Out of Orbit- The Complete Series Boxset

by Chele Cooke

  The sun was as high in the sky as it was likely to get in the mid-freeze. Georgianna fell back, away from the cart she’d been walking beside. She lifted the straps of her bag, groaning and rolling back her shoulders in relief. She adjusted her goggles and ensured her scarf was pulled high over her face.

  “Beck’s now suggesting I should be taking turns in the cart,” Lacie said, appearing beside Georgianna and making her jump. Lacie had folded her arms; she sounded annoyed.

  “Are you sure it’s a bad idea?” Georgianna said. “I wouldn’t mind being pulled along for a while.”

  “It’s ridiculous. He’s already made sure I’m not carrying anything.”

  Georgianna nodded down towards her stomach. “Probably because you’re already carrying something much more precious.”

  Lacie unfolded her arms and propped her gloved hands on her hips. “This is ridiculous. People have been making this trail for hundreds of years. He’s acting like I’m the first one.”

  “He’s being protective. And, you know, I think he might be pretty excited.” Even behind the scarf, Georgianna could see Lacie smile. She moved to walk closer. “I can’t believe you kept it from us for so long, Lacie. What are you now?”

  Lacie watched her feet, disappearing into the snow with each step. “A third.”

  “Seriously?” She nodded. “Suns. How did you…”

  “I made Jake promise he wouldn’t tell. I thought, what with everything going on…”

  “You thought we’d be upset? About a baby?”

  “We were struggling to eat already, and then Beck was sick and I couldn’t put this on him. I couldn’t have him worry.”

  Georgianna paused, frowning. “How did you hide the sickness?”

  Lacie laughed. “That herb water you all hated so much? The one for the nausea? Jake’s been making it for me since I told him.”

  “Suns, I think that’d make me vomit more.”

  Lacie giggled. “You get used to it, and it’s good for the baby. The herbs he uses have loads of nutrients in them.”

  Georgianna glanced sideways at her. “He must be excited.”

  Lacie looked back and snorted. “He’s terrified. He wakes at least five times a night with things that could go wrong, things we should be planning for.”

  Following Lacie’s gaze, Georgianna found Beck walking with Jacob a short way behind. From the way they were moving, and glancing frequently at each other, they were clearly having a conversation of their own. Were they also talking about the baby?

  “There are worse things to wake for,” Georgianna said.

  Lacie nodded in agreement. They both remembered the way Jacob had been when he had first arrived on the Way. He barely slept, and when he finally did succumb to exhaustion, he would wake from paralysing nightmares, muffling his sobs into his pillow. And that was when it wasn’t being woken by the pain of his injuries.

  “He’ll be a good father,” Lacie said.

  Georgianna laid her hand on Lacie’s shoulder and squeezed tight through the many layers. “You’ll both be wonderful parents. And if you ever want the practice…” She waved towards the cart in front of them, with Braedon curled up in a Cahlven blanket, his little nose pink and peeking out from his scarf.

  Lacie laughed and shook her head. “Don’t suggest that to Beck. He’ll love the idea.”

  “I’ll love what idea?”

  They both jumped, glancing over their shoulders to see Beck and Jacob closing the gap between them. The parts of Lacie’s face not covered up were turning pink. “Oh, nothing, we were just joking.”

  Jacob joined them, adjusting his goggles. “Joking about what?”

  From the way Lacie stared in the other direction, Jacob realised his mistake and began stammering quietly, wondering how to put them off the trail.

  Georgianna waved it off. “We were just joking about making the Joining a double ceremony.”

  Lacie stared at her, mortified. Apparently it wasn’t a better joke than her temporary adoption of Braedon.

  Beck’s eyes narrowed behind his goggles. He reached up and tugged down his scarf, revealing a pensive frown. “Why would I like that idea?”

  Georgianna stared at Braedon, asleep in the cart. It was best to keep her mouth shut and not cause any more problems.

  Even behind his scarf and goggles, Jacob looked about ready to throw up from nerves.

  Beck glanced around, took a light hold of Lacie’s arm and led her out of the trail path, away from the people closing in behind. He stopped a dozen feet from the trodden-in snow path, the drifts now coming up about their thighs.

  Georgianna and Jacob followed.

  Beck stood in front of Lacie, looking down at her. He tucked his fingers in the top of her scarf and pulled it down to reveal her nose and mouth, then lifted her goggles, settling them across her forehead. He raised his own goggles to just beneath the rim of his hood and gazed down at her.

  “Do you want to join to Jacob?”

  Lacie stammered, far more than Jacob had ever done. She could barely get a full word out without cutting herself off and changing track.

  Beck laid his hands on her shoulders. “Lacie. There is no wrong answer.”

  He was right, but it was all in the delivery, the art of giving an answer that might not be received well. Would Lacie offend Jacob if she said no? Would she make Beck angry if she said no, with the baby on the way?

  “Maybe some day. But—”

  “But you are young,” Beck said, “and have already been given so much to think about. You have more than enough time for that.”

  “Really?”

  Lacie glanced between Beck and Jacob, trying to read both their expressions. Jacob tugged down his scarf, revealing a relieved smile. “I’m not going anywhere. We have time.”

  Beck nodded in Jacob’s direction. “You have a good man who loves you. And who will be a loving father to your child. That is all I could ask for you. Whether you join tomorrow, or ten years from now, or never, it doesn’t matter to me.” Lacie leapt forwards and wrapped her arms tight around Beck’s neck, stretching up out of the snow to hug him. He looped his arms around her waist and gave her a brief squeeze. “But if you don’t get some rest, I might change my mind.”

  He pointed in the direction of the cart, now a good way ahead of them. Lacie gulped, and put her goggles back in place. She nodded, fixed her scarf over her nose and mouth, and reached for Jacob’s hand. “Keep me company?”

  Jacob smiled and took her hand, using the other to replace his own scarf. “For as long as you’ll have me.”

  They waded hand in hand through the deep drifts of snow back to the trail of snow compacted under hundreds of boots.

  Georgianna watched them for a moment and then turned to Beck. “You’re going soft in your old age.”

  He jabbed her shoulder with a gentle fist and shook his head, then strode back towards the trail. He looked over his shoulder. “Tell anyone, and I’ll leave you in the desert in the heat. Nobody would ever believe you then.”

  Georgianna laughed, and waded through the snow back to the path. If Beck was already going soft with Lacie, then his new grandchild would wrap him around its finger.

  Every evening the moonlight filtered through the trees, turning the deep drifts of snow into a glittering canvas draped over the mountains and down into the valley below. The thick ice across the surface of the lake shone white.

  The first few days after arriving had seen children kept close at their parents’ sides, like it had been for much of the last ten years. But on the fourth day, they had gathered and watched the train of mammoth Tzelik ships taking off into the sky, disappearing into the vast blue. It released a valve many of them had still been clinging to: the realisation that there would be no more tricks, no more war. It really was over.

  Now, constantly under the feet of their parents, children were sent out to play further afield. Many had spent their days sliding across the lake’s smooth surface. Even Braedon had ma
de some new friends after finally being coaxed away from his father’s side. He had been anxious at first, unwilling to go more than arms’ length onto the ice, but he was soon giggling and begging to be pulled along by some of the older children. The next morning, he pleaded to be released to play, even before finishing his breakfast.

  Some people, those who had barely known an adult life before the Adveni arrived, didn’t quite know what to do with themselves. Georgianna had to admit that she was among them. There were still injuries and illnesses to see to, but they didn’t fill enough of her time to stop her from feeling useless.

  Her father, on the other hand, was in his element. He spent his days organising and setting people to work. There were shelters to build and supplies to find. Keiran, Alec, and Dhiren had been set to felling dead trees wherever they could find them. Each evening they returned, exhausted but proud of themselves.

  After a week, the Dalsaia had arrived, providing more supplies from the Cahlven. They didn’t stay long, but the delivery included a large selection of Cahlven alcohol. A note stuck to one of the crates wished Nyah and Taye a wonderful life together.

  The furs spread beneath them were misshapen and would need proper stitching, but they were warm and soft. Georgianna accepted the bottle Keiran has managed to steal away, taking a sip of the strong liquor.

  She coughed, covering her nose and mouth with her hand as she passed the bottle back to Keiran. The small sip burning her throat was enough to keep her warm for a minute. “Do you think they had a good day?”

  Despite Taye and Nyah’s insistence that they wanted her at their joining, she had barely seen them since the ceremony. It seemed that everyone wanted to be included in the celebrations, even people who had never known Taye and Nyah before that day, having had so little to celebrate for so long.

  “I suspect so,” Keiran said.

  He shuffled closer, wrapping both arms around her waist. The bottle, hanging from his fingers, bumped against her hip and he laid his chin on her shoulder. She couldn’t see his face from this angle, but she imagined he was staring across the lake towards the celebrations still going on.

  She doubted people were still celebrating the joining they had witnessed, and she wouldn’t have been surprised if Taye and Nyah had excused themselves for some much needed alone time. But while there was still liquor, there were still celebrations to be had.

  “We might have to ask Tohma for more alcohol,” she said.

  She extracted the bottle from his fingers and took another sip. She brought the bottle down and cradled it in her lap.

  “Why? You planning for another joining soon?”

  She rubbed her hand back and forth along his arm. “No.”

  He straightened, his hand moving from her waist to brace himself against the hard ground. Georgianna glanced at him with a smile before turning her attention back to the celebrations. Laughter and whispers of conversations drifted across the lake towards them, skipping across the ice like stones that bounced and flew. She hoped nobody had to hunt tomorrow, for no animal would come within a dozen leagues with all the noise they’d been making.

  Keiran took the bottle from her and put it aside, digging into his pocket. When he laid his hand in her lap again, Georgianna wrapped both her hands around his, rubbing her thumbs across his knuckles.

  “Are you sure about that?” he said.

  Georgianna frowned. “About what?”

  “About not planning any joinings.”

  “Lacie and Jacob have already said no.”

  He peered at her, a smile playing on his lips. “And there’s nobody else you can think of who may want to join?”

  Georgianna lifted her hand and pressed her thumb against his chin, curling her finger beneath it. She moved his head in a gentle, teasing shake. “I know Dhiren said he likes Halden, but it’s a bit early, don’t you think?”

  She took hold of his fist in both hands again.

  “You’re right,” he said, “that is too early. At least let your brother get laid before he swears his life away.”

  Georgianna glared at him. “Must you? That’s my brother you’re talking about.”

  Keiran laughed and raised his hand within her grip, waving her hands in the same way she had forced him into shaking his head. He flexed his fingers beneath her grip, tempting her.

  “Nobody else?” he whispered in her ear.

  She froze. Staring at her hands, fingertips pink from the cold, she could feel the words playing on her lips. She could hear the mockery in her voice as she told him that she couldn’t think of anyone else, unless he was planning on making his forgiveness of Alec official.

  But the mocking didn’t come, and the words weren’t really there. They were just a mirage of what might have been.

  Georgianna unwrapped her hands from around his, and let his fist lay in her palms. He flexed his fingers again. She glanced at him, unsure of whether it was the alcohol that was causing the heat in her chest and throat. He nodded her towards his hand.

  One by one, with trembling fingers, Georgianna peeled back his fingers.

  The grass was twisted in a simple pattern and, even without touching it, she knew that the ring had not had time to dry properly.

  But it was there.

  A ring had been what dragged her into this whole mess in the first place. It had taken her into the compound looking for Nyah. It had signed her up to help Nyah and Alec escape, putting her on Maarqyn’s radar. A ring had started it all, and now a ring would start something else, if only she accepted it.

  She couldn’t even bring herself to touch it.

  She forced a mocking laugh.

  “I thought you weren’t the joining kind,” she said, sure that the nerves were showing in her voice.

  Keiran pressed his thumb into the centre of the ring and then held it up for her. “It doesn’t have to be that.”

  “It doesn’t?”

  He shook his head. “It can be anything you want.” He wrapped his arm tighter around her. “It can mean we intend to join, or that we may do some day. It can mean anything in this whole wide world, George, as long as you know that it means I love you, and I will always love you.”

  Leaning in, he placed a gentle kiss against her lips. His mouth was warm and tasted of liquor and freeze air.

  She took the ring from the end of his thumb and slid it onto her finger.

  She’d always imagined wearing one of them at some point, probably to be removed quickly for fear of damaging the delicate grass. But she’d never imagined how natural it would feel, made just for her. With it looped around her finger, it was sturdier than she’d thought it would be. Just like their relationship. It had been pulled and stretched and bent out of shape, and yet it always came back to this. It wasn’t brittle or dry. It was fresh, and it was able to be damaged while still holding its shape. It fitted her perfectly.

  Georgianna twisted against him and returned his kiss, cradling his face in her hands. Serious kisses turned into smiles and beaming giggles, far warmer than the ground beneath them. She leaned into him, resting her forehead against his.

  “So?” he said in a whisper. “What does it mean?”

  She closed her eyes and smiled. “It means anything we want it to mean,” Georgianna said. “It means everything.”

  Thank you for reading the Out of Orbit series. I hope you have enjoyed the time you’ve spent with Georgianna. I will be returning to Os-Veruh soon with some different stories told by different characters.

  If you have liked this series enough to read it through to the end, I hope you will consider taking a few extra minutes to leave a review. Reviews provide the best form of social proof to readers who are considering picking up my books. Who better to hear from than people who have already read the book and can tell them what they thought?

  To leave a review, please click the following link, select your star rating out of five, and then write a few words.

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  Now you’ve fi
nished the Out of Orbit series, maybe you’d be interested in one of my other books?

  The Teeth series is a trilogy of urban fantasy thrillers. With drama, humour, and a whole lot of blood, Teeth is a fresh new look at the world of vampires.

  Le Cirque Navire the first book in a sci-fi and fantasy mashup. If you liked the dark beauty of The Night Circus, the emotional story of Water for Elephants, and the loveable characters and exciting adventure of Firefly, you’ll be pulled right in to the first instalment of this magical circus series.

  I would like to thank everyone who helped create Out of Orbit and bring it to what it is today.

  Andrew Lowe, your editing is wonderful. Not only have you polished the third and fourth books into what they are, but your advice and help has made me a better writer (though, I still can’t use a semi-colon properly.)

  Moa, Susanna, Rhian, Kim, Heather, Li, Julia, Kathryn, Elizabeth - Your support has meant everything. I have complained to you all far too often, and you didn’t just listen, you helped pull me out of whatever funk I was in and plonked me back at the computer with the words ‘You can do this.’

  I wouldn’t have done it without you.

  Lastly, to every person who has read Out of Orbit, reviewed it, shared it on social media, and a million other little acts that I could not have done it alone: You are fabulous! I really cannot thank you enough. But I’m going to try by writing the next set of books.

  Thank you all. It means everything.

  Chele Cooke is a Sci-Fi/Fantasy independent author based in London, UK.

  Chele is an English-born writer based in London. With a degree in Creative Writing from the University of Derby, Chele has been writing for over a decade, both original fiction and fan fiction. As well as the Out of Orbit series, she has the Teeth urban fantasy thriller series, the Le Cirque Navire series, and a number of other projects just getting off the ground.