The Prometheus Trap (The New Prometheus Book 3) Read online

  The Jackers were spread out around the two bodies that they laid on the floor with Gus the furthest into the room. She watched as another group walked forwards through the room and over towards Gus. Frankie recognised two of them right away. She’d never forget them in fact. The gang's leader, Spider, by all accounts, and his girl, Razor. Razor had been the Jacker who had shot her, nearly killing her before Xenox had found her, and her face had not changed since that fateful day. Frankie could remember it clearly and wanted nothing better than to wipe that smug grin off her face. Spider had been there, too, and he’d be someone else she would not soon forget. Spider was a big guy, tall with a barrel chest, a bald head and a single cybernetic eye. He also had two extra prosthetic arms beneath his regular two, and two prosthetic legs as well, which Frankie recognised as Jude’s. Razor also had two cybernetic legs, but hers were digitigrade, like a dogs with the backwards joint. Both wore black leather and denim.

  She wondered, though, would they remember her? If they shot people as often as she guessed they might, maybe they wouldn’t remember her. Maybe they would have no real recollection of their meeting. After all, she wasn’t a big part of their lives, even if they were a massive part of hers.

  Spider walked up to the two bodies. ‘So, what happened, Gus?’ he asked.

  ‘She happened,’ Gus said, pointing to her.

  Frankie smiled, but it didn’t touch her eyes.

  ‘And who the fuck is she?’

  ‘We found her in a lift, boss, with this miserable fuck,’ Gus said, pointing to the dead guy with six arms. It seemed to be a day for multi-armed people, Frankie thought, looking between Hellions six armed hunter and Spider with his four arms. ‘When we got her out, she did that to T-Bone,’ he said, indicating the second body.

  ‘An’ dis doo me,’ said the guy whose nose she’d smashed, his injury making his words sound nasal and strange.

  Spider looked up at the injured Jacker. ‘Get him sorted out,’ he said before he turned back to Gus and Frankie while the wounded Jacker was led away. ‘So, is there a good reason why she’s in my place and not dead?’

  ‘That would be my fault’ Jude said.

  ‘I thought you were looking particularly eager to speak,’ Spider said. ‘Tell me why I shouldn’t kill her right now?’

  ‘I vouch for her, she’s with me,’ he said.

  ‘Oh, really?’ Spider asked. ‘You have a particularly high opinion of your worth to me, then.’

  ‘She’s a friend. She saved my life once, so, I owe her,’ he said.

  ‘A debt of honour?’ Spider asked.

  ‘That’s right,’ Jude said.

  Frankie wasn’t sure she’d saved his life, but she had helped him when things were looking particularly grim for him back on the streets. But she wasn’t about to argue this with him now.

  ‘Well, that I can understand. But I still don’t understand why she’s here, in my place?’ he said, looking at Gus

  ‘Nothing to do with me,’ Gus said, gesturing at Jude.

  ‘I insisted,’ Jude spoke up.

  ‘Is that right?’ Spider asked.

  ‘It seems we have a mutual enemy,’ Frankie interrupted. ‘I’m here to fight the Corps in this building, and I know they have been causing you some issues. I wanted to propose that we join up and take them on.’

  ‘Is that right. You and what army?’

  ‘My team and I, and all of you,’ she said.

  ‘Sounds like you get the better deal out of all this. How big is your team? Where are the rest of them?’

  ‘Well, that was my other reason for coming here, you have one of them,’ she said.

  ‘Well, fuck me, is that right? Shit, man, I had no idea. Hey, bring that fuck out here will you?’ Spider shouted. ‘Holy crap, you have some serious balls to come in here asking for our help like that. Who the fuck do you think you are? We don’t need you to kick these Corporation fucks out of our building; we can do that ourselves. You’re not all that, anyway. I mean, shit, take a look at this poor fuck,’ he said as two Jackers brought Cole over to them and pushed him down to his knees beside Spider.

  ‘Cole, are you okay?’ Frankie sent through the neural link, hoping she could still talk to him.

  ‘Yeah, I’m okay, don’t worry about me,’ he said.

  ‘Hey, bitch face, you listening to me?’ Spider yelled at her.

  Frankie looked up at Spider as he pulled a gun from his belt and rested the barrel against Cole’s head. It was a big silver revolver and looked like it would make quite the mess of him if it were fired.

  ‘I’m listening,’ Frankie said, her tone serious.

  ‘Give me one good reason why the hell I need you to help us kick these corporate bastards out of here,’ Spider asked, pulling the hammer of the revolver back so it clicked into place.

  3.09

  Muffled gunfire echoed through the garage attracting Frankie’s attention; it sounded like a machine gun. Then there was another burst, and another followed by single shots and muffled shouting.

  Frankie could hear it quite plainly and felt sure it was coming from somewhere a little further into the complex.

  Frankie looked back at Spider, who was also now clearly distracted by the same noises.

  ‘What the hell is that?’ he asked no one in particular.

  ‘That’s my one good reason,’ Frankie said, feeling slightly smug about the Corporation’s timing.

  ‘What?’ Spider asked.

  ‘My guess is that the noise you’re hearing is the Corporation’s forces, seconds away from smashing down your front door,’ Frankie said.

  ‘You, you, and you, get over there and find out what the fuck is going on,’ Spider said to three of his men. He then looked down at Cole and backhanded him across the face before looking over at Frankie. ‘Don’t you go anywhere,’ he said to her, before turning to the two guys holding Cole. ‘Watch him; we’ll sort this out and be right back. Jude, come with me,’ he said and started to move off, meeting with another group of Jackers a few meters away.

  Jude gave her a look as he started to move over to Spider. ‘This sounds bad,’ he said to her through their link.

  ‘Yes, it does, and it will get worse before it gets better,’ she answered.

  ‘I’ll be right back,’ he said and moved over towards where Spider was talking and issuing orders to some of his gang.

  Frankie looked down at Cole. ‘You okay?’

  ‘Just peachy,’ he said sarcastically.

  Frankie could still hear gunfire and shouting. It sounded like it was outside the garage, but it was clearly getting closer. Most of the Jackers that had been standing near them had moved away, either to the door behind her, or deeper into the garage complex, leaving only the two guards by Cole and another closer to Frankie, but they were looking very twitchy and nervous. Their guns were in their hands and they were looking around.

  ‘Fuck, man, what is going on?’ one of them said.

  ‘Chill out, Spiders got this. It’s just some dumb Corp dicks thinking they can take us on. They in for a big fuck off surprise. Right, dog?’

  A new bout of gunfire that sounded a lot closer attracted some worried looks from the Jackers close to her, probably in the corridor outside the door they had entered here through. There was still the muffled sound deeper into the garage as well, and as she listened, the noise just got closer and closer.

  Frankie eyed the three Jackers around Cole and herself. She felt pretty sure she could take them all out; she just needed a distraction, something to take their attention more fully away from her so she could free Cole.

  A couple of seconds later, the sound of something big smashing into a metal door further into the garage, and probably coming right through it, made everyone look to Frankie’s left, deeper into the main complex, past Spider, Razor, Jude, and his lieutenants.

  Dust, smoke, and debris billowed into the room as loud and very immediate gunfire blasted through the garage and orange muzzle flashes lit up the
smoke. Something big and humanoid shaped lumbered into the far room, through the smoke and raised its arm. A massive cannon on it let off a high powered stream of death, its barrel flashing brightly as it shot.

  It was a mech, a giant hulking walking war machine, and as Frankie watched, it swung its arm and sent one of the Jackers flying over ten meters across the room.

  Spider, Razor, and Jude moved, ducking behind cover, trying to avoid being seen. They were a bit too close to the mech for comfort, though.

  Two seconds later, the door behind her, which they had entered the compound through, exploded. Frankie guessed that a shaped charge had been used as it blew the door clean off its hinges, smashing into two of the Jackers who had been next to the door and knocking them flat. Frankie looked up to see the two Jackers holding Cole backing off with him, one of them holding his gun to Cole’s head.

  Did they think Cole was with this attacking force?

  Frankie looked up at the Jacker who had been guarding her, and he looked back at her.

  ‘You stay where the fuck you are,’ he blurted out.

  ‘Bollocks,’ Frankie said and made to move away.

  ‘Hey,’ he called and went to bring his gun up.

  Frankie lunged back and punched him hard in the face, smashing her fist into his cheek and eye socket, sending him reeling and tripping to the floor. Frankie didn’t stay to see what he did next. She ran over towards Cole and the two Jackers who were dragging him to her right, away from the commotion.

  One of the Jackers was covering the other as he did his best to make Cole move, and he spotted Frankie as she sprinted forwards. He twisted and fired off a few shots at her, but she ducked right and avoided it, before leaping over a ragged sofa that was now between them and dropping into a slide that collided with the shooter's legs, taking them out from under him.

  Frankie spun, brought herself up into a crouch and punched the fallen Jacker in the face with one hand while pulling his pistol free with the other and pointing it at the Jacker who had hold of Cole.

  She looked over at him. The Jacker looked at her, then at the chaos happening behind her and then back at her, his face a mask of terror. She doubted there was any chance of talking him out of this in the short time she had to act, so she pulled the trigger, the round hitting him in the shoulder and dropping him to the floor.

  ‘Nice shootin’, Tex,’ Cole commented as the Jacker groaned on the floor behind him.

  Frankie quickly moved behind Cole to see the old metal cuffs that were holding him. ‘Thanks,’ she said. ‘We’re in bad shape here. Have you seen Gibson or Veronica?’

  ‘They’re not with you?’ he asked.

  ‘Nope, we got separated. You’re the first of the team I found… well, second,’ she said as she pulled apart the cuffs, snapping the chain that linked them together.

  ‘Second?’ Cole asked.

  ‘I’ve seen Dion, but he was being held by the Corporations, so we need to free him somehow,’ she said.

  ‘Shit,’ Cole answered her.

  ‘Shit, indeed,’ she agreed with him.

  With Cole free, Frankie looked over towards the main area of commotion and saw several C-SWAT operators firing at the Jackers while the mech smashed the place up. As she watched for a few more seconds, she spotted Hellion over there, keeping back but firing her pistol over the top of the operators from time to time. Well, at least that confirmed who was behind this attack.

  The movement of the mech caught her attention again as it made a move this way, heading straight for Spider and Jude. Frankie still felt like she needed to bring Spider onto her side, to somehow get him to see the value of joining up with her. Maybe she could yet still convince him.

  Spider, Razor, and the other Jackers with them fired up at the mech, but nothing seemed to work; he just kept on coming.

  Frankie ran forward, angling towards one of the motorbikes that were resting on their kickstands. She grabbed it, getting as good a grip on it as she could while skidding to a halt before shifting her weight and with as much force as she could muster, lifted the bike and threw it forward in one smooth motion, aiming it at the mech.

  The bike soared over the heads of Spider and Jude and smashed into the mech, knocking it off its feet and onto its back.

  A few more steps forward and she was close enough to Jude and Spider to be heard through the noise of the fight.

  ‘Let’s go, move; we need a way out,’ she yelled.

  Spider looked at her, shock and confusion on his face.

  ‘Spider, wake up, is there a way out?’

  ‘Yes, sorry, there is,’ he said, coming round from the shock. ‘Back that way, one of the hidden exits is over there,’ he said, pointing behind her, away from the attackers.

  ‘Let’s go,’ she said and forced him to move towards Cole, who had picked up a rifle from an operator he had just taken down.

  ‘Jude?’ she shouted over the gunfire.

  ‘Coming,’ he answered her and shot past her on his tracks. He could move quite quickly when it suited him, it seemed. Frankie had to run to keep up with him.

  Another operator stepped up onto a raised area to her right, but before he could bring his gun to bear, Frankie vaulted up and delivered a savage flying kick to his upper body. She flattened him with the force of her attack. He fell to the floor with a grunt of pain as she reached down, grabbed him by the collar and punched him hard in the face.

  Satisfied that he was down for the count, Frankie took his rifle and spotted what looked to her like an old walkie-talkie. These hadn’t really been used in the developed world for decades, but they would be uniquely useful for communication here with the net being shut down. She ripped it free from his belt as well and dropped back down behind Jude as they ran into the next section, away from the fighting. There were already several Jackers in here, standing about an open hatch in the floor.

  ‘Get down there, now!’ Spider said as he ran forward and started to usher them in. Frankie skidded to a halt just inside the entrance to the room. It would take a few seconds to get everyone down, she thought.

  ‘Cole, some help?’ she said through her link with him.

  Cole looked over at her and ran back towards her as she crouched down next to one side of the entrance and aimed her rifle back into the room.

  Cole did the same on the other side.

  ‘Only take them out if they’re headed this way, let’s not draw too much attention,’ she said.

  ‘Copy that,’ Cole answered her, firing off a single shot to take down an operator that he had a better angle on than she did.

  Frankie watched the chaos outside while glancing back into the room. It seemed to take forever for everyone to get down the hole, when, in reality, it was more like a few seconds. Frankie shot a few more encroaching operators, trying not to make herself too much of a target, but her shots were becoming more frequent as more of the corporate forces realised where they were.

  She wondered how Jude would get down there, but seconds later when she looked back, he was already gone. These tracks of his were good, she mused.

  Suddenly, the last man was heading into the hole, so Frankie looked over to Cole.

  ‘Go, get down there,’ she said. ‘I’ll follow, don’t worry.’

  Cole simply nodded, shot once more, taking out another operator, and then turned and ran.

  Frankie fired a couple more times before she heard Cole’s voice in her head.

  ‘I’m down; let’s go,’ he said.

  Frankie waited a couple more seconds, taking out the last couple of operators who were rather close before she turned and ran for the hatch before sliding across the floor and dropping down as quickly as she could, pulling it shut behind her with a head ringing clang.

  She noticed a locking mechanism on the underside of the door operated by a circular wheel, like on a submarine. She spun the wheel, levering the dead bolts into place.

  Frankie stopped and listened, seeing if she could hear anyone trying to
get in from the other side, but heard nothing.

  She smiled to herself before sliding down the ladder to join Cole, who was waiting at the bottom. Jude stood just next to him and smiled when she dropped into view.

  ‘Aaah, you made it,’ Jude said.

  ‘Was there ever any doubt?’ she teased him.

  ‘After seeing what you can do up there, I suppose not,’ he laughed.

  They were stood in a fairly large circular tunnel about eight-foot in diameter with dirty water flowing along the bottom of it, swirling around their ankles. The smell down here was intense.

  Just beyond Jude, Spider, who had been standing with his fellow gang members, some of whom were injured and were being helped by their friends, walked over to them.

  He stepped up next to Jude and seemed to take a deep breath before speaking. ‘I guess I owe you an apology, and my thanks,’ Spider said. It seemed almost painful for him to admit, but Frankie didn’t want to throw this back in his face, she needed him on her side, and if he was warming to her a little bit, this might be her opportunity. ‘The name’s Spider,’ he said, offering his hand.

  She took his hand and shook it. ‘Frankie. We’re just trying to help,’ she said, smiling warmly at him. ‘If we’re going to get out of this, we need to work together. Otherwise, we’re all dead.’

  ‘You might be right,’ Spider admitted. ‘And I would dearly like to pay those fucks back for what they did to my guys up there,’ he said.

  ‘I understand, but let’s think this through. If I can get out of this building and somewhere with a net connection, I can bring some more reinforcements here. Can we get out of the area in these tunnels?’ she asked.

  ‘We can if that’s what you want to do. Sounds like a chicken-shit choice to me, though,’ Spider said.

  ‘Well, we can agree to disagree for now,’ Frankie said. ‘Which way is out?’

  ‘This way,’ Spider said, pointing over his shoulder with his thumb.

  ‘Lead the way,’ she said and started to follow Spider as he walked back to his men.

  ‘So, what’s the plan, boss?’ one of them asked.