Orion Colony Complete Series Boxed Set by J.N. Chaney (best detective novels of all time .TXT) 📕

Dama and Stacy, who were in the lead, were already discharging their weapons on Legion. Our plan was working for the time being. Our throw had been perfect. Sulk hit it right when it was over the center of their numbers.

Bodies were everywhere, some not moving and others trying to get their bearings. We were off like a shot, sprinting through the smoke. We bullied past most of them, firing at those who got too close. A sense of terror gripped at me as I saw the amount of destruction the bomb had caused.

Not only that, we were willingly diving into their ranks, headed for the armory door. If they recovered sooner than we wanted them to, we would be trapped, and then what would we do?

John and I brought up the rear, firing on any of the infected who showed too much awareness. Hands grabbed for me. Those infected who carried weapons leveled blasters or swung their blades. Fortunately, their aim was wild as usual. I supposed that was a challenge for Legion, to fire in many directions accurately. It showed that his control was not absolute or at least coordinated.

“Hey, we’ve got to go now!” I yelled to those in the front.

“Almost there!” Dama yelled back. “The control panel is on the right side of the wall. Hurry!”

“Kill them!” Legion yelled in one voice as all the infected opened their throats. “Kill them all!”

What happened next was something I could only describe as mayhem. Our small group made it to the control panel, but Legion was pissed.

Dama worked frantically, putting in the code to allow us access to the armory hangar. It was a square device about chest high for the Rung. She placed her hand on the pad first then began to punch in a series of numbers.

“Dean!” Tong shouted in a panicked voice.

I looked back in time to see Tong enveloped by a wave of infected that looked like they were trying to tackle him to the ground.

I lashed out with the butt of my weapon, afraid I’d hit the Remboshi if I fired.

Stacy was beside me a moment later as we fought off the infected and lifted Tong to his feet.

“Tha-thanks,” Tong said, clearly shaken and taking in deep breaths.

“Thank me later,” I told him. “Fight now.”

What remained of our number formed a protective half circle around Dama as she worked on the door. While the explosive had worked wonders in clearing a path, there were still hundreds of infected pressing in on us.

I saw a Rung fall to my left with a blade stuck in his head, while another to my right was grabbed by the infected horde and pulled into their smelly ranks. The anguished scream he gave off was something I knew I would never be able to forget.

“Got it!” Dama yelled from our rear. “Don’t let them in the hangar!”

A grating mechanical sound vibrated through the floor under our feet. The massive hangar doors that had to be at least two stories tall began to slide open from the middle. First a slit and then an opening large enough to squeeze through appeared.

“Move to the doors!” Stacy screamed to us.

Legion let off a wail so loud, strident, and long, I winced, wanting to cover my ears. Some in our party scuffled to the door, firing, slashing, and striking out in the process.

Tong was limping from a wound to his leg. Dama’s helmet had been ripped off, and a wound had opened over her right eye, leaking blood down her face.

Maksim was the first to the opening doors. He disappeared inside the large room, much to my dismay. My gut twisted inside my stomach. If he closed the doors on us from the other side, it was all over. We were still keeping the infected at bay as we tried to get inside.

“Hurry, get in!” Stacy called out, seeing the same thing I did. “We have to get to him before he does anything stupid.”

I finally made it to the doors, where those who remained made a valiant last stand to try to keep the infected out.

The massive hangar doors that had been sliding open a second before grinded to a halt then began to turn the opposite way and close again.

Right now, there was an opening in the hangar doors about ten meters across. By the second, that opening was closing. We had to get over there fast.

“Inside, get inside!” Sulk yelled out.

We walked backward, putting ourselves inside the hangar while ensuring the infected stayed out, still slashing out at them with blades and me swinging my Skull Splitter. It was less about Legion using his troops to attack us now and more of a shoving match to keep the infected out of the hangar. It was becoming a bigger challenge each moment that passed.

There were now far too few of us to keep the infected out. Inch by inch, they pushed forward, forcing us to give way. If it weren’t for my armor, my body would have been a canvas of bruises and scrapes as they clawed their way into the hangar bay.

“We can’t hold them!” Sulk cried out, losing some of the confidence he usually exuded and beginning to sound defeated.

And I knew he was right. The doors were closing but much too slow. Eight meters and growing narrower. There wasn’t much we could do to keep them out. Already they had gained the threshold, and in seconds, they would be inside with us, able to either access the power armor or keep us from using it.

“Help me!” Maksim appeared out of the dark hangar room, struggling to carry a long metal sheet.

I had no idea where he’d gotten it from but immediately understood his plan as he maneuvered the barrier between us and the infected.

“Grab the metal sheet!” Stacy roared, also picking up on his plan. Together, the few of us