To tantalize the more hard-core SF enthusiasts. HARRY’S REALITY isn’t just about Harry Bolls. Enjoy now. Buy later. 🙂
“Captain Montoya froze in place, jarred by the startling blast that had ripped his little brother and the other Runner into millions of unrecognizable pieces, their flesh, blood and bones lost forever. Although drugged with enough adrenaline to return fire at Makr himself, his body was powerless while his mind raced. They have always had more time! With his eyes welling full of tears and his throat choked tight by emotion, he vowed revenge, promising to destroy every damned cybert, every damned machine he found on the planet!
“Damn you, Makr! Carlos screamed inside himself because he couldn’t come out of his Shadow. Damn you!
“His body twitched, his state of mind causing a tell-tale flicker of the image left by his Stealth disguise. Hopefully, no one or thing was looking.
“He had to regain his bearing. Breathe. Breathe, he ordered himself. Still, his body language gave him away, revealing that something was wrong. He felt the shock; his stomach churned. In the clichĂ©d fleeting calm before the storm, he accepted the responsibility for a fatal error of judgment as a sole tear dropped from his left eye.
“Meanwhile, the Cyber protector’s head whirled round 360 degrees, making an eerie high-pitched whining sound as it assessed the scene fully. As its sensors located additional Bio targets, two more arms plunged forward from mid-torso and fired waves of pure energy into the darkened alleyways. The force of the astonishing wavefire missed its intended target, destroying instead part of a building. Huge chunks of concrete and steel littered the alleyway and the main street along with interior debris and minute unidentifiable remains of the tenants who occupied that part of the building.
“Missing its target sent the Blue Leader’s artificial brain an error message that made it pause a microsecond as it searched for a repair module in its program. The Bio resistance fighters are not where they were predicted to be. The cybert tweaked and adjusted its response to the data, and fired again. Missed again. It was time to use the heavy artillery. With it, the cybert could easily destroy entire buildings and insignificant residents just to get at the Bios who attacked its formation.
“If Shadow timing was off, it would be over for those inside the nearest buildings.
“It was now or never. Carlos gave the sign.
“Shields! His command was silent but the meaning of the gesture was clear. With the flick of his wrist, the four-inch long leather-like bracelet covering his forearm expanded and completely enveloped his fragile biological body with a nearly impenetrable shell. The shield covered his Stealth cloak totally, creating a two-dimensional, irregular oblong-shaped Shadow, as if tar melted or oil spilled on the pavement.
“The other Shadows lifted their wrist guards in a close-fisted salute and glided to a prone position on the ground. The leather-like armor plate expanded, at first becoming a coffin-shaped basin with rounded edges, and then seamlessly melted into the background texture of the street and alleyway, giving the barely perceptible appearance of a shadow falling on black pavement. With the shield’s heat disbursement feature like the Stealth cloak, the Shadows become virtually invisible to Cyber receptors.
“Composite material made from cybert scrap armor make the shields tougher, more resilient, and a hundred times lighter than steel. Used properly, the shields can deflect the explosive force of a wave grenade, or a laser blast, or, in their strongest position—lying flat on the ground—the lightning-like energy bolt from a disintegrator. Unfortunately, human individual differences affect this situation. An energy bolt knocked the Shadow force down and scattered them before all the shields were fully formed.
“Marta Rosienska positioned herself and her shield correctly for a lesser blast, protecting her upper body and head; but that was her fatal mistake. The force of the energy bolt was too direct for her shield to withstand—even angled and anchored properly. Her body slammed hard against the shields of others who were already falling back and anchoring as they hit the asphalt; her lifeless body ricocheted upward and back about fifteen yards to where the alley turned. Two rear action Shadow guards saw her body crushed into a bloody mess of bones and flesh as it crashed into the stone building.”
Shaw's Reality 