Antagonist - Childe Cycle 11 (16 page)

"Will
we
use
that,
if
it's
safe?"
Toni
asked.

"I
don't
think
we
have
much
choice,"
the
lieutenant
said,
looking
back
in
the
direction
from
which
they
had
come.
They
turned to
look
with
him,
in
time
to
see
a
line
of
armed
figures
close
in
on the
armored
car
they
had
just
left.
Some
of
the
figures
raised
long, slim
weapons,
and
cones
began
whistling
in
their
direction.

Bleys
found
himself
being
pushed
backward,
over
the
top
of
the rise;
and
looked
to
his
side
to
see
that
the
young
lieutenant
had
him by
one
arm
and
was
yelling
at
him
...
strangely,
Bleys
could
not seem
to
understand
what
the
man
was
saying.

That
realization
jolted
his
mind
back
into
action,
and
he
turned
his back
on
the
enemy
and
plunged
ahead
in
great
lunging
strides
that totally
cleared
much
of
the
most
uneven
parts
of
the
reverse
slope. He
could
see
Toni
and
Dahno
a
short
distance
ahead
of
him.
Toni was
looking
back
at
him
frequently
as
she
ran,
which
slowed
her down
to
Dahno's
pace;
and
Bleys
was
catching
up
to
them
quickly.

"Keep
your
eyes
forward,"
he
yelled
at
her,
waving
one
hand
as
if to
push
her
faster.
He
wanted
to
tell
her
they
could
not
afford
it
if she
lost
her
footing,
but
he
had
no
breath
to
spare.

The
two
ahead
of
him
were
ne
aring
a
kind
of
ditch,
above
which two
soldiers
were
standing,
waving
them
ahead.

Bleys
had
lost
track
of
the
lieutenant
again,
but
another
soldier,
a very
young
woman,
had
caught
up
with
him—he
could
hear
her gasping
as
she
ran,
hampered
by
the
kit
that
bounced
at
the
top
of her
back
every
time
a
foot
hit
the
ground.
But
she
turned
to
look into
his
face
as
she
drew
ahead
of
him,
and
grinned.
He
realized
he was
grinning
back.

Ahead
of
them,
Toni
and
Dahno
had
reached
a
ramp
that
sloped down
into
the
ditch.
The
two
soldiers
he
had
seen
before
were
coming
back
in
Bleys'
direction,
their
weapons,
held
diagonally
across
the fronts
of
their
bodies
as
they
ran,
looking
like
black
slashes
over
their mud-stained
gray-green
uniforms.
A
third
soldier
had
appeared,
and seemed
to
be
giving
directions
to
Toni
and
Dahno
as
he
headed
back past
them,
toward
Bleys.
Toni
and
Dahno
both
stopped,
looking back.

At
that
moment
whistles
ripped
the
air
above
him.
He
recognized them
as
a
close
hearing
of
the
distinctive
sounds
made
by
the
shaped propellants
packed
inside
the
long,
slim,
hollow
needles
fired
by cone
rifles.
Something
thumped
the
back
of
his
blast
jacket,
and
instinctively
he
tried
to
duck
as
he
ran;
but
he
lost
his
stride,
almost falling
sideways
into
a
low
patch
of
thorny
brush.
To
his
right
and
a bit
ahead
of
him,
the
young
soldier
who
had
just
passed
him
seemed to
jerk
in
midstride,
blossoms
of
bright
red
growing
in
two
places
on the
back
of
her
right
thigh,
below
the
hem
of
her
uniform
tunic.
She
buckled
at
the
knees,
and
fell,
her
weapon
flying
off
in
front
of
her
as if
thrown,
to
tumble
down
the
slope
for
a
few
feet,
until
its
momentum
died
on
the
rough
ground.

Bleys
recovered
his
balance
and
lunged
forward,
reaching
the young
soldier
even
as
the
three
soldiers
who
had
passed
Toni
and Dahno
ran,
gasping,
past
him,
heading
back
up
the
slope.

As
he
reached
the
wounded
soldier,
Bleys
became
aware
he
was winded,
breathing
now
in
great
sucking
gasps
while
clawing
to
clear sweat
that
was
clouding
his
eyesight.
He
crouched
beside
the
young woman
and
found
her
still
conscious,
and
cursing.
Her
helmet
had stayed
on,
but
as
he
bent
down
one
of
her
hands
clawed
at
its
catch, then
threw
it
to
the
side
before
reaching
back
to
paw
futilely
at
the back
of
her
thigh.

"Come
on!"
Bleys
gasped,
trying
to
yell.
"You
can't
stay
here!"

For
a
second
she
looked
at
him,
her
blue
eyes
wild
and
glaring; and
then
the
skin
around
those
eyes
seemed
to
relax
a
little.
She grinned
again,
and
started
to
say
something—but
at
that
moment there
was
a
loud
outburst
of
power
weapon
fire
behind
them,
and
as one
they
looked
back.