Read Online The Plague Forge [ARC] by Jason M. Hough - Free Book Online Page B

an unnecessary complication. I mean, it could last weeks.”
    “There’s plenty of room for compressed air tanks in this plane.”
    “Air, sure, but how are you going to go to the bathroom?”
    “Is this craft rated for high altitude?” she asked.
    “Yes,” Vanessa said. “Thirty klicks.”
    Tania nodded. “So, we keep the cabin sealed until we reach the aura towers, or get to half our air.”
    Skyler shook his head. “Too many things could go wrong. A leak, an emergency landing. Hell, you’ll have to recharge the caps at some point.”
    “Um,” Vanessa said, raising her hand. “Don’t forget, on this aircraft the cockpit is a separate compartment. Pablo and I would ride up there, get out if we need to, all without breaking the seal on the cargo compartment.”
    “You’re supposed to be on my side,” Skyler said to her.
    Vanessa shrugged.
    “A third pair of hands,” Pablo said, “could be useful.”
    Skyler looked at all of them, exasperated. Then he turned to Tania. “You’ll be cooped up in here for days. Weeks, maybe.”
    “Skyler, I’ve lived on a space station for almost my entire life.”
    “Okay, okay. What about when the time comes to get out? How much help can you be in one of those environment suits?”
    “I thought of that, too,” Tania said. “I won’t need one.”
    “Come again?”
    She grinned knowingly. “Remember those spacesuits we wore over to the Builder ship?”
    “Yes. I won’t soon forget those.”
    “Well, I brought them. They’ll work just as well in atmosphere. They’re sealed, and they have excellent mobility.”
    He grunted agreement. The suits were undeniably superior to any environment suit he’d ever seen. “You brought both? Why?”
    Tania shrugged. “I thought you might want some help on your mission, too. Maybe one of these two,” she said, gesturing at Nachu and Colton. The two young men glanced at each other, then back at Skyler.
    He knew he’d lost the argument, probably before Tania had even stepped off her climber. The next hour was spent hammering out details, supply requirements mostly. He waited until the group had split up for the evening to tell Colton and Nachu that he thought they should stay in Belém. The colony would need them for any scavenging needs while the immunes were away.
    He felt glad when both agreed. Though either of the young men would be a welcome addition, Skyler had a different sort of help in mind.
    Two days later the Helios took off. Skyler watched the aircraft arch across the cloudy sky until it disappeared behind the city’s dark downtown skyline. The Tombstones, so the colonists called the ghostly high-rises. The bleak structures moaned when the wind came up off the Pará and rushed through their broken windows. Usually rain would drown that sound. Today the thunderous roar of the Helios ’s engines did the job, though that noise dwindled with each passing second.
    “Everything’s green here.” Vanessa’s voice, over the comm. “We’ll see you soon, amigos .”
    “Godspeed,” Tim said. He stood within the comm room, hunched over the lone terminal. Skyler had spied the young man wiping a tear away when the aircraft lifted off. He’d seen the way the man looked at Tania before that moment, too.
    A cool sprinkle of rain whipped about him. Even now, with the Helios gone from view, he stayed just outside the comm room and ignored the playful spray of water. He tried to imagine the aircraft, putting himself in the pilot’s chair as city gave way to the wide river, then rainforest, then the unknown. Nothing but a path carved almost two years ago to guide the way. And Tania, huddled in back, isolated, one small window to look out of. A pang of guilt rippled through him as he recalled the final words he’d said to Vanessa before she climbed into the cockpit: “Don’t let her out until you know it’s safe.”
    Vanessa had agreed, but her eyes held a hint of something that said otherwise. She’d been impressed by