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eBook Category: Science Fiction
eBook Description: An asteroid belt miner is suddenly attacked, and now must run for his life. But the pursuing craft is unlike any he's ever encountered before.

eBook Publisher: Fictionwise.com, Published: Omni, 1979
Fictionwise Release Date: November 2000

138 Reader Ratings: Great Good OK Poor

Available eBook Formats [MultiFormat - What's this?]: Adobe Acrobat (PDF) [64 KB], eReader (PDB) [28 KB], Palm Doc (PDB) [14 KB], Rocket/REB1100 (RB) [14 KB], Microsoft Reader (LIT) [37 KB] - PocketPC 1.0+ Compatible, Franklin eBookMan (FUB) [85 KB], hiebook (KML) [62 KB], Sony Reader (LRF) [41 KB], iSilo (PDB) [12 KB], Mobipocket (PRC) [15 KB], Kindle Compatible (MOBI) [43 KB], OEBFF Format (IMP) [25 KB]
Words: 4268
Reading time: 12-17 min.
Microsoft Reader (LIT) Format: Printing DISABLED, Read-Aloud ENABLED
Adobe Acrobat (PDF) Format:  Printing DISABLED, Read-Aloud DISABLED
All Other formats: Printing DISABLED, Read-aloud DISABLED

The laser beam hit me smack in the face.

I twisted away. My helmet buzzed and went dark as its sunshade overloaded. Get inside the ship. I yanked on a strut and tumbled into the yawning, fluorescent-lit airlock.

In the asteroid belt you either have fast reflexes or you're a statistic. I slammed into the airlock bulkhead and stopped dead, waiting to see where the laser beam would hit next. My suit sensors were all burned out, my straps were singed. The pressure patches on knees and elbows had brown bubbles in them. They had blistered and boiled away. Another second or two and I'd have been sucking vac.

I took all this in while I watched for reflections from the next laser strike. Only it didn't come. Whoever had shot at me either thought Sniffer was disabled, or else they had a balky laser. Either way, I had to start dodging.

I moved fast, working my way forward through a connecting tube to the bridge--a fancy name for a closet-sized cockpit. I revved up Sniffer's fusion drive and felt the tug as she started spitting hot plasma out her rear tubes. I made the side jets stutter, too, putting out little bursts of plasma. That made Sniffer dart around, just enough to make hitting her tough.