Soldiers of Fame and Fortune Full Series Omnibus: Nobody’s Fool, Nobody Lives Forever, Nobody Drinks That Much, Nobody Remembers But Us, Ghost Walking, 12 Book series...

by Michael Todd

  Satisfied that she was alone—at least for the moment—she caught her breath and waited as the large footsteps pounded closer. “Can we maybe discuss this when I’m not about to confront a giant T-rex gorilla?”

  Marcus sighed. “Yeah, yeah. Do what you need to do. I’ll shut comms off so I don’t hear it. But I will watch your stats to make sure your adventure doesn’t force me to send someone out to retrieve your suit from the Zoo.”

  Billie shook her head. “Your positive thoughts overwhelm me. How about you not jinx me and show me a little support? I’m sure you can download that into one of your girlfriends if you don’t know how to do it.”

  He fake-laughed. “Oh, you are simply hilarious. Have fun with your new friend.”

  With that, he deactivated his mic as she rolled her eyes.

  Two jags raced into the clearing and immediately slowed. They snarled with menace as they circled the open space. Barely moments later, the tree shook wildly back and forth as the Gor-T—she had to call the motherfucker something, didn’t she?—exploded into the clearing, and practically stopped in its tracks.

  “Wait,” she whispered inside her helmet. “That’s not fucking possible unless the ZOO is fucking with momentum.”

  The enormous nostrils flared wildly as it lumbered around and kicked up soil and moss. It could obviously smell the plant, even though it couldn’t locate it.

  Hickok tucked the Pita carefully inside a pocket on the front of her suit and activated her camouflage device. She inched down the tree, almost invisible, and hopped quietly to the ground. The Gor-T growled when she stepped forward, and she snickered as it looked everywhere but where she was. She had him right where she wanted him and stood poised, ready to strike, until something scraped harshly down the length of her back.

  With a muttered expletive, she dropped her camouflage cover, whirled, and took an involuntary step backward when she came face to face with a locust. Instantly, she drew her dagger and sliced downward to hack off the locust’s sharp leg. The insect tumbled back but Hickok followed, leapt on top of it, and stabbed repeatedly into the large, bugged eyes. The creature fell limp and she scrambled to her feet and swung to confront the Gor-T. By some miracle, the thing hadn’t attacked but growled and shredded the jungle floor with a vicious claw.

  Billie sighed and replaced her dagger before she pressed a button to open a sheath on the back of her suit. She reached back, withdrew a long thin sword, and gripped it tightly in both hands.

  A hasty glance confirmed that the jags remained at the edges of the clearing, plainly terrified of the huge beast. Billie moved slowly to the right. The monster followed her in a heavy, shuffling gait as they circled one another rapidly. She scowled and could almost hear the seconds tick by.

  With no time for games, she screamed an obscenity and hurtled toward the belly of the beast.

  The Gor-T swept its long arm and smacked her in the stomach. She grunted with the power of the blow. “Incoming!” She spiraled toward the jags and slammed into one of them.

  The impact rolled both woman and beast across the moss and stones to the edge of the jungle. Hickok dragged in a painful breath. “Oh, that’ll leave a mark.”

  The animal beside her and seemed as shattered as she felt and even mirrored the swift shake of her head to clear it. They lay facing one another and barely inches apart.

  “Shit!”

  Hickock scrambled upright and backed away as the jag snarled and hissed and lurched to its feet. She reached instinctively for her sword, then realized it wasn’t in its sheath and looked frantically around her. It had been flung from her hand and now lodged blade-first into the ground some ten feet away beyond the jag.

  She gritted her teeth and drew her pistol from the holster on her hip.

  Her talk a while back with the duo bear came to mind and she waved the weapon in the air as she focused on the venom-laden teeth a scant few feet away. “I don’t want to kill you. I’m here for the big one. Just walk away and you don’t have to get hurt.”

  The jag roared and Billie lifted both eyebrows. “Is that a no? I’ll have to take that as a negative.”

  Suddenly, it launched into the attack, bulldozed into her, and tore a hole in the shoulder of her armor. The two adversaries landed together hard and she grabbed its head to hold it back with one hand. It snapped viciously at her and fought to free itself. She maneuvered her other arm from beneath its belly and rested the barrel below the creature’s jawline. Her eyes closed for a moment as she pulled the trigger but opened in time to see half the head and neck explode into nothing.

  “Get off me, you big pussy!” She shoved it aside and forced herself to stand, her upper torso covered in blood.

  Billie knew she couldn’t shoot the Gor-T without the very realistic chance that she might hit the precious sacs. The second jag whined beside the dead one and snapped its head up to show its teeth with an angry rumble.

  She shrugged. “I told you both. If you let me do what I have to do, I won’t hurt you. Here, have what you came for.”

  With slow, careful movements, she retrieved the Pita plant from her suit and tossed it at the animal, but the enraged beast remained focused entirely on her. She watched it warily as she sidled over to yank the sword free. The jag stalked her, but the Gor-T roared warningly and it scurried back into the tree line.

  Hickok glanced at the hordes of locusts above. The swarm circled but made no effort to attack. “What, does he scare you guys too?”

  With her sword gripped tightly, Billie narrowed her eyes and focused on the dino. “All right, big boy. We’re out of time. It’s nothing personal.”

  She launched into an armor enhanced sprint directly at the beast but had, fortunately, learned her lesson. As it swung its arms once again, she ducked, dropped to her knees, and slid beneath it. She thrust her sword upward to impale it low in the gut and stopped her forward movement.

  The beast reared back, exactly as she’d hoped it would. She stood and tightened her hold on the sword to yank it up through the beast’s belly and back out. In a fluid motion, she drew her pistol and fired three shots into the jaw before propelled herself backward and out of the way of the arms that swiped at her. She jumped over the first and rolled beneath the other. It was at that point that the creature realized it had bigger problems.

  The Gor-T clasped its claws to its stomach and stumbled forward onto its knees.

  Billie wiped the blood from her visor and shook her head as she walked towards the head that now lowered slowly and sluggishly. “I’m sorry for this. I’ll make it quick.”

  As the beast shuddered and sank down on one elbow, its head almost on the ground, she plunged the blade into its neck. The dino’s eyes grew wide and it whimpered when she dragged the sword hard to the right. She withdrew it as the beast toppled onto its side. It blinked twice and exhaled a last long, shuddering breath.

  Hickok breathed deeply and put her hands on her knees. “Lord, you were tough.”

  Movement caught her eye and she straightened as the jag jumped up on the Gor-T’s side and swiped its sharp claws at her. She took a hasty step back and its razor-sharp claws skimmed the armor on the front of her suit. Billie stumbled back and fell with a loud curse. She dragged in a breath and sat up with her eyes narrowed. “That was a punk move, bitch. A punk move.”

  She winced and retrieved her sword, vaguely conscious that the background buzzing seemed to grow louder. Her heart lurched with the knowledge of what that meant. Slowly, she looked at the canopy above. A massive swarm of locusts had gathered into what looked like a multi-winged ball and now rocketed toward her.

  “Holy shit!”

  Chapter Two

  “Incoming,” Billie snarked at the jag as she pushed hastily to her feet. The locusts had chosen a massed attack and the living missile streaked relentless downward. She swung her sword at the beast to keep it back but it roared defiance. The shrill buzzing must have penetrated, though, because it hesitated and looked up at the approach
ing devastation.

  Billie groaned and dropped her sword to replace it with a dagger and one pistol. She aimed her gun upward and fired a steady barrage, pausing only to replace the empty magazine. One after another, the locusts tumbled from the sky and spattered around her in a bloody mess.

  One unlucky creature swooped low and caught her dagger across its neck. “Damn!” Billie raised an eyebrow and looked around as she switched her magazine once again. “This fucking bitch be raining locusts now.”

  She shook her head and continued to fire. Several more dropped out of the sky. Her HUD beeped to alert her that the jag was in close proximity. She raised her dagger into its face and turned slowly to hold its gaze. “Do you really want to end up like one of these bug freaks? I can make that fucking happen.”

  The jag backed away but it had barely taken three steps before a locust slammed into her, sliced her shoulder, and actually drew blood. She groaned in pain and gritted her teeth. Anger gave her the force she needed to shove it off her. In the same movement, she raised her pistol and fired three shots in rapid succession. The creature plummeted like a downed helicopter and was already dead when it reached the ground.

  Billie scowled at her arm. “Motherfuckers tore my suit!”

  Marcus clicked the comms on. “Why do I have a warning of suit interruption?”

  She rolled her eyes and eliminated two more locusts. “Because these fucking bugs”—bang— “are quicker”—bang—“than they appear!” Bang—bang—bang. “Fucking get over it.”

  He sighed and closed the comm. She shook her head, turned in a circle, and studied the hovering insects. They had ceased their attack but continued to buzz and swarm above. “Did you have enough, fuckers?”

  As if in answer, they surged into what appeared to be a close and orderly formation and winged away from the clearing. Clearly, they had no desire to tempt her wrath any further. Billie turned and aimed her weapon at the jag that prowled at the edge of the tree line. It looked at her with narrowed eyes before it, too, slunk away into the jungle.

  There had been no fear in its eyes, but it was obvious the animal was tired of the fight. Not to mention that she had ditched the Pita plant and killed the Gor-T.

  She was fairly certain the animals were satisfied at that point.

  She sheathed her dagger and holstered her pistol. Hickok groaned as she picked up her sword and wiped the blood and insect goo on the side of her pants. “That shit was nuts.” She looked around. “There needs to be a better way.”

  After one final check to ensure she was alone, she clambered onto the back of the giant creature and used the x-ray software in her HUD to find the exact placement of the sacs.

  They were located well below the spine, which meant it would be difficult to reach them from the top down. She slid back to the ground and walked around to the front, careful to avoid a splash of goop that glowed on the jungle floor. With her hands on her hips, she stared at the beast. “JB had better appreciate what I’m doing to save his ass.”

  Her mind made up, Hickok shoved her sword through the enormous chest and pulled down hard toward the gash already in its belly. Goop oozed out of the wound and down her arms as she dragged the blade through its flesh. When she reached the belly, it took far less effort with the strength-enhanced suit to split the creature wide open.

  Billie shivered and scowled. “Now this is fucking gross.”

  She shoveled the intestines onto the ground with her arms until she was finally able to reach the sacs through the now hollow cavity. “It smells worse on the inside than the outside. Or do I have that quote wrong?”

  Carefully, she severed each sac, withdrew them, and placed them in plastic bags and finally into a plastic container for transport. Unfortunately, one was damaged and most of the goop had already leaked out.

  "Lousy shooting under pressure. I told those dickheads to be careful. What the hell—a little monster chews on their bone and they can't aim for shit." Still, three was way better than none.

  Her purpose accomplished, she flung the goop from her arms as best she could and buried the precious cargo in her bag. She had to get out of there and to her next assignment before her bosses suspected anything.

  As she passed the Gor-T, she patted it on the head. “Thanks for the sacrifice, buddy. JB will appreciate everything you did.”

  She pulled the map up in her HUD, identified the quickest route, and set off through the jungle at the fastest acceleration she could manage.

  Along the way, various animals raised their heads and watched her pass. Luckily, there didn’t seem to be any pheromone residue on her from the Pita plant, so they paid her only cursory attention. Or they had bigger fish to fry elsewhere.

  No attacks after I killed that thing? No nuclear reaction chasing me harder? Someone else—or a lot of someone elses—must be getting royally fucked over by the ZOO. It sucks for them but a nice break for me.

  Her journey led her out a different way than she’d come in but that was of little consequence. Her main concern was to leave without being seen, and if this proved less busy than her usual exit point, all the better. She reached the edge of the jungle, slowed, and stopped at the unexpected sight of the concrete wall in front of her. The unfamiliar approach had proved much faster than she’d anticipated.

  Billie stared at it for a long moment before she shrugged and pulled up her list of tools in the HUD and skimmed through them. “And what do you have to help me climb this bitch?”

  She narrowed her eyes at an image of what looked like barbs protruding from her gloves. She selected the option and held her palms up. A second later, spikes emerged, and she grinned. She wavered as an odd sensation from the balls of her feet indicated that the same grappling devices now projected from her boots.

  “Move over, Spiderman,” she whispered.

  Damn, she loved her toys.

  It took a moment or two for her to figure out how best to use them, but the power-enhanced climbing aids punched easily into the reinforced concrete. Soon, Billie chuckled to herself and scaled the fifteen-foot wall without difficulty and at a speed that surprised her.

  When she reached the summit, she peered cautiously over in search of any security or military but saw no one. It took only seconds to flip easily over the top and repel down with the aid of the rope and grapple hook in her pack. Smiling, Billie retrieved her gear and looked smugly at the wall. Whatever else she’d been through, she’d damn well ended it on a satisfying note.

  She laughed and skirted the wall carefully toward the Staging Area where she hoped to “borrow” a vehicle back to town. “The tools in these things get better and better. I’m an everyday superhero in this bitch.”

  Marcus cleared his throat. “Or villain.”

  Hickok spluttered an oath and glared as she regained her equilibrium. “You startled me—did you have to appear the fuck out of nowhere.”

  He ignored the comment. “Are you done yet?”

  She picked up the pace and finally paused at the edge of the wall in the shadows to watch as a group of mercs entered the jungle. “Almost. Gotta drop my goods off where they belong and then you can send a car for me.”

  “Fine. You messed up my suit.”

  Billie commandeered an empty JLTV and headed off through the desert to the edge of town. “Yeah, yeah. At least you know its weaknesses now.”

  Marcus sighed loudly like he wanted to fight but decided not to. “I’ll talk to you in a short while. The driver will pick you up at the main dumpster. You know how to do your job, so I doubt I need to give you a run through. The info on the target will be in the car.”

  She nodded as she parked in one of the darkest corners of the town, then reminded herself that he wouldn’t see it. “Got it. Out.”

  The streets, thankfully, were deserted. Hickok removed her helmet and maneuvered out of the vehicle and set off at a brisk pace toward the apartment. She kept to the shadows and traversed the two short blocks, certain that she hadn’t been seen. W
hen she entered, she grinned at the sight of Holly passed out at the desk. There wasn’t time to get the woman to bed or to wake her and answer way too many questions. Instead, she retrieved the sacs from her pack and placed them quietly in the fridge before she scrawled a note and left it on the counter.

  She chuckled as she walked back into the living area. “She’ll think I got her breakfast. Little does she know her future is in the fridge.”

  Billie slipped out of her suit and dragged on a pair of cargos and a tank top. Thankfully, her injuries this time around were minimal, although her shoulder had stung when she applied salve to the wound. It could have been far more than a surface scratch, for which she was grateful. When she exited the apartment, she slipped out once more and hurried downstairs to Amanda’s place. Once she was done there, she jogged the two blocks down and into a dark, sandy alley. A single dumpster stood in the center. As she arrived, a vehicle drew up in front of the narrow side street.

  She narrowed her eyes and stared at the black car with blacked-out windows in an effort to make out the driver. The front window opened slowly and one of her usual contacts nodded to her. She hurried over, ducked into the back seat, and shut the door quickly. The driver rolled the partition down between them and glanced at the bag on the seat beside her. “Everything you need should be in there. Marcus said to contact him over earbud comms if there is anything else.”

  She opened the small front pouch and withdrew the earbuds. “Thanks.”

  The driver closed the divider and began to drive. Billie pulled her spy suit from the bag and examined it as she always did, amazed at what Marcus was able to pull together. It appeared to be a normal set of clothing—a pair of black pants, a white shirt, and a jacket—but Billie knew better. A sticky note pinned on the front read, New and Improved. Try not to fuck it up until you are done with it. You know what to do when you are finished. Matches in the pocket.

  Hickok rolled her eyes. She knew that Marcus had been in a pissy mood when he wrote that. He could be such an ass sometimes, but he was also a genius.