Sabotage

Sabotage

(Book two of the Constellation series)

A.A. Smith

Smashwords Edition

Cover Art by Natalie Inez

Editor: Jessica Rose

copyright 2014, A.A. Smith

ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. This book contains material protected under International and Federal Copyright Laws and Treaties. Any unauthorized reprint or use of this material is prohibited. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system without express written permission from the author / publisher.

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, organizations, places and events are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.

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Chapter 1

A light breeze made the sand ripple like the ocean. The ship appeared in the indigo sky, a tiny flash in the distance. Zeltan was standing near the landing pad, waiting. Surrounding him were six guards, with rifles in hand. Their camp was hidden in a remote desert on an uninhabited planet called Civa 2. In contrast to the human race, Jarufani evolution followed the reptilian model. Being cold-blooded, they were quite comfortable in the searing heat.

Zeltan was the most trusted aid to the leader of a terror network known as the True Disciples. He was an average looking Jarufani, about the same size as a human. The scales on his greenish-gray skin were very tiny, his skin remarkably smooth. His snake eyes were locked onto the vehicle that was landing in front of him.

The occupants of the ship were all human and they were watching the landscape of the barely habitable wasteland pass beneath them. All except for one of them; an older man, who was staring straight ahead. His expression was emotionless, as if his face had been chiseled out of solid rock.

After landing, a door on the side of the ship fell open and became a staircase for the humans to descend. The first to exit were two guards; a young man and woman. Both of them carefully scanned their surroundings before continuing down the steps. When they reached the bottom, they stood to either side and waited. Then the older man stepped outside. He was dressed entirely in black and his dark hair was peppered with gray. His silk shirt fluttered in the light breeze. He also scanned his surroundings before walking down the steps and then turning toward Zeltan. The young man and woman preceded him by a few steps.

Mister Cain, Zeltan called out. Please, right this way. Lord Ytram is very eager to meet you.

Cain followed, but when his guards reached the side of the landing pad, the Jarufani guards stopped them and pointed their weapons. Before the two humans could reach for their own guns, Cain stopped them by gently pressing the backs of his hands against their arms. It’s okay, he said.

The man on his right was puzzled, Sir?

It’s okay, Jack, he repeated. They stood down and did not resist as the Jarufani guards took their pistols away. Two Jarufani guards followed as Zeltan led Cain to the equipment cache. The others remained at the landing pad, keeping Cain’s people at gunpoint. The camp was meant to be temporary and consisted mostly of tents that were colored to blend in with the sand. The cache was the only solid structure there. It was also the only building to have more than one storey. Another guard was waiting near the entrance to the cache. He removed a device from his jacket and scanned Cain for weapons. He gave Zeltan a nod, signaling to him that Cain was unarmed, and they were allowed to enter.

The equipment cache was a large structure full of weapons and armored vehicles, which had their origins in the Jarufani Defense Force as well as the Earth Forces. Cain made his living by ‘skillfully acquiring’ this merchandise and selling it on the Black Market. The larger artillery and armored vehicles were stored on the lower level and lighter weapons were kept on the upper level. The floors on the upper level extended only a few meters from the wall to a guard rail on the inner perimeter. This opening in the middle of the floor was so that ships could take off and land through a retractable roof.

Cain used this, among other makeshift camps, as showrooms for his merchandise. He would allow his clients to view and sample everything completely unsupervised. Once they were ready to discuss terms, they would signal him and he would show up to close the deal. Cain’s aides thought it was a mistake to do things in this manner, but he had been doing so for years. The few individuals who gave him trouble were never heard from again.

Zeltan led Cain to the middle of the lower level where Ytram was waiting and then left the building. Cain and Ytram stood face to face. A nod from Ytram to the guards, who were now standing on either side of Cain, gave them the signal to lower their weapons.

Mister Cain, Ytram said with a disingenuous grin. It’s a pleasure to finally meet you. I apologize for the security but you understand that someone like me needs to be cautious.

Are you impressed with the merchandise? Cain responded.

Ah. You want to get right to business. If not for the white whiskers on his chin and behind his ears, it would be difficult to tell that Ytram was the eldest of the group. His skin wasn’t quite as leathery as one would expect to see on a more mature Jarufani. Yes, I am impressed. I don’t normally do business with humans but Earth Forces weaponry is very hard to come by, and you come highly recommended.

The emotionless expression on Cain’s face didn’t change. Money.

Well, I can manage to pay four million sokors for a full shipment. Two now, two upon delivery. Unfortunately, I will not be purchasing weapons from you.

Cain was confused. Why not?

Ytram’s slit pupils narrowed and he squinted slightly. I know who you are... Agent Wilson.

Wilson’s cover as Cain had been blown and he was discovered as a Special Agent for the United Earth Alliance Police. Before he could try to run, the two guards beside him already had their rifles pointed at his head. He soon realized that all of the Jarufani guards in the building had rifles aimed at him.

Someone like me needs to be cautious, Ytram continued. "I’ve gone through all of your UEA Police service records. You have a history of using unorthodox techniques. For example, in this little exercise, you somehow managed to capture Cain and assume his identity. I have no idea how you did that. Cain is not easily fooled. Neither am I. Your plan to gain my trust and then take down every cell of my organization would have never worked.

We will not rest until the cowards in our government stop trying to appease our enemies and we reclaim what’s rightfully ours. Our sacred ground is infested by non-believers and our leaders are too timid to go on the attack! Victory is the only way to redemption! Peace with the United Earth Alliance means the slow death of the Jarufani people. We’re going to make an example of you. Anyone who tries to stop us will die a slow, excruciating death.

Wilson had been glancing around the room for any way out while Ytram was speaking. He appeared to be consumed by fear. His eyes were wide open. He was looking at the guards on the upper level, to his right, when his expression changed from one of intense fear to the icy stare of a predator, ready to strike. His name wasn’t Wilson or Cain. His name was Conrad R. Slade. And he was the one in control here. When he turned his head to face Ytram, his eyes seemed to pierce deeply into his soul. Then he asked a question that no one expected to hear. Am I supposed to be scared now?

Ytram didn’t have time to hide his confusion. Slade grabbed the end of the rifle of the guard who was standing to his right and punched him in the throat, while simultaneously kicking Ytram in the chin with his left foot. The impact knocked him unconscious instantly and his back slammed into the ground.

The guard on his right was able to fire a shot, but Slade had already leaned back and pulled the rifle into the chest of the guard at his left. Then Slade smoothly grasped the trigger, turned around and shot the two guards who were standing near the entrance.

Less than two seconds had passed, and three of Ytram’s finest were already dead. A fourth was struggling, in vain, to breathe. Slade immediately used this one as a shield against the gunfire that started to rain from the upper level. This poor guard was shot over and over as Slade spun around, blasting away at the upper level. One by one, the guards fell.

Slade pushed the bloody Jarufani corpse away from him and into one of the guards on the ground level, who was running toward him. This slowed them down just long enough for Slade to spin in the other direction and shoot two guards on the opposite side of the room. He continued to spin and kicked one of the guards in the face, smashing his jaw.

Slade’s rifle was empty, so he removed the bayonet with one hand, dropped the rest of the weapon and threw the blade into the throat of one of the guards. Then he dove, grabbing a new rifle from one of the bodies on the floor, and rolled over to shoot the remaining guards in the room.

Slade got up. Over all of the noise, he could hear shouts and footsteps from more of Ytram’s soldiers rushing toward the entrance. He took a quick glance around the room and spotted an assault vehicle a short distance away. On top was a fully functional pulse cannon. He started running toward it as fast as he could.

The soldiers were at the entrance now. Zeltan was leading them. He had no idea what was going on but he knew that Slade (or Wilson to him) was responsible. Zeltan and the other soldiers rushed in shooting.

Almost there, Slade thought, and a mighty leap landed him on top of the assault vehicle. He promptly unlocked the safety and started firing. Ytram’s men were sprayed with a barrage of blue pulses. Zeltan was incinerated. There was intensity in Slade’s eyes. He had been consumed by pure killer instinct.

Slade’s people were still being held at gunpoint on the landing pad. The sound of gunfire coming from the equipment cache was their signal to act. It took less than three seconds for them to disarm and kill the guards. Jack then spoke into a transmitter that was attached to his wrist: Move in, now!

Only a few kilometers from the camp, the ground started to shake violently and there was a loud humming noise coming from beneath the surface. A section of the sandy landscape started to bulge. Something was starting to push its way out from underneath. Then another, and another. Mounds of sand slowly floated into the air. When the sand started to fall, it seemed to melt off of the bodies of the