Randolph Lalonde - Spinward Fringe Broadcast 08 - Renegades Read Online Free Page B

better part of a minute. The eight
crewmembers from the Warlord didn’t even consider interrupting.
“Back. To. The. Shuttle. Now,” Minh-Chu finally grunted, so fed
up with the man that he was beyond tempted to harden Kipley’s
vacsuit so he couldn’t move, an act called ‘freezing,’ strip
him of the little gear he had, and leave him behind, damn the
consequences.
    Kipley abruptly stood
and started for the exit. Minh-Chu followed. “Watch Frost’s
operation then follow him back,” he said to the Warlord crewmembers
left at the table. He didn’t realize his hand was resting on his
sidearm until Shanda glanced at it, wide eyed. Minh-Chu left it there
as he followed a dozen paces behind the tantrum-driven Kipley.

Chapter 3
    Perspective
    It was sometimes
difficult for Ayan to believe that the Everin Building existed at
all. The circular structure looked like it belonged underwater.
Hundreds of oval, bubble-like segments seemed to rest atop each other
in a slow taper from bottom to top, as though they were the eggs of
some giant sea creature that artfully laid them in a tall pile. The
old cargo container homes that brought most of the refugees to Haven
Shore were abandoned months ago as families moved into the lower
levels of the Everin Building. The battered ships were stored in the
nearby temporary port, where they were still being slowly repaired.
Lacey, Ayan’s right hand in official matters and companion, thought
they were an eyesore, a reminder that – no matter how much progress
they made in Haven Shore – they had to be ready to escape at any
moment.
    Ayan looked across the
circle of segments at the top of the building. There were hundreds of
families living in the structure below, and the feedback from the
residents was positive overall.
    As the segments were
inhabited, the resilient skin of the building changed colour
depending on what the residents wanted their home to look like. The
energy collection technologies built into the outer skin still lent
an opalescent sheen to whatever colour was chosen, but that only made
the outside look more spectacular. The changing temperature of the
Tamber moon, any light, and any pressure contributed to the energy of
the building, and the skin of the outer walls could emit energy as
well. It was the combined technology of Freeground and Earth, as well
as a few things Ayan and her people had learned along the way. The
most impressive thing was that the walls, floors, and ceilings were
laid as pliable sheets, then hardened and thickened once they were
properly shaped. They would thicken further over the next few years,
and the building would shift little by little to accommodate.
    Ayan dared a glance
towards the centre of the building, at the mouth of the wide hole
running down the interior of the structure. Vertigo threatened to
overtake her as she leaned towards it, though the edge was still ten
metres away. She leaned back towards the walkway.
    The wind picked up,
whipping a lock of red ringlets into her face and she couldn’t help
but chuckle at herself and her fear of getting blown down the hole.
It would be over a hundred metre drop, but she knew there was no way
a gust would send her tumbling off the temporary walkway, across the
tops of a few segments. The wind was soothing in the heat of the day,
and it brought the mild, earthy scent of the nearby jungle.
    Her gaze fell on the
lush green expanse to the west. Thick, untamed jungle that was
centuries old as far as they could determine, it had taken on
characteristics all its own as the terraforming material that started
that growth interacted with the unique mixture of nutrients and
bacteria in the soil. There was no place exactly like it in the
universe, and Ayan wished the first colonists who settled Tamber
could be around to see it. The trees and hearty undergrowth provided
a vast bounty of fruit, nuts and vegetables, more than the
inhabitants of Haven Shore and the Triton could consume. The
engineering in