Crashland by Sean Williams

Author:Sean Williams
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
Publisher: HarperCollins

[34]

* * *

“WE’RE GETTING SOME serious activity now,” said Sargent, eyes dancing across data Clair couldn’t see. “Something’s building out there. Literally.”

With a flash of yellow light, the middle cannon fired, unleashing a sphere that arced across the ocean in a flat parabola toward the seastead.

A harsh, electronic siren blatted once. The chat opened wider, indicating that the RADICAL twins now were talking to more than just those in the crow’s nest. A rustle of distant voices made Clair feel like she was standing in a crowd.

“Here it comes!” called Trevin. “Can’t tell if that cannonball is hot or not.”

Clair stood closer to Jesse. Both of them put their helmets on, just in case, but left the visors open. Everyone’s attention was on the data as it streamed in from the outside. Every sensor on the seastead followed the sphere closely, measuring it in every possible way. It was four yards across and dark gray, and it cast soft reflections in radar.

“Could be explosive,” said Devin. “Could contain acid to corrode the hull. Could be anything. Can we fire now?”

Forest nodded, and Clair let out a sigh of relief.

Defensive fire from the seastead raked the dark surface of the sphere, but it kept on coming, absorbing the impacts like pebbles thrown down a well.

“Brace yourselves,” said Devin.

Clair had just enough time to take Jesse’s gloved hand before the missile hit. There was no movement through the hull, and no explosion, either. Drone cameras zoomed in on the impact site to see what had happened.

The missile had splatted flat against the hull without exploding or breaking open. Instead, it rebounded into a squat hemisphere, like a giant raindrop on a giant wall.

“Is that it?” asked Jesse.

“We’re picking up vibrations,” said Trevin.

“Drilling?” said Forest.

“We’ll get crews down there to seal off the area, just in case.”

“Data is spiking,” said Sargent. “We are seeking the source of the dupes.”

Finally, thought Clair.

“Two more of those things on the way,” said Devin.

She glanced at the second and third spheres, already well across the gap between the structure in the water and the seastead.

“Can we take out the cannons now?” asked Devin.

“As a precaution,” said Forest, “I do think that would be sensible.”

“Jesse, are you on it?”

He nodded and let go of Clair’s hand. The view through the drones shifted. Weapons systems activated at someone else’s command as he sent half of his flock into vertical dives, aiming for different sections of the construct.

Before the cannon emplacement could respond, it was in flames, blown apart by detonating drones.

“We’ve got another one,” said Trevin, indicating a patch of sea much closer than the one Jesse had just set on fire. A second construct had appeared, this one with seven chimneys. They were already firing, sending a series of black balls arcing to all points of the seastead, which responded with a cloud of drones thick enough to blot out the stars.

War, Clair thought. There was no mistaking this situation for posturing or bluster. It was happening, and it was happening in earnest.

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