“Will she be okay?” Raze asked.
Vynce was silent for a moment. ‘Not sure, big guy. She’ll live, I’m sure of it, but I don’t know how she’ll be when she comes to. They took her arm at the shoulder. They said that the fucking thing’s got tendrils running up her bones underneath the muscles. If they didn’t take it all, it would have kept growing.’
“Which arm is it, Vynce?” Draco asked.
‘Her right arm.’
Draco swore. Ava was one of the best shooters he had ever met, and they took her best shooting arm. Draco was just glad that she would live through it. But he knew that afterwards, Ava would need some support. Some time off. They could all do with some time off after they escaped the Metropolis Seven and handed Veck back over to the Alliance military.
“The important thing is that she’ll live through this. Whatever comes after, comes after. We’ll all be there for her,” Draco said. “Where are you three right now?”
‘We’re at the medical center in Residential, near the border of Metropolitan. But we’re not the only ones. There are survivors here. They say they’re the last ones. We’ve got maybe a hundred and fifty people here. Maybe more, maybe less. We’re armed, but not well. We’re pretty safe for the moment.’
“Excellent. I’m going to need to ask you to start talking to the survivors. This ship has to have evacuation ships. Ask around and find out as much information as you can about where they are, and how we can get to them.”
‘You got it Captain.’
“Where’s Jaxon?” Draco asked.
‘He’s... with Ava.’
The awkward pause was enough to convey the meaning to Draco, so he quickly changed the subject.
“You have your mission. The first moment you find out some information, you get in contact with us again. You got that?”
‘Yeah, got it Captain. You guys going to keep the comm channels open this time or what?’
Draco looked at Aloysius.
“I will work my way through the system as best I can and attempt to remove whatever impasses I find. However, when the power comes back on I don’t know how much control I will be able to retain. We may lose communications, so it would be imperative to make a contingency plan now,” Aloysius said.
‘Right, well we can’t really go anywhere until Ava is awake. I’ll find out whatever I can about evac ships, and I’ll try to report back to you what I know. But if I can’t get through to you, meet us in the medical center on the border of the Residential and Metropolitan Districts. We’re not far from the collapsed skyscraper.’
“I have marked the location of this medical center in my mapping systems. We shall be able to find you if we need to,” Aloysius said.
‘What about you, Captain? What’s your plan?’
“I’ve got a hunch that even if we found evac ships, they’re not going to be much help when we’ve got a puppet master sitting at the top of Metro Tower pulling strings. We’re going to climb that tower. We’re going to take back control of the ship. Then we’re going to get the fuck out of here and call in the big guns to incinerate this ship,” Draco said.
‘Too fuckin’ right,’ Vynce said. ‘I’ll talk to you guys soon, but if I can’t get you, you know where to find us.’
“Good work Vynce. Draco out.”
‘Vynce out.’
Draco looked over at Raze, who had a huge smile on his face.
“It’s not quite the time for mirth just yet my friend,” Aloysius said as he stood up from his chair, “I believe that we are all in much more danger than we all presently realize. My assumptions combined with Vynce’s report paints a very bleak picture for the survival of everyone on this ship. As I was saying before we heard from Vynce, I’ve found some further information in the data stream. It looks as though some rudimentary laboratories have been set up in the upper floors of Metro Tower. The floors were refitted just a week ago, shortly after the initial infection began.”
“Metropolis vessels don’t usually carry the equipment to fit out a lab though,” Raze said.
“Not a complete laboratory, no. But they would have had enough supplies and resources to make a simple testing and containment laboratory. They’ve dedicated an entire floor of the tower to it.”
“If this infection goes to ground on a civilized terrestrial planet, there will be no stopping the spread,” Draco said.
“Whoever is pulling the strings atop Metro Tower will have other plans for this newly discovered organism, and there are only two practical applications I can think of. Commercial or military,” Aloysius said.
“The Alliance military has a sanction on all bioweapons,” Raze said.
“The person in the bridge may not be looking to sell to humans,” Aloysius said. “They may be looking to sell it to anyone, even the Vartalen.”
Raze exhaled sharply and said, “The Vartalen? We may as well kiss the rest of humanity goodbye right now. If this infection gets into their hands and they weaponize it, there’d be no way to track it back to anyone. All you’d need to do is send a single infected person down to the surface and it’d be game over.”
“First thing’s first. We need to get to the top of Metro Tower and take the control of the ship for ourselves. After that, we can figure out what the hell we’re going to do. Let’s resupply with whatever we can from here, then we move out,” Draco said.
Chapter Thirty-Seven
Veck watched the girls work. Rhken was clearly more intelligent and efficient than her older sister. The other one fumbled her way around the engines, dropped her tools and spent more than a few minutes sobbing when she should have focused on getting the job done. It seemed infinitely simple to Veck. If the girls didn’t get the engines back on line, then they would all die. Mourning their father served no purpose.
Emotion was one of humanity’s greatest strengths when it was harnessed and cultivated correctly. But when it was allowed to control a person unchecked, it became one of the human race’s greatest weaknesses. Some emotions were beneficial; motivating emotions, but others such as guilt, self-doubt and jealousy would never serve as positive motivators for anything.
One of the best things Veck ever did was to suppress all his own negative emotions. He didn’t know why someone would let themselves be wracked with the pain of loss if they had a choice not to. The only things he felt anymore were pride, anger, and occasionally lust. But it had been far too long since he had met someone who he lusted after. Everyone he met was just far too unintelligent and unambitious to match him. Why would he lower himself to base carnal pleasure with anyone who wasn’t his equal?
He refused.
He could be patient.
There would be someone.
The two girls working on the engine blocks lacked the proper motivation to get their jobs done, and Veck meant to change that.
“Do you want your Captain to die?” he asked, breaking the silence.
Reban looked down on Veck from the top lower and her lower lip quivered. Rhken looked at him through narrowed eyes.
“It’s all right. I don’t expect you to answer. But you should know that at the rate you’re working, it’s likely that the hull of that giant spaceship just outside the windows there will hit us. Do you know what will happen when it hits us?”
The girls were silent.
“No? Have you ever seen what happens when you hit a bird on take-off? You end up with a tiny little bloody patch on the outside of your hull that gets burnt up when you blast through the atmosphere. We’ll be no different, except that our biological remains will freeze, crystallize and then shatter unless they’re crushed beyond recognition first.”
He waited for a moment and allowed the girls time to respond. When they did not, he continued.
“Don’t you wish that you could go home, girls? You could go home and honor your father however you wish. You can build a statue, if that’s your thing. But right now, we need to get this ship back up and running.”
Rhken dropped
her omni-tool. It fell to the ground as she got to her feet and strode over to Veck.
“And then what? You get to go on your way, free to kill your way across the galaxy again. So what if we all die here? At least then the galaxy will be rid of you.”
Veck smiled at the fury inside this girl. He had her right where he wanted her.
“I have an answer which may motivate you to reassess how you speak to me in future,” Veck said. He kept his voice as smooth as silk. “Let me tell you exactly what I will do if you and your sister comply with my orders. Firstly, I will take you to any civilized planet in the galaxy. Anywhere except for New Earth. I will leave you there, and within a week you will both receive large sum of credits in your accounts. You’ll be able to open your own shop. I’ll go on my way after I leave you, and you’ll never hear from me again. Does that sound all right?”
Rhken didn’t reply.
“And if you don’t,” he began. His tone remained pleasant and warm throughout. “We’ll take a little trip to the airlock. You’ll go in the airlock, and Reban will stay outside with me. I’ll give you a suit, of course. I’m not a barbarian. But that’s when the fun will start. You’ll have a choice. Space yourself, untethered, to float in the void until your air runs out. Or, you can watch me strip the flesh from your sister’s body inch by inch until she begs for the cold embrace of the void.”
Rhken shrunk back from Veck’s words. She couldn’t will herself to stand her ground, no matter how hard she wanted to.
“But you’d still be dead,” she said quietly.
“So would you. And so would your sister, but she would die only after she experienced the greatest agony she has ever felt. Alternatively, you could get the engines back online, and you can both live long, happy lives. The choice is yours.”
Rhken had no choice but to obey. She couldn’t risk any harm coming to her sister. After their mother died, it was just the three of them. Now it was down to two. She had to protect her sister, no matter what.
“I need to go down into storage. That’s where Dad always kept the spare ignition primers. We’ll need those once we’ve checked over everything else. We can only hope that they weren’t fried by the EMP either,” Rhken said.
She quickly thought about what she could do on the way to storage. Could she get Captain Goldwing on comms? No. She wouldn’t have time to make it to the bridge, try to get the Captain, and get back to the engineering bay before Veck grew suspicious.
Perhaps she could make a quick stop at the armory on the way back and pick up a shotgun or two. She’d fired a pistol before, but never at a hostile moving target. If she had a chance at taking Veck down, she needed something with a little more firepower. A couple of shotguns should do the trick. The recoil might dislocate her shoulders, but it would be worth it if they could put that psychopath down for good.
“Very well. Your sister will remain here and attend to her duties, and I will come with you,” Veck said.
Rhken’s heart sunk. There would be no way she could go for a weapon while Veck followed her. He’d be on top of her before she had time to turn and open fire.
Downtrodden, she nodded and walked towards storage.
Arak Nara was waiting just inside the darkness, listening. He felt his gorge rise as Veck threatened the two girls. As soon as he heard that Rhken and Veck were headed towards storage, Arak retreated back into the ship. When he was sure he was out of earshot, he increased his pace and slipped into the armory.
He only had moments to prepare. He had to make it quick. He undressed as fast as he could and then slipped a smartsuit on. With most of the ship’s systems offline, he would have to attach the armor plating manually. He grabbed the closest helmet he could find and slipped it over his head. The HUD immediately illuminated and enhanced his low-light vision.
He heard the low murmur of conversation in the corridor outside the room. The darkness should keep him concealed, but he retreated deeper into the armory and slipped behind two of the armor pods anyway. He watched intently from the gap between the pods as he waited for them to pass. Two dark figures crossed in front of the doorway.
“You’re sure this is the quickest way down into storage? What about through the armory?” Veck asked.
“No, that’s just the holding cells where we keep our cargo. Anything we need to keep the ship running is in a separate storage area,” Rhken said.
The two figures passed on. Arak opened one of the pods manually and started to unpack the armor within. It was far too large for him, but the smartsuit made the connections as best as it could.
‘This must be Raze’s,’ Arak thought as he put the chest piece on. It connected to the smartsuit, but it was far too wide to wear comfortably. If he had to engage Veck, it would impede his movement. Arak disengaged the piece of chest armor and placed it back in the pod. He would worry about mounting it properly when he had the ship back under control.
Arak moved on to the next pod and opened it manually. The armor pieces in that pod were much more accommodating. He slipped on the chest and shoulder armor, which fitted him like a glove. He hadn’t been a member of the crew long enough to have his own armor printed yet, but this armor would do.
After Arak was fully suited up, he walked over to the weapon racks and looked over his options. He could choose to act silently if he wanted. He contemplated picking up a pair of silenced pistols but decided against it. If he missed, or Veck didn’t go down with a couple of shots, there was no way Arak could overpower him with small arms fire. An assault rifle risked destroying something vital, or a stray bullet could rip a hole in the hull of the ship. Eventually Arak settled on a snub-nosed shotgun, which was designed for messy close-up encounters.
Arak walked towards the armory doors but stopped when he heard Veck and Rhken coming back from storage. He quickly resumed his position behind the pods and watched the door for silhouettes. Rhken passed the doorway first, but Veck lingered at the threshold.
“Did you hear something in here?” Veck asked.
“No, I didn’t hear anything,” Rhken said.
Arak’s blood ran cold as Veck stepped across the threshold and into the armory. His grip on the shotgun tightened, and he steeled himself to react if he needed to. There was no way he could take Veck out with a single blast from that far away. He would have to wait until the madman was closer to him.
Veck took another step into the room and Arak’s’ muscles tensed. He almost fired a shot when a scream came from the engine bay.
“Reban!” Rhken exclaimed. She rushed towards the engine bay.
Veck swore and followed the girl. Arak breathed a sigh of relief, but didn’t allow himself to relax for long. He crept towards the armory door and stepped out into the emergency lighting of the corridor outside.
Chapter Thirty-Eight
Vynce approached an old man who looked completely spent. He wasn’t injured, but Vynce could see that he was not just tired physically but drained emotionally as well.
“Excuse me old timer, but I was hoping to ask you something,” Vynce said.
The man smiled. “Sure son. What can I help you with?”
“I’m with the crew of another ship. We responded to the distress beacon. But our ship isn’t big enough to carry everyone out. Are there are evacuation ships left on board?”
“And what would you do with an evac ship if you had one?” the old man asked.
“Uh, we’d use it to evacuate? There are over a hundred people here. We can keep you all safe until we get off the ship.”
“Where would you go? We’re in the Arcturus Sector. If we got on an evac ship, we’ll just end up in the hands of the Vartalen.”
“Better to take the risk of capture than resign yourself to death here, right?”
The old man laughed and said, “I’ve seen friends, people I’ve known for the last five years, suddenly start growing into something vile, vicious and hungry. They don’t die though. I’m sure of that. One of my oldest friends, Herbert Hughes
, he came on the trip with me. I liked to call it our last great voyage. This was supposed to be our last big adventure before we re-joined the universe.”
“And it still can be. We can help everyone get out of here alive. I just need to know where the evac ships are.”
“It’s a fool’s errand. Don’t you think that if we were able to get to the hangars, we’d be gone by now? There are too many of them between us and the ships. Half of us would be cut down and dragged off before we even saw the entrance to the hangar bay.”
“So we don’t all make it, then. Some of us can. Some of us can get out of here. Maybe not me. Maybe not you. But maybe some of the kids here and their parents. Some of them might be able to live a few more years. It’s better to try than to admit defeat, right?”
The old man laughed again and said, “You remind me of my own son before he went to fight on the front lines in the uncivilized sectors. He was all guts, and no brains.”
“Should I take that as a compliment?”
“He died during his first incursion. But I know that I’m as likely to stop you from finding the evac ships as I was at talking him out of throwing his life away. The evac ships are right underneath the Residential District. The entrance is right near the Eden’s Hill MagLev station.”
“Thank you.”
Vynce left the old man with his thoughts. He felt bad for bringing back the pain of the loss of both one of the old man’s good friends and his son. He wondered to himself whether he really would be able to live with himself if he got out of this jam alive at the expense of the lives of others. He decided that if he got out of here, he would have to try and find a way to live with himself. He wasn’t ready to clock out just yet.
Vynce walked over to a man in an orange high-vis work suit. It looked similar to their assault suits, but the armor plating on the orange suit was nowhere near as thick as the plating on Vynce’s suit. It was meant to protect against the hazards of a job in maintenance, not stop bullets. But if he worked in maintenance, the man would likely know the best way to get down to the hangars.
Fallen Metropolis (Omnibus Edition) Page 22