Read Online Comrades in Arms by Kevin J. Anderson - Free Book Online
Authors: Kevin J. Anderson
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stopped him. “Wait, there is a better way.” He hunkered down and concentrated on the sentry. Even through his armor, Rader felt a tingle in the air; his sensors registered an energy buildup. A galaxy of lights flickered in the deep universe of Click’s black eyes.
The sentry flailed his angular arms as a half-formed energy-web folded over him. The sentry clawed at the dimly sparkling strands, searching for his unseen attacker—a Jaxxan attacker.
Leaving their hiding place, Rader and Click rushed across the landing field toward the Jaxxan cargo ship. When Click spoke to the sentry, Rader was surprised to hear the menace in his comrade’s usually timid voice. “Do nothing unwise, or I shall be forced to complete my web.”
The Jaxxan guard did nothing unwise.
While Rader kept his laser rifle pointed at the sentry, Click scuttled forward and activated the hatch. “Can you fly this ship?”
The insectoid head bobbed up and down on its stalk of a neck.
“A hostage and a pilot,” Rader said. “Good enough.” He did not know what they would do with the sentry once they reached their destination.
Click chittered his instructions to the sentry. “You will fly on a random, evasive course. The humans have an observatory asteroid located on the far edge of the Belt. It must be in the database.”
Rader detected movement in the construction area, the hunter squad picking up on them again. “They’re coming. Get inside the ship—now!”
With a victorious outcry, the hunters charged across the landing field. Rader shoved Click through the cargo ship’s open hatch as one of the human soldiers braced for a careful shot, but chose the wrong Jaxxan. He burned a large hole in the alien sentry’s back.
As he tried to escape, Rader’s left leg suddenly collapsed, and he sprawled on the ramp. The attackers raced toward them, shouting, and he rolled, trying to assess the damage, sure that a laser blast had cut through the armor, ruined his cyborg leg systems. Using his good leg, his elbows, and his gloves, he hauled himself to the hatch.
Click had turned back to help him, and an energy-web glittered against the hull, smoking and sparking. Rader yelled, “Leave me—get to the control room!”
Instead, the Jaxxan grabbed his arms, dragged him the rest of the way into the ship. As soon as he was clear, Click sealed the hatch.
Rader looked down to see how much damage the shot had done to his leg, but he saw no burned hole, no melted slag of armor or shorted-out cyborg parts. The leg had simply failed.
Click dashed away from the hatch and scrambled up a thin-runged ladder to the control deck. Rader called after him, “You can fly this type of ship, can’t you?”
Click pointedly did not answer, and Rader stifled a groan.
***
The cargo ship rose jerkily, leaving behind a whirlpool of displaced air. The hunter squad watched in anger and defeat. After the vessel zigzagged in a drunkard’s flight from the landing field, the soldiers watched the flares of its engines dwindle into Fixion’s thin atmosphere.
The human captain stared at the sentry who lay sprawled on the still-warm pavement. “He’s dead. We can’t interrogate him for any intel the two deserters might have revealed.”
The Jaxxan leader shook his head. “Not too late. We will implement a post-mortem interrogation.”
He removed equipment from his belt pack—a probe, a diagnostic reader, two long wires, and a skull splitter. Jamming down hard, he broke the chitinous shell of the dead sentry’s head, spreading the hard faceplates to expose the soft, contoured brain. “We should still be able to access the chemical memory of the last few moments he experienced.”
The Jaxxan unfolded the screen, then dipped the sharp probe wires into the dead alien brain. Static washed across the screen accompanied by surreal images, colored patterns, old memories. He worked quickly before the memory-storage chemicals dissipated, the neurons deteriorated.
He
The sentry flailed his angular arms as a half-formed energy-web folded over him. The sentry clawed at the dimly sparkling strands, searching for his unseen attacker—a Jaxxan attacker.
Leaving their hiding place, Rader and Click rushed across the landing field toward the Jaxxan cargo ship. When Click spoke to the sentry, Rader was surprised to hear the menace in his comrade’s usually timid voice. “Do nothing unwise, or I shall be forced to complete my web.”
The Jaxxan guard did nothing unwise.
While Rader kept his laser rifle pointed at the sentry, Click scuttled forward and activated the hatch. “Can you fly this ship?”
The insectoid head bobbed up and down on its stalk of a neck.
“A hostage and a pilot,” Rader said. “Good enough.” He did not know what they would do with the sentry once they reached their destination.
Click chittered his instructions to the sentry. “You will fly on a random, evasive course. The humans have an observatory asteroid located on the far edge of the Belt. It must be in the database.”
Rader detected movement in the construction area, the hunter squad picking up on them again. “They’re coming. Get inside the ship—now!”
With a victorious outcry, the hunters charged across the landing field. Rader shoved Click through the cargo ship’s open hatch as one of the human soldiers braced for a careful shot, but chose the wrong Jaxxan. He burned a large hole in the alien sentry’s back.
As he tried to escape, Rader’s left leg suddenly collapsed, and he sprawled on the ramp. The attackers raced toward them, shouting, and he rolled, trying to assess the damage, sure that a laser blast had cut through the armor, ruined his cyborg leg systems. Using his good leg, his elbows, and his gloves, he hauled himself to the hatch.
Click had turned back to help him, and an energy-web glittered against the hull, smoking and sparking. Rader yelled, “Leave me—get to the control room!”
Instead, the Jaxxan grabbed his arms, dragged him the rest of the way into the ship. As soon as he was clear, Click sealed the hatch.
Rader looked down to see how much damage the shot had done to his leg, but he saw no burned hole, no melted slag of armor or shorted-out cyborg parts. The leg had simply failed.
Click dashed away from the hatch and scrambled up a thin-runged ladder to the control deck. Rader called after him, “You can fly this type of ship, can’t you?”
Click pointedly did not answer, and Rader stifled a groan.
***
The cargo ship rose jerkily, leaving behind a whirlpool of displaced air. The hunter squad watched in anger and defeat. After the vessel zigzagged in a drunkard’s flight from the landing field, the soldiers watched the flares of its engines dwindle into Fixion’s thin atmosphere.
The human captain stared at the sentry who lay sprawled on the still-warm pavement. “He’s dead. We can’t interrogate him for any intel the two deserters might have revealed.”
The Jaxxan leader shook his head. “Not too late. We will implement a post-mortem interrogation.”
He removed equipment from his belt pack—a probe, a diagnostic reader, two long wires, and a skull splitter. Jamming down hard, he broke the chitinous shell of the dead sentry’s head, spreading the hard faceplates to expose the soft, contoured brain. “We should still be able to access the chemical memory of the last few moments he experienced.”
The Jaxxan unfolded the screen, then dipped the sharp probe wires into the dead alien brain. Static washed across the screen accompanied by surreal images, colored patterns, old memories. He worked quickly before the memory-storage chemicals dissipated, the neurons deteriorated.
He
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