Keith had also ripped off his restraints. He, too, wore a rebreather and tried to open the dented outer hatch. It was obviously broken, and it would not budge.
Meta made an inarticulate sound through her rebreather. She drew the monofilament blade Maddox had given her the other day. She pushed Keith aside. With several precise slashes, she gave herself a handhold, grunted and forced the badly dented hatch open. Panting, she sheathed the wicked blade and stepped aside, making room for Maddox.
Coppery tasting air seeped through the rebreather’s filters. Ludendorff hacked and wheezed behind him.
Maddox did not like the coppery taste, either. He hoped the filters would keep the toxins in the air from changing his DNA. He wasn’t going to dwell on the problem, though. Moving fast, he climbed down from the shuttle. This area was a junkyard indeed, with thousands of crushed vehicles piled one on top of another. Metal creaked and groaned under his boots as Maddox moved into position.
Vendels bellowed savagely as they spied him. The hairless creatures were huge, maybe eight feet tall on average. Maddox estimated each would weigh in at four or five hundred pounds.
The captain shoved the Khislack’s wooden butt against his shoulder. He also switched on the targeting computer.
A nearing Vendel screamed its war cry.
The captain targeted the creature, pulled the trigger and felt the heavy rifle kick against him. Three hundred meters away, the Vendel’s head exploded.
The exhibition of marksmanship, the original warning scream and the creatures’ natural cunning and aggressiveness all seemed to combine. The other Vendels did not flee. Neither did they continue their mad dash at the shuttle. Instead, the creatures began to use the cover of the crushed vehicles, the dips and gaps between them. They leaped from one hidden locale to another, working their way closer several meters at a time. It hardly slowed their rush, but it would make killing them much harder.
Recognizing their cunning and the new challenge, Maddox grinned without humor. This was a contest, with their lives in the balance. He observed the creatures for a full ten seconds. His limbs shook as he did. The desire to blast away was nearly overpowering. Instead, Maddox ingested data. He counted as the creatures leaped, waited and leaped again. He began to detect a primitive rhythm to their tactic.
By that time, the pack had made it one-third closer.
“Now we shall see,” Maddox said under his breath.
He stood tall. He let his shoulder muscles relax and breathed deeply and evenly. He applied his strength so the Khislack rested snuggly against his shoulder. Bending his head just enough, he began targeting Vendels.
Using his newfound knowledge, counting evenly the entire time, Maddox began to fire like an automaton. He hit a Vendel each time, blowing away the skull or portions of shoulders or arms. Instead of waiting for the Khislack to click, meaning he’d run out of bullets, the captain ejected the spent magazine at precisely the right shot. He slapped in a new magazine and continued the amazing performance.
Maddox slew seventeen Vendels, having to use three bullets on several, two on a few more and one on the rest.
Four savage beasts made it near enough that Maddox dropped the assault rifle. Before the heavy weapon hit the ground, he drew his long-barreled gun.
The first Vendel took five bullets before it dropped. And that was only because Maddox got lucky and broke a thigh bone.
Meta surprised the second creature, carving out its guts with the monofilament blade. The stink from the blood was horrifying, causing Meta to cough explosively through her mask.
That allowed the third Vendel to leap past her as it dove at Maddox.
Ludendorff beamed it with two laser pistols. The skin smoked and burned. Blood bubbled, and the creature howled in agony.
Maddox ducked at just the right time. The wounded Vendel flew over him, landing hard. As it tried to climb back to its feet, Ludendorff beamed its face, melting it, causing the creature to collapse.
That left one untouched Vendel. It full-on crashed against Maddox as he straightened from ducking. They catapulted ten meters, smashing and rolling across flattened, crumbled vehicles.
Maddox realized the creature was stronger than he was. He felt the bone-crushing grip. He saw the filthy talons and smelled the overpowering stench of the creature’s breath through the rebreather. He could not imagine what the stink would be like without the mask. The thing was stronger than any Earthly bear, and it had speed and savagery to boot.
What it lacked was high intelligence and Maddox’s combat training.
The captain grabbed one of the fingers and tried to twist it back. It was like a baby trying to twist a man’s finger. It was not going to happen.
Maddox heard something clack. The creature’s bloodshot eyes stared into his. The captain realized with a start that the savage was intelligent. The thing seemed to enjoy the horror it saw it Maddox’s eyes. It opened its fanged jaws—
A rifle fired and the Vendel’s head exploded, raining skull-bone and blood onto the captain’s mask. The creature squeezed, almost tearing some of the captain’s lean muscles apart. It hung on…
Maddox groaned at the pain.
Thankfully, finally, the grip lessened, loosened, and at last, the monster slumped toward Maddox. The captain barely twisted out of the way in time. The Vendel thudded face-first onto a crushed vehicle.
Maddox found himself panting, wiping and smearing blood on his mask. He was amazed that he was still alive. He found Keith Maker holding the Khislack, blinking like a man who couldn’t believe what he’d done.
Forcing himself to remain calm, Maddox stepped up to Keith and clapped him on the shoulder. He nodded. Keith stared blankly at him. Maddox nodded again. Finally, slowly, Keith nodded back.
Maddox added a finger squeeze. The pilot had just saved his life. The captain wasn’t going to forget that. But now wasn’t the time to dwell on the feat. Now was the time to figure out how they were going to survive long enough to get back to Victory.
-28-
Maddox picked up the Khislack where Keith had dropped it, standing watch as the others converged on his position.
“I can’t get through to Victory,” Meta said, while holding her communicator. “All I get is static. I think someone is jamming us.”
That would imply this had been a trap. Maddox’s grip on the Khislack tightened, although he said in a calm voice, “That shouldn’t be an insurmountable problem. Galyan can see us through Victory’s teleoptics. They’ll know our situation.”
“Do we stay by the shuttle then?” Meta asked.
“What else do you suggest?” Maddox said. “Leaving the shuttle—”
“Vendels,” Ludendorff said. He held a hand-scanner, stepping closer, showing them the many blips approaching their location.
At that moment, a holoimage appeared before them. It was Galyan.
“Captain,” the AI said. “We have a situation. Two Rull Juggernauts are on an intercept course for the Southern Pole Orbital area. I have computed the odds. It is unlikely that Victory can overcome two such war-vessels.”
This was getting worse by the minute. “Take Victory out of orbit,” Maddox said. “Tell Lieutenant Noonan her first responsibility is to keep the starship intact. If we die, she is to return to Earth and tell the Lord High Admiral—”
The holoimage wavered. Could the same jamming that affected their communications disturb a long-range Galyan holoimage?
“Captain,” Ludendorff said. “These Rull Juggernauts are proving my worst fear. Androids must know about our mission.”
“What do these Juggernauts have to do with androids?” Maddox asked.
“I do not have any evidence of a direct correlation,” the professor said. “But I believe they are linked in some manner.”
Maddox stared at the professor.
“The first Juggernaut assault as we came out of the Einstein-Rosen Bridge proves that someone was waiting for us,” the professor said.
“Why
wouldn’t you have told us your suspicions before this?” Meta asked in outrage.
“I understand your emotion,” the professor said.
“Why tell us about the possible android connection now?” Maddox asked curtly.
“You strike to the heart of the matter, Captain. I applaud your instincts that compel you—”
“Get to the point,” Maddox said.
Ludendorff’s mouth stiffened peevishly before he said, “I’m going to need Galyan to drop several parcels onto the planet.”
“What kind of parcels?” Maddox asked.
Ludendorff took a deep breath as if to calm himself. “We don’t have time for this. We must leave our present location. Hundreds of Vendels are converging on the crash site just as I predicted would happen.”
Maddox shook his head. “The red beam—do you think that’s a New Man’s fusion ray?”
“It was a fusion ray,” Galyan said. “But that does not necessitate New Men. If you will recall, the fusion beam is a Builder product. Thus, androids could well have wielded the beam.”
“Never mind about your blasted computer logic,” Ludendorff said. “I believe our enemies are on the planet. I am willing to bet my existence on that. The Juggernauts heading for Victory are surely due to androids.”
“What do you suggest we do?” Maddox asked.
“I just told you,” Ludendorff said. “Have Galyan drop the parcels. They’re our only hope. Damn you, Captain. Why are you so stubborn?”
Maddox stared at the professor, debating whether he should rip off the Methuselah Man’s rebreather and leaving him here to die.
“Very well,” Ludendorff said. “If we die, it is on your head, Captain. We are wasting time, but I see I must talk before you’ll act. I…reconditioned Dana and Valerie because Dana saw my Swarm virus carrier. That’s what I was working on in my laboratory. I have since sectioned the carrier into parcels. I’d hoped to slip them onto the planet and meld them together here, setting it loose.”
“You believe the androids will land on the planet?” Maddox asked.
“Oh yes.”
“Why?”
“Don’t you understand yet?” Ludendorff asked impatiently. “The androids want those Builder objects stored on the planet.”
Meta pulled Maddox aside. “Do you believe him?”
Maddox’s expression didn’t change as he studied Ludendorff and the little holoimage watching him. What did his gut tell him? Ludendorff was extraordinarily deceptive. Yet, the professor’s words had the ring of truth. The new facts fit better than the other explanation.
“Galyan,” Maddox said. “Drop the parcels. Tell Valerie she has to outmaneuver the Juggernauts. The four of us are going underground. It’s time to find the long-range scanner, and who knows what else is down there.”
“I do not give you good odds, Captain,” Galyan said. “The Vendels—”
“This is Lieutenant Noonan’s toughest assignment yet,” Maddox said, interrupting the holoimage. “The lieutenant’s primary task is to save Victory and return to Earth with the news. She is to do that at all costs. Star Watch has to know what happened out here.”
Galyan saluted Maddox with one of his ropy arms, as the holoimage’s features became excessively grave. “It is has been a great honor to serve with you, sir—”
“While I appreciate your feelings,” Maddox said, interrupting. “We are far from defeated. Get upstairs. Get my ship out of danger, and let us worry about surviving down here.”
The lines crisscrossing Galyan’s leathery features tightened. The little AI seemed conflicted.
“Till we meet again, sir,” Galyan said. Then, the holoimage vanished.
The four of them traded glances. Ludendorff broke eye contact first as he went back to studying his hand-scanner.
“The next wave of Vendels is almost here,” the professor announced.
Meta turned toward the shuttle. “We need more supplies if we’re going to survive the next few days underground.”
“We don’t have time for that,” Maddox said, sternly.
Meta regarded him.
“We have to go, now,” Maddox said. “The professor is right. If a hundred Vendels reach us, we’re all dead. We have what we have.”
“We need food and water or we’ll die underground,” Meta said stubbornly. “How does dying of dehydration help the cause?”
“Get situated then,” Maddox shouted, as his legendary calm cracked under the strain. He pitched the Khislack to Keith. Then, he dashed for the shuttle, leaped to the bottom of the hatch, did a chin up and rushed inside.
Moving fast, Maddox grabbed a backpack, stuffed it with food concentrates and water bottles. He shouldered the heavy pack, clicking the belt. He grabbed another pack and repeated the process. Finally, he dashed for the hatch, climbing out as the others argued among themselves.
“I can see the lead Vendels,” Ludendorff told the captain. “You took too long getting the supplies. Now we’re dead—”
Maddox reached the group and shoved Ludendorff in the direction opposite from the approaching savages. He heaved a heavy backpack to Meta. She caught it, shrugged it on and tightened the belt around her waist.
Maddox took his rifle from Keith. He saw a Vendel in the distance. The creature scaled down a wall like a spider. Another appeared, following the first one.
“Right,” Maddox said to himself. He moved into position behind the others. This one was going to be bad, but it wasn’t over until it was over.
He was Captain Maddox. He was di-far. And he wasn’t ready to die, not yet. He had far too much to live for and too much left to do. Thus, it was time to play this game in earnest.
-29-
The climb down the mountain of junked crushed vehicles nearly proved their undoing on several occasions. The worst offender was Ludendorff, who might have died if Keith hadn’t grabbed the old man’s wrist as he slipped. The professor dangled in the air until Meta leaned over and helped Keith hoist the Methuselah Man back to safety.
They continued to scale down the massed pile of rusted vehicles. Each of them would have sliced themselves many times over if they hadn’t been wearing special gloves, clothes and heavy-duty boots.
Soon, Vendels screamed with rage from the top of the artificial mountain. The creatures peered down at them, a few hurling scrap-metal pieces that went clanking past.
“They’re coming,” Meta panted, as she looked up.
As he rested on what might have been a hood sticking out of the mass like a ledge, Maddox debated his options. He couldn’t give Keith a backpack. The Scotsman might stagger thus burdened on a level trail for a time. Keith would never be able to scale down the mountain while wearing a heavy backpack. That went double for Ludendorff.
Finally, the captain shrugged off the backpack, and dropped it. The thing fell for fifty meters, thudding onto pavement hard enough for them to hear it up here. Worse, water seeped out of the pack. Some of the bottles must have broken. Hopefully, some had remained intact.
In any case, Maddox scaled down the mountain of junked vehicles faster than before. Soon, he jumped the remaining distance, landing with a jar despite bending his knees to help absorb the impact.
The soles of his feet hurt and his ankle joints stung, but he ignored the pain. Unshouldering the Khislack, he backed up until he had a better angle. Then, slowly and carefully, he began to pick off descending Vendels. He went for headshots, killing six of them. Finally, the rest of the creatures retreated back up the mountain and out of sight.
That was unusual. Maybe scaling down a mountain of junk took enough concentration to hinder their usual bloodlust. Without the bloodlust, the Vendels could act on their fear.
He’d bought them a little more time, anyway, but at the cost of—
Maddox checked the backpack. Half the water bottles had broken. He tossed those aside and re-shouldered the pack. The food concentrates were packaged in waterproof plastics, so they were okay.
“It’s lig
hter,” he told himself with a wry little smile. He might as well be grateful for whatever good he could find. At all costs, he had to defeat despair if he was going to beat the Vendels.
Keith and Ludendorff finally reached level ground. The professor dug out his scanner and studied it.
“Did they give up?” Keith asked.
The professor shook his head.
“Which way do we go?” Meta asked, as she reached the pavement.
“That is the question of the mission,” Ludendorff said. “Captain, what is the goal?”
“Is there really a long-range Builder scanner on the planet?” Maddox asked.
Ludendorff appeared surprised. “According to the android I questioned there is. Why would I have come otherwise?”
“To add to your collection of exotic gadgets,” Maddox said. “I don’t mean the long-range scanner, but some other Ludendorff-centric gadget you hoped to collect.”
“Do you truly think so poorly of me that I’d do something like that?” Ludendorff asked.
Maddox wanted to say yes. But he decided this was not the time or place for complete honesty. This was the time for maximum effort from all of them.
“I think you love humanity and want to see it survive,” Maddox said.
Ludendorff scowled. “You don’t have to be so sarcastic. I truly am on your side, sir.”
Maddox’s mouth opened as he shook his head in surprise.
“You don’t believe me?” the professor asked.
“He does,” Meta said quickly. “He can’t believe you don’t believe him. I imagine he also wonders if this is how you feel the few times you’re being honest and no one believes you.”
Ludendorff snorted scornfully and reexamined his hand-scanner. “We’re several kilometers from the targeted landing area.”
The Lost Planet (Lost Starship Series Book 6) Page 15
