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"Put it up," Wolff said, swinging to a monitor screen.
"No can do, sir. Too far for visuals."
"Is it within range?"
"Just barely."
"Armed?"
"Negative, sir. But it launched from the sector where the Hunters are
being held."
Wolff contemplated the blip on the screen.
"Let it go," he said. "The way things stand, what difference is one
small ship going to make?"
CHAPTER ELEVEN
Unlike the Zentraedi, who had in a sense taught them everything they knew
about warfare, the Invid were not above the idea of taking hostages. The
reason for this can be traced back to the chaotic period following the
defoliation of Optera by the Masters' newly created clone warriors. The Regent
was convinced that Zor had stolen the Flowers of Life merely to offer them up
in exchange for the Regis herself. Emulating the Tiresian then, the Regent had
sent out his new army not to kill, but to capture Zor, in the hopes of holding
him hostage for the return of the Flowers!
Bloom Nesterflg, The Social Organization of the Invid
"I just think we should talk this over first, that's all," Tesla told the
assembled Sentinels, Bioroid pilots, and assorted members of Kami's tribe.
He could see that the Garudans weren't exactly thrilled to have an Invid
in their midst-particularly the Invid who had supervised the Regent's specimen
mission some time ago-and he was beginning to wonder whether he would even
make it out of the village alive, let alone into one of the farm-hives. Still,
he reasoned, if he could come up with a better plan than the hostage exchange
the Sentinels seemed to be favoring at the moment, he might be able to save
himself from either fate.
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"After all," Tesla continued, undaunted, "it doesn't sound to me like
you have this thing entirely worked out. The whens, the wheres, the hows...And
for all I know, the Regent may have given orders for me to be shot on sight."
This much was true, and as a result the group lapsed into an uneasy
silence. They couldn't simply call the farm, nor could they just waltz in
waving the proverbial white flag. But this was where Tesla was supposed to
supply answers; and instead he was suddenly acting as though he couldn't bear
to part company with his captors. In private Janice had told everyone to
expect as much, although she had been vague about the reasons.
"Then what the heck have we been keeping you around for all this time?"
Jack shouted. "You're supposed to be our ace in the hole, not some hunk of
dead weight."
"Jack, I'm hurt, I'm really hurt," Tesla returned, trying to put emotion
behind the words.
The shuttle was back on the planet's surface now. Vince Grant was still
aboard the SDF-7; but almost everyone else with the exception of Teal had
shuttled down. Jean's team was in the process of erecting an
atmosphere-controlled geodesic medical module on the outskirts of the village
to house Rick and the others once they were freed. Veidt and Sarna had
affirmed that five or even fifteen minutes' exposure to Garuda's atmosphere
wouldn't prove lethal; but at the same time the danger to Rick and the others
was increasing with each moment they were kept from proper treatment. Just
what constituted "proper" treatment had yet to be determined; and Veidt
refused to speculate until the Humans were rescued and run through a battery
of tests.
Burak was sorry he had opened his mouth, but there was nothing he could
do to change things. Besides, Tesla was giving it his best shot and might yet
convince the Sentinels to adopt a different course of action.
"Let's hear it, if you've got a better plan," Miriya Sterling was
saying.
Tesla put his hands behind his back and paced back and forth, the crown
of his head inches from the longhouse rafters. The breathing gear the med
group had fashioned for the Invid was a jury-rigged affair of masks, tanks,
and tubes, giving Tesla a decidedly elephantine appearance.
"How's this?" he asked at last, swinging around to face Jack, Cabell,
the chief, and a few others. "Divert attention away from the farm by
initiating a raid-"
"We're one step ahead of you, Tesla," Max said, interrupting.
"Infiltrate a small party at the same time, and end up giving your troops more
hostages."
"It doesn't have to end that way," Tesla argued. "Not if I'm with the
commando team."
Jack grunted. "What do you know that Rick didn't know? We went in quiet
as mice and they nailed us."
"It was the mecha-your Hovercycles-that gave you away. The farm's
defenses can sense Protoculture activity. So even though you got past the
Inorganics..."
Tesla left the sentence unfinished, pleased to see that the Sentinels
were offering one another surprised glances.
"No wonder they got the jump on us," Jack remarked.
"What about weapons, Tesla?" Cabell thought to ask.
"Weapons, too," the Invid answered him.
Max looked around the longhouse. "Where does that leave us?"
"Swords, crossbows, spears," Gnea said proudly.
Cabell shook his head. "They're no use against Inorganics."
"Grenades, then," Learna chimed in. "Rocket launchers-"
"And these," said the chief, as two of his tribesmen dragged an
odd-looking crate into the hut.
Inside were a dozen Karbarran firearms not unlike Lron's own small-bore.
Each wooden and metal-fitted rifle had a large globular fixture forward of the
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