Starship Pegasus by Benjamin Douglas

Author:Benjamin Douglas [Douglas, Benjamin]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2019-04-16T16:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER 14

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“Might we want to vacate the street?” Lucas said to Mulligan. “Ah… Sir?”

“Follow me.” Max turned his hulking back on them and parted through the foot-traffic to a storefront, then dodged around and disappeared into an alley. They joined him there and pressed their backs to the wall, watching from out of sight as the procession approached.

Mulligan frowned. “Who’re they? Never saw a get-up like that in Rust before.”

“No.” Max was grim. “New outfit, in a manner of speaking. Outsiders. Brought in from on high.”

“Not exactly a mafia outfit,” Lucas said. “The Arms of the Sons.”

Mulligan’s eyes grew wide with recognition. The Arms of the Sons were a specialized military training force known system-wide for their skill and ruthlessness. They’d all heard of them, Lucas was sure.

“That means a True Son must be here,” he said.

“Really?” Caspar scoffed. “Do you want to consult the game guide to confirm?”

“What are you two talking about?” Adams asked.

“It’s from a game, Adams.” Caspar gestured in the air. “Jupiter Wars. You’ve never played?”

“Some of us spend our time working.”

The men in red passed the entrance to the alley. Mulligan leaned in and explained in a whisper.

“In Jupiter Wars, the Arms of the Sons isn’t just a special ops force. It’s a cadet-training program for the most secretive, specialized black-ops force in the Empire—the Sons of Jupiter. According to the game, wherever you find a squad of the Arms, you’ll find at least one True Son—an SOJ operative—usually working undercover.”

“But it’s a game?” Adams asked.

“Not just a game,” Lucas said. “It was blacklisted in the Empire as soon as it came out. And the developers disappeared. Not a word from them in a decade. Coincidence?”

Caspar shrugged. “I don’t think the fact that the Empire didn’t like the Arms being featured in a kids’ game means there’s a super-secret super-spy camped out with every group of men marching around in red. In my experience, those in power are perfectly happy to let drones and us grunts duke out their battles for them these days.”

“What are they doing here?” Mulligan said, looking at Max. He bobbed his head around, considering.

“Dunno. Looking for recruits? That’s what some of the boys think. Dragon was talkin’ about tryin’ to join.”

“They wouldn’t recruit here,” Lucas said. Max seemed to hover a little closer, a little taller. “No offense, I mean. They just tend to stick to places with… er, places like…”

“Was that in your game, too?” Max growled.

Lucas swallowed a lump in his throat. His arms felt like jelly. “Yeah… nevermind.”

“Max,” Mulligan said. “I’m serious. I need to talk to Darren. Do you know anyone else who might know where he is?”

Max’s mood didn’t improve. “Might talk to Sharky, I guess. If you have to. But Angie, what’s the big deal? Come out with us tonight. You can even bring your weird friends. Relax, have some fun while you’re here! You don’t need to go and see him.”

She smiled a little sadly and rested a hand on his beefy arm. “I appreciate the sentiment, Max.

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