40
Flames soared hundreds of feet into the air. Fierce winds whipped the fiery inferno until it looked like a twister from hell. Josh adjusted course, the temperature bouncing the modified Trident fighter around like a toy. He tightened the harness over his shoulders and banked into a long, slow turn to circle the farm.
Waylon’s blaze had reached the crops. Prisoners scurried. A horde of men sprinted in the direction of the hills, away from the encampment. Others moved toward the compound. Just outside the barn, standing like a statue in the midst of chaos, stood a large man brandishing a laser rifle. He fired twice at an angle. Warning shots sizzled into the air and dissipated in the distance. Prisoners who got too close to the compound ran away from the man’s laser fire.
Waylon.
As J
