Uncommon Loyalty Read online

  Uncommon Loyalty

  Dragon Team Seven - Book 2

  by

  Toby Neighbors

  Uncommon Loyalty - Dragon Team Seven - book 2

  © 2019, Toby Neighbors

  Published by Mythic Adventure Publishing, LLC

  Idaho, USA

  All Rights Reserved No part of this book may be reproduced, scanned or distributed in any print or electronic form without permission. Please do not participate in or encourage piracy of copyrighted materials in violation of the author’s rights. Purchase only authorized editions.

  Copy Editing by Ritchelle Buensuceso

  Table of Contents

  Table of Contents

  Books By Toby Neighbors

  Toby Neighbors Online

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Chapter 26

  Chapter 27

  Chapter 28

  Chapter 29

  Chapter 30

  Chapter 31

  Chapter 32

  Chapter 33

  Chapter 34

  Chapter 35

  Chapter 36

  Chapter 37

  Chapter 38

  Chapter 39

  Chapter 40

  Chapter 41

  Chapter 42

  Chapter 43

  Chapter 44

  Author’s Note

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Books By Toby Neighbors

  Avondale

  Draggah

  Balestone

  Arcanius

  Avondale V

  Wizard Rising

  Magic Awakening

  Hidden Fire

  Fierce Loyalty

  Crying Havoc

  Evil Tide

  Wizard Falling

  Chaos Descending

  Into Chaos

  Chaos Reigning

  Chaos Raging

  Controlling Chaos

  Killing Chaos

  Lorik

  Lorik the Defender

  Lorik the Protector

  The Vault Of Mysteries

  Lords Of Ascension

  The Elusive Executioner

  Regulators Revealed

  Third Prince

  Royal Destiny

  The Other Side

  The New World

  Zompocalypse Omnibus

  We Are The Wolf

  Welcome To The Wolfpack

  Embracing Oblivion

  Joined In Battle

  The Abyss Of Savagery

  My Lady Sorceress

  The Man With No Hands

  ARC Angel

  Battle ARC

  Elder Wizard

  Spartan Company

  Spartan Valor

  Spartan Guile

  Dragon Team Seven

  Charter

  Jack & Roxie

  Toby Neighbors Online

  www.TobyNeighbors.com

  www.Facebook.com/TobyNeighborsAuthor

  Instagram @TobyTheWriter

  On Twitter @TobyNeighbors

  Chapter 1

  “So you think you’re Dragons after one baby op?” the master sergeant growled. “Well, think again. You haven’t seen anything yet. In fact, that pitiful display in the Quazak system is a textbook example of what not to do in a Recon mission. The only good thing I can say about it is that you didn’t leave anyone behind.”

  Nick felt his cheeks flush red. He wasn’t sure if he was embarrassed or angry. Their first mission, which occurred within the first few weeks of their training to become Deep Recon specialists, had been without an NCO. The truth was, Nick and his friends had not only felt good about the mission, they had been riding pretty high on their first victory until Master Sergeant Cane arrived.

  “Deep Recon isn’t a mad tear through alien installations where you act like savages,” Master Sergeant Cane shouted. “We are the elite warriors of the PMC. Steal and speed are our specialty. We infiltrate and disrupt, rescue and evade, all the while gathering useful intelligence. The five of you blundered around like blind goats. If not for your Dragon suits, you’d have been left behind to die with the Quazakians.”

  “Sir, may I ask a question?” Jules said.

  “Don’t call me sir, Private. I work for a living,” Cane snarled. “And never interrupt me while I’m talking. Is that clear?”

  “Yes, Sergeant,” Nick, Jules, and the rest of Dragon Team Seven said in unison, including Gunnery Sergeant Beth Tveit.

  “What’s your question?” Cane challenged.

  Jules had to clear her throat before she could speak. Nick had met several NCOs during their short time in the Proxy Military Corps, but none were as frightening as Master Sergeant Cane.

  “What did we do wrong?” Jules asked.

  “Well, let me see. First, you blundered into a fortified structure with no evacuation plan. Second, you revealed your presence to the enemy. Third, you put your principles in harm’s way. Fourth, you left one of your own trapped on a rooftop. You disobeyed a direct order from Captain Dex’Orr. Need I go on?”

  He didn’t wait for an answer. “You used the wrong weapons for the operation. You tried to avoid killing when you were aware that the survivors would be left to die on the space station once the Proxy pulled life support functions from the installation. And finally, you used up nearly all your breathable air when you went EVA.

  “In short, you nearly died every way possible. Our first priority as Deep Recon specialists is to stay alive. And not because we’re a sentimental bunch of peace-loving hippies, but because each Dragon Team is a six-person special operations crew that only work at full strength. You lose one person and this team will be scrapped. The value is in your need for one another, that bond of friendship and respect that can’t be taught. You can’t bring in a replacement if your team leader gets his ticket punched on some backworld swamp because you were careless. Dead men tell no tales, nor are they of value to the PMC. You stay together, you stay alive, and you complete the mission.”

  “These Proxy bastards don’t care about you,” he went on. “You’re lives are nothing more than a value on a spreadsheet. Just a line item to be balanced with a billion more. No one is looking out for you. Do you understand what I’m saying? Recon doesn’t have backup. If you get wounded or captured, no one will be sent to rescue you. You may have joined the PMC to escape Earth or in hopes of starting a new life on Elysium, but you better stow those dreams down deep and keep your mind focused on the here and now. You are Dragons—Deep Recon, Air, Ground, Orbit, and Nautical Specialists. The galaxy fears you, but only because you’re ghosts. I will teach you to kill without being seen. To hide in every environment. And to function as a team. But I’ll be damned if I’m going to put up with a bunch of arrogant know-it-alls who feel like they don’t need to train. Is that what I’m working with?”

  “No, Sergeant!” they all shouted in reply.

  “Good. We begin EVA maneuvers today,” Cane said. “Suit up!”

  “He takes his job extremely serious,” Kal joked as they pulled on their armored suits that would allow them to survive in hard vacuum.

&nb
sp; “Better that than someone who’s just biding their time, waiting for transport to Elysium,” Ember said.

  “Yeah, I’d rather be yelled at than dead,” Ty said softly.

  Nick pulled his helmet on and watched as it powered up. He felt the helmet seal around his neck, and the heads-up display ran a diagnostic on the specialized armor. All systems were running and fully charged. He checked the armor for any sign that it wasn’t ready for hard vacuum. It would only take one small mistake, one tiny crack in the armor’s seals to kill him. Nick didn’t want to die, so he checked his armor twice, and then he began visually inspecting his friends’.

  “You know, I thought there would be more running,” Kal said.

  “Are you complaining?” Jules asked.

  “No, just curious,” he replied.

  “I can give you a pill that will allow you to run a hundred klicks a day without getting tired,” Gunny Tveit said as she joined Nick in visually inspecting the group’s armor. “Why train for something that is easily attainable via pharmaceuticals?”

  “Well...” Kal replied. “I didn’t know that.”

  “We’re training to work as a team,” she went on. “Learning to operate our equipment is the primary goal, but everything we do will be team building. If I think that running ten kilometers a day will build unity, I’ll do it.”

  “Don’t get us in trouble, Kal,” Ty said.

  “It was just an innocent question,” Kal replied. “I thought there were no bad questions.”

  “No dumb questions,” Nick said.

  “Oh, I thought that one was dumb,” Jules said with a chuckle.

  “Alright, everyone’s ready,” Tveit announced. “Let’s go have some fun.”

  They followed Gunnery Sergeant Tveit out of the Ready Room and down a corridor to where Master Sergeant Cane was waiting for them. He triple-checked their armor before saying a word.

  “Well, at least you can get dressed by yourselves,” he said. “That’s something, I suppose.”

  Nick wondered if Gunny Tveit took offense at the master sergeant’s tone. He outranked her, but she was no rookie.

  “We’ll be going into the airlock,” Cane said. “Once it cycles, we tether and then leave the artificial gravity field. The first objective is to connect the exterior atmo tanks to your armor. Get it right and we’ve got hours of fun in zero-g. Get it wrong and you’ll die. The tanks have a simple snap connector, but don’t get cute with it. That air is your lifeline, and in the field, you may have to hook up under duress. So learn to do it correctly now and it might save your life later. Once the valve is connected and you’ve got air flowing, your helmet will sync with the tank’s pressure indicator to give you a reading on the amount of air in the tank. Use your suit’s magno-settings to secure the tanks onto your back.”

  “Master Sergeant, won’t that slow us down?” Kal asked.

  “Not in zero gravity, genius,” Cane said. “They’re bulky, but once you’ve got them in place, you’ll hardly notice them. Once everyone has breathable air, I’ll give you instructions. Any questions?”

  There were none, and they followed the master sergeant into the large airlock. Nick felt his pulse speeding up as the red light flashed overhead and the air was sucked out of the room. His armor had just under an hour of breathable air inside the hard vacuum plates and seals. Still, it made him nervous to think of going out into the harsh environment of space.

  “Room’s clear,” Gunny Tveit announced. “Outer doors opening in three, two, one, mark.”

  She hit a switch, and the large doors slid apart. There were two doors that overlapped one another. Each slid a different direction, and even though Nick didn’t feel anything physical, his mind recoiled at the vast open space just outside the airlock.

  “We all tether,” Cane said gruffly. “No exceptions. You don’t leave the gravity field without a safety line.”

  “But won’t we sometimes have to EVA without safety lines?” Ember asked. “On a mission, I mean.”

  “That may sometimes be the case,” Cane said. “But make no mistakes, people, what’s out there will kill you. There’s no coming back if you lose control. We train with tethers every time. No exceptions. Our job is to learn, not get killed in training. You have a problem, any problem at all, then you hit the abort feature on your helmet’s heads-up display. The tether will reel you in and close the airlock automatically.”

  “You ever lose anybody?” Ty asked.

  “There are a few fools still floating through space,” answered Master Sergeant Cane. “Don’t get cute and do what you’re told. This is serious business, you read me?”

  “Yes, Sergeant,” they replied.

  “Alright, here we go.”

  Chapter 2

  Nick stepped up to the threshold of the airlock’s outer door. His tether was secured, and he felt a small sense of security as he looked out in the great void of space. They were on the edge of the huge Foundry space station. The docking arms were on the far side, and below them, the blue planet was drifting past on its long orbit around Delphi’s star.

  Above them, Nick could see a billion stars. There was a glow from the combined light of the Milky Way’s inner circle where the star systems were much closer together. It was a beautiful sight that made the danger of getting lost in space a little less terrifying. He didn’t see or hear Master Sergeant Cane, who came up behind Nick and with one sudden movement kicked Dragon Team Seven’s squad leader out of the airlock.

  Nick heard the shouts from his friends, but his mind shrank in horror as he went tumbling free of the Foundry’s artificial gravity well. The planets of the Delphi star system, along with the massive space station, tumbled around Nick, who was spinning head over heels as he flew away from the space station.

  “Get your bearings, Nichols!” Master Sergeant Cane’s voice was loud in Nick’s com-link, as if the wily drill instructor were shouting in his ear. “Get to the air tanks, on the double!”

  Nick wanted to close his eyes, but he couldn’t operate his armor via the helmet’s visual controls if he did. Instead, he focused on the icons along the bottom of his heads-up display. One was an emergency activation of the armor’s propellant system. Nick activated the system and used the auto feature to let his suit do the work of slowing his tumble. It used a quarter of the air held in reserve for him, and it didn’t stop his tumble completely, but he was able to take hold of the tether and stop his drift away from the Foundry.

  “Good job, Private,” Cane said. “Now get to those tanks.”

  Nick felt like his suit was filled with helium as he had floated off the ground. He was upside down above the space station but was able to pull himself toward the structure. It was odd how the first tug caused him to drift along the tether, which he had pulled taut. Relief flooded through him when he felt in control again. His biggest fear was getting lost in an uncontrollable tumble and being lost forever in outer space.

  He was halfway back when Ty was cast out of the airlock. This time there were cheers and shouts of encouragement. Nick wasn’t sure if it was better to have been caught off guard or if waiting for his turn would have seemed like torture. The air tanks were in a safety nook near the airlock doors. As soon as Nick was close enough, he activated the electromagnets in his armor that held him secure on the side of the space station. While Ty struggled to regain control of his own momentum, Nick pulled a set of two large air tanks from the compartment.

  “Who’s next?” Cane growled.

  Nick looked up in time to see Gunny Tveit get tossed from the airlock like a bag of garbage. He could hear her breathing, but she didn’t panic. She let her momentum carry her a short way out before firing her thrusters and snagging the tether line. She made the maneuver look almost graceful.

  “Coming in hot,” Ty announced.

  Nick saw that his friend was moving a little too fast toward the Foundry. If he didn’t soften his landing, he risked bouncing off and spinning out of control again. Nick reached out
a hand and snagged his friend’s arm just as Ty hit the bulkhead between the air tank compartment and the airlock. Ty started to bounce away, but Nick held tight and used the momentum to sling his friend around toward the air tanks. Ty caught hold of the edge of the compartment and activated the magnets in his armor, which locked him into place.

  “Thanks, man,” Ty said.

  “Anytime,” Nick replied.

  “Are guys gonna make out?” Kal said.

  “Master Sergeant,” Nick replied. “I request permission to throw Private Phillips out of the airlock.”

  “Too late,” Cane said.

  Kal shouted as he went twirling out of the airlock. Nick and Ty both laughed out loud. It was amazing that even in what Nick knew was the most dangerous environment possible, he could actually have fun. With a simple twisting motion, he connected the valve of the air tank to his suit. Immediately a new indicator came on. It showed he had one hundred percent atmo in the new tanks. A four-hour meter appeared just beneath the icon.

  “I’m good,” Nick said, sling the metal tanks up and onto his back.

  They should have been heavy, but in space, lifting the heavy metal tubes was simple. He slung them around to his back and activated the magnets in his armor to hold them in place. He felt the sudden movement caused by the strong magnets as his body was pulled toward the tanks. The magnetic force felt strange in zero-g, but he was thankful for it. The more he could control, the safer he felt.

  “Air is connected,” Ty said. “Tanks are in place.”

  He and Nick turned to catch Gunny Tveit, who didn’t really need help. Kal had just gotten control of his tumble and was trying to catch hold of his tether line. It wasn’t long before everyone was out of the airlock and gathered around the emergency compartment where their air tanks had been stored.

  “Alright, we’re all alive,” Cane said. “That’s good. We’ll spend the next three hours practicing emergency safety maneuvers. Keep a close watch on your air and try not to use your thrusters too much. Anyone who has to return to the Foundry due to lack of air gets a strike.”

  “A strike?” Ember asked.