Voyage of the Sanguine Shadow 1: Shadow Galactic Read Online Free PDF Page B

friend
around back toward the club as music roared from its momentarily opened doors. 
“Good idea!” she urged and gripped his elbow, led him stumbling as they dashed
toward a group of club goers that had just exited.
    From behind him, he heard Takeo bellow, “Gavin, look
out !”  He heard the creek of his truck’s shocks, the groan of its metal as
the maugal lifted it off the ground.  Takeo emptied his gun into the truck near
its fuel tank, but none of the bullets struck home.
    Startled by the gunfire, the small crowd of club
goers screamed and scattered.
    Like a cannonball, the pickup rocketed through the
air toward Taryn and Gavin.
    Taryn lost Gavin’s elbow, spun about in time to
behold his massive vehicle on a direct course for his back.  She stumbled and
fell.  Breathing out, she closed her eyes and hit the sidewalk hard.  Gavin dove
with arms outstretched, and he landed protectively on top of Taryn.  Terrified
screams filled the air, but they abruptly stopped.
    They were replaced by astonished gasps, and
whispers of, “That’s impossible!”
    Gavin rolled away with Taryn in his grip, tumbled
into the alley and came to rest with her atop him.  Her eyes met his only
briefly however, and she fixed her attention on where the two of them had just
been.  Suspended in the air, nearly as high up as the street lamps, was his
Hulkr Rhino.
    Thunderously, it crashed down, a burst of broken
things, skewed wheels and a shower of glass.
    Gavin breathed out and closed his eyes.  “My truck.”
    From the huddle, the tall woman stepped into view
wearing an interested smile as she regarded Gavin at her feet.  “Told you he
was going to be here, Captain.”
    Booming, the maugal resumed his mad charge toward
Gavin.  From behind the tall woman, a much shorter figure stepped out onto the
sidewalk.  She leveled a snub firearm that glowed brightly of orange along its
top ridge.  She squeezed the trigger, and a searing line of white and yellow
intersected the maugal.  In a flash, the gun was sheathed, and the maugal
crumbled into a heap of white hot molten rock.  Another round of screams
erupted, and the scattered club goers took cover where they could find it.
    Chris the bouncer crossed his arms and stood right
where he had been all night.
    Breathless, Taryn sat up on Gavin’s legs. 
“That’s… that’s impossible!”
    The shorter woman ordered, “D’Arro, you and a
couple guys go bring me his friend.  We’ll make offers to all three.”  She
turned her attention toward a lanky man.  “Krane, warm up the shuttle.  We may
have the best psychic in the galaxy,” she half smiled toward the tall woman,
“but there are plenty of runners up.  This one’s hot, and we’re jumping out of
here yesterday.”
    “On it,” said Krane, and he loped away.
    “Captain,” said D’Arro, and he nodded toward a few
others in the huddle.  D’Arro towered over most every other creature he met,
save for his fellow male ospyreans.  His body feathers were bright green and
white, his head feathers massive, colorful, and extravagant.  He and his
associates dashed along the sidewalk, where they soon reached Takeo.
    “You alright?” asked the captain, and she pulled
Taryn up to stand.
    Taryn nodded and brushed herself off.  “I’m fine. 
Who are you?  What’s going on?”
    “I’m Zerki Ibarra, captain of the Sanguine Shadow . 
There’s a lot to explain.”

Chapter
04
     
     
     
    “ Desperation
is the raw material of drastic change.  Only those who can leave behind everything
they have ever believed in can hope to escape. ” –William S. Burroughs
     
    “Hey there,” said Zerki,
and she watched Takeo approach as Gavin got to his feet.  D’Arro and his
associates followed Takeo for a few paces before finding their way back to the
huddle.  “I met your friends, Gavin and Taryn.  You must be Takeo.”
    Onlookers peered from behind cars and bins.
    “Sure,” answered Takeo, and he returned his
firearm