Никанор Стариков – The Snipe’s Flight (страница 11)

– Now you understand in what situation we are?

– More than, – there has begun the captain. – Freight was delivered by us and all cones to us. I so understand there in containers there were these creatures. – He has spat lying metamorph.

– We are come to be liquidated as witnesses, we live are not necessary to them, – Kim noted.

– If to consider the fact that we with Sergey the spies, will interrogate us at first with addiction and when we are not able already to give anything to them useful will get rid of us. Snipe, how many at us time, your way? – I have looked at Alice and have understood now the status of indisputable leadership has been transferred to me.

– Ki, that with galactic communication?

– It was disconnected two hours ago, – he has answered. I have looked how on the screen the line ran that there is no signal. I see. If it was possible to look four hours ago though some galactic channels, have switched-off them then and only planetary channels were available. That now full information muffling and any channel did not work any more.

– Two, there can be three hours. If already we are not looked for. Kym, to us needs weapon. You have captain, probably, here communications with local pirates. We need their help.

– What plan, Snipe? – the captain has asked.

– Just like that the planet not to leave. But the planetary administration somehow all the same moves. Besides it needs to hold communication and to send products to orbital base. We need to get on the planetary spaceport of administration. I will hijack the ship, and we will be able to leave.

Chapter 4

– That, friends, – I have told, looking at this speckled group, – it seems, we have appeared in the thick of interstellar adventure from which at any agent respecting himself eyes would begin to sparkle. Only it smells not of glory, but the prison cell, and even direct execution. Time now – our main enemy. To you the captain, Alice and Ki it is necessary to go to bar. Find local underground network there, we urgently need the conductor knowing all cracks on this planet. We need urgently to bring down from this planet. The most important we need the card of the corporate kosmoport. Placement of posts of protection, number of hangars and so on. Learn how many we should jump on this Godforsaken hole and on what. Will you cope?

Lavrov silently has nodded, its bear figure, appear, already strained to be in action. He devoured with look the body lying on floor his once former friend Gena, and in his eyes the rage stormed. He has understood the main thing: its ship, its crew became change in someone’s to dirty game, and he could not reconcile to it.

– Ki, to you it is clear? – I have asked synthetics.

– Current situation demands from me the maximum assistance to people and survival of crew for the subsequent rescue of «Scythian». My computing power are restored for only forty percent at present. It is enough for the analysis of routes and breaking of primitive security systems. I am ready the Snipe.

– Perfectly. Alice? – it has raised on me eyes. The fear and confusion in them were replaced by cold determination. The agent in it has got the best.

– I know couple of tiptoes in local bar. They will bring me to people necessary to us. There smugglers who carry cargoes bypassing corporate and galactic posts hang out. They too not really love Herpix. Therefore have to help us … for the corresponding payment, of course.

– Let’s pay from ship cash desk, – Lavrov has muttered. – If we reach it. Of course.

– Kim and I, – have continued I, – we go on «Scythian». We need weapon, ammunition, space suits just in case and everything that can be carried away from edibles. We meet here exactly in hour. If someone is not – we improvise, but we do not wait. Time is more expensive than the imperial credits.

We have dispersed. With Kim we have slipped out hotel as shadows, having merged with gray crowd of workers, loaders and other port crowd. Morning air on Aurum-4 was dense and caustic, but now seemed to me is more sweet than any terrestrial breeze – it was freedom air, let and with dust impurity. There was a wish to live something very much. Approaching external dock ring where there was our faithful rusty slogger, we with Kim have at the same time stood, having nestled on heap of abandoned containers. The instinct perfected on hundreds of operations shouted of danger.

At lock of the ship people crowded. But it were not dockers and not technicians. Six. In gray, functional form of planetary guards Herpix, with stripes «Special Department». On hips – heavy blasters, in hands at two – portable scanners. They on something argued with the officer who, judging by its impatient gestures, demanded immediate opening of lock.

– Power pincers do not take, this can, the sir! – one of policemen has reported. – Ship AI has blocked all external protocols. Physical breaking is necessary.

– Then crack! – the officer has cried out. – We have order! The ship and all crew to detain for interrogation. Especially Mironov’s equipment navigator and pilot Korshunova. Dead or alive – it is indifferent.

At me in breast has grown cold. «Dead or alive» is the most unloved me point in any situations. Especially when it is applied to me personally.

Kim, keeping the eyes glued on group, has whispered to me:

– The plan «And», probably, is cancelled. They are six, plus, perhaps, in the district to steam of people. Chances to break are insignificant. If we break will give the alarm on all port. – It was rational opinion. It is not necessary to make noise to us.

– He agrees, – I have whispered in reply, feeling as on back the acquaintance runs, almost forgotten chill. – Means, the plan of «B». Quickly we recede.

We have crawled away back, for garbage heap, and, without getting up in all growth, have hurried back on labyrinth of office tunnels. My new body worked faultlessly: lungs swallowed caustic air, muscles carried me easily and quickly, and the head, worked at reckless speed.

– Somehow quickly they have begun our search, – Kim when we have curtailed into rather deserted corridor has told and have stopped to take breath. – Means, or Alice was already found and contacted all of us. Or … Herpix from the very beginning watched «Scythian». Also waited for occasion that all of us to tie.

– Or waited until freight is delivered, there will come time of «X», and witnesses will become unnecessary, – I have gloomy added. – Good old tactics: to use blindly, and then to liquidate and none will be the wiser. Only we, were prompter and cleverer. We it too hard, Kim. Believe.

He for the first time for all this mad day has slightly smiled. It was the bad, wolf smile.

– So it is even more interesting, the Snipe. – He has answered me, and we have returned to the hotel room the first. In twenty minutes Lavrov, Alice and Ki were. On their persons it was visible – they had news not from pleasant too.

– The Old Mine bar is surrounded by guards, – without prefaces the captain has blurted out. – Fortunately, we have approached from outside and have seen cordon in advance. Have caught one smuggler who has poked into bar. For bottle of good moonshine he has told us that on all port look for crew of «Scythian». Accuse of arms trafficking for insurgents and of communications with … by extragalactic forces. – Lavrov has spat. – The complete nonsense, but for arrest will descend. What at you?

– Waited for us, – I have looked at the captain. – We were waited by six or more people about the shuttle. They tried to get in the shuttle, but so far nothing is impossible to them. We managed to hear their negotiations. The order to take from them me and Alice at any cost. Dead or alive. So we have decided to come back.

– Here means how, – he has gloomy looked at me. – And me and Kim means in expense, so it turns out? – I have nodded. – Well has also put …

– Have you the conductor found? – I have asked.

– There is one option, – having taken seat on chair, Alice has told. – The same type has told that there is old route – on air shafts of geothermal power plants. They last on hundreds of kilometers, some leave almost to the most corporate kosmoport. But there heat, toxic evaporations and … are possible meetings with local fauna which was got in those tunnels.

– What for local fauna? – I have asked again.

– The mutating insektoida, – has passionlessly explained to Ki. – Result of leakages of biological waste of the extracting production. Generally average sizes, predators, hunt packs. I estimate chances of survival of the small group armed only with small arms at thirty two percent.

– Thirty two?! Well, it is already quite good, – upset with such figures I have noticed, remembering the experience of survival in much more hopeless situations. – What about weapon? At us only mine and that at Kim.

– I have contact, on this planet, – Alice has unexpectedly told. – Armorer in the black market. It owes me. To be in the region of old drainage collectors. It on the way to air shafts.

– I have the person here too. But the problem is that I never worked with him, know by sight. I cannot trust too. If I with it come for contact, there is no guarantee that instead of it there will be no someone another and all of us will tie. Therefore I suggest to come to yours, Alice, the checked contact.