Metro 7 by Hellscream Matthew J
Author:Hellscream, Matthew J. [Hellscream, Matthew J.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2014-04-05T00:00:00+00:00
EIGHTEEN
Alphonseâs non-functioning body lay motionless next to a trash can. Draco fired his pistol at the approaching horde of fleshlings crawling from the houses, drains and the darkness all around them. He wanted to believe that Al would come back by himself, but as the seconds passed his belief waned.
Draco thought about carrying Al somewhere safe. But he didnât know of a single place on the ship that would be safe. He looked up briefly and saw that the top few floors of Metro Tower were illuminated. That meant that the guardian shell program would also be back online and should bring all of the other systems back online one by one.
There was no way Draco could make it to Metro Tower while carrying Al. It would be too much for Raze to keep the creatures away from both of them. Draco refused to put Razeâs life in danger like that. But he couldnât just leave Al behind.
âIâm trying to think exit strategies here Raze, but Iâm coming up short. Any ideas?â Draco asked.
âI donât know much about Children of iNet. If this was an EMP, would his systems even be able to survive it?â
âI donât know.â
âEven if he did come back, could we be sure he wouldnât be a danger to us and malfunction? â
âI donât know, but I canât just leave him.â
âWhat about giving him some juice?â
âOf course! Itâll take most of my suitâs systems offline for a few minutes, though. Will you be able to hold out long enough for it to reboot?â
âDo it, Captain. Iâve got your back.â
The life support systems of the smartsuits included various functions, including defibrillators built into the palms of the hands. The small jolt of energy required to restart a human heart would have no effect on a Child of iNet. Draco changed the output to ten times normal levels and placed his hands on Alphonseâs chest.
âClear!â he yelled.
Raze picked off the creatures as they shambled towards them.
Alâs body didnât lurch like a human body would have done. He remained motionless.
âRaze, heâs not moving! Have you ever seen this done on a Child of iNet before? I donât know what I should be looking for!â
âWe donât even know if his internal systems still function at all. His circuitry might be fried. There may be no coming back for him, Captain.â
âI am not going to leave him here!â
Dracoâs smartsuitâs muscle augmentations had been disabled. Even if he could leave, he wouldnât be able to move at full speed. Without Al, Draco knew that he wouldnât make it out of there alive.
âIâm going to try again!â Draco said and commanded his suit to charge for another burst of energy.
âIf you do that, youâll knock your suit functions out!â
Draco ignored Raze, even though he knew the big man was talking sense. But Draco had never been able to leave a man behind. He placed his hands on Alphonseâs chest again. As soon as the shock left Dracoâs palms, his suit shut down completely. The suit became instantly heavier, and Draco slumped backwards.
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