Space Race (Space Race 1) by Nathan Hystad (book recommendations for young adults .TXT) 📕

it from finishing, we’d have time. One Squid had been here, but I imagined it was being remotely operated with the sole purpose of destroying the Board and CEO liner.

Velvet flew away from the fleet, heading to the Core generator for this section of the Race’s Rings. The checkpoints had to be run by something, and the Hub powering this was packed full of energy, making it extremely volatile and dangerous.

I remembered something my dad had told me about the Defenders that were built on Mars by Sage, and Mr. Under was patched through to Pilgrim. He was on one of the distant transports, carrying the CEO from the incoming battleground.

“Arlo Lewis. Why am I not surprised?” he asked. “Here to demand our surrender like your grandfather?” Under was a fit man, bald, with thick gray eyebrows. Hearing his grating voice helped me recollect the feeling of decking him after he’d reamed me out five years ago.

“The drones seem impervious to the Defenders, Mr. Under, but I heard the weapons were supposed to be powerful. What are they fueled with?” I asked my former CEO.

“Lewis, I have people for that. Why are you wasting my time?”

“I don’t like you. You don’t like me. But I’m here at the front lines while you’re off hiding, and we’re about to wage war. So find out what kind of power containment they have, and send me the data.”

He frowned and ended the call. Moments later, the schematics appeared. Just as I’d thought. “Jade, are you thinking what I’m thinking?”

She smiled at me. “Only if you’re planning on blowing everything up.”

“I am.” I contacted Octavia. “Get those Defenders emptied. Place them in position first and evacuate. Now!”

“What are you doing, Lewis?” she asked.

“I’m going to save the day.”

The last of the drones filed into place, and Bello messaged me, alerting us she had the Hub in tow.

“For this to work, someone needs to sneak onto a Defender ship,” Luther said. “The only blast we have powerful enough to crack the Hub’s case is on board one of those ships. You know it’s true.”

I glanced at the team and felt a sadness at the way things had gone. We’d been brought together to race for the rights to Proxima, and against all odds, we’d actually finished in first place—and the prize was an alien invasion. This wasn’t ideal.

“You all performed well,” I told them proudly as I faced the team. “We fought hard, and despite this outcome, we deserved the win. Not just for SeaTech or anyone else, but we won. Together. That means we can do this too. We can prevent the Velibar from arriving today, and if this might buy us time, so be it. We’ll do whatever it takes next. Together.”

Jade pumped an arm into the air. “Let’s kick their asses.” She dropped her hand.

Luther laughed and patted my back. “She’s got the right spirit.”

Holland didn’t move as I waited for him to say something. “The Defender. I’ll go. I’ll pull the trigger and destroy the Ring’s Hub.”

“No.” R11 spoke up. “Allow me. I am but a robot. I may have individual reasoning capability, but I am nothing more than a series of positrons and wiring. I will do the task. Thank you for including me in the team.”

We stared at the red- and black-painted robot, and it was settled. “Fine. Thank you, R11. We have your backup. We’ll get you home someday. Now we have to bring him there.” I glanced at the viewer as the thousands of drones completed the circle that would create the giant gateway. Lights began to glimmer on their exteriors, starting on one side and continuing until the entire ring was blinking.

“We have to hurry,” Jade urged.

“I’ll take him in the Pod!” Holland exclaimed.

I tried to determine if we could trust his actions. Holland had been loyal to a fault before today, but that was when he thought his mother was dead. But we didn’t have another option. “Go. Quickly.”

Holland locked gazes with me, and he stopped at the exit. “Arlo, I won’t disappoint you.” And they were gone.

A minute later, the Pod rushed from the hangar, leaving me with Luther and Jade on the Racer.

Eclipse appeared with her sister in split screen. “Lewis, I hope you know what you’re doing.”

Bello had released the device she’d been hauling, and the Rings’ hub unit sat positioned right in the center of the proposed gateway’s entrance.

The number 11 Pod Holland operated entered the giant Defender, and we watched as the last of that vessel’s inhabitants were transported by a series of freighters that had come under Liberty’s banner of revolution. Now they were working together with the Board and Primaries. It was incredible how quickly quarrels were forgotten in the face of larger adversity.

The evacuation had taken a half hour, and the lights of the drone ring were no longer pulsing, but solid blue. It reminded me of a gigantic Race checkpoint. This was it. The final lap.

“R11, are you in place?” I asked, using my earpiece.

“Captain Lewis, I am on the bridge, and have control of the weapons system. I have targeted the Hub’s containment box.”

We expected the other Defenders to be cannon fodder, and we were told each of them still had a captain on board. They were in position, waiting for anything to come through a mysterious gate that had yet to appear.

The circle of drones was so bright, my viewer automatically dimmed the light, and after a few minutes, the blue began to spread out. Energy sparkled, much like the pulses from the tentacles; only this was a dark navy instead of red. The inside of the ring was filling in. Jade suggested we wait until the gate was complete, because the power being generated would assist our explosion.

I agreed with her but wished we could have blasted the drones before waiting to find out who was on the distant side. As curious as I was about these Velibar, I’d be relieved when they