Redemption: Sci Fi Romance (Far Hope Series Book 2)

by E. A. James

  THOR PREVIEW - FAR HOPE SERIES - BOOK #1

  CHAPTER ONE

  “Captain, I’m not sure the ship can take it,” Kira’s co-pilot said from his seat to her right.

  Kira didn’t take her eye off the monitor in front of her. She could see the Rengar ship coming straight towards them, but her hands didn’t flinch on the controls.

  “That’s your problem, Johan,” she said calmly. “You don’t trust the ship.”

  “I wouldn’t call it as much a trust issue as a practical one. The rat’s vessel is much bigger than ours.”

  Referring to their targets as “rats” was not meant as a slight, rather a relatively accurate description of their appearance. Still, the description did capture the essence of the intelligent rodent race accurately. They truly were the rats of the galaxy—scheming and clever, dealing primarily with the black market, selling stolen goods and offering nefarious services in the Galactic Bazaar.

  That’s what brought Kira to this moment. A group of Rengar pirates had stolen goods from a leading political officer of the Terran Alliance, and being one of the Alliance’s leading combat pilots, she was called in to track down the ship, and lead a mission to retrieve the cargo.

  “That’s something we will use to our advantage,” Kira replied confidently. Reaching for the intercom, she dialed in the code linked to the bridge. “Rix,” she said, speaking directly to the ship’s engineer, “make sure the shields are up. We’re expecting contact in ten, nine…” as she counted down, she watched the image on the screen grow larger and larger.

  Johan nervously clutched the throttle in his hands so tightly that his knuckles were beginning to turn white. Kira continued to count, waiting until she reached “two” before thrusting the vessel forward and sending the ship into a high-speed plummet.

  The Rengar ship just nicked their right wing, but with the shields up, the pirates’ Junker did little damage to the top-of-the-line Terran Alliance fighter she was piloting. Johan held his breath as she turned the ship hard right and once again began to climb, heading directly towards the belly of the enemy ship.

  Rix’s voice came over the intercom. “They’re lowering their guns, Captain,” he informed her.

  “Good,” she replied, watching for the cannons to drop out below the pirate ship. “Ready the missiles,” she ordered Johan.

  His hands shook slightly as he typed a command code into the console in front of him. The ship shuddered as the missiles moved to the ready position.

  As they continued to get closer and closer to the pirate vessel, the air in the cockpit became electric with tension. Kira loved these moments. The adrenaline that pumped through her veins, the feeling of control that overwhelmed her, waiting for the perfect moment to give the order.

  “We’re getting too close,” Johan warned, ready to reach for the controls in front of him and pull the ship back.

  “Don’t even think about it,” Kira said firmly. “We’re almost there.”

  "They're targeting us," Rix's voice came over the intercom again.

  “They won’t have time,” Kira said, moving her hand towards the missile launch switch. “Switching to weapons only control, Johan, you have the controls – try not to panic.”

  Training the cross-hairs that appeared on her screen to the slits from which the guns were lowering on the underbelly of the enemy ship, she inhaled sharply. Just as the large, cannon-sized barrels swiveled in their direction she hit the launch.

  Simultaneously, she shouted to Johan to dive. “Take us down, now!” she ordered, keeping her eyes glued to the screen.

  There was a blast; large enough to disrupt their flight pattern slightly, but not so large that it destroyed the Rengar ship.

  “Perfect,” she said analyzing the data on her console, shooting a cocky smile to Johan. “You can radio the others and let them know the ship has been disabled. Have reinforcements sent in, and the clean-up crew sent out to retrieve what the rat’s stole this time.”

  Johan made the call while she relaxed back in her seat. Radioing down to the bridge, she confirmed that the remaining members of her small crew were safe. Rix, although slightly shaken, confirmed that they were.

  “No matter how many flights I take with you, Captain, I will never cease to be amazed by your tactics,” Johan said once he had finished the call.

  “I think by tactics you must mean recklessness”, Kira wryly replied. “Have I ever not gotten you home safely Johan?”

  She had worked with Johan on a number of occasions, although they were far from close. He was a stocky man, with the same tanned skin and dark brown eyes that were typical of almost all the Terran race. Although he was a year older than her, making him 34-years old, she was his superior, something she sensed he resented.

  “Not yet,” he said with a slight scoff. “But I tell my wife that if I ever don’t make it home for dinner, it’s probably because I’ve been out with you.”

  “God,” Kira replied, wrinkling her nose in disgust, “that could send the wrong message.”

  “Hey! You’d be lucky to get a guy like me; you know that?”

  “You may be right,” she said, raising an eyebrow, “at least I know you can follow orders. Men usually aren’t very good at that.”

  Kira had been in a handful of relationship throughout her adult life. But, none of them stuck. Her success often seemed to intimidate. It wasn’t just her professional identity that left them feeling inferior, but her overall demeanor. She didn’t ever back down from a fight, and she rarely admitted she was wrong—because she usually wasn’t.

  On the surface, she didn’t seem to be the rough-and-tumble person that she was. With a petite frame and small figure, she was often underestimated. In addition, she found that she attracted a lot of attention, more attention than she would have liked, simply because of her physical appearance. While she did share the basic qualities as the other Terran's from her home planet Earth—dark hair and tanned skin—she had blue eyes. It was a recessive trait that had almost completely disappeared from the planet generations earlier. Today, individuals with light eyes or hair were looked at as some sort of commodity on throughout the empire.

  Thankfully, a strong relationship with the Telani, a race native to the planet Maelor, had somewhat quelled the fascination with the fairer Terran's. Telani were known for their bright, blue eyes and platinum blond hair. Most Terran men would jump at the chance to be with a Telani woman.

  Johan’s wife was Telani, a fact he constantly bragged about. That was one of the reasons why Kira never felt the need to take it easy on her co-pilot. It was good for him to have a lesson in humility from time to time.

  “Set the coordinates for the T.S.F Victory,” she ordered Johan, not giving him time to respond to her previous comment, but relishing in the satisfaction that her command simply served to prove her point.

  He let out a disgruntled huff as he did as she said. Just as they pulled away from the scene of the encounter, five larger Terran Alliance ships swarmed in to complete the task they had started.

  Smiling to herself, Kira settled back into her chair. Flipping the auto-pilot switch, she let the ship do the rest of the work for her, taking them back to the Terran forces’ flagship, where they would dock and debrief—the official end of their mission.

  Johan still seemed tense. Perhaps he was simply upset with her earlier comment. "Relax," she said to him, kicking her feet up and closing her eyes. "In no time at all, we'll be home, and getting ready to start our three-week leave. Hopefully, that's enough time for your hands to stop shaking.”

  CHAPTER TWO

  “What the hell were you thinking, Kira?” her commanding officer asked her, his face slightly red.

  They were seated in a debriefing room aboard the T.F.S Victory. It was a small room, with no windows. Kira always felt like she was being interrogated rather than debriefed, but then again, the military protocol did save lives. Still, she wished these conversations would normally start without the atta
ck on her judgment.

  "I was thinking about completing my rather straightforward mission in the safest way possible so I could get back to Earth and start my leave, Admiral," she said pointedly.

  Admiral Artanis let out a long sigh as he slid into the chair across from her. “You can’t keep taking risks like that.”

  “It wasn’t a risk. I knew what I was doing.”

  Artanis crossed his arms over his chest and leaned back in his chair, giving her the same look he so often did—one of disbelief with a slight hint of pride. While he was always hard on her, he had a soft spot for her as well. Over the years, they had developed an odd relationship. The only way Kira could think to describe it was that of a father and his rebellious daughter.

  Admiral Artanis was usually not dealing with such trivial issues as mission debriefs, but Kira was one of a select few pilots assigned to the Admiral’s retinue that he was directly responsible for.

  “Kira, you forced an encounter with a Rengar pirate ship, easily eight times the size of your own, with a significant weapons array. We had a battle plan drawn up that did not include you breaking formation and moving in without the support of the battle group.”

  “I needed them to lower their guns so I could get a clear shot at disabling their engine systems.”

  "That's another thing," Geoff said, leaning forward, running his fingers through his slightly graying hair. "What if you had been off target, just a little? You could have blown the entire ship, not just the engines.”

  “I knew I wouldn’t miss, sir.”

  “We could have lost all of that cargo Kira, and that would mean our conversation could have been very different.”

  “We didn’t, plus, this would not have been necessary in the first place if Terran High Command took the necessary precautions to protect sensitive cargo.”

  Geoff sighed, “It’s getting harder and harder to write these reports, skewing them in a way that keeps you out of trouble and in my employ,” he said, reaching for the tablet sitting on the table between them.

  “If anyone can find a way to do it, it’s you, sir,” she replied, shooting him a thankful smile as she pushed herself up. “Is that all?”

  “Yes,” he said with another sigh. “It’s easier to write this if you tell me less rather than more.”

  “I couldn’t agree more.”

  “You are officially on leave, Captain Winter,” Artanis replied. “I hope three weeks is enough time for me to forget how difficult you are to keep around,” he said wryly.

  “I appreciate that sir” Kira said shooting him one last smile over her shoulder. The heavy security door closed behind her as she exited the room. Kira proceeded to head straight for the locker room. She had spent the last several hours dreaming of a nice, long, hot shower. It was her preferred way to relax after a mission—stressful or not.

  As the warmth of the steam wafted around her, and the piping hot water cascaded down over her, she thought of her upcoming leave. Three weeks was a long time, although being active for six months meant it was more than deserved. She had plans to return to Earth, to meet up with some friends she hadn’t seen in ages, and to even spend an afternoon with her sister, who she hadn’t seen or spoken to in nearly a year. Hell, maybe she’d even find time for a date.

  Her mind at ease and her body cleaned, she wrapped her towel around her and made her way to the locker room. To her surprise, someone was waiting for her.

  “Captain Winter,” he said as she walked towards him.

  “What is it?” she asked, feeling slightly uncomfortable about the fact that she was speaking to the young man while wrapped only in a towel.

  “My name is Thane, I’m Colonel Grimm’s personal aide,” he introduced himself. He was slender, with dark hair and penetrating eyes.

  He held out his hand for her to shake but quickly pulled back, realizing that the situation they found themselves in did not dictate physical contact, professional or otherwise.

  “Grimm? I haven’t spoken to Grimm in years,” Kira said, leaning against her locker, confused.

  Colonel Grimm was her commanding officer before Admiral Artanis. He had recruited and trained her right out of the academy. Grimm had encouraged her as she rose through the ranks of the Alliance Forces and gave her many opportunities that put her ahead of her peers.

  But, when he got promoted five years ago, he simply dropped off the map. Rumor was that he had been assigned to lead the Arcanum—the highest-ranking military division in the Terran Federation - and completely classified.

  At first, she was slightly hurt that he had so quickly tossed her to the side, but over the past five years the memory of her former mentor became more and more distant and their relationship felt like a lifetime ago.

  “Yes, well he did say to apologize for that,” Thane said quickly.

  “It’s so nice of him to tell you to tell me that,” Kira scoffed, pushing herself up and pulling open the door to her locker. “I’m guessing you didn’t invade my privacy to apologize by proxy for Colonel Grimm,” she said. “Surely he didn’t just send you here for that.”

  “No,” the man replied, shifting his weight around nervously.

  Kira turned to look at him again, impatiently waiting for him to continue. “Well, what’s the real reason you’re here?”

  “He sent me with a rather sensitive and classified mission request.”

  “Well, what is it?” Kira asked slightly annoyed, pulling her clothes out of her locker and slamming the door shut. “I’m supposed to be starting my leave,” Kira replied.

  “Unfortunately, it will have to wait Captain. This is a top priority and highly time-sensitive,” the man urged.

  “Well, it doesn’t sound like I have a choice, has Admiral Artanis signed off on this?” Kira asked, leaning back against the locker, looking suspiciously at the young man.

  "Not exactly," the man replied, wringing his hand nervously in front of him.

  “What does that mean?”

  “It’s not an official mission. I was asked to deliver the request personally, not through official military channels.”

  “Ah well that explains why you’re here in the locker room with me,” Kira noted wryly.

  Thane looked at her nervously, the awkwardness of their encounter once again filling the air. She continued to hold onto the towel tightly as she stood, clutching her clothes in her free hand as she contemplated what he had said. Something about the situation seemed off to her.

  It must be something urgent if Colonel Grimm was going to such secretive lengths to contact her. Still, something didn’t feel right.

  “Alright, I’ll at least look at it,” she said finally, the discomfort of the circumstances driving her to make a quick decision.

  “Great,” Thane said, reaching into the bag draped across his shoulder and pulling out what must have been the mission brief.

  He held the electronic file out to her, suddenly realizing that she had no free hands to take it from him.

  “Just set it down there,” she said, shifting her gaze to the bench behind him.

  “Thank you, Captain, I will let Colonel Grimm know you are reviewing the brief,” Thane replied.

  He set the small table device down and turned to face her quickly. He had a look on his face as if he wanted to say something else, but decided against it. Nodding to her politely, he turned to hurry out of the room, finally leaving her in peace.

  Changing into her clothes quickly, she picked up the brief and began flipping through it. The first thing she saw was the time and location of the meeting— 20:00 hours today at the Rusty, a dive bar on a small space station orbiting Mars. Kira recognized it because it was a bar she and her classmates from the academy would frequent during their basic training days.

  “Why would Colonel Grimm want to meet all the way out there at that dump?” she wondered to herself as she collected her things and headed to the mess hall, realizing she had time for a quick meal before departing.

 
; It didn’t matter. In her mind, she had already agreed to the mission, if only just to satisfy her curiosity. As she sat down to a quick meal, she scolded herself.

  “You were so close to leave,” she thought. “It was right there. All you had to do was walk out the door and tell the creepy man to go away.”

  As she poured over the brief she was surprised by the lack of detail. Usually, her mission briefs would give her enough information to carry out the task with no further instruction.

  This one, however, was replete with blacked out sections of text that left her considerably unaware of the mission’s intent. “I guess this is what I get for talking with strange men in the women’s locker room,” Kira mused.