The Knife's Edge (War Eternal Book 3) by Forbes M.R

Author:Forbes, M.R. [Forbes, M.R.]
Language: eng
Format: azw3
Tags: science fiction
Publisher: Quirky Algorithms
Published: 2015-10-24T16:00:00+00:00

34

"Welcome to Hell, Colonel," Teal said as the Avalon dropped from hyperspace.

Mitchell experienced the all-too-common moment of tension that always came from dropping into unknown territory in enemy space. It was followed by a breath of semi-relief when scanners didn't pick up any trouble.

"It looks like you were right about the state of the planet," Germaine said.

Hell sat in front of them, spinning slowly in its orbit. A false ring of debris stretched around it, marking the remains of the Federation's defenses of the planet. Dark pits mottled Hell's surface where the Tetron plasma stream had torn into the sediment.

"Get us down to the surface. I'm going to prep the inspection team. Knock me if anything jumps out at us."

"Yes, sir," Germaine said.

Mitchell backed out of the cockpit, passing through the narrow corridor that led to the rear of the ship, with Teal following behind. The inspection team would be the first feet on the planet, a smaller group that would survey the damage, locate salvage, and tag anything that should be brought back to the Avalon. The retrieval teams - the rest of the crew - would then load the Avalon up as quickly as possible.

"Teal," Mitchell said, passing into the first equipment module, where they had secured the mining equipment. "Find Krit and tell him to begin offloading the mining equipment as soon as we've given the all clear. Whether we use the drilling tools or not, we're leaving it behind."

"Yes, sir," Teal said. "We can't mine the Tetron to death, can we?" He broke off through the module's hatch in search of the soldier.

Mitchell continued on, passing through the mech carrier and into the rear cargo area. It had been mostly empty during the trip, converted into an open exercise area by the crew where they could do resistance training, sparring, or just get a little breathing room away from their fellow soldiers. It would be loaded down with salvage soon enough.

In the meantime, the inspection team was using it as a staging area. They waited near the rear hatch of the ship, already hooked into the light exoskeletons and life support systems that would allow them to move quickly on the planet, rifles slung to their backs and equipment laying at their feet. Mitchell still cringed every time he looked at the devices they were forced to carry. A single networked p-rat could do the work of all of the gathered electronics with little more than a thought.

"Colonel," Cormac said with a slight bow. The rest of the team followed his lead. "Your exo is waiting for you over there."

"Thank you, Firedog," Mitchell said. He surveyed the remainder of his team. Tio designated individuals more like machines, with letters and numbers to identify specific people to pass orders to. It worked, but it stole the identity away from people and disconnected them from one another. To Mitchell, it made it seem like their lives were unimportant.

He had done away with that first thing. Instead, the five

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