New Elysium: Weapons of War (Book 2)

Moving Mountains - Part 15

"Alright. This is how we'll do it." Amy tapped a button on a wrist map not unlike his own, and a 3D map of their surroundings appeared projected above it.

"Phil's coordinates indicate the area where the body was dropped off. Rutherford ran some simulations, taking into account the weather patterns, and he was able to provide us with an approximate radius where we will start our search. We can't land the shuttle there, because we can't guarantee the structural integrity of the bedrock. We also can't get very close to the actual search zone, because that side of the mountain is known for strong and sudden winds. So Adam will drop us off here," she pointed on the map. "It's an hour hike through the caverns up to the far side of the mountain. That means we'll have two hours left to find Blue's body, retrieve what we came for, and get back to the pickup spot here."

"Two hours?" Nico asked. "What happens then?"

"Then the Sodden starts," Amy explained as she put on her breathing mask.

"It's what the people here call the intense downpour of rain that occurs every thirty hours," she added at she saw Nico's confused look.

She pressed a button at the side of her mask, and from the top of the device, a bluish screen extended upward to cover the rest of her face. He put his mask on and did the same.

"You coming too?" Red asked next to him. His voice sounded electronically distorted by his own mask, and Nico couldn't quite tell if it sounded apprehensive or if he just imagined it. Then again, the man really didn't seem to like his presence here at all. He didn't seem to like anyone.

"Well, I'd like to help Nova too," Nico remarked. After all, he had worked closely together with the purple-haired pirate over the past months. He had come to see him as a kind of friend, in a weird way. And after Amy had explained to him what they were after, he had even made peace with the idea of pilfering from the dead. There really wasn't much that could shock him these days.

"He'll slow us down," Red remarked toward Amy.

"You insisted on bringing him here," she replied and began to fumble with a backpack.

"He should stay in the shuttle, he's not augmented, and you said it would turn into a shit storm in two hours."

"Well, I take any help I can get," she replied, and threw Red a strange look, "Apparently."

"You all but begged me to come!" He snapped. "You think you are the only one who cares about Nova?"

Amy crossed her arms. "Between the two of us? Yes."

Red tensed up, running both hands through his hair in apparent frustration and they stood there in silence and Nico realized they were arguing with each other over the comms.

"I'm still here, you know," Nico remarked in a low voice.

Both Red and Amy snapped their heads around and fixed him with their equally intense and irritated glares for a few seconds, and Nico could feel himself shrink a few inches.

"Whatever," they both snapped at the same time, glaring at each other again. At any other time or place it would have been amusing, but judging from the way both of their muscles tensed there was a real danger outside.

Amy grabbed the backpack, turned around and slapped her hand against the control panel of the shuttle door. As soon as it opened, a harsh and hot wind forced its way inside and tore at their clothes. The vessel had stopped, but it was still hovering at least three meters above the treacherous ground, swaying slightly under the buffeting gusts, when Amy jumped down without hesitation.

"What the-"

Before he could finish his sentence, Red moved past him. "Your funeral," he muttered as he went. He too, jumped without hesitation, landing slightly behind Amy.