Eric Olafson Series Boxed Set: Books 1 - 7

by Vanessa Ravencroft

  Yes, he was a playwright but he could not have invented it all, Gore had spoken to him in his dreams. The last big action in the Yutoo System on moon Twilight had failed and the resulting manhunt was brutal.

  Union Federal Police questioned peace-loving Gal Drifts everywhere and had arrested many of his followers, but much worse was the wrath of the demon-spawned corporations. No news report, no GalNet page told the public about the killing and torturing the corporate thugs did.

  He had over 5000 followers once and now he had 10, but since most of his followers came from the ranks of the true citizens of the universe; the ones sneered at and called galactic drifters, none of the so-called Union citizens cared about their fate and peril.

  The corporate thugs committed mass murder and killed millions of Gal Drifts, most of them never even knowing about Dunham or the Gore Defenders. Their only crime was not being a Union citizen.

  No one in the general public knew that Alex Enroe paid 10 000 credits for a confirmed killed Gal Drifter. Of course it was done through a front company on Sin 4 but Steven knew the truth. The other one, the bane of freedom, that abomination Rex Schwartz was responsible for, were horrible massacres committed by his shadow troops. One of these atrocities was an attack that killed men, women and children attending the only temple of the Church of Gore. The media reported it was a sect suicide, but no one asked who controlled the media and who paid off the police investigating. However, Steven knew!

  It was not the Nul or the Kermac who were the enemies of life and freedom, but these giga corps and their criminal CEOs. One could have hoped the general public would have learned not to trust them after the corporate Gene Wars, but that was long ago and forgotten.

  The Kermac wanted nothing but to be friends, and if they wanted to rule the universe, why not let them? Was it not better to be ruled by an old race than make war and kill billions?

  The Kermac had no evil corporations that gnawed and picked away on the most ancient and noble creature, the living planet Gore.

  Gore was ready to wake and unite with the 11 other planet-sized living gods that only he knew existed, because he dreamt about them.

  Once awake, they would banish all weapons, punish all warmongers and unite all peace-loving beings of all galaxies, boundary-free and without any rules.

  He became watery-eyed just thinking about that. Yes, this was worth dying for, and those he killed deserved it for not doing anything to stop these atrocities. His little group and his life would have been over long ago, but he had friends! Friends with incredible resources and deep pockets! It was them who managed to smuggle him and 10 of his most fanatic and closest followers right here to Pluribus. It was them who had provided them with real citizen chips, cut out of the bleeding carcasses of members of the establishment. It was those friends, who provided them with the DNA bubble pockets to make the chips verifiable. It was these friends who helped, wherever they could.

  He smiled at the man across from him and pointed at the spore bomb. "It will be used to cleanse this world of all corruption and the rest of the Union will listen and know the name of Gore! Thank you!"

  The Friend bowed slightly. "Gore guides us, as it does you. No thanks are needed. All we wish is that the God wakes and the time of true freedom and peace comes upon us all."

  "Now, at the eve of my bodily death, before my being is united with the Spirit of the Universe, tell me, friends, who are you really?"

  "We should not tell you, but we are not really human. We are messengers of Gore, avatars of his will!"

  Stephen’s knees went soft as he knelt before them.

  "Thank you for blessing me. I shall not fail!"

  The two men simply vanished into thin air.

  Steven checked his costume once more and made sure his followers all looked the part. He snarled at Sharpton, his closest friend. "Your girls up there better do their job."

  "Relax Stephen, we still have time. Our girls know what to do and they are in place. The elevator overwrite is timed and set and not for another two hours. We got real Saresii Psi shield generators and not even the Psi Corps can detect us and we all have good surplus combat suits. Each of us carries the finest in Union personal weaponry and we have a spore bomb. We are better equipped and prepared than ever before. Tomorrow the galaxy will talk about nothing else but the Gore Defenders, the atrocities and mass killings of the cursed corporations and of course, Gore will be free and able to wake!"

  A female follower brushed over her suit. "These molecular-structured Ultronit scale suits are amazing, I can barely feel the added weight."

  She raised her big Shrap gun and chambered the first canister. "I can’t wait to cut down a few of those arrogant, super rich filth up there. Razor-sharp fragments of Ultronit, accelerated to near light speed will tear them into bloody smears!"

  Her eyes glared with insane fanatic energy. Steven slapped her across the face.

  "Turn off your weapon, you bitch! If they scan for weapons we will be exposed before we can use them."

  For a moment it looked as if she wanted to shoot him and then snarled, "It’s not on! I simply racked a load."

  Sharpton snatched the heavy weapon from her and pressed a switch. "Chambering the weapon activates the coils. If you touch any control on your weapon before the elevator doors open, I am going to kill you!"

  With these words he handed the weapon back.

  "I am no stinking baby-killing Marine," she hissed but she backed down. Steven took a deep breath to calm his raw nerves. "Let us go over the plan one more time."

  The man known to Steve Dunham only as Friend of Gore shook his head. "Even though we psych-conditioned that loser ever since he came up with his whacko ideas, I can’t believe how easy it was."

  "Seven years of careful planning and preparation were not easy at all, but we’d better hurry and leave this planet. I do not want to be here when the bomb goes off and the Psi Corps searches for who is responsible."

  "Even if they research past the Church of Gore, they will think it was the Kermac and look no further. War will ensue, perhaps the Nul and Shiss dragged in as well and no matter what side wins, our friends will do brisk business once again and we will have our revenge and Terra will pay for its crimes!"

  The other man laughed silently. "They think they have eradicated us and most of them have forgotten we ever existed, but with the Union and the others locked in war, we Freons can step out of the shadow of the Karthanian Guild Lord and rebuild our civilization."

  "The Karthanian Guilds have given us a place for our last shipload of refugees, our forefathers. Yet they have not allowed us to grow. We will be thankful for their help and shelter, but they too must succumb to our rule eventually. The Freon’s second dawn begins tonight."

  "It is good we remained small and hidden for so long. No one expects us; the Union would have wiped out the Karthanian civilization if they knew they sheltered a Freon colony deep within their space. We must be thankful to the Guild of Frame Builders and its long line of Guild Masters for keeping us alive and hidden. Without the Guild Master Frathook, we would not have all these marvelous Union things we gave to the Gore Defenders. It was great fortune that this renegade Union Admiral found shelter with our friend the Guild Master."

  Their flyer broke through the last remnants of atmosphere. It would be a long flight, even with their space-capable flyer, to reach the sixth planet of the system. A Union Legal privateer had parked his ship to take them back. He programmed the waypoints and answered his colleague.

  "Indeed, we must be thankful to this Swybin and the many great things he managed to secure before he had to flee. I wonder what he would say if he knew he aided Freons."

  ***

  Elfi was gone. In her place was a goddess. She wore a shimmering gown of golden pleats hugging her body and her helmet-like black hair was now under a hood-like headpiece shaped like wings. Over her shoulders, a cape-like mantle, also shimmering gold, was shaped in the pattern of feathered wings as well. He
r face was hidden behind a translucent veil. This was how I saw her, standing surrounded by handmaidens in a courtyard with trimmed trees, fountains and flowerbeds.

  The Queen herself had brought me here. Elfi smiled at me with her eyes. "Don’t I look ridiculous in this get-up?"

  "No, Princess, you look very regal and very much like the daughter of a goddess."

  "You are just nice. I’ll be glad when this is over and we are back to normal business."

  "I will be too, but this gives me a chance to see where you come from and it gives me a whole different perspective."

  "Please never make this an issue, Eric. To you, I never want to be anything but Elfi and a friend. This is what my heritage and my mother wants me to be, it is not who I am."

  I took her hand and squeezed it gently. "I promise and I am beginning to understand you."

  She squeezed back and again gave me a warm smile. "I am beginning to understand you too, Eric, and I know how hard it must be for you to hide your secret from everyone."

  What she said hit me like a fist in the stomach. I felt the blood rush to my face.

  "My secret?"

  She looked across the yard and then at me. "Eric, my mother had you investigated, you are here because she thinks you might become family because she thinks I love you."

  I did not know what to say and she was not done, so I listened as she continued.

  "Don’t get me wrong Eric, I do love you but I love every one of our group equally. I do not have any plans to marry or settle down. I want to stay in the Fleet and with my friends."

  A Saran guard came and knelt before her. "Most precious Princess of the Realm of Here and Beyond, there will be a little delay for the departure. The Ammutherathi have been delayed due to Union security protocols, but the delay will be no longer than 20 minutes."

  I saw her from the side as she looked down at the kneeling muscle man. "Such details should have been considered before, should the delay exceed 20 minutes we shall use the ark."

  "Sekhet the most powerful, it will be as you command."

  He crawled back in this kneeling position, turned after 10 paces and left.

  Servants brought a heavy-looking gold bench, with many pillows for us to sit down. During all this she had kept her hand in mine and said, "Let us sit down then. Neither your uniform nor my dress are the most comfortable outfits to stand around in."

  We did, while my mind still reeled around her revelation. Elfi patted my hand. "As I said, my mother had you and the others investigated. I did not approve but I know you met my mother and she is a queen. Her will trumps all others and when it comes to protecting her realm and her dynasty she has little if no moral qualms."

  I swallowed dryly. "I am no expert when it comes to kingdoms, realms and royals and I can understand that, but …"

  "It is part of your personal record and its non-classified part is accessible to any high-ranking officer. I don’t know how exactly, but she could have simply asked Admiral McElligott or someone like him, or got it directly. The Queen holds an honorary Admiral rank in the Union Fleet. She has, of course, no command authority but I imagine her honorary rank is enough to access personal files."

  "I don’t …"

  "No worries Eric, I won’t tell the others. Even though I don’t think it would be a problem at all, but I actually think I understand why you keep it hidden."

  "You do?"

  "Knowing where you have been raised, and the culture that shaped you and the so-important fundamentality of this question might be the reason. I am not analyzing you, Eric. I am your friend and now that you know I know, you can always come to me and talk about it if you want. I think the world of you and this has not changed, quite the opposite. So please don’t feel ashamed or exposed."

  I swallowed again. "It is a curse and it amazes me how many know about something I try to hide."

  "You hide it well, but you don’t have to tonight at the Temple, after the official Union festivities. Mother told me you agreed to be there."

  Not that I had a real response to it, but before I could say something the guard came back. "Most precious Princess of the Realm, the Ammutherathi have arrived and will be ready shortly."

  Elfi dismissed the man and her eyes glittered with mischief as she looked at me. "Are you ready to ride a fierce winged beast?"

  "I am doing what?"

  "Huge winged beasts from the desert mountains of our home world. In our mythology, they are related to the gods just as queens are and they are considered animal incarnations of our invisible twins. It is complicated religious stuff, but in short, we two will ride one to the steps of the Crystal Hall, with the Honor Legion flying escort, as I am the Commandrix of that legion it was deemed an appropriate way for us to arrive."

  ***

  Everyone, even Egill held his breath as the flyer approached the Crystal Palace in which the Diamond Ball would take place. Above the deep blue waves of Pluribus southern ocean, atop a single thin glass-like stem, a shimmering construct with elements that reminded them of a Nilfeheim burg, but not of gray stone and Duro-Crete but like a dream of cream and turquoise shades, sparkling like a precious gem in the last rays of the setting sun.

  Strong beams of light just underneath the water surface far below came on, just as they approached.

  "It is beautiful!" whispered Exa, folding her hand before her chin.

  "It is sickening kitsch," grunted Egill, "probably designed by the fem heads of Saresii."

  "I thought your best friend is Saresii?" Elena asked.

  "He is, and it took me a long time to get used to this filigree sugar and lace architecture they like so much. Can’t help myself, I am a Norse and I would love to use a big iron hammer to smash some of this."

  "You are in an especially grumpy mood tonight!" Eric’s sister said with a smirk.

  "I don’t like these blown-up affairs and all these self-important elitists thinking they are better than anyone else."

  Sif had not said a word since they left. She tried to separate her emotions and feelings, with little success. "Nevertheless you go! No one forces you to come here. It is an invitation and every year you go! Erik Gustav never went!"

  He glared at her. "You do not have to go either. You can return with this flyer and wait for our return. I knew the old falcon much better than anyone and I respect him to this day and I am glad you found a worthy idol and role model.

  "He was well-liked and respected in the Assembly but he did not come to the Diamond Ball because, in all this time, he was never invited."

  Sif blinked and wanted to say something but he cut her off. "I might not like all the details about the Diamond Ball, but it has a tradition older than Nilfeheim and that is quite a history. Since I am your mentor, I want you to write me an essay about the history of the Crystal Palace, where it was made and how it came to be transported here to Pluribus."

  Exa had her eyes glued to the windows. "It was made for the first Saresii of the first Saresii Woman Council over a million years ago. It has been given to Pluribus as a gift when they joined the Union, to symbolize their unlimited support and commitment to the community of civilizations. It was cut out of the largest diamond known, that was once the core of a gas giant in the Sares system."

  They all looked with awe at the girl who spoke, still looking outside.

  Egill put a hand on her shoulder. "You know this?’

  Exa turned with a shy smile. "Before I was blessed with a new home and a real family, I was a drifter’s daughter and I have listened to many of the drifters’ stories. Drifters travel everywhere and love to tell stories."

  Even Sif had no snappish remark and said, "You have your essay, Uncle Egill. I guess Exa can help me."

  Their Volvo flyer was part of a single row of the most expensive luxury flyers and edged forward to a brightly-lit entrance with thousands of small lights, a deep red carpet and beings in fancy-looking uniforms opening doors. To the left and right, separated by visible shimmering forcefield fenc
es, were masses of people. As it was their turn to leave the Volvo, Sif noted hundreds of cam and news drones behind those forcefield fences and she felt as if millions of eyes looked at her.

  A woman and a Shiss, both in fine evening clothing, greeted them. She knew them as the anchors of a popular GalNet news channel.

  The Shiss said, "Here comes the representative of a little-known world called Nilfeheim and a lovely entourage of three beautiful humanoids, females at that. Perhaps nestlings of his, Mr. Egill Skallagrímsson from Nilfeheim is well-known to many as one of the Three Wise Men of the Assembly."

  The woman asked Egill directly. "Mr. Skallagrímsson, will your friends also attend tonight’s event?"

  Egill actually grinned at the reporter and turned with an outstretched arm pointing at a suddenly appearing distortion of air; out of this shimmering distortion of air came the deeply shrouded figure of a Narth. His usual, completely black shroud was embellished with shimmering golden strips around the seams.

  Egill said to the reporter woman, "Here is your answer."

  To everyone’s, even Egill’s, surprise a second Narth appeared. Just at the same time, almost as beautiful and impressive as the Palace itself, a long gleaming flyer, clearly of Saresii origin stopped at the ledge, and Algear, first among the Saresii stepped out. Although he was biologically male he appeared, like most Saresii, as a most exquisite, exotic beautiful tall female with long silvery hair, large purple eyes and a figure-hugging silvery velvet gown that traced what seemed the perfect human female body.

  Sif was now certain her decision not to wear a dress was wrong. She should have listened to Egill after all, but what woman would take fashion advice from a grumpy old Nilfeheim hermit?

  While Egill offered his arm to Algear and was flanked to the other side by the Narth, she heard his words again, Erik Gustav was never invited, Egill through his friendship to these two reached a level of importance in terms of Union affairs that she only now begun to understand.

  The crowds behind the barriers had been completely silent since the Narth had arrived. Even the woman reporter appeared to be intimidated and did not ask any questions.