Countdown by John Walker (most life changing books TXT) 📕

your gun around. We’ll make them think there are two of us still.” He replaced the lieutenant at the position, blind firing a couple times. “Make it fast though. They should’ve charged by now. Eventually, they’ll figure that out.”

“Got it.” Nostros hustled away.

“You sure that was the right choice?” McCully joined him in providing suppressive fire. “I haven’t worked with him before to know whether or not he should be off on his own.”

“He’s a marine lieutenant,” Zem said, jerking back as one of the enemies nearly got his gun. “If he can’t do this, he should’ve bowed out when I invited him along. But I’ve seen him operate. He’s not bad at this.”

“The yacht’s coming down,” Torrence shouted. “It’ll hit… oh, probably a hundred yards from the wall. Just north of the nearest landing pad. I’m amazed they came back this way.”

I’m shocked it won’t crash into this building. Zem felt like they were experiencing some bad luck. The return of the ground vehicles, all the men they didn’t know about. I’d like to know why the scans weren’t accurate. He had several items to go over in a postmortem… if they made it that far.

They started with the initiative, but he felt like they lost at some point. Standing at the end of the hall, blindly firing in hopes they’d hold back the tide of pirates contributed to the sensation. It would only get worse if Nostros’s flanking attack didn’t work. It has to work. Or we’re hiding in the damn control room.

Their opponents started aiming better, blasting the wall where they’d taken cover. They littered the corner with so much fire, it became hazardous to even stand close to it. Zem drew out a couple grenades. “If they start moving, when we see, we’ll be chucking these. Nostros, how close are you? They’re taking the advantage.”

“I’m almost there,” Nostros said, “opening fire!”

“Flank!” A pirate shouted. Three started charging down the hall. Zem tossed the first grenade. McCully prepped one, cooking it for a couple seconds before tossing it. The resulting explosions went off, likely before the targets got too close but it gave them pause… one long enough to take a risk.

Zem peeked around with his weapon at the ready. He shot at a man about midway down the way leaning against the wall. The blast struck the ground inches from the man’s foot. I wanted the leg. He redirected but the target threw himself to the opposite side of the hall before returning fire.

As Zem fell back, McCully tossed two more grenades. A scream followed the pop, the kind of agonizing sound that accompanied every battle eventually. Heavy footsteps barreled down on them.

McCully grabbed Zem, dragging him to the ground as a man spun around the corner, firing high. She put two in his gut. Zem finished him off with a blast to the face. They backed away, moving toward the control center. They had seconds to get there before their position was overrun.

“Nostros,” Zem said, “you’re about to be on your own for a minute. I hope you’ve got this. We’ll catch up ASAP.” He tapped McCully. “Come on, we need to regroup.”

***

Torrence checked Biggun before turning back to the screen. The yacht would touch down in less than a minute. She wondered whether it would survive or explode. It all depended on luck for the people aboard.

How would the generators react to the impact? Or the ether, for that matter?

She tried to reach out to them again, another quick communication telling them to hit their maneuvering thrusters… anything to slow their descent. As she watched, orange flames burst from the bottom, a quick, boost that may have saved some lives. When they hit, it wouldn’t quite be as catastrophic.

Hopefully.

Strong hands grabbed her shoulders, tossing her away from the console. She slammed into the railing of the dais, pain dancing up her back.

Biggun came after her, throwing a kick. Torrence rolled away as he slammed his foot into the stair. She retaliated with a quick backhand, connecting with his cheek. The man smiled, spat blood on the floor, then barreled into her.

He struggled to get his hands around her throat. She fended him off with her left hand, reaching for her pistol with the right. It wasn’t close enough with the way he pressed against her but as her fingers kissed her combat blade, she gripped the handle tightly. Sliding it out proved difficult, especially with him pressed against her.

“What… the hell…?” Torrence grunted, hoping she might get him talking, gloating, anything to allow her a moment to breathe. “We had… a… deal you… piece… of shit!”

“Shut up and die already, bitch.” Biggun looked her in the eye, smiling as he used all his weight to keep her pinned. His fingers touched the sides of her neck. The blade came free. She turned it, pressing it against his side. “What?!”

Biggun’s eyes widened, the perverted look of glee melted. He shifted himself away from being stabbed even as she poked him. Shoving her away, he tried to withdraw. As Torrence stumbled, she threw a wild swing with the blade in his direction. It met some resistance, a temporary state before coming free again.

The cut accompanied a scream. Torrence came back around. Blood soaked the man’s face from a nasty cut just above his eyes. He pressed a hand against it, moaning like an injured animal. As he came toward her, she tossed the knife and drew her pistol. He proved much faster than anticipated, knocking the barrel aside just as she fired.

Biggun threw a punch. Torrence dropped below it, coming up with a quick jab from the left. She smacked him right in the wound, making him let out a gurgled cry. He didn’t give in, didn’t even move back but rather threw a series of punches she had to