Operation Inferno by Eric Nylund Read Free Book Online Page A

cat.”
    “And then,” Lee said, “we didn’t see any of them for a long time.”
    “Just two miles of those dark tunnels,” Oliver whispered, then shuddered. “Way too creepy.”
    Everyone in the room shifted uncomfortably, remembering the subbasements. Ethan, too. He could practically smell the rust and feel the smothering press of the stale air and shadows around him.
    “Go on,” Ethan prompted the boys.
    “That’s when we heard the big ones,” Lee said.
    Oliver nodded. “We didn’t know exactly what the sounds were. Hammering. Electronic buzzing. Metal being torn. We thought it was more machinery coming on.”
    “That’s when we got back on the radio,” Lee said. “When you returned from your fight with the bees.”
    “And that’s when we stumbled into them,” Oliver murmured. His dark skin paled.
    “We came around a corner into a wide intersection,” Lee whispered. “There must’ve been fifty of the big ones.”
    “Fifty?” Ethan asked.
    Lee and Oliver nodded together.
    Bobby had gotten superlucky when he’d dropped
one
(and he’d nearly lost his arm in the process). One intact robot was probably a match for five of them with their improvised weapons.
    Fifty? It’d be no contest. The robots would wipe out the entire squadron if they got up there.
    “Just like the robots you guys fought in New Taos,” Lee said. “Minus the antenna in their hands and the plasma emitters in their heads. They had weapons, though. Crowbars, welders, sonic disruptors, claws.”
    “They jammed our radio and came straight for us,” Oliver said, wringing his hands. “We knew exactly what they wanted to do: tear us apart.”
    “So we ran,” Lee said. He was so agitated now he stood up from the bed. “We zipped into an open area, found an air duct, got in, and crawled away as fast as we could.”
    “But that didn’t stop them,” Oliver told them, panic starting to strangle his voice. “They ripped into the ductwork to make it big enough for them to follow!”
    “They almost got us, but we jumped across a chasm and got away.”
    Oliver took a deep breath. “That’s it. We foundFelix and Paul”—he gestured at the two boys—“and we got back up here.”
    Ethan let their story sink in a moment. “Okay,” he said. “Thanks. This gives me a lot to think about.”
    Paul uncrossed his arms. He hesitated, as if he were working up his courage to say something, which was odd, because he’d never had a problem saying what was on his mind before. He exhaled and finally said, “Could I talk to you, Ethan … Lieutenant … in private?”
    He’d tried to make that sound polite—but it still came out sounding like a threat to Ethan.
    Of course, it wasn’t enough that the Ch’zar were trying to blast him out of the air, and killer robots were on the loose trying to murder him and his squadron … now he had to deal with Paul Hicks.
    Madison set her hand on Ethan’s arm and gave him a tiny warning shake of her head.
    Ethan ignored her.
    “Let’s do this,” Ethan said. He stood and motioned for Paul to follow him. “Just you and me. My office.”

   9   

TEST OF COMMAND
    E THAN PUSHED ASIDE THE PAPERWORK ON HIS desk and sat on the edge.
    Paul followed him into his office. He shut the door behind him. He didn’t come any farther. Instead, he leaned against the closed door, almost as if to hold it shut, so no one else could get in.
    “Well?” Ethan demanded.
    “Look,” Paul said with an apologetic shrug. “I know we’ve never gotten along. I thought there was a time when, well, never mind. That’s not important. We can’t do this anymore.”
    “Do what? Insubordination? Inciting to mutiny?”
    “See?” Paul said, and pointed at Ethan. “That’s exactly what I’m talking about. You keep
pretending
you’re in charge.”
    Ethan opened his mouth to say something, but no words came.
    Pretending he was in charge?
    That’s not what he was doing, was it?
    The others believed in him.