by Robert Boren
“Serves them right,” Kaleb said. “When can we expect them to attack?”
Vermillion took a deep breath. “We’ve got a lot to tell you.”
“I’ve seen that look before,” Simone said. “You want to talk, but you’re afraid.”
I chuckled. “You two have a lot in your past. Took me a while to recognize that.”
“Let’s keep on target and get past this,” Vermillion said. He told her and Kaleb about the data banks of the dead Clan Razor.
“We’re more alone than we were before,” Kaleb said. “I can’t believe that bastard of a Prime Minister was able to turn Stuart and Bryce. I’m not surprised about Boeraton. Never did trust him. He’s always been an opportunist.”
Simone smiled. “This is good news. War with a thousand Clan Razors was a nightmare scenario. Fighting what’s left of the Central Authority Fleet and taking down Prime Minister Aeon is much easier.”
“How are we going to take down the Prime Minister?” Kaleb asked.
“The same way we rescued Chairman Vermillion,” I said. “Shall I tell them about the technology?”
“Please,” Vermillion said.
I told them about the AIs and the Nano Suit technology, then the flight suits. Both of them looked stunned.
“That was the technology that Jared Carlson was working on,” Simone said to herself.
“Who’s that?” Simone asked, her eyes wide.
“What is this, a joke?” Kaleb asked.
“Far from it,” Vermillion said. “Alexander Carlson transferred his consciousness to an AI engine before he passed. He’s been running the Samson Corporation the whole time.”
“Grandma Albena told me you were a friend of the family,” Simone said, her eyes glassing over. “You were close friends with grandpa.”
“Now we’re getting into things I didn’t know,” I said, glancing at JJ, who returned a questioning glance. “Who was Simone’s grandfather?”
JJ’s mouth dropped open. “The resistance hero?”
I laughed. “Well, Simone, that explains a lot.”
She smirked, her face flushing. “I don’t know what you mean.”
“Oh, it’s a compliment, believe me.”
“Not to throw a wet blanket, but we need to move forward in a hurry,” Vermillion said. “We’d like you to come to our location. There are some hardware and software upgrades we’ve been working for your ships.”
Simone smiled. “You trust us enough to bring us over?”
Vermillion nodded in agreement. “I do ask that you keep this new information to yourselves and your leadership team, at least for now.”
“That won’t be a problem,” Simone said.
Kaleb laughed. “If we just off and told people everything, they’d never believe it.”
“You might have a point there,” I said.
“What enhancements were you talking about?” Kaleb asked. “I assume it’s over and above the tuning you helped us and the Central Authority Fleet with.”
“It’s Nolan’s drive module, which gives you stealth and better speed and fuel economy,” I said, “and the new shields with the cloaking capability.”
“You’ve got revised shields?” Simone asked. “That’s good. We’ve been trying to figure out how to keep the Clan from overriding our shields.”
“Yes, we were very concerned about that,” I said. “When can you leave?”
“Now,” Simone said. “It’ll take a big bite out of our remaining fuel.”
“Believe it or not, we’ve got more fuel than we can use,” I said. “We’re building more storage containers right now to hold the excess. The New Jersey and our other ships are flush.”
“Good,” Simone said.
“I’m sending you the coordinates,” Vermillion said. “It’ll take you a couple days to get here. We’re orbiting Amberis.”
“Amberis?” Simone asked. “That’s where you’ve been. That’s a level seven world.”
“I know, long story,” Vermillion said. “See you soon.”
“Thank you for everything,” Kaleb said.
Simone smiled. “We’ll be okay. I was starting to lose hope.”
We watched as the screen went black.
“What are you seeing?” JJ asked.
“That’s why it’s essential that we hold off on Ecason’s rescue until after we’ve taken out the Prime Minister and his allies,” Vermillion said.
“Yeah, we just told them everything,” I said.
“Is somebody going to tell us what’s going on?” Vermillion asked.
My PA buzzed. It was Nolan.
“Something wrong, Nolan?” I asked.
“Dojo can’t make contact with Butch,” he said. “Have you heard what’s going on?”
“No,” I said.
“The Prime Minister is going on a rampage. He’s destroyed whole sections of Devonia Axxiom. The official news outlet is saying the areas consisted of Clan traitors. You and I both know that’s not right.”
“Oh no,” JJ said.
“That’s not all. They’ve launched a massive attack at Pentant Simtar. Revenge for the Razors they destroyed.”
I felt my face flush, the rage building in me. JJ saw it, putting her hand over mine.
“No, honey.”
“Where are you?” Nolan asked.
“The Chairman’s office. Simone’s forces are on the way here now.”
Vermillion eyed me. “Tell him to get over here.”
“I heard that,” Nolan said. “On my way.”
“We could do a lot of damage with the flight suits,” I said.
Vermillion nodded. “I’m afraid Drake is correct, Trey. We can’t get involved yet. We will, and sooner than you think, but not right now.”
“Why’d you call Nolan over here?” JJ asked.
Vermillion sighed. “We can’t keep him in the dark. He’s too important. We need him in all the conversations.”
“He doesn’t know?” JJ asked. “Are you sure? Remember the situation with Tac.”
“Yes, I remember,” Vermillion said, “but this isn’t the same.”
I smiled, the power of our team washing over me in an instant. “Nolan is not who he once was. When I first met him, he would’ve gone off on his own and hidden it from me. He won’t do that now.”
“How are you so sure of that?” JJ asked.
Vermillion stared at JJ and me for a moment. “Because he’s one of us. He has been for a while now. He’ll listen and see that we’re right. This team has bonded, and Nolan is right in the middle of it.”
“That’s what I was just feeling,” I said.
“You’re with us too,�
� I said.
“She knows what’s right,” Vermillion said.
“Please,” Vermillion said. It clicked, Nolan walking in.
“Thanks,” he said, sitting down, his face flushed.
“We have some things to tell you,” I said.
He smiled. “I figured. Knew that earlier today.”
I told him about the Clan databanks, the treachery of the Central Authority Fleet, the Clan hired ships which have fled, and Simone joining us.
“This may be crazy, but I’m not surprised by any of this,” Nolan said, “except the stupid move by those Clan captains on Hodge.”
“What we’re going to tell you is the reason you weren’t in the last two meetings,” Vermillion said. “We realize it was short-sighted, so we’re bringing you in now. Our cards are all going on the table.”
Nolan eyed us, not understanding.
Nolan’s eyes widened. “That’s what I originally thought, remember?”
“Yes,” I said.
“I’m not getting why you haven’t told me,” Nolan said.
I looked him in the eye. “Ecason is your grandfather, on your mother’s side.”
Nolan’s eyes welled with tears. “No, that can’t be. I know about him.”
“But you never met him, did you?” Vermillion asked.
“I did, but I was only two. This is hard to believe. Why would they have hidden it?”
“When we’re done, we’ll mount a rescue,” I said. “We know how.”
Nolan leaned back in his chair for a moment. “You thought I’d go nuts and rush right over there.”
“Well, yeah,” I said, “but that wasn’t fair, because you’re bonded to this team now. You’ll listen, and you know what’s right. I give you my word we will pursue the rescue. I say that as a friend.”
Nolan trembled, his face reddening, glancing at all of us. “You’re right. We’ll pursue it together, when it’s the best time to do it, and we’ll have to be careful, because we don’t want a war with the Clan.”
“Yes,” I said. “We aren’t ready to take on a thousand Razors. Yet.”
JJ looked at Nolan, who nodded. “Yes, we think we’re ready, but we’ll need to do a lot of testing.”
“Good,” Vermillion said. “I say we break this meeting and go work our parts of this. We’ve only got about forty-eight hours before Simone gets here.”
“Most important?” JJ asked. “There’s so much.”
I stood. “No there isn’t. It’s just one thing.”
“What?” JJ asked.
“Where we go one, we go all.”
To be continued, in Galaxy of War, the next section of The Seeded Universe Collection.
About the Author
Robert Boren is a writer from the South Bay section of Southern California. He writes Short Stories, Novels, and Serialized Fiction.
Other books
by Robert Boren
Bug Out! Texas
Carrie is one tough mother.
It’s a normal day at the Dripping Springs Superstore. Shoppers look at merchandise while keeping their kids under control. Customers wait in the check-out lines, some chatting, others silently bored.
Everything is about to change.
Terrorists rush in with guns blazing, killing all who try to escape, rounding up the rest to hold hostage.
Carrie, pregnant mother with a four-year-old at home, escapes into a stockroom closet. She calls her husband Jason, an Austin Police Officer.
Jason and his partner find a raging massacre in the parking lot. They attack, badly outnumbered until Kelly and his rednecks fly onto the parking lot in their pickup trucks, shooting the terrorists where they stand.
Inside the store, Carrie’s hiding place is about to be discovered.
She pulls the pistol from her purse and waits, firing when her closet is opened, killing an enemy fighter and making her escape.
As her husband frantically searches for her, Carrie slips into the storefront and attacks, foiling the terrorist’s plans.
Reunited, Carrie and Jason think the danger is over.
They are wrong.
Terrorists attack them at home later that night, forcing them to flee into the darkness. Others join them as they try to find safety, the relentless enemy hounding them wherever they go.
Now there is only one thing left to do.
Fight back. Hunt the hunters.
If you love action-packed tales of bravery, self-reliance, and the triumph of the human spirit, you’ll love Bug Out! Texas. Download your copy today! Available here!
Stolen Youth
George Franklin is having a bad week.
The FBI is after him for what he did.
His MERC friend wants him dead for what he did.
The families of Red Dagger and Earl Wilson are on their way too, for what he did.
His woman is missing.
So is his best friend and partner.
He has few leads, and now somebody has killed his dog.
Somebody will pay. No, scratch that. Many will pay.
We’re talking the ultimate price here. Never poke at the lion unless you’re sure his cage his locked up tight.
Stolen Youth is the second book from the Franklin & Davis Files.
If you love lurid, violent, sex-filled stories in the vein of Harold Robbins, Sam Peckinpah, or Quentin Tarantino, you’ll really get off on Stolen Youth.
Note from the author: The Franklin & Davis Files books are much darker and more graphic than the Bug Out! Series books. They are for readers no younger than 18.
Buy your copy today, available here.
Oh, and watch your back. They’re coming.
Never a Loose End
Loose ends. Malcolm Davis hates loose ends.
In "Never A Loose End", Malcolm Davis and his friend George Franklin are on a manhunt.
Why?
Revenge.
A clan of psycho killers is active again, after hiding for years. What has brought them out?
George and Malcolm are both targets, marked for murder, but why?
Follow George and Malcolm as they dash through the Southwest in their Motorhomes to head off the mayhem planned by the psycho killers
Murder, gun battles, bombings, and general mayhem reign in "Never A Loose End"
Who will survive? Will the hunted be brought down, or will the vigilantes get revenge instead?
Find out in "Never A Loose End - Vigilante Revenge" - A Franklin and Davis Files Thriller.
This is the story that started it all for George Franklin and Malcolm Davis. Some of you know them from the later episodes of the Bug Out! series, set seven years later. This is the story of how they met, and the battle that forged them into a formidable team.
Note from the author: The Franklin & Davis Files books are much darker and more graphic than the Bug Out! Series books. They are for readers no younger than 18.
Never A Loose End i
s available here.
Bug Out! Boxed Set
Here it is! Bug Out! Boxed Set Volume 1 - Books 1-4.
What would you do if you were no longer safe in your neighborhood?
Frank and Jane have had it. Every night the looting gets closer to their home, while the authorities do nothing but ask for calm. Life has become terrifying.
Frank pulls a gun on looters running up his driveway. The thugs flee.
Frank knows they’ll be back.
The last thing Jane wants to do is live in their motorhome, but Frank talks her into it. The open road is dangerous. Staying in LA is worse.
They barely get out of town alive, as California explodes behind them. Eastbound I-10 is flooded with others trying to escape, as military convoys rush west.
Is there safety to the east, or more mayhem?
This is the first of four boxed sets. The books have been re-edited but not abridged. Follow Frank and Jane as they escape California, build their resistance team, and take the fight to the enemy.
If you love action-packed tales of bravery, self-reliance, and the triumph of the human spirit, you’ll love Bug Out! Boxed Set Volume 1 - Books 1-4.
Available here!