Quantum Cultivation by Jace Kang (simple e reader TXT) 📕

He bent over and took the ear dot from one of the men so he could monitor whatever internal communications Aya hadn’t shut down. He also retrieved the wrist microphone.

Then they picked their way among the unconscious and moaning Peacekeepers sprawled through the hallway. To think, he’d done this. Well, maybe one-third of it. The others had fallen to Siena’s speed and precise shooting.

Did all Elestrae scientists learn to shoot? And fight hand-to-hand like she did?  With so much power and skill already, it was no wonder she didn’t take Cultivation seriously.

They reached the maglift bay and continued into the stairwell.  The force fields dissipated around Siena as they climbed to first the ninth floor, then the tenth.

Two more to go.

“All tactical units on levels five to thirteen,” a female voice came over the ear dot. “Subjects last sighted in the central stairwell on level eight. Force fields are not stopping them. Insert on odd levels and establish a fire line on those landings. Lethal force authorized.”

Ken took Siena’s arm. “They’re going to try to surround us.”

As if in response to his words, ahead of them on the eleventh floor the doors swished open and the sound of a dozen footsteps filed into the hall. In seconds, the same thing happened behind them on the ninth floor.

“We’re almost there,” Siena said. “Two more floors to go.”

Something whirred.

She turned the corner as a spray of red bolts lit the air. She dodged between them, and Kentaro followed.  Up ahead was a tactical team of seven. Two appeared to be…

Metal began to whirr. The tactical team sidestepped, revealing a tripod-mounted minigun.

“Get b—” Ken started.

Siena leaped back, seizing Ken’s arm and yanking him out of the line of fire.  They fell to the tenth floor landing, with her on top of him.  It sounded as if the concrete below them had cracked, but he didn’t hurt at all.

“We have them pinned down,” a male voice came over the ear dot.

“Press the attack!” a commander said.

Bootsteps from above ran down while several from below hurried up.

If only Master Ryu had taught Ken Water Whips! He could’ve sliced right through the minigun. For now, they wouldn’t be able to press forward.

“Can you put them to sleep?” he yelled above the din of energy pulses and warping metal.

She shook her head. “I need to conserve my energy.”

For what? He raised his eyebrow, but she rolled off of him and pulled him to his feet.

“This way,” Ken said, slipping out through the opening tenth-floor doors.

“Subjects are escaping through the tenth floor!” a male voice yelled. “Why aren’t those locked down?”

No doubt Aya’s doing.  Still, more rushing footsteps through the halls indicated they were surrounded.

“What now?” Siena asked. “Is there another set of stairs?”

Ken nodded. “There’s one set between every floor.  If this is the tenth level, the access will be to the north.”

The same direction as the approaching Peacekeepers. Though if they were moving that fast, they likely hadn’t set up another Vulcan cannon.

“Which way?” she said.

He pointed.

Siena took the lead, and again, force fields buzzed out of existence as she passed through their emitters. Even with her shorter legs, she strode fast, and Ken had to hurry to keep up.

Footsteps approached from behind, and without even looking back, Siena squeezed off two shots and felled two tactical Peacekeepers.

Up ahead, several more turned the corner, weapons hot. Never breaking pace, Siena bobbed and weaved, slipping left and right, always just avoiding the incoming shots.

Though the pulses travelled more slowly in his perception, Ken kept to diving into forward rolls and zigzagging behind her.

Then they were among them.

A gun pointed at Ken’s head, but he pulled the Peacekeeper’s outstretched arm so that the shot hit a comrade.

“Sorry!” he said as he punched the Peacekeeper in the head, shattering their helmet and knocking them out.

With a flurry of Wing Chun punches, he disabled another before they could bring their weapon to bear. He pulled up short, and a red bolt zipped right where his head would’ve been. When the Peacekeeper lined up for a follow-up, Ken surged in with Teppin’s Snake Entangles Two Trunks, and took the man to the ground. Ken bounced back up to his feet and executed a Xingyi stomp into the Peacekeeper’s stomach, knocking the wind out of them.

Behind Siena, another Peacekeeper pulled back to punch her in the head. Ken caught the man in the elbow and swept his leg back behind his knees. The Peacekeeper’s body went horizontal, and Ken tried Splashing Hands. While the blow knocked his target to the ground with a thud, it certainly didn’t have the same effect as Master Ryu’s.

He looked around to see the path was clear. Up ahead, Siena had resumed her march.

“Team 8 down!” the voice spoke in his ear dot. “Targets heading north toward the stairwell.”

No doubt they’d find a hot welcome waiting there.

“Teams 9, 12, 21, and 27 are not far behind them,” said another voice.

Ken cursed to himself. They’d be caught between two teams.

“Siena,” he called. “Stop.”

She paused and looked over her shoulder. All her frivolous expressions from the past few days had melted away, replaced by fierce focus.

“We’re going to run into more up ahead, and the more time they have to prepare, the harder it will be to avoid their firing lines. No matter how good you are, we’re talking about a lot of shots, and eventually one will get lucky.”

“I don’t believe in luck,” she said.

“I have an idea. Aya, can you hear me?”

No answer, no projections.

“Well?” Siena asked.

If only there was enough time to change into the Peacekeeper uniforms and lie among the fallen. But maybe… “You need to conserve energy for your channeling,