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in there were as guilty of collaboration with the enemy as were the
loyalty-conditioned collies, and it was a little galling to Skyler to have to
get them out. But they were hostages and when the balloon went up, their
private club would turn nasty very quickly.
He was at the open door now and, without hesitation, strode in. Directly in
front of him were the hostages, as yet oblivious to his presence. Flanking the
doorway were two Security men: one lounging against the wall; the other, a
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youngster, standing at a conscientious parade rest. Skyler took the kid first,
with a backfist to the solar plexus and another to the side of the neck. The
older guard, grabbing for his gun, went down with a jab in the stomach and two
head punches for his trouble.
The room had gone deathly still by the time Skyler looked up from the
unconscious Security men.
The hostages stared at him with wide eyes, their cards, drinks, and
conversations forgotten. "Ladies and gentlemen," Skyler began and suddenly the
tingler on his right wrist came to life, tapping dots and dashes into two
sections of skin. In the economical blackcollar combat code the message took
only twelve letters but its meaning was a heart-stopping mouthful!
Ryq coming in the main entrance will attack request aid.
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The Blackcollar
Skyler was out the door and running down the hall almost before the message
ended, but even so he knew he would be too late to get there first. A muffled
thud just as he reached the double doors confirmed that fear, and he flung
open the door to find the battle already joined.
The Ryq, looking from the rear like a tall upright Doberman covered with brown
rubber, was striding across the reception area, his short sword slashing
viciously at Woody Pittman. The trainee was doing his best to dodge the blows
or to deflect them with his now badly splintered nunchaku, but he was giving
ground rapidly and within seconds would have his back to the wall.
Shifting his nunchaku to his left hand, Skyler snatched a knife from his belt,
wondering briefly at his chances of missing the rapidly moving Ryq and
striking Pittman instead. But there was no choice.
Raising the knife, he took aim and Pittman stumbled and fell on his back. With
a thin wail of triumph, the Ryq raised his sword high.
And Skyler's knife flashed across the room, burying itself in the alien's
back.
The Ryq jerked as if with an electric shock, his sword clattering harmlessly
to the floor behind him.
Some trick of balance and locked joints kept him upright long enough for
Skyler to put two more knives into the tough hide. Then, almost gracefully, he
toppled over.
Pittman was getting to his feet as Skyler reached him. "You okay?" the
blackcollar rumbled, noticing for the first time the handful of bloodstained
cuts in the youth's non-flexarmor sleeves and gloves.
"Yeah. His laser's over by the desk."
"Your sneak attack was a bit off-center, huh? Well, at least you disarmed him.
Get the gun; I'll be back in a minute."
Retrieving his knives, Skyler hurried back to the holding room. The hostages
were still seated where he had left them, but they'd gotten over their
surprise, and a burly man at a gaming table spoke up indignantly as Skyler
entered. "Look here, you what do you think you're doing?"
"Getting you out," Skyler told him. "We're about to launch an attack on the
Ryqril."
The burly man's face turned pasty white. "Are you insane?'
he gasped. "You'll kill us all! Haven't you fools learned yet that you can't
fight the Ryqril?"
Skyler ignored him. "On your feet, everyone. Let's go."
"No!" The burly man's hand came up from under the table, clutching one of the
fallen guards' lasers.
"Call it off!"
Skyler reacted instantly, leaping to his left faster than the other's weapon
could track. His knife was in the air before he landed, and an instant later
the laser was flying across the room as its erstwhile owner hugged his hand
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where the hilt had most likely broken a bone or two.
"I said let's go, damn it," Skyler said to the group, putting steel into his
voice.
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The Blackcollar
Moving with terrified jerkiness, the hostages scrambled to their feet. Feeling
like a glorified sheepdog, Skyler herded them down the hallway to the
reception area.
Pittman was crouched by the desk, watching the front door. "Braune just pulled
up with a van," he reported.
"Good. I'll see them off, then we'll follow in the other car."
"But we can't leave the Hub," one of the hostages objected mechanically, her
horrified eyes glued to the dead Ryq. "The gate guards "
"Will be out of the way soon," Skyler told her. "Looks clear let's go."
Braune had clearly lifted the van from Security's own parking area; though
unmarked, its sealed-off driver's section was designed with prisoner transport
in mind. Skyler got the hostages aboard, gave
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