The Legend of Corinair Read Online Free

up, he surprised us with a team of Ta’Akar assault troops,” Nathan explained.
    “I never did trust that skinny little shit,” Jessica added.
    “If it hadn’t been for Vlad and Jessica, they would’ve taken us completely by surprise.”
    “They must’ve attacked you at the same time they attacked us,” Cameron surmised. “They got on board using one of the cargo shuttles. We thought they were just returning from their run to the surface.”
    “Yeah, well, it’s obvious that Tobin was in on the whole thing,” Nathan said.
    “What about Jalea and this Tug fellow?” Cameron asked. “You think they were in on it as well?”
    “Doubtful. Danik was killed in the attack, and Tug lost his wife.”
    “Jesus,” Cameron exclaimed.
    “Yeah, and Tug was about to get executed, until we capped the remaining three all at once,” Jessica bragged.
    “Really?”
    “Yeah, you should’ve seen it. Captain even put one right in the middle of one of their face plates. Blew the back of his head clean off.
    Cameron looked at Nathan in disbelief. She knew that there had been some sort of battle on the surface, but until now, she had no idea how serious it had actually been.
    “Yeah, I was just as surprised as you are,” he admitted.
    “Surprised by what?” Vladimir asked as he entered the room.
    “Nothing,” Nathan said, not really wanting to relive the event just yet. “Have a seat.”
    Vladimir took the remaining chair, pulled it away from the desk, and moved it over toward the wall so as not to block Nathan’s view of Jessica and Abby on the couch. He spun the chair around and sat down, his arms resting on the chair back.
    “Before we start, I want you all to know how much I appreciate the tireless job that you’ve been doing. I wish I could say that we’re almost done, but I’m afraid we may have just gotten started.” Nathan looked at their faces, each of them showing signs of stress and fatigue. Even Vladimir, who normally was stoic and smiling, looked beat. And poor Cameron, who always looked military perfect , looked like she had slept in her uniform, and for a very short time at that.
    “When Captain Roberts placed me in command, his last orders were to get the jump drive back to Earth. At the time, I didn’t understand the urgency of his request, but I learned a bit later—and correct me if I’m mistaken, Doctor—that this particular unit is not only the sole prototype in existence, but that all research in regards to this project are currently stored in the project’s mainframe on board this ship. There is not a shred of evidence to be found anywhere on Earth that would reveal this project had ever existed. In fact, other than the researchers who came on board with the prototype, there were only a handful of people on the entire planet that were aware of its existence. That’s how important this project was to the security of Earth.”
    “That is unbelievable,” Vladimir exclaimed.
    “That’s exactly what I thought,” Nathan agreed, “at first. But think about it. If the Jung ever got their hands on this research, there would be no stopping them. That’s got to be why Fleet was so secretive.”
    “You are correct, Captain. And the paranoia of our leaders went far deeper than you could imagine. The few that knew about this project were willing to sacrifice their careers, even their very lives to protect it. We even had suicide devices implanted in our teeth, in case of capture.”
    Nathan stared at her, asking with his eyes if that included her.
    “Yes, Captain, I have one as well.”
    “Does this mean we have to get them as well?” Jessica asked halfheartedly.
    “I’m pretty sure medical doesn’t carry suicide pills,” Nathan assured her.
    “Captain,” Abby warned, “you do realize that if this drive were about to fall into enemy hands, you would be expected to destroy the ship and the crew in order to maintain its secrecy.”
    “I’m afraid the secret is already out, Doctor.