Airship Down by Brent Nichols

Author:Brent Nichols
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: adventure, action, 1920s, zeppelin, lovecraft, dieselpunk
Publisher: Brent Nichols

Chapter 5 – The Mad God

When they reached the outcropping of stone below the artillery piece, they paused one last time. She could see no fear in Ben's face, just determination. He searched her face, then nodded. They stepped around the outcrop and started climbing the hill.

A cord of some sort was stretched between a tree on the hilltop and a six-foot metal stake driven into the ground. Camouflage netting hung from the cord. Nothing showed above the net but the barrel of the artillery piece. The netting wasn't completely opaque. Colleen could make out the shape of a man moving on the other side.

She and Ben were no more than six steps from the hanging netting when the bottom edge flipped up and a man stepped out from underneath. It was a soldier, a rifle held casually in one hand, and he stared at them, his face blank with astonishment. Then Ben's rifle fired and the man flew back. The netting fell, hiding everything but the man's twitching feet.

Colleen sprinted up the hill, switching the rifle to her left hand and drawing the dagger from her waistband. She slashed at the cord, and the netting fell.

She only had an instant to take it in. There was a green truck, a soldier sitting on the running board just springing to his feet. The trailer was off to one side, the artillery piece pointing toward the distant road. She saw a blur of movement as someone crouched down behind the gun.

The soldier by the truck swung his rifle up. Ben fired, a hole appeared in the door of the truck beside the soldier, and the soldier fired back. She could see Ben in her peripheral vision, unhurt, so she left him to it and ran around the front of the truck.

A man was kneeling on the far side of the trailer, holding a rifle with a white-knuckled grip. He saw Colleen, jerked the rifle toward her, and fired a quick shot that came nowhere near her. She dove flat, presenting a smaller target, and tried to take aim. Her hands were shaking so badly that the barrel wobbled in a huge circle.

She took a deep breath, trying to steady her hands. Then a bullet smacked into the ground in front of her, spraying her with dirt. That made the shaking worse, so she decided to pull the trigger and hope for the best.

The gun kicked against her shoulder, not hard, the sound so much smaller than the blast of noise made by the soldier's rifle. He clapped a hand to his side, then wiped his hand on his thigh, leaving a bloody smear. His hand went back to his rifle, taking aim.

Reloading was difficult with trembling fingers, but she managed it. Colleen fired again, and the soldier looked down at his chest. His eyes rose to meet hers, his face filled with fear and resentment, and she pushed another cartridge into the breech. Her hands were almost steady now, and she lined up the rifle sights on the center of his chest.

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