Avery didn't have time to adjust his aim before one of the trailing aliens slammed into him, slashing with some sort of crystal knife fe. He parried the knife with the barrel of his rifle as their helmets cracked together. Avery had pinned the creature's knife against one of the beams. The weapon was energized-gleamed with internal pink fire. He was certain it would make short work of his vacuum-suit, not to mention the flesh beneath. As the weapon rebounded off the hull and went spinning out of reach, the alien drove its knife into Byrne's left thigh. The alien must have thought it only needed to puncture Byrne's suit in order to kill him, and it might have succeeded were it not for the suit's compartmentalized design. As Byrne pulled the knife from his leg, the hole filled with yellow sealant foam. The alien flailed its arms-Avery thought to try and drive the knife back in. But as the weapon began to pulse with rosy light, he realized the creature was actually trying to escape an impending detona- tion. "Lose the blade!" Avery shouted. "It's gonna blow!" Byrne sunk the knife into the alien's mid-section and kicked it back the way it had come. The creature pulled frantically at the blade, but Byrne had driven it too deep. A split-second later it blew apart in a bright pink flash. Tiny, wet shards flecked Avery's visor like slushy snow. "Thanks," Byrne grunted over the COM.-Chpt.8
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