20.
“Why did you tell her that for?” shouted Marten.
The shock troopers crowded around the comlink.
Through his helmet’s faceplate peered Kang’s wide, emotionless face with its almost slit-shut eyes. “You heard her,” Kang said. “Others of us made it aboard the beamship. And I bet HBs are on their way here, almost aboard ship by now.”
Marten stubbornly shook his head.
Kang regarded the anxious shock troopers. “Think about that. The HBs are almost here and we’ve captured an important part of the ship. But once the HBs learn what Marten tried to do they’ll kill him for sure. And they’ll kill anybody who helped him.”
“This isn’t the time to lose your nerve,” Marten said.
“That’s right,” Kang said. “It’s time to make sure we keep the Highborn happy. Conway, Higgens, grab him!”
The shock troopers regarded Marten, who stepped back and lifted his arm with the attached laser-tube, although he didn’t directly aim it at anyone. “You can’t possibly know that the HBs are coming.”
The words worked like magic, but not in the way Marten wanted. Conway and Higgens suddenly lunged for him, trying to grab his arms. Marten jumped back and aimed the laser-tube at the nearest, Conway. “You’d better rethink that,” he said, already angry with himself for having stepped back the first time. He should have tried to bluff, but he hadn’t trusted Kang so near to him.
Lance, who had stepped to the side, now came up behind Marten and yanked back the arm. “We gotta put to this to a vote, Marten.”
“Let go!” shouted Marten.
Servomotors whined as their exoskeleton powered battlesuits wrestled.
“This isn’t personal!” shouted Lance. “I just don’t want to fry in some HB horror chamber.”
Marten noticed Conway and Higgens creeping closer. So he relaxed, letting Lance jerk back his arm. “Listen to me,” he said, with all the earnestness he could muster. He even twisted his head to peer at Lance, who frowned and then nodded, relaxing his hold. Marten shifted sharply, throwing Lance off balance. He then grabbed Lance by the shoulders and shoved him into Conway and Higgens. With a metallic CLANG, the three fell into a mechanical heap.
Kang clanked forward with an override unit—each of the top three mission officers had been given one. He tried to slap the unit onto Marten’s suit. Marten jumped backward, slamming into a lift, crumpling the thin metal door.
“What are you gonna do to him?” Vip said, an edge to his voice.
“I’m going to let the HBs deal with him,” Kang said, hopping forward, the override unit almost touching Marten.
Marten got an armored foot on Kang’s chest-plate, and he kicked, hurling Kang’s half-ton battlesuit against the nearest wall. Then Marten righted himself as Lance, Conway and Higgens also rose to their feet.
“Are you siding with Kang?” shouted Marten.
“I don’t want the HBs killing me,” said Lance. “So you gotta forget this Jupiter nonsense.”
Marten glanced at the others. They peered at Kang, who roared curses as he aimed his heavy laser.
Marten ducked, turned and leaped deeper into the huge engine room.
“Traitorous scum!” roared Kang, a red laser beam lashing out after Marten.
Then Vip said, “If you fire again I’ll kill you.” He aimed his laser at Kang.
Marten glided behind another lift, shifted around and then entered it. Over the comlink, he heard Kang and Vip argue.
KANG: You’re helping the traitor!
VIP: That’s what you call him.
KANG: That’s what I’ll tell the HBs.
VIP: So I’d better burn you where you stand, that’s what you’re telling me.
KANG: Why are you aiming a laser at me if you’re not helping him?
VIP: Who’s aiming anything at you?
KANG: Now he’s gone, you idiot.
VIP: Where’s he gonna run to, Kang? Think about it.
KANG: To the enemy, you dolt.
VIP: I don’t think so. Besides, Marten got us here. I sure don’t wanna see him butchered by you because he helped you survive. You want to hunt for him later that’s your problem. Right now, we gotta secure the
KANG: (grunted angrily)
Marten’s lift opened two levels down and he moved down a different corridor. He’d made his move and lost. Now he had only one option left. Get aboard an escape pod and leave before the HBs arrived.
21.
Admiral Rica Sioux slipped a tight wrap around her bad knee. She’d already had the medic shoot it with anti- pain. The Tracking Officer meanwhile brought body armor and a las-rifle and laid it beside the command chair.
“Admiral!” said the First Gunner. “This is madness. We must all make a run for the escape pods.”
Admiral Sioux ignored him. At her age, she had learned when not to argue. He spoke for the files, nothing more. Around her, the command team watched the VR-screens in dismay. The HB-trained soldiers were uncanny. The larger group smashed straight here. The smaller group had six active members, hitting and running wherever they weren’t expected.
An armrest button flashed.
“Security Chief, here. It’s no good, Admiral. Now they’re slaughtering my Security teams one by one. If only I could have used everybody together. I could have beaten them. It was a mistake to chase the smaller group.”
“I’ll be down to join you for the final assault,” said Admiral Sioux.
“Admiral, I must protest.”
“Noted. Now no more arguments, please. My mind is made up.”
“Aye-aye, Admiral. But you’d better hurry if you want to fight with us.”
Admiral Sioux motioned the Tracking Officer to help her put on the armor. As she did, the Admiral said, “You and the others will head to the escape pods, just like the First Gunner suggests.”
“We want to fight with you,” the Tracking Officer said.
“Senseless. Live to fight another day.”
“Then you’re not blowing the
Admiral Sioux knew that several officers watched her closely as they fingered their weapons. She had no doubt they would kill her if they suspected she would use the destruction code. The enemy’s swift success had broken their last scruples—or so Admiral Sioux suspected. The destruction procedure was complicated, so she couldn’t hide it from them.
The last buckles of the body-armor snapped closed. She put on her helmet and slid open the visor. Settling back into the command chair, she put a call through to General Hawthorne on Earth. Those in the command capsule continued to watch.
“General Hawthorne,” she said, “enemy soldiers called shock troops have breached the
