The Black Pod Read Online Free

tail spike, so hard that
he was knocked to the right and almost dropped the rifle. His arm was laid open to the bone in a deep gash from wrist to
elbow.
    Before Tony could draw his
Glock or the Telis could strike again, Lane crashed into it,
clamping his jaws around its neck. Lane’s tail hit the other Telis in the
ribs over and over, stabbing deep each time until it no longer moved.
    Tony pressed his right
hand as best he could to close the wound. He didn’t feel it yet, but knowing what arterial spray was, he knew it was bad. He
had med supplies in his pack, but they would do him no good if more
of those things came.
    “ Box, I need a secure spot
to fix this,” Adams said as he examined the gash. It was a
mistake.
    Wynn was suddenly pulling
him up the trail to a shelf that backed against the sheer face of
the wall above. She pushed him to sit . Without a word, she forced him down as she untied her simple cord belt. She
wrapped it around his upper arm and using a green branch she had
quickly cut to
length, she cruelly tightened the
makeshift tourniquet around his upper arm.
    Quickly and quietly she cut strips
from the hem of her cloak to tightly bandage his arm and fashion
him a sling. Lane stood guard just below them.
    When she was done , there was no hesitation. She had Tony back on his feet and
moving quickly through a great fissure in the cliff face. Lane
brought up the rear as they moved.
    The gap in the cliff they
traveled, showed tiny strip of sky above was getting closer as
they walked . Tony kept the Glock in his
right hand as he watched ahead. Lane was out of sight behind them
when they emerged from the crevasse into another world.
    The bluff behind them had
stopped the fire. It was lush and green here. In the distance, he could see a vine-covered stone tower. A small inlet
from the lake helped create part of the moat around a keep wall
that surrounded the tower. All was overgrown.
    It was less than a kilometer away. He
knew then that he could make it.
    ***
    They crossed the mossy
bridge as his vision was beginning to tunnel. There was a small
door to the right of a
massive double door in the Keep’s wall.
The hinges didn’t even squeak as they entered and closed the door
behind them.
    The cobblestone courtyard
had a running fountain in the center. It was simple but artsy in
its own way, with a sphere in the center of the pool covered in
glyphs. The water flowed out of a hole in the top center. A broad sill went all the way around it, suitable for sitting . Adams took off his sling and gear and placed it all on the
sill before he sat.
    He opened the side of the pack and
withdrew the trauma kit. He pressed the injector to his thigh and
it filled his veins with ice. It was as if a cold breeze had blown
away the fog that caused the tunnel vision.
    Wynn was talking constantly
now , apparently trying to dissuade
him from unwrapping the arm. She helped him in the end. The trauma
kit was designed to be used one-handed . He allowed the
wound to fall open, then sprayed it full of medicinal nanites. Wynn
helped him seal the wound with medical adhesive and clean the arm
with individual towelettes that sizzled to the touch and seemed
to eat the blood and dirt. He finally sealed it up with a clear
med-bandage that he painted on the full length of the
wound.
    Tony took meds that would quickly
stimulate blood production. He was already thirsty. He emptied his
canteen and refilled it from the fountain as Wynn
watched.
    With is left arm throbbing and his
fever already climbing, he opened a ration bar and offered it to
Wynn. She shook her head at him as she lowered a wooden bucket into
the water. Lane walked up as if he knew the drill, and she poured
the bucket over him, again and again.
    She scrubbed him until all the blood
was gone and she was sure he wasn’t injured.
    She talked the whole time.
    Tony looked around
himself. The walls all around were made of massive blocks and went
up about ten meters. The wall was about two