by ZJ McBeattie
***
Crila reached over and patted his hand. "I think I like your pirate captain, Mal. What was her name?"
"Maryn Meredi." He'd said it. He hadn't been able to say it for so long that the relief was overwhelming. "She had her medic fix me up as good as he could, then put me in a stasis tube. Next thing I knew, I was all well."
"So you joined her crew?"
"Yah. We had us some times."
"Where's Captain Meredi now?"
Malik turned up his glass, swallowed five times, and set it down empty. He looked at his friend, who smiled back at him, pity in her eyes.
He recognized it this time.
"Dead. Maryn's dead, Cri."
"Oh, I'm sorry, Mal. What happened?"
"I killed her," said Malik Blayne.
####
Don't miss the other stories in the exciting science fiction series
Tales from Omega Station
Underworld by K.G. McAbee
Scum by J.A. Johnson
Endurance by J.A. Johnson
Abduction by J. Kirsch
Extraction by K.G. McAbee
Catch of the Day by J.A. Johnson
Omega Station, aka the Rock. A barren, airless asteroid on the outermost edge of the galaxy, home of the richest of the rich and the poorest of the poor. Dotted with commercial, military and residential domes, the outer surface is the place to live for those who can afford it or are lucky enough to work there.
But the vast majority of the Rock's residents don't live in the surface domes; instead, they have tunneled downwards, moving ever further towards its fiery heart. The upper levels are safe, comfortable, secure—or as secure as anyone can be on Omega Station. The lower levels, now; they are home to the detritus of a double dozen races and species, all living in uneasy juxtaposition, fighting, loving, eating—and being eaten.
The Rock's location in space, the last real port before exiting the galaxy, has made it a valuable commodity to many governments and private corporations, as has the addictive drug straz, which grows only in its recycling vats. Control has been taken and given in a hundred bloody battles over the years, but those who live in the lower levels—and further down, in the Depths—are often barely aware of whoever claims to be in charge.
No one, really, rules the Rock, whatever they may claim, however many weapons and warriors they throw against it.
For the Rock is eternal…and it has many stories...
from authors K.G. McAbee, J.A. Johnson and J. Kirsch.
And for more information, be sure to check the
Omega Station Blog
About the author of Belly of the Beast:
K.G. McAbee has had several books and nearly a hundred short stories published, some of them quite readable. She takes her geekdom seriously, never misses a sci-fi con, loves dogs and iced tea, and believes the words 'Stan Lee' are interchangeable with 'The Almighty.' She writes steampunk, fantasy, science fiction, horror, pulp, westerns and, most recently, comics. She's a member of Horror Writers Association and International Thriller Writers and is an Artist in Residence with the South Carolina Arts Commission. Her steampunk/zombie novella, BLACKTHORNE AND ROSE: AGENTS OF D.I.R.E. recently received an honorable mention in the 3rd quarter Writers of the Future contest.
The Journal in the Jug
The Heiress on the Island
Queen Elizabeth's Wizard
Lady Abigail and the Morose Magician
Ray Was Right
Me and the Bank
Time Is of the Essence
Professor Challenger and the Creature from the Aether
The Case of the Sinister Senator
E.U.C.B.
With Murderous Intent
A Dilemma of Dark and Dangerous Dimensions
Mightier Than the Sword