“You’re mad, Harry,” said Sheridan. “Why are you doing this?”
“The Kurgan conditioning that was given to my great-great-grandparents when they were captured wasn’t as effective as their Kurgan programmers had hoped. When I was activated as a Kurgan agent, I knew my family history and how we were about to be used by the Kurgan Empire as cannon fodder. I hated Earth for leaving my ancestors on the Kurgan side of the border to be exploited, and I equally hated the Kurgans for using my family to do their dirty work. So, I began to formulate a plan that would make sure it would never happen again. Just think, Mike, all of my machinations almost came to naught when I was stabbed in the heart by you and left to die on that ice moon.”
“Be fair, Harry, you did try to kill me too.”
“True. I was found by a passing Kurgan ship and given another chance at life. They should have left me to die, but I was deemed a valuable asset and saved. When the most senior operative we had on Earth sent me a message telling me how to get my hands on the Alpha Virus, I jumped at the chance. Everything else sort of fell into place when Komada and I met and agreed to kick-start the Kurgan Civil War.”
“You had best hope your men don’t understand what you’re saying,” said Cole.
Williams stood up and looked over at the Chosen soldiers. “These halfwits? They don’t understand a word of what was said. They’re nothing more than a pack of religious fanatics who have no idea they’re about to die, and if they did, they would say it’s the will of the Lord that they die in battle.”
“What do you know of the Lord’s words?” snapped Kabar.
“I’ve read the Lord’s words, and I don’t believe a single word of what’s written in your precious Holy Book,” said Williams. “Religion is all make-believe. It was something our ancestors created to help them make sense of the world around them. As far as I’m concerned, it poisons the mind and makes rational people do heinous things in the name of an imaginary deity.”
“Heresy,” hissed Kabar.
“Shut up,” screamed Williams, drawing his pistol. “I’m done talking to you. Say another word and I’ll put a bullet between your eyes and end your miserable life right now.”
“Harry, there has to be some humanity left in you,” said Sheridan. “Please don’t do this. Think of your family. I’ve met them. They’re good people.”
Williams looked down at Sheridan. “Mike, I bet you don’t know that my parents killed my younger sister and then themselves when they were returned to Kurgan space.”
The news struck Sheridan in the heart. He had met Williams’ family on several occasions and had gotten along with all of them. “I’m sorry, Harry. I was never told.”
Tears welled up in Williams’ eyes. “Well, now you know.”
“Why didn’t they ask to remain on our side of the border?”
“They did. But after what happened on Earth, the authorities thought they couldn’t trust them and deported them.”
“Hey, you need to look in the mirror,” said Cole. “You’re part of the reason your family was deported. Your actions on Tranquility Station were far from honorable.”
“I did what I had to,” replied Williams. “My family didn’t have to suffer on my account.”
“You can tell yourself that all day long but you share some responsibility for what happened to them.”
“I’ve heard enough.” Williams pointed at the Chosen squad leader, a short and rotund corporal. “Take Cole to the armory and have him chained to the bomb. Throw the Kurgan traitor in with the other heretics.”
“What about the other man?” asked the squad leader.
“I want him brought to my ship.”
“It will be done, sir.”
Williams left the room.
Sheridan gritted his teeth and yanked at his restraints. A pistol barrel was thrust against the side of his skull. “Make another move and I’ll splatter your brains all over the wall,” threatened a Chosen soldier.
“Stay calm, sir,” cautioned Cole. “We’re not dead yet. Let’s not do anything foolish to hasten things along.”
With his hands still tied behind his back, Sheridan was manhandled out of his chair and made to stand.
Cole looked up and grinned. “See you in a little while, sir. Save a spot on the ship for Kabar and me.”
“Walk,” ordered the soldier.
Sheridan’s blood was boiling in his veins. His vision narrowed. He had one thought in his mind. He was going to kill Harry Williams, even if it cost him his life.
Chapter 31
Cole and Kabar were forced at gunpoint into an elevator with six Chosen soldiers.
“We’ll drop the heretic off with the other traitors before taking the human to the power plant,” said the fat corporal to his men.
The elevator quickly descended to the seventh floor. The two prisoners were forced out into the hallway.
“March,” ordered a soldier, jamming his rifle into Cole’s back.
A voice came over the fortress’ speaker system. “Warning, the walls have been breached. Government troops have entered the fort; I repeat, government troops have entered the fort.”
Out of the corner of his eye, Cole saw the two soldiers closest to him look nervously up at the roof as if they could see the Old Guard warriors hacking their way deeper into the base.
“Over there,” said the squad leader, pointing at a sturdy-looking steel door.
With every second that ticked by, Cole’s window of opportunity to escape narrowed. He reasoned it would be better to die trying to get away than die strapped to a bomb. He watched as one of the Chosen soldiers entered the code to unlock the door. A second later, the door began to swing open.
The corporal reached over and grabbed Kabar by the arm. “Get in there with the rest of the non-believers.”
It was now or never. Like a cobra striking its prey, Cole turned on his heel and head-butted the closest soldier, breaking his nose. Before his partner could react, Cole swung his right foot out and swept the soldier’s feet out from underneath of him. The man fell to the ground and hit his head on the concrete floor.
Kabar saw what was happening and let out a loud hiss at the man holding his arm. The soldier went to pull his rifle from his shoulder. He was far too slow. Kabar saw his chance and shot his head down. With a snarl on his lips, he sank his razor-sharp teeth into the man’s throat. Blood shot like a fountain from the wound.
Another Chosen soldier brought up his pistol to shoot at Kabar. Cole saw what was about to happen and ran at the soldier’s outstretched hand. He hit it with his chest, sending the gun clattering down the hallway. The stunned soldier went for his knife. Even with his hands behind his back, Cole was a better brawler than any of the Chosen warriors. He brought up his right knee and smashed it as hard as he could into the man’s groin, doubling him over in pain.
Kabar released his jaws and let the dying corporal drop to the floor. He let out a hiss and charged at the last two soldiers. With blood dripping from his mouth, he looked like a creature from hell coming to kill them. One of the men tossed his rifle to the ground and sprinted back toward the elevator. A soldier burst from the room and sprinted after the fleeing Chosen warrior. He tackled him before he could get into the elevator and used his own knife against him.
The last man fired his pistol at point-blank range into Kabar’s chest. The bullet struck his armor and compacted on impact. Kabar let out a pained gasp and dropped to his knees in agony. The round may not have penetrated his armor, but the impact had severely bruised the Kurgan’s chest.
Cole kneed his injured adversary in the head, dropping him to the floor. He turned his head and saw a man step close to Kabar with a pistol aimed at his head. “No!” he yelled in Kurgan.
A shot rang out.
Cole expected to see Kabar with a hole blasted through his skull. Instead, the soldier buckled at the knees and fell face-first to the floor. Cole looked back at the open door and saw a wide-eyed Kurgan lieutenant stand
ing there with a pistol in his shaking hand. It was over. Several freed prisoners rounded up the injured insurgents, stripped them of their weapons, and tied them up.
“Who are you?” the young officer asked Kabar.
Kabar grimaced as he got to his feet. “My name is Captain Kabar, and I am an officer in the Imperial Intelligence Service. How many men do you have with you?”
“There are sixty-three of us,” replied the lieutenant. “I was the officer in charge of housing and accommodations until my men revolted and locked all of us up down here.”
“Get him to untie us,” said Cole to Kabar.
With their restraints removed, Cole and Kabar faced the lieutenant. “There isn’t a lot of time to explain what is going on. What you need to know is that in a matter of minutes the insurgents intend to detonate an antimatter bomb inside one of the old geothermal shafts,” said Kabar.
“Where did they get their hands on one of those?” asked the young officer.
“There are traitors everywhere in the military and the government. Right now, it doesn’t matter how they got it. You and your men have to stop them from using it.”
The lieutenant hesitated then nodded. “They’ll be covering the elevators. But I know where there are a couple ladders leading down to the power plant. We could use them to get in behind the traitors.”
Cole placed a hand on Kabar’s arm. In English, he said, “Captain, I’m going to go help Major Sheridan stop Mister Williams. You have to stay here and help stop the rebels from activating the bomb.”
“I’m not a soldier,” protested Kabar. “You said it yourself, I’m an assassin.”
Cole looked into Kabar’s eyes. “Captain, are you going to trust a wet-behind-the-ears lieutenant whose last job was looking after accommodations to stop a weapon of mass destruction from going off?”
“No, I guess not.”
“Good,” said Cole, reaching down to pick up a pistol from the floor.
“What should I do with the rebel prisoners?”
Cole looked over at the open door of the makeshift prison. “Unless you want to waste soldiers to guard them, I say put them in there.”
Kabar passed the order to have them locked up.
“Okay, I guess this is it. Good luck, Captain,” said Cole with a mock salute.
“You too,” replied Kabar with a slight bow.
Cole ran to the elevator and pressed the down button. He watched the numbers count down. All the while he wondered where his friend was and if he was still alive.
Chapter 32
Sheridan stared at the clock as the minutes and seconds faded into the past. By his estimation, he had less than thirty minutes to deal with Harry and stop the antimatter bomb from being detonated. Sheridan knew Cole would never stop until he had neutralized every threat, and he didn’t intend to either.
The subway train began to slow down.
Sheridan was surrounded by four Chosen soldiers, all of whom had their pistols aimed at him. He could see his nemesis sitting near the front of the train. In his hand was a small tablet the size of his palm.
With a loud whoosh, the train stopped, having traveled fifty kilometers in a matter of minutes.
“On your feet,” said a black-haired Chosen soldier.
Sheridan stood up. As the side doors opened, he felt a cold breeze rush inside the subway car. With two men holding his arms, Sheridan was forced out of the train and onto the platform. He looked around and saw he was inside a giant cavern. There were several shuttlecraft and smaller one-person ships parked off to one side of the cave. In the distance, the cavern opened up to allow the ships to fly in and out.
“Bring him,” ordered Williams.
With a rough shove from behind, Sheridan was made to walk. His patience was long gone. If he could, he would have turned on his guards and beaten each one of them to a pulp. He bit his tongue and looked around trying to find something he could use to cut his bindings.
“Eyes front,” snapped the black-haired guard.
They entered a control room filled with technicians. On a large screen was the tactical display of the battle. The Old Guard had taken the first two floors and were fighting to gain lodgment on the third floor.
“Given time, I’m sure they’d make it all the way down to the power plant,” said Williams to Sheridan. “But I don’t intend to give them that chance.”
“I take it you’re planning on leaving well before the bomb is detonated so you can watch the fireworks from space,” said Sheridan.
“I’d be a fool to stay here, now wouldn’t I?”
“And since you want me to witness Cole’s death, I take it I’m coming along for the ride whether I want to or not.”
Williams smiled. “Right again. Once the device goes off and Cole and the Kurgan fleet are long gone, I will have no further use for you. So you’ll be ejected out into the vacuum of space to die a horrible, agonizing death knowing there was nothing you could have done to stop me.”
“Now, whose ego is coming to the forefront? Trust me, the last thing on my mind will be you.”
“Ah, yes, Tarina. I never knew what a girl from Southern Africa saw in you besides your money. I wonder if she’ll want to trade up after you’re gone.”
Sheridan’s eyes narrowed. In a blind rage, he screamed and threw himself at Williams. It was a foolish gesture. He barely made it a couple of paces before one of his guards brought down his rifle butt onto the side of his head, knocking him to the floor.
“Get him to his feet,” ordered Williams.
His two guards hauled him off the floor and pulled his head back so Sheridan was forced to look at Williams.
“Dumb move, Mike,” said Williams. “Keep control of that temper of yours or I’ll be forced to have you tied up.”
A door on the other side of the room flung open. Komada burst in and strode straight toward Williams. His left eye was twitching. “This is a disaster,” he howled. Spittle flew from his lips. “You said the Old Guard would never be able to step foot inside this fortress. You assured my followers and me that it was impregnable.”
“Calm yourself, Komada,” said Williams. “There are no guarantees in war. Besides, I have laid a trap for the heretics.”
“What trap? Why am I learning about it now?”
“Because you didn’t need to know.”
“So what is this trap?”
Sheridan saw the animosity brewing between the two supposed allies and decided to stir the pot. He looked at Komada. “I’m not surprised he never told you that he’s to planning to blow up the fort. Naturally, the detonation would kill everyone still inside of it.”
Komada’s jaw dropped. “Is this true?”
“Yes,” replied Williams. “I have an antimatter device being prepared for detonation in the power plant. The resulting explosion will kill anyone still alive in the fort. But the rewards will be beyond measure. The blast will take with it all of the government forces and their ships in orbit above the planet. A more than fair exchange if you ask me.”
Komada’s face paled. He reached for a chair and sat down. “When?” he asked.
“In precisely twenty-three minutes and sixteen seconds from now. My personal shuttle is being fueled as we speak. Trust me, we’ll be long gone before the device explodes.”
“We may be, but you’re still going to die along with your precious revolution,” said Sheridan to Komada.
“What does he mean by that?” said Komada.
In the blink of an eye, Williams walked to Sheridan’s side and picked him up by the neck with his right arm. He squeezed until Sheridan couldn’t breathe. His feet kicked in the air as he struggled to break free from Williams’ chokehold. Sheridan’s lungs screamed for oxygen. His vision began to blur. A tunnel appeared before his eyes which grew smaller and smaller by the second until he blacked out.
Williams let go of Sheridan and let his unconscious body fall to the floor. He faced Komada. “Now, what were you saying?”
; “What did Major Sheridan mean when he said I was going to die?” asked Komada, staring at Sheridan’s unconscious body.
“He was just trying to get you riled up. I wouldn’t listen to his nonsensical ramblings if I were you. You need to focus all of your efforts on helping spread the rebellion. I intend to drop you off on Kerron-3 while I carry on to the Kenilam System.”
Komada stood. “Mister Williams, what about the virus you claimed to have? You said it would be used against the heretics. If not now, when do you intend to release the virus?”
Williams smiled. “Soon, very soon.”
Chapter 33
Cole double-checked to make sure his pistol was loaded before placing his right arm behind his back as he stepped out of the elevator. He spotted two soldiers guarding a stationary subway train and walked straight toward them.
One of the men, a corporal, raised a hand. “Stop right there. No one is allowed on the train without the express permission of the Kurdofan.”
“Bingo,” thought Cole. He ignored the man’s warning and kept walking.
“I said stop!” The corporal went for his pistol.
In one smooth motion, Cole brought his right arm around, aimed his pistol at the corporal, and pulled the trigger. The first shot hit the corporal in the stomach. The next struck him in the heart, killing him. Cole turned his weapon on the other guard and dropped him with a single shot. He ran inside the train with his pistol at the ready. The carriage was empty. Cole walked to the front of the car and pulled open the door to the engineer’s compartment. A white-haired man with a weathered face looked up. Cole jammed his pistol into the side of the surprised driver’s head. “Get me to the shuttle hangar immediately or I’ll be forced to kill you, old man.”
The driver nodded. “Hang on, this train goes fast.”
Insurrection (The Kurgan War Book 6) Page 18