Weapons Free (Drop Trooper Book 13) by Rick Partlow
Author:Rick Partlow [Partlow, Rick]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Aethon Books
Published: 2023-07-17T23:00:00+00:00
17
âWow,â Dr. Spinner breathed, his eyes wide. âIâd seen the pictures and video that the expedition took of this place, but they didnât do it justice.â
It was impressive. A hell of a lot more impressive than the last system, the second Homeworlder colony. The Feds and the Grey shared a name for that oneâWasteland. That was a translation to English, of course, and I was sure their own word carried more nuance, but the description was apt. The planet had been more desert than anything else. Some high desert, some low desert, and small bands of green at the poles, a couple larger, lush islands where the population was settled, but not much chance of expansion without extensive planetary engineering. Which was centuries beyond these people.
Weâd passed through the jumpgate with hardly a look backward, our attention and our worries all focused ahead. Duty stations were on high alert, Intercepts and assault shuttles were prepped for launch and, just in case, I even had Vicky ready with a platoon to repel boarders. No, that wasnât likely, but part of being the commander meant preparing for every scenario, not just the likely ones.
âIt seems like such a waste,â Dwight said and Spinner started, goggling up at the AIâs avatar at the side of the main display. âTwo habitable planets, the third and fourth worlds out, plus the largest moon of the gas giant shows signs of being habitable as well, depending on the radiation exposure. And not a soul living here.â
The worlds were beautiful, both of them. Having two habitables wasnât unheard of. 82 Eridani had both Eden and Inferno, and it wasnât the only system like that. But generally, only one of the living worlds was hospitable. Eden was exactly as advertised, a world with huge temperate zones and a moderate climate, while Inferno was a hellhole, barely livable in summer and then only near the poles. That wasnât the case here. These planets were twin sisters, each wreathed in blues and greens.
Even the moon of the closest gas giant to the primary star wasnât bad, at least seen from a distance.
âWeâre not picking up anything?â I asked Wojtera. The Tactical officer shook his head.
âNot around the habitables. No signs of ships, stations, satellites, and absolutely no energy signatures on the planets. Thereâs at least plant life there, but if thereâs anything sentient on either of them, it hasnât built anything hotter than a campfire.â
âThat doesnât make any sense,â Nance grumbled. âWhy would they chase everyone out of here if they didnât plan on taking advantage of the place themselves? This system is a gem. If it was in the Commonwealth, thereâd be a billion people living in it, minimum.â
âYou have a billion people living in your colonies?â Spinner asked me, disbelief strong in his stare.
âA lot more than that now,â I confirmed. âThereâs at least as many people off Earth as on it nowadays.â
This time, I was strapped into the commanderâs chair. We were decelerating at a comfortable one gravity at the moment, but God alone knew what weâd be facing on this side of the jumpgate.
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