Sullivan Saga 1: Sullivan's War (27 page)

“It’ll be fine. Once the people of Edaline know there’s an armed force on the planet ready to take down the government, they’ll rise up. I’m sure of it.”

“I hope you’re right.”

Sullivan sat down at the table and glanced at the information on the tablets. “Is that the casualty report?” he asked, picking one up.

“Yes.”

Sullivan tapped on the screen and typed in the name “Harvey.” The search results came back negative.

“That bounty hunter I brought, the one who was being held under guard. What’s the word on him?”

Hall furrowed his brow. “In all the commotion, I hadn’t thought of him.” He picked up his personal tablet and tapped on it. After a moment, a voice rose from the device.

“Brooks here.”

“Brooks, you’re down at the residential complex, right?”

“Yes, sir.”

“Did you find that prisoner, Harvey?”

“Negative, sir.”

“Go have a look, will you? I’ll wait.”

Hall glanced nervously at Sullivan as he waited. After a few minutes, the voice returned.

“He’s gone, sir. The area he was being held in was damaged during the explosion, but we didn’t find his body. It looks like he used the opportunity to escape.”

Sullivan put his fist down on the table. “On top of everything else….”

“How do you want to proceed?”

“Get Harvey’s picture to all of your security personnel. Make sure they know that he is
very
dangerous.”

“I’m on it.”

“And start making a list of men to be in the first wave to Edaline. I’m going out to look for Harvey myself.”

“Right, Rick.”

Sullivan smiled. In spite of Hall’s protestations, Sullivan was now the one giving orders. The other men in the room looked on in respect as Sullivan checked his rifle and strode out into the street.

HARVEY DUCKED INTO one of the unused workshops, searching for anything he could use as a weapon. Word of his escape had apparently gotten out. Two men had seen him, yelled out to him and given chase as he ran. Before long, the search would be joined by more men, maybe even by Sullivan and Allen, if they were still alive.

Harvey’s hand closed on a wrench. It wasn’t much, but it was better than his fists. But he was at another disadvantage. A persistent ringing in his ears from the explosion has dulled his senses. He could just make out voices spoken at a normal register, but anything quieter than that was lost to the high-pitched hum. And there was something else. His mind was foggy; he was having difficulty focusing on any one thing for more than a few seconds at a time.

Harvey shook off the fog for a moment, returned to the door of the workshop and poked his head out. He quickly crossed the street to another building. There he found a length of steel pipe. He tucked the wrench into his pocket and stepped back out into the street, the pipe held tightly against the side of his leg. He staggered as a piercing pain shot through his head. After a few seconds, the pain subsided and he walked on, continuing his search for weapons.

“WHICH WAY?” ASKED Sullivan, meeting up with the guards who had spotted Harvey.

“Down that way, into the old workshop area.”

Sullivan surveyed the street. “All right, I need men going down those parallel streets. I’m going up this way.”

The small team that had gathered dispersed to carry out Sullivan’s orders. As Sullivan made his way down the main street, he held a bioscanner out in front of him. The workshops were only occasionally used by the rebellion; their main purpose had been to maintain the equipment used in the mining operation, and only a few of them had been repurposed by the mining facility’s new residents.

A blip registered on the bioscanner. Someone was in a building on the left side of the street. Sullivan jogged up to the building and swung through the opened door of the workshop, his rifle raised.

Harvey stood with his back to Sullivan, looking through a toolbox.

Sullivan narrowed his eyes then cleared his throat loudly.

Harvey turned. A smile crossed his lips. “Sorry, Sullivan, I didn’t hear you come in.”

“Put down the pipe, Harvey.”

“Why?”

“Because I’ll shoot you if you don’t.”

Harvey laughed maniacally. As Sullivan’s eyes adjusted to the dim light in the workshop, he could see dried blood down the side of Harvey’s face.

“You’re injured, Harvey. Let’s have a medic look at you.”

Harvey waved the pipe menacingly. “You don’t get to tell me what to do anymore, Sullivan!”

Sullivan lowered his rifle. “You need medical attention. You’re not thinking clearly.”

“There’s nothing any of you can do to stop me, Sullivan!”

“Stop you? Stop you from doing what?”

“What I need to do. What Ross needs me to do.”

Sullivan put his hand out. The man was delirious. “Ross wants you to stand down, Harvey. He wants you to get help. Let’s let a medic look at you.”

“No!” Harvey took a step forward, brandishing the pipe.

Sullivan raised his rifle again. “C’mon, Harvey, put it down. We’ll get you patched up, all right?”

Harvey threw the pipe. Sullivan easily ducked out of its path and recovered in time to see Harvey rushing him, a wrench in his hands. He fired a single shot into the man and stepped back as he fell, the wrench sliding noisily across the floor. Sullivan knelt down and checked Harvey’s pulse. He was dead. It was only after Sullivan dragged the body out into the sunlight that he saw the finger-sized sliver of shrapnel protruding from the side of Harvey’s head. In spite of who Harvey was—what he was—this was just another unnecessary death. Sullivan took a deep breath. All this misery was beginning to take its toll.

4

SULLIVAN SAT ACROSS from Steve Hall, looking over the details of the attack. “Eight ships equipped with the hyper-hyperspace technology are capable of flight,” said Hall. “The others were destroyed or damaged in the explosions.”

Sullivan nodded. “So that’ll get a hundred and sixty men, plus equipment, on the ground. Is this your list?”

“Yes. The best men we have. Granted, none of them have the same type of training that you do, but we’ve been working hard to turn ourselves into an effective fighting force.”

Sullivan pulled up a map of Agrona, Edaline’s capital. “Geography is on our side. The main spaceport lies at the edge of the city, on the opposite side from Fort Hendricks. Beyond is the jungle. The ships have to come in slow and low over the jungle on their approach to the spaceport. The men will rappel down into the brush during the approach.”

“Any chance of patrols in the jungle near the spaceport?”

Sullivan studied the map. “There’s a kilometer of clear terrain between the spaceport and the jungle. The city’s perimeter defenses rely on this open area to protect the city from attack. Initially, this no-man’s-land was established back when we thought the Squamata could be a threat. Anyway, patrols into the jungle aren’t common. Back when we were eradicating the Squamata, patrols went into the jungle regularly, but they haven’t done that for a few years. The only other possibility is that there might be units training in the jungle.”

“We’ll just have to risk it. Do you think you and the men can camp out in the jungle for a few days without being detected?”

“I think we’ll manage. Then we’ll attack after the second wave arrives. They’ll be dropped off on the south side of the city, where the jungle is still relatively thick. The rest of the land around Agrona has been cleared for farming.”

Hall nodded. “How will you get across a klick of open terrain without being seen?”

“The tunnels. Agrona was built on cleared land and, like much of the rest of the jungle, there’s a cave system below the city. In places, these natural tunnels connect with the city’s underground system. When I was in the special forces, we scoured these tunnels looking for Squamata. I know of a cave entrance about a klick and a half from the spaceport that leads into the system underneath the city.”

“And the second wave south of the city?”

“No such luck. They’ll have to wait for us to infiltrate the city and create enough of a disturbance so they can attack from the surface. Hopefully, the city’s security forces will be in disarray by that point, and the people will have risen up to aid our cause.”

Hall pushed the tablet away from him. “You’re one of the few we have with real military experience, Rick. What are our chances of success?”

Sullivan bit his lip. “It all depends on the people. Not only
if
they rise up but
when
they rise up. If they delay and wait until our forces have been defeated, it’ll be too late. We’ll need immediate support.”

Hall nodded. “And I think we’ll get it. The most recent arrivals tell us that the military has been cracking down on dissidents in ever-increasing numbers. The people are restless; the spirit of the rebellion has once again taken hold.”

Sullivan turned back to his map. “We’ll try to emerge from the tunnel system near the center of the city, where the most people will see us. From there, each team will disperse to a different neighborhood, attempt to secure it and rally support.”

“And when do you hope the second wave will be able to attack?”

“By the second night. They’ll move in under cover of darkness. The military’s attention will be turned inward, toward the city. The second wave will disperse into various neighborhoods as the first will have done, and hopefully momentum will carry us to victory. I hope to lead an attack on Fort Hendricks by the end of the fifth day.”

FRANK ALLEN STEADIED himself against the edge of the bed and took a few steps. He’d sprained his ankle when he’d fallen. It was getting better, but it would still be a few days before he’d be able to move around normally.

A knock came at the door. He limped over to it and turned the handle.

“Hey, Frank,” said Sullivan, shaking Allen’s hand and stepping inside. “How are you healing?”

“Good,” said Allen. “I’ll be in top shape for the second wave, without a doubt.”

“You’re sure?”

“Absolutely.” Allen hobbled over to the bed and sat on the edge. “I’m just glad to be out of the infirmary.”

“You’re lucky your injuries weren’t too bad. How’s the head?”

“Still have a dull throbbing pain, but at least it’s not incapacitating me anymore.”

Sullivan took out a data chip. “I brought you the plans. I want you to lead the second wave. If you’re able to, of course.”

“I will be.” Allen took the data chip and inserted it into his tablet. He spent a few minutes going over the details. “A kilometer of open ground? Pickett’s Charge.”

Sullivan furrowed his brow. “What’s that?”

“Nothing. Just an old Earth battle.”

“Well, you’ll attack at night, with me creating a distraction in the city.”

“Even so.”

“I know it’s risky, Frank, but without me there, you and your men won’t be able to find your way through the tunnels.”

“All right. I’ll trust your judgment on this. You’re off in the morning?”

“That’s right.”

Allen stood. “Good luck, my friend,” he said, shaking Sullivan’s hand.

Sullivan smiled. “I’ll see you in Agrona.”

5

SULLIVAN’S SHIP TOOK off first. Each of the eight ships would depart Faris piecemeal throughout the day, so as to not arouse suspicion by all arriving in Edaline’s system at the same time. Faris had agreed to falsify the ships’ manifests in order to aid the rebellion. The attack on the complex had only strengthened Faris’s commitment to helping the rebels free Edaline of her oppressive regime.

The nineteen other soldiers in the ship, the men who would be part of Sullivan’s own team, had been hand-picked by Sullivan. They were the ones who would be able to survive if Edaline’s security forces detected them before the others arrived.

As the ship slipped silently into hyper-hyperspace, Sullivan left the gathered men in the cargo hold and went up to the cockpit. Dale Hammond was at the helm. He assured Sullivan that all was well, so Sullivan went back and tried to relax. His mind was full of plans and contingencies. He went over each one in turn, wanting to be certain that he’d make the right decisions no matter what they encountered.

Sullivan hadn’t been entirely forthcoming about his ability to navigate the tunnels leading into the city. It was true that he had explored them while his team was ferreting out the Squamata, but it had been a few years. He knew that there were several side tunnels that dead-ended and looped back on themselves. He hoped that once he was underground, it would come back to him. If it didn’t, they would be in trouble.

He studied the faces around him. In hyper-hyperspace it would only take two days to reach Edaline. It wasn’t long, but it was long enough for the men to grow restless. He could see it already, just a few hours out.

Sullivan stood and loudly cleared his throat. The chatter in the cargo bay died down. “As you know, we’re the point team. I’ve hand-picked each of you because you’ve proven that you have what it takes to secure the landing site and keep it secure until the other teams arrive. We’ll be the first of the freedom fighters to land on our home planet, and we’ll be the first to go through those tunnels, enter Agrona and show the people that their deliverance is at hand!”

A cheer erupted from the gathered men.

“And, if fate so decrees it, we’ll be the first to breach Fort Hendricks and bring the might of Edaline’s military under our control, under the people’s control.”

Sullivan looked around the bay, fixing each man in the eyes. “The rebellion of twelve years ago failed. It failed to remove Edaline’s corrupt regime, but the spirit that drove it lives in the hearts of the people. Every report we’ve received from Edaline says the same thing: the people are growing increasingly discontent. As a result, the government is growing increasingly brutal. But I want you to understand something very important. We are
not
brutal. We are
not
the butchers. And I will not see any men under my command commit the atrocities that the government and military of Edaline have committed. The only valid targets are military targets. The politicians and partisans of the current government, if they can be taken peacefully, will be taken peacefully.”