Read Online SHIAM Conspiracy- Book 1 by Joseph Heck - Free Book Online Page A

equally wet face moved next to his own, a sickly
breath exhaling a fetid stench, a demented giggle tickling his
ear.
    Although caught by surprise, Zak was no easy
mark. He shook off the blow to the jaw and his vision cleared
enough to identify his attackers as Ork street punks. He had not
only been trained to fight, he also had a good deal of real time
experience, and with badder asses than these. The one who
had hit him now held a knife and was coming at him again.
    There was no time for thought. His movements
were pure reaction, instinct and training. He used the punk who was
holding him as leverage, kicking up with both feet and catapulting
them toward the Ork with the knife. Zak caught him in the stomach
and chest.
    The hand with the knife swept toward Zak in a
crossing motion at the same instant; he felt the blade penetrate
his jacket, but it failed to hit home as the Ork went flying
backward.
    As his feet reconnected with the ground Zak
whipped his head back and caught the other attacker square in the
face. He heard a sharp crack like a twig breaking and guessed that
it was the punk’s nose.
    That loosened the grip from behind.
    He spun and grabbed the Ork by an arm and
with all the leverage he could muster, he used the arm to hurl the
punk towards the steps. The Ork went flying off the landing and
slammed into the three shadows that were just reaching the top of
the stairs, tumbling them all down the steps.
    The knife-wielding thug had gone sprawling
across the sidewalk. Zak got to him before he could get up, while
he was still on hands and knees trying to catch his breath. A solid
kick to the ribs and he collapsed to the pavement again.
    Another kick for good measure and then Zak
was on his way around the corner and heading for the stairs to the
upper level walkway.
    The three from Underworld popped into view
just as Zak started up the steps, taking them two at a time. He
looked down in time to see one of the Orks draw a weapon. He had no
time to think about it; he ducked only in the nick of time,
propelling himself forward as laser pulses burned a running train
just behind him.
    He kept moving, chased by the sound of the
laser searing the iron stairs behind him, thanking the gods that
the Ork doing the shooting was a lousy shot.
    Before he reached the top of the stairs, he
heard a car horn from above. Kam pulled up level to the top of the
stairs and opened the front passenger door.
    “Get in, man, quick!”
    Zak raced across the platform and dove into
the front seat, dripping wet and panting for breath. He was more
than a little happy that he’d called Kam to pick him up before
leaving Underworld and happier still that the kid had showed
up.
    “Go!” he yelled, slamming the door to the
cab. He looked down at the gang of Orks as Kam pulled away from the
pickup platform and confirmed what he’d suspected. The fragging
street punk had an Uk’glok CKP Energy Pulse handgun. He’d
recognized the unmistakable sound of the weapon as it burned hot
into the steel stair casing behind him. The Uk’glok was standard
issue of the Orkensha Ghanstap, the Orkensha Secret Guard. It was
also a common commodity on the Orkensha black market. It was no
surprise that the weapons were showing up among the street
gangs.
    If Kam’s cab had been an old gas powered
vehicle with rubber tires, he’d have laid rubber. Instead, he blew
air. Zak’s head jerked back for the second time tonight, but this
time he didn’t mind the circumstances as they sped away from the
blood-red laser pulses streaming up past them. Several more shots
zipped through the air behind them, as Kam ignored the bad weather
ban on the upper levels and climbed to the maximum five hundred
meter mark and headed north.
    “Geeze, man, I told ya...you shouldn’t go to
the Zone!”
    “Well, if it’s any comfort, you were
right.”
    “You some kind of thrill seeker or
something?” Kam asked, shaking his head in disapproval. “Before I
forget, give me my business