Hunted Read Free Page B

aiming at the nearest of the
heat sources. Whatever it was, it was only 300 meters away. She
fired.
    The shot missed, impacting a dune, creating a
spectacular heat rose in the infrared spectrum. She switched to
night vision, and what she saw almost made her freeze rigid with
shock. A mutant, much like the ones she had seen on the Argoss and Heimdal , with the strangely articulating
limbs and smaller head. But this one was still recognizably human.
It crouched low, turning to look towards the other creatures it
travelled with. They scuttled away, as if aware they were suddenly
visible and in danger. In a moment they were all gone, hidden
behind rocks or dunes.
    But now they would be more careful. She mentally
berated herself for missing her target. With a snarl of rage, she
hopped down and hurried back to the camp. She kicked hard at
Knutsen’s foot, then Jensen’s. Knutsen was on his feet in a second,
but Jensen merely moaned.
    “What is it? What happened?” Knutsen checked his
wrist display. “Why didn’t you wake me?”
    “Never mind. They found us,” Stephanie replied. She
had her back to them, the multigun raised high, scanning the area
in case the enemy returned. “I saw three mutants coming directly
towards the camp. I don’t know how, but they can track us. We need
to keep moving.”
    Knutsen nodded curtly, then knelt beside the
comatose Jensen, checking his vitals.
    “He’s not looking good.” He gently peeled back an
eyelid, using a light from his wrist display to check Jensen’s
pupil response.
    “He’s unconscious, not sleeping.”
    “Then you’ll have to carry him,” Stephanie replied.
“I’ll take point.” She grabbed up the second multigun, slinging it
across her back, then a medkit. Knutsen donned the remaining
emergency kits, then with a grunt, bent and lifted Jensen across
his shoulders. He staggered to his feet.
    Stephanie gave him a sympathetic look. “We need to
circle back to the crash site. That’s the first place any rescue
team would look to find us.”
    Knutsen gave the merest of grunts. He took a step,
then another. His face was locked into a determined grimace.
Stephanie led the way, switching between infrared and night vision
while sweeping the area ahead and behind. Now they knew for sure
what they were facing, their only hope of survival was to hide.
Superior firepower would only work for so long, and the Ancestors
alone knew how many of the damned creatures were on the
surface.
    As they made their way, Knutsen occasionally
stumbled so Stephanie had to catch him. It was obvious that he was
growing tired. Attempting to distract him, she described what she
had seen.
    “It’s as though there were two species,” she said.
“The one I saw appeared almost human. It had a larger head and I’m
sure it had normal feet. It was definitely different to the ones on
the Argoss .”
    Knutsen did not answer. It was all he could do to
move in the heavier gravity with Jensen’s weight and his own.
Stephanie continued.
    “Also, they reacted immediately to the fact that I
could hit them with a charge. The mutants on the arc did not seem
to care. They attacked with a ferocity that seemed . . . well, I
think it bordered on madness. But these others, they displayed
caution. Which makes me think they’re smarter. Or simply not
insane. Either way, it makes them more dangerous.”
    Knutsen grunted. Each step he took was a deliberate
action, requiring focus and concentration. After only a short
while, he was sweating. Slowly he lowered Jensen to the sand.
    “Need to rest,” he gasped out.
    Stephanie kept up her scanning, switching between
modes on the sights. There had been no other sign of the creatures
since she had fired on them, but they were still out there. She
could feel it in her gut.
    “We’re not more than 3 klicks from the wreckage of
the shuttle. We can take 10 minute breaks in every 30. Think you
can manage that, Pål?”
    He looked up at her and she was shocked at