The Sheriff: A post-apocalyptic sci-fi western (Sheriff Duke Book 1) by M.R. Forbes

Author:M.R. Forbes [Forbes, M.R.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2020-02-23T22:00:00+00:00

37

“No moving, Sheriff. I need to adjust the ties.”

Hayden remained still as Rasheed, one of the Buzzard pilots, pulled on the straps on the left side of the mask, needing to make it tighter to adjust for his missing ear. According to Rasheed, the fit was important because remaining focused on the drone’s vision was essential, and any light that came in through the mask was potentially distracting. Losing concentration could not only cause the drone to crash, it could lead to vomiting inside the headgear. It didn’t come off quickly, which meant the wearer could literally choke on their own puke and die if they weren’t careful.

Hayden felt the tug of the leather straps against his wound, and he gritted his teeth and stayed silent despite the pain. The damage was healing, but it was still tender.

“We good,” Rasheed said. “Sheriff?”

“Pitch black,” Hayden replied.

Not completely. The lenses glued to the mask were currently translucent, allowing him to see out until the drone was switched on and active, allowing the pilot to move around without having to take the mask off. Clint was sitting on his left, the other mask on his head. Alina perched on his right—CRG in hand—keeping an eye on the nomad leader and his people. Hayden had been cryptic in his explanation of the situation, but she didn’t need much prompting to stay cautious and alert.

“Yeah, look tight,” Rasheed agreed. “You know how zoom a Buzzah, Sheriff?” The tall, thin man had an interesting accent that Clint described as gumbo. According to him, a lot of people down south shared the patois.

“This is my first time.”

“Ah. Clean green. I tell you what, Sheriff. Where you look, the Buzzah go. You lower eyelids, Buzzah go slower. You open eyelids, Buzzah go faster. Yaba?”

“Pozz,” Hayden replied. “Sounds easy enough.”

Rasheed laughed. “Is faster than you think, Sheriff. But no, not so hard. Many people, they hate the mask. That the hard part. Make them dizzy. Make them sick. Not so easy to get off. But you not afraid. I think you be fine.”

“Clint, are you ready to power up?” Hayden asked.

Clint looked back at him. Hayden could still see the tinge of fear in his eyes through the lenses. It would only take a word to turn the nomads against their leader. While it was true that there were no laws out here, that didn’t change people’s sense of common decency or morality. Hayden knew there were places where Clint’s actions were too much of the norm. This wasn’t one of them.

“I’m ready,” Clint replied.

“Sheriff, reach back to press switch on computer,” Rasheed said.

Hayden reached back to the pack he was wearing, running his hand along the fabric side until he found the hole. He dug his finger into it, finding the switch that would activate the system. He flipped it up.

Immediately, the lenses became completely dark, and the USSF eagle and star logo appeared in three dimensions in front of the black. It was only there for a few seconds before the system on his back connected to the Buzzard on the ground outside the church.

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.