Alan Dean Foster by The Black Hole

Author:The Black Hole
Language: eng
Format: mobi
Published: 2011-12-10T01:07:08+00:00

*

McCrae found the hoped-for locker. A dozen suits were neatly arranged inside. They chose three with full tanks, helped each other dress as minutes ticked past. A brief check insured that each suit was tight, that its internal oxygen system was functioning and that the communicators were operative.

Holland waved the others clear. Pizer and McCrae moved down the corridor, the two robots the other way.

"Ready?"

Everyone acknowledged by grabbing tight to a secured section of wall or railing.

Wrapping one arm around a protruding tube, Holland leaned over and touched the three emergency studs in proper sequence. The explosive bolts blew the lock cover out into space. A brief but intense rush of air pulled hard at everyone. It faded as distant emergency doors shut tight, sealing them off from the rest of the ship.

"Well, old-timer," Vincent was saying to Bob as they turned to head for the exit,

"you're going home after all... and as a hero, too."

"Had to uphold the honor of the old outfit, Vincent."

McCrae, standing by the exit, noticed something moving at the far end of the passageway. "Vincent, Bob--look out!"

Maximillian had appeared immediately behind the two machines. Bob reacted first, thus catching the full force of the large mechanical's lasers. Circuitry flared as he was thrown backward, bounced off a wall and fell to the floor. Maximillian shifted to turn his weapons on Vincent and the others.

The delay had given Vincent enough time to turn and fire himself. Both precisely aligned shots melted the pistols in Maximillian's hands.

"Get to the ship!" he instructed his human companions. "I'll handle this."

Maximillian had not been rendered harmless, however. Two additional arms came up, tipped with whirling blades suitable for trimming metal. They were designed to repair. They could as easily dismember.

Vincent hovered in his path, fired again. But the material of the larger robot's shell was considerably tougher than the thin alloy of the two obliterated lasers. Vincent fired again. The bursts had no effect on the oncoming Maximillian.

"Hurry, Captain." Vincent backed away from the larger mechanical.

The three humans exited through the blown hatch. Maximillian hesitated, then turned his full attention to the darting, distracting Vincent. He rushed up at him. The smaller machine dodged, fired again, seeking a weak place in the armored monolith and not finding one. Vincent dipped down to fire from closer range, ducked as the high-speed blades cut over his head.

Maximillian shifted again, trying to corner his opponent against a wall. Vincent ducked and bobbed, firing. The edge of one blade snicked against his shell, sent him tumbling off-balance into the wall. The impact appeared to have damaged his internal gyro-balance system more than the blade had his exterior, and he fluttered in one place, experiencing the robotic equivalent of dizziness. Maximillian advanced on him.

Outside the ship now, the three suited figures struggled to make their way toward the probe, pulling themselves through the twisted ruin of the Cygnus's external superstructure.

Maximillian was on top of Vincent. The smaller robot spun, fired several rapid bursts and just

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.