“How long have I been out?” Taylor asked.
“A little over five hours,” Haju said. “How do you feel?”
A herd of imaginary buffalo rampaged through Taylor’s skull like a stampede. “Like somebody laid me face-down at the start/finish line at Daytona, then let the entire starting grid run roughshod over my head at full race speed.”
Haju made a face. “What is a…Daytona?”
“Seriously?” Taylor huffed. “You’ve been the presiding gate master over Earth’s stargate for more than a decade, and you’ve never taken in a race at Daytona?”
“We Sumatozou don’t get out much,” Haju said. “It’s nothing personal against your species, your world, or your Daytona. That’s simply our way.”
Fargin antisocial elephants. Taylor rubbed the back of his scalp and took another pass at his surroundings. The entire space was solid rock, from what he could tell, with the lone exception being the iron-barred cage door that blocked the entrance.
Well, this feels familiar. Taylor frowned.
“We need to get out of here,” Haju said. “Now.”
“I’m all ears for ideas,” Taylor said.
The Sumatozou’s expression turned sideways. “Per the report I read, you and Latura Hylune faced similar circumstances on Rukoria. Surely, then, you of all people can concoct a way out of here for us.”
“Funny you should mention that,” Taylor muttered, recalling his previous thought. “Yes, Japhara and I did face similar conditions on Rukoria. The difference is, I had comms access to coordinate with my people on the outside. We don’t have that here, on account of your pal Akoya’s jamming technology.”
Haju’s broad expression rankled. “Master Vello is not my pal. He is a traitor, both to the others of his race and the Guild we proudly serve. Never forget that.”
The gate master’s tone carried a level of disdain even a deaf person would’ve detected.
Taylor couldn’t blame him. Having seen the way Haju and the other elephants had been mistreated by the KzSha, he knew he’d have been pissed, too, were their roles revered. “Hey, how’s your friend?”
“Which friend are you referring to this time?” Haju grumbled.
“The one who dumped the kambersite bin back on the docks and got the shit kicked out of him for it,” Taylor said earnestly. “I’ll admit, I’ve seen the KzSha abuse other slaves in my time here, but that took the term aggravated battery to a whole new level. They almost killed that guy, and you as well for that matter over the belt thing.”
Haju grunted. “In case you hadn’t noticed, that is the way of things for those of my kind in this place. Master Vello has deliberately seen to that, especially where other gate masters are concerned.”
Taylor arched an eyebrow. “That other Sumatozou on the docks was a gate master, too?”
“Indeed,” Haju said. “Master Ubeloff presided over the Hagarth stargate prior to his enslavement. He and I were on guild assignment in the Boontar system when our ship was attacked by the KzSha frigate. The wasps boarded our vessel, and killed many of the crew, then took the rest of us prisoner. We’ve been here on Droxis ever since.”
“Has anyone managed to escape?” Taylor asked.
“None that I know of.” Haju shook his head. “Not successfully, anyway. There was one who managed to get free of his cage and reach the surface. However, he was apprehended by security before he could escape from the dome and was summarily sentenced to the same fate as your comrade in the fedora.”
Taylor’s jaw clenched. “You heard about that, huh?”
“I did,” Haju said quietly. “I’m sorry for your loss, Chief Van Zant. Truly, I am. No one should ever die that way—human, Sumatozou, or otherwise. No one.”
Taylor nodded somberly as his thoughts returned to the others, specifically Jack. “What do you say we get crackin’ on that plan to bust out of here?”
“I love this plan,” Haju said. “I’m excited to be part of it.”
Taylor did a double take. “Did you just quote Bill Murray?”
The massive alien cracked a rare smile. “As you yourself said, I’ve presided over Earth’s stargate for more than ten years. Just because I’ve never stepped foot on your Daytona doesn’t mean I haven’t sampled other aspects of your classic culture.”
Taylor couldn’t have stifled his laugh if he’d tried. I’ll be damned.
Something stirred in the shadows.
“Who’s there?” Taylor asked, suddenly tense.
Carefully and with great caution, a small figure emerged from the back of Taylor’s cell to stand in the light.
“You want escape.” The alien aimed a claw at Taylor then pointed to himself. “I help.”
Sporting a long nose and floppy ears with a slim anteater’s physique, the newcomer was a Caroon.
“Who are you?” Taylor asked.
“Me Aysep,” the Caroon said. “Me dig. Lots of dig.”
Taylor traded looks with Haju before asking his next question. “How did you get down here?”
“I mine ripper.” Aysep paused, considering. “Was mine ripper. Lost bins in cave-in accident. Much kambersite destroyed. KzSha blame our dig team. Me and my mate, brought down here.”
Taylor started to relax. “What do you want?”
“I take out,” Aysep said.
“I beg your pardon?” Haju asked.
“I.” The Caroon pointed to himself, then to Taylor. “Take.” He pointed to the surface. “Out.”
Taylor began to understand. “You can get us out of here.”
“Yes,” Aysep said. “For price.”
“And what price is that?” Haju asked.
“Me go with,” Aysep said. “Leave Droxis. Leave KzSha…forever.”
Taylor chewed his lip. He neither knew this alien, nor did he have reason to trust him. He also had zero other options. “I’ve got people on the surface who can help us get off world, but I don’t have a clue how to reach them from here. We have no contact with each other.”
“I take. Come.” Aysep motioned Taylor to the back of their cell. There, the alien rolled back a pile of debris to reveal a hole.
Taylor inspected the opening, then peeked inside, finding a hollowed-out crawl space that extended out about 10 yards before angling upward. Man, you little mongrels can dig.
“You take,” Aysep said. “Me come with.”
Taylor climbed out of the passage and dusted his hands off. “Does this tunnel go all the way to the surface?”
“Not yet,” Aysep said. “Still more to dig.”
“How much more?” Taylor asked.
“At least four days alone,” Aysep said. “With you, less than half. Then done.”
“What about guard rotations?” Taylor asked.
“Guards come twice per day with food and bucket, then twice per night for sleep checks,” Aysep said. “Not much prisoners in isolation, so not much need for extra security.”
“Van Zant!” Haju hissed. “You can’t leave me here like this! Please!”
Taylor kept his focus Aysep. “He’s right. If we go, he comes with us. I won’t leave him here to be executed, nor will I leave the rest of my crew. We all go, or none of us does.”
The Caroon’s expression twisted at Taylor’s terms. However, he, too, had zero other options if he wanted to escape. Aysep chittered over to Haju’s eye hole and pointed to the rear wall of the other’s cell. “Go. There. You take.”
Haju’s brow wrinkled, but he followed the instruction. To his delight, his cell possessed an escape hole as well.
“How did you know this was here?” Haju asked.
Aysep hung his head. “It belonged to mate.”
Taylor couldn’t help but notice the past tense reference to the Caroon’s loved one. He paused for a moment of silence out of respect. I feel ya, brother. We all do.
Aysep looked up. “Next guards in three hours. Come. Now we work.”
* * * * *
Chapter 20: Escape of the Jailb
irds
The next 48 hours brought a whirlwind of activity as Taylor, Haju, and Aysep worked round-the-clock shifts, either digging out the tunnel’s remainder, or holding back in their cells to keep a lookout for KzSha guards. The only time anyone took a break was for the scheduled security checks every eight hours, or to get a drink of the foulest water Taylor had ever smelled in his life. As for the work itself, the job proved nothing short of brutal, not to mention nerve-wracking.
Taylor had never fancied himself a claustrophobic person. Elevators, CASPer cockpits, cramped dorm room closets with girls in college—none of that had bothered him. By contrast, working under these conditions—in that tight a space with that little airflow plus the genuine threat of being buried alive with every tap of his chisel—would’ve been enough to drive a Southern Baptist pastor to drink. Still, the group kept at it until eventually the tunnel was complete.
“Come,” Aysep said. “We go.”
The group waited for the next guard rotation to pass, thus maximizing the time to reach the surface before their cells were discovered empty, then started out through the tunnel on their elbows and bellies. As it turned out, Taylor’s assumption that the isolation caves had been further unground than the mine itself had been incorrect. They’d rested above the pit, thus putting them that much closer to the surface for the climb out. This didn’t make the journey any easier, of course, what with all the dust, stale air, and rocky terrain tearing at the group’s skins. However, no one fell behind, not even Haju, who was by far the trio’s largest member. They simply kept climbing until a reflection of lights illuminated the exit hole ahead.
“How do we—”
“Shhh.” Taylor ended Haju’s question with a look, then slipped his own head through the opening for a glance at their surroundings. As expected, the group had emerged topside directly beside the warehouse where Taylor and the other Eagles had entered the dome seven days earlier. To his right, Taylor spotted the refinery, which was quiet due to the early hour. To his left, there was open highway headed back down to the mine cavern.
“The coast is clear for now,” Taylor whispered. “Let’s go.”
The trio hurried out of the tunnel in a single-file line, then hid behind the warehouse.
“How do we get to your friends so we can leave this place?” Haju asked, quieter this time.
“I ain’t quite figured that—” A lone engine rumbled in the distance, interrupting Taylor’s thought.
“There.” Aysep pointed to the refinery.
One of the empty cargo trucks turned right out of the compound and was headed for the mine cavern.
This gave Taylor an idea. “Hey, Aysep. When your people head down into the confinement zones to pick up workers, do they always travel by rail?”
“No,” Aysep said. “Sometimes train. Others, truck. Ask why?”
“You’re about to get promoted to chauffer,” Taylor said.
The Caroon shook his head.
“I’ll explain later,” Taylor said. “When I say go, I want you to run out onto the highway and flag down that hauler before it enters the mine tunnel.”
“Then what?” Haju asked.
“Then you and me are gonna take out the passengers so we can hijack their ride,” Taylor said. “Are you up to that?”
The Sumatozou nodded.
Don’t screw us here, Haju. Taylor had seen firsthand on Rukoria what the Sumatozou were capable of in a fight when properly motivated. As brute strength went, few species in the Union could match their power. Problem was, a lot of the elephants hated conflict and would avoid it at all costs. With that in mind, Taylor hoped like hell his big companion had truly taken his fill of daily guard beatings.
The headlights drew closer as the truck neared their position. There were three aboard including the driver, all KzSha. As for what if anything was being carried in the back, Taylor couldn’t tell. The entire cargo hold was covered by a tarp.
Please be empty. Taylor prepared to move. “Get ready, Aysep… And go!”
The little Caroon darted out into the open and began waving his arms, bringing the truck to a scratching halt in the middle of the pavement. The hauler doors swung open, and two of the KzSha jumped out.
“What is the—” A deluge of blue blood sprayed the pavement when the wasp’s head was ripped free of its body courtesy of two massive Sumatozou hands.
Well, that answers that.
Before guard two could react, Taylor split the wasp’s skull with his ripper chisel, then bashed its head against the truck fender, while Aysep impaled the driver on one of his claws.
Not a single scream was heard.
“Haju, quick. Help me with these.” Taylor grabbed one of the corpses by what passed for ankles and dragged it into hiding behind a nearby pile of rocks, while Haju did the same with the others. Once the street had been cleared, the duo scrambled back to the cargo hold and threw back the tarp, finding the bay empty, as expected.
“Aysep, you’re on driver duty,” Taylor said, jumping in. “Haju, you’re with me in the back. Let’s roll.”
Haju gave a quick side to side glance at the street before joining Taylor under the tarp. A few seconds later, the truck’s engines fired up to move out.
“I understand chauffer plan,” Aysep said from the cab. “Which zone, your friends?”
“I’ve got no idea,” Taylor said. “I just know it ain’t far underground from the warehouse we were just hidin’ behind.”
The Caroon made a chittering sound as he ground the truck into gear. After that, the group was on their way.
“I take that to mean he knows where we’re going?” Haju asked.
“Just for grins and giggles, let’s play optimist and say yeah,” Taylor answered.
A strange object rolled across the floorboard and thumped to a stop against Taylor’s boot.
“Is that what I think it is?” Haju asked.
Taylor leaned down and scooped the tiny piece of ore, inspecting it in his palm. “I’d say that’s a yes, too. The real question is, what’s so important about a bunch of weird alien rocks that Akoya’s benefactors would go to this much trouble to dig them out of a frozen ice planet?”
“Rocks not important,” Aysep said. “Important inside.”
Taylor arched an eyebrow. “What’s inside the rocks?”
The Caroon reached into the pouch he’d been wearing on his side and produced a small object the size of a peanut. He held it up to show the others.
“Oh, my…” Haju trailed off before he could finish his statement.
The red diamond in Aysep’s grasp sparkled in the dashboard lights as if it were on fire.
“Caroon brought to Droxis like everyone else,” Aysep explained. “We told, ‘rip mines, harvest ore, keep diamond secret. Then be free when project finished. Or be sold as slaves.’ Most choose to dig, stay quiet. I take diamond when mate, me try escape. KzSha caught mate. Did not find diamond. Now, is my future on new world.”
Taylor’s thoughts spun like a cyclone in his head over the magnitude of what this could mean. “Just out of curiosity, how many red diamonds do y’all net from every bin of ore your ripper teams extract from that mine?”
“Roughly one diamond per fifty kilograms,” Aysep said. “Sometimes more, others less.”
Taylor aimed a wide-eyed stare at Haju. “Somebody’s makin’ a shitload of credits off this place. We’re talkin’ about the kind of coin that allows a man to ride off into the sunset to his own private island, never to be heard from again.”
“You have no idea.” Haju’s expression was stone serious. “If what the Caroon says about the ore’s yield rate is true—and considering how much kambersite has already been excavated—then the wealth accrued from this operation goes far beyond someone’s dreams of a flush retirement. That’s the sort of affluence that overthrows governments and turns the tides of wars.”
Taylor felt a chill. But whose war?
The light from a string of distant buildings va
nished through the cracks in the tarp as the truck began its descent into the facility’s underground. The vehicle made a series of turns afterward before eventually slowing to another stop.
“I talk,” Aysep said.
Taylor didn’t argue. A moment later, the brakes squelched, and a synthesized voice was heard outside.
“You are early,” the KzSha guard said.
“Dragline malfunctioned,” Aysep said. “Repairs now, but kambersite bins backing up. Need more workers, finish shift.”
Taylor tensed on his seat. Dammit, Aysep. They’re gonna put in a call to check that! Then it hit him. The KzSha didn’t have comms underground, either. That meant they’d have to send someone to the mine cavern to verify the dragline story, if they even saw fit to take things that far.
“Proceed,” the guard said after what felt like an eternity.
Aysep fired up the engine and eased on the accelerator.
Whew. Taylor watched from under the tarp as the cargo truck navigated the maze of caging areas toward the confinement zone’s right-side perimeter, where it eased to another stop with the engine running. After that, a door creaked open and footfalls touched the rocky ground outside ahead of jingling cage wire.
“Out,” Aysep said. “Into truck. Now.”
More footfalls tapped the ground outside. A few moments later, the tarp’s edge lifted, and Taylor caught eyes with a visibly shocked Buma.
“Mornin’ Frank,” Taylor whispered. “Rumor has it you called for a cab?”
The Buma let out a long exhale as a tidal wave of relief poured past his feathery expression.
“Get in,” Taylor said.
Frank needed no further incentive. He climbed into the truck under the tarp and found a seat beside his CO, while his cellmates did likewise, each of them looking every bit as stunned as their companion had been upon realizing what was happening. There was House and Paulie, of course, plus a handful of other River Hawk troopers Taylor didn’t recognize. By the time the last refugee had climbed aboard, the crew inside the cargo hold had ballooned to nine including Haju, when its final addition put a boot on the tailgate to get in.
The Street Survivors (The Guild Wars Book 12) Page 16
