{"product_id":"starfist-technokill-isbn-9780345435910","title":"Starfist: Technokill","description":"\u003cb\u003eA terrifying secret, an evil coterie of ruthless masterminds, a murderous battle of cunning and deadly skill—it’s time to send in the Marines!\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eAfter the Confederation makes a shocking discovery on an alien world, a nefarious band of opportunists from the highest echelons of power plot to steal the vast riches for themselves. Along with the ability to crush any resistance, these moguls possess spacecraft, unlimited resources, and a deadly arsenal of cutting-edge weapons.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe only one without a price tag is the Confederation president. Now she is sending Gunnery Sergeant Bass, the men of third platoon, and a single special agent to expose the shadowy figures behind the corruption. And so, on an obscure planet, home to unimaginable treasure and an unsettling species, the toughest fighters in Human Space confront their fiercest battle. For there will be no losers in this war, only the triumphant, the dead, and the vanished . . .\"CAUTION! Any book written by Dan Cragg and David Sherman is bound to be addictive, and this is the first in what promises to be a great adventure series. First to Fight is rousing, rugged, and just plain fun. The authors have a deep firsthand knowledge of warfare, an enthralling vision of the future, and the skill of veteran writers. Fans of military fiction, science fiction, and suspense will all get their money's worth, and the novel is so well done it will appeal to general readers as well. It's fast, realistic, moral, and a general hoot. First to Fight is also vivid, convincing--and hard to put down. Sherman and Cragg are a great team! I can't wait for the next one!\"\u003cbr\u003e--RALPH PETERS\u003cbr\u003e   New York Times bestselling author of\u003cbr\u003e   Red ArmyDavid Sherman is a former United States Marine and the author of eight previously published novels about Marines in Vietnam, where he served as an infantryman and as a member of a Combined Action Platoon. He is an alumnus of the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts and worked as a sculptor for many years before turning to writing. Along the way he has held a variety of jobs, mostly supervisory and managerial. Today he is a full-time writer. He lives in Philadelphia.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eDan Cragg enlisted in the United States Army in 1958 and retired with the rank of sergeant major twenty-two years later. During his army service, Mr. Cragg served more than eleven years in overseas stations, five and a half of them in Vietnam. He is the author of Inside the VC and the NVA (with Michael Lee Lanning), Top Sergeant (with William G. Bainbridge), and a Vietnam War novel, The Soldier's Prize. In real life, Mr. Cragg is an analyst for the Defense Department. He and his wife, Sunny, live in Virginia, where honest citizens are allowed to pack heat. Visitors after dark are strongly urged to call ahead.\"Move, move-move!\" Sergeant Bladon's radioed shout reverberated through\u003cbr\u003eLance Corporal Rock Claypoole's helmet.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"Blow that hinge, Rock!\" Corporal Kerr shouted, adding his demand.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"I'm trying, I'm trying,\" Claypoole shouted back.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"Want some help?\" PFC Wolfman MacIlargie asked. \"Let me in there, I'll get\u003cbr\u003eit.\" He had already blown his hinge.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"Stay away,\" Claypoole snarled, and tried again to clamp the blower onto\u003cbr\u003ethe upper lever, where it hinged into the airlock hatch. MacIlargie\u003cbr\u003esquirted closer and bumped him. For a vertiginous moment Claypoole spun\u003cbr\u003eslowly away from the spaceship in orbit around Thorsfinni's World. His\u003cbr\u003etether jerked him to a yawing stop a few meters away. \"Back off, Wolfman,\"\u003cbr\u003ehe snapped, and hauled himself back to the hatch that second squad's\u003cbr\u003esecond fire team was trying to breach. In his ungainly armored vacuum\u003cbr\u003esuit, Claypoole struggled to lock his boot magnets to the hull and hatch\u003cbr\u003eon either side of the hinge. He managed to seat the cup of the blower over\u003cbr\u003ethe hinge. He reached one thickly gloved hand to the crimper and pulled on\u003cbr\u003eit. The cup closed securely onto the end of the arm.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eClaypoole looked down the length of the meter long tool and decided it was\u003cbr\u003eperpendicular to the hull and his feet were widespread enough. He gave the\u003cbr\u003etop end of the blower a quarter twist, bent it down to a ninety degree\u003cbr\u003eangle to expose the trigger, stuck a gloved finger through the trigger\u003cbr\u003eguard and pulled.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe shaped charge inside the blower jetted its force into the metal, abruptly raising\u003cbr\u003e its temperature from near zero Kelvin to morethan a thousand degrees centigrade. The rapid temperature change shattered the hinge, buckled the metal around it, and sent shock waves thrumming through the surrounding hull and hatch. One of Claypoole's feet was knocked loose, but the magnets on the other boot held.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"Move move-move!\" Bladon shouted again.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eClaypoole shifted one foot so both were on the hull and removed the\u003cbr\u003eblower. The tool drifted at the end of its tether.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eKerr clomped carefully to his side and slapped the end of the puller he\u003cbr\u003eheld against the hatch. He gave the handle the twist that shot its mollies\u003cbr\u003einto the metal, then raised a hand in signal.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"Do it,\" Corporal Linsman said, and Lance Corporal Watson slapped the Go\u003cbr\u003ebutton on the winch. The cable that ran from the tripod to the puller\u003cbr\u003etautened and the hatch slowly lifted. The Marines readied their weapons.\u003cbr\u003eAs soon as the hatch was clear of the hull, Watson slapped another button\u003cbr\u003eon the winch to move the hatch to the side.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eWhen the gap was wide enough, Kerr demagnetized his boots and stepped over\u003cbr\u003ethe lip of the hatchway. He fired a quick puff from his suit's top jet and\u003cbr\u003eplummeted down into the airlock, where he twisted around so the inner\u003cbr\u003ehatch was in front instead of below him. He reactivated his boot magnets\u003cbr\u003eto hold his feet to the deck. Claypoole and MacIlargie followed.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"Hey, watch it,\" Claypoole snarled at MacIlargie, who bumped into him as\u003cbr\u003ehe tried to mimic Kerr's maneuver.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"Sorry,\" MacIlargie replied, and used handholds to pull himself away from\u003cbr\u003eClaypoole. \"Kind of cramped in here.\" Their boots clunked to the decking\u003cbr\u003eas they activated the magnets.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe airlock was big enough to hold four vacuum-suited deckhands along with\u003cbr\u003ethe equipment they'd need to work on the hull, but three combat-armed\u003cbr\u003eMarines in armored vacuum suits filled it almost to overflowing. The inner\u003cbr\u003ehatch was barely wide enough to admit them one at a time.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"Quiet,\" Kerr ordered, and bent his attention to opening the inner-hatch\u003cbr\u003eaccess panel. He freed three corners of the small plate and swiveled it\u003cbr\u003easide on its remaining corner screw. He briefly examined the boards and\u003cbr\u003ecrystals inside the control box while he fished an override from a cargo\u003cbr\u003epocket on his thigh, then stuck the override onto the right crystal. \"All\u003cbr\u003esecure?\" he asked.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eClaypoole and MacIlargie made sure they each had a grip on a handhold and\u003cbr\u003ea tether clipped onto another. \"Secure,\" they replied, and pointed their\u003cbr\u003eblasters toward the inner hatch.It's the 25th century, but the Marines are still looking for a few good men...","brand":"Del Rey","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":46301765107941,"sku":"NP9780345435910","price":7.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1842\/7735\/files\/9780345435910.jpg?v=1767737257","url":"https:\/\/k12savings.com\/products\/starfist-technokill-isbn-9780345435910","provider":"K12savings","version":"1.0","type":"link"}