Earth Singer

CHAPTER NINE

Asinius paused, his Strix-skin boot squelching into the grimy puddle at the end of the dropship ramp.

'Terra be damned,' he cursed to himself, lifting his foot in disgust. One step on this void-forsaken planet and it had already cost him the equivalent of a Captain's wages for an entire tour. The fact that they acquired them free by way of a particularly underhanded bribe did little to lighten his mood.

'VENUS, situation report!' he barked at the spherical drone, hovering just above his left shoulder before thrusting his way into the rain-blasted night.

'Small-arms fire detected on sub level 3. Fifty-two Militari casualties from the Gratia. One dropship destroyed.' Asinius flicked his rain-soaked black hair out of his eyes and reached a hand under his thick overcoat to draw his pistol.

'I could care less about Tiber's Militari,' Asinius spat, loud enough for the few soldiers accompanying him and his crew to hear. Two crewmen raced ahead of Asinius and threw open the double doors of the building, holding them as he strode inside.

'But how the hell did they take out one of my dropships?'

'Insurgents not responsible,' VENUS replied matter-of-factly.

Asinius marched through the building with the same casual disregard he would the deck of the Gratia. Five of his hand-picked crew keeping him surrounded at all times. A variety of small arms and blades capable of clearing an enemy bridge at a signal, trained on their surroundings. Few of their weapons were standard Imperial issue. Many were outright illegal.

Struggling to keep up were a squad of twelve far more cautious Militari. Tiber had insisted on sending a cohort to accompany the Gratia on their mission. And by accompany, he meant five hundred green soldiers Asinius had to feed and stow on his ship, on the unlikely chance they would be useful.

Stories of the might of the Militari purging the galaxy of the enemies of man were still emblazoned on marble pillars throughout the Regnum. But in truth, most of these soldiers' grandfathers had never seen a day's fighting in their lives. The feral borders of the galaxy were conquered eons ago. Most pacification these days was handled by the fleet.

'What do you mean not responsible? How did we lose it?' Asinius and his party weaved their way through stairwells and corridors, the building coming to life with noise and confusion with each step.

The hovering drone projected a grainy blue image of a landing craft. Hewn perfectly in two, the wreck billowing smoke and flames amid a sea of twisted steel and bodies that stretch across a whole city block.

'Landing craft touched down 23:30. Collision with RoadTrak 23:30.5. fifty-two souls lost.'

'I thought we told that slag-shifting governor to lock this sector down!'

'Cost analysis of rerouting RoadTrak unacceptable. Order overridden by sector command,' VENUS responded shifting from her holographic rendering of the wreckage to a display of local governmental hierarchy.

'Well, tell Tiber he owes me a damn ship!'

'... Bandwave sent. Recipient Tiberius Kiber Solarus. Shall I mention the shoes?' Asinius smirked. VENUS was picking up all sorts of bad habits from her Captain. Sass was one of his favourites.

Ahead, a storm of boots thundered towards Asinius' party. A dozen, black-clad warriors, weapons drawn filed up the narrow corridor ahead. He did not slow his pace. The crew of the Gratia instinctively tightened their cordon around their captain, a barricade of sharp blades and menacing barrels. The warriors ahead lowered their rifles and threw up their right arms in salute.