by DJ Morand
Contents
Title
Copyright
Dedication
NIGHTMARES
KODIAK
CAPTAIN ABEL CAIN
CAPTAIN ECHO SHADE
ADMIRAL SHADE
DANCING WITH VULTURES
MERCURY FRINZ
RESCUE
SECRETS
RETURNING TO EDEN
LANDFALL
BADLANDS
BORDER TOWNS
FLASHBACK
MEDICAL TREATMENT
ESCAPE
GREMLINS
KODIAK RISING
DESCENT
EXECUTION
QUINTAR IV
EPILOGUE
Abrev. & Terms
Other Books
About the Author
Kodiak
The Infinity Verge Trilogy
Book 1
DJ Morand
Copyright © 2015 by David J Morand
All rights reserved. This book or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of the publisher except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
ISBN-13: 978-1519236517
ISBN-10: 1519236514
Author’s Note
For more of my books or complimentary review copies, visit me at djmorand.com or sign up for the mailing list at djmorandauthor.com/mailinglist.
In loving memory of Kenneth Klinkert
A man without peer and a beloved father. May you forever soar on wings like eagles'.
It is not often that one is so blessed as to have those who support their dreams and give daily encouragement. There is a list of people too innumerable to thank, but I'd like to say thank you to my editor. Ryan, your insight was more than I could have hoped for. A special thanks to my Mommy, who let her imagination go rogue. My Papa Bear who taught me never to give up. Finally, to my Cindywok for countless reasons I cannot begin to list. Thank you!
-DJM
NIGHTMARES
Outside the Quintar Prime System: Kodiak: Crew Bunk
2972 ESD - Sunday, October 4th 11:57 hours
Lying in a stacked bunk aboard the URSA GS-I Captain Abel Cain tossed fitfully. The advanced gunship was the only one of its kind. The sleek design and heavy load-out of lasers, anti-matter missiles, and the ability to drop tachyons made it one of the most advanced ships in known space. With four separate nacelles, two forward and two aft, the Ultra-capacitor Radiographic Strategic Assault Gunship Series-I was highly maneuverable. The exterior plating was made up of a dark but reflective alloy that made the ship nearly invisible in the darkness of space.
The stark metallic alloy that made up the whole of the ship usually suited him well; tonight the dark metal suited his dreams. There was a certain sense of freedom to Dark Space, the dark places of uncharted space. Normally, Abel enjoyed the freedom; when he was not trying to sleep. This cycle he struggled to maintain even an air of restful sleep; not outwardly, other than the occasional thrash of his arm or kick of his leg, but internally. This cycle, Abel was reliving the nightmares of his past, events he had yet to reconcile. Sweating and warm to the touch, Abel tossed again, smacking his arm against the top of the bunk; he grunted once, but continued to sleep. Despite his restfulness, it had been nearly eight cycles since he had a good night's sleep, approximately one hundred ninety-six hours. Once a man has been subjected to sleep deprivation on such a scale, he either falls unconscious or sleeps when can; Abel had found his sleep and would not wake for a bruise.
Since his birth on Mars, thirty-four years ago, Abel had found it difficult to sleep in complete silence. The stillness of Dark Space could be unnerving, even to a seasoned starship pilot such as Captain Abel Cain. These nerves led to his issue with finding restful sleep. For whatever reason, he rarely managed to find rest, let alone actual sleep; this cycle, and for the first time since leaving the Exodus Fleet Naval Force, he dreamed. He had left the EFNF of his own volition, albeit as a fugitive.
Assigned to assist with the design of the URSA GS-I, Abel had kicked a hornet's nest when he designed the gunship to work with a Quintarran, an alien race inhabiting the Quintar Prime system. Humans and Quintarrans, at the time, were in a struggle with one another; what most called the AI Wars. When Abel - with his friend and new co-pilot, Zee - stole the ship it was as if he had stirred up an entire hive of hornets. Abel knew he had to escape EFNF controlled space and returning to the Sol System was his first instinct; except that no one alive knew where to find it. A remnant of humanity had been lost in the Quintar Prime system for twenty years after having left in search of a new home. By 2952, humanity had expanded and colonized - or built orbital stations around - every planet in the Sol System. The Earth Coalition and the Outer Mars Federation, major powers in the system, began vying for control of the major production and resource facilities resulting in a constant state of war.
The Exodus Union - which would later become the EFNF - decided they had enough of war and separated from the two powers. The EU's cessation came as a surprise to the EC and OMF leaders. In rare form, the two powers combined their efforts to bring the Exodus Fleet back into the fold - by force. Twenty years later in the Quintar Prime system, the EFNF fell prey to their forebears’ folly and another division took place. Half of the EFNF seceded and settled on outer system planets, meanwhile another fourth traveled deeper into the system.
After leaving the EFNF, Abel and Zee settled for Eden, a planet on the edge of the Quintar Prime system controlled by one of the splinter factions. The people of Eden fled the fleet after the war was declared on the Quintarrans. Abel and Zee tried to settle on Eden, but it had not worked out well for the duo. Dark Space remained as the last choice; one that began their lives as salvagers and pirates.
The original exodus from the Sol system had been a horrid mess. Admiral James Shade and the Terran Veil had barely been able to keep the fleet from harm; even with numerous battleships and destroyers at their disposal. On board his dark ship in the black of uninhabitable space, Abel Cain dreamt about his original flight from Mars, during the exodus.
* * *
Abel stood out staring over the lakes of Mars. His dark hair had been cropped short and styled into spikes. His gray-green eyes stared out at the lakes as they lit up with fire from above. Giant spires stuck out into the atmosphere of the red planet. The spires had been established during the terraforming of Mars and glowed a muted red. The spires drew heat from solar radiation and amplified it to keep the planet's oceans from freezing over. He watched as fire rained from the sky and the near deafening thunder of chaos rose in the cities on the planet, yet he remained transfixed on the spires. He had always loved their muted glow. In the worst times of his life, he would watch them glow and transfer their heat into the lakes, producing and maintaining the atmosphere. As the screams rose around him and the thunderous rain of fire bombarded his home, he stared far away trying to drown out the fear and despair.
"Abel!" it was a scream, more than a call, from his mother, her voice laced with panic and fear. Abel understood his mother was calling him, but he was too frightened to move; his body would not respond and all he could do was stare desperately at the spires. He sought, in them, the comfort he could not feel in the midst of this chaos. Delicate hands grasped him roughly and dragged him, sweeping him away from the spires. He did not reach out, he didn't even call out. He just stared as the spires seemed to grow smaller and the crowd around him grew larger. The voice of his mother, burdened by sobs, spoke softly in his ear.
"Don't ever do that again Abel, I was so scar--" Her voice cut off suddenly as he could feel himself violently hurled t
hrough the air. He spun again, and again; the spires came into his view and out again. His view circled the crowd and the sky where the fire still rained. Fire, he thought, as he realized that his face burned. He landed abruptly; the ground seeming to rise to meet him. He smacked his bottom hard on the pavement as he skidded backward. The back of his head hit something hard and his vision darkened. The last thing he saw would forever be burned into his mind; the spires crumbled down folding in on themselves and burning.
* * *
Abel sat up, too quickly, and smacked his head on the low bunk. He cursed silently as he wiped a tear from his cheek. So much for a full cycle of sleep, he thought ruefully. He felt his forehead gingerly and decided he would be fine.
“Captain. We have something.” A voice came over on all channels, which meant the entire ship was echoing with the Quintarran’s voice.
“Damn it, Zee. Use the personal comms.” He said aloud, but without broadcasting the message. He knew it would not do much good to correct the Quintarran; Zee would always be Zee. Taking a moment to pull on his jeans and grab his trench-coat, Abel stretched and yawned. A moment later he was buckling on a pair of side-arms and holsters. Pulling his coat forward, he covered the pistol with it and climbed the short ladder that led back to the command deck.
* * *
Alek Vale was aware that things were different. He could feel his mind and he could see the city before him. The lights were dim, almost like an overcast day. He remembered days like this back on Earth, but this was not Earth. This was ... somewhere else. He tried to remember where he was. He stared at buildings made of stone; no, he thought, they were not made but shaped from stone. The sight was both intriguing and terrifying, where was he? He could not remember. He remembered some things ... he remembered Earth, he remembered the Earth Coalition ... and the Terran Veil. He remembered the ship and the commander, Admiral Shade. He remembered the exodus from Sol. Alek Vale remembered leaving because of corrupt governments. Where am I now, though? Alek thought. He looked out over the city again. He stood at the top of one of the buildings. He could see for miles. His face contorted, his brow furrowing in thought. He remembered Earth cities and saw the correlations between there and here.
He looked out over miles of stone buildings, as tall as any Earth skyscraper. There, in the distance, an obvious spaceport, although something was wrong about it. He could not place it in his mind, but something was off about the port. He stared a moment longer before giving up. He still did not remember where he was. He tried to look around, but he could not move his head. He felt the panic settle in, why can’t I move?
He tried to lift an arm, a hand, a finger ... nothing responded to his call. He continued to stare at the city, miles and miles of stone buildings and the port. The not-quite-right port. Why can’t I move? Flak it Alek, pull it together. He cursed at himself internally. He stared out again over the city trying to discern the specific details of what he could see. He strained against whatever was holding him back, against ... against what? He was not tied down and he was not paralyzed, so far as he knew. Yet, something held him in place, something ... internal. The thought made sense, he scoured his mind looking for the source of this imprisonment. He felt something, like a pulse in the center of his brain. Alek scratched at the pulse and it recoiled momentarily. He exulted in the triumph even if it only recoiled long enough for him to move his head forward. Now, instead of looking at the distant spaceport, he was looking at the street below. He was astonished to see a mass of blue aliens standing below him. None of the aliens moved, silently they all stared in various directions. On instinct, he pushed his mind toward them and was rebuffed. What was that? He thought.
Alek Vale pushed again, this time he scratched at the pulse in his mind. Some power outside of his own will seemed to seize him and forcefully push him backward. It was not a physical push, but a mental one, as if some stronger sentience was a part of him. He struggled against it, fearful of what it was. The sentience was more powerful and soon he was a passenger again. He remembered ... everything and he wanted to weep. Alek Vale that was his name he knew, but he had been infected with a computer virus, one that could only affect nanite implants. People called it the Energized Xeno-organic virus or EXO. The virus tore through him and used him to spread. Alek had fled the Exodus Fleet having no desire to hurt anyone.
Alek fled to Quintar V, home of the Quintarrans. An AI had enslaved the Quintarran race, but Alek made a deal. He remembered the deal - one he had made out of desperation. The AI claimed to be able to contain the EXO virus, but the AI needed a new host. Alek offered his nanites and essentially his body to be that host. The AI, however, betrayed him, containing not only the EXO virus but Alek as well.
Commander Alek Vale returned to the fleet, sans control of his body, and infected many of the ships with the AI infused EXO virus. He converted civilians, transforming them into mindless drones by injecting them with EXO infected nanites. He only managed to remain in the Fleet long enough to build his army, but not long enough to wipe out Exodus Fleet. If it had not been for the actions of Abel Cain, he would have taken the whole fleet. In his escape, Alek nearly killed Abel Cain.
He could remember it all, but now Alek was trapped on Quintar V, the result of a long war and Abel Cain. That boy has been a menace. He thought. Abel’s return marked the end of the EXO expansion through the fleet. Abel and his Quintarran friend designed satellites that could be placed in orbit above Quintar V. The satellites could create some sort of force, one that kept him from moving. His body was moving, though, and the AI seemed to have circumvented whatever was stopping them; him? Alek no longer knew who was in control of his body, or his mind for that matter. Right now, it was the AI; it had been the AI for some time. This event, it felt …… familiar ... like Deja vu. Go away, the thought was not his and it was irritated - angry even. He watched through his own eyes, helpless. The AI used his eyes to look at the spaceport, he remembered there was something odd about it.
The port was bustling with activity, in a world otherwise bereft of activity. Quiet, I am trying to think. It was the same voice as before, the angry, irritated voice in his head. Alek did not want to be a part of that voice, and he did not want to be controlled by it. He struggled against it; vied for control. STOP, you are ruining everything. The voice cried out. Alek had wrested control again, the voice kicked and screamed in the recesses of his mind, where Alek had been just moments before.
He stood staring out at the city. Alek Vale was aware things were different as he stared; it is a city made of stone; no, he thought, not made, shaped was more like it. Something was odd about it all, the overcast dim was not entirely unlike a typical day on Earth. He felt a pulse in the middle of his mind and he scratched at it.
Alek Vale remembered, again. Once again locked in the prison of his mind he watched as the AI wrested control and renewed his focus on the space port. This had been going on for months, maybe years. Alek could not remember. The EXOs - a term given to the EXO infected beings - under the control of the AI were leaving the planet. He knew his eternal struggle with the AI would only repeat itself over and over again, neither of them could win. Every time he was able to wrest control back he stopped more EXOs from leaving; he had to continue the fight.
Just as he had the thought, a blinding flash rippled above the space port. The light filtered through the atmosphere temporarily blinding him. Alek struggled to take control of the AI, of his own body, but the flash met with other flashes all across the sky; the blinding light diminished his strength and he lost the fight; the AI had complete control now.
The flashes repeated, coinciding with concussions that shook the planet, parts of the city crumbled. Alek watched as the AI reached out and commanded the EXOs on the planet; a milling mass of bodies retreated into the buildings, underground passages, and took cover where they could. Part of him knew the buildings could withstand the concussive force of the blasts, but the succession of one after another had the potential to level
the city.
He, or was it the AI, leaped from the building, Alek would have never done this. Definitely the AI, he thought. Alek welcomed his imminent death, but he was denied. They, Alek and the AI, landed on the ground below without even a broken bone. The AI enhanced nanites had woven metal alloys through his body and strengthened him, he remembered that now. Alek curled into a ball in the back of his mind. He was no match for the force of will dominating his form. Freedom, the voice hissed, echoing in the recesses of his mind. Alek knew the satellites had been destroyed, that was the cause of the flashes, he thought; he did not, however, understand why they had been destroyed. Alek did not like that this … Prime - he decided to call the voice in his head - survived. The universe is in trouble, he thought.
KODIAK
Outside the Quintar Prime System: Kodiak: Crew Bunk
2972 ESD - Monday, October 5th 09:57 hours
The voice filtering through the communications system was garbled and difficult to understand. If not for the Transteel view screen, the words would have been lost completely. Transteel is a transparent metal alloy allowing the viewer to see through it. Additionally, it granted the ship's systems the ability to display readings and other output directly into the view. Transteel did away with the need for displays on individual crew station. The words splayed across the view screen and the voice over replayed, allowing Captain Abel Cain and Zee, to make sense of the message.
"Prepare to be boarded. You have committed acts against the Exodus Fleet Naval Force. By order of the Admiral you are to stand down and surrender the stolen URSA GS-I vessel, call-sign Kodiak." The communications system could not hide the authoritative tone of the pilot of the RAVEN F vessel. The ship followed close behind the Kodiak, near the edge of the Quintar Prime System. Captain Abel Cain, admittedly, had stolen the URSA GS-I, but it was his; the Kodiak was his pride and joy and he had been flying her for near ten years now. He was not about to surrender the vessel.