The job was important to Austicon's Arbolean friends and so it was important to Leviathan's master.
Gathering at the foot of Leviathan, the assassins bowed low before the thing that they revered as a high priest. He beckoned for them to stand and led the deadly processional towards the larger collection of terrorists.
#
Guy, Trigger, and Rock ducked around the corner of the hallway and hunkered down behind a pile of loading machinery used to transport the materials stored in any of the nearby pods to some nearby shipping facility.
"You'd better hurry. The gang's all here!"
"Be there any second," Dekker reported.
"Good. That weird masked guy is here with Austicon, along with at least a dozen Druze. I'd hate for you to be late to the party--it looks like they're cooking up something big." Guy let a few moments of silence pass before opening the channel again. "You don't suppose any of them brought a pinata, do you? I like pinatas."
Austicon stood outside a storage pod which boasted higher than normal security. All of that had obviously been bypassed.
After a few more moments Dekker, Vesuvius, and Shin joined them where they hunkered around the edge of equipment.
"Check your three," a voice whispered.
Looking to their right they spotted the rest of their crew. Ahmed, the team's primary medic, gave them a discreet wave and pointed to the direction of their enemies.
Dekker nodded and used his hands to flash them a head count of the Druze that they could see. Pointing towards Prognon Austicon he held a pistol at the ready and used a hand to count down the attack. Three... two... one...
#
Julio leaned back into the cab of the doorless load hauler they'd hid inside and tried to make himself smaller. He crossed his lips with a finger, signaling Joliver and Tina to keep quiet.
The other two teens huddled together on the passenger seat and tried to keep their breathing quiet. Simply inhaling and exhaling sounded deafening and their breaths fogged up the interior of the forward glassine screen with a white sheen.
They stiffened, hearing footsteps of a nearby security guard as they grew louder with his approach, and then they softened as he passed without so much as a glance in their direction. He moved with an intentional pace, heading directly towards the storage sections where they'd been watching Prognon Austicon and his creepy henchman perform some kind of mining operation.
"Oh good," Julio whispered as the officer passed them and hollered out to the bad guys. "Someone's going to put a stop to him. I think they're trying to steal the polonium... if they're drilling a hole down that way, they're probably opening a hole up to ship it out on the rail system."
A jolt of lightning crackled through the air and incinerated the guard. The teens shrank down as low as they could and Tina clamped a hand over her own mouth to keep herself from screaming. Terror was evident in her eyes and her breathing came in ragged, chortling shivers. This was no game of hide and seek--if they were discovered they would die.
Julio slowly began to rise for a better look. Joliver shook his head to wordlessly warn him against it, but Julio crept up slowly and peeked over the dash of the machine. He jerked back to floorboards when the nightmarish, masked assassin looked directly towards him.
They suddenly felt surrounded by the echoing of footsteps. A group of Halabella miners trotted forward and passed by them.
Finally convinced that their cover remained intact, the three students sat back up and surveyed the scene. The miners met up with Austicon and his other minions.
Several minutes passed as they watched the most wanted criminal in the galaxy converse with his soldiers--likely assigning them duties or figuring out how to load and steal the radioactive fuel. Suddenly gunfire rang out.
Lasers flashed and Austicon's men scattered like roaches as they returned fire. A trio of them fell in the opening salvo as they rushed for cover.
Ducking back down, the teens huddled together, certain they'd be killed in the battle as blaster fire sizzled the air around them and burnt the oxygen with an ozone smell. "I told you we should have stayed back!" Joliver insisted.
Looking backwards they spotted a team of men working forward using barricades and cover fire to advance on the enemy.
"These guys look like Investigators," Julio said with hope in his voice.
"My dad says Investigators are just glorified murderers," Tina whispered.
"Well, as long as they're murdering the right people," Julio hissed and ducked as a blast ricocheted off of the nearby retaining wall near their hiding spot.
"Whatever. I don't even care," Joliver said. "But can we please just get out of here while we're still alive?"
#
"Ah crap!" Mustache yelled down the corridor to the cockpit.
The sounds of battle poured through the open comm channel down on the surface and played on the speaker system. Mustache's heavy feet clanked on the metal grating as he tromped through the ship.
Matty yelled over his shoulder, "What's the problem down there?"
Mustache was supposed to be at the gunnery controls but flopped into the copilot's chair instead. He held up a three-dimensional holographic display of the planet; topographical features like tectonic plates, planetary hydrothermal vents, and Halabella's mineral and special interests overlaid the shimmering sphere. "Prognon Austicon is down there with a bunch of armed Druze psychos."
"Yeah--so? That's just another week for us."
"So what is Austicon known for--really nasty stuff, right? Like... it's always the worst case scenario for this guy."
Matty stared at him blankly, waiting for the other shoe to drop.
Mustache clicked a few buttons and the moons geological fault lines changed color and glowed brightly.
Matty raised an eyebrow and Mustache fidgeted with the map again.
Some of the dots representing the mining operations glowed brightly and overlaid with a nuclear danger warning. The largest of them sat right on the glimmering fault line.
"Oh crap," Matty agreed. He snapped up the com unit and howled into it. "Guys! Dekker--we think we know why Austicon is there. You must be near some really big nuclear bomb or something?"
Guy broke onto the channel, barely audible over the crisp crackling of gunfire. "Almost! There's a giant warehouse full of everything you'd want to make a bomb big enough to blow up a planet... what are you saying?"
Matty blinked. "Well... I think you..."
"Ah crap! He's gonna blow up the planet?"
"There's some crazy geological features just below your location. If he's got access to diverting the blast into it, he could theoretically crack it and blow the entire planet to pieces... like driving a wedge into a log."
"Divert it with, like, a bunch of heavy mining equipment that's bored a giant hole into the planet?"
"That'd do it."
"Oh man--and my counselor wonders why I get so stressed out," Guy responded.
"You don't see a counselor."
"Fine... my massage therapist. But leave Greta out of it."
The Rickshaw Crusader shuddered and bucked, suddenly coming under fire. Both heads snapped up to attention and spotted the Druze ship moving towards them with guns blazing.
Matty stayed calm and maneuvered the Crusader to react to the threat while Mustache sprinted back to man the guns, caroming off the halls as the ship twisted through a series of spins and dives.
"Greta?" Matty asked nonchalantly. "I'll be sure to pass on my condolences after the inevitable."
"That hurts me," Guy retorted with mock outrage.
"Well, she sounds super cute. Plus, you're all gonna die down there... and you know... we're gonna not die cuz we're in space."
"She's crazy hairy, like three-hundred pounds of Scandinavian muscle and my uncle Jerry's jawline. She's perfect for you; I know you've got a type."
Shin broke into the chatter. "How have all stayed alive this long?"
"Good question," Matty laughed ner
vously over the urgent beeping from his HUD. "I'll let you know if I survive all these missiles our new best friends just launched."
#
Dekker ducked below a mechanical boom arm and rolled behind a pallet of hydraulic parts, firing as he went and killing two of the Druze warriors who charged towards his position. He reloaded his guns and peeked back into the alleyway that spilled into the larger opening.
Austicon's masked henchman taunted them from the hall's mouth, holding a jagged sword in each hand; he blocked passage to his master who stood thirty meters behind him, laying down suppressing fire against the other Investigators on the other side of the industrial sub-level. Beyond the sneering mass murderer, half a dozen of Dekker's friends continued engaging the Druze fighters.
Dekker arched an eyebrow. The hair stood on the back of his neck as he stared down the black, faceless figure who paced menacingly.
Trigger leaned out from behind an abused concrete mixer where he backed Dekker up. "It's time we grabbed this bounty!" He surged forward and barreled headlong down the corridor, blaster firing.
"Trigger! No," Dekker shouted too late.
Austicon's general blocked shot after shot with his spinning, whirling swords. He moved with uncanny speed and agility--no living thing could move that way! Only a few stray shots burned superficial wounds through his skin that leaked something appearing to be dust; he finally backpedaled in retreat as the Investigator closed the gap.
Trigger's leg crossed an infrared tripwire. The metallic ball emitting it erupted in bursts of flame and shrapnel.
Dekker recoiled from the heat but turned back as soon as possible. His eyes searched in vain for his impetuous comrade, but nothing was left but shredded boots and a blackened smear.
The murderous thing that bled sand hissed and laughed with a noise that sounded more like a death rattle than mirth.
Dekker locked eyes on it and heard footsteps behind.
"We've got this one," Vesuvius said. Shin nodded his curt agreement.
Dekker looked at Rock who nodded, silently agreeing to watch his flank.
"Bounty's dead or alive?" Rock asked.
"We've never lost anyone before," Dekker stated, glancing back to Trigger's corpse. "Let's kill Prognon Austicon."
The two parties stared each other down for a second that stretched out as long as their animosity. Finally, they both sprang into action and all at once.
Sprinting forward the masked man darted into the broad hall. Vesuvius and Shin leapt into the engagement with swords drawn.
They traded strikes, high and low as the assassin blocked and countered each as if he somehow knew it was coming.
Dekker and Rock clambered up a stack of crates and onto roof terrace that overlooked the battle just below. They provided cover fire for each other as they took shots at Austicon and ducked below the lethal return fire.
Austicon retreated slowly towards the greater body of his men which the other dozen had pinned down from the other side. Finally, he ducked under the fire of Dekker's dual hand cannons and snatched up a black bag he'd left near the security kiosk before diving behind the cover of the terminal.
Shin and Vesuvius beat back their enemy. On second glance, they realized he was tactically retreating, moving one step at a time--trying to draw closer to his master, even though he showed no real difficulty in handling the sword wielders.
Before Dekker could come up with a way to use any of that to his advantage Austicon stepped back into view with a shoulder cannon hoisted over his shoulder. His evil cackle fouled the air as he aimed at Dekker and yanked the activation lever. It hummed and cycled up for a split second--just enough time for Dekker and Rock to throw themselves from the catwalk.
They tumbled to the ground as the violet beam cut through the building ledge where Dekker had been. The blast scattered rubble and smoking bits all across the industrial district. Dekker and Rock rolled to the floor with bone-jarring force and came to their senses just in time to see their enemy drop the heavy device; its battery had been depleted anyways.
Austicon turned and ran for a hallway between the two groups of Investigators.
The masked sword wielder knocked Shin's sword wide, sending him to chase after it. Vesuvius howled and slashed with a deadly combination few could anticipate--except for him. He bobbed backwards and spun with a whirlwind kick that sent her sprawling near Shin.
Without hesitation the thing turned and fled, seeking out his master.
Dekker and Rock caught up with the two as they sheathed their blades and drew guns again. Within a few seconds, they mopped up the remaining Druze with flanking fire.
Regrouping as a team Dekker glanced back to the charred area where parts of Trigger's body laid. He wanted to see Austicon dead more than he'd ever wanted anything else. While scrambling to count heads and make sure they were whole, he heard Guy's voice from the polonium warehouse behind them.
"Um... guys? We've got a big problem."
#
Prognon Austicon slipped through a set of doors and dashed through a hallway and into an empty industrial cryogenics facility. The high ceiling overhead allowed for plenty of room to fit the immense pieces of machinery.
He glanced around, looking for the perfect hiding spot to hatch his devious plot from. Luckily for the regular crew, there was no work scheduled for today so Austicon wouldn't have to murder them all.
The assassin grinned. He knew that very thought was why Dekker Knight would follow him. Dekker's father, Jude, had been the same way before Austicon killed him... along with the woman Dekker loved.
Rushing over to a giant, clear cryogenics tube, he slapped the release button and opened the access hatch to the pod. Gun at the ready, he looked back and spotted Leviathan entering the plant.
His masked general rushed over to him. "Today I get to avenge myself for what started thousands of years ago with the Ring of Aandaleeb... when my name was different--when we were separated for so long." Austicon smiled. Something inner need burned within him and the closest thing to peace he could ever know washed over him at the prospect. "What started with Solomon and Benaiah ends with Dekker Knight."
Austicon turned to crawl into the freezing pod. "He will get close as he searches for me and I will finally kill him!"
Leviathan removed his mask. Worry permeated his face as his eyes locked on his beloved.
Austicon shot him a comforting look and took his face in his hands. He tenderly kissed the creature's forehead. "Do not worry about me--I will have plenty of time to escape before the polonium bomb fractures the planet."
Leviathan melted into the embrace but didn't relent. He projected his words into Austicon's mind. The Circle will be upset if you leave your objectives unfinished--you still have tasks to perform.
"Then do them for me," the master ordered.
Leviathan bowed low and then snapped to attention. Austicon turned, too: noise in the hallway just beyond the door. Someone is coming!
Austicon glanced one more time at his lovesick servant and crawled into the pod. Leviathan nodded obediently, reaffixed his mask, and darted out the back.
The pod's hatch hissed slowly and Austicon leaned back in gentle repose, gun at the ready. Within a few moments, he would finally mount the first step in acquiring everything he ever wanted--a step he struggled to attain since the dawn of time and one that began with the death of the last Watchman.
#
"Yargh!" Mustache howled into the headset speaker as he fired from the Rickshaw Crusader's gunnery turret. He poured on as much blaster fire as he could.
Matty twisted the Crusader into a roll as he tried to evade the missiles and Mustache struggled to track the angles through the extreme movements. Of their enemy's ten missiles, he'd only managed to pick off a couple of them.
The Dozen's ship raced through the orbital space and weaved through the civilian traffic hanging above the planet. "We've got to get away from the station," Matty explained over the intercom. "We need to minimi
ze casualties if this goes south!"
"Why does the south always get the blame," Mustache mused as he picked off another missile. "I mean, it seems like an unfair characterization."
Matty grimaced and grunted as he spun the ship into a tight roll right before the rockets could tag them. Ballistic death streaked past them trailing streams of propellant. The Crusader throttled up and sped towards a large, stationary asteroid as the missiles turned around and automatically reengaged.
"Don't forget," Matty hissed, "that the Dozen's HQ is below Earth's equator line. Technically we're south."
"Fair point," Mustache drawled as he spun the turret to face the opposite direction. "See that transport up ahead? Bob just underneath it and keep us steady!" Mustache whirled back around to reengage the projectiles. He glanced to the side and caught the Druze ship closing on them from another vector.
"Copy!"
The Crusader aimed straight for the long ship's broadside as it crossed paths en route to the asteroid. "That things just an automated drone, right?"
"Um. Yes," Mustache promised. It certainly looked like the kind of robotic freight haulers the asteroid miners had long used to ferry raw materials.
Matty howled, "You're sure?"
The unmanned ship loomed on the pilot's screen, filling it. The missiles closed in from the back, streaking closer with dogged persistence.
"Yes." Mustache lied. "One hundred percent!"
At the last second, the Rickshaw Crusader dipped below the unprotected freighter and skimmed its underside with the Investigator's shields. It popped back up on the other side just as Mustache poured fire into the hauling craft.
As the missiles attempted the same maneuver, the transport exploded into a cloud of debris. The missiles erupted with an angry, fireball that the vacuum of space quickly squelched.
With the threat of missiles gone, Matty spun their ship into a tight barrel roll as the Druze craft opened fire. He arched around to give Mustache a clean shot at the aggressors when the Rickshaw Crusader suddenly went limp. Emergency lights lit up the panels and the ship listed, dead in the water.
Weeds of Eden Page 4