Ash: Rise of the Republic Read Online Free PDF Page B

toddler could follow.
There’s a few guards posted but they’re sloppy drunk. Should be
easy pickin’s for this lot.” He said, curtly.
    “Doesn’t sound like the band that burned
that tanker, slobs like that are generally in it for the loot,”
said the Captain, glancing at his wife, “Oh well, we followed them
this far, might as well take a look.”
    “Alright, ass time is over rangers! Pack it
up, we move out in five!” growled Deb, mainly as a formality. The
eager troopers were already stowing their gear and checking their
weapons.
    Four minutes later, the rangers were moving
swiftly and silently across the ash, following the taciturn scout.
The wire mesh wheels of their bicycles ballooned out to keep them
from sinking into the ash as they rode. Each had a small solar
charged battery pack and an electric motor that could be engaged in
a chase, but on a long range like this they kept to the pedals when
they could.
    After a brief ride, Stone gave the signal
for ‘halt, find cover’. The rangers quickly slipped off their bikes
and disappeared behind bare tree trunks and stunted bushes. The
scout moved over to the Captain and said quietly, “The warehouse is
just past this drift, I’ll take you to Blue.”
    The Captain motioned to Deb and the three
rangers crept through dense scrub brush to the crest of the pile of
wind-drifted ash. Nearing the top, Stone gave the signal to ‘lie
prone’ and they crawled the rest of the way up. The Captain
produced a pair of binoculars and surveyed the scene below, knowing
that Blue would show herself when she could scare as much shit out
of him as possible.
    The warehouse was a relatively large, three
story affair. It probably began its life as one of the small time
oil-tool rental shops that used to pop up right and left in Houston
every year before the pillar. Now it was half buried and belching
smoke from its upper windows. The second story was now ground
level; most of the windows at that height were boarded up. One of
them had been converted into a door. Two guards lounged in front on
a pile of crates, passing a jug and laughing. There was a brownish
yellow stain of corruption near another window; clearly the lazy
bastards couldn’t be bothered to dig a proper latrine.
    “Are those dipshits the only guards?”
    “There’s one on the roof.”
    The Captain adjusted his view. A solitary
guard was lying on his back on the sloped roof, snoozing.
    “Any more entrances?”
    “Just the one.”
    “You weren’t kidding about these guys!”
    “You should have seen the last shift.” Said
Blue.
    The Captain’s heart stopped briefly in
surprise at the voice coming over the crest of the drift. “You
sneaky bitch, you get me every time! I swear the women in my life
are trying to put me in the grave before my time!”
    He crawled forward and peeked over the edge
to find a wry smile gleaming from a lump of ash.
    “I just can’t resist, it’s just too easy
Cap’n Mac!” replied Blue with a giggle. She deftly rolled over and
slid back over the crest, stopping between the Captain and his
wife. Her fingers danced on the pad at her waist. There was a
crackle and the thick, fluffy layer of ash fell from her suit. She
hit another few keystrokes the air crackled again. The static
charge in the fabric of her suit picked up a new layer of ash, now
arranged in a pattern more suitable for the dusty bushes that hid
them.
    “You two stay here and keep an eye on those
poor bastards, we’ll run back and make a plan.” The Captain was
already edging back down the slope. “Signal if anything
changes.”
    The two veterans moved stealthily back to
where they had left the troop, quietly discussing their options. On
approach, the Captain made the signal for ‘rally on me’ and his
gang of killers materialized. They gathered around him quickly,
awaiting orders.
    “Ok rangers, we’ve got a plan. First,
Casper, get a couple of your cocktails mixed up, we’re gonna have