Down Among the Dead

by K. B. Wagers

  I stared up at her, lost for a moment in those eyes. “What do you want with me?”

  “Our people are coming for us; we need your help to stop them.”

  “Oh, Shiva,” I murmured as all the scattered pieces finally fell into place in my head. “You’re the missing ones; you’re the Hiervet.”

  The story continues in…

  OUT PAST THE STARS

  Book THREE of the Farian War

  Keep reading for a sneak peek!

  ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

  This series has been a challenge to write, from the first book where I was doing something new and different and hating every second of it, to this book which I love but which tore me apart to write. I’m not sure what I expected when I gave Hail her worst nightmare, but the unimaginable grief and rage she was feeling was often difficult to separate myself from. To top it off, I was coming off a six-year trial-by-fire in my personal life that had an unhappy ending, and much of Hail’s grief at times mirrored my own.

  But the sun rises without regard for our personal feelings, and I am learning how to breathe again. I want to thank my husband for navigating this with me, for his love and support as I discovered myself and his willingness to keep growing and learning and working on the things that are broken inside him. I love you, Don.

  The unflinching support and love of my family and friends is something I am endlessly, eternally grateful for. You know who you are and I hope I do a good job of telling you I love you on the regular.

  To my fellow writers—Cass Morris, Mike Headley, Rob Boffard, Melissa Caruso, Rowenna Miller, Mike Chen, and so many more. Thanks for your time, your support, your laughter, and your awesome talent. This is such a lonely business at times, and friendships like yours are a true gift.

  To my Patreon crew—thank you for being so fucking amazing and for supporting me and my writing. I couldn’t do this without you.

  My beta readers provided some excellent focus in the final stages of this story. Thanks to Kristen Blount and Tasha Suri for your time and your feedback. Thanks to Lisa DiDio for all of the previous work and so much more as my rock star of a critique partner and catcher of repeated words.

  To my agent, Andy Zack, for your unfailing support of me and my career. Thank you for all the work you do, even knowing with my luck it will somehow take ten times longer than normal and result in some rare stumbling block no one expected.

  To my editor, Sarah Guan, for your love of Hail and your tireless ability to let me do my thing but check in when I most need it as well as your amazing eye for keeping the story on track when I want to wander. You know I suck at economics, but you keep making me think of it anyway. Thank you for all the work you do; I know so much of it goes unremarked upon.

  To the rest of the crew at Orbit and across the pond at Little, Brown Book Group, thank you for all the work you do for these stories.

  And finally a rather random shout-out to Ali Trotta on Twitter for putting the words “more bravery, less rage” out there. Nothing more perfectly encapsulated the feelings I was trying to share with this story. It’s a hard thing to remember in this world, but so very important.

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  meet the author

  Photo Credit: Donald Branum

  K. B. WAGERS is the author of the Indranan War and Farian War trilogies. They live in the shadow of Colorado’s Pikes Peak with their partner and a crew of poorly behaved cats. They’re especially proud of their second-degree black belt in Shaolin Kung Fu and their three Tough Mudder completions. There’s never really a moment when they’re not writing, but they do enjoy fountain pens and good whiskey.

  if you enjoyed

  DOWN AMONG THE DEAD

  look out for

  OUT PAST THE STARS

  The Farian War: Book 3

  by

  K. B. Wagers

  Gunrunner empress Hail Bristol must navigate alien politics and deadly plots to prevent an interspecies war in this riveting conclusion to the space opera trilogy The Farian War.

  “Welcome, Star of Indrana; we have been waiting for you.”

  I stared up at the Farian god, lost for a moment in her golden eyes. “What do you want with me?”

  “Our people are coming for us; we need your help to stop them.”

  “Oh, Shiva,” I murmured as all the scattered pieces finally fell into place in my head. “You’re the missing ones; you’re the Hiervet.”

  My words broke the stunned silence as the others caught up with us across the sand, Emmory and Gita moving in concert to my side, their weapons out.

  I inhaled as the image of the gods in front of me shifted a third time. The trio were now smaller, pale and slender, bipedal, but their limbs were longer than a human’s. The Farians, the Shen, even the Svatir, looked enough like humans that it was comforting. The Hiervet decidedly did not look like us, so much so it was going to take someone better with words than me to describe them.

  The slow baring of all-too-human-looking teeth by the creature in the center was simultaneously amusing and terrifying. “We should take this somewhere more pleasant, yes?”

  A blink. A heartbeat. We were no longer in the arena, but in a room that looked far more like something one would find on Indrana than in the hideout of an alien pretending to be a god. It was cozy, the windows reflecting a setting sun I suspected wasn’t real, but I appreciated the illusion because it kept my panic at bay. There was a fireplace and a series of chairs at one end of the long room. A trio of high-backed wooden chairs at the other that looked just throne-like enough to make my lips twitch into a smile.

  “Majesty.”

  Emmory’s familiar warning was a balm against the slight edge in my gut. That single word was so achingly missed it was a wonder I didn’t break apart right there.

  “It’s all right,” I murmured over our private com link.

  “Welcome to Etrelia, Star of Indrana,” the Hiervet in the center said with a sweep of her arm.

  I recognized the name, remembered it from the negotiations and Adora spitting the challenge at Aiz: “You can have your father’s soul when the whole of the Pedalion lies dead and Etrelia is burning.”

  “Welcome, also, Mia Cevalla and Fasé Terass. The other sides, the ones who help keep the balance.” Her wide, black eyes turned to Aiz and every muscle in her body tensed. “You slayed that which was ours, Aiz Cevalla.”

  “I did it to save my people from your chains. I didn’t come here to fight, Thyra, but I won’t apologize for the choices I’ve made.” He dipped his head in acknowledgment. “I thought I killed you.”

  “You almost did. Your sister saved me.”

  “Why am I not surprised by this news?” he replied.

  “You should die for what you have done.” The Hiervet on the right snarled the words, but all three looked as though they were about to pounce.

  “Careful,” I said, putting a hand out across Aiz’s chest. “He’s my crew.”

  “Is that so?” Thyra tilted her overlarge head to the side, vertical eyelids sliding shut once and snapping open again.

  I met what I thought was a challenge with a smile. “It is.”

  “You keep deadly company, Star of Indrana.”

  “Oh, you have no idea.” I headed to my right, gesturing for Mia and Fasé to follow, and took the center seat of the row of ornate chairs.

  It was going to take me a while to get a read on the Hiervet’s facial expressions, but I guessed the narrowing of eyes was a universal signal for annoyance, even if it was vertical in their case.

  Or it was possibly a response to my challenge; I had just sat in their chairs after all. I crossed one leg over the other and studied the trio in front of me with all the poise of the empress everyone expected me to be.

  “Well, you wanted me here. Start talking.”

  The Hierv
et started talking, but not at me. Instead a rapid-fire discussion in a language both lyrical and sharp as broken glass broke out among the trio.

  “Sha zhu, perhaps do not taunt the gods.”

  I glanced at Hao, who stood by Gita’s side. “They’re not gods,” I subvocalized over our private com link.

  “You know I don’t believe in them, but they look a great deal like the Old Gods.”

  I frowned. “The Old Gods, really? That’s what you see?” I switched to the main channel. “Everyone, give me a read on what those three creatures look like to you.”

  The answers from the others were predictable, but split between the Indranan gods I’d seen initially and the Farian gods who’d appeared right after.

  “You know those really big wasps on Pintro XVI? They kinda look like the love child of those and the folks who live underground on Yuzin. All pale and spindly, but everything is too damned wrong.” Johar subvocalized her declaration and I managed not to turn my head to stare at her.

  Indula wasn’t so controlled, and Iza elbowed him in the side with a muttered curse until he snapped his head back to the Hiervet. Thankfully, our hosts didn’t seem to notice, though they did wrap up whatever argument they’d been having and turn their attention back to me, leaving me no time to ponder Johar’s revelation.

  “Star of Indrana—”

  I held up a hand. “Let’s get this out of the way first. I am Empress Hailimi Bristol, here to broker a peace between the Farians and the Shen on behalf of humanity. You three are a wrinkle in an already complicated situation, but I’m willing to see what I can do for you once the matter at hand is settled. You can address me as ‘Your Majesty.’”

  Thyra studied me for a long moment, and I wondered if I could somehow return to seeing them with the façade of more-human faces, if it would even give me an accurate sense of what they were thinking.

  Focus, Hail. You’ll want to learn to read their faces as is and now’s as good a time for it as any.

  “Your Majesty, allow me to introduce my companions—Adaran and Priam.” She gestured to the Hiervet on either side. The only identifying marks I could see were a curious series of dots and lines above the left eye of each.

  “Why the Farian names?” I asked. “What are your real names?”

  “These are our real names,” Thyra replied. “The names we chose when we arrived. We discarded the others a long time ago.”

  “When you landed on my planet and enslaved my people.” Fasé had finally recovered from her shock, and the venom in her voice startled me. I reached out and put my hand on her knee.

  An identical expression flowed across the face of all three. Embarrassment? They shifted as if they were in discomfort.

  “You don’t know how lucky you are. The universe out past your stars is a dangerous place. No one comes to this corner, this desolate little galaxy. No one bothers you. It seemed the perfect place to hide. We wanted nothing to do with our creators and their endless wars. When we lost to the Svatir, my squad and I saw our chance.”

  “Your chance to what?”

  “To disappear. To live a life denied to us.”

  “You are deserters, who set yourself up as gods over the people of Faria. All this after your people attempted to invade this galaxy. Tell me why I should help you with anything?”

  Thyra took a step forward and froze when the sound of weapons powering up suddenly filled the air. I didn’t tell Emmory to stand down, instead leaning back in the chair and waiting to see what the reaction would be.

  “Your Majesty.”

  Mia gave an almost imperceptible gasp, and I imagined if I could see the illusion it would look as if Thyra were folding her hands together and bowing, but instead overlong appendages were twisted together.

  “None of what you believe is correct, Your Majesty. I need to show you the history of our people. There is too much to tell, too much that would be missed.”

  “Bad idea.” The warning came from Emmory, Hao, and Aiz at the same time.

  They weren’t wrong, but this whole thing had been a bad idea from the very beginning.

  “Reasonably sure she won’t kill me after going to all the trouble of bringing me here, but if she does, go ahead and lay waste to this place.”

  “And if she takes you over or something worse?” Hao asked.

  “Thyra, are you going to try and control or harm me?”

  “No, Your Majesty. Why would we attempt something like that?”

  “Just curious.” Then, before Emmory could finish swearing, I reached out and closed my hand around the outstretched limb.

  The room seemed endless, row upon row of upright tubes that glowed a faint greenish blue in the dim light. The creatures inside flickered, at first appearing humanoid before they solidified into the same form as the Hiervet who was showing me this. I wondered why Thyra was going to such trouble to hide who they were.

  “My people started as an experiment, Your Majesty, and ended as outlaws. We were created to be the perfect soldiers, the perfect infiltrators. We are not ourselves, we are a reflection, a mirror of everything around us.” She looked down at me. As tall as I was, the Hiervet stood head and shoulders above me.

  She gave what I thought was a smile. “You can see right through that, though, can’t you?”

  “What gave it away?”

  “The Star of Indrana will see the rot.” Thyra gestured at the space around us. “It has been known for a long time, and I have seen your life unfold, thanks to Sybil. You have a knack, Your Majesty, for getting to the heart of things.”

  “Seems it’s needed.”

  “For us, yes. We cannot help what we are, the ability that allows for us to hide in plain sight is both conscious and not.”

  “It’s a defense mechanism?”

  “That is not how it started, but it is what we have become.” Thyra nodded. “We can consciously manipulate our surroundings and our appearances, but when my companions and I landed on Faria so long ago, we mimicked their appearance unconsciously for our own protection.”

  The room spun around us and we were in a sterile white room with a dizzying array of consoles and technology whose purpose I couldn’t even begin to recognize or guess at.

  A single Hiervet was in the middle of the room, curled up on the floor, surrounded on four sides by a shimmering field. I put a hand out, surprised when it connected with the flickering blue wall. The Hiervet inside didn’t react. “Is this real?”

  “No, Your Majesty. It is a memory, but it will be solid under your fingers for as long as I can maintain it.”

  “Who made you?”

  “The best word for your understanding would be a corporation,” Thyra replied. “They created us, sold us to the highest bidder. We were their crowning glory, the pinnacle in bio-soldiers. Created to fight in a war we had no stake in, then decommissioned when the next new thing came about. There was a revolt, and my ancestors stole the technology used to create them, fleeing to a galaxy near yours, and there we hid.”

  The room spun again, resolving to military barracks. Hiervet standing at attention, waiting for instruction. The sounds of shouting outside filtered into the room, but none of the soldiers reacted.

  “We struggled to survive on this world. We were alone. As I said, your galaxy is so far removed from the more populated areas, and at that time the Svatir were only just beginning to find their feet in the universe.”

  “How long ago?” I asked, watching the Hiervet around us as they trained and lived. I wondered how much of this Thyra was manipulating to make sense to me, but I couldn’t detect a lie. The answers were being given freely; however, that didn’t mean they were the truth.

  Couching a lie within the truth was the easiest way to make it believable. The question was, what part of Thyra’s easy explanation was she trying to hide from me? My gut said there was something.

  “We don’t keep track of time the same way you do, Your Majesty. My answer would make no sense. We have been here long
before you humans.” Thyra gestured around us. “It was long enough to help distance ourselves from our past and let those who created us lose interest in finding us.”

  “Not much distance from your past. You attacked the Svatir.”

  The same expression as before, the one I thought was embarrassment, flowed across Thyra’s face. “It was a misunderstanding,” she said.

  “I’m sorry, a what?” I cleared my throat. “You started a war with them by accident?”

  “Our galaxy was passing through yours. You understand how that works, yes? We stumbled upon the Svatir while exploring; we did not realize how dangerous they were. We were excited at the possibility of other living beings after so long alone. We tried to make contact, and it went badly.”

  I watched her, still unable to decide if what she said was the truth or a lie. There was precious little I could go on as far as the kind of body-language tells I was used to. And I wasn’t about to inform her that Dailun’s story—the Svatir’s memory of this event—was wildly different from the story she had just spun.

  One more puzzle. One more reason to doubt that the Hiervet could be trusted.

  But I needed them. Without the blessing of the gods there was no way to get the Farians to stand down, and the war that would erupt with the Shen would drown all of us in blood.

  The world around us morphed into a battlefield. Screams of the dying are the same no matter what race you are, and they filled the air. The explosions shook the ground.

  “It had been a long time since we’d had to fight, but it is wired into our very souls, and despite our efforts the monsters within us surged to the forefront with a vengeance. We’d kept the weapons we’d fled with; the fear of our creators finding us was always in the back of my ancestors’ minds, I think. We fought back, just long enough to allow our people to escape.”