Arkship Obsidian by Niel Bushnell

Author:Niel Bushnell [Bushnell, Niel]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Magic Number Books
Published: 2017-10-05T06:00:00+00:00

HUNTED

‘It’s moving towards me?’ Bara shouted into her wrist com.

‘Yes,’ Lexica said. ‘I suggest you defend yourself and return inside.’

Wynn scanned the ship’s surface, looking for movement, but could see nothing unusual.

‘Damned hunter,’ Bara seethed, picking up her tools and running for the hatch.

Wynn hesitated, still looking over the hull.

‘C’mon,’ Bara shouted after him.

He began to make his way towards the hatch, his fingers twitching to find a gun at his empty belt. Did he know how to shoot? he wondered.

A metallic clatter caught his ear and he turned to see an object rising over the wing. At first, he couldn’t tell what he was looking at. Strange tube-like shapes telescoped over the edge and dug into the hull, followed by a longer segment. An arm! A thin robotic arm with pistons driving it forwards. It seemed to struggle for a moment, trying to force itself higher, then it gained purchase and pulled itself up so that Wynn could see its face.

Two dark blue eyes locked onto him, and the hunter stopped. A fragile laser light scanned over Wynn’s body, then it pulled itself up to full height. It was over two meters tall, its frame a thin mass of wires and parts sitting atop two powerful-looking legs. Its right arm was damaged, just a splinter of it remained, a mess of exposed wires and tubes hanging from the socket. It had other damage as well; scorch marks along its right side, cracks and dents to its outer casing, but its movements were sudden and agile. It jolted towards Wynn, its feet hammering along the wing top.

A rush of adrenalin pushed Wynn into a sprint, sliding towards the hatch. He fell into it and his fingers hammered on the control panel. The hatch door began to close, its progress desperately slow. The gap narrowed, just a thin line when four metal fingers shot through the slit, halting the hatch. The door mechanism whined, complaining loudly, then it gave in and the hatch was forced open.

Bara pulled at Wynn, dragging him away as the hunter pushed its narrow frame through the hatch and fell to the floor in a clumsy heap.

Wynn looked around and saw a long wrench in Bara’s toolkit. He picked it up and swung it at the bot, catching its head. The hunter’s eyes rocked to the side, then it corrected itself and its arm lunged at Wynn, dragging the tool from his hand.

He felt Bara pulling at him again, and he didn’t resist. They stumbled through a bulkhead door as Bara hit the emergency close pad. The door slammed shut, cutting the hunter off from its prey. Through a narrow window in the door Wynn could see the machine. It scanned the bulkhead before working at the door’s control pad.

‘What’s it doing?’ Wynn said.

‘Trying to override the control,’ Bara replied. She raised her com to her mouth. ‘Lex, it’s on board.’

‘I know that,’ the ship’s voice replied. ‘I can feel it trying to access my functions.’

‘Can you stop it?’

Lexica didn’t reply.

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