Hadn’t counted on ’at, I’d give it ten minutes minimum
Cancel, the brain’s fried for sure no way we could
Jess burned him down never gave
Fuckin’ spiders!
Nigel watch out there these things could
Yeah well they’re not gettin’ a chance to
Lookit that one ’ere, still pointin’ at ’im
I say we break ’em up
Yeah ’at one near you Phillips
I’m on ’im got my grapplers out
“Wait, we don’t know what went on yet. I think they simply—”
Those two Guthridge the legs are the best I’d Lookit ’im go down, fuckin’ spiders cut the props out from under ’em
Goddammit they got excited, it’s a ghastly mistake—”
Holtz, swing round on that one
Chop it down chop it
Lookit ’em can’t tell what’s hittin’ ’em
Filthy goddamn bugs
You got ’im you got ’im look out it doesn’t fall on you.
Jess burned Daffler down like
They’re cuttin’ they’re runnin’
Bastards!—chop ever’ one that keeps focused
Yeah never know what these things
Fuckin’ spiders don’t look so great legs gone do they
Get ’at one it’s still
“—bloody idiots they—”
Cut ’im cut ’im he’s
Run ’em, run ’em ’at’s right
Shit that gunk jams up the grapplers where you break the legs watch that
Hey on the left
Fuckin’ spiders
ELEVEN
The rock wall of Ted’s office was cold to the touch. It had a low thermal conductivity, but the mass of stone and iron still allowed the chill beyond to seep into Lancer. Years of human occupation had not warmed the hollowed spaces.
Nigel sat in a low chair, leaning against the wall. Ted finished his work at the flatscreen, checking the functioning equipment left on the Isis surface. Bob Millard sat in silence on the other side of the room from Nigel. He looked up as Ted dropped his stylus on the desk.
“Well, Nigel,” Ted began, “your idea didn’t work.”
“Perhaps.”
“Perhaps?” Bob parodied the English accent. “Ah’ll say perhaps, yeah. Daffler dead, his rig all melted down—”
“They became excited,” Nigel said slowly. “They each tried to send their answering signal. It seemed to be a compressed code.”
“Ah wondah what Daffler thaught.”
“I doubt he had time to think anything,” Nigel said.
Ted leaned forward over his desk. “The fact remains that they attacked him. Killed him.”