Deliverers (The Chaos Shift Cycle Book 4)
Page 21
"But what of the home world, you wonder? While we distract and delay, we’ll prepare a trap for the humans to make them wish they’d never trespassed on our territory in the first place." He paused to let the crowd, which had warmed to his message, cheer the idea. Then, he spoke quietly, forcing them to silence. "However, this new approach comes with a cost. Now our ground forces will be at risk, in addition to our ships and sailors. Here on Xroesha, each person must contribute what they can to the effort. Only by showing our unity will the Xroeshyn prove our worth to the gods we have failed."
He spread his arms wide. "It’s clear how our military has failed, but I’m here today to say that each and every one of us has failed. We’ve failed to practice our faith. Instead, we criticize, we suborn, we plan devious attacks in the middle of the night against our own people. The gods have punished us for this failure, and now they bring the humans to our very door to make the point to their blind children that we must unite. We must be one. And so, we will be. From this day forth, the Xroeshyn shall be one people, focused on one goal: the death of the humans."
Kraada thrashed in his sleep and felt the strong arms of Variin wrapping him. It did nothing to calm the torment within, as he fell deeply into a vision. He trembled with anticipation at the chance to commune again with his patron goddess, Lelana. But the image of her statue in his mind failed to change. Instead, from behind it, a presence grew. He trembled again, this time with abject fear.
Vasoi, the guardian of the in-between and the tormenter of the lost, stood before him, her features obscured by the shadows thrown by her long cloak. The garment dragged on the floor behind her as she moved. It seemed to twist and writhe in agony as it followed its mistress. "Jumped-up Hierarch," she sneered in her raspy voice. "Pretenses of grandeur do not justify one receiving the glories of being emperor. You have not earned your position."
Kraada appeared in the vision and fell to his knees before her, averting his gaze, with his wings spread wide in supplication. He couldn’t speak; as he tried, it was as if her clawed fist wrapped itself around his throat to prevent him. "You imagine that you understand the will of the gods. You believe you will join us, even." She laughed, and he felt the pressure at his neck release. "You imagine that you are the beloved of Lelana."
She dropped to one knee and raised his chin to make him look into her face. He shuddered at the scarred visage within and the almost palpable cruelty displayed in her expression. "I am She who will judge you, Kraada Tak. And from where I stand, you have failed. You have failed as an emperor. You have failed as Marshal. You have failed even as Hierarch, imagining your own thoughts to be the words of the divine."
Vasoi squeezed his face until his vision sparkled with the pain, then released it and turned her back on him. As she walked away, she sneered, "Remember, Emperor, you too will be judged. If you were to die now, it would not be to paradise you’d go. Paradise does not welcome failures. Your only chance at realizing all you have dreamed is to destroy every human, everywhere, before the end of the cycle. If you fail, well...." She vanished without finishing, but he heard the words resonate in his soul. "... You will be mine."
He screamed and awoke, prompting Variin to draw her blades against his imagined danger. He explained his vision.
"Perhaps you’ve been too honorable. Vasoi has always seemed more concerned with results than with anything else, in the scriptures I’ve read."
Kraada nodded in agreement. The lines attributed to her carried that weight.
The assassin continued, "The plan to attack the colonies is a good one. We have the list provided by the foolish human from the last colony we attacked. Perhaps we should begin with those closest to their source, just to make a point."
"An excellent idea. And there should be no shortage of ground forces. Where there aren’t volunteers, we’ll require them to serve. Yes, we’ll attack the colonies and force them to respond, again and again, until they’re weakened and ripe for the attack on their home world."
Kraada lay back down to sleep, and murmured, "We’ll trap their forces on the planets, and destroy them utterly. And then their citizens. Until all they have left are their ships and their dead. And then we’ll destroy that, as well. I will deliver that which the gods desire."
Variin stroked the feathers on the crown of his head until he fell into an exhausted slumber.
Chapter Forty-One
"Commander, Captain Cross is at the ship’s entrance." Kate was sure she detected an unexpected warmth in Pandora's voice.
"Make him wait," she said, tugging at her dress to get it just right. They’d been blocked by obligation upon obligation, and it was only now, a day after the briefing, that they were finally going to have a moment together. They’d been more than correct to observe that duty was a harsh taskmaster.
"Okay, open it," she said after a quick jog to stand in the corridor next to the external hatch. Pandora obliged and slid the door aside to reveal Anderson Cross, finally living his dream of command and captaincy, standing outside her ship with a bouquet.
"You shouldn't have," Kate said, taking the flowers from him and inhaling their fragrant sweetness.
"I most certainly should have. Besides, there was no candy or nylons to be had on this stupid base."
She laughed at the idea of bringing a girl nylons in the modern day. Most women she knew preferred to choose their own lingerie, thank you very much. She escorted him to her quarters and motioned for him to enter.
"Wow," he said, "these are really-"
He never got to finish the sentence, as Kate leapt upon him, wrapping her legs around his waist and locking her lips onto his.
Hours later, they lay in bed, covers askew around them.
"So, uh, was Pandora watching?"
Kate laughed. "Do you have performance anxiety, Cross? No, Pandora was not watching. I asked her to keep this space unmonitored when I had company."
He raised an eyebrow at her, and she responded with a pillow to his face.
"Okay, okay, I surrender. By way of apology, I brought you a gift."
"I like gifts. Is it nylons?"
He snorted and picked up a small rectangular box from where it had fallen and handed it to her. She opened it to find a chain and a pendant. A closer look revealed that it was a cadet's insignia.
"Is this yours from the Academy?"
He nodded, and retrieved his shirt from the floor. He had the other one of the pair pinned inside, right over his heart.
"I know that we're going to be pulled apart by this damned war, Kate. And I hate it."
She touched his face with a sad look and a nod.
"Anyway, I thought if you wore that, and I wore this, it might help get us through the difficult moments."
"That was exceptionally thoughtful. Are you sure it was your idea?"
"That's right."
"My, my, Cross, perhaps you are actually able to learn." She put the pendant on, and it felt perfect. "Thank you."
"I have another idea."
"I know all about your ideas."
He laughed. "No, not that. Well, after maybe. But first, I was thinking we should have a code. So, I've decided that any time I want to say a particular thing, that wouldn’t be appropriate on shared communications, that I’ll use your callsign. When you hear it, you'll know I'm not just saying 'Red'."
"What will you be saying?" Her eyes searched his.
His fingers traced patterns across her cheekbones. "I’ll be saying I love you."
Kate grinned, and said, "That's perfect, Cross. I’ll do the same back. You're wonderful."
He leaned back and looked smug. "I know."
She lay down beside him and stretched, then rolled to face him with a mischievous spark in her eye.
"Hey Ace?"
"Yes?"
"Be a good cabin boy and get me a cup of coffee."
"Yes, Commander Red, Ma'am."
She stretched as she awaited her drink and sighed contentedly. "I could get used to this. Th
ose bastard birds better take their damn time."
This is the end of Deliverers. The Chaos Shift Cycle continues in Book 5, Victors, available for preorder now and available March 2018.
Thank you for reading! Please turn the page for a message from me (the author).
Thom’s Deliverers Notes: 26 December 2017
Thank you for buying this book. Thank you for reading this book. Thank you for reading these notes. Seriously. Thank you.
What an amazing year.
I started this journey in August 2016; now, sixteen months later, four books out and the fifth in progress. Not bad!
But, hopefully, not as good as it can get.
I’m about to lock in a narrator for the audiobook versions of the Chaos Shift Cycle - that should be AMAZING to hear. I have been blown away by the auditions.
So, here at the end of the year, i’m thinking about gratitude. So many people have helped me this year. Especially you, if you’re reading these notes. Thank you for your support. I am so glad you’ve found my writing useful.
The members of my Readers’ Group continue to be fantastic. Thank you.
My editor, Charlotte, who improves my writing. Thank you.
My family, who puts up with me while I work and write and work and write. Thank you.
My colleagues who keep me from losing my last marble. Thank you.
I finished Dishonored 2 on stealth mode, and i’m on act 7 in kill-everything mode. Games that have different endings driven by your choices are a weakness - I want to see them all!
Marvel’s The Punisher has been my guilty pleasure for the last several weeks. I have criticisms, but enjoy it nonetheless.
And The Last Jedi is calling…
Book 5, Victors, is on track to release in late March. I put Charlotte behind the 8-ball with too tight a deadline, so i’m not going to do that again. But i’m hoping that it’ll get out earlier.
After that, time to take a breath and decide: More Chaos Shift, or on to my Urban Fantasy project?
My readers’ group will have a say in that, and I encourage you to join us! Suicide Run is big fun, and I hope to provide more exclusive content and opportunities to those who join me for the rest of this adventure. You can do so at www.trcameron.com/chaos.
Please, please, please: if you enjoyed this book, or enjoyed Trespassers or Defenders or Protectors, would you help me out? Leaving a quick review of any or all on Amazon can literally mean the difference between success or failure of the series. Here are the links:
Review Trespassers | Review Defenders | Review Protectors | Review Deliverers
Finally, I’d love to connect with you! You can find me on Facebook and Twitter. Be sure to mention me on Twitter to catch my attention - that feed goes by ludicrously quickly.
As before, and as always: Peace, Joy, and Good Fortune to you - So may it be. TRC.
The Destroyer Lubyanka. Undefeated. Undefeatable.
Cadets Anderson Cross and Kate Flynn face the ultimate rite of passage: taking on the Lubyanka. Countless others have tried. Countless others have failed. Now it is up to them. Together, they will try to overcome the unbeatable enemy.
The Suicide Run is the start of the adventures of Cross and Kate, and it’s yours for FREE!
Join TR Cameron’s Readers’ group and download Suicide Run today!
Visit www.trcameron.com/chaos to download it for free!
Acknowledgments
Family, friends, and coworkers: thank you for continuing to bear with me during this process. You are appreciated.
Todd: I hope you enjoy the name drop and the furry creature. I know it’s not Rocket. There’s only one Rocket.
Editing: Charlotte, you do great work.
Cover: Deranged Doctor Designs, who have been fantastic at dealing with a clueless new author.
I simply could not do this without the unwavering support of my wife and daughter. Thank you both.
About the Author
TR Cameron is an emerging author of Science Fiction Adventure. By day, he teaches things to people. By night, he writes and edits and does what it takes to be a decent partner and parent.
Once upon a time, he played World of Warcraft far too much, and remembers the days when Molten Core was everything. When he finds time to play now, story-heavy games are always at the top of his list. He’s still slogging through Dishonored2 at the time of publication, but sees the light of either Deus Ex or Witcher 3 just around the corner.
His personal favorite authors range from Douglas Adams to David Weber, Anne Bishop to Jacqueline Carey to CJ Cherryh, Matthew Woodring Stover to Stephen R. Donaldson.
You can find him here:
www.trcameron.com
troacameron@gmail.com
Also by TR Cameron
The Chaos Shift Cycle:
Trespassers
Defenders
Protectors
Deliverers
Victors (March 2018)
The Suicide Run - Readers’ Group Exclusive (Stories from the Chaos Shift Cycle 1)
This book (Protectors) is a work of fiction.
All of the characters, organizations, and events portrayed in this novel are products of the author’s imagination.
Copyright © 2017 by TR Cameron
Cover copyright © 2017 by TR Cameron
All rights reserved, because piracy sucks. Unless it’s space pirates. Space pirates are awesome.
No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
The Chaos Shift Cycle and all that happens within it are copyright 2017 by TR Cameron.