The three men fired at one robot, targeting the joints. The bullets punctured the skin, and it soon became peppered with tiny black holes. Flaps of skin began to peel away and smoke seeped out from a resulting hole. As the hole grew, wires and tubes sprang out. There was a bang, and the wrist and hand went limp. Another bang signalled the collapse of the elbow. The lower limb drifted down until the entire arm hung vertically. Smoking and lifeless.
The men turned their attention to the second robot, and crippled that one in the same manner.
‘Good work,’ said Krushkov. ‘Now get in the ship.’
The three men started to descend the steps.
‘Watch those steps they’re slippery!’ shouted Sato.
Romero and Ubogu stopped suddenly on the icy steps and grabbed the rail on the left. Fang lurched for the one on the right, but his hand was unable to grip it. He lost his balance and his feet slipped from under him. He put his hands out to break his fall. As he landed on them, there was a crunch. He screamed, and rolled the rest of the way down the steps.
The others cringed as Fang finally reached the bottom. Romero and Ubogu made their way down steadily, holding the rail. They helped the distraught Fang to his feet and guided him towards the docking bay.
Zak imagined how painful Fang’s hands must be at that moment. But he was scared to think what his legs would feel like when the adrenaline dried up, and his psychological anaesthetic wore off.
He was monitoring events from just outside the door of the cargo hold. Krushkov sat the other side, oblivious to his presence.
Sato made her way across the floor to their container, which was stacked on top of another container. She held up her device.
Zak presumed that she was now going to set the timer on the bomb. This step was missing from his plan, and he could barely watch. But by now, he was used to watching everything. Almost without thinking, he selected a view from behind Sato, so that he could see the readings on the device.
She looked at it, then pointed it up at the container. She waited a few moments, then checked the readings. Nothing appeared.
