Condemned (Death Planet Book 1) (37 page)

They stopped, but raised their weapons anyway. The metal bars of the exoskeleton creaked as the bear tried to tear into the King's neck, but they held. Then the steam gauge dropped back to yellow. The whistling hiss of the relief valve faded away.

The King raised his steam-powered right knee, and slammed it into the bear’s groin. It released his neck and howled, then twisted in his grip. One of its wrists pulled away from the King’s hand as the pistons relaxed under the lower steam pressure, and the bear swung it at him.

Pistons hissed as the King stepped back. The bear’s claws scraped across the metal exterior of the exoskeleton. Fuck this. He squeezed harder on the wrist he still held in his right hand, and twisted his whole body at the waist, pushing against the ground with his left leg. The bear shrieked as the King lifted its feet from the ground, and swung it around him. Dust and splinters filled the air as the bear’s back smashed into a tree. The roots creaked, then pulled out of the soil under the impact. The tree toppled, and men jumped aside as it fell toward them.

The bear slumped down on top of the trunk, whimpering, with a broken bone protruding from its furry chest. The King stepped forward, raising his fists to smash them down on the creature. He yelled as he swung, but the bear rolled aside. His hands smashed onto the tree trunk, tearing out chunks where the bear had lain a few seconds earlier.

The bear’s head swung, and its jaws clamped down on the King’s wrist. The metal creaked, and the frame pressed against his arm inside the suit. He swung his other hand, and smashed into the bear’s face. The jaws pressed tighter.

The King smashed it again. The steam gauge rose toward the red. He was going to need more wood after this fight. And more water. Not like the old days, brawling at the mines back home. The nuclear power pack only needed replacing every few years. When he got the Brain back, the fucker was going to make him one, or his little pet would do a Trotsky. He'd find an icepick somewhere, even if this shitty place had no ice.

The bear’s claws swung at the King, and scraped against the metal skin of the exoskeleton. A third punch to its head, and its jaws slid from his arm. It yelped as it fell away, and jumped back to avoid the King’s next swing. The bear hissed at him, its face distorted by the bones the King had broken.

He stepped forward, and swung again. The bear ducked, and dodged behind a tree. Like that was going to work. The steam gauge was down in the green. Time to show the men just why they should fear their King.

He crouched, and wrapped his arms around the tree trunk. His metal-clad fingers punched through the bark, and dug deep into the wood beyond. He adjusted his position, then pushed up hard with his legs.

He grunted with the exertion as he pulled on the tree trunk. Smoke and steam poured from the engine as the needles rose to the red. He pulled harder. Steam oozed into his helmet, and the heat of the engine warmed his back. Dammit. It wouldn’t take much more.

The roots groaned, and his feet sunk into the dirt as he strained against them. The needles rose higher. Then a few centimetres of root slid from the soil as the tree began to move. He pulled again, and the roots came free, leaving a deep hole behind where the tree had been.

The bear watched, then turned to run. The King swung the trunk, and smashed it into the bear's back. Bone cracked, and the bear howled as it flew forward. Its forehead smacked into another tree, and the creature bent almost backward along its spine. Then the body slumped down into the small bushes nearby. It rolled over, and tried to push itself up. Its claws scraped on the dirt, and its chest and limbs moved erratically as it tried to stand.

The King raised the tree trunk high above him, ready to bring it smashing down on the bear. Then the steam engine hissed and whistled. He stumbled backwards as the strength left his arms. The trunk fell, and smashed into the bear's chest with a crunch of broken bones. Then rolled aside.

The bear’s chest moved one last time, then stopped. Its head slumped back, and turned to the side. The eyes went dark.

The King reached down, one metal-clad hand on each side of the bear’s head. He put his left foot on the bear’s shoulder, and twisted the head from side to side. The bones of its short neck crunched louder each time it turned, and the head felt looser. He twisted again and again until the spine gave way with one final snap. Then he pushed down on the shoulder while he pulled on the skull. The skin tore apart, and blood and goo gushed out as he ripped head away from the body.

He held it high, and turned around on the spot so everyone could see. “This is the fate of all who defy the King.”

The men cheered. Their hounds lunged forward, ripped chunks of furry flesh from the bear’s body and tossed them down their throats. They lashed at each other as they fought for the best parts, then retreated to the shelter of the trees where they could eat in peace.

That livened up the trip. Would make a good story to tell the girls when he got home. Maybe it would even be a good omen for the day.

Fucking better be.

One of his hounds still whimpered by the tree. The other lay in a crumpled mass beside the bear. Whatever bones the bear hadn’t broken in the fight were crushed beneath the tree.

“Pig-Face. Better get me some more of the Royal Hounds.”

“Sir,” Andy said. “We found someone.”

Moses stumbled from the trees, Dean holding one arm, and Liam the other. Smoke still rose from Moses’ burned hair. His cheek was a spreading, dark sore that oozed blood, and more blood dripped from deep slashes across his chest. He’d certainly had a run-in with the bear.

And, from the look of him, he was lucky to have survived.

“And who’s this fat shit?”

Dean smacked the back of Moses’ head. Then wiped his hand on his leg as blood and burned hair came away. “That trader, Moses. He’s the one who sent the kid to blow up the castle. Least, that’s what the kid said when we were torturing him.”

The King’s legs creaked as he crouched to stare into Moses’ face. “He does look like an evil little turd.”

“That wasn’t me,” Moses said. “The boy was lying. We had a disagreement...”

Dean nudged Moses. “Got tired of you fucking him in the ass, more like,”

“We had an unhappy love affair... you must know how vengeful unrequited love can become.”

The King chuckled. “My love's never been unrequited. At least, not if they want to stay out of the dungeons.”

Hounds hissed at Moses, and lunged toward him until they reached the end of their chains.

“I've never been that lucky.”

“But you expect me to believe you, and let you live?”

“No. I expect to let you me live, because I’m on your side.”

“And what possible reason do I have to believe your lies?”

“I know where the fuckers are going,” Moses hissed. “I’ll take you to the Brain.”

D
aniel followed the others through the woods. Guy hobbled at the front, on his wounded leg. The other guy brought up the rear. Who was he, anyway? Daniel had never seen him before. About all he had done since they met was mutter to himself, and Guy hadn’t introduced them. After they saw the King’s army heading their way, Guy had just grabbed him and pulled him to his feet, then pushed him on into the woods.

The air was growing cold. Daniel wrapped his arms around himself, but that just made his ribs hurt.

“Can I get some clothes?”

Guy glanced back as he pushed between two bushes. “All I've got is what I'm wearing. You should have thought about the weather before you took them off. Or did Moses do that?”

“The King's men did. When I was in the dungeon. What's wrong with Moses, anyway? He attacked me.”

“First, he likes naked boys. Second, he's a traitor. He got scared of being found out before the Revolution started. He was going to run to Kingston and tell the King everything about us.” Guy slapped his wounded leg. “Fucker stabbed me, and I had to get away.”

The lights of the army glowed in the darkness behind them, and their yells filled the air. The creature that had attacked them was gone, but where? Had Moses managed to kill it?

“What was that thing that attacked us?”

“They call them bears. Mostly because they’re furry, and the biggest, baddest, creatures in the forest. You don’t want to run into one without a few guns to back you up. Particularly not one that big. Never seen one that big before.”

“Do you think it killed Moses?”

Guy chuckled. “I’m not sure anything could kill Moses. He’s probably getting real friendly, and sucking its dick by now.”

Laughter filled the woods from far behind them, then faded away. What was that about?

“What happened to the Revolution?”

Guy shrugged. “We had to run, after Moses turned tail. The others all went home when you didn’t blow up the King.”

“I almost managed it today.”

“Too late. Would take years to get the gang back together after that big letdown. You had your chance, and screwed up. Now Kingston's going to continue being run by assholes.”

“It’s not all my fault. You should have made a distraction to get into the tower before they noticed me.”

“I’ll remember that, next time I try to blow up a king.”

“When are we going to try again?”

“When we’re ready. If we ever get away from him.”

Could they? The King had dozens of men, and their hounds were howling and hissing in the woods behind him. If they could smell as well as the PubSafe dogs did back home, they’d be able to follow him all night.

“Have you seen Simon?” the other guy said.

“Who’s Simon?”

“Simon’s my friend. I lost him.”

Daniel nodded toward him. “Who is this guy?”

“That’s Bob,” Guy said. “He just kind of hung around after the Revolution broke up.”

The Brain laughed. “I’m not Bob. They call me the Brain.”

Daniel’s eyes opened wide. Had he joined the Revolution, too? “What's he doing here?”

Guy hacked through a thick bush with his knife, opening a gap into the clearing beyond.

“OK, I helped him escape from the King. I'm taking him to a safe place where he can build weapons for the Revolution. If we don’t have the men to take down the King, we need the power. His brain can give it to us.”

“When were you going to tell me about that?”

“When we got there. The King will be even more pissed off once he discovers the Brain is missing. The less people who know where he is, the better.”

Crap. That just gave the King another reason to chase them. There'd be no rest while he had a good reason to keep hunting. He couldn’t be more than half a kilometre behind right now, and the lights seemed to be moving closer. The noise was much louder than it had been half an hour ago, wasn’t it?

Something long, orange and white hung from the trees ahead, reflecting moonlight as it twisted slowly in the wind. A parachute from one of the pods. The spiky tops of the nearby trees were twisted and broken. Others trees been knocked to the ground by something, or bent sideways with their roots torn part-way from the soil.

The Brain muttered again. Quieter this time. Daniel looked back. A pod leaned sideways, behind a fallen tree trunk. The Brain had climbed up the tree trunk, and now sat on the top of the pod, staring into the dark interior.

“Simon's not in there,” Guy said.

“He was in a pod when I found him the first time.”

Guy wandered back, and Daniel followed, at what he hoped would be a safe distance from whatever might be inside the pod. A male body hung over the side, and its left arm dangled toward the ground. Their gloves lay on the dirt below, and the fingers were chewed, but bloody flesh still coated the bones. Hundreds of pods must have landed in the woods over the years, but this was a recent crash.

Guy grabbed the Brain's shoulder. “It wasn’t this one.”

Daniel crept toward the pod. Maybe some of the supplies Guy had mentioned would still be on board. He glanced at the body. Were they really dead, or just acting like it? And what if it was someone he knew?

He grabbed the helmet, and raised it to look at the face. Dried blood coated the inside of the visor, thick enough to block his view. He turned it to the side. Something had torn a jagged hole in the plastic where the helmet attached to the suit.

He turned toward Guy. “What’s...?”

Then he screamed as a huge, bloated maggot fell from the tree and slapped down on the body. A long, fleshy cone of sharp teeth twisted toward his face. He grabbed it as it stretched, trying to dig its teeth into his skin.

Guy raised his knife, and slammed Daniel’s hands down on the pod, so he could get a clean swing. Daniel yelled as the teeth slashed across his arm, leaving a deep gash. Then Guy slammed the knife down. Goo burst from the creature, and sprayed across Guy's hands, as the point dug into its skin.

Daniel tried to twist his arm away from the maggot’s teeth, but they cut into him again. He let go, and jumped back. The creature slid from Guy’s grip, lubricated by the goo. Its tail curled up for a split second, then uncurled and sent it flying through the air toward the Brain.

Guy swung the knife again. The blade cut deep into the creature’s side, and tore along the skin as it flew past him. The creature smacked into the Brain’s chest, then slid down to the ground. Its insides bulged out through the gash as it wriggled for a few seconds, then went still.

Daniel backed away from the pod, and held his arm against his chest to try to stop the bleeding. “What was that?”

“It’s a borer,” Guy said. “They drop out of the trees, bore into your body, and eat it from the inside.” He nodded toward the dead newbie. “Usually go in through the head, then they don’t have to worry about you pulling them out.”

From the trees? Oh. Daniel looked up. The parachute still writhed above them, held in place by the cables from the pod that had wrapped around the branches. But it moved too slowly in the wind, and hung too far down, to be pulled by its own weight. The sides bulged out as he watched.

It must be full of them. Like they'd fallen in as they crawled along the branches, and were unable to climb out. Probably eating each other in there. Either way, they wouldn’t be very happy if they fell into the clearing.