Chapter 39
Chapter Thirty-Nine
Alien hoots and shrieks boomed across the darkening sky, and black shapes rose on wide wings from the strange forest. The sun was dropping to the horizon quicker than Connor had expected, painting the western sky a sickly green and gold. They’d almost certainly crashed farther east than their intended landing site.
Moss crunched beneath Connor’s boots when he jumped down from the closest mound. It had turned out to be rock, but porous and filled with wriggling, worm-like things that spilled out when he climbed to the top. They burst beneath his weight, leaving a minty-smelling, fluorescent blue residue which the moss absorbed from his boot soles.
Sweat dripped down his neck, slicking his armor and dampening his shirt.
He headed back to where Aubriella stood beside Rudy and returned her assault rifle. “That scope’s going to come in handy.”
Her lips quivered when she smiled. “Rudy helped me put it on. IR, ultraviolet, 100 magnification. A-and the weapon’s fully integrated with the combat network.” The anxiousness was in her voice, too.
“Good. We’ll need that.” Connor sucked in a breath and regretted it. Something in the air left a chalky, metallic taste on his tongue.
“You’re going to carry a gun, then?”
“I’m going to have to. Whatever’s making those noises sounds big. Big as that bug thing. Bigger.”
Aubriella hefted her rifle. “This can handle it.”
He patted her shoulder. “It should. Stay sharp. Watch the tree line.”
“Okay.”
Connor took a step, stopped, then turned back to the young woman. “You’re going to be fine.”
She nodded. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen anything like this.”
“Neither have I. But if you stay with Rudy, he’ll get you through. He’s the best soldier I’ve ever met.”
Aubriella’s chest swelled. “I’ve been learning a lot from him.”
“You’ve got a lifetime of learning ahead of you. Keep your cool.”
When Connor reached Selen, she was standing over Drew’s shoulder, glaring at the engineer. Drew and Yemi were still hacking away the giant bug’s carapace with the small power tools from the shuttle’s maintenance kit. The saw blade’s were cutting through the dense material with some effort, kicking up a sulfuric yellow smoke.
Half of the ruined body had already been dragged away by Martienne, Lem, Gregor, and the Moon twins, all under Vicente’s watchful eye. The big man had Mamacita at the high ready position, and his head constantly swiveled to scour the western sky.
Connor tapped his boss on the shoulder and jerked his head for her to follow him away from the two technicians.
Selen kicked and stomped. She was scowling when he came to a stop. “What?”
“You think that’s helping?”
“Martienne said there was a blown relay in the console. The fuel line? Ruptured.”
“And?”
“And what? That’s not enough? We’re lucky to be alive, Connor.”
“Then focus on that. Focus on keeping us alive.”
“Your engineer—”
“Our engineer. Maybe she’s responsible. Was the shuttle on the priority list? Because I don’t recall it being high up. And the last time I checked, it’s the pilots who do preflight checks.”
“You’d love to make this about Martienne, wouldn’t you?”
“Selen, I’d love to make this about us getting back up to the Lucky Sevens. All of us.”
“Not if you let that druggie destroy—”
“Drew’s our only engineer. Without her, we don’t get off this rock.”
Selen raised a finger to poke him in the chest, then lowered her hand. “When we get back, she’s done.”
“If this is all her fault, sure.” Connor waved toward the forest to the west. “Right now, I’m more concerned about what’s out there.”
“Did you see something?”
“Some winged things came out of those…trees. Or whatever they are. I don’t think they’re the problem. Some were maybe a couple meters across. Those noises sound like something a lot bigger.”
“Like that bug?”
“Maybe. We’ll only know if we get a look.”
“A look? Are you crazy?”
With the environment suit on, Connor didn’t have pockets to shove his hands into, so he stuck his thumbs in hoops meant to hold gear. “What’s your plan? Stay here until they get the shuttle running again?”
“That’s the only thing that makes sense.”
“And we take it to where? Martienne said we lost most of our fuel.”
“You think there’s a fuel depot out there in the forest? Huh?”
“I think we need to know what we’re up against. If there’s something hiding in that place, I don’t want it sneaking up on us in the night.”
“So, what, just trundle off into this alien landscape?”
“Not all of us. Me, Kalpana, and Rudy.”
“My best fighters? Seriously?”
“You’ve got Vicente and the twins. And Aubriella knows enough to help out. Keep them watching the perimeter, and keep the others busy…fixing things.”
Selen ran fingers through her hair. “That’s crazy.”
“It’s survival.” Connor cupped a hand over his eyes and searched the horizon. “We’ve got maybe an hour of light. Thirty minutes out, then back.”
“I can’t let you do it. The risk is too high.”
“Not knowing what’s out there is the risk.”
She groaned. “I don’t know how I let you convince me to believe you.”
Connor smiled, but it quickly faded when he saw Mosiah come out of the shuttle and look around, hands on hips. “I’m starting to think I’m not the one you shouldn’t believe.”
Selen followed Connor’s gaze. “Mosiah? What about him?”
“What you said about him before—lies, deception. Did he tell you this place was a jungle with giant bugs?”
“He didn’t tell me anything he didn’t tell you. And remember, you’re the—”
“No. Don’t start on that again. We had to take this job.”
Selen spun around and headed for their client without another word.
There couldn’t have been a better outcome, really. He could argue with her for hours when she got like she was.
Connor waved a hand to get Rudy’s attention and waved him in from the eastern perimeter point. Then Connor waved Kalpana down from the shuttle top. They were his most experienced at recon and knew how to handle any terrain. If he hoped to reach the jungle, it would have to be with them.
But what would they find there?
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