Desh whistled. “Wow, good thing for the aliens they don’t really exist. I think you’d kick their assess.” With a smile still on his face, he added, “And this dovetails perfectly with our goals. Yesterday, faster-that-light travel was Icarus’s number one priority. Today, it’s the number one priority of all humanity.”
“Not bad icing on the cake, huh?” said Kira. “And remember, we already have the zero point energy drive. We’ll wait until we all think the world can handle it, and give Ross another decade or so to really understand it, and we can reveal it to the world. This will at least allow us to seed a few explorers to colonize other planets, ensuring our survival no matter what happens on earth.”
“But won’t these trips take thousands of years to complete?” asked Desh.
“From our perspective,” replied Kira. “But because of relativity, they’ll be far shorter for the passengers. Regardless, we still need faster-than-light travel to accomplish our ultimate goals. But if we’re helped by the military rather than hindered by it, and can recruit with less fear of discovery, I’m convinced we’ll get there.”
Desh left his seat once again and he and his wife kissed hungrily, as if they had never kissed before. A foreshadowing of the hours of ravenous, frenzied lovemaking that would be their first order of business once they arrived at their destination and Ross was attended to.
They finally parted, and David Desh stared lovingly into the sparkling blue eyes of the woman he adored. He was now convinced that they would accomplish their goals, as well. As long as this remarkable woman was involved, all things were possible.
Kira had found a way to harness human passion for constructive, rather than destructive, purposes. To disarm the planet. To transform a warlike species, splintered into thousands of selfish tribes, into a single unit, eight billion strong. And in the process, she had saved humanity from itself; pulling it back from the edge of the abyss.
Desh grinned broadly. It was hard not to be optimistic. Kira Miller had reined in humanity’s enormous capacity for self-destructive behavior.
Compared to this feat, faster-than-light travel seemed like child’s play.
From the Author: Thanks for reading AMPED! If you enjoyed this book, I would greatly appreciate it if you could help spread the word. Also, feel free to Friend me on Facebook at Douglas E. Richards Author, or visit my website at www.douglaserichards.com
Novels Written by Douglas E. Richards
Adult
WIRED (Thriller)
AMPED (Thriller, Sequel to WIRED)
Middle Grade/YA (widely praised by kids and adults alike)
THE PROMETHEUS PROJECT SERIES (Science Fiction Thrillers)
Book 1: TRAPPED
Book 2: CAPTURED
Book 3: STRANDED
THE DEVIL’S SWORD (Mainstream Thriller)
ETHAN PRITCHER, BODY SWITCHER (Adventure)
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