by G J Ogden
Cad nodded to Daggett’s goon in the second seat – a man she’d introduced simply as “Brett” – then signaled Alexis. He configured his fighter to execute a customized auto-pilot program and transferred controls to his watch. The small device built into the wrist of his armor acknowledged the transfer of control before Cad stepped out of the cockpit and into the central gallery. The lower hatch had already opened, and Brett had begun abseiling down into the tower.
Cad snorted a laugh and shook his head as he waited for the hired gun to complete his descent. “Amateurs…” he said out loud, though in fairness to the man, he’d made fairly swift progress. Brett’s partner, and also his twin brother, was making a similar descent from Alexis’ ship. Cad had laughed when Daggett had given his name as being “Rhett,” believing her to be pulling his leg. However, the indistinguishable twin mercenaries had not shared Cad’s amusement.
“Do you want to show them how this is done, or shall I?” said Alexis Black, still in a playful mood, speaking over their private comm channel.
Cad smiled. “I’ll go first so I can show you how it’s done…” he answered. He could hear Alexis cackling on the other end of the comm. “Just remember to bring the EMP launcher. I’d hate to have to take down a Theseus warbot the hard way.”
Cad slung his custom-modified bullpup compact rifle and removed his sword and scabbard, holding it in his hand as he moved to the edge of the hatch. He tapped his watch and then waited as the fighter swooped lower to the opening in the roof of the tower block. With perfect timing and precision, he then leapt out of the hatch, slotting through the opening in the roof and thudding onto the floor of the tower’s upper level. His armor absorbed the shock of the impact, but the momentum he was carrying still forced him to tumble forward before sliding to a stop directly in front of Brett and Rhett. His sudden arrival had caused both mercenaries to look like they’d soiled themselves, and Cad realized he was probably lucky that neither had taken a panic shot at him.
“Bloody hell, mate,” cried Brett in his deep Australian accent. “You could have warned us that’s what you were going to do!”
Cad retracted the visor of his helmet. “Sorry, gentlemen, force of habit,” he said, though he was unable to conceal his amusement.
Alarms were already sounding in the room, and Cad could hear the mechanized whir of the sentry turrets in the corridors outside, searching for the intruders. However, Daggett’s intel had been correct – there were no turrets inside the gallery spaces themselves. The risk of them simply obliterating the treasures they had been set up to guard was obviously too high.
Alexis then plunged through the opening in the ceiling and performed a similar, though far more elegant roll to kill her forward momentum. However, Alexis didn’t stop there, adding a cartwheel and backflip into the mix, before landing gracefully in front of Cad and the two mercs. She added a bow and a flourish, then popped open her visor.
“Her entrance was better,” said Rhett (or Brett – Cad had already stopped being able to tell them apart), hooking a thumb in the direction of Alexis’ grinning face.
“Yes, well, she wasn’t also carrying a sword.” Cad scowled, refastening the scabbard to his armor. Then he looked around the room, which was a wide, open-plan space, decked out like a museum gallery, and his scowl deepened. “I would have expected some resistance by now,” he added, beginning to grow suspicious.
On cue, a slab-like door retracted on the far wall, revealing the anticipated Theseus-class warbot. Cad let out a low whistle as its power levels rose and red eyes began to shine brightly. It was a big one and probably top-of-the-line, he guessed. The military had intentionally designed the Theseus models to look like something out of a nightmarish science fiction horror movie, and the bot’s appearance certainly appeared to have spooked Brett and Rhett.
“Alexis will take out the Theseus,” Cad said to the two mercenaries, pointing to other potential entry points into the room. “Watch the doors and side-corridors, in case there are any secondary units. I doubt Strickland entrusted the safety of this place to just one bot, even if it is a monster.”
The two men nodded and moved away, drawing sidearms as they ran. Meanwhile, Alexis had unslung the EMP launcher from over her back and loaded a grenade. The Theseus was powering toward them now, uttering warning messages in a demonic-sounding synthesized voice. It was close enough that Cad could see that in place of its usual hand-mounted cannons, it was armed with two semi-circular blades. He knew that his advanced armor could take a bullet, but he was in no hurry to find out how resistant it was to the robot equivalent of a battle-axe.
Alexis nodded to Cad, indicating that she was ready, and fired the grenade. The EMP blast blew out the lights and alarm system in the gallery, immediately casting the space into pitch darkness and silence. The illumination systems in their power armor then automatically switched on, bathing the now disabled warbot in a clean white light. It stood, frozen in position, polished silver blade raised above its head.
“I’m glad that worked,” said Cad, staring up at the blade, which was held up like an executioner’s sword. “And I’m glad we’re still functional too,” he added, still able to move his arms and legs with the help of full power-assistance from the suit. “I wasn’t sure I believed the spec when it talked about EMP resistance. Doyle may be an asshole, but he certainly does have all the best gear.”
Alexis then turned to Cad, holding up a sparkling necklace, which featured a brilliant – and very large – yellow cut diamond.
“To hell with Doyle, this place is a wonderland!” said Alexis, opening a storage compartment in her thigh and delicately pushing the necklace inside.
“Don’t you have enough trinkets?” said Cad, shaking his head.
“Are you mad? That was the Tiffany Diamond!” said Alexis despairingly. However, Cad just returned a shrug, as if that was supposed to mean something to him, which only produced an exasperated sigh from Alexis.
“Who turned out the bloody lights!” came a cry from either Rhett or Brett – Cad still couldn’t tell which.
“Just grab whatever you can find and hurry back here,” Cad shouted. “We need to be in and out as quickly as possible.”
Cad then peered around the room, looking for the warheads, and spotted them, mounted in a display space to the side of the disabled warbot.
“Keep an eye on those two,” said Cad, nodding in the direction of the twin mercenaries. He’d been suspicious of Sara Daggett’s request that they tag along, but he also had no intention of pocketing any valuables on her behalf, and so had conceded to her request for the goons to enter the tower too. “I’ll secure the nukes so we can get out of here.”
Alexis nodded and slung the EMP launcher before drawing her twin Five-Seven-Sevens. She then stepped cautiously into the darkness, in the direction of Rhett and Brett’s last known location.
Cad smashed the glass cabinet in which the nine compact twenty-five-kiloton warheads were displayed like ancient relics. It wasn’t as many as he’d hoped for, but he was banking on only needing one to get Dr. Rand’s undivided attention. They were stored in sets of three in specially adapted carts, and thanks to his augmented strength, Cad was able to drag the first underneath the opening in the roof with ease. He then cycled to the correct command on his watch and tapped the screen. A few seconds later, a cable lowered through the opening in the roof, delivering one of the storage containers that Daggett had brought with her in the buggy. Cad loaded the nukes inside and then had them winched back up into his ship.
Going back for the second set of three warheads, Cad noticed that Alexis was circling back to his location, a look of concern on her face.
“What’s up?’ Cad asked, letting go of the second tray of nukes and resting his palm on the pommel of his sword.
“Those two shifty mercs have disappeared,” said Alexis, head still on a swivel. “I’ve got a bad feeling about this.”
Cad unslung the compact rifle from over his shoulder and
stepped out beside Alexis. If she had sensed something was amiss, then Cad had learned to trust her instincts. He reached over and accessed the comm link to Draga’s ship, in case he needed air support, or just another pair of fighting hands.
Suddenly, the lights in the gallery space kicked back on, temporarily blinding Cad. Then there was a far more resonant thrum of a reactor kicking back into life. Cad cursed and closed his visor, spinning around to check on the Theseus warbot. The colossal killing machine had also sparked back into life, and Cad had turned just in time to see its axe-tipped arm slash toward him.
Cad ducked under the attack and the machine’s arm smashed into the wall, demolishing a chunk out of the thick stone as if it were no more substantial than honeycomb. He barely had time to breathe before the arm surged back toward him, the blade now bent and blunted. Cad raised the rifle to block the attack, but the power of the impact sent him flying across the gallery and into a glass cabinet on the opposite wall. The rifle dropped to his side, smashed into pieces from the ferocity of the machine’s attack.
The crack of Alexis’ twin pistols filled the air, but the bullets pinged off the heavily armored shell of the warbot without causing damage. The machine then swung at Alexis with its still sharp blade, and she was forced to employ all of her gymnastic prowess to escape being cut in half. Back-pedaling, Alexis holstered her pistols and unslung the EMP launcher.
Cad pushed himself to his feet and charged at the warbot, knowing he had to give Alexis time to reload the EMP weapon and take another shot. He gathered speed and then launched a flying kick to the warbot’s torso, trusting that the extra mass of his suit would deliver the impact he needed. The kick connected and the bot staggered back several paces, but it was already advancing again by the time Cad had landed and recovered his fighting stance. This time, Cad was unable to avoid the swinging blow from the machine’s arm, which hammered into his chest armor and propelled him back into Alexis. Luckily, the Theseus had used its blunted weapon arm, sparing Cad from serious injury. However, lady luck was seemingly a fickle mistress, and fortune did not favor him a second time. His collision with Alexis had caused her to lose control of the EMP launcher, which spun out of her grasp and slid across the polished stone floor. Cad and Alexis watched as the weapon vanished underneath one of the display cabinets like a frightened cat. Cad cursed as the two members of the Blackfire Squadron helped each other to their feet.
“Get the launcher. I’ll hold off the bot!” Cad shouted.
“Hold it off with what?” Alexis replied. “Your rifle is smashed and these pistols are useless against that thing’s armor.”
Cad unsheathed his Black Prince sword, which drew an uneasy glare from Alexis.
“This is no time for your Knights of the Round Table act, Cad,” said Alexis in an unusually stern tone of voice. The situation had become dire enough for Alexis to have fully switched over to her more intense warrior persona. The more flippant, jokey Alexis Black had taken a back seat.
“I just need to buy you some time, that’s all,” Cad hit back. “Now get the launcher, or we’re both dead anyway!”
Alexis raced off in the direction of the errant EMP weapon, while Cad turned back to face the Theseus. His mind started to fizz as he fought to recall everything he knew about the model – its strengths and, in particular, its weaknesses. However, Cad barely had a few seconds to think before the warbot was upon him.
Cad evaded the first attack and swung his sword, slicing a gouge into the machine’s dense shoulder armor. However, while the sword’s unique alloy blade had penetrated the warbot’s metal plating, the attack failed to deal any significant damage. The still sharp hand of the warbot then rushed toward him and Cad parried, producing a bright spark and ear-splitting clank. Cad was knocked off balance and barely recovered in time to evade the next scythe-like strike.
“Alexis, hurry!” Cad shouted, glancing back to see his partner standing by the end wall with her hands on her head. One of Daggett’s mercenary stooges stood in front of her, a shotgun aimed at Alexis’ head, while the man’s doppelgänger stood to her other side, holding the EMP launcher in his hand. Cad was about to cry out and demand an explanation, but the Theseus-class warbot continued to attack unrelentingly. This time, Cad was forced to parry again, but even the strength of his powered armor proved inadequate, and the blow struck the sword from his grasp. The medieval weapon clattered against the stone wall and spun to a stop behind the bot. Cad Rikkard gritted his teeth and cleared his mind. The time for planning and strategizing was over; now he would fall back on his fighting and survival instincts alone. Somewhere in the recesses of his mind, he knew the Theseus’ weakness. He just had to trust himself that he could find it.
The warbot lunged again with its blunted hand, but Cad dodged and drew the machine closer to the stone wall, waiting for its follow-up strike. It came in a near instant, but Cad was ready, throwing himself to the side and causing the machine to again bury its bladed fist in the wall. As before, the weapon became lodged into the stone, giving Cad the precious extra seconds he needed. Darting over to collect his Black Prince sword, Cad then used the spring of his powered legs to leap up onto the back of the warbot. Spinning the weapon into a reverse grip, he then drove the tip of the blade down the back of the machine’s neck, using every last watt of power the suit possessed. Sparks began to fly as the blade dug deeper, then Cad felt the machine lose power as he severed the main energy conduit to its cranial unit. The Theseus warbot crumpled under its own weight, with Cad still mounted on its back like a triumphant, mythical dragon slayer.
Cad flicked open his visor and sucked in deep gulps of air. Blood was pounding in his head, but another noise took its place. At first, he couldn’t work out what the sound was before it finally struck him – someone in the room was applauding.
11
Cad Rikkard climbed off the back of the crippled warbot and pulled his Black Prince sword from the slain metallic beast, like Arthur drawing the sword from the stone. In addition to Brett and Rhett, there were now two other mercenaries, armed with powerful shotguns, bookending a third man. He was short – maybe only five foot five, Cad figured – but what he lacked in height, he made up for in build. It looked like he spent every waking hour in the gym, and the clothes he wore were clearly designed to highlight this fact. Cad was about to demand the man’s name, but then his identity dawned on him like a long-forgotten memory percolating to the surface of his conscious mind. It was Frazer Melton Strickland.
“Bravo, Mr. Rikkard, bravo indeed,” said Strickland, still clapping like a circus seal. “I must say, you certainly do live up to your reputation.” Then he stopped clapping and pointed to the still smoldering carcass of the Theseus warbot. “Taking out a Theseus-class warbot single-handed, and with a sword no less. Bravo!”
Cad looked at Rhett and Brett, noticing that they were wearing the same uniforms as the other two unnamed mercenaries. He sighed, realizing that he’d walked into a trap.
“So you two idiots were in on this all along?” said Cad, pointing to the twin mercenaries. Then he lowered his hand, but brushed it against his watch as he did so, deftly activating the comm-link to Draga’s ship. “How long have you two double-crossing assholes been hiding out by the East wall? Ever since we got in here?”
Both mercenaries remained silent, and it was Strickland that eventually spoke up. “My men may not possess your enviable talents, Mr. Rikkard, but they do possess something just as valuable,” he said. He then shot Cad a greasy smile before adding, “Loyalty…”
“I just needed the nukes, Strickland,” said Cad. “This is nothing personal.”
Strickland’s smile faded. “Oh, but it’s always personal, Mr. Rikkard,” he answered with a sudden bitterness. “You may not care who your targets are, or why your repugnant master, Damien Doyle, gives you their names. But I assure you, Mr. Rikkard, it is always personal.”
“I thought you two trillionaires were friends,” said Cad, resting on his sword. Bei
ng tossed around the gallery like a frisbee hadn’t done much other than scratch his armor, but his body had still taken a pounding inside the hardened shell.
“Doyle sacrificed my friendship when he had your crew take out one of my chief negotiators,” said Strickland. Then his bulging muscles twitched and spasmed as he added, “A man who also happened to be my cousin. I’ve been looking forward to meeting you ever since.”
Cad nodded; it was starting to make sense now. Sara Daggett must have known of Strickland’s desire to find the Blackfire Squadron, and – as the master fixer she was – sold them out. However, Cad realized there was still one element he wasn’t sure about.
“Why wait till I smashed up your precious gallery, though?” Cad asked. “Daggett knew we’d be at the cave bar, so why not try to take me out there?”
Strickland laughed. “What you possess in terms of combat prowess, I see you lack in mental acuity,” he said, returning to his pompous, condescending tone.
“Come again?” said Cad. He knew full well what Strickland had meant; he was just stalling for time. His watch flashed, and Cad managed to catch the message, again without drawing attention to his actions.
“What I mean is that you are not very bright, Mr. Rikkard,” Strickland scoffed, clearly enjoying his victory. “It’s well known how much Doyle has invested in training you to be his loyal lap-dog,” he went on, causing Cad’s jaw to clench up. “If I just had you killed in plain sight, Doyle, as the vindictive swine that he is, would ensure I paid for such a slight many times over.” Then Strickland smiled and gestured to the partially crumbling walls of his gallery. “Here, you were killed in a botched attempt to rob me of my precious artefacts. Doyle cannot deny my authority to kill you here. He has some semblance of honor still.”