The Plague Forge [ARC]

The Plague Forge [ARC] by Jason M. Hough Read Free Book Online Page B

Book: The Plague Forge [ARC] by Jason M. Hough Read Free Book Online
Authors: Jason M. Hough
Tags: Fiction, Science-Fiction, Action & Adventure, Hard Science Fiction
“Let’s keep it simple, though, all right?”
    Skyler and Tania explained what Kip had already alluded to before. A new Builder ship, massive in size, had arrived in orbit a few weeks earlier. Inside it was a room that had slots for each of these objects. Keys, Skyler called them, for the Key Ship. Two were still unaccounted for. Skyler would lead a team to find one, and Tania the other.
    “Hold on,” Sam said. “What the hell are we dealing with here? What are these ‘keys,’ and why is an immune required to install them?”
    “This is the Builders we’re talking about, Sammy,” Skadz said. “You’d have an easier time figuring out the bloody Jakes.”
    “But—”
    “He’s right,” Skyler said. “No one knows, Sam. Tania tried taking the last one over and nothing happened. One of us had to go along and help.”
    “Well, are they some kind of weapon?”
    “At this point we simply don’t know,” Tania said. “We don’t know what the point of the room is, why an immune must be present, or what will happen when all five objects are installed.” She let that sink in. “But we’ve all talked through the possibilities and decided that we can’t just ignore this. We can’t wait. I have … information implying that the next Builder event, in just under a year, will be the last, and there’s reason to believe we have even less time than that. Skyler, tell them about the dome in Ireland.”
    Sam listened intently. Hearing the tale from anyone else she would have chuckled with disbelief. An aura that fucks with time, yeah right . From Skyler, though …
    “If either of the remaining objects is within such a dome,” Skyler said, “we need to get to them now. Get them and get out as quickly as possible, or we may well be too late.”
    “Exactly,” Tania added. “The nature of this room and the objects implies we are up against a timer now. We need to act immediately, not just wait around. The only sensible thing to do is gather these objects and install them as soon as possible.”
    “Sensible might not be the right word,” an older man said. Zane Platz, Sam assumed. “Nevertheless …”
    The implication of their words crashed down on Sam like a load of bricks. “You’re saying we need to get that thing back from Grillo, like yesterday. Move it up to that Key Ship somehow.”
    Skyler cut in. “I think it might be easier to get it to Belém. We can haul it up from here.”
    “Oh, sure. We’ll just nab it and pop over to Brazil. Easy as pie. We don’t even know where Grillo is keeping it. He might have destroyed it, for all we know. I wouldn’t put it past him.”
    “Er,” Kip said, his voice a whisper. “I can help there. From what I hear the object is in Nightcliff. It had been in Lyons, but Grillo recently moved it here.”
    “Any particular reason?” Skadz asked.
    “No idea, but I can speculate.” When no one objected he went on. “Be aware that he knows there is more than one object, and of the large ship that arrived. A Sister Jennifer, I don’t know her, reported this. I was listening in. She made no mention of his room inside, however.
    “Since then there’s been a, well, a schism of sorts, within the Jacobite ranks. A faction led by Sister Haley that now openly questions Grillo’s rise, his motives and conviction. I’m not sure how much her faction knows, but they know he found something. I suspect he feels Nightcliff is the easier place to defend, should his detractors become more aggressive.”
    “Ah hell,” Skadz said. When Sam looked at him he frowned. “The bloke’s already worried someone’s after the thing. That’s going to make our task even more difficult.”
    Prumble urged him to silence with a wave of his hand. “Perhaps, perhaps not. Kip, do you know where in the fortress the object is? Can you get us in? Provide a map?”
    “Secure storage. I’ll do what I can, but the vault itself is beyond my capability.”
    “Leave that to me,” Prumble

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