Shadows of Mars (Broken Stars Book 1) I.O. Adler (read people like a book TXT) 📖

the ship. Several displays on the Primary Executive’s devices lit up. The worm scanned them and began furiously tapping and swiping at multiple screens. The Melded leader began shouting again but it was nothing that She Who Waits translated.

The meaning was clear.

Jenna was moving the harvester. A distant shriek of tearing metal was followed by a sharp crash and more shaking. A series of pings and chirps echoed through the halls. The pale lights above shifted to orange.

She Who Waits translated the warning message. “Designate Cordice home ship computer’s automated warning states a hull breach.”

As if punctuating her declaration, the ship heaved. Was Jenna trying to destroy the Cordice ship?

The worm tore Jenna from her bed. It shook her and shouted before casting her to the floor. It then pointed its weapon at her.

“Recall the harvester.”

Jenna raised her hand. “Wait, I’m disconnected—”

The worm’s weapon popped. Jenna yelped and collapsed. Carmen got up to run to her but was clubbed down by Four Arms. He and Green Eye began shouting, first at the worm and then at each other as Green Eye moved to shield Carmen.

The Primary Executive ignored all of it as it slid past Jenna’s body and began to plug a wire from its helmet into the hospital bed.

No one stopped Carmen as she crawled for Jenna. “Jen? Jen? Oh god, no, please.”

Her sister wasn’t moving. Blood pooled beneath her. She was still naked except for the weblike dressing on her leg stump. Carmen pulled Jenna onto her lap and wiped hair from her face. Pink spittle foamed from her mouth. The few bits of first aid knowledge in her head were a blur. Shouldn’t move her. Call 911. Signal for help. But all Carmen could do was stare as Jenna gasped.

Her sister was dying.

Green Eye crouched next to her. Burped a word. Repeated it. Began to assemble an animated infographic. But Jenna ignored him. If they were going to be executed, then she wasn’t moving from her sister’s side.

She Who Waits translated. “Designate Melded Ovo of the Onoman tribe wishes to provide medical aid and requests for you to move.”

“We need to put her in a bed. The bots can heal her.”

“Designate Primary Executive forbids it. Ovo’s tone is sincere, Carmen Vincent. Please allow him to help.”

Carmen was numb as she rose to allow Ovo to come to Jenna’s side. He took her head and laid her out on her back. Carmen had to lean on She Who Waits to not sink to her knees. She felt helpless as the Melded soldier began to touch her sister with one of his devices. A multitude of screens appeared and he took a moment to consult them.

“Please do something.”

The wound was below her sternum. He produced a small tube and pressed it to her skin. A dark oil seeped out and spread across her belly and chest and raced into her wound. Jenna convulsed.

“What is he doing?”

Green Eye spoke without looking up. “These are microdroplet machines which will close the wound. They will repair the damage as best as possible for now until we can access one of our automated doctors on our frigate or the medical bed here.”

The red light next to She Who Waits flickered as Four Arms snipped a comment that didn’t get translated.

“Tell him to be careful,” Carmen said. “Tell him to ask his boss to let her onto the bed. The harvester is his.”

“He won’t,” Green Eye replied. “The medical bed has an information and communication node and she could once again access the harvester, at least until the Cordice home ship’s link is disabled or the encryption key is changed. Be patient; your sister will live.”

The worm belched. A steady plume of gas rose from its helmet. But it wasn’t talking to anyone, and to Carmen it sounded like a string of expletives. Whether the Primary Executive was able to connect to the harvester wasn’t certain, but it wasn’t liking what it found. Green Eye continued to busy himself with her sister. Four Arms was checking his wrist. The skull-like features of his face looked perpetually angry. But for the moment he wasn’t paying her any attention.

Carmen let go of She Who Waits and moved to the bank of machines. The two newly assembled medical beds lay at the far end of the room. She rolled her feet as she walked, cursing the soft squeak one of her sneakers made with every step. Four Arms remained distracted. Green Eye glanced up at her, but whether he understood what she was doing, she couldn’t tell, and he returned his attention to Jenna. She made it to the first of the beds and climbed inside.

A jolt ran through her. It felt like an electric pulse surging down her spine and nothing as seamless as when she had taken her position on the couch inside the harvester. The home ship was older tech, she reminded herself. Still miraculous, by Earth standards. But the harvester was the piece of cutting-edge design that everyone wanted.

She relaxed her mind. Cursed Agent Barrett as she looked for the virtual connection. If he hadn’t revealed that Jenna was the one in control, her sister wouldn’t be dying. But he had left out one key piece of information.

Sylvia Vincent had given the key to the harvester to both of her daughters.

The linkup to the Cordice network hung in the virtual space like a neon sign. The harvester node lay just beyond it, prominent next to what she knew was the gateway to the Cordice simulation. An unlabeled new connection was trying to attach to the harvester without success. With a thought Carmen reached past the failing linkup. She guessed this was the Primary Executive trying to crack the encryption. If the Melded could breach the doors on the Cordice ship, no doubt he’d