Precipice

Silence fell between them. T’Pry

He handed her the parametric sca

“I already have,” he said. “And you can call me Tim.”

19

June 2, 2267

Qui

The light of two moons spilled brightly across the dune ahead of Qui

Bridy stopped at the crest of the dune and retrieved a pair of holographically enhanced binoculars from under her robes. She activated the device and peered through it into the night. “There’s our temple,” she whispered to Qui

“You say that like it’s my fault this took three months,” Qui

Adjusting her field glasses, Bridy said, “No, but you did lead us smack into that caravan of desert nomads back in the foothills last week, didn’t you.”

He pulled out his own binoculars. “Ain’t my fault Naya and her little farmer friends got dog shit for intel. They said the ruins’d be clear till high summer.”

“It ishigh summer.”

“Well, nowit is. Besides, if we’d just flown here in ol’ Rosie instead of humpin’ it over land on these beaked cats, the delays wouldn’t have mattered.”

She glared at Qui

Qui

“Jackpot,” he said. “Desert kooks, meet your planet’s ticking time bomb.” He looked at Bridy. “What’s our play?”

Bridy squinted as she eyed the temple. “The nomads are all around it, but none of them seems to be going inside it. That’s good.” She put away her binoculars and took out her tricorder. “First we document the find, take detailed readings to send back to Vanguard, and gather samples for analysis on the Rocinante.”

“How you go

She scowled at him. They both knew the mission called for her to go inside the temple and scan it from within, but he couldn’t resist poking fun at her.

“We’ll need a distraction,” she said. Pointing to the left, she added, “Maybe a small explosion past that big dune to draw them away. While they’re poking around in the sand, I’ll slip through their camp and into the temple.”

“Okay, sure,” Qui

Bridy began crawling backward down the dune. “I just figured you’d do something gallant, like let them chase you.”

Shimmying down the slope beside her, he replied, “What in tarnation makes you think I’d do that?”

“Call it a hunch,” Bridy said. Once they were safely out of sight they stood up. Bridy walked to her melluland retrieved a small backpack from her saddle. “How long to set up the explosion?”

“Not long,” Qui

A single star swiftly grew larger, and the air shuddered with the low-frequency roar of fusion engines.

Watching the point of light grow and reveal itself to be a bulky ship on a rapid vertical descent, Qui

“No, it doesn’t,” said Bridy, who hurried back up the dune.

Qui

He expected the desert-dwellers to flee. Instead they swarmed around the Klingon ship and brandished their swords, spears, and primitive bows.

A massive bulkhead on the ship’s ventral hull detached and lowered into a broad ramp. Seconds later a battalion of Klingon soldiers marched down the incline in a Vformation. Those in the front rank had their disruptors leveled.

Loudspeakers on the outer hull of the transport blared commands at the natives, who hooted and whooped as they charged up the ramp.

The Klingons held their ground and opened fire.

Qui

A second wave of nomads stood paralyzed with indecision. Another barrage of disruptor fire cut down roughly fifty more of them. The surviving De

Even from more than a hundred meters away, Qui

Next came the rumble of motors and the clank of rolling treads. Heavy excavation vehicles started to roll slowly down the ramp from the transport ship. A fresh platoon of Klingons carried large containers stenciled with markings in their native script. Flood lamps mounted on the starboard side of the transport snapped on and lit up the entire temple at once.

“So much for Plan A,” Qui

Bridy frowned. “Not a chance. We’re lucky their sensors haven’t picked us up yet. We should get moving before they do.”

Moving on knees and elbows, she backed down the dune until they were out of sight again. Qui

The sun was up but still low on the horizon as McLellan and Qui

“Makes sense,” Qui