Free Crossover by Jack Heath Page A

explode. Anyone within eight kilometres would still be
fried.'
    Six jumped over a laser
tripwire, his forehead throbbing. The inside of his throat was
coated with dust. Irradiated wind blasted his skin.
    'How long will it take
us to get to Vepa tower?'
    'Eight minutes to get
to the car,' Kyntak said. 'Another ninety-five to drive there.'
    'Too long. She probably
left the moment I found out where the ununoctium was. She's got a
head-start of five hours.'
    Kyntak dug his phone
out of his pouch. 'I can summon a chopper,' he said. 'But it would
get to the tower only fifteen minutes before we did.'
    Six shook his head.
'Going to the tower is a waste of time. We need to get to her time
machine.'
    'But it could be
anywhere.'
    'Wrong,' Six said.
'It's only been two months since her last attempt. She didn't have
time to start building it from scratch.'
    Kyntak gaped at him.
'You think it's in the same place as last time?'
    'I think it's our only
chance.'
    Kyntak hesitated, and
then tossed him the phone. Six dialled.
    'This is Agent Six of
Hearts, requesting immediate backup. Authorisation code zero, zero,
Delta, Juliet. I need all available agents to assist with the
evacuation of an eight-kilometre radius, centred around the
following co-ordinates.' He recited the location of Byre's facility
from memory. 'This is a Luther-class emergency.'
    He hung up.
    'Call them back,'
Kyntak rasped. 'We need to send someone into Byre's facility to try
to prevent the explosion.'
    'No, we don't.'
    Kyntak raised his
voice. 'We'll never get everyone out in time. We have to send
someone in. Call them back. That's an order.'
    'I'm going in. We don't
need to risk anyone else's lives.'
    'You? You need medical
attention. You have no weapons. You–'
    'It's my fault,' Six
said. 'I told Byre she needed ununoctium, and I told her where to
find it. I have to be the one who stops her.'
    'I'm not letting you
kill yourself out of misplaced guilt.'
    'We're closer to her
facility than anybody else. And you can hardly walk.'
    A silhouette appeared
in the toxic fog. The car.
    'It has to be me,' Six
said. 'Get in the car.'
     
    * * *
     
    'How does she keep
finding soldiers?' Six demanded.
    'She pays well,' Kyntak
said. 'And she probably doesn't tell them they're going to get
blown up.'
    Six stared at the
thirty troops standing around the crumpled facility. Half of them
were inside the chain-link fence, the other half were outside. All
had carbines cradled under their arms. If he and Kyntak drove any
closer, they would be spotted and showered with 9mm rounds. The car
might withstand the barrage, but it wouldn't break through the
fence.
    At least we know she's
here, he thought.
    The fence itself was
about a metre too tall for him to jump over – on a good day, which
today wasn't. Every muscle in his body ached. He would have to
climb it, presumably while people shot at him from both sides.
    'Do you have flash
grenades?' he asked Kyntak. 'Anything I can use for a
distraction?'
    'No,' Kyntak said. 'And
in any case, I don't think they'll fall for that twice.'
    'Different
soldiers.'
    'Same leader. That's
why she's put them on both sides of the fence. You'll never
distract them long enough to climb over it.'
    No time, Six thought.
No time to wait for backup, no time to figure out a better plan.
It's do or die – probably both.
    He handed the
binoculars to Kyntak. 'You see that window?'
    '"Window" implies
glass,' Kyntak said, after a pause. 'I think that's just a hole in
the wall.'
    'Whatever. I want you
to drive toward it.'
    'You did see the fence
we were just discussing?' Kyntak said.
    'Yeah. Brake before you
hit it.' Six stepped out of the car and clambered onto it, putting
one foot on the windscreen and another on the roof.
    Kyntak leaned out the
window. 'Did I ever tell you you're a total lunatic?'
    'Just drive,' Six
said.

 
     
     
     
     

Chapter Ten:
Showdown
     
     
     
    It didn't sound like an
engine at first. It was like a giant swarm of bees, getting