Kenon couldn’t run away from the fight, not when it had come right to him. That would be a coward’s move.
He broke from his cover and snapped out a shock rifle, aimed and squeezed the trigger. The energy ball hit one soldier in the arm and burned her dark skin, but that didn’t stop her.
The humans unleashed a storm of lead bullets and pulse rounds.
Kenon’s shields flared over his body, deflected the lethal shower, and then broke. He sprinted to the crashed pod and dove behind it, clutching his side when it started to sting. Warm blood seeped through his fingers from a gash just below his ribcage. One of the bullets must have grazed him.
The warrior leaned out to see where his targets were, pulling back almost immediately as gun barrels flashed and bullets peppered the pod’s shell. He waited for the status bar on his display to refill, then leaned out again. This time he was ready.
Three more energy bursts left his rifle. One hit a soldier in the leg, the second was dodged by his teammate, and the third round crashed into the chest of the team’s leader. The impact knocked the man to the ground, his armored harness steamed at the point of contact.
The humans cried out in fury and opened fire once more.
After facing them for the first time outside a simulation, he came to the conclusion that he could not take them all on by himself. He hadn’t even taken out a single soldier yet, and only managed to injure three. His best option now was to flee the fight and regroup with his squad at the landing zone.
Pulling a grenade from the clip on his thigh guard, he tossed it over the pod and made a mad dash for the hill when the humans leapt out of the way to avoid the explosion. He slid down the embankment and splashed into the river on the other side, then headed for the city.
“The Calypsis Project” is available for Kindle and in paperback: USA / UK.
Books One to Three Omnibus (Armada Wars) Page 98