by Sarah Noffke
Julianna nodded. She wasn’t going to argue anymore; they were wasting time. “Okay, stick together people.”
Verdok stood in his natural form, between the wreckage of a tank and a pile of farming equipment. This planet mostly appeared to be the trashcan of the system. He’d been staked out for a few days and had watched shuttles fly in and dump loads of junk and garbage.
Whoever was flying the ships didn’t care about this planet, or the fact that the offloaded trash would contaminate the water supply. They didn’t concern themselves with the race who called the unclassified planet home, either. The natives had probably been overrun long ago; maybe they were even extinct, deprived as they were of a clean supply of water. Or maybe, like the Saverus, they were biding their time, preparing to strike back.
Verdok slipped into the shadows. “The boy is here and will lead them to the Tangle Thief,” he said to the three other Saverus.
“Our patience has paid off,” one of them said.
“Yes. The Petigrens will serve as a distraction, overwhelming their other forces, while we track the boy and his friends to the device,” Verdok explained. He shifted into the form of the woman holding a rifle, having catalogued her identity when in Area 126.
“One of you change to the form of Cheng, the scientist we had imprisoned, since we know he’s here,” Verdok ordered.
The closest Saverus shifted until he had taken on the appearance of the scientist who had never given them any helpful information regarding the Tangle Thief.
“You two, take on any human form you wish; once you’ve gotten close to a member of Ghost Squadron, steal their identity,” Verdok said.
The Saverus shifted into different forms, one male and the other female.
“We must stay back until they lead us to the Tangle Thief,” Verdok ordered. “Once we find out exactly where it is, then we can do what we do best.”
The Saverus in the form of Cheng smiled disingenuously. “Confuse and deceive.”
Chapter Twenty-One
Black Eagle, Outskirts Junkyard, Planet L2SCQ-6 in Frontier space
It astounded Lars, how large the junkyard was. It covered at least four square miles. But more staggering than its physical size was the sizable infestation of Petigrens.
He’d first noticed the rat-men, crawling among the wreckage of an ancient plane, as he circled the perimeter of the junkyard. Now that he was on alert for them, he noted that there had to be a few hundred. The Saverus had been expecting them, and came prepared for a fight.
But the Petigrens couldn’t touch Lars in the Black Eagle.
He’d flown over the same section twice, ensuring that only Petigrens littered the area. The rat-men scurried around the heaps of junk as if they were hunting for food.
Soon they’d realize that Ghost Squadron was there; Lars had to decrease their numbers before that happened. Otherwise the ground forces would be overwhelmed.
Lars locked his sights on a pack of Petigrens clogging a path. He never enjoyed killing, but in taking out these evil creatures, he felt like he’d been sent to clean out an infestation. Lars pulled the trigger, unleashing a barrage of bullets.
“Exterminate. Exterminate,” he said, watching as the Petigrens were ripped apart by the rapid fire.
Petigrens shot out of various hiding places, scared by the sudden noise. Lars swerved the Black Eagle around, taking aim at another swarm. He was about to celebrate an early victory when a ship dropped out of the low clouds overhead.
Lars’s chest tightened at the sight of the chrome ship. Dammit, not again.
Nona had pulled herself into the top of the old fire tower when Lars’s voice crackled over the comm.
“Enemy ships have appeared,” the Kezzin said.
“Dammit!” Eddie yelled over the comm. “The shapeshifting ones?”
“Yes, sir,” Lars said.
“Avoid any air attacks,” Eddie ordered. “Focus all efforts on defending the ground forces. Do not, I repeat, do not fire at aircraft. They’re trying to confuse us, and we can’t risk shooting down one of our own.”
“Copy that, Black Beard,” Lars said.
Nona looked up from the edge of the tower. In the gray sky filled with ominous clouds, she counted half a dozen Black Eagles. A moment later, the chrome ships materialized, and she realized that they’d been there all along, blending in with the sky due to their mirrored appearance.
She pressed her scope to her eye and looked up at the sky, finding one of the Saverus’s ships. The chrome vehicle flashed, sending out a blinding light, and was replaced by a Black Eagle.
Whoa.
She’d heard that the Saverus’s ships could shapeshift, but seeing it firsthand was trippy. Nona had always been happy with her choice to become a sniper, but sometimes she’d wondered if she’d do well as a pilot. For once, she was wholeheartedly glad that she didn’t take that path. The pilots overhead had gone from having an easy job of picking off Petigrens from the safety of their ship, to being surrounded by a disguised enemy.
Nona swiveled her rifle down, scanning the area for Petigrens. She was definitely in the safest place for this battle, with a bird’s eye view of the junkyard, and no enemy who could easily touch her. She stabilized her rifle on the balustrade of the tower, ensuring she had the most stable platform she could get.
A Petigren scurried from behind a pile of old, beaten up appliances.
Time to start picking off rats.
Nona rested her cheek on her rifle, looking straight through the scope and finding her target. She focused on the reticle, set up her sight alignment, and released the safety, conscious of the loud click the action made. Placing the pad of her finger on the trigger, she started the steady build of pressure until the rifle fired.
The bullet struck the Petigren in the back of the head. One shot. One kill.
Julianna was at the front of the retrieval team, while Eddie brought up the rear. The putrid smell of rot mixed with dust wafted through the metal structures all around them. If Eddie had a chance, he’d pause to appreciate the different piles of junk they passed. In a strange way, they were beautiful, these unwanted items piled together, accidentally making sculptures, works of art.
Julianna halted. Her back tensed. She slid her gaze to meet Eddie’s, and with a slight hand gesture, motioned to something on the other side of a bus that lay nearly on its side. It was barely being held up by the scrap pieces of cars stacked under it.
Eddie nodded, acknowledging Julianna’s signal, and released the safety on his rifle.
Then he motioned for Knox and Cheng to move back. His enhanced hearing picked up on the scratching seconds before a Petigren leapt out from behind the bus.
Julianna shot it twice and threw a glance at Eddie. “Fucker never stood a chance,” she said, glowing from the adrenaline rush.
“Damn straight,” Eddie replied, catching sight of another approaching Petigren in his peripheral. “This one is mine.”
He took a step forward, raising his rifle.
A Petigren with zero sense of self-preservation ran straight for them.
Aiming, Eddie took a breath, holding it as he pulled the trigger. The Petigren fell on his hairy face, his feet tumbling over his head from the momentum.
“They really are dumb little shits,” Julianna spat, assessing the path. It was clear ahead.
“Guys?” Knox’s tone was apprehensive.
Eddie turned to find exactly why. Behind them, scurrying over broken cars and around mountains of junk, were dozens of Petigrens. With their teeth bared and eyes glowing red, the beasts looked hungry.
“Fucking hell!” Eddie yelled.
“Get moving,” Julianna ordered, urging Knox and Cheng into the lead and pushing them down the clear path.
Eddie unleashed a volley of fire, taking down a few of the Petigrens. For every one he hit, though, three more took its place. He sprinted after the group as he reloaded, fully aware that the Petigrens were closing in on them. The little shits are
fast as hell. Eddie and Julianna could have outrun them, but Knox and Cheng would have been left behind.
After going through another magazine, Eddie threw his rifle over his shoulder. He pulled his pistols from his holsters and held up both guns, alternating shots, taking out Petigrens one at a time.
“Eddie!” Julianna yelled behind him.
“What?” he asked, not daring to turn around.
“We’re boxed in!” she exclaimed.
Julianna stepped up beside him, taking over the coverage. He spun around to find that they were in a dead-end of a valley of junk. It had all been pushed up into slanted walls, and the Petigrens were closing in from every angle.
“Fuck!” Eddie yelled. “We’re going to have to reroute.”
“Knox says that the Tangle Thief is that way!” Julianna said, motioning in the distance before firing beside Eddie. They were barely keeping the Petigrens back.
“Hey, Knox!” Eddie called, throwing a glance at his back.
Knox stood beside his father, looking for a way through the junk. “Yeah!” he replied over the gunfire.
“See that bulldozer?” Eddie motioned to the far left, where a faded yellow bulldozer blended in with the junk surrounding it.
“Yeah!”
“If we cover you, do you think you can get to it and clear a path?” Eddie fired around the bulldozer, which was only fifteen yards away.
Knox didn’t answer, but he sprinted for the vehicle.
“Good call!” Julianna said.
“Let’s hope it works,” Eddie said, reloading.
Knox hoped that operating a bulldozer was similar to flying a ship. He sprinted for the equipment, zigzagging on the path to avoid rogue Petigrens. Eddie and Julianna were providing coverage, but they all knew their ammo wouldn’t last for long, being boxed in like that.
Knox climbed into the bulldozer, which wasn’t easy; the giant machine was the size of a small house. It had obviously been what created the wall of junk around them, though.
If it can make a wall of debris, then it can tear one down, Knox thought.
His instincts took over as soon as he slid into the seat, and the bulldozer fired up with a loud roar.
The Petigrens changed their attack, running on all fours in his direction.
An abrupt laugh fell from Knox’s mouth. Eddie wanted him to clear a path so they could escape the Petigrens, but maybe Knox could clear the rats instead.
The bulldozer lurched forward when Knox released the brake. The machine was surprisingly fast, speeding in the direction of a pack of Petigrens, who ran straight for the blade. Knox shoveled them aside like trash. The ones who continued speeding toward the bulldozer were caught under the track and run over, making for a bumpy ride. Knox grimaced slightly at the crunching and banging as he cleared a path through the bodies.
The approaching rats peeled back, changing course after watching the destruction the bulldozer was capable of. Knox turned the machine, heading for the wall of junk. He slid the blade under the bottom of the wall.
The bulldozer hesitated for a moment before pushing boldly forward. Knox plunged through the wreckage creating a path to the other side. He could see the battlecruiser clearly. The place where he’d hidden the Tangle Thief.
Knox’s excitement doubled when he broke through the wall to find a clear path leading directly to the battlecruiser.
Pulling the bulldozer to the side, Knox turned it off and hopped down from the seat.
A Petigren screamed from the top of the machine, and Knox whipped around, his eyes wide. Three Petigrens were perched on its roof.
Knox reached for a long pole protruding from a stack of rubbish, brandishing the makeshift weapon.
The beasts leapt off the bulldozer, landing on their feet. Their claws reached for Knox, scratching through the air.
Swinging the pole around, Knox knocked one in the head, but another caught him around the shoulder.
“Hey!” Knox yelled, wondering where the group was. Gunfire echoed from around the corner where they’d been stationed.
Knox ducked as another Petigren tried to grab for him. He brought the pole down on the rat-man’s head, but it wasn’t much of a deterrent. Yet another one caught him around the neck, biting him hard.
He screamed, whirling around, trying to free himself of the Petigren. He threw his back into a car, pinning the rat to it. It growled, scratching at Knox’s face.
Julianna and Eddie sprinted around the corner with Cheng behind them.
Two more Petigrens leapt around the bulldozer, headed straight for Knox. He threw himself back once more, crushing the Petigren on his back against the car, then he dropped his weight, pulling the beast over his head and down to the ground.
Julianna roundhouse kicked one of the Petigrens, and Eddie punched another in the face. Knox spun around, checking the path ahead. It was clear. For now.
When he turned back, Eddie and Julianna had made quick work of the beasts surrounding them.
“Dad! Come on!” Knox yelled to his father, who was standing idly several yards away. His eyes were pointed up, and apprehension was heavy in his gaze.
Bringing Cheng was definitely a mistake. It’s too soon to put him in a situation of this sort.
“Come on, Cheng!” Eddie encouraged when he hadn’t moved.
Petigrens sprang off the top of the wall of junk, landing in front of the scientist. Startled, he jumped back several feet.
“Dad!” Knox yelled.
“I’ve got this!” Eddie said, holding up a hand to stop Knox before he could spring after his father. The captain sprinted for the Petigrens as Cheng ran from them.
Chapter Twenty-Two
Black Eagle, Outskirts Junkyard, Planet L2SCQ-6 in Frontier space
Lars sped the Black Eagle along the perimeter of the junkyard. He’d caught sight of a row of parked shuttles in the same chrome finish as the single flyers.
This must be how the Saverus transported so many Petigrens to the junkyard. It’s also probably their way home.
“I think these guys deserve to be stranded on this trash planet,” Lars said, releasing a missile. It raced over the junkyard, exploding a shuttle upon impact.
“Yahoo!” Lars yelled victoriously.
“Carnivore, what’s got you so excited?” Lone Wolf asked over the comm.
“Found their transport ships. I’m adding them to the junkyard,” Lars said.
“Oh, then I guess that’s not you racing in my direction,” Lone Wolf said.
“Not me, Lone Wolf,” Lars replied.
“This is Escrema. That isn’t me, either,” she said.
“Fuck!” Lone Wolf yelled. “Which would explain why that traitor Black Eagle started firing at me.”
“Get out of there,” Lars ordered, firing another missile.
If he thought he’d be able to easily pick off the transport ships, he was wrong. He’d caught the attention of three Black Eagles, which were now racing in his direction.
“I’m guessing you all aren’t coming to assist me on the perimeter?” Lars asked.
“Nope,” Escrema answered.
“Trapeze here. I’m not even close to that vicinity.”
“Not me! I’m trying to give this imposter the slip,” Lone Wolf groaned.
The approaching Black Eagles flew in formation, making quick progress toward Lars. He had been ordered not to fire on the Black Eagles, which meant that he had to outfly these Saverus to survive.
At first, Nona was able to casually pick off Petigrens as they filtered onto the path below. Quickly, though, she had more targets than she could easily take down.
Where did all of these fuckers come from?
“Fuller, what’s your position?” Fletcher asked over the comm.
“Firetower in central area,” Nona answered, taking down another Petigren.
The ones around her target scampered away in fear, many of them searching over their shoulder for the shooter.
“I was afraid of
that. Your position is compromised,” Fletcher said.
Nona straightened, leaning over the railing of the fire tower. Three Petigrens were crawling up the side of the structure.
“Shit,” Nona breathed, pulling her pistol from her holster.
“I’m not far from your location,” Fletcher told her. “I’ll try and get over there to help.”
“Thanks.” Nona fired, shooting down the closest Petigren.
The gunfire attracted the attention of many of the rats swarming on the ground. They raced in Nona’s direction as if they were magnetized.
“Make it fast,” Nona said. “It would appear that I’ve summoned the zombies.”
Julianna read the hesitation in Knox’s eyes as Eddie ran after Cheng. He wanted to go after his father, but he had another job, and they both knew it.
“He’ll be okay,” Julianna said, tilting Knox’s head to the side and gauging the wound in his neck.
He gasped in pain, but stifled it quickly. The bite mark was deep and bleeding quite a bit. Julianna pulled her bandana from her pocket and stuffed it into Knox’s hand.
“Apply pressure,” she ordered, scanning the path ahead before marching forward.
“What are you doing?” Knox asked, not having moved.
“We’ve got a job to finish.” Julianna pointed with her rifle in the direction of the broken-down battlecruiser.
“But my dad…” Knox turned to the path that was now empty, the Petigrens having followed Cheng the other direction.
“Black Beard, do you copy?” Julianna asked into the comm.
There was no answer.
“This is Strong Arm,” Julianna tried again. “Black Beard, are you there?”
Dammit, comms are down.
Is that your way of asking for my help?
What do you think?
I think we need to work on your people skills.
Julianna shook her head, meeting Knox’s gaze. “Don’t worry. Eddie will protect him,” she assured him, trying to inject conviction into her voice.
