“I wonder who they are, the other ship that is,” Chris said. “Regardless, that’s a brave girl up there.”
“They’re probably watching us from orbit,” Wash said. “At least until that storm that’s coming rolls in.”
Chris stomped a foot on the deck of the APC. “The storm could be why they’re sending the regulators in now.”
“That’s probably correct,” Wash said. “Otherwise, they would have just watched us go to the resort, then concentrated forces and come at us in strength. That storm is just bad luck then.” Wash let out a breath. “It’s a shame really. The resort is only the rendezvous point. They would never have found us after that.”
“I thought taking the Beast would save time.” Anger and irritation laced Chris’s tone along with self-recrimination. “I’ve put us in danger. It was a stupid thing to do. I’m getting lax in my old age.”
“We believed we had time to get to the rendezvous point before the UPG could be stirred to react,” Wash said. “They don’t usually move so quickly. In fact, they never ever do anything quick. That’s part of their problem and why we took the Beast.”
“We should have humped it and gone on foot,” Chris said. “It would have taken longer, but it might have been safer.”
“Should have, would have, could have, might have,” Wash said. “It doesn’t matter anymore. We don’t fully know their motivations, other than getting their hands on Keira. Either way, they were coming for us. It was just a question of when and where. We have to deal with the hand we’ve been dealt, and honestly, things could be worse. We’re not that far from where we need to go. Gunny, I still think taking the Beast was the correct move. We’re closer to help than we would have been humping it, and you know that.”
Chris gave a grunt.
“Vex,” Chris called to the cockpit, “step on it. We have incoming, at least a company of regulators. No telling how far out they are.”
“This is as fast as this thing goes,” Vex said. “Next time you decide to salvage a piece of nonfunctional junk that’s more than two hundred years old, how about choosing an aircraft. Those move faster, you know.”
“I’ll keep that in mind,” Chris said and then his gaze went distant. “Sara, we’ll be needing some help. There’s at least a company of regulators incoming.” He paused, clearly listening to a reply. “They’re likely to reach us before we can get to the rendezvous point.” He was silent for a long moment, listening again. Then he was back and addressed himself to Wash. “Sara says the cavalry is on the way. They’re running late, though. We’re probably gonna beat them to the rendezvous.”
“That figures,” Vex said, calling back to them. “I guess they’d not be called the cavalry if they arrived on time, eh?”
“There’s no helping it. We didn’t know we would need them yesterday.” Chris moved forward toward the cockpit and placed his hands on both seats as he leaned forward and gazed out the windscreen.
“Your weapon,” Wash said and handed Keira her R35. “The magazine is full, the rifle charged and the safety is on.”
Keira accepted the weapon, knowing there was a good chance she would shortly need it. She took a seat where Chris had been and strapped herself in. He handed over her pistol that was holstered in a belt, which also held her gravity knife. She buckled the belt on and felt comforted that she was now armed. The Beast bounced violently as it traversed over something. Wash tossed her a small backpack next, which she caught. It was heavy.
“Extra ammo,” he said by way of explanation.
The radio in the cockpit crackled. The volume was turned up. Keira could hear it plainly. “McCandless, this is Crecee. I know you’re listening in. We also know you have Keira. There’s no point in continuing to run. Surrender the girl. I promise she won’t be harmed. If you give her to us, you and your people can walk away.” There was a pause. “I know you can hear me. Might as well save us both some time and just answer.”
Vex looked back at Chris. “What does it hurt to talk? They’re already on to us. It might buy us additional time.”
Chris gave a nod.
“And if I refuse to hand her over?” Chris asked, tapping into the comm unit.
“I’m kind of hoping you do,” Crecee replied with an eager tone. “I’ve been wanting to pit my people against yours for some time now. You marines think you are so tough and superior. What you are is simply a relic of a bygone era, a fallen empire, nothing more.”
“It won’t end well if you test us,” Chris said. “I promise you that.”
“Stop screwing around with me,” Crecee snapped. “I want the girl. I’ve got orders to bring her in.”
“That’s not happening,” Chris said.
“Honestly,” Crecee said, “it’d be easier to just kill the lot of you.”
“Then why not do that?” Chris asked. “Get it over with and stop wasting my time.”
“My bosses would prefer her alive.” Crecee sounded irritated. “Personally, I don’t care which way they get her. She’s always been an uppity bitch who thinks she’s better than the rest of us, just like you and your people. You’ve got her. I want her. Make this easy and hand her over. This is the only chance I will give you. So what’s it gonna be? The easy way or the hard way?”
“How far are we from the rendezvous point?” Chris asked Vex.
“A half kilometer from the resort,” Vex said. “We’re almost there.”
“You have ten seconds to answer me,” Crecee said. “My people are inbound to your position. Once they get there, the talking is over. Understand my meaning?”
“VTOLs,” Vex called, leaning forward and looking out the driver’s side window, “two of them, rooftop level. They’re transports. Thank god they’re not gunships.”
“That’s something,” Wash said. “Our luck’s not all that bad now, is it?”
“Don’t jinx us,” Vex said.
“Take the side street ahead,” Chris said. “That one there to the left. Turn now.”
The APC gave a lurch, turning hard to the left. As she held on, Keira felt a stab of fear. It was only a matter of time until the shooting started. With no little effort, she suppressed the feeling, forcing the fear and terror away. She resolved to face what was coming.
Chris, Wash, and Vex were willing to risk their lives for her. The least she could do was not go to pieces on them. Her gaze went to Chris as her anger returned, fueled by the rage … a burning rage directed at the people who had turned her life upside down and killed Lee. They had done it all because of her. They wanted her for the ability she wielded, nothing more. Keira knew they would do anything to get her, even hurt her friends. That really pissed her off.
Realization hammered home. That was the real reason why Chris had trained her. He had been preparing her for this moment, if it ever came. Chris had been getting her ready to stand on her own two feet, so that she could take control of her own destiny, and it was time she did just that.
“What does winning mean?” she whispered to herself, then answered. “Life.”
“Watch those people there,” Chris called.
“I see them,” Vex said and the Beast jinked slightly, clearly driving around them. “Fucking idiots, just standing there like that. You think they’d move aside.”
“We need to keep the transports from putting their soldiers down,” Chris said, “and guessing where we’re going.”
“They may already have troops on the ground,” Vex said.
“All the more reason to change routes and keep them guessing,” Chris said, then called over comms. “MK, you’re clear to engage those VTOLs, if the opportunity presents itself, and any other targets you deem hostile.”
If there had been one, Keira did not hear a reply. She wasn’t on comms. Almost immediately, there was the bark of rifle fire above them. The APC jerked again as it turned violently.
“Small arms fire? I take it that’s your answer.” Crecee’s tone was tight as he came back on the radio. He sounded o
n edge, angry even. “So be it. You can’t say I’ve not warned you.”
“Turn here, to the right,” Chris snapped, ignoring Crecee.
The APC turned sharply. Keira held onto the handholds as it rocked violently before slowing. The engine revved. The Beast began to climb up something, likely a berm of sand from a recent storm, then it banged down over the other side.
“Keep going,” Chris said. “Vex, cross that street ahead, the big avenue, then turn onto the next one, immediately make a right.”
“On it,” Vex said.
“Good, now turn right,” Chris said.
“Oh shit.” Vex’s tone was filled with sudden tension.
“Incoming,” Chris shouted.
Vex swerved the Beast to the side. There was a booming bang as something exploded nearby. The APC rocked for a moment. There was a hard thud below them. Keira could feel it through the seat. The APC gave a jolt, seeming to buck. There were a series of heavy clunks, then a screeching of tortured metal, followed by even more clunks. The APC ground to an unsteady halt. Overhead, MK was firing again, shooting small bursts. Inside the APC, the rifle fire sounded dull and flat.
“This monster’s going nowhere now,” Vex said, sounding thoroughly disgusted. She slapped the console before her. “We’ve lost a track.”
Chris was already in motion and on his way to the back. He passed by Keira and hammered the ramp button as Wash came to his feet. The ramp began to extend, whining as it came down. Keira unhooked herself and stood. There were a rapid series of pings on the hull. One round impacted the driver’s windscreen, cracking it with a crunch.
The ramp hit the ground, and as it did, Chris made his way down it, Wash too. However, Wash was limping noticeably. Her concern for him escalated.
Through the open back, Keira saw abandoned buildings half buried in sand on either side of the street. She had no idea where they were and could not ever recall being in this part of the city. They must be on the outskirts, for the buildings were not that tall.
There was no one about either. The street had a deserted look to it. The sky was dark with an approaching storm. The APC had swerved to the left and stopped almost sideways, but not quite. It was angled slightly up-street.
The shooting impacting the hull came from up the street too. It seemed the volume of fire was increasing. Vex came back from the cockpit, grabbed her rifle, which had been secured to the wall, and moved outside.
“Keira,” Chris called, “come out. Watch your footing. Part of the street collapsed with that rocket that took out our track.”
“I don’t have safety gear”—Keira’s gaze went to the dark sky—“and there’s a storm coming. Chris, I don’t even have a spare breather.”
“There’s no time to get you suited back up,” Chris said. “With luck, you won’t be exposed to the elements for long. If the locals can survive prolonged exposure on the surface, with little protection, so too can you. Besides, the medication you’re taking will help against the hard stuff. Just stay under cover of the Beast when you come out.”
Keira shrugged on her backpack. Holding her rifle, she turned the safety off on the weapon and moved cautiously down the ramp. It was chilly out, bordering on cold. A strong burned stench hung on the air. She glanced up at the dirty brown sky, marveling at seeing it without a helmet on. The wind gusted, ruffling her hair and kicking up a light spray of sand and dust. She couldn’t recall the last time she had been outside without protective gear.
“Watch it,” Chris said, pointing at the ground near her feet. “It looks to be a long way down.”
There was a gaping hole next to and under the APC’s left side about two meters wide. The left-side track had come off, and part of it, a portion more than a meter long, was dangling down the hole, which looked dark and bottomless. It was yet another part of the underground world that had been built under the planet. There was just no telling what was down there or how far it dropped.
Wash was on the right side of the APC. Vex and MK were on the other side. Chris joined them. It was then she noticed their armor had changed color again, matching the gray sand.
There was sporadic fire coming from down the street. Out in the open, the shots sounded distant. The enemy fire pinged and hammered into the APC or kicked up sand to either side. The sight and sound of the shots was a sobering reminder that death was not far away.
A deep thrumming sound rose on the air, increasing in volume. Keira recognized it as belonging to one of the VTOLs the regulators used. Though she could not see it, the VTOL sounded like it was taking off.
A moment later, the aircraft came into view from the right, squat, almost box-like with four large fans to either side. It flew low over the buildings and away from them and disappeared in a matter of heartbeats.
“How come you didn’t take it down?” Keira asked, looking at the mech. “You have one missile left, don’t you?”
“The VTOLs are operating quite low,” MK replied, “and they are not exposing themselves long enough for me to get a solid target lock. Were I to shoot, even with a partial lock, I would most likely waste my last remaining missile. I’d prefer to have it go to better use. In addition, that transport aircraft is most likely empty and, since it is unarmed, no longer an immediate threat.”
“Oh,” Keira responded. “Okay.”
“I figure they’ve got at least twenty-five deployed down the street,” Chris said to Vex as he peered rapidly around the side of the APC. “Those transports are small. They can’t hold much more than that.”
“I’d agree.” Vex moved to the end of the APC and at his side peeked around the corner. “They’ve occupied the buildings down there, all right. I’d like to know where the rest of them were put down. Hopefully not behind us or where we need to go.”
“That’s a headache to worry about later,” Chris said. “We need to get off this street before we get pinned here or they reload that rocket launcher. I didn’t even see where it came from. Did you?”
“No,” Vex said, “other than somewhere down the street on the left side.”
“All right, here’s the plan. Vex, MK, and Keira will sprint for that alley there.” Chris pointed to the left side of the street. The entrance to the alley was only five meters away. “We’ll provide you cover. Then you give us covering fire when it’s our turn.”
Keira glanced at the alley. It seemed so far away. She was not keen about exposing herself to active fire again. In fact, she found she was quite reluctant to do so. Oddly, the pain and discomfort she had felt moments before had vanished.
“Don’t think about it, just run,” Vex said, looking back at her. “The faster the better.”
Swallowing, Keira gave a nod and pushed the fear back down. “I can do it.”
“You ready?” Chris asked Wash.
“Always,” Wash replied without looking back.
“Go loud,” Chris ordered and then leaned out, opening up and firing down the street. Wash began firing a heartbeat later.
“Go,” Vex shouted.
Keira ran.
Vex moved alongside her, shooting down the street, more randomly than controlled. MK opened up as well, his gun barking repeatedly as he ran.
The volume of fire the marines kicked out was shocking in the extreme. The air thundered with it. Keira ran for all she was worth. It seemed there were cracks and hisses all around as the enemy fired back. Puffs of sand shot up before her and to the side. She did her best to ignore it all. Head down, she ran for all she was worth.
The buildings came closer and closer. It seemed like she was running in slow motion, that she would never make it. Then, she was there, diving for cover into the alleyway. She slid on the sand. Behind her, there were solid impacts against the walls of the buildings that bordered the alley as bolt rounds hammered into them. The firing from the marines had slacked off.
Keira stood, picked up her rifle, and turned. Both Vex and MK were at the corner. Vex was kneeling and leaning around the edge. She fired o
ff a single shot, then pulled back before looking out into the street at the APC. MK stood just behind her, poised and ready to provide covering fire.
“Reloading,” Chris called.
“Me too,” Wash said.
“Now your turn,” Vex called over to Chris and Wash, who were taking cover behind the APC, which had begun smoking from the front side where the track had come off. There was a larger hole in the street just before the APC. The front right side of the Beast was also scorched. “On three we will provide you covering fire.”
Chris gave a thumbs-up as Wash moved up and close behind him, prepared to make the dash across open ground. Keira wondered if Wash, with his wound, could even manage to run. He wasn’t moving too well and seemed sluggish.
“One,” Vex counted, “two …”
Keira glimpsed a flash of streaking light, followed closely by a smoking contrail. The light impacted squarely with the front of the APC. There was a tremendous ripping explosion, a flaring of fire. She could feel the heat of it on her face and body as she threw herself flat to the ground, which gave a deep rumbling groan. A shockwave rolled over her. After a moment, it subsided.
When she looked up, Keira had trouble processing what she was seeing. A building across the way took that moment to shudder and collapse into a cloud of dust.
On the street, the APC was gone, vanished. It was nowhere to be seen. So too were Chris and Wash. The entire street had opened up, and the wreckage had fallen into whatever was below. Like a blast furnace, heavy sheets of flame and thick choking black smoke shot upward through the gaping hole.
“Wash!” Vex’s voice was filled with utter agony. Keira saw her switch to the radio. “Wash, Chris, can you hear me? Wash, speak to me, baby.”
The desperate agony in Vex’s tone tore at Keira’s heart and soul. No one could have survived that, nor the resulting inferno.
“No.” Keira blinked, unsure she was seeing what she saw. She stumbled back a step, feeling as if she had been gut punched. She was having difficulty believing what had just occurred before her eyes. It was nearly impossible to think they were gone, especially Chris. He seemed so tough, impossible to kill. She had made the mistake of thinking he would always be there. A world without him and Wash suddenly seemed less bright.
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