Cerberus 08 - Rebel Hunter by Andy Peloquin

Author:Andy Peloquin [Peloquin, Andy]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Sci-Fi
Publisher: Aethon Books
Published: 2020-11-23T22:00:00+00:00

Chapter Twenty-One

Nolan sat bolt upright in bed. “Play it for me!”

“Playing back audio recording now,” Taia said.

A moment later, a man’s voice echoed in Nolan’s earpiece.

“Gentlemen, the time is fast approaching,” Severance said. Every word from his mouth dripped eager excitement. “All the pieces must be in place for the day we celebrate not only my father’s life and his achievements, but the realization of his dreams for a Terran League free of Imperial tyranny.”

Fists banged against the table, and Nolan heard Caldera saying, “Damned right!”

“Major, what’s the status on our ordnance?” Severance asked.

An unfamiliar voice—Burchart’s, Nolan guessed—answered. “Twenty-five percent below my original estimate, thanks to that batch of fertilizer we lost. But there’s still eighty-six S-vests, twelve suitcase nuclear devices, and the makings of forty-two car bombs. That’s just what we have on-site. According to the last communiques from our cells, there are an additional two hundred and twelve purpose-built devices prepared to deploy around the Empire.”

Nolan’s blood ran cold. That’s a fucking lot of explosives! They had to be planning a massive coordinated strike on potentially dozens of planets, all doubtless aimed at civilian and Imperial government targets.

“Excellent!” Severance said. “Wagner, what’s our troop status?”

A loud, displeased grunt echoed through the room. “Fewer than I’d like. Worse fighting shape than we need.”

Silence for a long second. “Numbers, Wagner,” Severance finally said in a patient tone.

“Training’s turned out close to eighty half-decent shooters. Maybe half have any kind of military experience. Add that to those you’ve got off-site, and we’ll field a hundred from what we’ve got here.”

“Weapons?” Severance asked.

“Better than the people carrying them,” Wagner replied. “Enough KN756s and Gray-221s to outfit a proper battalion.” For Jackboots, that meant no more than eight hundred soldiers. “Plenty of ammunition, too, though not as much as we would have had if the deal with Drake didn’t fall through.”

“That was out of my hands,” Severance said. “He made all the right promises. Just failed to deliver at the moment of truth. Shame he’s not alive to make him regret that.”

Nolan almost grinned. You’re welcome, you terrorist bastard.

“Aside from those eighty, the rest are pretty much cannon fodder,” Wagner said. “Plenty of spirit, though. They’ll come in handy stirring up the locals.”

“Good.” Severance sounded pleased. “We’ve got the ship standing by to transport everyone off-world tomorrow morning. When I send word, get everyone ready to transport to the Armada to begin the offensive.”

Mention of the Armada sent a chill down Nolan’s spine. It’s here? How? Last he’d seen the Armada, it had been on its way to a place Rip had believed would be safe for the Liberationists.

Worry hummed within his gut. “Taia, is there any chance you can get in touch with Rip?” The former Voidmarine had given Nolan a code to his personal comm.

“I have no outgoing signals beyond the jam field,” Taia said. “However, once I am finished cleaning up, I can make a journey outside the perimeter to establish comms contact with General Stone, as well as try to get in touch with Rip.

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