Lunara: The Original Trilogy

by Wyatt Davenport

  "You will look it over until you find something, and once you have found a lead, you will look at it again to verify it. Do I make myself clear?" she said sharply.

  "Yes, Lady Arwell." Logan swallowed hard and shot a glance toward Cross. He shifted his eyes away from Logan, leaving him to hang himself.

  "Don’t look at him," said Gwen. "He doesn’t do your job. You don’t want to come to the next meeting with so little information because I might think you are hiding something, and if I find out you are holding anything back, the situation will be unpleasant."

  "We found something else," Logan said. "We traced the rifle to an old man out of Pollux colony. He is sympathetic to the Alliance. We interrogated him. Unfortunately, he refused to give up his contacts and died in the process. We are tracing his movements over the last month to find out where he has been and whom he has talked with. But it is extraordinarily difficult operating in an Alliance colony."

  "I don’t want excuses, Mr. Logan," she said firmly. "Find the people responsible. I expect a full report tomorrow morning." She turned her back on the group again. Everyone sat in silence, awaiting her next words.

  They had found out so little about the assassin. Hans Bauer had interrogated the planet’s most notorious criminals. They all denied involvement, and with the amount of pain they endured, she trusted their sincerity. No loose thread went unchecked, and still nothing. They didn’t even provide a good lead. She turned toward the group. "Get out, I want to be alone. Do your jobs."

  Promptly, everyone cleared out of the room. Her guilt remained, though, the annoying side effect of her rage as her mind took control back.

  Hearing footsteps walk up from behind, she was about to turn and scream, but she felt a familiar touch. Samantha put her arm around her shoulder. "Everyone else is gone," Samantha said. "Everything will be okay. Burns and Arwell have always been a good team."

  "Yes," she mumbled. "I miss my father."

  "His notes and his ideology will be with us forever."

  "Yes," Gwen nodded, "he will always be with the MSA."

  "Are you with us?" Samantha said.

  "Of course."

  "Of course? You were working for the Alliance in an attempt to bring your father back from the MSA. Your ploy was simple to see, Gwen."

  Gwen nodded. "It was my intention to find out why my father acted the way her did. I guess, in the beginning, I wanted to help the Alliance." Anger tightened her muscles. "But they killed my father without giving me an opportunity to understand him. I hate the Alliance. I will never help them."

  "Your father’s intentions were noble, and you have read his notes. He wanted a better Mars."

  "Mars is better now," Gwen admitted. "The new foods and the increased wealth of the people are noticeable in these first few days of MSA rule. I want to continue that. After all, my leadership of Mars isn’t my father’s, and I can’t see how the Alliance can blame me for the MSA invasion. They will listen to our reason, or they will be eliminated."

  A simmering anger raced Gwen’s heart again. She narrowed her eyes as she looked across Zephyria. The Alliance’s premature and untrusting assassination of her father would never be forgiven. Sarah McCloud and the assassin responsible would pay for their wrongdoing, and she was in the best position in the solar system to enact revenge.

  "I will bring Mars to its full glory. My father’s legacy demands that now."

  "You are a better leader than your father. He was too arrogant. He insisted that his popularity was so great and that no one would assassinate him. Don’t make the same mistakes as he did."

  "I won’t let Cross or the Alliance kill me."

  "Your weakness is Seth. Cross and the Alliance will use him against you."

  A longing overwhelmed Gwen. "I want Seth here to rule with me. The Arwells’ popularity with Seth’s abilities would make an unstoppable legacy on Mars."

  Samantha nodded. "We’ll find Seth and convince him that you are the one for him."

  "Not with Chloe. He loves her more than anyone."

  "We’ll have to do something about her. If she isn’t around, then you can be the one for him."

  "Samantha, we can’t do anything to her. If he ever finds out we were the ones responsible, he would hate me forever."

  "I’ll think of something."

  "I don’t want you to jeopardize anything. Stay away from her and the entire situation. I can handle it."

  "Yes," Samantha replied. "You are my commander now."

  "Walk me back to my apartment," Gwen said, a sudden exhaustion consuming her body. "I’m tired."

  "Gwen," Samantha said, grabbing at her arms. "Are you all right?"

  "Get me to my quarters."

  Gwen rubbed her eyes with the balls of her fists as she awoke. She popped her head up, looking toward the window. The tint was activated, and the sun glowed faintly behind the darkened pane.

  Reluctantly pulling herself up to a seated position, she stripped off her clothes—the same she had worn the previous day—down to her underwear, walked sluggishly toward her closet, snatched a robe from the back of the door, and cinched it tight against her body.

  Pausing as she was about to leave the room, she thought, How did I get into the bed? "Oh yes," she muttered to herself. Samantha helped her from the meeting the afternoon before. That afternoon lingered in her mind. She hurried over to her dial and it read 5:45 a.m.—twelve hours had passed. She had slept too long.

  "You are finally awake," Samantha said from behind her, startling her. She flinched, spun around, and attempted her best sour face with the grogginess still lingering within her. "Breakfast for two is ready in the kitchen. I was coming to wake you."

  "It does smell good," she said, sniffing the air; a mix of warm jelly and oatmeal.

  Samantha bent down, picked up Gwen’s discarded clothes, and walked to her bathroom. "You know it takes five seconds to put your clothes in the cleaning unit."

  Gwen smiled at Samantha.

  "What are you so happy about?" Samantha asked.

  "It is good to be back with you," she said. She moved toward Samantha and put her hand on her shoulder. "You are a real friend to me." Samantha gazed into her eyes and smiled back. "You are the only ally I have."

  "Your side is stronger than you think. At this tenuous time, where emotions are high about what happened at the gala, the people rally behind you. You are the symbol of righteousness for many people."

  "I’m worried someone might move against us. Keep your ears open for me. Do we have any allies on the inside who can tell us what is happening?"

  "I already took care of it," Samantha said.

  Gwen realized, when she talked to Samantha about MSA business and saw confidence and poise in her demeanor, that the former insecure girl had been washed away.

  Samantha’s face turned serious. "Our operatives are finding our allies and our enemies within the MSA. It isn’t as severe as it sounds, but it is good to know what everyone is doing."

  "I understand."

  They moved out of the bedroom into the main living area and sat at the table.

  "Did you have another nightmare last night?"

  "Yes, I keep dreaming about my father," Gwen said with a mouthful of oatmeal. She stirred in more jelly. For whatever fascinating reason, ever since she was a child, she had loved to watch the swirls it made as she moved her spoon around. "The dream was the conversation my father and I had when he sent me to Lunara. I always felt bad about leaving you here. I tried to get him to send you with me, but he refused."

  "Your father wanted me to stay. I was his student in place of you. That is how he started me in the MSA."

  "That’s what I figured, but I didn’t want to ask."

  "Why not?"

  "I don’t know. I guess it was the start of us drifting apart. I always missed you, but I was too stubborn to tell you."

  "Yes, you were. I made the mistake, and you paid for it. I should have told your father the truth. I was so scared that I would
be kicked out of the school and become one of those immoral girls, working in old Zephyria."

  "That is why I told my father that I had done it. But I should have realized you are a lot smarter than to become one of those women. You would have found a way to survive and flourish elsewhere. Look at my father; he had more confidence in you than he did in me."

  "Your father didn’t want you involved. He was afraid of hurting you, but he was always proud of you."

  She chuckled and pulled her napkin up to her chin to wipe away the oatmeal that had come out of her mouth. "Look at me. I’m an emotional wreck and head of the MSA. He would be steaming mad and worried."

  Chapter 21

  The bright lights of Aethpis colony that once dazzled Eamonn dimmed to a smattering of spotlights and warning beacons. He had expected to gaze upon these lights seven days ago, but a normally five-hour flight had turned into a long week. MSA patrols, new territorial boundaries, and an assortment of shady characters to avoid had frustrated his travels with Shannon.

  He veered the hovercar toward the colony.

  Debris and abandoned fortifications lined the plantia to the south. The battle once waged on this land appeared to be a distant memory. No one was collecting scrap metals or securing the land. Yielding to the idea that it might be neutral territory, he adjusted his course around the former battlefront and took the longer path into Aethpis—a recurring theme in his travels.

  But he had encouraging news from Pollux colony, after a short message left by Sarah. Western Aethpis was still under her control, and if they landed in the northwestern docking bay, she had already cleared them for entrance.

  As they approached the crater of Aethpis colony, he wondered what would lie ahead. Would the colony be in total disarray or would life be back to normal? As normal as it could get with a split colony; from Sarah’s descriptions, the MSA controlled the security center and the housing districts to the south. The water reservoir ditch was the dividing line, splitting the colony in half. Everything to the north and west was under the control of the Aethpis people.

  He turned his attention to the front window. "Jinx!" he shouted. He jerked both his hands on the controls, slammed on the retrorockets, and jolted the hovercar to a sudden stop.

  "What’s happening?" Shannon replied in a daze. It took her a few moments to adjust to the light. "Are they MSA?"

  "No," he said. "These are friendly."

  The two hovering tactical military vehicles took up standard defensive positions. The driver sat behind the steering wheel while the gunner pointed a fully loaded machine gun toward them. Behind the two vehicles, a camouflaged hovercar pulled up to a stop.

  "Put your breathing mask on," Eamonn said. "We will be getting out."

  Static crackled over their radio. "Unidentified hovercar, we traced your vessel’s ID to Trivium Port. You are in violation of wartime laws against the Aethpisian people. Exit from the vehicle and prepare to be detained."

  He picked up the radio’s receiver. "This is Captain Eamonn Dalton of Lunara colony. Minister McCloud told us we had safe passage through Aethpis colony."

  "Please exit your vehicle."

  "Understood," he replied and put down the radio. He looked across and saw that Shannon’s face had turned pale. "Don’t worry," he said. "They are only looking for bombs. We will be okay." He grabbed her hand. "Come on, they are friends." He checked her breathing mask. Satisfied it was secure, he released the valve for the canopy hatch.

  As the cold air swept across his body, it felt like he was being wrapped in a frozen blanket. He braced himself against the arms of his chair until the pressure stabilized a few moments later. He hopped out of the hovercar, not so fast that he would alarm the troops but fast enough to move in front of Shannon before they did.

  He and Shannon stood silently as the troops searched over the hovercar. One trooper—ever vigilant—pointed his gun directly at Eamonn’s chest.

  The commander of the platoon sauntered at a surreally casual pace toward them—as if he didn’t have a care in the world. A clean-cut and polished Aethpisian troop commander, unlike the rest of his squad, his uniform was clean and crisp. As he came forward, he eyed Eamonn with particular interest, studying his face carefully. "I thought you were lying…how have you been, you old seadog?"

  "Seadog?" Eamonn said, perplexed. Who was this man to call him a seadog? Squinting, he didn’t recognize him at first, but it all came flooding back the next instant. "Baby-face Leonard? I thought we were in trouble for a moment. From the lack of dirt on your uniform, I see you are an officer now."

  "Actually, we are all getting pretty dirty these days."

  "I guess I know the feeling," Eamonn said.

  Leonard eyed Shannon for a long moment. "Who is your companion?"

  "Shannon Buckley. She is a pilot in the Aethpisian Air Command."

  Shannon raised her hand to salute her superior officer.

  "At ease," Leonard said. He turned back to Eamonn. "Over the last few weeks, hordes of hovercars have been crossing into our territory. The MSA are testing the defenses and the perimeter. I will bet my algae farm that they are planning another attack. I wish we had been ready for them the first time because we would not have lost as much as we did."

  "That’s in the past, Major Leonard," Eamonn said, putting his hand on the major’s shoulder. "The future starts today. The chancellor is dead."

  "You are right. I will have one of my gunners escort you into the colony. It is standard protocol."

  "Understood."

  "I’m glad we saw each other again."

  "Me, too."

  Major Leonard shook hands with Eamonn and Shannon and then proceeded back to his hovercar, leaving them alone.

  "Where do you know him from?" Shannon whispered into his ear.

  "From my days at the flight academy. I guess after graduation, he took the military route over his family’s farm. We always picked on him for having such a young face. It’s good to see he has come a long way."

  "I can’t see you picking on anyone."

  "I wasn’t always mature. Quite frankly, I was an arrogant fool in my youth, but I’m glad to see that he didn’t hold any resentment. He was a good kid."

  She smiled. "I enjoyed him calling you seadog." She noted how his face twisted. "That annoyed you to no end."

  "What? No way." Then he nodded. "This beard is starting to show some gray, I guess."

  "I know you well enough already to read when you are annoyed. I did push your buttons for a number of days, remember?" she said, swinging her legs over the hovercar’s cockpit and smoothly into the pilot’s seat. "Come on, it’s time to leave. We don’t want to keep the patrol cars waiting."

  They hurried back into their hovercar and shot into Aethpis colony a few minutes later.

  From Minister Cortez’s apartment, the colony looked almost the same as it did when Eamonn had visited nearly a month earlier. Eamonn rubbed his forehead along his scar. Aethpis’s deformity was the large divider of barbwire and "hedgehogs." The hedgehogs he remembered from the days of the revolution—large metal barriers in the shape of a dozen asterisks lined along a straight beam of metal. Always sitting upright no matter the alignment, the hedgehog was a formidable barrier for any armed vehicle.

  He moved over to the couch and rested on the pillow under him. Shannon rubbed her hands against his back, tenderizing his stressed muscles. He groaned when she applied pressure to the knots and kinks in his shoulder. "You needed this massage. I know what is best for you."

  "You were right," he said through clenched teeth. "I was trying to be tough, but this is a lot better. I haven’t had a chance to relax in weeks."

  "I thought it would be good to have at least one night before we rescue Adol. I’m surprised the minister let us use her private suite for the night."

  "I’m not surprised. She wanted to thank us for our help. Sarah has become a good friend."

  "Your service to the Aethpisian people is already legendary. You recovere
d Lunara from the MSA, and you have successfully assassinated their leader."

  "Only if our side wins, else I’ll be the fool and the prime example of futile resistance to the MSA. I’m having doubts as to whether we should have killed the chancellor. It doesn’t seem as satisfying or strategic as I had envisioned."

  "You bought our forces time and space. The MSA are fighting from within to appoint their new leader. And according to the news reports, Princess Gwen Arwell is in charge. She is only twenty years old. That is far too young to run an empire."

  "That is what I’m regretting. Gwen was a member of my crew. She told Seth she was working for us on the inside of the MSA, trying to bring her father back to us. I can’t help but feel guilty. You were right when you said that we had had enough killing. I should have listened to you."

  "Ironic…because when you killed the chancellor, I knew I was wrong and you were right. I would take Princess Arwell over Chancellor Arwell in a heartbeat. We have a greater chance of victory with her in charge."

  "I wouldn’t underestimate Gwen’s abilities. She may seem young and vulnerable, but she has coyness and an insight that few see," he said, as a memory of Gwen at her command station on the Protector flashed in his mind. "Enough of this business. I’m here to relax. Move your hands lower to the small of my back."

  "Giving orders are we," Shannon said, digging her knuckles into him. He winced.

  He reached around and grabbed her by the thigh, sending her squealing in joyful pain. She laughed, causing him to laugh, too. He pulled her in close—

  The alert buzzed over the holophone. Shannon froze, and he moaned in frustration. "Should we answer it?"

  "Yes, it is probably for us anyway."

  "What if it’s for the minister?"

  "Everyone knows she isn’t on Mars." He grabbed Shannon by the hips, pulled her off his body, and laid her on the bed. Sitting up, he put his shirt on and moved over toward the holophone.

  He activated the screen. "Sarah, we didn’t expect to hear from you until we reached the AAC. How are Parker and the kids?"