The Dark Edge Chronicles - Hardwire

Chapter 38: The Hunters becomes the Hunted

Kendrick jerked in surprise as a loud crash sounded somewhere out in the office space, like something big had been abruptly pulled to the ground, or had been smashed through a window or something. In the same instant, his holographic displays flickered and went dead. Staring hard at where the holographic images had just been dancing above their projectors set into the surface of his desk, he frowned.

"Just what the hell is going on out there?" he snapped, looking up at the door leading out of his office.

Kicking aside what was left of the double glass doors that had led into the reception area, Lash stepped in, the Shiva already firing as he swept it across the knot of startled women that sat there, their psionic shields just coming up. But the shields, hastily erected with desperate speed and strength, were no match for the Shiva's lethal power. With bright flares of discharge, the Shiva's dragon fire cut them down in a hail of super-heated ceramic.

As the bodies slumped against the wall, bright splashes of red death blossoming on their bodies, the rest of Lash's team tumbled into the reception area behind him, weapons held at the ready. The big vampire quickly jerked up a clenched fist to bring them to a halt as he visually scanned the area, looking for possible psionic traps.

The Qos Viran commander ignored the understated opulence that had continued beyond the security checkpoint with inlaid panels of marble, polished spans of precious and rare woods and beautiful brass light sconces set into the tall, finely made walls. To him, they meant nothing, speaking only of the Brotherhood's arrogance in the assumption that they were above any other. He only saw the trappings of an oppressor, a society whose sole purpose was the destruction of his people. A purpose that, this day, would take a heavy blow at the hands of the Qos Viran!

"All clear," Tahsis husked softly, verbally echoing the thought that darted through Lash's mind in that same instant. The big vampire commander nodded and, with a sharp gesture of his hand, he pointed his fingers down the hallway that stretched away to the sides from the reception area, going first one way then the next.

"You know your assignments," he hissed tightly. "We're silent running from this point. Hit anything that moves!"

Like black clouds of death moving on silent wings of mayhem, the Qos Viran hit team broke up into smaller units to dart down the hallways, Shiva's ready and switched to rapid-fire mode, intent on slaying as many psionics as possible. And it didn't take them long before they claimed their first victims as they kicked aside office doors to fire on the unsuspecting occupants within. With brilliant stabs of lethal intent, ceramic rounds were hurled into the office spaces to scythe down Brotherhood psionics before they could react.

Within moments the office floor was reduced to utter chaos. Screams began to echo through the floor as the Qos Viran methodically worked their way through, the psionics they found within abruptly frantic as they began to search for a way out of the killing field their once untouchable sanctuary had become. Only to discover that the vampires had every possible exit covered. Shrieking their final frustrations, they desperately fought back, hurling shockwave and plasma fire at their assailants. Fought back and died as the Shiva's spoke their lethal language, their words of tempered ceramic deadly and devastating.

For the vampires were skilled at avoiding psionic weapons, having done it all their lives. Assisted by the neuron armor that Mordecai had provided them, they easily stayed out of harm's way for the most part, one or two of them falling before the heavy counterattack. But the Brotherhood psionics had never faced the kind of weapons the Qos Viran were using against them.

Assuming the powerful machine pistols were standard Normal armaments, they stood their ground, expecting their shields to protect them from the Shiva's ordinance. Only to find the white-hot ceramic easily punching through their battered shields to cut them down with hardly any resistance. Death walked in the shadows of the Brotherhood's ignorance and arrogance, punishing those unable to make the adjustment to rapidly changing circumstances.