Shadows of JiangXi

[arvg]

Every alert siren on the Social Credit went off at once.

Enrico jumped in his seat, knocking over his coffee, and he uttered some curses as he fumbled with the controls.

Like a shot, Vance was up in the cockpit, clambering over a console to press some buttons to shut off the sensor alarms.

"What the Frak was that?" Enrico demanded, trying to mop up coffee and fly the ship at the same time.

"Tacheyon discharge on the planet's surface," Vance reported, still kneeling on the rear console to reach the forward one, tapping switches and flipping knobs. "Localized in the region of our nuggets... alien technology... but I can't tell you more than that..."

"Tacheyon discharge," Enrico sighed. "That's gotta be Dimitriov playing silly buggers with his alien ray gun. Scared the hell out of me!"

"Yeah well, we're up now," Vance said scrambling into the gunnery seat, and slipping on his headset. "So much for sleep... oh we lost a nugget..." he sounded sad.

"Yeah well, this isn't a walk in the park," Enrico replied. "I'm taking us down for a low pass over the main road, remind people that we're up here if they're scared and want to go home."

The Social Credit dived, streaking low over the Zone, curling about as Enrico played with the pedals, using the cyclic to guide the gunboat down over the Ravine, it's flood lights lighting up the edge, zeroing in on some poor nugget clinging to the rockface in the rain.

"Oh fiver says he falls," Vance chimed in.

Enrico glanced at Vance, "you're sick, you know that? Let's keep him lit so he can climb down."

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