DJ's Mission (27 page)

Roger stood up and unbuckled his gun belt and let
it fall into his chair. “That can be arranged. However, I doubt it will come to
that.” He began moving slowly toward her and she involuntarily backed away.
“You know, I think after I’m through with you, I’ll sell you on the Black
Market as a sex slave. It’ll be fitting punishment to your mother.” He lunged
at her and missed. “Officially you will have died in the fire with your
mother.”

Kaitlyn knew that once he got his hands on her,
she was as good as dead but she had to try and stay out of his reach. The
second time he lunged for her, she dodged to the side and lashed out with a
kick. He must’ve been expecting it and easily batted it aside. He countered
with another grab but she leapt to the side and a grand game of cat and mouse
ensued. It took every bit of her Parkour skills to stay out of his grasp.
Eventually they both knew he would win. It was inevitable. There just wasn’t a
big enough area to allow her to escape him. Finally, as she dove aside he got a
hold of her hair and pulled her up short. She couldn’t help but scream in pain
and fear as he lifted her up to his eye level. She tried to struggle but his
grip was like iron. As he leaned in, her nostrils were filled with his cheap
cologne once more and she wanted to puke.

“Now little girl, your schooling is about to
begin.”

However, the sounds of an explosion outside the
door stopped him.

Chapter 20

DJ had to dodge several roving patrols of guards,
both SIS and basic security, in his journey. They all seemed to be on high
alert, with weapons drawn and scanning everywhere. If he hadn’t been wearing
the liberated SIS uniform, he would’ve had to fight his whole way down. As it
was, he was able to bluff his way past three different patrols. He paused when
he finally reached the proper hallway according to the factory map on the mini
HUD displayed on the SIS sunglasses.

It was a long hallway with only one door about
halfway down the length. The problem was that it was guarded. Not by SIS,
Deputies or Factory Guards but by two military-grade androids. He’d seen
similar models during his time in the Corps. He knew that these ‘bots wouldn’t
be limited by the
Three Laws
like UR-L8 or even by a morality code like
Diana. They would be programmed to follow orders, plain and simple. If the
Admiral had left orders not to be interrupted, nothing this side of their
destruction would allow him to be disturbed.

DJ’s first option was to try and bluff them. So he
changed his stride to a more militaristic pace until he reached the door.
Stopping in front of the first android, DJ abruptly turned to face them.

“I have an urgent message for the Admiral.”

Android One responded with the basic line he’d
been expecting. “Entry not permitted.”

DJ nodded once. “Understood. But I have an
important dispatch for the Admiral.”

Android Two parroted the answer. “Entry not permitted.”

“Understood.” DJ waved a data crystal in front of
the android’s optics. “My orders were to bring this immediately to the
Admiral.”

“Entry not permitted,” responded Android One.

“I was ordered to give this to the Admiral and
report immediately to Sheriff Kissinger. But I cannot do that as long as I
still have this dispatch. Can I leave it with you and you pass it to the
Admiral when he’s available?”

Android One turned his head to his counterpart and
the two must’ve corresponded electronically because seconds later it responded
with, “Compromise accepted.”

DJ grinned as he surreptitiously pocketed the data
crystal and handed the android an entry charge, which was in effect a small
grenade. What made them different was the direction of the main force of the
explosion was limited by the design of the charge casing and the timer. The
timer could be set anywhere from ten seconds to five minutes. DJ had set the
timer for twenty seconds.

“Thanks, you’re a life saver.” He snapped a salute
to the two androids, sharply turned away and marched off down the hall.

The limited functionality of the androids’
programming didn’t allow it to question the legitimacy of the request, nor was
it programmed for curiosity. Not even when the device it was handed flashed red
and began beeping as it counted down the last ten seconds signaling imminent
detonation.

DJ was about ten steps down the hall when he heard
a young girl’s scream. In his soul he knew it was Kaitlyn and it took every
ounce of willpower and control to keep up the ruse and continue down the
hallway. Those last five seconds seemed to take an eternity.

When the entry charge finally went off, DJ drew
both blasters and rushed back to the door. Considering the shaping of the
explosion, he had only expected the entry charge to take out one of the
androids but was shocked when both were torn apart by the explosion and the
door had been blown open. Even as he hurried past the ruined metal guardians,
one part of his mind wondered at the destruction, not that he was complaining.
That’s when it registered on him that that his entry charges were designed for
use with his HAVOC armor; the Bodytank needed a really large hole for entry. As
a testament to the androids’ tenacity, one of them was still trying to move;
even though it was missing its legs, one arm and half its head was blown off. 
DJ triggered one round from his left handed Graver Mk7 through the top of its
head and leapt through the smoke.

He expected to find the Admiral and Kaitlyn but he
wasn’t expecting to find two more android guards. Luckily for him, they weren’t
armed with blasters but with energy lances; which was basically a six foot long
stun baton. DJ was able to get off one round from each blaster at the androids
before they closed the distance and engaged. Neither round scored a solid hit;
one was wide left and the other ricocheted off its metal skin.

He lost both pistols in the first few seconds of
combat. Fortunately for him, the SIS uniform was insulated against the stun
properties of the energy lances. That’s not to say that the lances were useless
against him. If one of the androids landed a strike on his unprotected head, it
would incapacitate him. If nothing else, considering that the androids were
extremely strong just the impact of the staff against his body hurt.

But DJ was a Marine. He was a warrior and no
stranger to combat. Rolling forward, he put the Parkour skills he’d learned
long ago in the Corps to good use. Dodging left or right, constantly moving and
rolling, DJ avoided any major strike from the androids. Drawing his twin
powered gladii, he began to counter-attack. He would block and dodge or parry
and slash, all the while moving closer to his true goal…the Admiral.

*   *   *   *   *

Roger had paused in his sexual assault when he
heard the explosion. However, seeing the girl’s father rushing inside was a
surprise and he immediately reached for his gun, but it wasn’t there. Even as
he watched, the ex-Marine was not only holding his own against his android
guards but moving closer and closer. He knew that the odds were against him
getting close enough to attack but then, the ex-Marine had beaten the odds just
getting to this isolated room.

While Roger was distracted, Kaitlyn pulled her
legs up to her chest and waited for her shot. She instinctively knew that she
would only get one shot at this and she needed to make it count. Just as he
shifted his weight away from her, she lashed out with both legs as hard as she
could and caught him at just the right time to knock the bastard off balance. As
he fell away, he released his grip on her and Kaitlyn rolled away.

Roger felt himself flying through the air and
clenched up before he landed…hard.

Landing heavily on his right side, he felt a sharp
pain in his elbow. Ignoring the pain, he scrambled to his feet and rushed to
his chair. He tried to reach for his gun with his right hand but the intense
pain from just moving it made him clench his teeth. Holding his arm in tight,
he fumbled with his holster left handed until he was able to draw out his Ŝkorpion
vz99. Flipping off the safety and the selector to full auto, he pointed the
deadly gauss gun in the direction of Kaitlyn’s father and pulled the trigger.

*   *   *   *   *

DJ heard the high pitched retorts of the
Ŝkorpion milliseconds before he was hit. He felt multiple impacts along
his left side but after that, how many he had no idea. The first few that hit
him had knocked him down and his whole left side was afire with pain. Even
though he felt the wetness of blood along his arm and chest he knew that he had
been lucky that the trauma plates built into the liberated SIS uniform had
absorbed the majority of the energy from the hailstorm of bullets. The two
android bodyguards hadn’t been as lucky as they lay in pieces with just a
twitch here and there.

When the gauss gun clicked empty, DJ looked up and
gauged the distance to the Admiral. Considering the pain in his left arm, he
knew that at least one bone had been shattered. A quick glance also informed
him that several rounds had entered and exited through the meaty part of the
arm. And since he was having trouble breathing, at least one rib was broken.
With those limitations in mind, he knew he couldn’t cover the distance between
them before Roger had a chance to reload. But he had to try.

Forcing himself to his knees, DJ began the race
against time with the fate of his daughter as the prize.

*   *   *   *   *

Roger dropped the empty magazine onto the polished
floor of the control room and it echoed loudly in the sudden silence. “I have
to give you credit Scott, I didn’t think anyone would make it this deep into my
factory. How’d you do it?”

He laid the empty gun on the control console and
he pulled free another magazine. The ex-Marine was struggling to stand up and
bleeding profusely along his left side. He was wounded but not enough to stop
him. At least not yet.

“I see you pretended to be one of my Enforcers.
I’ll have to figure out a way for that not to happen in the future.”

Roger slid in the fresh magazine with resounding
click that filled the room. “You hear that Marine? That’s the sound of your
death.”

The retired Admiral had to give Kaitlyn’s father
credit. He wasn’t giving up. If anything, he had increased his pace but they
both knew he wouldn’t make it in time. He watched as DJ raised his gleaming
sword and growled. Roger flicked the power button, raised the gauss gun and
grinned.

*   *   *   *   *

Every step was pure agony. It was a tossup which
hurt more, his left arm, ribs or left leg. It’s not like it was his first time
getting shot. He had been, several times. But that had been years ago and the
mind has a way of blocking out the truth about the pain.

DJ absentmindedly calculated the distance left to
travel, about five meters. On a normal day, he could cover that distance before
Admiral could raise and fire his weapon. But this wasn’t a normal day and with
his injuries, the seven meters could’ve been three and he doubted he would make
it in time. When he heard the fresh magazine slam home, he knew he was toast.
As the evil bastard raised his gun and grinned, DJ knew that this was the end.

A loud boom broke the silence and echoed through
the room.

Roger’s head exploded, spraying blood and brains
all over the factory console.

DJ halted his painful charge and looked around to
find his rescuer but his eyes stopped when they came to Kaitlyn. She was
holding one of his lost blasters.

Even as he watched, she dropped the gun and shook
her right hand. “Damn, that thing kicks.”

DJ grinned. “Nice shooting, squirt.”

Kaitlyn leapt up and rushed to his side. Her hug
hurt because of his injuries, but it felt so good knowing that she was safe.
Finally after a moment, he had to step back and sit down.

“You’re hurt.”

“Duh, Einstein. You figure that on your own?”

Kaitlyn smiled. If her father was being sarcastic
then, despite the blood, he was really okay. “What can I do?”

DJ talked her through the process of bandaging his
wounds and splinting his broken arm. It was painful but it was necessary. Once
all that was complete, she gathered up his weapons and placed them in the
proper places on his harness. At his direction, she gathered up the dropped
Ŝkorpion for herself.

“If we run into trouble, click the switch to full
auto, point it at the bad guys and pull the trigger.”

Kaitlyn nodded. “Spray and pray. I’ve got it.”

“Good. Now help me up. We still need to get
topside before all Hell breaks loose.”

Kaitlyn raised an eyebrow in silent question but
her dad didn’t elaborate and she didn’t ask. It wasn’t long before they were in
the hallway and heading out.

Chapter 21

Jax, Spike and Sponge Bob reached the door to the
Conference Room. They really had no idea what to expect on the other side. At
least, all three of them were well armored – Jax in the Red Falcon armor and
the two SWAT officers back in their Tac-armor – and well-armed, since they had
supplemented their standard weaponry with additional guns from the storage
room. Both SWAT officers had chosen Plasma Rifles; which in effect was a
rail-gun that fired red hot balls of energy known as a plasmoid.

Jax, in the guise of the Red Falcon, had taken
twin Ŝkorpion vz99 with extended magazines for their high cyclic rate.
Before he opened the door, the ex-pirate turned bounty hunter paused and faced
his new companions. “Just remember that the pirates are not our main concern.”

“But they’re criminals,” replied Spurgeon.

“And how are you planning on arresting them? As an
NAPD SWAT officer you have no authority here on Titan, and they know this.”

Spike nodded. “The Falcon is right. They get a
free pass today, as long as they don’t shoot at us the pirates are fine. But if
they start shooting, then all bets are off.”