Читать книгу To The Stars - Назар Валерьевич Валеев - Страница 8

The station was vast, stretching for several kilometers. The tracks lay sunken a few meters into the ground, flanked on either side by a tall, timeworn fence of dark maroon brick. On the rails stood old locomotives – yellow-rusted diesels and half-dismantled electrics – along with what looked like research cars and even a small train of ancient carriages. Once, long ago, it must have been painted blue, with the faded words Restoration Train still just visible on its side.

Looking at it all, Kane felt conflicted. On the one hand, the decay stirred in him a dull ache of desolation. Yet on the other, this faded but still strangely vivid watercolor blended beautifully with the golden-red crowns of the surrounding trees. The whole scene – this post-apocalyptic landscape that might have passed for a film set in some amusement park was haunting in its strange harmony.

Suddenly, the device on Maarv’s belt seemed to stir to life, pulsing with crimson light and sending out cryptic signals.

«They’ve tracked us down after all – curse them», he said wearily, forcing himself to gather his thoughts. «And I had hoped to enjoy the view.»

«Well then, there’s nowhere to run», he murmured aloud, rising to his feet and unfolding the virtual control panel of the confluator as he moved. «I’ll try to deal with it», he declared calmly and distinctly, the way one speaks to children in difficult moments. «As for you – take this thing as far as it will go, and don’t stop. Then run, and run as fast as you can!»

A crimson shield flared to life, enveloping Maarv on all sides. «I’ll find you! If this works…» he added with a sorrowful smile to his friends, then leapt from the moving platform straight onto the railway tracks.

The handcar carrying Kane and John, swept away in the chaos of events before they could even grasp what was happening, vanished around the bend. Maarv frantically recalled the combinations of combat commands. I never thought I’d need these again, he muttered to himself while activating his weapon. But I won’t be taken down so easily, he resolved grimly, as the rapidly approaching drone came into view. Its round contours shifted to oval, and from both flanks extended the barrels of heavy atomic cannons.

Circling above him like a predator savoring its prey, the drone unleashed a barrage. They fired simultaneously. Maarv’s energy shields absorbing blasts that flared into dark ripples, steadily draining the reserves on both sides. Stray shots ripped apart the surroundings, turning derelict train cars and jagged concrete structures into molten shrapnel that sprayed in every direction.

Then the drone released a swarm of glinting alloy bolts. Several pierced through Maarv’s shield. One tore clean through his left shoulder; another pinned his leg to the ground, wrenching a grimace of pain from him. Pressing the attack, the drone descended low, almost skimming the earth, as though toying with him before delivering the final blow.

Maarv’s shield was nearly gone. Wrenching a length of rebar from the cracked concrete, he clutched it in helpless fury, knowing this was the end.

Suddenly, behind him came the screech of rending metal, and the ground shook with a growing vibration. Blood from a deep wound on his forehead streamed across Maarv’s face. Barely clinging to consciousness from the searing pain, he caught sight of something massive thundering toward him at terrifying speed.

With the last of his strength, leaning on the length of rebar, he wrenched his leg free from the bolt pinning it to the earth and hurled himself aside. A heavy locomotive roared past at full speed, striking the hunter with the full force and weight of its colossal mass, hurling it far along the tracks, where the iron wheels tore it apart and scattered the fragments in a storm of screeches, crashes, and sparks.

Maarv regained awareness only when Kane was shaking him gently, trying to bring him around. With effort, he forced his eyes open.

«Maarv, you scared the hell out of me», Kane said, pale as a sheet. «I thought you were… you know… done for.»

«What happened?» Maarv asked, wincing from the pain of his wounds. «For a moment there, I thought I was finished myself…»

Kane laughed with relief. «You see, when you so cheerfully decided to step off the handcar, we thought it unfair that all the fun should be yours alone. A little farther on, we spotted that massive iron beast – a derelict locomotive. Its generators and engines were still in decent shape, and I managed to get it running. John climbed into the control tower and, by some miracle, managed to switch the tracks correctly. Lucky, wasn’t it? Guess that drone was never programmed to give way to locomotives – something to keep in mind for your next firmware update!»

Maarv gave a weary smile and pressed his hand to his wounded side, drawing a shaky breath before speaking. «Unfortunately, I can’t treat myself just yet – the confluator is nearly drained. The defensive barriers burned through almost all of its energy, and it will take some time to recharge. In the meantime, we’d better get far away from here. If the hunter managed to transmit anything, more company will be on the way soon.»

No sooner had he finished speaking than the familiar handcar appeared from around the bend, with John at the controls. He looked cheerful and mischievous.

«Did somebody call a taxi?» he asked, hopping off the handcar and glancing around in surprise. The twisted heaps of still-smoldering metal, rails, and shattered debris had transformed the once-familiar landscape beyond recognition.

«Well, you two certainly did some work here! ‘The dragon’s ire, more fierce than fire, laid low their towers and houses frail’», he quoted in his usual fashion, drawing on the classics.

With combined effort, they managed to haul the heavy Maarv onto the handcar. Despite his protests, John pulled out a first-aid kit, cleaned and dressed the wounds, and then tucked the kit carefully back into his pack. «One should never start something new without finishing what’s already begun», he grumbled.

After a while, the tracks began to merge, until only a single rail stretched ahead, ending at a set of massive steel gates. The leaves were bound with thick iron chains, parted just enough for a man to slip through, but far too narrow for the handcar.

«Well, from here on we’ll have to walk, as far as we can manage», said Maarv.

«‘Walk as far as we can’ – that’s not really an option for you», John pointed out dryly. «And hauling you would be like trying to drag a rhinoceros! I say we make for that spot over there instead.» He tilted his head toward a patch of forest and a glimmering lake, visible not far away. «We’ll rest there, regain our strength.»

In the backpacks they had prudently grabbed from the bunker, they found a coil of fishing line with hooks and a box of matches. While the wounded Maarv sat warming himself by the fire, Kane and John quickly improvised fishing rods, tried their luck and returned with several fat, wriggling fish.

«Now we’ll roast them over the coals», Kane announced, finishing with the cleaning and gutting, «and you’ll see what it means to dine in true style, even out here in the wild.»

Maarv, who had been following Kane’s efforts with a steadily deepening look of doubt, winced and muttered: «The hunters may have spared me, but this… this will surely be the end of me.»

He eyed the severed fish head and shuddered. «Those merciless, glassy eyes are going to haunt my nightmares.»

«The cure for that», John replied lightly, «is to taste it. Then you’ll remember those eyes in a far kinder way.»

Maarv’s bracelet came to life again, releasing a series of strange sounds. Suddenly, something vast appeared above them, eclipsing the sky over the clearing. In the stillness, they could hear only the faint crackle of the dying fire and the quiet murmur of the forest. With effort, Maarv rose to his feet, stepped into the center of the glade, and beckoned his friends closer. He spoke a few words in his own tongue. A column of brilliant light enveloped all three, and in the next instant the clearing was empty. The mysterious craft shot upward with terrifying speed, utterly silent, and in a heartbeat it had melted into the clouds.