Re-Coil - J.T. Nicholas Page 0,97
reasons, but at the very least, they could have infected the ship first and then sent in a team. Of course, it begged the question…
“And third?” I asked.
“You already know the answer to that, Mr. Langston. If there is anything to be salvaged from this debacle, it’s our job to try and salvage it. We cannot make that determination unless and until we board the vessel.”
That sounded more like the corporations I knew and loved.
“Bloody wonderful,” I muttered. “How long?”
“A few minutes. The amount of virus I had should be sufficient to clear out the bridge. The fact that the infected are suited may slow the process down, but the nanites are designed to infiltrate suits. The AI programmers at Genetechnic were all confidant that Bliss would pull back and isolate the area for fear of further contamination buying us a few minutes to make our entry.” His voice was so dry on the last sentence that it could have soaked up oceans. Apparently, the assassin had as much trust in the “experts” who didn’t have their collective asses on the line as I did. But without visual access inside, we didn’t have many options but to wait and hope for the best.
Sarah tracked the time and at precisely three minutes, Korben spoke. “That should be long enough.” He moved to a spot adjacent to me, though giving me enough room to clear a section of ship hull. Those blades, seeming almost to shine with a silver light of their own, had reappeared in his hands. “No need to be so circumspect with the hatch removal this time, Mr. Langston. Speed is of the essence. As soon as you clear it, I’ll drop in and see what we’re dealing with. You showed a certain degree of aptitude on the hull of the vessel. Follow or not, as you will. Your assistance might prove useful.” Though the words were almost insulting, I sensed that, for the assassin, they were a great compliment indeed.
“Great,” I said. I took the few seconds to ensure a fresh magazine was loaded into the submachine gun before pulling out the solvent. “Ready?” I asked. I got a nod in response and immediately began applying the solvent. It dissolved the glue as fast as I could spread it and in short order I was once again crouched with one leg on either side of the hull section, ready to lift. I sent Sarah a mental ping to display a three-second countdown and transmit it to Korben. Then I gave the go order and drew a deep breath. The seconds ticked down… three… two… one. As the counter hit zero, I lifted as smoothly and quickly as my hull connection would allow.
This time there was no need to try and decelerate the mass, and at the apex of the lift, I simply released it, letting it drift off into the deep. Korben didn’t even wait that long, moving through the opening with a sinuous grace as soon as it was large enough to fit his body. I was one, maybe, two seconds behind him.
I dropped into a scene of horror.
I was aware, vaguely, of Korben pushing his way toward the hatch leading into the bridge. I was as vaguely aware that we were on the bridge. But neither thought could intrude much past the edges of my attention.
As soon as we’d passed the hull of the ship, the artificial gravity had taken hold. The bridge’s atmosphere had been vented before I’d ever started cutting—I’d known that the minute I’d punched through the hull without the fanfare of escaping gasses. I’d prepared myself for the drop into gravity but had forgotten the strain my limbs had suffered and failed to take into account the extra weight of gear and ammo that I carried. The impact had taken me by surprise, and when I’d risen…
On the hull, we’d fought our way through dozens of the Bliss-infected passengers and crew of the cruise ship. As we’d dealt with them, their bodies had remained tacked to the deck by the power of the magnetic locks of their boots. I’d had to walk through that forest of corpses, bodies moving with the attitude changes of the ship. Dead weight, or maybe, dead weightless. That had been bad enough. This was worse. Far worse.
Whatever compound Korben had released hadn’t killed the coils. Hadn’t been designed to do so, I supposed. Chan had called them hunter-killer nanites. They had been designed to target the Bliss