Sleeper Ship by Heppner Vaughn

Author:Heppner, Vaughn [Heppner, Vaughn]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Amazon: B09VFZB59N
Goodreads: 60717211
Published: 2022-04-04T07:00:00+00:00

-24-

We floated through the nighttime sky with the glorious moon providing light. Frankly, I’m surprised no one spotted us as we descended. Perhaps not thinking to look for escapees, no one noticed the two humans softly floating toward the shimmering desert floor.

Why would Psi-Master Chandler compel Livi to destroy the Dandelion Wine? Did that mean Alvor had an issue against the Shajoks? Given that the Krekelens had sent and instructed the Shajoks long ago on exterminating the humans on Tynar, was this action supposed to light a fire under the reluctant Shajoks? Was this an object lesson regarding the dangers of failing to fulfill Krekelen orders? Why had the Krekelens only sent two agents to Tynar?

I snorted to myself. I was in the dark about much. Colonel McPherson and her people were likewise in the dark about much.

“Bayard,” Livi said.

The ground neared, but she needn’t have worried. We both gently landed on the cool sands. A moment later, I shut off both floaters.

The two sky-rafts continued their flight.

“Bayard,” Livi said, grabbing my left wrist and pointing.

The rearward sky-raft closed the distance with the forward one, the Dandelion Wine. Abruptly, cannons roared, just like an old-time sailing vessel broadside. The cannons fired from the second raft into the first. I imagine it surprised those on the first raft, as treacherous an assault as any I’d seen.

The Dandelion Wine shuddered, and the giant raft tilted crazily.

In the darkness, we heard distant screams and roars of protest.

Several seconds later, a second broadside blasted against the wounded sky-raft. This time, shot burst apart sections of the Dandelion Wine. There was a horrible and torturous groan of metal, perhaps the under-plate of the main raft. A glowing anti-gravity disc exploded and plunged like a fiery comet to the desert floor. More pieces followed: wooden splinters, boards, Shajoks and various kinds of furniture. A metallic shriek that lasted far too long heralded another anti-grav disc depowering and raining down. Suddenly, an entire section of the Dandelion Wine twisted and shrieked off the main sinking hulk. The first part plunged and hit the ground with a tremendous thud.

From here, I felt the ground shake, while Livi’s right hand tightened around my own.

“It’s okay,” I said. “We should be fine over here.”

A third broadside exploded something in the remaining sky-raft, and pieces blew off or rushed toward the ground. It was the end of the Dandelion Wine, as there was no more sky-raft, just raining pieces and Shajoks.

Clearly, Alvor the Sleek was a real bastard of a Krekelen and could have given Charmalos a run for the title of worst alien ever.

“It’s possible some Shajoks might have survived the attack,” Livi said quietly.

I thought about that. If some had donned floaters in time, it might have been possible they’d jumped free. That brought up an obvious corollary. If Alvor had gone to such lengths to destroy the Dandelion Wine, he’d make sure there were no survivors. I suspected that was Livi’s point.

We thus hurried to a tall cactus with many branches of prickly thorns.

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