Blink: Phantom (Book 3)

26

There were no less than twelve armed men and women standing between them and the bridge. They were outnumbered two to one, but Darien had been through far worse. They had one shot, right now, to smash through the defences of their enemy and take the bridge. In theory they could have Blinked straight into the bridge itself, but dropping into a closed room without knowing exactly where the consoles were laid out would be dangerous, not to mention that they would lose their advantage of having more than one route of attack.

Three ramps led up to the bridge, each one connecting to dozens of other passages like the branches of a tree. That left three exposed approach points that a conventional fighting force would never wish to assault. The twelve guards had a defensible position and could fire downhill into a killing field devoid of cover.

But a squad of Blink Operatives was not a conventional fighting force.

They materialised a couple of corridors away, approaching the bridge silently. The motion trackers held by Hekket and Amber told them that the ship's security personnel had had the presence of mind to anticipate their move, spread out with four guards to each passage.

Darien quickly formed a plan to outflank the defenders, a plan that would only work with his team's special abilities to utilise. They gathered twenty meters away from the left hand passage, hunkering down close to the walls and watching all directions intently. With twelve guards split between three corridors he knew they could mass a local numbers advantage. All they needed to do was force their adversaries to gather in one place. Then a Blink squad could out-manoeuvre them like no other military unit in the galaxy.

"What's the move?" Idas asked, his voice low and barely audible.

"We split up," Darien whispered. "Niamh, you, Hekket, Uther and Idas are one group. Amber – you're with me. First, we let them see all of us – make a big show of hitting the left passage with as much force as we can. We need a couple of quick take-downs. That will pull the other guards out of position. Hekket, keep your eyes on the motion tracker. When they move, that's when we split." He looked pointedly at Amber. "Once we see them shift position, you and I will Blink to the top of the opposite passage and hit them from behind. Okay?"

Amber's jaw was tight and she looked thoroughly uncomfortable, but she nodded her understanding.

"This is the last leg," Darien continued. "We hit them hard and fast. Then there's nothing between us and the bridge where we can put a stop to all of this." He paused for a moment, searching for the right words. "Keep it together for just a little bit longer. Then we can all go home."

No-one spoke up to disagree. Faces hardened with resolve and they made a final check of their combat gear. Then it was time. Darien squared his shoulders and took the lead, moving with painstaking care up the corner of the passage. Right behind him he felt Niamh's presence and she placed a hand on the back of his armour.

"I'll draw," she whispered. "You cover."

He took his Compac in both hands. "Go."

They moved simultaneously. Niamh leapt past him, throwing herself into a roll as he angled his body around the corner and took aim. At the top of the hallway he could see the four guards, all partially concealed behind the cover of firing steps that protected the bridge itself – a common design. In the event of being boarded it was better to have a fire-fight outside the bridge where the attackers couldn't destroy the vital machinery.

Taken in haste, his first shot screamed wide and blasted a light fixture to shards. The second thudded into the nearest guard's shoulder and took his arm off at the socket. A shot from Niamh's cannon struck another square in the stomach and he tumbled over, his body sliding a few yards down the corridor and leaving a smear of blood in its wake. In that instant Uther hurtled past him to join Niamh at the opposite corner.