Cobra Alliance-Cobra War Book 1 by Timothy Zahn
Authors: Timothy Zahn
Tags: Science-Fiction
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comfortable position for his feet that wouldn't involve kicking his mother's, he reluctantly concluded that this was going to be a very long trip.
But at least their exit from Milika was satisfyingly anticlimactic. None of the gate guards gave them so much as a second glance as they headed out of town. Carsh Zoshak himself, in fact, wasn't even present, and Merrick dared to hope that the Shahni agent really was in Milika merely to check on social detail compliance.
The first major population center along the southward road was the city of Azras. There they stopped for fuel and a meal before
turning northeast onto the main road that linked Qasama's five major Western Arm cities. By the time the sunlight faded away behind the forest and the stars began to appear, they were alone on the road.
Merrick spent most of the night staring out the cab window past his mother's head at the stretches of forest and plain rolling past them, or out the windshield at the winding road ahead. Occasionally, just for a change of pace, he took in the view out the rear window, looking through the mostly empty cargo area and out the cargo area's own rear window, watching the red-lit landscape disappear behind them.
He caught occasional snatches of sleep, too. But the seat and his position were uncomfortable enough that those interludes of oblivion didn't last very long. Seated across from him, his mother seemed to be having a much easier time of it, as did Fadil at Merrick's right in the front passenger seat.
A little after midnight Daulo found a long, open, and deserted stretch of highway and pulled off to switch drivers. Merrick and Jin got out as well, glad of the opportunity to stretch their legs for a minute. The forest had been cleared well back of the road at this point, and as Merrick paced back and forth he used his optical enhancers to check the tree line on both sides for predators. He spotted a single spine leopard lurking among some thorn bushes, but if the creature even noticed the humans it made no sign. A few minutes later they were all back in the truck and, with Fadil now at the wheel, they continued on their way.
The glow of approaching dawn was reddening the sky ahead when Merrick first noticed they were being followed.
"Mom?" he murmured, just loud enough to be heard over the road noise.
"I know," she murmured back. "He's been there for at least the last half hour."
Merrick stared at her. "Half an hour ? And you didn't say anything?"
"Who's been where for half an hour?" Fadil asked, frowning at them in the mirror. "What are we talking about?"
"We're talking about the person or persons following us," Jin told him.
"We're being followed?" Daulo asked, straightening up in the passenger seat and throwing a quick look over his shoulder.
"Yes, but so far that's all he seems interested in doing," Jin said.
Fadil muttered something under his breath. "More Shahni agents?"
"Unlikely," Daulo said. "Half an hour would have been more than enough time for an agent to call for a roadblock or an air strike."
"Unless they merely want to watch us," Fadil growled.
"Again, unlikely," Daulo said. "Instead of following us, it would be much more effective for them to put a SkyJo combat helicopter directly overhead at an altitude where we would never notice it."
"Maybe it's just another traveler heading to Sollas," Merrick suggested.
"I don't think so," his mother said. "There was that half-kilometer of bad road about fifteen minutes ago where Fadil had to slow way down. A normal car would have maintained his speed on the good road until he hit the patch himself, which would have meant temporarily closing the gap between us. Instead, he slowed to match our speed, staying as far back as he could while still maintaining visual contact. And he also didn't slow down through the rough patch, again maintaining visual in case we turned off on one of these side roads."
"So then who is he?" Merrick asked.
"Probably part of a local gang of
But at least their exit from Milika was satisfyingly anticlimactic. None of the gate guards gave them so much as a second glance as they headed out of town. Carsh Zoshak himself, in fact, wasn't even present, and Merrick dared to hope that the Shahni agent really was in Milika merely to check on social detail compliance.
The first major population center along the southward road was the city of Azras. There they stopped for fuel and a meal before
turning northeast onto the main road that linked Qasama's five major Western Arm cities. By the time the sunlight faded away behind the forest and the stars began to appear, they were alone on the road.
Merrick spent most of the night staring out the cab window past his mother's head at the stretches of forest and plain rolling past them, or out the windshield at the winding road ahead. Occasionally, just for a change of pace, he took in the view out the rear window, looking through the mostly empty cargo area and out the cargo area's own rear window, watching the red-lit landscape disappear behind them.
He caught occasional snatches of sleep, too. But the seat and his position were uncomfortable enough that those interludes of oblivion didn't last very long. Seated across from him, his mother seemed to be having a much easier time of it, as did Fadil at Merrick's right in the front passenger seat.
A little after midnight Daulo found a long, open, and deserted stretch of highway and pulled off to switch drivers. Merrick and Jin got out as well, glad of the opportunity to stretch their legs for a minute. The forest had been cleared well back of the road at this point, and as Merrick paced back and forth he used his optical enhancers to check the tree line on both sides for predators. He spotted a single spine leopard lurking among some thorn bushes, but if the creature even noticed the humans it made no sign. A few minutes later they were all back in the truck and, with Fadil now at the wheel, they continued on their way.
The glow of approaching dawn was reddening the sky ahead when Merrick first noticed they were being followed.
"Mom?" he murmured, just loud enough to be heard over the road noise.
"I know," she murmured back. "He's been there for at least the last half hour."
Merrick stared at her. "Half an hour ? And you didn't say anything?"
"Who's been where for half an hour?" Fadil asked, frowning at them in the mirror. "What are we talking about?"
"We're talking about the person or persons following us," Jin told him.
"We're being followed?" Daulo asked, straightening up in the passenger seat and throwing a quick look over his shoulder.
"Yes, but so far that's all he seems interested in doing," Jin said.
Fadil muttered something under his breath. "More Shahni agents?"
"Unlikely," Daulo said. "Half an hour would have been more than enough time for an agent to call for a roadblock or an air strike."
"Unless they merely want to watch us," Fadil growled.
"Again, unlikely," Daulo said. "Instead of following us, it would be much more effective for them to put a SkyJo combat helicopter directly overhead at an altitude where we would never notice it."
"Maybe it's just another traveler heading to Sollas," Merrick suggested.
"I don't think so," his mother said. "There was that half-kilometer of bad road about fifteen minutes ago where Fadil had to slow way down. A normal car would have maintained his speed on the good road until he hit the patch himself, which would have meant temporarily closing the gap between us. Instead, he slowed to match our speed, staying as far back as he could while still maintaining visual contact. And he also didn't slow down through the rough patch, again maintaining visual in case we turned off on one of these side roads."
"So then who is he?" Merrick asked.
"Probably part of a local gang of
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