by T S Weaver
“Cavanor, send a message to all stations, ships, and colonies. Pluto is under attack. All hands are to report to their stations and await further instructions.”
“Yes, Admiral.”
First contact, in her lifetime.
Aliens.
They were no longer alone in the universe.
Epilogue
Sergeant Cora Bloodlaw took a deep breath and let her gaze move over the small group. No one had been lost, not in the civilians she’d met. Her own people had taken a few bumps and bruises. Walker, in time his shoulder would heal if she could get him to a medic. If not, he’d still improve but his shoulder injury would cause more problems in the years to come. But sooner or later the Navy would return and get them off this rock. Away from the aliens and life...
Fooling myself.
Normal. It would never be that again. Not for those who called Pluto home, not for the people of Earth or anyone in between. They couldn’t shove the genie back into the bottle. Not this time. The aliens were here, and she had a lot of work ahead of her. They all did. A brief glance at the map Salla had provided told her all she needed to know. A handful of mines, passages with ground vehicles large enough to, in a convoy, transport all of the survivors to the outposts far beyond the colony. For now, they were deep enough underground to buy them time. With the trapdoor shut and covered, the odds of them being traced immediately were slim. But the odds still existed, and she’d learned not to take safety for granted.
“So, now what?” Stone, one hand pressed against his injured abdomen, his face drawn and pale.
“We get them out of here, to the mining settlements, pick up transportation along the way, and gather information.”
“I see.”
“You don’t approve?”
“I didn’t say that.”
“You didn’t have to.” She turned her attention away from Stone.
“No, I don’t suppose I do. Short time together, but you’re smart enough to figure out what else is going on. Those things aren’t going to give up, and from the way they struck, it’s clear the Navy got their asses kicked up there, or they’d have sent help long before now.”
“I know.” Cora rubbed her chin, giving herself a moment to think. If the word had reached Earth, they had hope, but right now they were in the dark, and it wasn’t going to change anytime soon. “It’s not going to be easy, but keeping these people safe, getting them out of the colony, it has to be our priority. Once we’re in a better position, we can regroup and find out how many guns we have on our side.” It was a plan, not much of one, but it was all she had to work with.
“And I’m with you until the skies are clear and I can get to my ship. I don’t think they’ve found it, but there’s no way of knowing without getting eyes on it.” He shrugged. “Besides, it was becoming interesting around here, and I wouldn’t want to vanish before Salla pays me. Bad for my reputation.”
Cora shook her head. “Then welcome aboard, Stone. But remember one thing, you disobey my orders, and we’ll have another discussion.”
“Would that be like the one we had down in the supply dump?”
“A good starting point, but yes.”
“Well, at least I know where I stand.”
Where they both stood. This was their world, their home, their colony. If they had to fight to take back their slice in hell, so be it. After all, it’s what she was a Marine and this was what she signed up for.
Watch for Hell’s Children, coming August 2019 from T.S. Weaver.
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Author’s Bio
T.S. Weaver is one of the alter-ego’s of Terri Pray.
Originally from England, she now lives in Minnesota with the love of her life, her knight in battered, tarnished armor, and their youngest son. The household also consists of fellow gamers and creatives, Rage and Scott. Along with two service dogs, two cats, and a horde of random ideas which insist on waking people up at 4am.