Rift Breaker Read Online Free PDF Page A

did you come from? Escape pods do not escape from nothing.’
    â€˜Nova Corp, Madam,’ he answered with a smile. He lifted his hand and gave a mock salute.
    â€˜The Reconotyre ?’ she asked, glancing back at the beat-up pod.
    â€˜Exactly,’ chimed the simian.
    Milton recognised the Nova Corp distribution codes on the surrounding cargo crates. She was trying to make a delivery.
    â€˜What are two Nova Corp personnel doing floating in the middle of nowhere? Where is your ship?’
    â€˜Well,’ explained Milton. ‘It was atta—’
    Tazman cut in, ‘On route to Orisurrection . You see we’re in the middle of detailing the escape pods, right? And so there’s a malfunction and we get shot into oblivion. True story. So happy you found us.’
    She didn’t look convinced. Her fingers tightened on the pistol grip.
    â€˜Easy there, lady,’ Tazman held up his open palms, attempting to change the subject. ‘Is there anyone else we can talk to? Someone more important like say … the captain — is he around?’
    Her cheekbones crawled back under her skin and she narrowed her icy gaze.
    â€˜You’re talking to her,’ she snapped. ‘And if you don’t watch it, you can float off. I could quick-release your arses and that scrap heap right back the way you came.’
    â€˜Quick-release,’ Milton thought. He had heard the term before. You could open both doors of an airlock for a few spuckons and release anything close to the opening — for emergencies only. He could imagine a big button nearby, made for that very purpose, probably red with a plastic guard. This lady might be reckless enough. Milton spoke up before Tazman could say any more.
    â€˜Look, I’m sorry. Ignore him. He’s an idiot,’ he said. ‘But he doesn’t mean any harm. We’ve been out for a long time and we would really appreciate a ride to the Orisurrection space colony.If you won’t help, you might as well shoot us. Because there’s no way we’re getting back in that escape pod.’
    â€˜Do you have anything in the way of payment?’
    â€˜There is a Nova Corp outpost at the colony,’ Milton said. ‘I’m sure they’ll compensate you.’ A moment of silence passed.
    â€˜You boys are fortunate. It’s my next stop.’ She holstered her weapon. ‘Greetings and welcome to the Inhibitan . As you are now staying, I request that you not touch anything. If you act remotely suspicious, the penalty is death. Do you understand?’ She finished with a smile that failed to compromise the seriousness in her eyes.
    The two engineers exchanged a glance and babbled agreement in unison.

Four
    Milton sat in the Inhibitan ’s co-pilot seat and stared into the hyperspace tube, mesmerised. The bright purple tunnel went on to infinity. Thick energy bolts of white and yellow streaked through its wall. He had heard about it but had never seen it from a cockpit. Someone had told him hyperspace — an alternate plane of existence — was the fastest form of space travel.
    The Inhibitan ’s forward pane doubled as the screen for the onboard computer. Status and mode displays overlaid the view of the tube. Milton didn’t know exactly what the symbols meant but he could gather the gist. The photon reactor numbers showed its temperature as well as the status of the annihilations made from the antimatter supply. The scanning data was blank because, due to the mysterious shifting nature of hyperspace, accurate data and measurements could not be gathered, which was why all the navigational information had to be calibrated beforehand. The tube’s glow faintly lit the cockpit’s dark interior. The silentflashes of energy brightened the small space at various angles and intensities and cast different sets of shadows each time.
    Status screens and mounted control panels dotted the surrounding walls. A few