Hellflower (v1.1) by Eluki bes Shahar Read Free Book Online Page A

the surface?
    I wanted to tell him I was sure he’d think of something, but Tiggy already thought I had fusion for supercargo and I figured one more toy in my attic and he’d shop me sure. So I concentrated on making time and distance through the vent and telling Tiggy where to head in, and regretting the impulse that made me pick up all that hardware back in the duty free zone we’d just left. My bruises had bruises, and on top of that, the vent was starting to fill with smoke.
    It was getting to look like Pally’d picked the wrong grid for a first-and-last when I started to see a faint light on the walls that ought to be the main Receiving station. When we_ got up closer I tapped Tiggy and asked what he saw.
    "A room. A desk. Many armed men in blue livery with Wanderweb City service marks. I count twelve chaudatu and six mechanicals, all armed and armored. Beyond these is a lift door."
    "That is the lift you want," Paladin said, having listened in on this deathless chat by way of my comlink. "It will take you directly to ground level. There is a barricade on the lift, but it is lightly manned. Your speeder is still outside. I am doing preflight warm-up on Firecat. And I still think that this is not an intelligent form of recreation."
    And sometimes I wonder why I keep him. "We want the lift," I said to Tiggy. "They’re trying to keep us down here, so they won’t have too many slugs at ground level. Burn the grille and drop these through it." While we was talking, I was trying to get some grenades out of my vest and into his hands-no cheap trick in a vent a little wider than my shoulders. "And hold your breath when you do-is riot-gas, je? Riotgas-bad stuff." I hoped he was getting the idea, since Tiggy didn’t seem to be real ace with Interphon. For that matter, neither was I. "Get to lift and be ready to come out other side blazing. I got speeder. When we’re out, we heading for spaceport."
    "I have a shuttle there," said Tiggy.
    "No hope. By time you’re ready to rock ‘n’ roll, you’ll be took. We get up side in my ship."
    "Just the three of us," Paladin murmured in my ear. "I thought you didn’t carry live freight, Independent Captain-Owner St. Cyr."
    "Is emergency," I commented to world at large.
    "But that shuttle is FirstLeader Starborn’s property!" Tiggy yelped. "I cannot abandon it!"
    I jabbed him hard in the nearest bit I could reach. "Will you get us t’hell out of here before I die of old age? Worry about it later!" "Cover your eyes, chaudatu. "
    I took a deep breath and did, and felt the back-blast as Tiggy blew the grille. Then the grenades went, and Tiggy slithered forward picked up and followed.
    ###
    The legitimates never knew what hit them. Gas burned on my skin I threw grenades like firecrackers and shot tronics. The hardware shot back, and so did the software, and I had to open my eyes to see but least I hadn’t breathed. Didn’t worry about ducking because there weren’t no place to duck to. Bumped into Tiggy and knocked him in the lift just as it opened. He shoved me behind him and blew away a couple of Guardsmen just as the doors closed.
    Nice to see a hellflower happy in his work.
    I mopped at my leaking eyes, pulled off a glove to do it mo efficiently, and noticed my jacket was on fire. I batted out the spar and explored the burn. Tender, but the skin hadn’t been cooked op( and that made me luckier than I deserved.
    "You all right?" I said to the boy wonder.
    He was staring at my sleeve. "You have shed blood for me," I said, reverent-like.
    "Huh?" I said, real bright. "Don’t be silly, bai, burns don’t—" Then the lift doors opened again and we charged out full-t boogie and blasters blazing right over the barricade set up in front the door. Out of the corner of my eye I saw Tiggy pick up and throw tronic just like it was a cuddly toy and then whip out that knife of I — and slice open a Guardsman while firing his rifle lefthanded.
    That made a total of nine Guardsmen he’d