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Chapter 23

"My Barrier spell protected her, David" Vinny reminded me. "It blocked Sung-Tae and his Mare from entering and shielded Sami and Eleanor from the Miasma. Of course, it couldn't stop Sami from leaving the protected zone once she got my message"

"Ah, I understand now" I said. "I am impressed you were able to send the Mayor a message while fighting Sung-Tae!"

"I am a man of many talents, David" he agreed and got painfully to his own feet, standing at my side. "I am going to miss everyone here in Deep Below, but I hope you'll come and visit me once in a while"

"I will certainly try. The town won't be the same without you, Vinny"

Vinny clapped a hand on my shoulder and gave me a smile.

"Don't start bawling on me, David. You'll make your head rusty"

I looked at my friend in honest confusion.

"I told you I am made from Titanium alloy. I can't rust"

Vinny laughed all the way back to the town square and I joined in, even if I didn't understand what was so funny.

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It was well into the afternoon when the townspeople began to recover from the Miasma. Nino's Guard clones had moved everyone to Sami's bar, pushing the tables and stools aside to leave a clear space in the middle.

They were made as comfortable as possible and covered in thin foil blankets the Guards carried on their belts, the kind used to wrap up accident survivors to keep them warm. Nino, in her guise as Doctor Smith once she discarded her combat armour, checked their vitals on a regular basis until the people started to awaken.

Nino had suggested that they were told the town had been subjected to a Stun Gas attack orchestrated by Bo Sung-Tae and the remnants of his Redbacks. It was close enough to the truth and helped to explain the presence of the Guards.

Stun Gas was extremely effective against normal humans, rendering them unconscious with just one whiff, although the Guard clones were designed to be immune. It was commonly deployed by clone troops and mechanicals to suppress riots and other disturbances but its use was highly restricted.

If the Redbacks really had obtained Stun Gas and used it against civilians, such an illegal act would certainly draw the attention of the Guard. Sami hated lying to everyone, including Asimov and Earl, but she conceded it was better than revealing the truth.

As for Esther, the young woman had not regained consciousness. Vinny said that was probably for the best, holding her limp hand while she was laid in the back of a small electric van that was doubling as an ambulance. Bo Sung-Tae was bundled into another van, heavily sedated and secured with so many chains, plastic cables and gags I doubted he could have blinked let alone moved if he was awake.

The vans and most of the Guards departed once the town was secure, only a small fireteam of four clone soldiers staying with Nino. Everyone had questions once they came to, which Nino redirected to the Mayor while she asked me to take a walk with her.

"Only if you walk slowly" I quipped to Nino, who gave me a strange look as we ambled out of earshot from the others. We strolled past Vinny's garage and then deeper into the town, ending up in the hydroponics vault.

Lush tomatoes, strawberries and other colourful fruit and vegetables crowded the banks of water filled beds to either side, muting the sound of water pumps and air recyclers. It was as private a place as we could hope to find in Deep Below and Nino paused beside a bed of budding carrots, idly running her slender fingers over their feathery stalks.