"There's a bomb," she said.
"What?" Tanguin said.
"There's a bomb. They've left a bomb on the Maw."
Aart stepped closer, his eyes darting. "What makes you say that?"
"Just think about it, they need us dead. They've run away so that we can be blown to stardust."
"No," said Tanguin, her eyes wide.
"Yes."
Aart's mouth hung open but no words came out.
"What can we do about it?" said Tanguin.
"We have to find it," said Nova. "Or there won't be a Jagged Maw, or us for that matter."
"I'll get Delta to do a bomb scan," Tanguin said, backing away towards her room. Tanguin's computer was another level above any other in the Maw, more human than many people Nova knew. It gave her the creeps but if anything could find the bomb, he could.
"Remember, it's almost definitely shielded," Nova called after Tanguin.
"Good thing my tech's better," Tanguin said with a brave smile.
"We have to search too," said Nova. "And be ready to diffuse it."
"A bomb. Those bastards!" Aart said.
"Yes it's horrible and I'm sure we'll punish them for it as soon as we get the chance, but in the meantime we have to find it."
Nova and Aart ran in opposite directions along the corridor. There was no way to tell how long they had before the bomb went off, assuming Nova was right. Now that the idea was in her head she couldn't see any other option, it was the only logical explanation for why the Confederacy had left so suddenly. The bomb was planted and they could leave once they heard two whistles.
CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE
"Nova, we've got something in storage," Tanguin said over the communicator.
Nova's mouth thinned into a line. She turned down the corridor towards the storage bay and ran. She was past exhausted. Exhaustion was what she'd felt climbing down from the support columns after the Confederacy soldiers had left. This was something far beyond that; her very bones ached with the strain of running, fighting, searching.
"I'll meet you there," said Aart.
"Me too. I'll leave Delta to keep scanning," said Tanguin.
Nova's feet pounded on the metal floor. She pushed past injured Hunters as they limped and carried their fellows away from the blood-stained entrance hall. Her shoulders jostled against them but she didn't pause to apologise. There was no time for sorry now.
Nova raced deeper into the station. "How the hell did they get a bomb all the way down here?"
The corridors in this part were quiet, barely used even in the best of times. Food, weapons and other miscellaneous items that kept The Jagged Maw going filled this section. Corridors led off left and right to other small rooms with catalogue numbers stamped onto the doors.
"The Maw's scanners are registering a maintenance hatch left open in the storage bay." Tanguin's voice crackled through Nova's communicator.
"Grishnak! Someone let them in!"
"Delta's going through the video feeds now but yes. Someone left the maintenance hatch open so the bomb could be snuck in while we were distracted."
Nova burst into the main storage bay. The ceiling rose high above her head and the room stretched out, at least as big as the landing bay, if not bigger. On either side, stacks of crates and boxes piled high, many sealed with plastic and then covered with a thick layer of dust. The piles towered over Nova's head, reaching almost to the metal ceiling far above. Dim lamps hung from the roof, creating patches of dull light that cast deep shadows from the towers of equipment.
"Over here," Aart called, waving at Nova. He knelt at the base of a stack of crates and pointed a small flashlight at the floor by his feet. The bright circle of light reflected off a metal ball the size of Nova's head.
"Is that..?" Nova whispered.
"Delta says that it registers as a B52-sigma. Big explosive," Tanguin panted as she jogged through the door and knelt next to Nova.
"Has he found any others?" Nova asked.
"Not yet. This is it."
"Does anybody have any experience disarming bombs?" Nova said.
"Not me," said Aart.
"I tried to look it up on the Cloud but this particular model has no information. It's some kind of top secret Confederacy brand," said Tanguin.
"Grishnak," Nova swore.
Sweat beaded along her forehead and across her upper lip. The heat and pressure built up inside her, pushing against the inside of her skin, threatening to turn her inside out. Her stomach clenched and a hollowness crept through her chest.
"We've got to get Vicki in here," said Aart.
"You've got to be kidding," said Nova. The very thought of the stuck-up, useless, hussy made her fear disappear, replaced with anger and derision.
"She's a serious bomber," Aart said.
Nova grunted.
"Yep, I watched a video of her once diffuse a 76-alpha in under a minute."
"So, I've done that," Nova said, crossing her arms.
"She was seven," Aart said.
Nova frowned deeper and looked away from Aart to stare at the metal ball.
"Tim, we need Vicki now. We've got a situation," Aart said into his communicator, using The Jagged Maw's emergency frequency.
"Tim's with the medical team," Tom said, his voice strained. "But I can't help you, Aart. Vicki's not here."
"What? I saw her at breakfast."
"Yeah well, when you see her can you ask her?"
"What do you mean?" Aart said.
"Her, Kero, and some others zoomed out of here quick as you've ever seen not an hour before the Confederacy soldiers arrived," Tom said.
"What? You don't think..?" Aart's eyes widened. He looked at Nova and Tanguin and then back at the floor.
"I don't know what to think. It's been one shit messed up day, that's the truth," said Tom.
"You can say that again," Aart whispered.
"What do you need her for?"
"We've got a bomb."
"What?" Tom said, his voice cracking.
"Yep, shipping bay. It's a B52-sigma, special model."
"Frickin' Confederacy. No wonder they high-tailed it out of here so fast."
"Yeah, that's what got Nova thinking," Aart said.
"I owe that girl my life at least three times over and that's just from today," Tom said.
"She can hear you," chuckled Aart. "And the last thing she needs is a bigger head."
"Let her have this one," Tom said. "Besides, we may not be around for very much longer to enjoy it. Does the blasted thing have a timer?"
"If it does they haven't put it anywhere obvious. Thing's as smooth as an egg."
"Shit. I'm sending Tyra down. She knows her way around a bomb."
"Can't we just hurl it out the airlock?" Nova said.
"No!" Tanguin said, her eyes desperate. "B52s are designed to go off as soon as they hit vacuum. It'd blow a hole in the side of the Maw bigger than a planet."
Nova balled her hand into a fist.
"Get Tyra here now," said Aart. "Pretty soon I'm going to start cutting it open, and we all know how that's going to end."
"You with no fingers and me with no space station," said Tom. "I'll send Tyra down."
The communicator clicked off and Aart fell back onto his haunches. Nova and Tanguin followed suit. They made a grim semi-circle around the bomb, like companions gathered around a campfire.
"Shit," Tanguin said. "Delta just found who left the door open."
Nova and Aart met her eyes.
"Kero and Vicki."
"Those bastards!" Nova bellowed, slapping the nearest grate and sending a reverbing crack through the storage bay.
"When I get my hands on them, they'll wish they were dead," Aart said between clenched teeth."
"I never thought…" Tanguin hung her head.
"He's been pro-Confederacy since the day he was born," Aart said. "Bastard probably couldn't wait to sell us out."
"And Vicki is cut from the same stock," said Nova.
She picked up a small screw from the floor and twisted it around in her fingers. The smooth metal was some small comfort as her stomach churned with hatred and the need for revenge.
CHAPTER THIRTY
"Heard you wanted some help?" Tyra said, stepping into the storage bay.
Nova had been on a few missions with Tyra. She was outgoing and liked to laugh, friendly with most people and had been an asset when the mission got hairy. Nova respected the girl, even if she didn't consider her a friend exactly.
"Please," Aart said. He held his head in one hand and waved the other at the metal bomb sitting at his feet.
"Stand aside," Tyra said, nudging Aart with the side of her boot.
Aart scrambled out of her way and Nova and Tanguin slid back a few paces. Tyra knelt down low and examined the outer casing. She ran her hand over the edge, her fingers dancing across the smooth surface.
"Um, shouldn't you be in more of a hurry?" Tanguin asked.
"Nah, good thing about these B52s is they give you plenty of warning before they go boom," Tyra said.
"So you've seen one of these before?" Nova asked.
"Once, but most of what I know came from some blueprints which the Confederacy probably didn't want me to have."
"Thank Jupiter for that," said Nova.
"You can say that again. I couldn't believe Tim when he said what you guys had found. Still, can't say I'm surprised. Damned Confederacy. Speaking of which, some fine fighting from you," Tyra said, glancing at Nova.
Nova nodded back and then returned her attention to Tyra's hands. Miraculously they had found a hidden seam in the metal surface. Tyra pulled a small knife from her pocket and shoved the edge into the crack between the metal plates. She used the knife as a lever and pulled the two metal sheets apart.
They resisted at first, refusing to bend under Tyra's knife but she was patient. The plates bent just a little and then with a snap they fell away from one another to reveal the inner workings. The metal sheets had been a simple shell for the real device. Wires ran back and forth through metal plates and vials. Tiny hammers poised ready to smash the vials and release the contents into a waiting collection bowl.
"That's beautiful," said Tanguin.
"I know," replied Tyra.
"It looks ancient," said Aart, leaning in close to look at the vials of multi-coloured liquid.
"Brand new," said Tyra. "They've used some mechanisms from last century because it fools modern bomb detectors. I'm impressed yours found it actually. A normal scan reveals nothing because in its current form there's nothing dangerous about it. It's not until the timer runs out and these little hammers smash the vials that things get ugly."
"So a few vials of rainbow liquid and we're all done for?" said Aart.
"Sadly, yes."
"But it's no problem?" Nova asked, her expression grim.
"It shouldn't, but it's not all smooth flying. These things are always rigged with a trap, to stop people doing exactly what I'm about to do. They change the colours of the vials with each bomb and some of the vials are fakes, if you touch them it'll set off the mechanism early."
"Great," said Aart.
"And you have no way of knowing which vials are fakes?" Nova asked.
Tyra shook her head. Her eyes ran over the wires. "Not easily anyway."
"Can't we just turn it upside down and break them separately?" Tanguin said, squinting at the vials.
Tyra sighed and tapped her finger against the outer casing. "If things get desperate, we can try it. But usually they've got a counter weight built in. Turn it the wrong way and we all go sky-high."
"And how much time have we got?" asked Aart.
"Ah well, you see this," Tyra said, pointing to a bright red vial with a spring coiled underneath it and a metal spike above. "The spring gradually uncoils and lifts the vial up until it hits this spike. The spike punctures through and releases red smoke."
"And that's when the bomb goes off?" Nova said, staring at the tiny distance left between the vial and the spike.
"No, no, that's your first warning that things are getting close. After that you've probably got about five minutes before the real thing blows."
"As much as I'm loving this educational session, by my calculations that means we've got ten minutes tops to get this thing disarmed," said Aart, his voice tight. "So maybe we should be focusing more on that."
"I'm getting to it," Tyra said, waving her hand
Nova glanced at Aart and bit her lip.
"I just need to work out which vial is the key initiator. If I can take that one out the bomb will be a hundred times weaker than it is now."
"But that wouldn't stop it completely?" said Nova.
"No, I don't think I have time to do that," Tyra said with a hint of resignation. "They don't make bombs like they used to. This thing is a monster. I think our best option is try to reduce the power and then let it blow somewhere where it won't do much damage."
"Okay," Nova said. She let out a slow breath which rippled over her lips. "Tanguin, start clearing an area. Make sure there aren't any flammables nearby. The last thing we need is to set off a chain reaction."
Tanguin nodded and darted off to start dragging crates left and right. Aart rose and joined her.
"And you can be my special helper," Tyra said with a flicker of a smile.
"Thank you," Nova said, her voice flat.
"If you can hold it I'll take a closer look."
Tyra thrust the ball of wires and vials into Nova's hands. Nova fumbled and clutched it as tightly as she dared. She could only imagine what would happen if she accidentally put her finger through a vial. What if she set the thing off? They'd all be blown to bits and it would be her fault.
"Just breathe," Tyra said, glancing at Nova's face.
Nova released the breath she hadn't realised she was holding and forced her shoulders to relax. Her heart raced but she'd be damned if she let Tyra see just how scared she really was. She loosened her hold on the bomb so that it balanced naturally against her palms. The vials were still intact and she lived to see another minute.
"Just turn it a little," Tyra said. Nova obeyed.
Tyra grabbed Aart's flashlight from the floor and shone it into the bomb's depths. Her eyes peered down into the semidarkness and her eyebrows drew together. Her mouth remained in a thin line as she examined the wires and glass jars.
The weight of the bomb in her hands made Nova's arms ache. But it was more than just the physical effort, her entire being focused on the responsibility of holding the bomb and stopping it from exploding. Sweat dribbled down her face and dripped from her chin, unnoticed. All that existed at that moment were her hands, the bomb, and Tyra's eyes peering down.
"Don't panic, it's about to blow the first vial," Tyra warned.
CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE
A second later the bomb shuddered. It jolted once and then returned to being still, only now it let out a small hiss. It wasn't until red vapour whispered out from between the wires and metal plates that Nova allowed herself to relax.
The red gas floated in a cloud around the bomb before spreading up towards the ceiling. Tendrils whispered around Nova's head and made her eyes sting.
"Please tell me you've got this," said Aart as he looked over his shoulder. He and Tanguin had cleared a sizable area in the middle of the room.
"Soon," said Tyra. "I think I've found the right one."
"Think?" said Nova, her eyebrows rising up.
"I'm afraid that's the best we're going to get," said Tyra. "Now I need you to stay still as if you're life depended on it, because it kind of does."
Nova stopped breathing and clutched the bomb tight. Her arms and shoulders ached with the strain but she couldn't let them waver for even a second.
"Okay, easy, easy. If the worse happens, it's been nice knowing you guys," said Tyra.
Tyra held her breath, reached into the bomb, and worked away at a vial. Her agile fingers moved around the small clasps and attachments,
avoiding the other glass capsules. She drew forth the blue vial and placed it on the ground by her leg.
"I'm going to close it up again and we'll put it in the cleared area. Then we just have to hope I've taken the right one."
"And if you haven't?" said Aart.
"Then I won't have long to feel guilty about it," Tyra said.
Nova stayed still as Tyra clipped the two halves of the metal casing back into place and gingerly carried the bomb to the cleared space. She placed the metal sphere in the centre and stepped back.
"Even if I did take the right one, this thing is still going to blow. We have to get out of here. Now," said Tyra.
She didn't have to ask twice.
Nova turned from the bomb and darted for the far door. Aart, Tanguin and Tyra sprinted just behind her, their footsteps bounding against the metal flood.
Something tickled the back of Nova's neck, sending a shiver down her spine. It was as if the bomb had already exploded and she could feel the shrapnel tearing through her flesh. She pushed faster, her arms and legs pumping.
The doorway loomed just three feet away. Nova took a deep breath, ready to dive to safety.
BANG.
CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO
It felt as if Nova's eardrums had been pierced by a thousand tiny needles and then carved into little bits by a jagged knife. She couldn't hear anything except the ringing inside her own head and bright lights danced in front of her vision. She was vaguely aware that she'd fallen over. She lay on her side but try as she might, she couldn't get up. No matter how hard she tried to push herself up she kept finding herself crashing back onto the floor. Her head hurt. Something dug into her ribs but she couldn't move to get rid of it. Something wet stuck to her cheek. She lifted a shaky arm. Her fingers came away covered in red.
The ringing dulled along with the bright flashes, so that only a few bright specs clouded her sight. Out of her left eye she could see someone lying on the floor, flailing like a dying fish.
Nova pushed herself up onto her elbows and dragged her limp body across the floor. Pain shot up her right side and she winced. Her cheek spiked with agony and tears squeezed out from between her clenched eyelids.
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