Gray Panthers: Dixie Read Online Free PDF Page A

advanced. His senior warrior had managed to get close enough to charge the enemy gunman and had been cut down at the last second. The old one had been there for Knife and had taught him how to lead while ensuring that the others showed proper respect for Knife.
    Standing at the edge of the river with the last of his warriors, Knife knew he was beaten. He had only six left, and he would not split them up to search the river, especially since he could smell rain in the air and doubted that any of his warriors could swim. The brief hope that he could call in a recon unit was dashed when he remembered that all he had been allotted for his part in the planet’s invasion were the two hover trucks, and they wouldn’t be able to navigate the forest to where he was.
    Knife felt his entire body begin to convulse as he let out a huge roar that echoed from both sides of the bluffs. His patrol looked at him in fear when he finished. He said nothing as he pointed to his remaining scout to lead the way back.
    “Damn! That sounded close!” Scotty said as he listened to the roar reverberate through the valley, goose bumps forming on his arms. “I don’t think they’re happy with us. What do you say we move a little faster?”
    “That’s not a bad idea, except I’m on borrowed energy as it is. I don’t know how I’m moving even now,” Sam replied, trying to avoid a tree branch that Scotty had pushed out of his way as he broke trail for the two of them.
    Scotty took a moment to let her catch her breath and noticed that she looked like a drowned rat. Her clothing was plastered against her skin, and her hair, which she normally took such pride in, was flat against her head, looking stringy and knotted. Her face was sweaty and smeared with dirt from where she had wiped her hand across it or rubbed at the scratches she’d gotten from breaking brush.
    “Screw it! We have a good area here. Drop your pack, and we’ll take ten before we move on,” Scotty said as he dropped his own pack, amazed at how good it felt to be free of the weight. Blood started to flow back into the areas the pack had constricted, and he began to feel pain in his arms and shoulders as he dropped to the ground and took a long swig of water from his vest.
    “This has been a long day, hasn’t it?” Sam asked as she rested her head on Scotty’s belly while stretching out. Before Scotty could reply, he heard her breath deepen and realized she was asleep.

Arizona Space Ship Beater, in the orbit of the Flem home world
    26 October 2128
    Lieutenant Horton scanned the surface of the Flem home world. The readings from the probes that had been launched indicated slightly elevated background radiation, but no major hazards. The anticipated wreckage from a bombed-out planet didn’t materialize. There simply was no sign of civilization. There weren’t even any satellites in orbit.
    Finally, in frustration, the young officer asked Beater for help. “Beater, can you check your records for areas where I might find entrances to the Flem subterranean cities?”
    “Lieutenant Horton, I would recommend centering your search near the southern sixty latitude. It is a safe assumption that those that have come to pick over the carcass of the planet would not wish to bother with the extreme weather there. The majority of all interactions of the Flem were from the northern hemisphere, around latitude thirty. This was always intended so that visitors would never realize the true population centers were in the southern hemisphere,” Beater answered.
    Immediately, a target materialized. What appeared to be a perfect square, roughly a half-mile by half-mile, was visible on the side of a gently sloping hill. No power sources or wreckage was anywhere near the square. The distinctive shape was the only reason it had been an obvious target to Horton. It was apparent that the snow had recently blown off the structure, as snow was receding in the area.
    “Beater, is this a portal to one