Read Online Empire: Book 2, The Chronicles of the Invaders (The Chronicles of the Invaders Trilogy) by John Connolly, Jennifer Ridyard - Free Book Online Page A
Authors: John Connolly, Jennifer Ridyard
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coil of cable. He couldn’t quite reach it. Just a little farther. He twisted his body slightly so that he was looking up between his own legs at Thula and Steven.
“Let me down another few inches,” he called.
“We can’t,” said Steven. “We’re at full stretch as it is.”
Paul tried again, but it was no good. The cable was just too far away. He was also growing increasingly nauseous. The creatures were now hammering ceaselessly away at the walls, and the vibrations were passing through Thula and Steven and into Paul. He was swaying slightly, like a man who had somehow found himself upside down while on a ship rocking at sea.
He felt a shift in the grip on his legs. He looked up again and saw that Thula was now holding both of his legs, and Steven and Peris wereholding on to Thula, easing him gently over the edge of the walkway until eventually the entire upper part of his body was suspended in the air. Paul felt himself dropping lower. His hand closed on the cable.
“I have it!” he cried.
He began dragging it toward him. It made a soft metallic grinding sound against the crates.
Sound.
Vibration.
“Oh, hell,” said Paul.
The ground was sky, the sky sand. Clouds disturbed it—clouds, and a shimmering like glass.
“Pull me up!” he shouted. “Now!”
But Thula’s belt had caught on the edge of the walkway. He tried to free himself by wriggling against it, which caused Paul to shift precariously in his grip.
“I’m serious!” said Paul. “Get me out of here.”
“We’re trying,” said Steven.
“Try harder!”
From his left came a clanging sound. He twisted his head to see Rizzo standing on one of the lowest rungs of the nearest ladder, banging the edge of a grenade launcher against the metal. Her more insistent vibrations caused the creature to change course, diverting its attention from Paul toward her. Paul could see that she had one leg hooked around a rung of the ladder, and another around the frame. She raised the launcher to her shoulder.
“Come to Mama,” she said.
The creature emerged from the sand, its jaws agape. The grenade, set to explode seconds after impact, shot into its gullet, just as Rizzo dropped the launcher and turned her back to protect her face.
The beast exploded, showering Rizzo with fragments. Paul instinctively closed his eyes. When he opened them again, Rizzo looked like a glass porcupine, her armor and the skin on the back of her neck embedded with shiny spines. Slowly she began to climb back up the ladder. For a moment she stumbled and seemed set to lose her grip, but somehow she kept climbing. Paul rose with her as Thula’s belt wasfreed and they were both pulled back up to the walkway. Once Thula was safely in place, Steven helped him to drag Paul up while Peris went to see to Rizzo.
“How is she?” asked Paul, once he had secured the lightweight cable, draping it over his right shoulder. He and the others stood over Peris, who was kneeling beside Rizzo. She lay on her stomach. Her face was contorted in a grimace of pain.
“Get her armor off,” ordered Peris.
Steven hit the release straps at Rizzo’s shoulders and waist, and lifted off the rear panel of her armor. It had absorbed most of the impact of the shards, but some had still penetrated her body. There were smaller splinters in her neck, her arms, and her skull. The wounds in her back were bleeding through her shirt.
“Can you move your legs, Rizzo?” said Thula.
Rizzo’s feet tapped against the metal of the walkway.
“No spinal damage,” said Thula. “That’s good.”
He knelt alongside Peris, and gently tested the splinters in her skin. There were no spurts of blood, which meant no arteries were damaged, and none of the splinters looked like they’d gone in more than half an inch.
Peris turned to Paul.
“Why don’t you see about hooking that cable to the platform? Thula will look after Rizzo.”
Already Thula was searching in his kit for antiseptic, and a blade
“Let me down another few inches,” he called.
“We can’t,” said Steven. “We’re at full stretch as it is.”
Paul tried again, but it was no good. The cable was just too far away. He was also growing increasingly nauseous. The creatures were now hammering ceaselessly away at the walls, and the vibrations were passing through Thula and Steven and into Paul. He was swaying slightly, like a man who had somehow found himself upside down while on a ship rocking at sea.
He felt a shift in the grip on his legs. He looked up again and saw that Thula was now holding both of his legs, and Steven and Peris wereholding on to Thula, easing him gently over the edge of the walkway until eventually the entire upper part of his body was suspended in the air. Paul felt himself dropping lower. His hand closed on the cable.
“I have it!” he cried.
He began dragging it toward him. It made a soft metallic grinding sound against the crates.
Sound.
Vibration.
“Oh, hell,” said Paul.
The ground was sky, the sky sand. Clouds disturbed it—clouds, and a shimmering like glass.
“Pull me up!” he shouted. “Now!”
But Thula’s belt had caught on the edge of the walkway. He tried to free himself by wriggling against it, which caused Paul to shift precariously in his grip.
“I’m serious!” said Paul. “Get me out of here.”
“We’re trying,” said Steven.
“Try harder!”
From his left came a clanging sound. He twisted his head to see Rizzo standing on one of the lowest rungs of the nearest ladder, banging the edge of a grenade launcher against the metal. Her more insistent vibrations caused the creature to change course, diverting its attention from Paul toward her. Paul could see that she had one leg hooked around a rung of the ladder, and another around the frame. She raised the launcher to her shoulder.
“Come to Mama,” she said.
The creature emerged from the sand, its jaws agape. The grenade, set to explode seconds after impact, shot into its gullet, just as Rizzo dropped the launcher and turned her back to protect her face.
The beast exploded, showering Rizzo with fragments. Paul instinctively closed his eyes. When he opened them again, Rizzo looked like a glass porcupine, her armor and the skin on the back of her neck embedded with shiny spines. Slowly she began to climb back up the ladder. For a moment she stumbled and seemed set to lose her grip, but somehow she kept climbing. Paul rose with her as Thula’s belt wasfreed and they were both pulled back up to the walkway. Once Thula was safely in place, Steven helped him to drag Paul up while Peris went to see to Rizzo.
“How is she?” asked Paul, once he had secured the lightweight cable, draping it over his right shoulder. He and the others stood over Peris, who was kneeling beside Rizzo. She lay on her stomach. Her face was contorted in a grimace of pain.
“Get her armor off,” ordered Peris.
Steven hit the release straps at Rizzo’s shoulders and waist, and lifted off the rear panel of her armor. It had absorbed most of the impact of the shards, but some had still penetrated her body. There were smaller splinters in her neck, her arms, and her skull. The wounds in her back were bleeding through her shirt.
“Can you move your legs, Rizzo?” said Thula.
Rizzo’s feet tapped against the metal of the walkway.
“No spinal damage,” said Thula. “That’s good.”
He knelt alongside Peris, and gently tested the splinters in her skin. There were no spurts of blood, which meant no arteries were damaged, and none of the splinters looked like they’d gone in more than half an inch.
Peris turned to Paul.
“Why don’t you see about hooking that cable to the platform? Thula will look after Rizzo.”
Already Thula was searching in his kit for antiseptic, and a blade
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