fusion rifles. “Kill the archaeologist.”
Weapons swung toward Matt’s dad. Matt dug in his heels and tried to put himself back in the line of fire. But the Powerloader’s clumsy legs just wouldn’t move fast enough.
The Corsairs fired. Bright orange fire exploded from their weapons, and his father disappeared in a blast of light.
Matt felt nothing. He was nothing. He was going to die like his dad. He knew that. In pure rage, he launched himself at the Corsair leader.
He expected to explode in a burst of orange fire. But he was just fast enough. He barreled into the Corsair leader with the three-ton Powerloader and drove him up against the hangar wall. Tears streamed down his face and spattered on the controls.
They were suddenly face-to-face. The Corsair was young, not much more than a teenager. He gave Matt a bemused grin and looked up at him with oddly calm eyes.
Odd eyes. One eye was bright violet. One eye was an intense golden color.
Matt gaped. That was impossible. Violet and gold eyes. HuMax eyes. But the HuMax were dead. Everyone knew that. The Union had been formed just to wipe them out, and that was more than a hundred years ago.
Matt remembered watching an entertainment video, late at night when he wasn’t supposed to. It was set on Eridani after the HuMax invasion. Violet-and-gold-eyed people swarmed over the verdant colony, while nuclear mushrooms blossomed. His dad had come in and turned off the video, saying, “You don’t need to watch stuff like that.”
Something exploded on Matt’s chest.
He flew out of the Powerloader cockpit and fell on the expanded-steel hangar deck, skidding to within ten meters of the Corsair troops. Smoke curled off his jumpsuit, and the acrid smell of burnt hair filled his nose. Fusion weapons swiveled to target him.
The Corsair leader pushed the dead Powerloader off himself with superhuman strength. Like a HuMax, Matt’s terrified brain told him. But he can’t be.
The front energy cell on the Powerloader gaped open, black and smoking from the explosion. But the Corsair leader’s weapon was also twisted and broken.
He dropped it on the floor and came to examine Matt. His violet-and-gold eyes were heavy and unmoving, like lead. He looked at Matt for a long time.
Matt wanted to scream at him, You killed my father. I’ll kill you. I’ll rip you apart. I hate you.
But all he could do was stand there and tremble, tears streaming down his face as little sobs escaped from his lips.
Finally the Corsair leader smiled again. The chill, alien expression never touched his eyes. Those strange orbs didn’t move a nanometer.
“Sometimes, courage must have its reward,” he said.
He walked past Matt and joined his fellows. They sauntered out through the shattered hangar doors. Shortly, there was the scream of ramjets. A craft lifted into the sky.
Matt sat alone in the broken hangar. Slow realization crept over him, like a chill fog.
His dad would never return. A Corsair had killed him. A HuMax Corsair.
Chill turned to heat, and heat turned to rage. Matt stood up. He ran out into the sand. He wanted to leap up into the sky and chase the murderer down, smashing and burning everything in his way. But there was nothing he could do. He looked up at the blank yellow sky and screamed, without a sound escaping his lips.
“I’ll find you!” Matt yelled.
Bright medical lamps glared down on him. He lay on his back on a warm, hard surface. White-suited doctors and gray-uniformed Mecha Auxiliaries leaned over him. Some of them winced or recoiled as if in shock. Matt realized he’d yelled out loud.
He was back at Mecha Training Camp.
On the Mind Raze machine.
Fresh, hot memory beat at his mind. Talons raking through his brain. That memory, that terrible memory, in full 3-D glory, brought back sharper and stronger than in even his Perfect Record. He’d lived the death of his father all over again.
That HuMax—that impossible HuMax. How they’d laughed on the
Weapons swung toward Matt’s dad. Matt dug in his heels and tried to put himself back in the line of fire. But the Powerloader’s clumsy legs just wouldn’t move fast enough.
The Corsairs fired. Bright orange fire exploded from their weapons, and his father disappeared in a blast of light.
Matt felt nothing. He was nothing. He was going to die like his dad. He knew that. In pure rage, he launched himself at the Corsair leader.
He expected to explode in a burst of orange fire. But he was just fast enough. He barreled into the Corsair leader with the three-ton Powerloader and drove him up against the hangar wall. Tears streamed down his face and spattered on the controls.
They were suddenly face-to-face. The Corsair was young, not much more than a teenager. He gave Matt a bemused grin and looked up at him with oddly calm eyes.
Odd eyes. One eye was bright violet. One eye was an intense golden color.
Matt gaped. That was impossible. Violet and gold eyes. HuMax eyes. But the HuMax were dead. Everyone knew that. The Union had been formed just to wipe them out, and that was more than a hundred years ago.
Matt remembered watching an entertainment video, late at night when he wasn’t supposed to. It was set on Eridani after the HuMax invasion. Violet-and-gold-eyed people swarmed over the verdant colony, while nuclear mushrooms blossomed. His dad had come in and turned off the video, saying, “You don’t need to watch stuff like that.”
Something exploded on Matt’s chest.
He flew out of the Powerloader cockpit and fell on the expanded-steel hangar deck, skidding to within ten meters of the Corsair troops. Smoke curled off his jumpsuit, and the acrid smell of burnt hair filled his nose. Fusion weapons swiveled to target him.
The Corsair leader pushed the dead Powerloader off himself with superhuman strength. Like a HuMax, Matt’s terrified brain told him. But he can’t be.
The front energy cell on the Powerloader gaped open, black and smoking from the explosion. But the Corsair leader’s weapon was also twisted and broken.
He dropped it on the floor and came to examine Matt. His violet-and-gold eyes were heavy and unmoving, like lead. He looked at Matt for a long time.
Matt wanted to scream at him, You killed my father. I’ll kill you. I’ll rip you apart. I hate you.
But all he could do was stand there and tremble, tears streaming down his face as little sobs escaped from his lips.
Finally the Corsair leader smiled again. The chill, alien expression never touched his eyes. Those strange orbs didn’t move a nanometer.
“Sometimes, courage must have its reward,” he said.
He walked past Matt and joined his fellows. They sauntered out through the shattered hangar doors. Shortly, there was the scream of ramjets. A craft lifted into the sky.
Matt sat alone in the broken hangar. Slow realization crept over him, like a chill fog.
His dad would never return. A Corsair had killed him. A HuMax Corsair.
Chill turned to heat, and heat turned to rage. Matt stood up. He ran out into the sand. He wanted to leap up into the sky and chase the murderer down, smashing and burning everything in his way. But there was nothing he could do. He looked up at the blank yellow sky and screamed, without a sound escaping his lips.
“I’ll find you!” Matt yelled.
Bright medical lamps glared down on him. He lay on his back on a warm, hard surface. White-suited doctors and gray-uniformed Mecha Auxiliaries leaned over him. Some of them winced or recoiled as if in shock. Matt realized he’d yelled out loud.
He was back at Mecha Training Camp.
On the Mind Raze machine.
Fresh, hot memory beat at his mind. Talons raking through his brain. That memory, that terrible memory, in full 3-D glory, brought back sharper and stronger than in even his Perfect Record. He’d lived the death of his father all over again.
That HuMax—that impossible HuMax. How they’d laughed on the
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