Scorched Earth: (The Human Chronicles Saga Book #16) by T.R. Harris Page B
Authors: T.R. Harris
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Chapter 6
With sacks of ammo magazines dangling from full MOLLI packs, Adam and his team set out through the pine-like forests of Worak-nin. They were armed to the teeth, having cleaned out the weapons cabinet in the Mark VII’s service bay. For his part, Adam carried an M-101 assault rifle, and two .45mm Glocks. He also had four light-weight MK-17’s with four battery packs each, and rounding out his arsenal was a KA-BAR combat knife, two canisters of mace, six hand grenades and two flares. The other men were similarly armed, along with throat and ear-piece comms.
A nineteen klick hike through the woods was a piece of cake for the Humans, even with the packs they carried. Worak-nin was rated Juirean-Standard in gravity, placing it about three-quarters that of Earth. It was mid-day—not the best time to launch an assault—but Adam was anxious to learn the status of his two favorite females. And if what Paulson had said about the Juireans was correct, most of them had already departed after the killing of Admiral Tobias.
The team’s destination was the palace of gold that Panur had built when he and Lila decided to shack-up together. More correctly, the huge mansion had been built for them, by more-than-willing local labor. The purple natives had been completely enamored with the mutants and their demonstrations of supernatural feats, believing the pair to be the living gods they claimed to be. It was easy to understand why. Both Panur and Adam’s daughter, Lila, possessed the unique trait of spontaneous—and willful—cell regeneration. They could change their appearance, while also allowing them to live an indeterminate number of years. For all intents and purposes, the pair were immortal.
They also possessed superior intellect. As Panur once explained, he had near-perfect recall, coupled with a five-thousand-year lifespan—at that time—and he’d acquired an incredible amount of knowledge he could easily access.
With that combination of abilities and mutations, Panur and Lila were a formidable pairing, one with near unlimited possibilities.
Two years ago, the natives of Worak-nin scrounged together every ounce of gold they could find to build the sixty-room palace, thinking this would gain them favor with their gods. The truth of the matter, neither Panur nor Lila cared a lick for wealth. They didn’t need any. They had immortality and genius. Even so, that didn’t stop Panur from playing with the natives, engaging in one of the many social experiments the bored mutant used to occupy his time.
Now the huge building complex reflected the light of the Worak-nin sun in blinding flashes off the dark yellow surface. A five-feet-tall wall enclosed the estate, with an ungated entrance along each side. The compound hadn’t been built for security, only to impress.
Adam lifted his closed fist and the team stopped.
“I think I’ve found Tom’s missing Juireans.”
The men moved up beside him, all four falling prone in the tall grass at the tree line, monoculars aimed at the building.
“I don’t see anyone,” Paulson commented. “Been like this for several days.”
“They’re all inside,” Adam reported. “I’m detecting the energy signatures of over fifty flash weapons. Four distinct groups, with sentries patrolling.”
“You getting this from your brain-link thingy?” Paulson asked.
“Yep.”
“Why are they all inside?” Sergeant Morgan asked.
“Because they’re expecting us,” Riyad answered.
Adam nodded. “Hollingsworth was right. The Juireans connected the jump points and plotted our course to here.”
“So it’s an abort?” Paulson asked.
Adam looked at him with a frown. “Abort? Hell no. I didn’t come all this way to abort.” He looked back at the palace and scanned it with his monocular. “But one thing is clear, I don’t have the skill with my brain-thingy to isolate each individual flash weapon and sever the firing controls. That would take
Chapter 6
With sacks of ammo magazines dangling from full MOLLI packs, Adam and his team set out through the pine-like forests of Worak-nin. They were armed to the teeth, having cleaned out the weapons cabinet in the Mark VII’s service bay. For his part, Adam carried an M-101 assault rifle, and two .45mm Glocks. He also had four light-weight MK-17’s with four battery packs each, and rounding out his arsenal was a KA-BAR combat knife, two canisters of mace, six hand grenades and two flares. The other men were similarly armed, along with throat and ear-piece comms.
A nineteen klick hike through the woods was a piece of cake for the Humans, even with the packs they carried. Worak-nin was rated Juirean-Standard in gravity, placing it about three-quarters that of Earth. It was mid-day—not the best time to launch an assault—but Adam was anxious to learn the status of his two favorite females. And if what Paulson had said about the Juireans was correct, most of them had already departed after the killing of Admiral Tobias.
The team’s destination was the palace of gold that Panur had built when he and Lila decided to shack-up together. More correctly, the huge mansion had been built for them, by more-than-willing local labor. The purple natives had been completely enamored with the mutants and their demonstrations of supernatural feats, believing the pair to be the living gods they claimed to be. It was easy to understand why. Both Panur and Adam’s daughter, Lila, possessed the unique trait of spontaneous—and willful—cell regeneration. They could change their appearance, while also allowing them to live an indeterminate number of years. For all intents and purposes, the pair were immortal.
They also possessed superior intellect. As Panur once explained, he had near-perfect recall, coupled with a five-thousand-year lifespan—at that time—and he’d acquired an incredible amount of knowledge he could easily access.
With that combination of abilities and mutations, Panur and Lila were a formidable pairing, one with near unlimited possibilities.
Two years ago, the natives of Worak-nin scrounged together every ounce of gold they could find to build the sixty-room palace, thinking this would gain them favor with their gods. The truth of the matter, neither Panur nor Lila cared a lick for wealth. They didn’t need any. They had immortality and genius. Even so, that didn’t stop Panur from playing with the natives, engaging in one of the many social experiments the bored mutant used to occupy his time.
Now the huge building complex reflected the light of the Worak-nin sun in blinding flashes off the dark yellow surface. A five-feet-tall wall enclosed the estate, with an ungated entrance along each side. The compound hadn’t been built for security, only to impress.
Adam lifted his closed fist and the team stopped.
“I think I’ve found Tom’s missing Juireans.”
The men moved up beside him, all four falling prone in the tall grass at the tree line, monoculars aimed at the building.
“I don’t see anyone,” Paulson commented. “Been like this for several days.”
“They’re all inside,” Adam reported. “I’m detecting the energy signatures of over fifty flash weapons. Four distinct groups, with sentries patrolling.”
“You getting this from your brain-link thingy?” Paulson asked.
“Yep.”
“Why are they all inside?” Sergeant Morgan asked.
“Because they’re expecting us,” Riyad answered.
Adam nodded. “Hollingsworth was right. The Juireans connected the jump points and plotted our course to here.”
“So it’s an abort?” Paulson asked.
Adam looked at him with a frown. “Abort? Hell no. I didn’t come all this way to abort.” He looked back at the palace and scanned it with his monocular. “But one thing is clear, I don’t have the skill with my brain-thingy to isolate each individual flash weapon and sever the firing controls. That would take
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