Qalea Drop by Joel Shepherd

Author:Joel Shepherd [Shepherd, Joel]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2020-11-02T07:00:00+00:00

Trace awoke expecting a corbi attic. Baskets of grain on the boards, Giddy sleeping nearby, her rifle within easy reach. Afternoon sunlight beaming through the thatch, the discomfort of hot, stuffy air. Wishing she could remove more clothes to sleep better, but practical as she and Giddy had become, that remained an unwise step too far.

But now there was a cool paving stone beneath her cheek, and she was not hot, but kind of cold. Her jacket was off, she realised, and she was face down on the pavings. The difficulty breathing came from her hands tied behind her back, and the pressure on her diaphragm. Her mouth tasted like acid, and the aftermath of having thrown up. Worse, Giddy wasn't lying beside her, because she was on Eshir, while Giddy had died on Rando. Had died separated from her, with corbi for companions who'd loved him far more than they'd loved her. The corbi had known that he cared about them. Perhaps he'd even loved them more, in the end, than he'd loved her.

About her, Trace heard conversation. She turned her head to look, and saw an encirclement of boots on the pavings all about. Either she'd been out a long time, or there'd been people already here, or close by. Purists, probably. If they were Zeladnists, she'd probably have been a lot less comfortable.

She turned her head back the other way, and felt a boot pressing her shoulderblades, and harsh words in Arabic. Felt the muzzle of a rifle in the back of her neck. On her other side was Terez, face down, hands bound, also with someone armed standing alongside. She could not see Rael.

She closed her eyes to see the uplink icon, and blinked on reception, keeping her breathing long, slow and calm. "Hello Styx," she formulated silently. "What can you tell of the current situation?"

"Major, you have been incapacitated by the same weapon that was utilised against us at the Zondi Splicer. All of your marines are well enough. Corporal Arime and Private Rolonde were in the medical room and not incapacitated, but were persuaded by threats to your life, and by my own encouragement." Meaning that Styx, Trace thought, was reasonably confident they'd have shot her if Arime hadn't surrendered.

"How many bugs do you have in here?" Trace asked.

"Four," said Styx. "There are currently eleven Purists, thirteen if one includes Taj and Dagan, and more are arriving on the roof even now. I could eliminate some, but the others would likely recognise the threat and start shooting. I calculate that the risk is too great. You should take this opportunity to learn who these people are now that they perceive themselves to be in control."

Styx was not the only one who could calculate. Carville, Randrahan and Wang were still free, with Jokono, Romki, Styx and Peanut. Launching a hostage-rescue operation was going to be fraught with danger. This building, isolated in a relatively open space of valley floor, was hard to sneak up on.

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