Empires: A Classic Space Opera Adventure (The Adam Cain Chronicles Book 2)

by T. R. Harris

  22

  Adam was back to the spot where he’d attacked the three thugs, which was both good and bad. The jungle was just ahead, but it was also close to the spaceport. To reach Balamar by way of the jungle, they would have to turn south and cross through virgin growth with no roads or maps to guide them. It was still dark and two hours before dawn. They would have to navigate by feel, hoping they could keep going in the right direction. Not unless the tank had a navigation system, and they could learn how to use it on the fly, even though on-the-job training hadn’t worked for the Humans so far. Adam still didn’t know how to aim the cannon, and Mike hadn’t found reverse. The other option was navigation by the stars, which would be invisible to them through the jungle canopy. All that was left was the sense of feel, as the terrain sloped gently toward the ocean. Adam hoped it would be enough to keep them from getting lost.

  They crashed into the overgrowth at the edge of Kanac and immediately dropped to a third of their previous speed. The tank was effective at barreling over ferns and smaller palms, but they had to steer around the larger Banyan-like trees that filled the jungle. And the cameras were becoming useless, as mud splashed up on the lenses and stuck.

  “I’ll go up and guide you,” Adam said, clutching one of the superweapons and heading for the escape hatch above them.

  He opened the hatch and poked his head out, being immediately slapped in the face by long stalks of vegetation dangling from branches higher up. There was also a plethora of insect life and smaller animals that were falling onto and into the tank, shaken loose by the passage of the vehicle. A snake-like thing fell past Adam and into the driver’s compartment. The tank lurched to a stop, and the light from a pair of flash bolts filled the night, accompanied by Mike’s profanity-laced tirade. After a moment, the tank was moving again.

  Adam kept yelling down at Mike, telling him to steer left or right to avoid the thicker trees. They were in an all-terrain vehicle and it was doing a pretty good job with the muddy muck on the ground.

  Then a series of flash bolts streaked overhead.

  Adam ducked before looking behind them.

  The tank had been cutting a rough road through the dense foliage and now two four-wheel-drive carts were racing after them. Each vehicle was full of crazed-looking aliens, firing their weapons widely at the slow-moving tank.

  Adam energized the rifle and aimed the weapon at the aliens. He kept the charge setting on level-2 to preserve his ammo. The range of the weapon was far beyond that of standard energy rifles and he used this to his advantage to keep the carts at bay.

  “Yo! I can’t see!” Mike yelled. “Help!”

  Adam stopped shooting long enough to give Mike crude directions, before going back to firing. The super rifle had an added feature most Xan-fi-type weapons didn’t have, and that was a telescopic sight. Normal flash rifles only have a range of a hundred meters or so, making the sights unnecessary in most applications. But the superweapon was accurate up to five hundred meters or more, making the scopes essential. It was also infrared, giving a greenish glow to the dark of the jungle.

  Adam’s heart skipped a beat when he sighted through the scope. The aliens were pointing a tube in their direction. He recognized it instantly as a seismic sounding rocket, something used in mining operations on the planet. It was the closest thing to an RPG on L-3, and the aliens were about to light one off at the ass end of the lumbering tank.

  “Left! Go left!” Adam yelled. But it was too late.

  The rocket shot off, covering the relatively short distance in a flash. The tank bucked, nearly throwing Adam out the top.

  “What the hell was that?” Mike yelled from inside the tank.

  “Just a rocket,” Adam replied. “Brace yourself; they’re firing another one!”

  This one hit the right-side track, breaking the linkage and causing it to feed out onto the mud. The tank shifted hard to the right. All it could do now was go in circles.

  “We’re bailing!” Mike said as he handed another of the superweapons to Adam while taking two for himself. He looped the strap from one across his back while holding the other in firing position.

  Adam was on the ground, ankle-deep in smelly muck when Mike appeared at the hatch. In the dark distance, the four-wheel carts were coming closer. Occasionally, the gloom illuminated by flash bolts going off in their direction.

  That’s when Adam saw a towering dark figure appear out the jungle and scoop up the lead cart in its huge, teeth-lined mouth. The aliens in the trailing cart opened fire on the T-Rex-like dinosaur, illuminating the scene for the two stunned Humans. They didn’t stay transfixed for long. Something solid hit Adam in the back, throwing him forward a good five meters. He landed face-first in the mud before rolling over as a dark form stepped over him and scooped up the tank in its mouth.

  The creature was called a Cryonous. It stood twenty feet tall and resembled a T-Rex, yet with the tusks of a rhinoceros and a spiny plate of bone encircling the thick neck. Adam caught a glimpse of Mike falling from the open hatchway as the tank turned upside down before being tossed to the side once the second dinosaur realized it wasn’t food. But then the huge nostrils flared and the beast followed the scent to something that was. Unfortunately, it was Adam.

  A heavy foot—correction, a toe—pressed down on his body, pressing him further into the mud. A car-size head angled toward him, yellow, beady eyes reflecting the occasional energy flash from the aliens as they made a vain attempt to fight off the first beast. Even the seismic rockets were no match for a Cryonous. They were the king of the beasts on Liave-3 if one didn’t count the alien mammals that had invaded their domain.

  Out the corner of his eye, Adam spotted Mike, kneeling near a Banyan tree, while bringing a superweapon to bear on the huge dinosaur. The rifle had grenades and ballistics, but Adam doubted if even that would stop the beast from having Adam as an appetizer. The huge head came closer, the animal taking an instinctive sniff of its meal before devouring it.

  Then it hesitated, the yellow eyes locked on Adam. It made a sound, a whine or whimper before the long tongue fell out of the mouth and the animal began panting.

  “Don’t shoot!” Adam called out.

  “What … what?”

  “I said, hold your fire! I think I know her.”

  “Her?”

  As the huge head moved away, Adam sat up in the mud. He reached out with a hand and stroked the rough skin on the animal’s snout.

  “Hello, Ginger,” he said. “It’s been a long time.”

  Adam climbed to his feet, covered in mud and soaking wet. The dinosaur stepped back, coming to her full twenty-foot height. Adam looked around and found his weapon. He took it and turned it on, pointing the pair of LED displays into the night, lighting the scene to a degree.

  Another loud rumbling came from his right. He cringed as he saw the first savage dinosaur racing toward him, having dispensed with the aliens in carts before turning on Adam and Mike.

  Ginger lowered her head and let out an ear-shattering growl at the other creature, stopping it in its tracks. The two huge beasts squared off. Adam ran to where Mike was hiding, huddled behind a thick, moss-covered tree trunk, mesmerized by the battle about to take place.

  But no battle took place. Instead, the first dinosaur gave out a frustrated return grunt and then backed off; its hunger already somewhat satiated with the tiny alien morsels from the carts.

  Adam stepped out from behind the tree. Mike grabbed at his shirt but missed it.

  “What the hell are you doing?”

  “It’s okay,” Adam said. “She won’t hurt you.”

  Human and dinosaur met in the bluish glow of the LED panels. Like a dog greeting its master, the huge head dropped, allowing Adam to scratch the coarse grey skin. It wasn’t so much the feel as it was the gesture that the animal appreciated.

  Mike stepped next to Adam, his jaw slack.

  “I’d like you to meet Ginger,” Adam said. “She’s Coop’s old pet dinosaur;
he raised her from a pup, or whatever they call baby dinosaurs. I met her over ten years ago, maybe more.”

  “And she remembers you? Bullshit.”

  “Maybe not me, but she must recognize the smell of a Human. To her, Humans are friends. After the Juireans attacked Copernicus’s shipyard, she must have gone back into the wild.” Adam snorted. “She also grew up. Back then, she was about a third of the size she is now. She hasn’t wandered too far from her old home. We must be getting close to the coastline.”

  Mike shook his head. “I’ve been hearing about the famous Adam Cain my entire life, wondering how you’ve been able to do all the things you’ve done. Now I know. It’s because you’re the luckiest son of a bitch in the galaxy.”

  “No argument there. However, it’s the universe, son. I’m the luckiest son of a bitch in the universe. And multi-universes, at that. Read the stories. They’re fascinating.”

  “Yeah, whatever. Now, if you’re done basking in your glory, we still have a lot of jungle to cover, and now we’re on foot. This is your planet; lead on.”

  23

  The sky was growing brighter as the first traces of the new day gave form to the thick jungle. Ginger happily went her way after the brief reunion, following the trail of the first dinosaur—probably her mate. Good for her. She’d found love in the jungle. Adam hoped he treated her well, although he seemed like a real jerk.

  At one point, the two Humans came to a small break in the forest. They’d been going downhill for a while, which meant they were getting closer to shore. And there in the opening was the dark, solid mass of the ocean, viewed from several hundred feet above sea level. Adam could see the swath of the coast road that hugged the shore. He was familiar with this part of the bay. The swells came in at an angle here, creating a decent break not too far from the shore. Adam had a surfboard made in Kanac, and he often surfed the break in the winter months when the waves were the biggest. He recognized this particular stretch of beach, knowing they were only about a mile from Coop’s shipyard.

  With renewed vigor, he led the alien assassin out of the deep jungle and into the thinner forest of the littoral plain.

  The shipyard was to the north, just past a wide-open field. The crumbling white coquina wall surrounding the compound was visible, along with several rusting hulks of derelict spaceships Copernicus had collected over the years.

  Adam had known Copernicus Smith for over ten years. They were friends, even though the relationship got off to a rocky start. It began when Coop kidnapped Adam and Riyad, eventually selling them to the Klin for a boatload of cash. In truth, Coop was a deep-cover spy for the Orion-Cygnus Union and was using the pair as bait to track down one of the last surviving Klin Colony Ships. He operated using the cover as an unscrupulous a starship repairman, one who would work for any client willing to pay. It gave him access to most of the criminal cartels operating in the Kidis Frontier. His headquarters was the shipyard he had on Liave-3, just south of the beautiful coastal enclave of Balamar. This was long before Dal Divisen came to the planet to found the wild boomtown of Kanac.

  Eventually, Copernicus joined Adam’s tiny band of adventurers, becoming a dear friend of both Adam and Riyad. He became especially close to Sherri, who paired up with the handsome renegade for several years until he’d returned to spy work at the end of the Kracion affair.

  Coop’s former shipyard Coop had seen better days. Since the Big Three Partnership assumed control, activity at the facility had been limited to a few rehab jobs Adam’s alien friends Kaylor and Jym did to some of the salvageable derelicts on site. It was this inventory that Riyad got his three working freighters which he now rented out to salvagers. There were a couple of other vessels ready to go, including a tiny speeder which was of no use in salvage operations but was always nice to have around for quick jaunts around the Dead Worlds.

  By now, Adam had to assume the Juireans knew his destination. The tank cut a path into the jungle heading south and then west. They would figure he was trying to get to Balamar. But did they know about the shipyard? There was no reason they would. It was five miles south of the town, and with only sketchy recordkeeping on L-3, there was no paperwork showing the Human’s ownership interest in the long-abandoned facility.

  Still, they approached with caution before scanning the interior grounds through a broken-down section of the wall at the southeast corner of the compound.

  Sherri’s transport was there, parked outside the single wooden structure that had once been Coop’s home and office. The repaired speeder had been moved into a clearing at the right of the building, ready for Hannon to make his escape—once he gave them the information they needed to clear their names. Since it was still a few minutes before sunrise, the lights were on in the building.

  With superweapons firmly in their grip, the Humans climbed through the broken wall and made their way to the side of the building. Adam signaled that he would open the door as Hannon made the breach. On his count, Adam flung open the door.

  24

  Mike was through the doorway a heartbeat later, coming in low and fast, ready for anything. What he saw inside made him stop, sigh and stand up, lowering his weapon.

  Adam came in a second later, having the same reaction.

  Sherri and Kaylor were in the center of the room with a pair of green-haired Juirean Guards at their side, Xan-fi flash rifles held to their heads. Not only that, but Ambassador Jeanne Euker was also there, along with Quanin’s assistant, Counselor Dansee. Two other aliens of the same race were in the room but not under guard, with sly smirks on their lips. Another eight Juirean Guards were positioned around the room, weapons ready. A pair of them moved in and relieved Adam and Mike of their rifles before beginning to search them for more weapons. The men voluntarily gave up an MK-17 and the shiny silver ’88, while keeping Adam’s spare ’17 and Mike’s Glock-19 hidden in their mud-caked clothing. The gullible Juireans accepted the weapons without searching further.

  Adam wondered about Jym; he wasn’t among the prisoners, assuming he had to be somewhere on the grounds since he and Kaylor were inseparable. Adam thought about the hidden room Copernicus had at the back of the building where he once ran his shadow spy business. Was Jym there, planning something? If so, Adam had to be ready for anything.

  Adam was shaken from his thoughts by a familiar voice. “Please join us,” said someone from behind the entourage of towering Juireans. Overlord Loncet Ra Veseem stepped around one of the Guards, a full-tooth grin on his long, angular face. “I must congratulate you on your perseverance,” he said to Adam. “You made an incredible journey and against all odds. Everything they say about you is true, with the exception that you are invincible. It appears your reign of good fortune has come to an end.”

  One of the other aliens came forward to stand in front of Mike, draped in an elaborate cloak that shimmered with bands of real gold.

  “A friend of yours?” Adam asked.

  “More like my boss. A very bad boss. This is Kracor Hafnin, leader of the Afinn Alliance.”

  “You have become a serious problem for us, Michael Hannon. You were supposed to have died at the hotel.”

  “That’s what you get for sending aliens to do a Human’s job.”

  “Arrogant to the last; however, you have served your purpose and will soon no longer be relevant.”

  Adam then frowned at Ambassador Euker. “I’m surprised to see you here, Madam Ambassador. I assume this was a joint effort. You can’t believe what they’re saying about us? Just because Hannon is a murdering asshole doesn’t mean the rest of us are.”

  “I’m afraid you’re misreading the situation, Captain Cain,” she said. “I’m just as much a prisoner here as you.”

  “I don’t understand.”

  “It’s simple. It seems the Afinn Refugee Alliance—of which we have their two main leaders present—have had an accomplice within the Juirean Authority all along, someone who helped set up this entire tragic episode.”

  Adam
scowled at Counselor Dansee. “Why would you do that? You were his friend. You’ve been with Quanin for years.”

  “Again, you are mistaken, Adam Cain,” Dansee said defiantly. “I am not the co-conspirator. It is Overlord Loncet.”

  “Loncet? No shit?”

  Dansee was thrown off balance for a moment by the translation; however, he quickly recovered and glared at the senior Juirean Overlord. “In truth, there was more information to be gleaned from Councilmember Quanin’s inquiry as to the movements of the Juirean tracking squadron involved in the Annadin affair. Once it was discovered the squadron had gone first to Dasnon, Quanin wondered why. No previous Juirean force had gone there; the settlement is too small, too inconsequential. Further investigation showed that it was Overlord Loncet who ordered the units there. In addition, he also assigned the squadron to track the Human ships heading for Annadin, a fact made available by the Union’s openness regarding their fleet movements, a show of defiance that they can go where they want within the Dead Zone.”

  Adam looked at Mike.

  “Yeah, I planted the bombs, so what?” Hannon admitted. “It was part of the assignment. But this is the first I’m hearing about the Juireans being behind it. I was given approach vectors and supplied with a small personal transport to reach the ships. Then on Annadin, I placed a signal cannon on the surface to simulate a flash bolt when seen from space. When the Juirean ship made its move, I triggered both the cannon and the bomb on the appropriate ship. We didn’t know which one would be involved, so I wired them all. What happened next is history.”

  “You mean murder, don’t you!” Sherri growled.

  “All’s fair in love and war, sweetheart. Just doing my job.”

  “I should have left you in Kanac,” Adam said, taking a threatening step toward the assassin. Guards moved between them.