Axira Episode One: A Galactic Coalition Academy Series

by Odette C. Bell

  I flipped, twisting in the air, landing behind the captain, bringing my blade forward.

  There was a moment just after I landed where he stared at me. Stumbling back, his eyes grew unmistakably wide. I saw the whites, saw the pupils all but shake with terror.

  “Spacer, you’re a spacer,” he choked out.

  The room was filling with dark foul smoke from the exposed conduit. He leaned forward and spluttered into his hand, coughing heavily, torso heaving as he did. But as soon as his fit was over, those startled eyes locked back onto me.

  “What are you doing here? This is just a simple transport. There’s nothing here but cargo.”

  My master would soon be done playing with this man.

  The captain kept shifting back, movements jerky as he coughed and spluttered against the smoke.

  “There’s nothing here for you,” he repeated, desperate.

  “But your death,” I said.

  He shuddered. But he didn’t turn to run from my promise. His eyes drifted over me, those pupils still shaking.

  I caught my own reflection at that moment in the swinging panel of a service duct that had come loose from the ceiling above.

  My skin was covered in lines, channels of energy that would glow in the dark. Patterns that shifted like wind across sand. I wore white armor, and the channels from my skin tracked across it too. Covering my eyes was a visor, opaque to the captain, it offered no hindrance to my view.

  “Just … just let them live.” The Captain ran out of corridor. His back slammed up against a door. It was half jammed open, but the space it left was too small for the man to fit through.

  He should have been like an animal trapped in the corner, except he did not lash out and neither did he crumple to his feet and shake in fear.

  He faced me.

  I brought my blade forward.

  I did not want to kill this man. I understood what he was doing. I understood his sacrifice. I knew how loathsome those mercenaries were. I knew the horror my master had in store for all.

  I had never wanted to kill anyone, but I could no longer count the number of times I had wielded my blade.

  Just before I brought it forward, his face slackened, not with surrender, but compassion. “You don’t have to do this.”

  My blade stopped.

  No, I stopped it.

  I had done this precious few times over the past 450 years. Overridden my master’s orders.

  If I had not experienced it, I would not have been so sure that escape was possible, that one day I would finally be able to shrug off my shackles.

  He hadn’t sucked in a breath since my blade had stopped just against his chest. I was close to him, my arms ready to tense at any second and plunge my weapon through his chest.

  He looked into my eyes.

  I have no idea what he saw.

  At that moment the pain began. It stabbed into my mind.

  My master trying to reassert his control.

  I had never lasted this long before. My other brushes with freedom had lasted for fractions of a second. Long enough to know it was possible, but nothing more.

  The captain, those shifting pupils still locked on me, began to move. He shifted to the side, my blade scraping across his uniform and cutting it easily. Shimmying, he managed to squeeze past it.

  I heard him take several steps then he tapped something. “Lock weapons onto my coordinates. Prepare to space this section, that’s an order.”

  It would kill him. If the weapons of his cruiser obliterated this section of the transport, it would kill the captain instantly.

  It would not kill me. I would be lost in the rubble as I drifted out into space, but I would find a way back inside the ship. I would finish what I had started. He would be buying himself precious few minutes.

  “Captain, you’re still there, we can’t—” someone snapped over the captain’s wireless com line.

  “That’s an order.”

  My master still fought me. The bracelets I wore sunk into my skin like hands around my wrists, exerting their control, sending their tendrils further into my body, sending their messages to my brain, trying to override my control to claim me again.

  Somehow I still fought.

  Then I felt it. The energy surging towards the ship.

  I moved back, brought up my blade, and slammed it forward. As I did, it created a shield. It arced, beautiful and blue, all around me and down into the corridor.

  The ship rocked back, the hull in front of my shield suddenly erupting in an enormous, bright blast.

  Sections of hull melted in seconds, others tore free, ripping conduits, pipes, and panels out and sending them slamming away into the dark space beyond.

  My shield held.

  It hurt.

  Every bone, every muscle, every fiber of my being.

  I could only keep it up for seconds. It would tax me of my energy, shut me down.

  As it weakened me, my master struggled harder to gain hold.

  I lasted long enough for the captain of the Coalition Ship Zeus to fall back, run to the nearest air lift, and leave the level.

  Then I shut down, I succumbed.

  Blackness claimed me, but as it did, one thought settled in deeper than the rest.

  I had claimed many lives, fought many battles for a master who cared only for destruction.

  Yet that day, for the first time, I had fought back long enough to make a difference.

  I had saved that Coalition captain.

  It gave me the faith I so desperately needed to believe that one day I could save myself.

  Chapter 1

  Five years later

  The sun shone through the plate glass windows of my apartment. I stood there, one hand resting on the glass as I stared out at the city beyond. With her tall spires, sleek buildings, and energy beams, she was beautiful.

  I stepped back and walked towards the table. Clutching up a portable holographic pad, I smiled as I entered the kitchen.

  It had been a little over four years since I had freed myself from captivity. As I placed my holo pad on the kitchen bench, heading over to the food synthesizer, I let out a satisfied sigh.

  Food had become one of my pleasures. Standing in grass, wet with dew, my toes curling against the cold and damp sensation had become another one. Standing and staring at a view another again.

  After 450 years of serving my master, I was free.

  There were still days I couldn’t believe it. There were still nights where I spent hours on end staring down at my scarred wrists, tracing my fingers over the dents that had remained once my bracelets had been removed.

  “Water, cold, a twist of lime,” I spoke into the com panel of the food synthesizer as I placed a glass into the slot before me. In a second it was filled with what I had ordered.

  “This is your 20 minute alarm,” the holographic panel on the bench reminded me, “You must leave for your appointment in approximately 4.5 minutes.”

  I didn’t respond, instead I mulled over my drink as I turned to stare out at the view again.

  Four years. For four years I had wandered the galaxy. At first the freedom had been intoxicating. To think and feel and move on my own was a dream I’d barely entertained during my incarceration. Now it was a reality.

  It had not been easy though. To break free, I had faked my own death. My brothers and sisters thought I was dead, if indeed they still thought. Perhaps their souls had been crushed long ago.

  “In order to prepare for your appointment, you must dress in your uniform. This will take approximately two minutes. It is suggested you begin now,” the audio unit of my holo pad reminded me.

  Uniform.

  I glanced over to it. It was folded neatly on the table by the windows.

  I couldn’t believe I was doing this.

  I’d made my decision. I was joining the Coalition Forces. The same people I’d fought for hundreds of years. I could not even conceive of how many of them I’d killed, how many ships I
’d destroyed, how much damage I’d done to them.

  It was time to repay the debt. But more than that, the Coalition were the only force I could think of who could take him on. Master.

  I could not do it alone. If I acted against him, he would realize I was still alive, and he would track me down and enslave me again.

  It left me with one choice. Join the Coalition Forces, become one of their recruits, and help them as best I could. I could not, however, ever risk letting them know who I really was and what I had been. If my secret was ever revealed, my master would come for me.

  “You now have approximately 40 seconds to dress,” my holo pad chirped.

  I reached for the uniform.

  I pulled it on as I stared out the windows.

  This would not be easy. I was about to embark on a journey that would take years, if not decades. If I really wanted to help the Coalition, it could not be done in a day. I would have to guide them in secret whenever the opportunity would arise.

  I walked backwards, still staring at the view. I assessed that beautiful cityscape until I identified the silver spire in the distance.

  The Earth Division of the Coalition Academy. In approximately 15 minutes the initiation ceremony for new recruits would begin. I would be there.

  Chapter 2

  “Alright people, move off to your respective teams. Your year reps will come and show you your dorms.” An officer waved us forward.

  I was standing in a group of new recruits. It was a different experience for me.

  They were chatting excitedly, talking amongst themselves, even giggling.

  I’d met Coalition recruits in battle before, and they usually had not babbled this much.

  I stood straight, arms behind my back, head held forward as I stared at the officer barking out his orders.

  Nobody else maintained such discipline. Instead, as a large human male walked past, he elbowed me in the face. “Sorry,” he mumbled as he walked off, another recruit at his side.

  Before I could react, I was jostled again, and then again.

  As a group we all seemed to surge forward and through the massive doors before us. Despite the crowd pressing in on me, I took the opportunity to stare up at the building as we entered. It was so high it seemed to go on forever from my vantage. Just a stretch of sleek silver metal and windows, ending with a pointed white spire 50 floors above. It was one of the many buildings that made up Coalition Headquarters. It was also a place I would be spending the next five or so years. The Coalition recruitment program was long and arduous; there was a lot to train for, after all. Space was huge. And as I could testify, full of enemies. For every race of explorers, you could find a race of warmongers ready to exploit the weak for their own gain.

  “Which dorm are we heading to? Um, hello, does anyone know where new recruits assigned to Omega Team are meant to go?” A young woman in the crowd called.

  People appeared to ignore her; everyone streaming off in different directions, heading to their respective dorms to begin their orientation.

  “Ah hello, are you in Team Omega?” She latched onto the sleeve of a passing Tamarite.

  “Team Beta,” he snapped as he moved past.

  “Oh god, I’m going to have to call my brother, aren’t I?” She mumbled to herself as she screwed up her cheeks in apparent anguish.

  I watched with interest.

  Something the past 450 years had taught me was how to observe. I could stand in a room and stare at a wall for hours on end; I’d done it countless times before.

  This time, however, it was a mistake. As the crowd thinned, she made eye contact with me. In fact, it seemed as though she latched onto me with her eyes.

  She half ran up to me. “Do you know where Team Omega are meant to meet?”

  “Second floor, just outside the engineering lecture hall.” I turned to walk away.

  “Okay … do you know where the engineering hall is?”

  “It has engineering written on the door,” I replied.

  She began to blush, her neck dipping back. It appeared I had emotionally affected her. “I’m sorry to be a pain, of course it does. I’m just not good with directions.”

  I opened my mouth, ready to tell her that a lack of spatial awareness indicated she would be a poor recruit.

  “Elle, what are you doing? You’re meant to be heading to your team,” a man said as he walked up to us.

  We were now the only people left in the hall.

  I watched him as he approached. It took me a moment, but I recognized him. Jason Singh. Son of Admiral Singh. I had read his publically available file when I’d done my research on the Coalition Recruit Program. He was a decorated graduate, and he headed up an elite unit which operated under the watchful eye of Admiral Forest.

  “Brother, I’m so glad you found me. I have no idea where I’m going.” Elle, as I now knew she was called, flopped a hand over Jason’s arm and leaned into him.

  That was a lie; I had told her seconds before where she was meant to be going.

  “Damn it, Elle, I thought I already told you that this morning. I’ve walked you through these halls countless times, how have you forgotten already?”

  “I’m so nervous.” She flapped at her face and winced at him.

  “Alright, I’ll take you there, but we’ve got to hurry. I just found out your Team leader is Lieutenant Ma’tovan. And trust me, he isn’t going to like you being late.” Jason suddenly turned to look at me. His brow dented up. “What team are you? Are you lost too?”

  “Omega,” I replied evenly, “No, I am not lost. Your sister engaged me in conversation.” With that, I turned, nodded at them, and proceeded to walk down the corridor.

  “Follow us, I know a quicker route.” Jason waved me forward as he turned sharply on his foot, his regulation black boots squeaking on the polished floor.

  I hesitated for a moment. I had already memorized the blueprints of the Coalition Academy compound. I doubted his way would be any quicker.

  I followed nonetheless.

  “Oh my god, I’m so sorry for making you late.” Elle turned to me as she jogged behind her brother. Her face was already flushed with exertion.

  I had seen Coalition officers run far quicker and for far longer without showing such signs of exhaustion.

  “What’s your name, recruit?” Jason dropped back, grabbing at his sister’s arm to pull her quicker.

  I could have easily sped up and headed to the engineering lecture hall on my own. I knew the way, and Elle was holding me back. I doubted it would be a good idea to do so in front of Jason Singh, however.

  I knew that I had to keep a low profile. During my training and into the years to come, I had to keep my head down. Elle was apparently the daughter of Admiral Singh, the very same Admiral who headed up the recruit program.

  “Em,” I replied easily. Though we were jogging, my voice was unaffected.

  “I haven’t heard that name before, you human?” He asked.

  “No.” As I jogged my gaze darted around the corridor noting every detail I could. It was part of my nature. I logged every fact I could find. From the shape of the doors to the height of the windows, I made an internal map of every room we passed and every corridor we jogged through.

  “You kind of look human,” he noted as he ushered us up some stairs.

  I did. But in my case, looks were deceiving. “I am Taskarian,” I lied. I had already assessed that my bio scans were closest in resemblance to that race. There were differences, of course, but I knew how to mask them. I had spent the past two years tracking down a subcutaneous device that would make my bio signatures mimic that of a Taskarian. The device was apparently impossible to detect. Without it I would never have been able to join the Coalition. With it I had the opportunity to finish my training with the secret of who I was fully intact.

  “Wow, we don’t get many of your kind joining the Academy. Why did you join?”

  To bring down an ancient master who had enslaved th
e last of my kind to wage a never-ending battle with anyone who disputed him.

  I, of course, did not share this with Jason. Instead I looked ahead, noted that the engineering hall was right before us, and I nodded towards it. “It appears our team has already left.”

  “Oh great,” Jason sighed, his breathing still relatively unaffected by his pace. His sister, however, had already fallen behind. “Come on, Elle, we’ve got to find out where they’ve gone. Knowing Ma’tovan, he’s probably taken everyone straight to the training ground.”

  “Oh no … how far away is that? We’re going to be in trouble, aren’t we?”

  “I’ll take you there—” Jason began, but was interrupted by the soft chime of the device he wore on his wrist.

  It was a personal computer. It acted as a communication device, a scanner, it monitored bio readings, and could be used as an intrastella beacon in cases of distress. I had not received my own yet. When I did, I would be unsure how long it would take to convince myself to put it on my wrist.

  It would feel too much like my shackles had.

  “Singh, report to the armory, we’re running a test on the new matter disrupter rifles,” a voice emanated from Jason’s wrist device. “On the double.”

  “Yes, sir,” Jason replied.

  I watched as his smile dented. He looked at his sister and shrugged expressively. “You are going to have to get there on your own. Now, the training ground is—”

  “Approximately 500 meters from the 2nd Dormitory Block,” I interjected, pointing in the correct direction, despite the fact we were inside and there were no windows around us.

  “Yeah, yeah it is. Damn, I’m glad you know where you’re going. Can you take her there?” Jason smiled hopefully.

  I looked at him, blinking, then nodded.

  This was not how I had expected my first day as a recruit would go. Though I had understood I would not be doing anything to fight my master straight away, shepherding admiral’s daughters had not been on the agenda.

  “Okay, I’ll come see you as soon as I can.” Jason backed off, turning at the last moment. “Just try to stay out of trouble. Oh, by the way, I’m Jason Singh, forgot to introduce myself.” He waved at me.