by T. R. Harris
********
They now huddled in the ship’s lounge, quiet and reflective. Celebration would come later. For now it was a time of rest and contemplation.
Sherri was cuddled up with Copernicus, napping as Coop absently stroked her hair. Kaylor and Jym were at a nearby table, munching on food like it was going out of style, while Riyad was spread out on a recliner, staring at the ceiling, lost in thought.
For that matter, so was Adam. He was in the process of categorizing the events of the past two weeks, putting things in perspective the best he could.
First of all, he knew there were over one hundred thousand Nuorean warships still prowling the Milky Way. It would take time and effort to erase their cancer from the galaxy, but it would be done. Adam felt a trace of payback knowing that aliens aboard those ships wouldn’t learn of Nuor’s destruction until if—or when—another pulse came through from Andromeda. Until then, they would be confused and adrift, not knowing what happened or what to do next.
And there was the rub: Adam had no idea if the bombs had gone off. For all he knew, the generator complex at LP-6 was still intact, just waiting for the Nuoreans to build another control station or send the one they already have back to where it belonged. The LP-5 station was still active, so it was possible for them to do just that—after the race recovered from the loss of their homeworld, of course.
But recover they would, whether LP-6 was destroyed or not. The Nuoreans were competitors of the highest degree. A normal species—having just suffered the same catastrophic event—would think twice about repeating their mistake. Not the Nuoreans. They would see it as the ultimate challenge. They would be back, Adam was sure of it.
When was the question?
Adam couldn’t see them doing it in less than fifty years—even if LP-6 was intact. If it wasn’t, then the estimate extended out another hundred years or more. Fortunately, none of the team would be around under either circumstance.
Adam quickly amended his last statement. There was a possible he would be still here. His mutant cells could repair external injuries in a jiff; he was sure they were also working to keep his internal organs young and vibrant. Was he immortal, or only semi-immortal? He didn’t know, and at this point, it didn’t matter.
The one thing he did know for sure—that baring some unfortunate event—Adam Cain would outlive his friends.
And there was the curse of immortality: He would have to suffer through the pain and sorrow of watching his friends grow old and die. In an instant, the past twenty years flashed before his eyes, all in vivid detail, thanks to his mutant tumor. The six people in the room had shared many an adventure during that time—with Adam again quickly amending the word adventure to read episode. Adventure had the connotation of thrills and excitement, as in fun. Adam would hardly consider the episodes they’d shared as fun.
But they sure were thrilling.
With his new-found perspective, he vowed to make sure there would be many more episodes ahead for Adam Cain and his band of intrepid heroes….
After all, old soldiers never die. They just pick up a weapon and carry on.
The
(New)
Beginning
Look for the next thrilling adventure in
The Human Chronicles Saga:
Galactic Vortex
Coming in June, 2017
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Novels by T.R. Harris
The Human Chronicles Saga
The Fringe Worlds
Alien Assassin
The War of Pawns
The Tactics of Revenge
The Legend of Earth
Cain’s Crusaders
The Apex Predator
A Galaxy to Conquer
The Masters of War
Prelude to War
The Unreachable Stars
When Earth Reigned Supreme
A Clash of Aliens
Battlelines
The Copernicus Deception
Scorched Earth
Alien Games
The Cain Legacy
The Andromeda Mission
Jason King – Agent to the Stars Series
The Enclaves of Sylox
Treasure of the Galactic Lights
The Drone Wars Series
Day of the Drone
In collaboration with George Wier…
The Liberation Series
Captains Malicious
