Absolute Zero - Chapter 23
He slung the rifle over his shoulder and headed back to camp.
The CCP troops did not recognize the guest visiting their lunar base. But by the way he carried himself it was clear he was trouble. The stranger was accompanied by Captain Qin whom everyone dutifully saluted as they passed, but soon after averted their eyes. No one wanted to know why the visitor walked among them. They only hoped that whatever was planned wouldn't involve them.
Tli Cho was led to a nondescript inflatable dome that was reinforced by carbon fiber rods. He nodded to the captain, then went inside unaccompanied. Racks hosted standard-issue slug throwers and other weaponry. Ruggedized crates were stacked on the floor. He opened one. Interesting.
From among the boxes of ammo he retrieved a rifle he was not familiar with. He had shot many types of weapons over the years, but this was something new. Exotic. Mandarin letters roughly stenciled on the side led him to believe that it was a prototype. Given his satisfaction with his ship, Tli was a big fan of beta testing. He hefted the weight, checked the scope, and nestled it against his shoulder. It seemed comfortable enough.
"Now what kind of ammo do you take?" he asked it, digging into the container. He found a box stenciled with the same letters as the rifle and picked it up. The heaviness of it (even in .17g) caught him off guard and he had to push against the side of the crate to keep from falling in.
Inside the box were rows of rectangular cartridges about the length of his hand. He intuited how to load them into the rifle and slid closed the chamber with a satisfying thonk. A counter on the side flipped from zero to one hundred. There was also a lightning bolt image beneath the digits that glowed to life. He guessed it was a rail gun that used high-powered magnets to deliver iron rods at several times the speed of sound. The only other rail gun he had tried was ship-mounted. He found the one in his hands to be impressively compact.
"How about we go for a little spin?"
He ran a gloved hand across the barrel then tossed the empty box back into the crate. Then closed the lid and exited the hut. The captain appeared alarmed at seeing the weapon in Tli's hands. Tli grinned back.
"Don't worry, just going to do a little field test."
He wasn't sure if the captain understood but didn't care if he did.
Tli slung the rifle over his shoulder and headed alone to an area beyond the camp's borders. He followed a path from a map he memorized in preparing for this assignment.
He made his way to an outcropping of dark-colored rocks just inside the Chinese-American DMZ. The view confirmed it was indeed the ideal place for a sniper's nest. While elevated, he would be hidden from view as the target approached from the west down their well-trodden path.
He found a comfortable spot to kneel in the fine basalt dust and rested the rifle between two tapered rocks to test the sight. Surveyed the path. Anticipated where the target would likely make its appearance. With no wind to factor in, it would be just point, aim, and shoot. He turned and sat back against the rocks, and leaned the rifle next to him. While he waited, he checked his datapad and reviewed the encrypted message that led him here.
Chaos is the point. But show some restraint. A survivor is not necessarily a bad thing.
The vague message was followed by lunar coordinates and a patrol schedule.
Price for the job was never mentioned, but Tli was always paid well. When the work was completed, his account balance increased by an amount the payer knew would be appreciated. If the amount deposited was too low, then that would be the last job he would do for that employer. If the deposit was insultingly low, Tli would deliver his dissatisfaction personally.
He looked out at the distant curved edge of the surrounding Schrödinger Basin. Various camps had cropped up in this area. Scientific, mining, military, tourist. All separated by several kilometers, their borders for the most part were respected. But, as with any place where the populace becomes more dense, tensions rise. And borders are tested. Especially between nation states who historically had been thousands of miles apart on Earth and now found themselves as neighbors on the moon. You could literally throw a rock at your cold war enemy just to see what happened. Or to make a statement.
Shadows grew longer. Luna's orbit took it away from the Sun, slowly casting the cold, desolate landscape into darkness. He checked his watch. It was almost show time. He turned to face his perch again and anchored the rifle in the valley between a pair of basalt rocks.
Movement caught his eye, and he aimed the reticle on an enclosed six-wheeled transport slowly approaching from the west. The United States flag was on its side. He felt a twitch of hesitance on seeing that. What he was about to do was going to get some attention. He would probably feel the same if the flag were Soviet. It was just a job after all. He didn't get paid enough to play politics.
Tli cracked his neck, breathed out, and loosened up.
There was no rush. Everything moved slower out here. He looked above the scope and watched the vehicle approach with his naked eyes for several minutes. When it was close to the DMZ, he returned his convex helmet shield to the scope. Without warning the scope's image began to be displayed on his inner shield. The scope and inner image merged seamlessly to provide a crystal-clear, close-up view of the target.
"I like you already!" Tli laughed. He was eager to pull the trigger to see the results.
The weapon did more damage than expected. With little recoil, a gentle squeeze unleashed a hellish volley of molten slugs traveling at near the speed of light. He expected single shots, but a cluster rained down. There was no sound in the airless atmosphere, and he only felt a quick succession of light taps against his shoulder. The diminutive feedback was in sharp contrast to the weapon's ferocity.
A line of destruction cut across the vehicle, disintegrating large chunks of its fuselage. The passengers inside (what was left of them) were revealed. Detritus drifted everywhere in a slow-motion explosion. Metal shards, ripped cloth, bone fragments, and clouds of crimson glistening in Sol's waning light. Studying the aftermath as he stood, Tli observed no other movement below. He had hoped there would be at least one survivor to tell the tale. But the weapon had proven to be far more effective than he could have ever believed.
Tli began to hear chatter over his comms, both Chinese and American. Both sides began rushing to converge at this spot. It was time to go.
He slung the rifle over his shoulder and headed back to camp. There, a driver would secret him away to an awaiting shuttle that would transfer him to his ship.
Behind him, he had no idea that had Abbi had survived and was administering an improved tourniquet to Corporal Nerugi's arm.
Oblivious, Tli began to whistle, deciding he would keep the gun after all.
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