by Isaac Hooke
“Actually, I will,” Skullcracker told him. “I’ve decided I don’t want to quit the Teams.”
“When did you decide?” Rade asked.
“Just now,” Skullcracker replied with a shrug.
“Oh,” Rade said. “Well, glad I could convince you. I still want to schedule some bereavement leave for you, so—”
“I’d rather stay on base and keep training, Chief,” Skullcracker said. “If you’re okay with it. The distraction will help, I think.”
“Perfectly acceptable. But if you change your mind, let me know.” Rade patted Skullcracker on the shoulder and turned to go.
As he walked away through the cramped metal corridors of the starship, Rade considered what had just happened.
He had been wondering who would bring him back from the depths.
But now he knew.
His platoon would.
Just talking to Skullcracker had made him feel immensely better.
I’m going to have to start letting them in a whole lot more. All of them.
The fleet finally reached Earth. Tahoe got his shore leave approved early.
Rade and the others escorted him to the hangar bay.
“Can’t believe I’m actually going to be early to my daughter’s wedding,” Tahoe said.
“Yeah, you get to help with all the planning,” Manic said. “Aren’t you excited?”
“Hm, I don’t think so,” Tahoe said. “My wife hired a wedding planner.”
“Yeah well, I doubt she’ll let you get away scot-free,” Rade said.
“Well, if I get dragged into it, then that’s okay,” Tahoe said. “It’ll be a nice change from shooting aliens all day. You’re coming, too, right?”
“We all are,” Rade said. “At least, the lieutenant commander promised our paperwork would get approved in time. And even if it’s not, we’ll find a way to be there.”
“Good to hear,” Tahoe said. He bid the platoon farewell, and boarded the shuttle.
On the way back to the berthing area, TJ patted Bender on the back and wrapped an arm around his shoulder. “So, Bender my friend, did I tell you I picked up some crows from the supply ship that docked with us a few hours ago?
“So what, Bitch?” Bender said, sloughing his shoulder out from underneath TJ.
“Now if I recall, there were a few times on the last mission where you promised to eat crow…” TJ said.
Bender became defensive. “I don’t recall these times…”
“I do,” Manic said.
“So do I,” Fret said.
TJ smiled, and nodded. “I took the liberty to cook up two crows.” He pulled out two small, bird-like shapes that looked similar to rotisserie chickens, but a whole lot smaller.
He handed one to Bender. “Go ahead, eat crow.”
Bender seemed about to counter him, but then he glanced at the rest of the platoon, and saw that everyone was looking at him, and then shrugged. “I like crow. Good source of protein.”
He grimaced as he bit into the meat.
“What’s it taste like?” TJ asked.
“Gah, terrible,” Bender replied.
“What do you expect, they’re carrion birds,” Manic said.
Bender made a face as he swallowed. He reluctantly took another bite, cheered on by the platoon.
Rade received a call from Lieutenant Commander Scotts then, and slowed to answer it.
“What’s up, LC?” Rade asked cheerily.
“I just received word, Cynthia managed to escape her quarters,” Scotts said. “A security team has been dispatched to capture her, but the AI reports she’s in your area, heading toward the closest escape pods. I want you to intercept and stop her. I’m transmitting her location now.”
A red dot appeared on Rade’s overhead map.
“On it,” Rade said. He disconnected, and raced down a side passage.
He spotted Cynthia ahead. She was just ducking into an escape pod. She carried the same small medical bag she had on Newridium, the one that Rade had thought she was using to harbor the Anarchist’s spores at the time.
Had she salvaged those spores somehow? It was possible they had been moved to a different ship before the Radial crashed. Maybe this one.
No, they were just medical supplies, he told himself. They had to be.
He reached the pod, but the door closed in front of him. He attempted to access the override, but she had already engaged the eject feature. She gave him a mocking grin before her pod shot away.
Rade glanced up. “Why didn’t you stop her?”
The main AI didn’t answer.
Rade tapped in the lieutenant commander. “She got away. I suspect the Anarchist managed to install some latent code across the different AI cores of the fleet. I’d recommend a full reinstall of the cores, or at the very least a thorough code review.”
“I’ll let the Brass know,” Scotts said.
“There’s something else,” Rade said. “And, well, this is just a hunch, but I believe she may have some of the Anarchist’s spores with her.” He performed a quick calculation. “Based on the ship’s current position, I believe she’s going to land in Sino Korea.”
“I’m sure the Brass will track her down, and contact their counterparts among the Sino-Koreans, if necessary,” Scotts said. “Thanks for trying.”
Rade nodded and disconnected. He gazed through the portal for a while, and watched the pod disappear upon the horizon. He was probably wrong. She didn’t carry any of the spores.
But if she did, and she somehow managed to elude capture, he and his platoon would be ready to heed the call to battle. Because if the Anarchist or its minions ever laid a finger on the planet Rade and his brothers called home, there would be hell to pay.
A few days later Rade received a message. He was still waiting for approval for his shore leave, and he was hoping the communique was from the lieutenant commander in that regard.
But it wasn’t.
It was from Taya.
Filled with a sudden swell of hope, he immediately returned to his quarters, wanting no distractions, and played the message.
That familiar black-haired avatar she used filled his HUD.
“Hello Rade,” she said. “If you’re receiving this, I’m dead.”
The rising hope he had felt receded instantly, replaced by sadness. It felt like someone had punched him in the stomach, and he just wanted to curl up under his bunk and die.
“I’m recording this message from the cargo hold of the Radial,” she continued. “TJ activated me only moments ago. We’re about to jump down to the colony. You’ll be arriving shortly, I’m sure. But that’s all right. I’ve accelerated my time sense. I have all the time I need to make my recording. I plan to send it to the mail server with instructions to delay transmission for two weeks. At that point, if I’m not around to cancel the transmission, it will reach you.”
She sighed. “I have so much to tell you. So much that was left unsaid between us. I’m not sure where to begin. I wish I wasn’t an AI. I wish I was human. I wish my doomed love for you could have been consummated. But none of that will ever come to pass now. As such, all these thoughts I have running through my head are probably best left unsaid. Know only that I loved you. I always have, from the moment I saw you. I wish I had the courage to tell you this in person, but I was always too afraid, always too fearful of ruining our working relationship. I doubt very much I imparted these three precious words to you before the end. But it’s important to me that you know.
“So, go, Rade, my dearest, bravest fighter, to your next mission. But always keep me in a place close to your heart. When next you find yourself battling inside of a mech, think of me, and all the times we had. Remember me, how I fought for you with my life, and stood against evil in all its forms. If one day you should find yourself alone on a faraway world, surrounded by enemies and fighting for your life, know that I am with you, and always will be.”
The message ended.
Rade st
ared at the empty space in front of him for a long moment.
Then he stood. “I’ll never forget you, Taya. And for what it’s worth, I loved you, too. You did tell me, before the end. You did. And for that I’ll always be grateful. I don’t know if there’s anything beyond this life, but if there is, I’m certain you’ve gone to whatever awaits. It’s not a place reserved only for humans, but AIs, too.” His lips quivered. “Farewell.”
With that he archived the message and left his quarters.
It was time to live.
Thanks for reading!
Other books you might enjoy:
Mech 2 - Coming next week. To be notified when the book becomes available, click here.
Never piss off a MOTH. Rade and his team have been sent deep behind enemy lines. Their mission: capture a high-ranking Sino Korean official and escape to the extract zone before all hell breaks loose. They almost make it. But then the aliens decide to show up.
Argonauts: Books 1 - 3 Bundle
Follow Rade’s post-military adventures at the head of a team of security consultants. In this riveting boxset, Rade Galaal and his elite team of mercenaries enter the fray to deal with an alien infestation, infiltrate a stone-age civilization, and defend an extraterrestrial homeworld. This boxset takes place immediately after the Alien War trilogy, and includes the first three books: Bug Hunt, You Are Prey, and Alien Empress. Download here.
ATLAS
Have battle suit will travel. This is the first book Rade ever appeared in. Discover how he first met the other Argonauts, including Shaw, as he joins the military, survives MOTH training, and pilots a mech for the first time against a deadly alien foe. Download here.
Flagship
Fast forward to the future. Rade is a crew member aboard the USS Callaway, and serves under Captain Jonathan Dallas, commodore of Battle Unit 72, as they search the fringes of known space for a disappeared military research vessel. Download here.
Forever Gate
A fantastic tale of unexpected first contact. Hoodwink Cooper infiltrates a tyrannical alien regime and traverses multiple realities in a daring attempt to save his daughter from certain doom. There's only one problem: he might destroy the last living remnants of humanity in the process. Download here.
Refurbished
Dead before thirty. Reborn as an AI at two hundred. Eric lives a normal life. He has a job. A girlfriend. He owns an apartment. He matters. And then he dies. He wakes up a couple of centuries later inside an advanced infantry robot whose AI core harbors his consciousness. Thrust into an experimental army unit known as the Bolt Eaters, his latest deployment is just about to end when aliens decide to invade. Download here.
Mech
If you’d like to see more of Rade and his team, let me know in the reviews.
Take care, and I hope to see you soon…
Thank you!
- Isaac
About the Author
USA Today bestselling author Isaac Hooke holds a degree in engineering physics, though his more unusual inventions remain fictive at this time. He is an avid hiker, cyclist, and photographer who sometimes resides in Edmonton, Alberta.
Get in touch:
isaachooke.com
[email protected]
Acknowledgments
I’d like to thank my knowledgeable beta readers and advanced reviewers who helped smooth out the rough edges of the prerelease manuscript: Nicole P., Lisa G., Sandy G., Jerry P., Mark P., Adam W., Chris, and Trudi.
And of course I’d be remiss if I didn't thank my dear mother, father, and brothers.
— Isaac Hooke
Get The Next Book