Shades of Gray by Lisanne Norman Read Free Book Online

with the suits and a selection of munitions. As for what taking the Orbital will achieve, their weather is controlled from there, isn’t it? If I can take a couple of civilian engineers from here, they can create havoc on the world below. Meanwhile, we can contact the Kz’adul on one of the channels all ships use for unofficial ship-to-ship and ship-to-shore chat and get some of the friendlies to let us on board and point us in the direction of K’hedduk’s people.”
    “Be a helluva lot easier if we had the shutdown codes,” muttered Zhookoh.
    “Shutdown codes?” asked Kezule, looking across at him.
    “The Emperor had codes he could use to shut down each ship in case of a coup. Leave ’em dead in the water,” explained Zhookoh. “It’s new. Ironically, we had it brought in because of K’hedduk.”
    “We’d still have to deal with his genetically enhanced warriors at some point,” said Kezule, thoughtfully stroking his chin. “The idea has good points, Kusac, but if we start tampering with the weather, K’hedduk will know something is wrong on the Orbital, even if the crew keep in regular touch.”
    Kusac pushed his second sheet in front of Kezule. “That’s where the asteroid belt around one of your outer planets comes in,” he said. “I assume that, like the Kz’adul , you have traction beams on your modern ships?”
    “Yes, but you’re not seriously suggesting what I think, are you?” asked Kezule, sitting up to study the photograph, suddenly all attention.
    “I am. Send the N’zishok and Mazzu out to collect a few thousand of them, including some larger ones. Single out those, put them at the front and attach remote detonation charges on them in case we need to blow them, then tow them close to K’oish’ik and let ’em go so they start heading toward it. If that doesn’t get the other three ships heading out to stop them, I don’t know what will. Meanwhile ...”
    “Meanwhile,” continued Kezule, “the small ones can’t be stopped, and as they hit the atmosphere and burn up, it gives us the cover to launch our drop pod assault! If we get the angle right, they’ll even think the Orbital has been hit, which would account for the weather fluctuations. I like it, Kusac, but if K’hedduk’s got the Palace gun turrets working, to say nothing of the force field, it could turn into a bloodbath for us.”
    “The HALO drop isn’t the main plan,” said Kusac, sitting back and carefully easing his injured leg out in front of him. The healing wound was beginning to ache—and itch—again. He’d taken more of a beating from the late and unlamented Dzaou than he wanted to admit, even to himself.
    Kezule looked at him over the top of the photo, one eye ridge raised questioningly.
    “My team is,” he said. This was where his plan differed substantially from Kaid’s. “We go down on the shuttle and infiltrate the tunnel systems, making our way along them to the main Control Room under the Palace. Once there, we can work from inside to turn the defenses off or use them against K’hedduk. All your people have to do is create enough of a diversion to pull all K’hedduk’s warriors to the defense perimeter, by the force field relay towers. You’re the General, Kezule, you do what you do best—blend us all into one attack force.”
    “If we fail, then the HALO team will be the main plan,” said Banner thoughtfully.
    “HALO?” queried M’kou.
    “High Altitude, Low Orbit insertion of troops or craft,” said Kusac.
    Kezule studied the maps thoughtfully, then turned on the holo display. Instantly a 3-D image of the City and the Palace, showing every level, coalesced about six inches above the conference table.
    Tapping a series of buttons set into the keypad in front of him, he rotated the image, then stilled it, decreasing the amount of detail until the bare minimum of the tunnels, the underground control complex, and the Palace above it remained.
    “To go in without more intel,