Endurus (Forged Alliance Book 7) by Anthony James

Author:Anthony James [James, Anthony]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2021-10-12T22:00:00+00:00

Chapter Fourteen

Vance couldn’t even bring himself to curse when news about the imminent cancelling of the stasis came through. He and his platoon had been dropped into the deep end of the shitpool with weights tied to their feet, but as far as missions went, it was no different to usual.

The last of the Kilvar crew on this part of the bridge had been shot dead, and that left the way clear to the linked room.

“Are we pushing forward, sir?” asked Lieutenant Gantry, when he received the order to crack the security on the next door.

“I don’t see that we have a choice, Lieutenant,” said Vance. “We either put ourselves in zero-time and hope it all works out, or we locate the Shadow of Kilvus on this warship and put that bastard into zero-time instead.”

“Or drop the extractor beacon and run,” said Gantry.

“Shooting any Kilvar soldiers as we go,” said Lieutenant Tagra.

“I can’t sugar-coat it,” said Vance. He patted his Balon cannon. “At least we’ve got the firepower to hold our own this time.”

“The door security is broken, sir,” said Gantry. “The oblex core is just finishing its analysis of those Kilvar symbols as well.”

“I look forward to discussing the weather with our dead-faced buddies,” said Vance.

Before he could give the order to open the door, a comm came through from the Gorgadar, advising him that the Kilvar wreckage was about to leave zero-time.

“That’s our warning,” said Vance. He pointed at the door. “Open it.”

“Yes, sir.”

Vance raised his voice. “Be ready! If you see a Kilvar – shoot it!”

The door slid open, with the same straining judder as the last one. As it happened, Vance’s body was gripped by the familiar aching pains that told him he was within a death aura.

“That confirms we’re in the right place,” he growled.

Through the door was a passage leading to another room. The light was bad, but Vance could see movement and the long strands of head cables.

He no longer cared about preserving the hardware.

“Ipanvir – give them some advance notice we’re coming.”

“Yes, Captain.”

Rocket coils whined and the Daklan’s missile raced into the room, the sharpness of its propellant cutting through the clinging odours of decay. The missile detonated silently in the vacuum. The explosion didn’t require oxygen to reach its full potential and Vance averted his gaze to protect his eyes from the light.

“Squad A, with me,” he said, striding towards the linking passage.

Vance’s foot caught on a bunch of head cables which had fallen across the aisle and he dragged one of the dead Kilvar crew with him. Cursing, he kicked himself free and advanced into the passage.

The light from the blast was gone, but numerous helmet flashlights stabbed into the darkness. Burnt bodies and scorched tech produced a stench which almost made Vance gag, while the thickly rising smoke shrouded every detail, leaving him trying to identify any threats which might remain. He sensed and heard movement somewhere ahead – a scraping sound that made him think of a damaged Kilvar dragging itself across the floor.

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