Arsenal Reloaded (Full Metal Superhero Book 8)

by Jeffery H. Haskell

  “Open the tunnel, please.”

  Open.

  I slip the frequency modulator into a bag and sling it over my shoulder. Once I’m ready, I open the lift doors and jump in.

  The drop to the hangar only takes a second. I step out and activate the Emdrives and blast up the finished launch tube. Epic lights a yellow path on my HUD to follow. It curves up and I fly out of the secret entrance half a mile later at Lancaster Lodge Travel Plaza. A few seconds tick by. Once I’m clear of the construction site I hit the sound barrier with a boom. After that it’s easy to accelerate up to escape velocity.

  As I pass a hundred thousand feet the horizon vanishes; the blackness of space is all I can see. This never gets old.

  I take a second to twirl and enjoy the weightlessness before heading for Artemis. The Emdrives work even better without air resistance and I fly past Mach 10 on my way. Currently, the satellite is moving into position over the target area instead of its geosynchronous orbit over the US.

  You should be able to see it in three seconds.

  I do, and I hit full reverse power as I approach it. The Emdrive slows me down to match velocity and then it’s a matter of slowly drifting toward the multi-million-dollar satellite. Over the years I’ve added comms, radar, cameras—the whole bit to it. It’s far more than a launch platform for arrows at this point.

  I hit the side, careful not to dent anything. Once my magnetized boots are attached and I am in place, it’s a simple matter to open the access hatch and—

  “Oh, for crying out loud.”

  Amelia, there appears to be an unknown device attached to the platform. I do not know how that could have happened without my knowledge.

  “Me either. What is it?”

  Scanning.

  All kinds of information pops up on my HUD as he creates a 3D wireframe of the little box.

  “So, this is how ARC has known where I am and what I’m doing. How the heck did they piggyback on my satellite without us knowing about it?”

  This does explain a great deal. Including how they knew where to send the Safety Force to intercept Carlos.

  “Among other things. Is it tapped into our comms or just the cameras?”

  Lines of code appear as Epic cracks into the device. The code is intricate and detailed, not to mention incredibly advanced.

  “Epic... who made this?”

  I do not know. This code is far more advanced than anything I have ever seen.

  While it isn’t coding for an AI and therefore doesn’t need to be dense, it’s still spectacular. No wonder they were able to use it to break into our communications.

  “Can we remove it without damaging Artemis?” I ask. There are several pieces of information on my HUD that are useful; right now, in space, my largest concern is life support. I have an hour before I need to worry, but if this thing is attached intricately, it could take longer.

  It is more than just on the surface. They have wired it into every system on the satellite. When Strungel took control and launched an arrow at the Spire, we went through the code and structure with a fine-tooth comb. This was added after.

  Examining it proves fruitless. Epic is right. I don’t think I can remove it without destroying the satellite. And I need the satellite to find the ships and bring back Tia.

  “We’re going to have to let them tag along, Epic. We just need to be faster than they are. Which means we don’t activate the scanner until we are over the sea. At the very least, it should keep them from showing up at the same time. Besides, if we know they’re listening…”

  Affirmative. I will also inform the team that communication is going dark. There is no need for them to continue to have access to our team’s secured communications avenue. I will create sporadic and fake team communications to prevent ARC from realizing what has happened.

  “Good thinking!”

  When Epic informs me we’re ready, I pull up the menu that controls the satellite and shut it down. Once it is off, I install the frequency modulator and close the hatch.

  “I love this thing, but when this is all over we’re going to have to scuttle her,” I tell Epic.

  Agreed. I have a hypothesis. If ARC does use androids as foot soldiers, then it presupposes they can use them in space.

  “Why don’t they just kill me and get it over with? Why the games?”

  The simplest reason is that they need you. They need you for the tech you develop. They need you to find the Th’un ships. You do not kill the golden goose.

  “That makes sense, but... when I find whoever is pulling their strings, I don’t think I can show such restraint.”

  Me either.

  Twenty-FOUR

  The Emjet is the fastest plane on the planet. It’s faster than anything the government has, and it can turn at angles that would make other planes disintegrate from the g-forces. It also has the added advantage of comfort.

  While it would be faster to go sub-orbital to travel the eight-thousand miles to the South China Sea, it could also draw unwanted attention. As stealthy as the Emjet can be, it isn’t perfect. Instead I fly at a leisurely Mach Six in a normal flight pattern, and it only takes an hour and a half to arrive at our destination. Which also gives me time to sleep—something I’ve lacked the last few weeks.

  The alarm wakes me right before touch down. Somewhere over Japan we dropped to three-hundred feet above sea level, beneath any radar. I wake up just as we enter China’s claimed airspace. Technically, the world doesn’t agree with them that it is theirs, but the germane issue here is that I’m violating another country’s protected zone and this isn’t Europe. They’re likely to shoot first and ask questions later... if at all.

  Slowing to dive speed.

  The last thing we want to do is hit the water at Mach speeds. That would be messy.

  Suit up.

  “Right.” I pop the tab on the can with the specially modified armor for underwater use. Within seconds I’m encased in one-inch thick armor with enough structural reinforcement to survive at the depth we’re going to, which is eighteen-thousand feet.

  “What’s the diving record?”

  Thirty-five thousand feet... in a submarine. Twenty-three hundred feet in a suit.

  “Woot! More records I’ve broken I can’t tell anyone about,” I say with mock enthusiasm.

  You and I will know. And one day, everyone will know.

  I shrug. I don’t actually care all that much. I’ve never done this for the fame and fortune. It just happened.

  Ready to submerge, Captain Nemo?

  “Aye, aye. Submerge the Nautilus!”

  The Emjet hovers lower and lower until it is resting on the surface of the sea. The drives reconfigure, pointing their thrust up before re-engaging. Water flows around us as we sink beneath the waves. I have Epic turn the walls translucent so I can see where we are going… sort of. It gets dark, fast!

  Unlike a regular sub that dives by taking on water and surfaces by expelling it, we’re diving like a cork in a bathtub. Nothing but the force of our drives is holding us underwater. Which means, like the cork, if we lose power, we lose the protection of the kinetic shields... it won’t be pretty.

  The ship creaks alarmingly as we pass five-hundred feet.

  “Epic?”

  The structure, reinforced with kinetic shielding, is holding. The math is sound. We should be okay.

  “It’s the should part that worries me.”

  The ship continues to descend, creaking and groaning as we go. Since the kinetic shields hold the pressure back, I won’t need to decompress when we come back up. We still don't want to come up to fast, since it could adversely affect the Emjet’s systems.

  At five thousand feet I pull up the comms for Artemis. “Activating the scanner.” It only takes a few seconds for the signal to come back via the tether we’ve leaving behind us like a fishing line.

  A cool ‘ping’ sound echoes in the cabin. Completely unnecessary but awesome all the same. A picture forms on th
e screen, showing a hazy patch up ahead. While this isn’t an exact science, it gives us a general direction to go, other than down.

  Two miles north by northwest. Changing course.

  A thump goes through the ship as we start moving horizontally, not just vertically.

  “Lights.”

  The front of the ship lights up like a car dealership on the freeway.

  “Whoa!” It’s gorgeous down here. It’s also a little unnerving. “Am I feeling anxious because I can’t see far?” I ask Epic.

  Many people report anxiety when deep under the water. It could be the tens of thousands of gallons above you or just the vastness. It is hard to say.

  “Yeah... space never bothered me like this,” I tell him warily. “This is just... making my gut twinge.”

  We are not far away. It will not take much longer.

  We speed through the sea silently, leaving only a trail of disturbed water and marine life as we travel to the point the satellite marked.

  I wait in silence, the anxious feeling in my gut growing with each passing second. I try to tell myself that it’s just the strange environment. That I’ve been on alien spaceships in other parts of the galaxy for Pete sake. This shouldn’t bother me.

  But it does.

  Amelia, look!

  The forward light touches something and Epic immediately slows us down. Turning so we’re broadside against it, the Emjet’s lights shine on the cigar-shaped hull of a Th’un destroyer.

  I’m unprepared for the feelings that rush through me on seeing their ship. I can honestly say I hate them. I hate them for attacking us and for what they did to Kate, but mostly I hate them for what they made me do to stop them. I refuse to lose sleep over it, but I can’t ignore the fact that I eradicated their species.

  Amelia, your heart rate has jumped. Are you okay?

  “No. But I will be. It’s just... everything that happened with them.”

  I understand. Take a moment. You do not want to go out there with a racing heart. It will be stressful enough as it is.

  I take a second to breathe in and out and let my heart calm down. “Okay, okay. I can do this.”

  I don’t actually need a lot of the material to make a new suit. But this is all I’m ever going to get, so I need as much as possible.

  Opening external doors and the cargo pod.

  Two large bay doors open underneath the Emjet and a small pod drops out, with enough space to store about twenty pounds of the alien metal.

  “Keep your ears on, Epic. At the first sign of intruders we blow the ship and get out of here. I don’t want to fight at this depth.”

  Affirmative. Good luck.

  “Right.” I step to the improved door. It opens into the small airlock that is just big enough for me to enter. The door closes behind me and the space fills up with water. It’s hard not to hyperventilate as the water passes my visor.

  You are good, Amelia. The suit is operating at one hundred percent.

  “It’s just... I don’t like the water. Are we ready with the QUACKERS unit?”

  That name seemed like a good idea at the time, but now, standing here, terrified, it doesn’t feel as clever.

  Yes. As soon as you are outside, I will activate it. If Tia is here, she will reform in the ship and not outside.

  “Good. I’d hate to bring her back and accidentally kill her at the same time.”

  That would be unfortunate.

  “Open the pod bay doors, HAL.”

  That is not funny.

  “You’re right about that. I’m not feeling super humorous. Just open the doors.”

  The external doors slide up, revealing the sea. It’s pitch black, except where the ship’s lights touch the silty ground like lasers. The suit beeps as the rigidity holds the pressure of the depth back.

  The suit is a little slow to respond as I move forward. The nanite created armor, along with kinetic manipulators, create a system not unlike the Emjet. There is no pressure on me, just the suit.

  My foot touches down in the soft silt and a swirl of dust covers me for a moment. “One small step...” I mutter trying to cheer myself up.

  Another step and more silt, but now I’m getting the hang of it. Walking down here is like walking through mud. Even with the suit’s enhanced strength moving through the water is a bit more tiring than normal. The little pod follows along on it motorized treads unaffected by my speed.

  “Anything on Tia?”

  Our device is operating as expected, but there is no sign of Tia.

  I try not to think about the trillion ways I could have interpreted Pythia’s statement. Maybe she meant I should just go swimming at the Y?

  I continue walking forward like I’m in the mud. I make it to the hull after a few steps and place a hand on it. All kinds of sensors come to life, showing me information about the ship. The ZPFM core is off so the ship has no power.

  I walk slowly down the ship toward the rear and find what I’m looking for; an access hatch.

  That is the perfect place to extract since there is already a seam.

  “Activating the cutting beam,” I say over the radio. The ships’ hulls are extremely tough, practically impervious, but only when they have power. Without power they are slightly easier to cut. Only slightly, though.

  The cutter, which is essentially a particle beam, springs to life from my back, lifting up on an articulating arm. It hovers over my shoulder as I use the targeting reticule on the HUD to tell it where to cut.

  I fire up the particle beam and focus it on what I think is a door. It boggles my mind that the Th’un could have done anything with this metal but they made it look exactly like everything else.

  Seconds pass as I keep the beam focused on one spot. “How’s the temperature tolerance?” I ask Epic.

  Within allowances. The water is keeping the external temperature of the suit down, which gives us extended firing time.

  “Good to know.”

  An explosion of air shoot outs of the door, knocking me back and surprising the hell out of me. The whole area is covered in silt as the ship’s oxygen is replaced with water. I’m stunned for a second and can’t see a thing.

  I would have thought they would have sunk them without atmosphere.

  “Me too. I guess they didn’t want anyone going inside to figure out how they work? Or, maybe they couldn’t break into them…”

  Uncomfortable minutes pass as I wait for the sea bottom to settle so I can see again.

  Amelia, I am getting a few blips on the QUACKERS unit. I do not know what it is, but there is something here interacting with the field.

  Excitement runs through me and I smile. “Awesome. Please God, let it be her.”

  Once the silt settles, I’m back to it. The beam activates again, and we start cutting a circle through the outer hull. I’d love some of the internal metal, but I don’t know how much time I have for this to work.

  My suit starts beeping at me as the particle beam heats up, despite the extra cooling of the ocean. I shut it down manually and let it cool off for a second.

  “You know,” I say to Epic while I wait for the temp to drop, “having Nemesis disable quantum gate travel has one advantage...”

  What is that?

  “We know there are other aliens out there. The Th’un had enemies, and I assume allies, but now, well, now they can’t get to Earth, right? If Lux can’t get home, they certainly can’t come here.”

  I had not thought of it that way. Is this what people mean when they say, “find the bright side?”

  “Indeed. So what if a billion dollars’ worth of technology is on the other side; it’s only money. Am I right?” I ask him.

  You are correct. I can always make more money.

  “I like to think of it as a team effort.”

  If by team you mean I do all the work and you collect the rewards, then you are correct.

  “Hey. Ouch. It’s a little deep down here for you to stab me in the back like that,” I say
with a genuine grin.

  Amelia... I have no radar down here, but there is a sudden increase in current. Can you do a full turn around and see if there is anything moving?

  “At this depth? There shouldn’t be.”

  I oblige him and start to spin slowly in place, letting Epic use the suit’s cameras to see better than I could ever hope too.

  Uh oh.

  “What?”

  ARC’s androids cannot survive at this depth, but it looks like Vixen is not the only super they have corrupted.

  “Who is it?”

  The thermal on the HUD is starting to show a vague blob swimming toward me. Fantastic. I don’t want to fight at this depth, but I also am not done getting the metal.

  There are five superpowered individuals with the power set required to survive at this depth and generate heat. One of them is a known mercenary named Sea King. It is most likely him.

  “If it is, he likely sees with thermal, right? Go dark. Full shutdown and stealth mode. If we can get the upper hand I’d like too.”

  Should we depart and blow the ship?

  It was my original plan but... I don’t have any metal yet. I look to the ship and back to the Emjet.

  Dangit.

  “No. I need this.”

  The lights from the Emjet shut off and plunge the area into darkness. If he does see in heat, it will be minimal. I back up until I’m up against the hull of the ship. The nanites change temperature until I look like part of the ship. Stealth mode rocks.

  Ten seconds. Five. Two...

  He swims by. There is no natural light down here, so I can’t see him in detail, but I do see his form. He blows by at a few hundred miles an hour, swirling up silt and sand behind him as he goes.

  “He doesn’t know where we are, does he?”

  Apparently not. He is moving off. Maybe he has a general location and is searching for signs.

  “Crap,” I mutter. “I would have liked more time, but it is what it is. Anything on the QUACKERS?”

  It has started pulling more power. I think we might be in the right place. Amelia... if he destroys the Emjet, there is no way to save Tia...