New Season: Sparrow's Quest (New Sky Book 2)

by Jason Kent

  "Forty-five seconds!" Lt. Phoebe shouted. She ducked as shots ricocheted up the stairs. The fight was almost upon them. Something dropped in Phoebe's stomach. She looked sideways at the escape hatch and wondered just how long they'd be able to hold...

  Kate gasped and was back with Merrick and the aftermath of Lt. Phoebe's last stand.

  "What happened?" the sniper asked, his eyebrows raised.

  "They were trying to keep someone...something from getting up here," Kate whispered as she looked at the sealed escape hatch the Watcher had used. She focused on Merrick. "They were protecting the Watcher. He left in the pod."

  Merrick looked around at the dead Tallinns and nodded. "Makes sense. He was running from the hold, where the attackers got aboard."

  "Yes. He had the Aether Source with him."

  "The orb?" Merrick said, looking directly into Kate's eyes.

  "That's all I saw him carrying," Kate replied. "His hands were full just trying to manage. It was wrapped in a blanket." She shook her head. "There was no way he could have held anything else...oh!"

  "Yeah, oh," Merrick said. "The artifact we want is definitely in the hold."

  Chapter 22

  Sparrow Suits Up

  Ross fired both assault rifles until the two ammunition clips were exhausted. He let the retract sling pull the weapon in his right hand up across his chest. At the same time he thumbed the release button and an expended magazine fell to the deck. He grabbed a spare clip from his combat harness and slammed it home. Ross brought the rifle up to his shoulder and shouted to Sparrow, "Stay close!"

  His concentrated fire had shredded several of the reanimated Legionnaires. There was now a gap big enough for them to make it through the soldier's ragged line. Sparrow grabbed Ross' harness with one hand and clutched the tablet against her chest with the other. Whoever or whatever was controlling the tiny machines inside the long-dead crew did not seem to want to harm the artifact. Sparrow worried if there was any sort of opening between them, the soldiers would open fire on him. She was determined to keep the talisman between her and Ross in order to offer the marine some level of protection from the attackers. Unfortunately, this meant she was still unable to draw her weapons to help hold off these new foes.

  "Keep the tablet right there!" Ross shouted in between rapid bursts of gunfire.

  Sparrow grinned. It was as if he were reading her mind.

  "Just get us to the door!" Sparrow yelled to be heard above his firing. She looked at the Tallinn Legionnaires behind them. They staggered and lurched but otherwise seemed unable to give chase with any sort of real speed. Fortunately, it seemed as if the nanites were having trouble completely turning these frozen bodies into effective weapons. She tripped on a mech's outstretched leg and tightened her grip on Ross' combat harness. Not only did she want to keep herself as close to him as possible, she also needed help just to remain upright. Her mech battle had taken more out of her than she wanted to admit. She was not sure she could even stand for long if she let go. As it was, she was barely able to keep the tablet pressed up against Ross' pack.

  Suddenly there was a frozen face at Sparrow's side. She gasped and instinctively swung her arm out at the Tallinn trooper. The tablet caught the Legionnaire in the chin, snapping his head back with a sickening crack. The Tallinn staggered, his head tilted at a severe angle. He tripped over one of his comrades recently put down by Ross. As Sparrow's foot slipped on the same Legionnaire, black streams of nanites began to run across the floor, looking for a more suitable host. She pulled her foot away just before the puddle reached her boot.

  "Move!" Sparrow shouted and pushed against Ross' back. The motion drove Ross off-balance and they both went down in a heap. Sparrow lost her hold on the tablet and it clattered across the floor. "Tral!"

  Heavy fire from the Legionaries with weapons sizzled over Ross and Sparrow.

  "Get the tablet!" Ross shouted. He rolled over and returned fire.

  "Yeah, in a moment!" Sparrow pulled out both of her pistols and sat up. She picked two targets and fired at them simultaneously. When those two went down, she moved on to two more.

  "Nice!" Ross yelled. "But, if we don't get out of here with the stone, all this will have been for nothing!" He opened fire again, trying to slow the advance of the remaining troopers.

  Sparrow fired once more with each handgun then holstered the one in her left hand. She kicked a scrap of metal from a destroyed mech at a line of nanites oozing toward her, hoping to slow the little critters down. She scrambled after the tablet, picking it up without slowing as she dashed for the exit in a crouch. She was nearly to the hatch when a shadow appeared, framed by the open doorway.

  "Down!" the dark figure shouted.

  Relief welled up within Sparrow. She knew better than to argue when Merrick told her to get out of the way. She dove behind the remains of a mech as the sniper opened fire.

  "To your left, Ross!"

  Sparrow looked back to see Ross diving for cover in the appropriate direction. Merrick's high-powered rounds shattered the frozen Legionaries one after the other until the only enemy left were a handful of staggering, weaponless crew members. Merrick stepped back into the corridor, his rifle still aimed through the hatch. Ross grabbed Sparrow's arm, hauled her off the deck, and tossed her through the opening. Sparrow looked back long enough to see the remaining Tallinns collapse. Nanites flowed out of mouths and wounds. On the floor, the dark streams joined together into a black mass and surged toward the door.

  "Time to go!" Kate called.

  "Seconded!" Sparrow agreed. She spun away from the hatch and came up short, nearly falling over in shock. As she bumped into Ross, she whispered, "Oh, tral..."

  The others turned to find a mass of reanimated crew members blocking the passage. A tall blonde officer stood semi-erect at the head of the crowd. She had a massive assault rifle in her cold hands, leveled at Sparrow.

  Sparrow raised the tablet up and breathed, "Do it, and your precious artifact is trashed!" She was not sure if the nanites could hear her, but they seemed to get the message.

  Lieutenant Phoebe's head tilted to one side with a sickening series of cracks. She didn't advance or fire, just stared at Sparrow with ice-covered eyes.

  "Help me get this door closed!" Ross called to Merrick. The two men pressed against the two halves of the hatch and pushed.

  "How'd you get this thing open?" Merrick grunted as he strained to move his half of the door.

  "Pry bar," Ross snorted. "And a little help from Sparrow."

  "Count me out," Sparrow said evenly, still staring down the undead crewmen blocking their path.

  "Black goo's getting closer!" Kate warned.

  "Nanites," Sparrow offered. "Apparently, they can bring objects...or people, back to life." She shrugged, looking into Phoebe's glazed eyes. "Sort of..."

  "Tell me about it!" Ross growled. He and Merrick redoubled their efforts and the hatch slammed shut with a hollow clang.

  "Can we lock it?" Merrick asked as he looked over the controls.

  "No idea," Ross replied. "Sparrow?"

  "No! I suggest you guys come up with a plan," Sparrow hissed over her shoulder, not daring to take her eyes off of the gun pointed at her chest.

  Sparrow took a tentative step toward the blonde woman. The Lieutenant did not move.

  "Phoebe..." Kate whispered from over Sparrow's shoulder.

  Lieutenant Phoebe tilted her head and twisted so her dead eyes were staring straight at Kate.

  "Oh..." Kate started then swallowed hard. "Do you think she can hear me?"

  "It's just the freaking little machines responding to the sound of your voice!" Sparrow hissed. "No way could these guys—"

  Something heavy banged against the far side of the cargo hold hatch. Both Ross and Merrick took a step back, their rifles aimed at the door. A huge dent appeared, accompanied by a second massive thump.

  "Yeah, so I'm guessing they...it, whatever, wants out!" Ross remarked. The door shuddered from
a third hit.

  Kate moved to Sparrow's side and grabbed her arm in a tight grip. She whispered, "I have an idea!"

  "Go with it, sister," Sparrow replied quietly.

  "We'll have one chance," Kate said over her shoulder to Merrick and Ross. "Be ready to follow us!"

  Ross and Merrick looked at each other then back at the door as another huge dent bent toward them. Another hit rocked the hall as the steel frame deformed noticeably.

  "Do it!" Merrick shouted.

  "Concur!" Ross said.

  Kate pressed against Sparrow's back and wrapped her other arm around the smaller woman's waist.

  "We going to dance?" Sparrow laughed nervously, still holding the tablet in front of her.

  "Yeah, something like that," Kate said softly. Louder, she told the marines behind them, "Here we go..."

  In front of them, Phoebe turned her head from Kate to the tablet in Sparrow's arms. The movement caused her crystalized skin to crack. Several strands of the Lieutenant's brittle hair caught on her collar and snapped off. They fell to the floor with a tinkling sound.

  Kate took a deep breath and tightened her grip on Sparrow's waist.

  "MAKE A HOLE!" Kate ordered in her loudest voice.

  Something buried deep inside what was left of Lieutenant Phoebe's brain overrode the control of the nanites. The Tallinn officer immediately pressed back against the wall and raised her gun so it pointed up at the ceiling. She threw out her free arm to sweep the two frozen crewman behind her aside. Frozen uniforms splintered as Phoebe's arm met her crewmate's chests. There was indeed a hole for Kate and Sparrow to squeeze through.

  "NOW!" Kate yelled. She shoved Sparrow through the new opening.

  Sparrow caught a glimpse of Phoebe's face as she rushed past. Frozen tears glinted on the dead woman's cheeks.

  Something heavy slammed into the door behind them as they rushed past the last of Seiklus' crew. Kate chanced a look back only to wish she hadn't. The hatch exploded outward. It flew across the hall with such force that the pieces became embedded in the far bulkhead. A heavily damaged mech scraped and tugged its way into the corridor. The commotion seemed to bring Phoebe and the rest of her crew back under the control of the nanites. They reformed their wall across the corridor and, as one, raised their weapons at Kate and the others.

  Merrick grabbed Kate and dove into a side corridor. Ross did the same with Sparrow. Gunfire erupted behind them, filling the space they'd vacated with deadly projectiles.

  "This is the long way back to Dagger!" Kate exclaimed, quickly studying her mental map of the ironclad.

  "We'll take the alternate exit," Merrick called out to be heard over the fire chattering behind them. He pushed off and led the way back toward the crew quarters. He turned first one way and then the other through the maze-like corridors.

  Ross dug his big radio out as he brought up the rear. "Dagger! Lieutenant Garrett! DETACH immediately!" The radio crackled with static for a moment before he received a reply.

  "Yeah, about that," Dagger growled over the link. "What tral did you turn over in there, Ross?! We just about got ourselves blasted to space dust out here!"

  "We've got some nasty bad guys following us!" Ross shouted into the radio. "DO NOT...REPEAT, DO NOT OPEN YOUR HATCH FOR ANY REASON! Verify you see one of us before putting out the welcome mats!"

  "Oh, I figured out that much when Blade was attacked by a crazy mech with a cannon!" Dagger snapped. "Where the hell am I supposed to pick you up?!"

  "Upper level airlock," Merrick called back evenly. He checked around a corner, his rifle aimed in front of him. Satisfied the way was clear, he hurried for a ladder located midway down the hall.

  "We're coming to you," Ross instructed. "Upper level airlock!"

  Dagger cursed then muttered, "This is what I get for working with the freaking marines..."

  "You know what they say," Garrett's voice came over the radio.

  "If you say 'no plan survives contact with the enemy' I'm going to kill you," Dagger's voice warned her co-pilot.

  "I was going to say, 'last one out buys the first round'!" Garrett replied.

  "We'll meet you topside," Dagger said. "Try not to get killed." The link went dead.

  "Nice," Ross snorted as he snapped the radio back to his belt. "You know, sometime I'd like to stay with the ship. It's got to be a little bit safer back on the Blade." He spotted movement behind their small group and fired behind him into the dark.

  "No you wouldn't," Sparrow retorted as she took a ragged breath. "You'd be missing all this fun! They only killed one mech!"

  "You're right," Ross looked at Sparrow and grinned. "You know me so well!"

  Kate thought about the hole in the hull up in the bridge. "Guess a mech roaming around out on the hull might explain what happened to Captain Reese and the others."

  Merrick nodded, more focused on keeping the living alive than worrying about the mystery of the bridge crew's demise. He reached the intersection where they had found Lieutenant Phoebe the first time. He looked at the inviting entrance to the remaining evac shuttle and then to the sealed hatch. The hatch led to the empty berth where the Watcher had escaped in the second shuttle.

  Kate and Sparrow stopped behind the sniper.

  "Take the shuttle?" Kate wondered.

  "No," Merrick replied. He hustled to the sealed airlock and ran his hands over the small window set in the center of the round door. He brushed the frost away then nodded to himself. "This will work."

  A string of shots rang out on the lower level then Ross popped up out of the ladder way.

  "They're at the last turn!" Ross reported, keeping his rifle pointed down into the inky blackness below. "From the sounds of it, that mech isn't far behind! We need to get off this ship!"

  "Helmets on," Merrick ordered. "We're leaving!"

  There were three clicks as Ross, Kate, and Merrick slapped their visors into place. In the silence which followed, all three turned to look at the helmetless Sparrow.

  "Guess I dropped it...back in the hold," Sparrow said sheepishly. She patted the tablet. "At least I grabbed this. Right?"

  Ross fired down into the lower level. "Well, we can't go back for it! There are a few dead people trying to kill us down there!" He reached up to unlatch his helmet. "Take mine!"

  A glint caught Kate's eye. She laid a hand on Ross' arm. "Wait, I have a better idea!"

  Sparrow looked in the direction Kate was pointing and caught on.

  "It'll be okay," Sparrow smiled at Ross. She headed for the nearest of the crew quarters and the emergency suit hanging there in its alcove. She called over her shoulder, "I just need a minute!"

  Kate looked from Ross and Merrick to Sparrow. Both men were now pointing their guns at the approaching enemy. She knew she'd be more help getting Sparrow into the bulky suit than using her pistol.

  Sparrow had stripped off her modern pressure suit as she crossed the short distance to the open doorway, leaving behind a trail of gloves, boots, pack, and the useless body suit.

  "It's freezing in here!" Sparrow exclaimed as she danced from one bare foot to another on the freezing deck.

  "That's because all you're wearing is your underwear and second skin," Kate said with a smirk. She found the fasteners on the Tallinn suit and peeled it open. The smaller woman squeezed into the suit from the back and shoved her arms down into the stiff sleeves. Kate gave the suit a tug and the Link Sprite's white hair popped up and out of the helmet locking ring. Sparrow rotated her arms and tilted her head from side to side.

  "Maybe this wasn't such a good idea!" Sparrow said. She glanced at the hatch they planned to use as an exit. She shuffled around awkwardly to face Kate. "You know, I could probably survive a short trip across to the ship!"

  "No frostbite on my watch!" Kate replied. She slammed the brass helmet down over Sparrow's head and her previous experience with difficult latches came into play. Kate secured the locking ring around Sparrow's neck with a minimal amount of jostling.

>   "AIR!" Sparrow pointed at her new helmet as best she could with the bulky suit arms. Her shouts were barely audible to Kate's external microphones. "Little help, Kate!"

  "Calm down!" Kate shouted back, knowing Sparrow would have a hard time hearing without a headset. Hopefully, she could read lips with those upgraded eyes of hers. Kate slapped away Sparrow's arms as she flailed at the controls. She ran her eyes over the multiple valves and dials mounted on the chest plate of the ancient suit. There seemed to be more of the shiny controls than seemed absolutely necessary. She bit her lip and cursed, "Tral!"

  Knowing they were out of time, Kate took a guess and spun the largest red knob on the control plate. The glass covered dial next to the valve sprang to life. Sparrow stopped squirming as compressed air hissed from the tanks into the suit. Kate wasn't sure how to turn on the recycler or if there was even such a thing built into the Tallinn equipment. She hoped Sparrow would be okay for at least a few minutes with whatever was in the tanks.

  Sparrow made an 'OK' symbol with her fingers. She smiled back at Kate through the thick round window at the front of the helmet. Kate took Sparrow's gloved hand and tried to pull her back toward Merrick and Ross. Sparrow tugged on Kate's hand and held her ground. Kate spun around, wondering what could possibly be wrong now. Sparrow was stretching her arms and trying to bend over in order to reach the tablet. She'd propped it against the bulkhead when she had climbed into the emergency suit. Kate reached down and grabbed the artifact. She handed it to Sparrow, who hugged it tightly.

  Ross yelled out of the darkness as his rifle clicked dry. He pulled his second rifle off his back and let loose with a stream of bullets. "I'm nearly out of ammo!"

  "Blow it!" Kate shouted. She figured there was a simpler way to activate the old Tallinn airlock, but Merrick's methods were usually more expedient. She slammed Sparrow in her heavy suit against the wall behind a support strut.

  "Clear!" Merrick shouted. He turned his faceplate away from the closed hatch, crouched, and clicked on the controller in his hand. The shaped charges the sniper had placed around the hatch detonated and suddenly there was a hole out into space. Air rushed into the vacuum.