Orion Colony Complete Series Boxed Set J.N. Chaney (books for new readers .txt) 📖

a colossus, able to go over brush and smaller saplings, but the last thing we could afford was getting stuck going head to head with one of the larger trees.

Behind the crawler, the infected still gave chase. I couldn’t focus on them now. Giving aid to the rest of our party and throwing off the infected on the crawler had to be my main concern. I could see them springing across the jungle through my peripheral vision.

Stacy finally flung hers off while the rest of those aboard helped Tom wrangle his and do the same.

I understood Hannah was doing her best. I didn’t think any of us could drive any faster trying to maneuver through the jungle, but the infected were catching us. Already the bulk of the mob could be seen only meters behind us. More of the faster ones were already catching up, grabbing on to the side of the crawler and pulling themselves aboard.

I lashed out with my blade, taking one in the skull and the next in the throat as it tried to pull itself up.

All around, those in the crawler bed were fighting, doing everything they could to make sure we didn’t pick up any more last-minute hitchhikers.

“Hannah!” Stacy yelled. “If you can go faster, this would be a good time!”

“I’m trying!” Hannah yelled back.

Boss Creed and Elon were in the cab doing their best to keep Hannah safe from any of the infected who were now running alongside the vehicle and trying to grab at her through the windows.

Doctor Allbright screamed as she was nearly pulled off. Lou grabbed her at the last minute. Tom jumped into action, attacking the infected who had a grip on Doctor Allbright’s short hair.

I saw in slow motion as the infected let loose of Doctor Allbright and settled for the barber instead. It grabbed on to him and fell backward, taking Tom with it. There was a sickening buckle in the crawler as we ran over them both.

“Tom, no!” David screamed. “We have to go back!”

I wanted to agree with him. I was about to yell the same thing, even though it meant dooming us all when I saw Tom’s body lying in the jungle behind us. One of the infected stopped to lift a boulder-sized rock over Tom’s head, then he let it drop.

“He’s gone,” Stacy yelled as she flung another infected from the rear of the crawler. “Keep going!”

“We’re not going to outrun them!” I shouted to Boss Creed. “We’ve got to go back to where Ira died and get some help.”

“What!?” The tone in Boss Creed’s voice told me he had no idea where I was going with this.

“We’ve got to lead them in that direction to get some reinforcements,” I yelled toward the cab. “Bring in the big guns in the jungle.”

“Oh, right!” Boss Creed said, finally catching my meaning. “Hannah, take a hard left here!”

Hannah swung the steering wheel to the left, following Boss Creed’s directions. The bellow coming from deep in the jungle began to grow in intensity. The infected chasing us didn’t seem to notice.

“Shouldn’t we be going the other way?” Lou asked. “I mean, opposite the terrifying roar in the jungle depths?”

“We’re going the right way,” I said, stabbing at an infected who managed to gain a grip on the tailgate of the crawler. “Trust me.”

The crawler rocked and bounced again. The case of armor in the rear of the crawler slid back and forth, even threatening to fall out at one point. Against all odds, Hannah kept us moving forward.

I could hear Boss Creed telling her the plan somewhere past the shrieking and growing roar we were headed to.

Finally, we burst through a thick throng of trees in the jungle interior and came face to face with what was making the roaring sounds in the jungle depth. It was massive, even larger than the crawler itself.

The closest thing I could relate it to was a gigantic rhinoceros with black and red skin. Three horns came from its head. One in the center of its forehead and one on each side of its cheeks, curving in.

It bellowed at us through hate-filled eyes.

Self-preservation told Hannah to let her foot off the acceleration. I didn’t blame her, except that her lack of will to go forward meant more infected were catching up.

“Hannah, go!” I screamed.

Snapping out of her wonder-stricken state, Hannah stomped on the gas again. We were headed in a beeline for the mountain of a creature.

It pawed the ground with one of its giant front hooves. A roar escaped its black lips as it charged us, head down and horns aimed straight at us.

Caught between a horde of infected and the King Kong of this jungle planet. I shook my head. I should have stayed on Earth.

“Hannah!” Boss Creed yelled as we rocketed toward the creature.

“I got it,” Hannah said.

“Hannah!” Stacy screamed.

“Not yet!” Hannah yelled back.

Despite our situation, I found myself liking Hannah. She was crazy. I could understand crazy.

We were so close now, I could see the creature’s eyes, dark orange orbs filled with anger and hate. At the last possible moment, and I really mean the last possible moment, Hannah swerved right.

The left side of the beast clipped the left side of the crawler ever so briefly as we shot past one another.

I could have reached out and touched the thick hide of the alien animal if I wanted.

“Oh, thank Esu we made it through that one.” Lou made some kind of symbol across his body I didn’t recognize but figured it was religious.

I turned to look back at the creature, who tried skidding to a halt. It failed, acting like a bowling ball crushing the infected, who followed in a trail behind us.

It was like watching a train wreck in slow motion. I knew what I saw on some scale was horrific, I just couldn’t bring myself to look away.

The alien beast ran on four legs, crushing the infected under its massive bulk. Each of its legs