Free RIFT (The Rift Saga Book 1) by Andreas Christensen

through.
    “You’re hurt,” she said. He nodded.
    “Yes, but the bots are stitching me up as we speak. Hurts like hell, though. AI won’t give me anything but weak local anesthetic, either. Have to stay alert.” She nodded, thought for a second, before she spoke.
    “Tac, you stay here with Quinn and Keisha. Julian and I will take out the launcher.” The tacticus stared at her and seemed about to say something. She cut him off, a bit too harsh.
    “Tacticus, sir, we have no choice. You are incapacitated whether you like it or not. This is the only way.” She didn’t wait for an answer as she motioned for Julian to follow her.
    “Now,” she said, her voice calm, though her thoughts raced. She had just relieved her superior of command. If they survived, which was anything but certain, she could face dire consequences. Nevertheless, this was their only chance, and looking at the remains of Brad, she didn’t think they’d get another.
    Sue and Julian leapt from cover simultaneously, firing everything they had while they ran. The ammo in the magazines would only last for a few more steps. When she estimated they were down to the last twenty rounds, she shouted, a little too loud, for Julian to take cover. As soon as they hit the ground, she turned a switch on the side of her weapon, lifted it to point up in a 45-degree angle, and fired. A blast of heat passed to the side of her helmet. The heat-seeking missile should search out their attackers within seconds. She craned her neck to see, knowing she was exposed, waiting to see where the missile hit.
    A blast just to the right of where she had expected it told her the location of their attackers. Both she and Julian took a knee, fresh magazines clipped onto their weapons, and blasted away. Fifty rounds each, give or take, before they stood up and moved forward, firing short bursts with every step. As they reached the tree line, she knew she would soon be out again. They both took a knee as soon as they stepped into the shade of the forest.
    “Keep firing. I’ll switch first,” she said. Julian just nodded. Once she was done, he did the same, while she covered. Once they’d both reloaded, they moved forward again, slower now. After twenty or thirty meters, they came upon the remains of the enemy position taken out by the heat seeker. The dead lay strewn, and some sort of off-road vehicle still burned.
    “Let’s hurry. They can’t be far away,” she said. “The launcher must be slowing them down. See the mount?” She pointed at the burning vehicle. It had clearly been fitted with a weapon.
    “Those weapons are powerful, but cumbersome. I can’t believe they plan to carry it off,” Julian said.
    “Yeah, I guess they would have a hard time replacing it,” Sue answered, knowing well that the northerners didn’t have nearly the resources of the Covenant.
    They ran through the forest, knowing that they could be running into an ambush at any time. But if they didn’t take out the launcher soon, Quinn would be dead. And if that airship wouldn’t come pick them up, they would all die.
    The air was crisp, and outside of a few rays of light coming through the canopy of the forest, shadow covered the ground. The visors adjusted swiftly between light and dark, though, so Sue had no problem seeing.
    “Careful,” she heard Julian whisper inside her helmet as something snapped. She cursed quietly and pulled her foot from the broken branch. The enemy didn’t have the equipment of the Janissaries, but they still had ears. She took a moment to look around. Nothing. Then they kept walking, a quick pace, but more careful with where they put their feet down. Julian took the front, while Sue tried to cover both sides. They needed to move fast, but if they came upon the enemy without the element of surprise, it would be two against who knew how many. And not even Janissary suits or their superior weapons could be relied upon to keep them alive through that.
    ~
    After a few