Stranded (Shadows of the Void Space Opera Serial Book 2) by J.J. Green

Author:J.J. Green [Green, J.J.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: InfiniteBook
Published: 2016-11-15T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter Ten

Karrev had stolen a fancy, pure silk bag in which to carry the bottle of mythranil, but that was the least of his work since securing the drug as his, and his alone. He’d made sure that Micah had an unfortunate accident in the engine. Dr. Sparks’ tests on what remained of the body had found alcohol in his blood, so it wasn’t difficult to conclude that the man had climbed into an engine access hatch while intoxicated, and slipped and fallen.

Karrev had also bribed two guards with a couple of drops of the precious myth for access to the small armory. He’d passed two of the weapons he purloined to a couple of burly friends and promised them a once-a-month run in return for their services. The rest of the weapons were to be distributed to those who would go along with his plan.

Now, he had to get the support of a sizeable proportion of the crew. Most of them were like him—only basically modded, or even naturals. Shut out of the circles in which society’s elites moved, their hard lives were made more bearable by regularly resorting to narcotics. They would be familiar with the rumors about myth, though few would have had the money or opportunity to try it. He could offer them the prospect of hours of bliss in return for simply switching allegiance from their current masters to him.

And now that Harrington was off the ship, it should be simple to take control.

He’d put out the word: anyone who was unhappy with the current situation was to meet in the auditorium at a certain hour. Karrev hadn’t been surprised when he saw the large turnout. Morale was low. There’d been no mention of getting off the planet, or a rescue ship. All they’d heard from the higher-ups was work, work, work; do this, do that. Meanwhile, it was getting colder, and everyone knew the food wouldn’t last forever.

When it looked like no one else was coming, Karrev stepped up to the podium and ordered that the doors be shut. The room buzzed. He held up a hand for silence. He would let his greatest asset do the talking for him. He pulled apart the strings of his bag, reached in, and took out the bottle. As he held it up, the assembled crew members exhaled as one. But Karrev didn’t achieve the shock factor he was hoping for. Word had gotten out. “He really does have myth,” said a voice. “I never believed it till now.”

“You’d better believe it,” said Karrev. “I found it in Loba’s cabin, locked away in a safe that only I could figure out the combination to.” It was simpler than explaining about the box, and Karrev had kept it to store the myth in while he slept.

“Found,” someone said. “That’s a good way of putting it.”

Karrev smiled. “It was there for the taking. Finders keepers, as they say. But it can be yours, too, if you follow me.”

The shipmates Karrev had persuaded to be his bodyguards stood on either side of him, gripping their weapons.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.