When the Devil Dances

“Wendy, with the exception of you, and Shari, and the kids, and…” She stopped and counted on her fingers then nodded. “And Papa O’Neal and Cally and Mosovich and Mueller, the people we just buried are all the people I know in the world. We, I, just buried all my nurses, all my doctors, all my therapists under a billion tons of rubble. They’ll probably never be pulled out; they’ll just put up a monument with a list of names. I did that. With my hands. And if you think I don’t have some problems with that, you’re not the friend I thought you were. But if I had it to do over again, I’d do it over again. Because it was the right decision. Morally and tactically.”

“You’re so sure,” Wendy said quietly.

“That’s why they pay me the big bucks,” Elgars said with a snort. “It’s your turn for guard anyway. Go ahead and think it over for the next few hours. Then get some rest; it’s a long way to Georgia.”

* * *

Orostan had found that patience was like a tool with the Indowy. It was clear that the engineers were going as fast as they could, so simply being there and watching patiently was his best bet. But with the coming of dawn, the bridge, a hastily constructed span of I beams torn from buildings and wooden planks, was nearly complete.

“You have done well, thresh,” the oolt’ondai said. “There will be other bridges to build; there is one to the north that will be more difficult. I want you to look at the human maps and make plans to create one more swiftly there. Understood?”

“Yes, lord,” the Indowy replied.

“Your clan yet exists,” the Posleen commander said. “Continue to serve me well and it will be permitted to continue. Fail me, and the last of your clan will be eliminated. It shall be as if you were never born. Understand?”

“Understood, lord,” the clan chief replied. “We will need maps and any pictures of the next bridge that are available.”

“I will ensure you have them,” Orostan replied.

Cholosta’an’s head came up as there was a rumble to the southwest. “What was that, lord?”

“I’m not sure,” Orostan said. “Perhaps this area is prone to earth movements,” he added, forgetting that Cholosta’an was a native-born.

“Not that I’m aware of, lord,” the Kessentai said. “And… I hate to say it, but that is from the direction of the underground city.”

“Arrrrrh!” the oolt’ondai shouted, pulling up his tactical net. “Telenaal fusc! Aralenadaral, taranal! I will eat these humans, body, blood, bone and SOUL!”

“The city is gone,” Cholosta’an said, looking at his own display in disbelief.

“I CAN READ THE NET! Gamasal!”

“Yes, Oolt’ondai?”

The younger Kessentai had been waiting impatiently the entire night; at one point Orostan had wondered if he would have to order him removed when he threatened an Indowy. Now, with the sun coming up and the host about to move again, it was time to release him.

“We can handle bridges, but when these humans get dug into passes they are impossible. Take an oolt’poslenal and oolt’ondar. Move carefully forward, staying away from both the heavy defense points and this damned gun, to take and hold this position.” He brought up a human map. “This is Balsam Gap…”

CHAPTER 34 Betty Gap, NC, United States, Sol III 0747 EDT Sundy September 27, 2009 ad

“Oh, shit,” Reeves said calmly and threw the giant tank into reverse as a shudder rumbled through the ground. Then he slammed the accelerator to the stops as it started to slide.

The first part of the descent had been uneventful; the SheVa had started down the steepest part of the slope, towards the upper end, and handled it quite well. But just at the top of Betty Branch, where it first issued forth from a shallow spring, Reeves had had to traverse the tank slightly to negotiate the bluff above the spring and the slope had given way.

Now the SheVa had started to ski down the mountain and there didn’t seem to be a thing to stop it.

“Oh, I don’t like this,” Pruitt whined. “I don’t like this at all.”

“Reeves…” Major Mitchell said, but he knew there was nothing the driver could do to stop the slide that wasn’t already being done; the treads were tearing up the bare rock of the hill and not getting any traction at all.

“SheVa Nine!” Captain Chang called. “Warning! Posleen landers, three o’clock!”

“Shit, shit, shiiit…” Pruitt said slamming sideways as the SheVa hit a solid chunk of rock and bounced. “Our center of gravity is going to shift if I rotate the turret!”

“If we haven’t fallen over by now, we’re not going to!” Indy said.

“Go for it,” Major Mitchell called, starting the rotation.

The crew compartment was in the base of the turret, so the ride just got stranger as the tank went one way, jouncing up and down on the rough slope, and they turned another.

“Oh, shit,” Reeves said in a muffled tone. “I’m gonna ralf!”

“What happens when I fire this thing?!” Pruitt yelled, locking in a round.