by T. R. Harris
“So you must be the assassin Amick sent to kill me,” Bundnet stated in a rough, gravelly voice. Adam couldn’t help but notice how the movements of his mouth were not in sync with the words he heard, a common occurrence with the translation bug implanted behind his ear. This oddity was something Adam had never gotten used to.
Adam did not answer. Instead he glanced around when he heard heavy metal shutters quickly lower over the windows to the bedroom, effectively trapping him in the room with the mechanically-enhanced Hildorian crime boss.
“Yes, I’ve been expecting you,” Bundnet said. “You see, I have my sources as well, and I can assure you that plans are in the works that will have Amick paying the ultimate price for sending you against me.”
Adam heard the servos whine, as Bundnet stepped further into the room, until he was only a few meters away. With the alien already standing well over two meters tall, now encased in the exosuit Bundnet presented a truly intimidating figure, towering by a good meter or more over Adam.
“I’ve heard of you,” the alien continued, confident in his control of the situation. “At times, I have even considered enlisting your services for my own ends.”
“You should have,” Adam finally said. “You would have lived longer.”
Adam saw a look of confusion cross the alien’s face. “You don’t seem to realize the position you are in, assassin. You’re as good as dead, and I have options as to how I will bring about your final demise. I can either shoot you – or I can rip you apart limb by limb, while reveling in the agony you will be experiencing. Personally, I prefer the second option. It will bring me more satisfaction hearing your screams.”
Adam just smiled, which did nothing to fit into the Hildorian’s vision he had of this moment. Here we go again, Adam thought. And then aloud: “Bring it on, asshole!”
Knowing that the weapon he held was useless against the diffusion screen, Adam reeled back and heaved the ’47 at Bundnet. With the weapon carrying no electrical charge of its own, it passed through the screen as if it wasn’t there, and struck Bundnet’s hand with the force of a sledgehammer, knocking his own weapon away.
Bundnet roared with anger and pain; he lurched forward, swinging his right arm as he did so, with the exosuit adding extra quickness and agility. Still, it wasn’t enough. Adam blocked the blow easily, and then lifted the entire mechanical/alien contraption off the floor and shoved it to his right. The suit was able to maintain balance, but Bundnet now found himself twisted around, with Adam behind him.
Rather than attack, Adam simply waited for his opponent to spin back around. The smile had vanished from Bundnet’s face.
“You missed,” Adam said, through a toothy grin of his own.
The Hildorian literally growled at him, displaying a double row of long, sharp teeth. Bundnet lunged again, yet this time a mechanical hand was able to grasp Adam’s left bicep, sending a spasm of pain through his arm and shoulder. Adam reached across with his free hand and ripped the clamp from his arm, breaking the thin metal from its joints.
Bundnet screamed in agony, as his own flesh and blood hand was twisted and bones snapped. But he was still able to counter with a swipe of the other mechanical arm. Adam was struck hard against the side of the head and knocked to his knees, temporarily stunned. Bundnet used the opportunity to step forward, crashing his metal-encased left leg forcefully into Adam’s chest.
Adam flew backwards in the light gravity and landed heavily on the wooden chest next to the bed. Bundnet ran forward.
Quickly regaining his senses, anger flared in Adam. He pushed off of the chest, and the two combatants crashed into each other in the center of the room. Adam scampered on top of the suit’s metal frame and began to rip at the upper cage above Bundnet’s head. Metal bars broke easily from their joints, as Bundnet’s mechanical arms flailed wildly, trying to pull Adam from atop the cage. Then the assassin dropped in behind Bundnet and ripped the power cords from the battery pack.
Instantly, the servos fell quiet, and Bundnet found himself trapped in the suit, only able to move it with his own feeble strength. He stopped struggling, and watched as Adam moved slowly back in front of him.
Adam just shook his head. “You don’t have any idea what you’re up against, do you?” The alien’s bottom lip was trembling. He didn’t answer.
“This is what I do. I kill aliens for a living. And I’m very good at it—”
Adam then shot out with his right arm, clamping his hand around the alien’s neck. He squeezed, and could feel – and hear – the crunching of cartilage as the alien’s windpipe collapsed. In another moment, it was all over.
Adam Cain, Alien Assassin, had successfully fulfilled yet one more contract.
********
After a brief moment of contemplation, Adam quickly gathered up his backpack and recovered his MK-47 – just as he became aware of the wailing of alarms outside the building. How long they had been going off he couldn’t tell; his mind had been on other matters.
But Adam didn’t panic. Yes, he had been discovered, but all he had to do now was get out of the compound, and that he had no doubt he could do.
The windows of the bedroom were shuttered and the exterior walls of the building were made of stone, so his only escape route was through the bedroom door. Gripping his ’47 firmly in his right hand, he flung the door open and immediately came face-to-face with two guards, just as shocked to see him as he was to see them. With lightning-quick reactions, Adam blasted the first one through the chest with a bolt from the MK, and then swung his left fist at the second guard. Much to Adam’s surprise, his fist sank completely into the guard’s skull and exited out the other side, effective hooking the alien’s head onto Adam’s forearm, all in a bloody spray of brains and shattered bone material.
Damn! What else could go wrong?
Just then, a whole array of bolt streaks filled the hallway, as yet another group of armed guards appeared to his right. Adam needed a new exit strategy….
********
One of the good things about a low-gravity world was that construction did not have to be as strong and sturdy as one with more gravity. Even though atoms were atoms everywhere in the universe, the strength of the compounds and building materials varied from world to world. So what Adam had discovered about construction on Hildoria – and Bundnet’s house in particular – was that everything was essentially built of material about as strong as balsa wood and popsicle-sticks.
So Adam leapt across the hallway, through the blaze of energy bolts, and smashed through the opposite wall with little effort, dragging the dead alien on his arm as he did so.
Stumbling through a fallen metal shelving unit, Adam found himself in the home’s kitchen area, and as he ran between rows of preparation tables, he continued to try and shake the stuck alien off his arm. At that moment, he could hear the words of Riyad Tarazi echoing in his head, as the Human leader of the Fringe Pirates had told him how Humans were the Supermen of the galaxy. As he feverishly tried to dislodge the lifeless guard from his arm, Adam was pretty sure Clark Kent never had to deal with a problem like this….
Finally, the lifeless alien slipped from his arm and Adam was able to holster the ’47 and pull the flash rifle from across his back. As he did so, he whipped the weapon around, spraying a barrage of bolts at the guards entering through the hole in the wall he’d just made. Then he continued the arc, blasting more holes in the walls, cabinets and other aliens – kitchen staff he reckoned – in a full circle around him. The sights and sounds were deafening, of crumbling ceilings, burning wallboard and wailing creatures. Then fires began to flare up, from grease, fabric and burning wood. It all added to the confusion Adam was hoping for.
Soon he was out of the kitchen and blasting his way across a large dining area. He was surprised to see even more guards rush headlong into the hall, wondering just how many of them Bundnet had on the grounds. There seemed to be a lot more than when he’d reconned the compound over the past few days.
Oh well, just more score to rack up….
Then to his shock and surprise, Adam felt a heavy thud hit his back. He flew forward and fell, sliding several meters on the polished stone floor. He knew he’d taken a hit to the back, but was relieved to find that his own makeshift diffusion screen had apparently worked. Since flash bolts from all the various energy weapons they carried were made up of concentrated balls of electricity, Adam had fashioned a series of wires sewn onto the exterior of the pressure suit he wore. Not as strong or long-lasting as a full-fledged diffusion shield, his experiments had shown however that the electric bolts would dissipate along the wires, heating them up and melting the wires, but also lessening the impact of the hit. The concussion still knocked him off his feet, but that was about the extent of the damage. Of course he also knew that the wire mesh was only good for one bolt. The next one could prove fatal.
Rolling on his back as he slid along the floor, Adam aimed the flash rifle between his legs at the three guards who had taken up positions behind him. His aim was true, and the bolts from the rifle had a devastating effect on the thin-boned Hildorians. Then he was on his feet again and running for the main entrance of the home.
The ornate, double front doors were made of a metal of some kind, so instead of barreling through them, Adam jumped and crashed through the thin glass transom window above the doors. His action took the seven remaining guards stationed outside by surprise. As he flew over them, they did their best to follow his movement with their weapons, but like most aliens, their shots came slow and several meters behind.
Landing softly on the brick walkway leading up to the entrance, Adam rolled once and came up on one knee. With the flash rifle married to his chin, he sent a stream of bolts into the guards, literally ripping them apart at their waists.
He then scanned the front of the building, his movements, and those of his rifle, acting as one. When he was satisfied there was no further movement in his direction, he slowly rose to his feet.
No one appeared to be left alive in the compound, or those who were chose to stay indoors and out of sight. It was a wise decision.
Calmly, Adam Cain snugged down his boonie hat and shouldered the rifle. Then he turned and walked casually down the long driveway and through the open gates of the compound, his back illuminated by the flickering light from the now fully-involved fire, as it quickly consumed the building behind him….
The end of this Special Preview of:
Alien Assassin
Also by T.R. Harris
The Human Chronicles Saga
Part One (5 Books)
Book 1 – The Fringe Worlds
Book 2 – Alien Assassin
Book 3 – The War of Pawns
Book 4 – The Tactics of Revenge
Book 5 – The Legend of Earth
Part Two (3 Books)
Book 1 – Cain’s Crusaders
Book 2 – The Apex Predator
Book 3 – A Galaxy to Conquer
Jason King – Agent to the Stars Series
Book 1 – The Enclaves of Sylox
Please click HERE to be taken to the Interlude section
to learn more about upcoming books
by T.R. Harris
Also go to bytrharris.com for more information about the series
and to help contribute to future volumes.
Please contact author T.R. Harris directly at
[email protected].
He welcomes all comments, critiques and suggestions.
