Rise the Renegade: A Rork Sollix Space Opera Adventure by George Donnelly

Author:George Donnelly
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781941939062
Publisher: Cheverer

22

“Request denied.”

The connection with the EDF ship dropped. Rork turned to Zero, his mind a jumble.

“Didn’t I just surrender?”

“Did you? Are you sure that is indeed what you—”

“What do you mean, am I sure? Yes! I am sure!”

Zero nodded. He placed one arm across his chest, rested the elbow of his other arm over it and with that other hand cupped his chin. He massaged his beard, a dark scowl on his face. “There is something bigger than us going on here.”

“I told you it wasn’t our fault.”

“I did not imply that we are blameless.” Zero scolded him with his eyes. He took a small step back and pointed out the sundeck window.

Rork turned around. A red pulse landed next to the sundeck and the plates rattled under his feet. A dozen more red pulses flew from the EDF ship’s pointed prow. They raced directly for a point somewhere between Rork’s eyes and his scalp.

“Run!” Rork turned and pushed Zero ahead of him. They sprinted across the now-empty sundeck, feet smacking thin metal, turning and launching the next forward.

Zero crossed the bulkhead and extended his hand. Rork threw himself after him, his fingers aching, grasping for Zero’s.

The pulses hit and an icy scream reverberated through Rork. The breath pushed out of his lungs. Bulkheads further on boomed shut and Rork slammed to the floor as the pressure fell.

Zero hauled him into the corridor and the sundeck’s bulkhead door closed behind them. They collapsed to the floor, their mouths moving but precious little air entering their lungs in the sparse atmosphere.

Air flooded in from above and a curling cloud formed over Rork’s head. He pulled himself up.

“An—” The word caught in Rork’s brittle, parched throat. He held up his right hand, his fingers grasping the warm drink his body ached for.

“Wait for recompression, sir.” The squirrelly voice tickled Rork’s ear. He leveraged himself up using the guardrail and got to a kneeling position.

The corridor turned right where Rork sat. A closed bulkhead limited his movement just a few meters ahead of him. Behind him was the now burned-out sundeck. Far down the corridor in other direction lay another closed bulkhead.

A dark dent appeared in the sundeck’s bulkhead followed by a wheezing-sizzling.

Rork got himself up. He grabbed Zero’s arms and pulled him down the corridor. He banged on the closed bulkhead and tried to speak but his throat didn’t respond. He tapped the com button, again and again.

The door opened and Rork dragged Zero through, his shoulders fallen, his arms hanging low, his neck aching from sustaining the weight of his head.

Another wheezing-sizzling sound and a hole opened in the sundeck bulkhead. A high scream started but cut off when the bulkhead door collapsed and disappeared.

A breeze swept Rork and Zero backwards, inexorably backwards, all progress disappearing in milliseconds. Rork saw himself in space. It was over.

The bulkhead door they’d just come through slammed closed and Rork collapsed to the floor, Zero mumbling at his side.

“Would you like that hot drink now?”

Rork closed his eyes, face down against the cold metal floor panels.

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