False Idols - Published Version

Sneek peek at the next Aeon novel: Do No Evil

                  

It was 3AM precisely and the computer in Sarah Fenton's brain told her she had a five percent chance of dying before 4.

She shut down her brain implant so it wouldn't overheat. Five percent was a small number. One in twenty. But now that small number loomed across Sarah's consciousness, overwhelming her with a desire to flee.

Sarah had fought some virtual battles and observed an aborted commando raid, but tonight would be her first time going into real combat herself. And she'd be going in alone. Despite her ability to adjust her mood and stress level by consciously secreting hormones into her bloodstream, her stomach was curdling and she hadn't been able to eat all day.

Willy might understand if she ran, Sarah guessed, but General Jaeger wouldn't.

"Are you ready, Ghost leader?" Brigadier General Rad Jaeger was addressing her over her radio headset. His voice, even now, retained its normal tone of condescension.

"Yes, I'm ready to go, sir," Sarah responded, driving back the urge to say "no."

Sarah was surprised that Jaeger had assigned her to spearhead tonight's raid on the Aeon facility, given he had been disappointed by her relationship with one of the Aeons. Nine months ago, she had been assigned to gather intelligence on the Aeons by going undercover and beguiling Vinicius, or Nick as everyone called him. But instead of coopting Nick, she had fallen in love with him.

She'd loved Nick because despite his vast wealth and power, he was compassionate and unassuming, even meek. And because he was so good-natured he wasn't capable of understanding the evil his compatriots were committing in his name. Her intimacy with Nick, while not part of her assignment, would eventually have helped her bring him over as a double agent.

But General Jaeger hadn't seen it like that. He'd been furious about the affair, and forced her to end the surveillance by faking her death during one of the energy riots shaking New York.

"Good," replied Jaeger. "Just get in and take down their sensors, Ghost Leader. The rest is up to Silverstein's Demons."

"Yes, sir!" she answered.

"Go get 'em, Sarah. Or should I say, Ghost Leader!" Michael Kang had walked up behind where she stood on the pitching deck of the boat. He looked at her intently with his black almond-shaped eyes and forced a smile. Sarah knew Michael was unhappy about her dangerous role in the upcoming raid. Hopefully he would not let his emotions affect his judgment. Sarah would be counting on him to help her make sound decisions to keep the whole team safe.

"I'll get the assault squad in safely. Hopefully we'll drag Laura Mayer out in handcuffs," Sarah said. Laura Mayer was the target of tonight's raid. At 20, Laura was just two years older than Sarah. But as leader of the Aeons, Laura was arguably the most powerful - and most dangerous - person on the planet.

"Sounds like you're going to have all the fun," continued Michael.

"Don't worry, I'll leave some Aeons for you, Ghost Control," replied Sarah, finally managing to smile slightly.

Despite her show of bravado, Sarah's hands were shaking. To occupy herself and calm her nerves, she began to check her equipment, one last time.

She started with her weapons. She had a laser rifle, a silenced 9MM automatic handgun, two fragmentation grenades, and a flash-bang stun grenade. She also had a self-heating serrated knife, primarily meant to cut through metal barriers yet usable in combat.

In her backpack and pouches on her hips she carried a first-aid kit, a silenced cement drill, three small charges of plastic explosives, a wand-like device custom designed for cutting into data cables and hijacking their signals, and a matching set of gloves and overshoes with multiple functions.