Prisoner on Kasteesh Read online

  To do that, there was something else she needed. She hurried to the nearest of the robot bodies. Its armoured metal torso lay face down. A little distance away, its severed head stared blankly skywards.

  Snow rolled the lifeless android over.

  Yes!

  As she had hoped, the White Knight had a security keycard clipped to its belt. Snow grabbed it eagerly.

  OK, I’m ready. She turned to look at Ko’Drall. You remember what we agreed?

  The creature held her gaze with its strange yellow eyes. Yes, Hoshiko’s daughter. If you succeed in bringing down the barrier, you will send us a signal. I and my kin will then attack the invaders’ stronghold in force.

  The war-party had already been gathering as they left the colony – around thirty or so of the huge, silent creatures. Ly’Throk had told Snow these were the only remaining survivors of the Corporation’s brutal invasion. Snow’s plan was their last hope of freeing their home world from the Chairman’s cruel rule.

  I’d best get on with it then, thought Snow.

  She turned towards the compound, trying to ignore the fear rising from her stomach and summon the courage for what she had to do next. She drew in a long, slow breath through her helmet’s filters.

  It was her helmet, she hoped, that would make all the difference.

  Whatever the invisible barrier around the research station was, it was clearly designed to affect those whose minds were sensitive to psychic transmissions. The telepathic creatures could not bear to come into contact with it. It had caused Snow such great pain for the same reason.

  But it hadn’t blocked her completely, as it had Ko’Drall’s kind. She had been able to break through. Snow was convinced this could only be due to her helmet. It had shielded her mind from the full effects of the anti-psychic force field, she felt sure – just as sure as she now was that it had been her helmet which had amplified that first telepathic voice, back at the Academy.

  The knowledge that the helmet Salt had crafted for her seemed to be both focusing and shielding her apparent psychic sensitivity threw up all sorts of confusing questions in Snow’s mind. Had Salt already known of her telepathic ability, before she did? If so, how? And why hadn’t he told her?

  But for now, it was enough to know that the helmet had helped her get past the force field. And it would do so again, she hoped.

  She still needed to draw on all the bravery of an Armouron Knight, though, to face that pain again.

  Wish me luck, Ko’Drall.

  The creature bowed its alien head. Go well, my friend.

  Snow took a few strides backwards, then set off at a dash towards the research station. She sprinted past the scattered remains of the White Knights, then –

  Aaaaaaarrrrrrggghhh!!!

  Snow staggered, then stumbled, then fell heavily, as the pain exploded in her mind. She tore her tunic and skinned her knees and palms as she hit the rocky ground.

  Stranded on the other side of the invisible barrier, Ko’Drall watched, his eyes full of sympathy and concern, as Snow lay sprawled in the dust, panting.

  Several minutes passed before Snow eventually struggled to her feet. She turned back towards her friend. Despite her injuries and her obvious pallor, she managed a half-smile. I’m OK.

  No answer came. Snow remembered that her friend could no longer hear her, nor send her his thoughts. The anti-psychic barrier was blocking their telepathic communication.

  She gave Ko’Drall a reassuring wave, then turned her attention to the research station behind her. The emergency exit through which she had originally fled the compound was nearby. Snow stooped to pick up the keycard – she had dropped it when she fell – then made her way towards the door.

  She was on her own again now.

  Chapter 13

  Cause for Concern

  ‘WHAT DO YOU mean, missing?’ snarled the Chairman. ‘How can a squad of five guards just go missing?’

  The Chairman was seated behind Dr Grinkov’s expansive desk. He had commandeered the head scientist’s office for the duration of his visit. He had been happily doodling a design for a new robotic beast for the Arena when the White Knight captain arrived with its worrying report.

  ‘The unit last checked in at eleven seventeen hours,’ replied the android impassively. ‘They were assigned a security task in the quarantine area. They have failed to contact Control since.’

  ‘And have you looked for them?’ snapped the Corporation boss impatiently.

  ‘Yes, sir. There is no sign of them in the quarantine area or anywhere else in the compound. But one of the search team did find this.’ The White Knight placed something slim and metallic, about ten centimetres long, on the desktop.

  The Chairman’s eyes narrowed into a scowl, as he looked at the mystery object. He had seen something identical to this only recently, buried in the wrecked body of one of his White Knights following a raid on a Corporation field generator. It was a bolt from a crossbow. Only an Armouron Knight would use such an antiquated weapon.

  The Chairman lifted his livid face to the android officer.

  ‘I want a repeat search conducted immediately!’ he spat. ‘And this time, don’t report back until you can tell me what happened to those guards!’

  ‘Yes, sir.’

  ‘And, Captain . . .’ the Chairman added as the Knight turned to leave. ‘Make sure my shuttle is refuelled and on standby for lift-off, as a matter of priority!’

  The Kasteesh outpost had a garrison of several hundred White Knights. Even if an enemy of the Corporation had somehow managed to infiltrate the compound, there were more than enough guards to deal with them.

  But in the Chairman’s experience, it always paid to be ready to make a swift exit.

  Just to be on the safe side.

  Chapter 14

  Charge of the Knight Brigade

  SNOW SPRINTED ROUND a bend in the corridor, her heart pounding in her chest, her lungs fit to burst. She couldn’t believe she had blown things so soon.

  The keycard had worked a treat – she had had no trouble gaining access to the compound via the emergency exit. But as she stole further into the building, she had been alarmed to find the place swarming with White Knights – far more, it seemed to her, than had been patrolling previously.

  She had seized the earliest opportunity to consult one of the fire-drill maps, which showed the basic layout of the facility. To her disappointment, there was no obvious area in which to look for Ja’Prith and her father. Various sectors of the map were unlabelled. Perhaps the prisoners were in one of these.

  The force-field generator wasn’t marked either. If Ly’Throk’s war-party were to have a chance of attacking the Corporation base, Snow needed to find that generator and put it out of operation.

  But even as she moved off, with this purpose in mind, a White Knight constable had spotted her and raised the alarm. Now there were at least a dozen of the android security guards hot on her tail.

  As Snow hared along the corridor, running for her life, the White Knights rounded the corner behind her. Several fired their blasters as they ran.

  It’s just like the PShooter test, Snow tried to tell herself, as she ducked and wove, desperate to evade the crackling red bolts of energy. Only this time, she had no armour. And she wasn’t dodging harmless ball-bearings.

  She skidded into another side passage and began tearing along it. Then her heart sank. Twenty metres ahead, a light was flashing in the corridor ceiling. A pair of security doors were slicing closed across the passageway, sealing it off.

  She was trapped.

  She reached the sealed doors as the pursuing White Knights came storming into the passageway. When they saw Snow standing helpless, her back against a dead-end, they slowed their pace. They came to a halt a few metres away. At their captain’s order, they raised their blasters and took careful aim.

  ‘ARMOURON!!!’

  For a moment, Snow thought she had lost the plot. Four armour-clad figures had just come teari
ng round the corner into the corridor and were charging down the White Knights from behind, bellowing ferociously.

  It couldn’t be . . .

  But it was.

  Rake, Tea-Leaf, Oddball and Hoax, in full-blown battle-mode. They ploughed into the surprised androids like a living tsunami.

  Rake’s first vicious sword-stroke severed one android’s forearm, sending its blaster skittering across the floor. He whirled round, red armour flashing, to deliver a second slicing blow. This one took the robot’s head clean off. Its mechanical torso, with cables spewing from its neck, staggered away, to collide with the corridor wall.

  Hoax had already floored two enemies with sweeping strikes of his fighting staff. He jabbed the staff’s tip hard into the eye-cam of a third android. As it staggered backwards, Hoax snapped the staff into two shorter chain-linked sections – his nunchaku. His wrists became a blur as he delivered a lightning-fast sequence of whiplash blows to his enemy’s neck and head. Sparks flew from the White Knight’s punctured eye as it dropped to the floor, its systems wrecked.

  Another android aimed a powerful kick at Hoax from behind. It hadn’t bargained on his unique orange armour. The suit’s ingeniously sprung backplate absorbed much of the kick’s force, then reflected it along the robot’s own leg. The jolt was enough to blow the servos in its hip. It tottered and fell.

  Tea-Leaf’s crossbow was little use at such close quarters. Instead, she had unsheathed the dagger concealed in its stock. Although the White Knights’ armour was designed to be impenetrable, Tea-Leaf knew otherwise. There were one or two vulnerable areas where a fierce, precise stab could do untold damage to the androids’ internal electronics. Her keen reflexes and ultra-light suit helped her dodge about until she saw her chance to strike. She had already put down two enemies and now lunged at a third.

  Oddball’s approach was a little less subtle, but equally effective. A no-nonsense body-blow from his hefty warhammer sent another of the White Knights sprawling.

  The fight raged on, the young Armouron cutting down androids with one expert move after another. Soon, there were only two left standing. Hoax swept the legs out from under one of them with a low reverse roundhouse kick. Oddball thumped down his hammer to crush the stricken robot’s central processor. The last android was brought down by combined strikes from Tea-Leaf and Rake’s flashing blades.

  All at once, the din of battle ceased. The corridor fell silent.

  The four young knights straightened up, breathing heavily, surrounded by a sea of white bodies. As Rake and Tea-Leaf sheathed their weapons, Hoax twirled his nunchaku nonchalantly, grinning.

  ‘That was fun!’

  Oddball gave him a wry smile. ‘Glad you enjoyed it, ’cos there’ll be plenty more.’ He pointed to the flashing ceiling light. ‘The alarm’s still going.’

  Rake spoke urgently to Tea-Leaf. ‘Can you look out for the next lot?’

  Tea-Leaf nodded. She turned to watch the open end of the corridor, her crossbow raised and ready.

  The others gathered around Snow.

  ‘Are you OK?’ asked Oddball.

  Snow nodded silently. ‘How did you find me?’ she asked incredulously. It felt odd to use actual speech, not her mind-voice, for the first time in a while.

  ‘Long story,’ replied Rake. ‘And it’ll have to wait. Right now, we need to get out of here. There’ll be plenty of time to catch up on the way home.’

  His tone became rather sharp.

  ‘Then maybe you can explain why you didn’t tell the rest of us you were planning a little off-world jaunt.’

  Snow looked hurt. ‘I didn’t plan any of this, Rake!’ she protested.

  Rake looked into his friend’s pale, drawn face. Snow looked tired and frightened.

  ‘Anyway, we’ve got something for you,’ he said more warmly. He looked at her grazed knees and torn tunic. ‘Although it looks like you could have done with it sooner.’ He nodded to Oddball.

  ‘Here you go!’ Oddball unslung the pack from his shoulder and dumped it at Snow’s feet. He flashed her a smile. ‘Helmet-only isn’t a good look for you, to be honest.’

  Snow’s eyes lit up as she pulled her blue Armouron breastplate from the pack. Her full suit, her shield and her tonfa were all inside. She smiled her thanks and hurriedly began to put on the armour.

  Rake watched her take her medallion from her tunic and snap it into her breastplate. Armour-clad, she looked much more her old self.

  ‘Ready?’ he asked. ‘Then let’s get back to the hangar while we still can. Hopefully, Salt’s got that freighter all set to take us home.’

  But as he turned to lead the way, Snow grabbed his arm.

  ‘There’s something I have to do before we can leave!’

  ‘What?’

  ‘I promised to help someone. Friends of the order.’

  ‘The Mshanga?’ asked Oddball.

  Snow gave him a blank look. It wasn’t a name she had heard.

  ‘Whopping great flying things,’ added Hoax.

  So they knew about the creatures. There was no time to ask how.

  ‘Yes. The Corporation have devastated their colony. I promised them I’d take out the force field around this compound, so they can fight back,’ Snow explained. ‘I was looking for the shield generator when the guards spotted me.’

  ‘I know where it is,’ said Oddball. ‘Do you remember that area we searched with the bank of gas-cooled wave-stabilizing units, guys?’

  The others looked at him.

  ‘What?’ he said defensively. ‘Some of us notice these things!’

  Hoax shook his head despairingly.

  ‘Anyway,’ continued Oddball. ‘Those units could only be part of a field transmission system. That’s your shield generator.’

  Rake turned back to Snow.

  ‘So – if we take out the shield, then can we get out of here?’

  ‘They’ve got one of the creatures locked up in here,’ said Snow. For some reason, she chose not to mention her hopes of finding a second prisoner. ‘If you knock out the generator, I’ll free the captive creature.’

  Rake blew out his cheeks. ‘The old man told us to get you out of here, plain and simple. He’ll kill me if he finds out I let you go off on your own again.’ He gave a grim smile. ‘That is, if any of us get out of this mess alive.’

  He looked into Snow’s pleading eyes. He could sense this meant a lot to her. Maybe the prisoner was a friend of her father’s. And Salt had told them the Mshanga were ancient allies of their order . . .

  Tea-Leaf suddenly gave an urgent shout. ‘We’ve got company!’ Her ultra-sensitive hearing had picked up the sound of an approaching party. ‘At least twenty Kettles, coming our way fast!’

  Rake reached a decision.

  ‘OK, Snow, we do it your way,’ he said determinedly. ‘We’ll deal with this next bunch together, then split up. You find your prisoner. The rest of us will put the generator out of operation and keep the guards busy. Get back to the hangar as soon as you can.’

  Snow nodded gratefully.

  By now, they could all hear the thuds of running feet. The guards were almost upon them.

  Rake drew his sword.

  ‘Right, then – who fancies a bit more Kettle-bashing?’

  The others readied their weapons too. Snow took firm hold of her tonfa and shield, happy to have them in her grasp once again.

  ‘Stand Together!’ yelled Hoax.

  ‘Battle as One!’ four voices cried in unison.

  As a wave of white-armoured bodies came flooding round the corner, the young knights charged to meet them.

  Chapter 15

  The Prisoner

  SNOW DECIDED TO give it one last try. She could think of no other way to find them. She couldn’t search the entire compound, with so many guards on the lookout. This had to work.

  She calmed her mind, then formed the message again.

  Ja’Prith? Father? Can you hear me?

  It had been hard enough getting th
e hang of using her telepathy at close quarters. She didn’t even know if she had the ability to make mind-contact over a greater distance. But it was her only hope.

  She waited. As seconds passed, her heart began to sink. Then –

  Who calls my name?

  Snow recognized the mind-voice immediately, though its tone was far calmer than the last time she had heard it, back at the Academy.

  A friend, she replied. I wish to help you. Can you guide me to where you are?

  There was a long pause.

  I can.

  Snow had expected to receive directions, or a description of the creature’s whereabouts. What she got was far more straightforward. She suddenly knew, with absolute certainty, which route to take.

  She made her way swiftly along one corridor after another, guided by the sure sense of direction which Ja’Prith was somehow planting in her mind. Her route quickly led her to an area on the opposite side of the compound to the hangar. The gentle pull on her mind stopped as she silently approached a silver door. There were White Knight sentries posted on either side of it.

  Grasping her combat baton firmly, Snow sprang from cover.

  She had both the element of surprise and her intensive Armouron training on her side. The android guards never stood a chance. Seconds later, they lay beside one another on the corridor floor, twitching and sparking.

  Snow swiped her stolen keycard across the door sensor and it hissed open. She stepped forward into a large, low-ceilinged laboratory room.

  And there was Ja’Prith. Snow’s first sight of the creature sent a powerful surge of pity and anger through her mind.

  The huge beast was being held behind a thick, transparent wall. He was lying face down on the laboratory floor, surrounded by banks of scientific equipment.

  In size and form, Ja’Prith was much like the other creatures from the Kasteesh colony. But his body had been horribly abused by his Corporation captors. His elegant head-crest was threaded with electronic sensors and wiring. Areas of his stone-plated hide had been cut away or punctured, to allow for the attachment of electrodes. His short hind legs, which he was forced by his unnatural position to stretch out behind him, had been brutally sheared of their claws, such that they now appeared useless.