WHEN SCI’YAWEZI SENSED THE VEHICLE SLOWING, she prepared to dismount. This was a professional team, armed with infrared goggles, which would negate her ability to rely on her natural camouflage. The vehicle was almost at a standstill as it aligned with the open doors of a large structure. She made a decision, dismounted, and darted very swiftly to a hollow space within a low-growing clump of bushes.
The Consortium leader frowned. “That’s odd. According to the lift drive reading, we just shed some weight. Soon as we stop, combat dismount and blanket the whole approach with stun pulses.”
“If it’s one of the snakeheads, we should burn it.”
“Want to tell everyone we’re here? Don’t be stupid. Right. Doors open — Go!”
The four men tumbled out and came up firing. Advancing in short sprints and fanning out, they swept left and right, blanketing the entire area with pulses from their weapons. Birds tumbled out of trees, squirrels fell, and small ground-dwelling creatures collapsed in the onslaught of neural-disrupting electrons.
One targeted Sci’yawezi and she collapsed, her skin changing briefly to a grey-blue colour before she appeared to blend into the ground on which she lay. Only her yellow eyes remained visible to an astute observer.
The Consortium agents stopped firing and carefully scanned the area with their goggles. “No sign of anything this side, Leader.”
“Nothing this side.” The speaker stood above the clump of bushes beneath which the Lacertian lay paralysed, almost treading on her.
“Good. Two Alpha, stay on watch. Let’s get the pair unloaded and ready for pick-up. Another team is on the way. I want to get the hell away from here before anything else goes wrong.”
“WE HAVE A LEAD ON HERON AND O’CONNOR — at least we think we do. Lt. Sci’yawezi’s comlink has been traced.” The Commander rubbed her forehead. “She was paired with Lt. Sci’kalina and must have managed to attach herself to the transport the abductors used to get away from the turret. We have a pair of teams on their way to the location.” She pushed her chair back from the desk with more force than necessary. “Now I have the lovely task of dealing with the bastards we have in custody that got Heron and O’Connor to the Weapons Range.”
“A pity about the Lacertian.” Lieutenant-Commander Vallance followed the woman to the door. “The second team were observed by one of the Lacertians who alerted the others. The sail bags tested positive for DNA from Heron and O’Connor. If that turret hadn’t malfunctioned, they’d have got clean away.”
“Probably.” Something about Vallance bothered the security officer, and she made a mental note to run a background check on him. “Lucky malfunction though.” She studied him with a casual air. “I’d appreciate your remaining available — there’s bound to be something arising from this interview that I may need to clarify with you.”
“Of course. Anyway, so you mentioned that the comlink signalled their location.”
The commander smiled, her hand on the door control. She knew what he was fishing for, and she wasn’t taking the bait. “Yes, but you’ll forgive me if I keep that to myself. Not that I doubt you, of course, but given the current situation, I only trust my people, and even some of them on a need to know basis.”
Hoping his concern didn’t show, Vallance frowned. “What? Oh. Of course.” He nodded vigorously, over-emphasising his agreement in doing so. “I’ll be on the link if you need me.”
The door shut behind the commander, cutting off the brief glimpse of the six men and women seated under guard in the room beyond. For a long moment he stared at the door then walked away, making for the Staff Wardroom. He needed a drink, but he couldn’t risk dulling his wits until the damned security people had gone. How the blazes had that turret been activated? Placing his cap on the table in the anteroom, he signed the register, acknowledged the android steward and ordered a tonic water coloured with angostura bitters.
Dropping into a chair, he picked up a tablet and tapped the news link, pretending to read while thinking furiously. Could the Lacertians have activated the turret? Did they have the codes?
THE ABDUCTORS REMOVED HARRY AND FERGHAL from the vehicle and replaced their manacles with humane restraints. They carried the pair to a small chamber and placed them on the floor.
“They’ll keep there for the moment. Four Alpha, get rid of the transport. Three, help me rig the beacon for the collection team. Then we can get the hell out of here.”
Feigning unconsciousness, Harry listened. He waited until the footsteps had receded before he rolled over, the last traces of the drug making his head spin. To his annoyance, he was strapped into a body harness that clamped his arms to his sides and his legs to each other. Ferghal was in the same bind, and they were both firmly gagged. Their only advantage was they were alone, for now. The men who’d brought them here had left or were out of earshot.
In his head he could hear a household management system like the one at Scrabo, little more than a means to control the internal environment — lighting, doors and security. Seeking a bit further he found an observation system. Through this, he discovered that their abductors were preparing to depart.
No, my friends, I think not. He planted a command to seal all the doors to the part of the structure that two of his captors were in. Unsurprisingly, the two men responded by attempting to escape, and Harry had the satisfaction of watching their attempt to open the door without success, and resorting to their weapons to get in by force.
The response masked developments outside the structure as a hypersonic transport arrived. It had barely landed and powered down its drives when the outer door to the partly buried structure closed, denying the collection team access.
“What the hell?” exclaimed the leading agent. “Something’s wrong. Get back to the flyer.” She keyed her comlink. “Power up. There’s a problem.”
“There’s a problem, alright.” One of her team pointed to the road. “Vehicles coming. Fleet security markings.”
The leader nodded. “We’re out of here. Back to the flyer.” She followed her companions to the access ramp, and with no prior warning her body lifted into the air and crashed into the next man.
“What the hell?” The third man dropped to one knee and took aim at the fast moving Lacertian as she vanished into the flyer.
“Hold your fire! Shit! Come on, we’ll have to deal with the bloody snakehead inside.” She raced toward the flyer, leaping over her fallen companions and preparing her weapon. “Use the stun setting, and for god’s sake, don’t hit the pilots!” She almost lost her footing as the flyer lifted, lurched to one side in a half turn, and slammed into the ground.
Too late her weapon caught Sci’yawezi, and the Lacertian collapsed as smoke filled the cockpit.
“Shit! Shit! Shit!” the leader spat, surveying the damaged controls and the dead pilots. Furious, she changed the setting on her weapon and killed the Lacertian where she lay.
“Do not attempt to lift off!” The amplified voice boomed inside the cabin. “We have a weapons lock, and your flyer will be disabled. Throw out your weapons and surrender.”
She looked at her companions. “They’ve nothing on us apart from attempting an unauthorised landing in a controlled area.” She kicked the Lacertian’s body. “We were simply defending ourselves when that snakehead attacked us. Follow my lead — we’ll be clear and away in forty-eight hours.” Reaching the door, she threw her weapons out. “Keep your shirts on!” she taunted. “We’re coming out, but we want our legal representatives! We were attacked by a damn snakehead, and it killed our pilots and damaged our flyer.”
Chapter 9 – Interference
Unaware of developments outside, Harry realised that he and Ferghal had a problem. Their captors had almost succeeded in blasting a way out of the room they were trapped in when Ferghal frantically signalled something. The door! He tried to get the network to close it, and realised he could no longer hear the system. Simultaneously, the lights went out,
plunging them into darkness.
For a moment Harry lay still, trying to make contact with the building management system, but it was completely unresponsive. In the darkness he could hear their captors swearing and see the bursts of plasma fire they were using to burn their way out of the room he’d trapped them in.
And then he heard someone slithering toward him and knew that it was Ferghal. Sensing what Ferghal intended, Harry humped his body toward his friend, startling himself when they collided. Groping with the limited movement in his hand, Ferghal found Harry’s arm.
Harry wormed himself into a better position and waited.
With an effort, Ferghal worked his way downward until his fingers found the restraint holding Harry’s wrist. More movement put him in a position where his fingers could find the fastening pins. It took him several attempts to figure out how to release the locking clip and prise the strap free.
Harry made to return the favour, but Ferghal stopped him, working his way to a new position from which he could free the cuff securing Harry’s elbow.
With one arm now free, Harry ripped off the tape covering his mouth and quickly freed his other arm, then removed the tape from Ferghal’s mouth before freeing his arms. Sitting back to back they released their legs, then they stood.
“Now we will have a reckoning,” Ferghal whispered. He wrenched a heavy metal stanchion from its anchorage. In the near darkness, he could just make out Harry signalling him to take cover. He said a quick prayer of thanks for having worked in the dim lighting on the lower gundeck of HMS Spartan. It had given him excellent night vision, as had the hours spent on lookout duty.
The soft sounds of stealthy movement reached their ears, and Ferghal prepared to attack whoever stepped into the room. Sensing his friend’s preparations and intentions, Harry made his own plans. He knew there were at least two men and possibly more in the building.
Several things happened at once. A man cautiously sidled through the doorway, and Ferghal attacked. Only the agent’s lightning-fast reflexes saved him from immediate serious injury. He leapt back, his plasma projector taking the blow aimed at his head. The blast of plasma missed Ferghal but partially melted his jacket and burned a hole in the wall behind him. The force of the blow numbed the man’s hand, and he dropped his weapon, desperately trying to recover his balance while fending off Ferghal’s determined attack, but he collided with his team leader behind him.
Ferghal gave neither of them a chance to recover or to retake the initiative, and with Harry joining the fray, it rapidly became a brawl. Only an interruption saved them from Ferghal’s pent-up rage and Harry’s fury. Armoured security officers stormed in through a hole blasted in the vehicle door.
“Easy, Mr O’Connor!” The leading Marine stepped back as Ferghal whirled, the Consortium agent falling at his feet choking and bleeding. “We’re on your side!”
“Easy, lads!” The Security Commander ducked as Ferghal snatched up his stanchion and raised it to attack. “Heron! O’Connor! Stand fast.”
Harry paused in his attempt to rip his victim’s helmet from his head without undoing the chinstrap. His battle rage ebbed as he took in the armoured squad surrounding them. Ferghal grounded the stanchion and glowered at the newcomers, willing to resume his attack if anything suggested a wrong move.
When Harry caught sight of several Lacertians, he let go of his victim, only then realising that his hands were bleeding, and his victim had blood streaming from his nose and mouth. His IR goggles appeared to have been smashed, causing damage to at least one of the man’s eyes. Sucking a deep breath, Harry stood, and that’s when he saw the damage to the man’s shoulder, face and body.
To the commander, Harry said, “My apologies for our appearance, sir. I’m afraid we did not wish to comply with the plans these people had for us.”
The commander nodded. “So I see.” Over his shoulder he called, “Medics!” Securing his weapon, he moved aside, signalling his men. “Search the place and secure it. Mr Heron, Mr O’Connor, go with Lieutenant Sci’yenzile, please. She’ll get you checked and see you get back to the College.” He watched the medic attending Ferghal’s opponent. “Took some of your annoyance out on him, Mr O’Connor?”
Ferghal’s face hardened. “Aye, sir. I’ve no patience with those who are traitors, sir, and I’ll have no truck with their paymasters either.”
Watching him follow Harry, the commander said softly to his Lieutenant, “Another minute or two and I think both of them would have killed these fellows. When the medics have patched them up, secure them and take them directly to our High Security Unit.” He smiled briefly. “These guys are some of their first division, so our pair either got bloody lucky, or these two were off their game. Either way, looking at what O’Connor’s done to that one, I wouldn’t want to be on the wrong side of him.”
“PLANS HAVE CHANGED, EON. JUST KEEP YOUR HEAD DOWN and don’t attract attention for now. Something went badly wrong with the attempt to snatch Heron and his friend. Your uncle’s furious.”
“Yeah, I know. Lieutenant Crossley and his whole team got taken — the snakeheads tracked them to the weapons range.” He shrugged. “They still don’t know why that turret activated, but it took out one of the snakeheads, and I heard the team at the bunker took out another. That must’ve been sweet to watch.” Eon laughed.
His father frowned. “Don’t forget we lost two of our best special ops teams and the embedded agents. It wasn’t all guts and glory and watching snakeheads die.” He took a long drink from his glass. “Now, pay attention. The Chairman is annoyed and wants answers, and the legal team are concerned. We will have one last chance to take them out of the picture. Your uncle will send someone to brief you. This will be your chance to show your abilities, Eon. It will take place on your training cruise, and you will be the key.”
“At last.” Eon grinned. “Don’t worry, Dad, I can hack it.”
“I hope you’ll more than hack it. The stakes are going to be very high, and we can’t afford any slip-ups. It’s vital you don’t stir any more suspicion or get yourself into trouble in any way. We can’t risk having you under scrutiny now. That damned enquiry is exposing things we’ve worked damned hard to keep under wraps, and Heron in particular could be the key to exposing everything.”
“Damn it, Dad, do you think I’m stupid? Don’t worry. I’ll pull it off.”
“You’ll need help. Preferably some people who know nothing of the real agenda. Those two friends of yours will be ideal. Can you trust them after the fiasco with their botched attempt to plant those traces?”
Eon snorted. “I’ll put the wind up them. Crossley had four dupes helping him, and that’s got Miles and Laschelles worried — especially after the Red Caps grilled them over the business in the pool. I’ll deal with them. They’ll do as they’re told.” He stood. “I better get back. My leave pass is only until nineteen-hundred.” His familiar scowl lifted for a moment. “I better keep my nose clean. Trust me for once.”
THE DAILY ROUTINE OF CLASSES AND PREPARATIONS for the Regatta were interrupted for Harry and Ferghal by a visit from a team of police who demanded they be delivered to a police station for questioning, a request that was categorically refused by the Fleet Security Service and the shadowy Fleet Intelligence Command. There followed a legal tussle, and finally an agreement the pair could be interviewed at the College, but only in the presence of a legal representative appointed by the Fleet, and with officers from the Intelligence Unit present.
Harry faced an officer across the interview table, his temper strained as he found himself under investigation for criminal assault on his abductors.
“I fail to understand your purpose, Inspector,” Harry stated. “Am I to understand that I am charged with attacking the men who abducted me?”
“Allegedly abducted you. It hasn’t been proven that the men you attacked had anything to do with abducting you.”
“I suppose you think I — we — secured ours
elves in those bindings, and they were attempting to rescue us?”
“That’s one possibility. We’re still looking at all the options.” He regarded Harry coolly. “We’ve run some tests using bindings like those you say were used on you, and the subject couldn’t free himself. That leaves us with the possibility that you aren’t telling us the whole story, or you had some assistance.”
Before Harry could respond, his legal counsel intervened. “Are you suggesting Midshipman Heron is lying, Inspector?” His restraining hand on Harry’s forearm warned him not to respond.
The Inspector shrugged. “You tell me, Counsel. We put one of our people into exactly the same restraints, and he could not free himself.”
“Tell me, Inspector, did your test subject have a companion? You seem to have overlooked the fact that Midshipman Heron and Cadet O’Connor were in the same chamber.”
Annoyance showed briefly in the Inspector’s face. “Why is that an issue? They were both restrained. The restraints are impossible to escape. We’ve proved that.”
“For one person secured in them, perhaps.” The legal adviser leaned back. “Explain to the Inspector how you freed yourselves please, Mr Heron.”
“Certainly, sir.” Harry held the Inspector’s gaze. “I worked myself close enough to Ferghal — Mr O’Connor — for him to withdraw the securing pin on the cuff holding my wrist and to release the cuff on my elbow. With my free arm, I released the cuff on his wrist and elbow. That allowed us to free our other arms, then our legs, and to remove the tape that secured our mouths.”
The Inspector’s face gave nothing away as he listened. “I see. So you claim that you freed your companion’s wrist, and he freed you?”
“He freed my wrist and elbow, as I did for him. With an arm free, we did the rest ourselves.”
“Why did you attack the men?”
Harry’s expression was icy. “Should we simply have asked them to surrender their weapons to us?”
Harry Heron: No Quarter Page 7
