, you'll be paying that protection money forever. Do you understand?"
The woman nodded.
"Right, so get rid of whatever you put on my commset, and let me get back to kicking this gang off our planet."