Part 27 (1/2)
Tony kneeled next to the grav chute as Augustine wired into the local computer. He reached over and shook Linc's hand. Linc, wearing a suit of molecular explosives, nodded and smiled. He gave Tony a thumbs-up sign and smiled even wider. Tony had picked carefully for the three suicide missions, not taking anyone who didn't show frank symptoms of the two virus. Even knowing this, he regretted sending any of them to die.
Augustine gave an OK with her fingers and pointed to the grav tube. She then gave two innocuous clicks over the mission frequency. Linc closed his eyes for a moment. He took a deep breath, pulled out his automatic and walked into the entrance. Tony watched as he disappeared up the tube at blindingly high speed. Tony spared enough time to hope that Linc would shoot that quickly up to heaven, or whatever eternal reward he deserved.
”Which brings us to the excellent news of our actions against the GAM,” Taste Dynamics said, her face twisted into a sardonic grin. ”For another week we've had zero actions against our facilities or people.”
”Our projections tell us why this is happening, but do we have any intel?”
”The operatives we do have in the field report hearing rumors of key GAM members dying, including their leader. Even better, the rumor on the street is there's a power struggle among those left.”
”This is excellent news.”
”This means that the number of actions from the GAM in the future will be reduced?”
”Perhaps even eliminated,” she said, sparing a cold look at Nanogate. Nanogate didn't even flinch. Hers was not the first a.s.sa.s.sin to fail against him.
”I suggest we keep this on the agenda...”
”Advisory,” came a pleasant computer-generated voice. ”Stocks of all major corporations experiencing significant drop in value based on broad sell and put activity.” That program would only activate in the case of a ten percent or more drop in all major stocks.
”What?”
The room echoed with a resounding boom. Dust filtered down from the ceiling and one window cracked afterward with a loud report.
”This facility is under attack,” said the same soft, but obviously artificial, female voice. ”Please remain calm.”
Tony counted on his fingers. Before he reached eight, the building shuddered and flame licked briefly down the tube. Ignoring the incendiaries, Tony jumped into the grav tube just in time to hear two almost simultaneous tremors. One would be Andrea setting off the pinch. The other would be the opening blast against the response team.
His guts sank to the floor as the grav tube flung him upward. They then slammed into his mouth as his ascent slowed. Even before he arrived, a sweet stench of burnt flesh mixed with the acrid odor of smoldering plastic filled his nose. Tony scrambled for a perch as a black gaping maw, partially obscured by smoke, replaced the customary landing ledge.
Several small fires that had been computers, notepads, or even a table burned fitfully. Nothing else remained of the room except heaps of smoldering biologic. One of the mounds moved slowly, crawling in a seemingly random direction. Tony walked up, put his gauss carbine to the indistinguishable mound and pulled the trigger. The lump stopped moving in a sickening splash of something between liquid and solid.
Christine landed from the grav chute one second behind him and Augustine just seconds after that. Arthur brought up the rear a few seconds later. Tony had already moved toward what had been the doorway. The door itself lay askew halfway down the hall. Tony wouldn't need the explosives he brought to gain entry.
The four of them marched in an open diamond formation, with Tony leading, into the meeting room. Seven of the ten most powerful people in the solar system already stood, looking for something to do, or some way to escape. The other three just gaped.
”What are you-” one of them sputtered.
Tony interrupted with a blast from his gauss gun into the ceiling. Christine and Augustine stood beside him covering the council.
”I beg your attention, ladies and gentlemen. Sorry for the theatrics, but I needed your attention. It's time to change your little cabal here into a positive force.”
”Welcome, Tony,” Nanogate said. ”You were very effective.”
Christine shot the man in the fleshy part of the arm. His scream and subsequent whimpering stifled anyone else from making comment.
”Oh, quit whining. She only nicked you. Trust me when I say she could easily have chosen to remove a single t.e.s.t.i.c.l.e had she taken it in her mind.”
Completely out of character, Christine smiled.
”Now that we've settled that, I want you all against the window, facing out at our fair city. And before you think you're only buying time until the cavalry arrives, we've neutralized everything, including the Metro response. If you look out, you might just see the police involved in a riot at the Main Metro complex itself.
”Now that I've taken hope from you, I will give it back. Behave and your families will live.”
One woman half turned toward Tony, but froze as Christine's weapon swung about to point at her head.
”That's right,” Tony went on. ”We have each of your families ready to be vaped. We have trigger teams shadowing all of them, including yours, sir, on their holiday on Io. Now, I want you each to announce which corporation you head.”
Each went in turn from one end to the other. Wisely, none of them hesitated or protested.
”Good. Now I'll answer the question put to me earlier by Nanogate. Yes, I was a very effective weapon for this council. Your plan worked, after a fas.h.i.+on. You've decimated the ranks of the GAM.”
”So this is revenge?” Percomm Systems spat back.