The Whorls of Jupiter

Chapter 17 Independence

August 6th 2521

Keun woke up to alarms blaring and a message being played across the intercoms. His entire body was covered in varying degrees of light burns and winced in pain. He could hear frantic whispers in the next room as a warning played overhead.

"Attention Galileans! This is Captain Anouk Lichtenegger of the Free Traders. We are the vanguard of the free trader uprising. Bridgemoor has lost control of Yari Station. Bridgemoor will get nothing from Jupiter again unless they meet our demands! We're coming aboard to present them personally. Any resistance and the Saddam will level the colony. "

Keun tore out his IV drip and sat on the bed, Oh shit. How long have I been out? The Saddam is here? In fucking space? Oh shit...

Keun swung his legs over and carefully walked out of the room reaching whenever possible for something. Still feeling wobbly he turned to see Governor Shaw and Cal in a heated exchange. "Cal! You're 'intelligence' for fucks sake! How did you not see this coming?! Do something!"

"What do you want me to do Allison? I can't just wave my hand and blow the enemy warship out of the sky!"

"You fucking bett- Oh it's you," she said as she saw the badly injured Keun holding onto the doorway.

Cal glanced over surprised, "Keun are you alright?"

"Careful with that tone Cal... It almost sounds like you give a shit," Keun said sarcastically.

Cal pointed nervously to Keun, "Allison this is our way out. We got armor to spare. Suit up Keun and he'll help us figure out how to get out of this."

Keun nodded while internally screaming. The Saddam is not joke. Fucking thing was unbeatable in atmospheric combat. The Rage was a minnow in comparison. "You got armor? Show me."

"I don't know what you think one man can do..." Governor Shaw complained as she led them to the nearest armory. Inside were rows of power armor and the long burned corpses of the staff nearby. Keun winced at the sight of one of the bigger ones who had the same kind of implants. The dead soldiers' implants melted open flesh, like a candle lit from the inside. Keun just stared in morbid awe. "That... That shoulda happened to me right?"

Vasquez appeared behind him, "Not necessarily Sargent. It's my belief that if a kirin inhabits a host it's overall output is substantially limited. It's why you got scarred but you don't have the eyes. Still, I don't recommend you get struck again."

"Damn right." Keun said as he eyed a large set of black power armor of the latest model. "I'll take this one."

Allison scoffed, "Take what you want Sargent, but I'm expecting you to get us the fuck out of here."

"No problem Governor. I'll sort it out."

After Keun fastened himself in and lowered the helmet over his head he turned to Cal and through the speakers, his crackling voice asked, "You ever regret washing out and becoming a pencil pusher?"

"Don't get full of yourself Keun. I can still throw you across a room and break your spine."

"Not when I'm in one of these," Keun said as he clapped his large metal gauntlets together.

"That's what graphene knives are for."

"You want to try?."

"I'm intel remember? It's not intelligent to fight the one guy that can cave my body in from head to toe like a soda can."

"So this is why Bridgemoor pays you the big bucks?"

Governor Shaw checked her watch and saw an alert. The Saddam's landing party signaled they were landing on the same dock where the battle with the kirin had taken place.