Single shots rang out in quick succession. Denver and Layla taking aim and making every one count. Charlie broke cover again.
A slaver had readjusted his position to the new threat, allowing Charlie a view of his left torso. He fired twice and the figure slumped.
“Two down,” Denver said.
“One down,” Layla said.
“One down,” Charlie said.
The shuttle’s engines roared. A cloud of sand and stone-filled dust blasted from underneath, shrouding the area. Charlie’s night vision blurred.
Dull muzzle flashes appeared in different spots, becoming increasingly fainter.
“They’re withdrawing,” Denver said.
Charlie heard the distinctive sound of his and Layla’s rifles fire again.
“We got one more,” Denver said. “Two made it to the shuttle.”
“Does it have a cannon on the roof?” Charlie said. “I couldn’t see when they brought me here.”
“Doesn’t look like it,” Layla said.
Vingo shuffled by Charlie’s side. “You saved my life.”
“It’s not over yet.”
Denver and Layla ran through the gloom, powering over the black volcanic sand a lot faster than any human could manage without the assistance of an armored suit. Charlie waved a hand over the top of the rock. They altered direction slightly, headed over and crouched by his side.
Layla looked around Charlie at Vingo and the two dead tredeyans. “Looks like you’ve had an interesting time.”
The relief in her voice matched Denver’s facial expression and Charlie’s internal feeling.
“What happened to the rest of your armor?” Denver said.
“They took it,” Charlie said and peered over the rock at the shuttle. “I can live without it, as long as we can change our filters and refill the water with a mix of root.”
“Who the hell are they?” Layla said.
Charlie ignored the question. The shuttle rose ten meters in the air. Its engine noise changed to a higher pitch and it thrust forward.
Hot air blasted down from its six pink rings as it flew overhead. The shuttle banked to the right and headed around the coast, disappearing around a cliff while gaining altitude.
Nobody spoke. Charlie waited, wanting to confirm the thing wouldn’t turn back and take a shot at them, if it had the capability. He would in their shoes.
It flew above the distant cliffs and headed for the stars. The rings brightened and it shot up at a greater speed.
A scion fighter roared along the coast, pointed its nose up and went to intercept. A missile deployed from under its wing and streaked toward the shuttle.
An explosion boomed overhead. It was impossible to tell if the fighter scored a hit because of the shuttle’s rapid ascent, but Charlie hoped so. The crew deserved it.
The sounds of the last frantic minutes were replaced with waves crashing against the shoreline and distant rumbles as the battle for Tredeya continued.
“Are you going to answer my question?” Layla said.
“Yeah, follow me. I’m getting my suit back and have two things to kill,” Charlie said. Vingo remained kneeling next to the two dead tredeyans. “That includes you too. Get your ass moving. ”
Vingo limped alongside Layla and she glanced at his wounds. “Are you okay?”
“I got hit, but I’ll live.”
Charlie entered the cave. The overhead lighting flickered on and off. He stepped over the bodies of the three dead slavers and continued forward.
“Your doing, I take it?” Denver said as he followed behind. “How did you end up here?”
“That supposed priest paralyzed my suit. Slavers were going to sell me for labor on another planet.”
“Christ,” Layla said. “Their planet’s falling, and they’re still trying to make a profit?”
Charlie grunted. “Seems like greed stretches beyond Earth.”
“It’s not like that,” Vingo said, his voice stuttery and higher than before. “Slavers are outside our society. They are a mix of species. Our command tolerates them because they’re only supposed to capture deserters or criminals. It saves on resources if we don’t have prisoners to manage.”
“Why did they take you?” Denver said.
Vingo looked away and hobbled toward the cavern containing the cells.
“Hey! Why did they take you?” Denver repeated with a hint of anger in his voice.
“I had another reason for being in the command center,” Vingo said. “I was…” He looked around nervously, his beady eyes twitching before his body slumped with what Charlie thought was a sigh. “I was taking something.”
“Don’t look to me for sympathy,” Charlie prompted. “You need to explain yourself to Den and Layla.”
“All you need to know is that I’m leaving this place, this war. There’s other options for people with my skills.”
“Like trading whatever it is you took with the scion?” Layla said.
“No. They will have control of our systems eventually and wouldn’t deal with me. There’s an alliance, another faction bordering on the Hezlan systems, another player in this war.”
“Got a name, this faction?” Denver asked.
“They’re called the Amalgam, on account of the number of races involved, people who are casualties of the war, people and races who no longer want to be victims to either side.”
Charlie grunted and shook his head. He found Vingo increasingly pathetic. “Tell them about trying to buy your way in.”
“I had to offer something. When we first tracked a scion ship entering our solar system, I decided we needed a survival plan. Tredeya can defend against most threats, but not this one.”
“That’s just great,” Denver said. “You made us even more of a target.”
“It doesn’t change our situation. We have a ship we can escape on once I have what we need.”
“Can your ship—” Layla stopped abruptly and took two steps back.
Shadows moved around the cavern opening.
The two clusps that guarded the entrance leaped into the cave. They strained against their chains and snarled. Both sets of tentacles writhed in the air, ready to strike when in range of a victim.
Denver dropped to one knee and shouldered his rifle. Charlie stood in front of him. “I’ve wanted to do this since I first met the first damned thing.”
Both clusps hunched down and growled. Charlie moved forward. One whipped a tentacle forward. It snapped rigid a meter in front of his face.
Charlie took a deep breath, looked through his sights, and pulled the trigger. His round punctured a hole through the left clusp’s head. Green spatter marks plastered the wall behind it. He wasted no time in downing the other creature.
Turning back to the group, Charlie asked, “Did you happen to see the priest on your way here?”
“You don’t need to worry about her,” Denver said.
Charlie gave him a knowing nod. “I understand. Good job, son.”
Vingo tugged on Charlie’s cuff. “If you take me to my village, I can provide filters, water, and food.”
“What about your ship?” Denver said. “We can’t survive here forever and need a way home. Especially if scion mechs are roaming the land.”
“My ship doesn’t have the range,” Vingo said. “But there might be another way.”
“Which is?” Layla said.
“Take me to my village and I’ll tell you.”
“Bullshit,” Charlie said, unable to control his anger. “We’ve saved your ass on more than one occasion. Stop laying breadcrumbs and tell us now, or forget your escort.”
“Take me home or forget ever reaching yours,” Vingo retorted, suddenly finding some backbone. A political race indeed, Charlie thought.
They had little choice, though. Information was in short supply, and Charlie, Denver and Layla had to grab any chance they could get their hands on.