Variant: A science fiction thriller (The Predictive: Deep Space Fringe Wars Book 2)

by L. V. Lane

  Outside was hazy but dry, and we hopped into a buggy for the short distance to the landing site. A dozen guard bots waited under Riley’s command. On the right of the landing area were several rows of quarantine pods. Each pod contained a bed and necessary facilities for each person to await their fate. Fully automated, the candidate would be administered the virus on entry. They could not exit their individual pods without the test. Any who failed the test would be sedated, those who passed would be granted the right to leave.

  I thought the process would work well, and the presence of the guard bots would ensure the future colonists complied.

  At the sound of an approaching transport, we climbed out the buggy, looking skyward.

  “Not quite as dramatic as our landing day,” Eric said dryly.

  The transport landed with a gentle bump, and the ramp lowered, revealing Victor Loire and his elite security team.

  Victor’s face smoothed out as he emerged and noticed the bots.

  Yep, still pissed. And going to be even more so when he realized I was putting him into a cell.

  I held up a hand when they were twenty paces away.

  The former mogul’s gaze took in Eric and me, before shifting to encompass the guard bots. Finally, his gaze settled with open distaste on the waiting pods. “Coulter-46 wasn’t quite what I expected, in more ways than one.”

  “Serenity,” I corrected.

  “Serenity?” There was a subtle raising of Victor’s brow.

  Eric grinned. “It’s ironic.”

  “Yes, I’m beginning to get the idea.” Victor indicated the pods. “Our quarantine, I presume. How long will it last?”

  “Twenty hours,” I replied.

  The briefest smile touched his lips. “Well, then, let us not waste any more time.” With that, he made his way over and entered the nearest pod. Without hesitation, his men also complied.

  “Do you think any of them will be Federation?” Eric nodded at the pods as we both turned and left the site.

  “Is that a hopeful note I detect?” I raised an eyebrow at Eric.

  “Hey, I’m not the one who’s locking up a cranky former business mogul for twenty hours without a word of explanation. You could talk to him while he’s in there instead of letting him stew. I swear, your brain works in the oddest ways sometimes.”

  “As you said, Eric. Former being the operative word. We’ve all had to make adjustments. Victor is going to be making a few, too. The same rules will apply to everyone.”

  “Ah.” Eric chuckled as we walked back to the buggy. “I’m going to get Riley to record the conversation between you when he gets out. I think it might be one for the history archives. Serenity’s first pissing contest.”

  I grinned. “I think it already happened. I’m confident I already won.”

  EPILOGUE

  Eva

  I HAD LAST seen Victor Loire prior to leaving for the voyage. That was one standard-year of experienced life ago, and over a century in elapsed time. He appeared the epitome of relaxed, sitting in his plush apartment overlooking the forests blanketed by shadows from the towers. Little warnings had fired off when he had sent for me, but it had been a busy month since the ship’s arrival, and I thought it might simply be a case of being overstimulated with the many colonist interviews.

  The storm god was sleeping today, and brilliant blue skies met the endless forest canopy. “It fits its name, Serenity, today.”

  “Yes, you’re right. It doesn’t look so threatening from up here.” Victor’s tall frame looked relaxed in the seating arrangement, and humor shone from his handsome face. “Although, I hear Landon received quite a bit of flak for the name during your trials over the last standard-year. Who knows? Maybe the man is a predictive. It turned out to be the perfect name after all.” His pale eyes closed to speculative slits. “It’s amazing what a man will confess under the influence of sufficient quantities of alcohol. It seems he named it after a vision of you sleeping. Eric thought it was hysterical. I feared he might injure himself, he laughed so hard.”

  A little knot settled in my stomach. How did I miss that? A prediction unfurled. It was the repeat of one I’d had long ago back on Ila. A nice kind of prediction that loosened a knot into a flutter that spanned out until I could feel it in the tips of my fingers and to the very roots of my hair.

  There had been numerous unsubstantiated rumors about Landon. Many instigated by Eric, although most people observed after a short time around Landon that something wasn’t quite right. He didn’t read like normal people either. I’d read my share of psychopaths and sociopaths, but Landon was something else. While some of his traits might be considered notches on the psychopathy scale, I knew there was more to his behavior than a well-documented mental affliction. His parents were both geneticists, and I had long since retrospectively predicted that they had experimented on their son. Whether this had occurred before or after his birth was academic.

  For all that, Landon wasn’t cold or emotionless, and I thought I might be the only person who understood this.

  “I hear you’ve had quite an adventure while I’ve been in transit.”

  “Adventure?” I sipped the wine Riley had configured the room printer to produce, and marveled at how close it was to the real thing. “I was drugged by a Federation saboteur, subsequently discarded as of little use, and spent most of the time half-starved. I suppose some might call it an adventure.” And I have missed the luxuries in life, I realized as I studied the glass of red wine before savoring another sip. I’d had enough adventure for a lifetime!

  His grin was all teeth. “Half-starved? Are you sure about that?” He picked up a viewer resting on the low table, and scrolled through it with a thoughtful expression that made me uneasy despite his apparent good humor. “Landon provided me with a long list of your infringements. Lying to a superior, failure to disclose predictive information, disobeying direct orders, inciting others to follow your insubordinations… and the theft of numerous food-supplement bars.” He gave me an innocent questioning look.

  “The circumstances were mitigating!” Except perhaps for the supplement bars. I had suffered a great deal of guilt every time I took one. “I’m still not comfortable with animal meat, although many colonists even prefer it now.” I shuddered, just the thought of eating a dead animal made me nauseous. “I never took to the natural food.”

  Placing the wine down on the clear polished table before me with a clatter, I tried to read where Victor was going with this line of questioning. He was unofficially the leader of the colony at present.

  “I could be persuaded to overlook this,” Victor said nonchalantly.

  Persuaded? “Are you making a pass?”

  “Well, if I am, I’m sure you would know.” He raised an eyebrow.

  I tilted my head and pursed my lips. “You prefer men.”

  He grinned. “I prefer beautiful. Gender is less important.”

  I reached for my drink and took another gulp.

  “Although I understand the queue is somewhat long where you’re concerned. I’ve never been much for standing in line.” He said this in a completely serious voice. When I looked up, I found him smirking again. “I instructed our heroic Commander to see personally to your correction.”

  “This isn’t Aterra,” I scoffed. “And it isn’t a dictatorship.”

  “Yes, I am aware. Although, I do believe I will get the vote in our first election. Which won’t be happening for a considerable time since we have another eight ships arriving in rapid succession. Our beautiful city appears ready to receive them, but we never know what might happen next, or indeed what those ships will bring. How do you find the mood among the colonists?”

  His serious side reminded me that he was a former businessman who was well versed in the use of power. He seemed to be adapting to the needs of the colony, but how long would that satisfy him? His business empire had spanned many worlds. He was used to complexity and challenge, but above all, he was used to winning.
There was nothing for him to win or negotiate here. “I’ve interviewed over three hundred people. They are well, relieved to be safe, and ready to embrace their new life. I see no signs of corruption within the sample I spoke to. Many lost everything. They have a new purpose here. They are like children at their first fair, full of hope and wonder. I see nothing of concern.”

  He smiled again. “What a lovely analogy. Our current state of peace must appeal to your altruistic side. What next, Eva? What does our predictive, predict?”

  I smiled. “I don’t know, Victor.” A sudden prediction bloomed. One where Victor took a back seat and someone else, with unique skills, took up the mantle of leading the colony. A man who had demonstrated his capability to the colony in their greatest time of need. Landon had been a leader his entire adult life. Unlike Victor, Landon wasn’t troubled with an ego.

  “I think you do,” Victor said wryly.

  Raising his glass of wine, he offered a toast. “To tomorrow, and whatever craziness it brings.”

  I chinked my glass to his. “To tomorrow.”

  After talking to Victor, I felt strangely free. The freest I had been in my short life.

  I remembered the day I packed and left for the colony. My parents were dead by then, and my life journey had never been the kind to develop friendships, and yet now, when I least expected it, I had found a myriad here.

  My fingers pressed against the windowed wall and I gazed out at a verdant land that still made my breath catch and my heart lift with joy. All my life I had moved around, never settling anywhere, and always that cloud hanging over me in the form of my prediction of doom.

  There were no horrifying scenarios awaiting me here. Sure, there would likely be bumps in the road.

  The selfish part of me wished I had been rendered un-predictive by Brent’s callous act, that I might have spent the rest of my life complaining about stock tagging duties, and that the most stressful component of my day was pilfering supplies.

  Almost.

  There had been a war for so many generations that it had become a way of life. There was no war here—there was serenity and peace. Leaving the falling Aterran empire had been the hardest decision of my life. There were so many who needed me, so many I might have saved or at least prolonged the lives of had I chosen to remain.

  Yet, I knew coming here was the right decision. I saved Riley, and Riley led us here. Without Riley, the city would have rejected us. Without Riley, we may have struggled for years to reach this level of security. Eventually, as we expanded, the city might have seen us as a threat.

  “I guess our city creators will return one day,” Landon said as he came to stand beside me. “And they might not be happy about the squatters on their land.”

  His hand enclosed mine and gave it a gentle squeeze. He had kept us together in our moments of greatest need. He was an amazing leader, and like Victor, I thought his skills might similarly be underutilized in this time and place.

  The door behind us opened to admit Jax.

  “Hey! Riley’s been calling you,” Jax said. As he neared, he snaked an arm around my waist and planted a kiss on the top of my head. “He’s ready!”

  “That was fast,” Landon said, eyes narrowing on Jax’s arm before shaking his head.

  Jax chuckled and stepped back.

  Our lives hadn’t exactly been orthodox. But then again, neither was life in this strange futuristic city we were borrowing.

  After a month, I still had no inclining as to when and if the former creators would return.

  “Said she couldn’t get hold of you?” Jax said, smirking.

  “We were… just taking a moment,” Landon said grinning.

  “Oh yeah?” Jax wiggled his eyebrows. “That the new word for it now?”

  “Can we please drop this already?” I said. “I want to be there when he wakes up!”

  “I feel strangely nervous about meeting him again,” Landon said as we headed toward the door.

  “You? Nervous?” Jax said. “Nothing makes you nervous.”

  “I do have my moments,” Landon replied, scowling as the door to our apartment closed and we made our way to the elevator bank. “And I did coerce him into storing his sentience on a data tag in a highly pressurized situation. What if he doesn’t want to wake up?”

  The elevator arrived with a cheery bong.

  “For what it’s worth, I think he will be dramatically happy,” Jax said. “And his new body is pretty slick. He won’t know the difference.”

  “He’s going to know,” Landon said dryly.

  “How will he know?” Jax grinned.

  They argued about whether Gordon would know the entire elevator journey, along the corridor of the technology center and all the way to the lab. Inside we found Eric, Reeve, and Marik watching on as Rachel and Riley completed the last of their checks. Rachel had been instrumental in the skin meshing technique used to cover the android shell. Riley had covered off the rest of the tech that had gone into the design.

  “See?” Jax said grinning.

  There on the cold metallic bed, was a freshly sleeved android.

  I glanced at Landon to find him studying Gordon in wonder. He grinned. “Okay, maybe he won’t know.”

  “Looks amazing,” Marik said. “Maybe it’s time I got an upgrade on my arm?”

  “You don’t need a damn upgrade on your arm,” Eric muttered. “Just let nature run its course and you’ll blast something else off in no time.”

  “He will not be blasting anything off,” Rachel said in her calm, doctor’s voice. “I like Marik just how it is with all his current body parts, thank you.”

  “Yeah, so I heard,” Eric muttered. “Uf!”

  Reeve had leaned over and punched Eric on the arm. Riley chuckled—it was so good to see her smile and hear her laugh. Over the last month, the former Technologist had finally begun to relax and shine.

  “There,” Riley said. She turned to Landon. “Are you ready?”

  Landon drew a ragged breath in. I slipped my hand into his.

  “Please, don’t hate me, Gordon,” Landon said. He nodded his head at Riley. “Do it.”

  The android on the bed blinked… then frowned… then slowly lifted his head. “Eva! Landon? Sir! Where are we?”

  He sat up and looked around at all the people before his face broke out in a grin that told me everything would be okay. I couldn’t read androids as I could humans. They had an oddly innocent facade. Those like Gordon, had an unwavering willingness to do good.

  “That’s a long story, Gordon,” Landon said. “How are you feeling?”

  “I feel… good. So good. I—” Gordon’s eyes settled on Landon. “The android ship? Did I go there? Did I die?”

  Landon’s fingers squeezed over mine. “Yes, you went there. Yes, you destroyed it. But no, as you can see, you didn’t die. You saved us, Gordon. You saved us all. Thank you for trusting me with your sentience. Now, are you ready to see your new world?”

  “New world? Are we on the colony?” Gordon asked.

  “We are,” Landon said, smiling. “And let me tell you, it packs quite a surprise.”

  The End.

  About the Author

  I LOVE A happy ever after, although sometimes the journey to get there can be rough on my poor characters.

  An unashamed fan of the alpha, the antihero, and the throwback in all his guises and wherever he may lurk.

  I’m a new author, learning as I go and appreciate feedback of all kinds.

  Drop me a message and let me know what you think.

  Where to find me…

  Website: https://authorlvlane.com

  Blog: https://authorlvlane.wixsite.com/controllers/blog

  Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LVLaneAuthor/

  Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/LVLaneAuthor/

  Facebook reader group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/LVLane/

  Twitter: https://twitter.com/AuthorLVLane

  Pinterest: https://www.pin
terest.com.au/authorlvlane

  Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/LVLane

  Punished: A SciFi Alien Romance

  Wild, uncivilized, and deadly, he is all these things and more.

  Yet it is I who has had power over him.

  He calls me his god and creator.

  But they were just words upon a page.

  He says I’m cruel and wicked.

  But I didn’t mean to be.

  None of this matters anymore, for the lines have gotten blurred.

  I need to be punished, and my brutal alien master is going to punish me.

  Trained For Their Pleasure: A MFM fantasy Omegaverse

  Standalone novel with HEA

  I’m a Beta. I’m not supposed to be with an Alpha.

  But he’s taking me anyway.

  Both him and his brother.

  A Beta can be trained, he says.

  Trained to satisfy an Alpha.

  And so my training begins.

  Prey: A Fantasy Reverse Harem

  I am prey.

  This is not pity talking, this is an acknowledgment of a fact.

  I am small and weak; I am an Omega. I am a prize that men war over.

  For a year I have hidden in the distant corner of the Empire.

  But I am running out of food, and I am running out of options.

  That I must leave soon is not a decision for today, though, but a decision for tomorrow.

  Only tomorrow’s choices never come.

  For tonight brings strangers who remind me that I am prey.

  Ravished: A Fantasy Romance Short Story