by Dan Schiro
Aurelia nodded softly. “We did. She’s receiving full SpaceCorps honors in death.”
“She is on her way to Earth,” Kangor added. “To rest in the lands of her ancestors.”
Again Orion fell back in the bed, and again his partners waited quietly while a wave of grief shattered him into sobs.
“I am sorry, little friend,” Kangor muttered when the tide of sorrow ebbed. “I know the pain of losing a mate.”
Aurelia nodded, her gaze falling to the floor. “You lesser carbons certainly burn brightly and… care deeply.”
“I suppose we do,” Orion said, his voice hollow. For a few moments, the three of them shared an uncomfortable silence as they all wondered if Orion would fall to pieces again. “I need to get out of here,” he said at last.
“I am not sure that is wise,” Kangor said sternly. “Your flesh does not heal quickly.”
Aurelia nodded. “Really, Orion. Give the consulin injections a few more days to work, and—”
“Hey, hey,” Orion said, raising his hand to silence her. “It wouldn’t be me if I didn’t check out against doctor’s orders.”
After some heated haggling with nurses, then doctors, then hospital administrators, the three of them boarded an aircab with Orion still in his hospital gown. The gray, oblong vessel zipped across the Hub skyline in the bright light of the Maker Rings’ artificial star. As they raced toward Echohax Tower, Orion felt every turn pulling at the still-wet consulin injections that sealed the wound in his belly and fused his fractured bones. After a few minutes in the air, he limped through the front doors of AlphaOmega Security. The polished office was the closest thing he had to a home, and in his pained, medicated state, another hot tear welled in Orion’s eye.
And yet, much like Orion’s life so far, the tears quickly turned to laughter. Bully bounded up and threw his huge paws up on Orion’s shoulders. The beast’s 200 pounds of wrinkled weight nearly split his delicate consulin seams, but Orion laughed and patted Bully’s flank as the dog lapped his face with his rough tongue.
“Damn it, you lab-grown mountain of mutt,” said Koreen. She pulled Bully off by the thick folds at the back of his neck. “Man’s in a delicate state, don’t love him to death!”
“It’s okay, Koreen,” Orion wheezed, trying to catch his breath as Kangor corralled the dog and patted him. “He’s a good boy. And he’s not a mutt, he’s a—”
“Genetically engineered therapy dog, I know.” The old durok rolled her yellow eyes. “Anyway, I’m glad your little vacation’s over. I’ve been taking calls left and right for five days!”
“Oh?” Orion ran a hand through his unkempt blond hair. “Sounds like what I pay you for. What’s up?”
“What’s up?” Koreen snorted. “All of the major news networks called, hoping to interview the ‘rich boy revolutionary,’ including a slithering mystskyn from Galactic Core News who said she was your ‘old friend.’ Your half-brother and sister both called a dozen times, and every last bimbo in your bimbo file is trying to find you. Oh, and someone named L’yak tried to contact you, but…” An annoyed expression tightened her lipless mouth. “Didn’t seem to understand the holo-interface, that one. More importantly, we’ve got half a hundred job offers that need to be decided on. Now, if not sooner.”
Orion nodded. “Sounds like good news.”
“We’re talking about major players, boy, millions of credits in contracts,” Koreen hissed.
“Millions, you say?” Aurelia smiled. “I just might start buying my own drinks.”
“Unlikely, Exile,” Kangor said with a raised eyebrow.
Koreen began ticking off points on her short claws. “Phuturistic Pharmaceuticals wants you to exterminate a pack of dragon dogs that have been eating consulin harvesters. The Collective Fleet wants you to take down a ring of slavers who have been selling folks in the Independent Kingdoms. The temba nubu need security at the chieftain’s summit, the briophytes want you to track down a kidnapped prince, and that’s just the mountain’s peak!”
“Barely a challenge among them,” snorted Kangor.
Koreen folded her arms across her chest. “I have to give them some answer on our availability, or what kind of secretary would I be?” She shook her head, her short horns pointed toward Orion. “Even your father — your father, Orion! — wants to hire us.”
“Really?” Orion’s eyes narrowed. “What’s the job?”
Koreen threw up her hands. “Guarding the transport of some valuable tech from Mars to the Maker Rings, but that’s not the point. We need to sign contracts before these opportunities dry up.”
Stiff and sore as he was, Orion couldn’t deny that he felt the itch to stay busy, if only to keep his mind off Kat. “I’ll need to think,” he said after a moment.
Koreen sighed. “Well, think fast, boy, because if you want to be more than a gleam in the river, you—”
The datacube on Koreen’s polished wooden desk buzzed and floated up into the air. The device opened at the seams, and its winking blue eye projected a line of holographic text that read, Call from: Grand Chambers, Parliament of the Galactic Union of Sovereign Planetary Systems.
“Answer,” said Orion and Koreen at the same time, glaring at each other.
A holographic interface came to life, and an image of Zovaco Ralli appeared in the lobby. For a moment, Orion thought it strange to see him back in his gray suit, his face clean of blood and grime. Then he chuckled stiffly when he realized that Zovaco’s three blinking eyes were likely jarred by what they saw as well. This time it was Orion who wore little more than rags.
“Zo,” Orion said with a smile. “Congratulations. An MP after all.”
“Thanks to you,” he said with a solemn nod. “Thanks to all of you.”
“Hey, we got paid.” Orion shrugged. “You did this because you wanted to change this gridlock we call democracy for the better. The people voted for you because they want the same thing. Don’t forget that, and it’s all the thanks we need.”
“Well put,” Zovaco said with a thoughtful tip of his head. “I may steal that for my next speech. Are you healing well?”
“Definitely.” Orion straightened his thin robe. “Expect to hit the gravity gym later today.”
“Don’t rush it,” Zovaco said with a grin. “Just heal up, and contact me when you’re ready to work. I have a few jobs in mind that might be suited to your skillset.” His three inky-blue eyes narrowed, and his thin lips twitched down in a frown. “You’re one of the only people who knows the real source of corruption in the Union.”
“I understand.” Orion grew serious at the oblique mention of the Guild, and flashes of his battle with LaVal LaVoy assaulted his mind’s eye. “Do you really think they’re done with you? With me?”
“For now.” Zovaco scowled, his four-fingered hands tightening into fists. “You struck one of them down, something that hasn’t happened in many centuries. They’ll step carefully for a while.”
“But not forever, right?”
“Only time will tell.” Zovaco smiled again. “Be well, Orion.”
The image evaporated, and the datacube floated back down to the desk. For a moment, the four of them stood quietly, Bully looking curiously from one face to the next. “Well, that sounds serious,” Koreen said, finally breaking the silence.
Aurelia smiled at Orion, a sly expression narrowing her brassy eyes. “What say you, oh great leader? What’s next?”
Orion shook his head, suddenly weary. “Let me get dressed,” he said. “Then we can check out some of the dossiers and see what looks like the right opportunity.”
“Take the time to heal your fragile body, little friend,” said Kangor. “I’ll be hunting.” With a nod of his wolfish head, Kangor Kash turned for the doors.
“And I’ll be relaxing,” Aurelia said, pivoting to follow him. “D’Aroq is throwing a party,
and he wants to hear all about my adventures. Thinks it will inspire next quarter’s collection, the mad, beautiful fool.”
Orion watched them go. “Keep your datacubes on you,” he called as the frosted-glass doors swung shut. “Alright, Koreen.” He turned to his secretary. “Let’s check out the jobs and see what’s what.”
“Oh, I’m clocking out.” Koreen retrieved her purse from her desk and started back toward him.
“C’mon,” Orion said, pleading hands outstretched. “Where do you have to be? I’ll pay you overtime.”
“Sorry,” she said with a smile that bared her short durok fangs. “I’ve got a date with a Kingmaker.”
“No kidding?” he said as Koreen breezed past him and out the door. “Good for you.” With a sigh, he took a hobbling step and reached out to pat his dog’s thick head. “Alright, boy. Looks like we’re on our own.”
For a few minutes, Orion simply stood there, petting his gigantic dog and listening to the bubbling waterfall feature, his feet naked against the marble floor. Then he yawned and staggered into his office. He found his datacube on his glass desk and a new blue-gray smartcloak draped over his chair. Limping over to his three-tiered bar with Bully at his side, he poured himself a brimming dram of Rumble Horse whiskey. Then he went to the huge windows to look down on the bustling activity of the gleaming Hub. Yet something else caught his eye.
With shuffling steps, Orion made his way to the corner of his office and took a small, framed photo off the wall. The green-eyed blonde woman looked up at him unsmilingly, as she always did. Where was she? What had happened to her? If Orion could pull Zovaco Ralli out of the depths of hell and put him in Parliament, he could find her.
“Bully boy,” he said with a grin as the dog nuzzled against him, “I think I figured out what’s next.”
To be continued in
alphaomega ii: the weapons of war
Did you enjoy This Bloody Game? It'd be greatly appreciated if you could rate it on Amazon. Continue the AlphaOmega series with AlphaOmega II: The Weapons of War! Or check out my other published title Rogue Destiny . To be the first to know about my next book be sure to follow @danschirobooks on Facebook or sign up for my newsletter at DanSchiro.com.
acknowledgments
I’d like to thank everyone who has supported my work and encouraged me to write, and offer special thanks to a few people who helped make the beginning of the AlphaOmega Series possible: Owen Richardson, for an absolutely cosmic cover illustration; Heidi Bristol, for catching all the words that fell through the cracks; the members of the Saturday Morning Irregulars (Madolyn Rogers, Dan Maguire, Grant Smith, Ryan Campbell, Scott Birrenkott, Mark Lajiness and all the others), for reining in some of my crazier ideas and adding a few crazy ideas of their own; Mom and Dad, for never throwing out my comic books; and of course, my wife Michelle — for everything.
about the author
Dan Schiro is a copywriter who wields his words to sell axes, exercise equipment and everything in between. He earned a BA from the University of Wisconsin-Madison with a double major in English and Philosophy. Dan’s debut science-fiction novel, Rogue Destiny, is available through all the internet’s finest booksellers. Thus far, Rogue Destiny has earned positive reviews on amazon.com, iBooks and other platforms, plus one cherished piece of fan mail and one German Facebook stalker. Dan lives with his wife and daughters in Wisconsin. He would love to tell you more about himself, but speaking in the third person gives him the creeps.
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