by T. R. Harris
REV: Renegades
T.R. Harris
REV Warriors Series - Book 2
Contents
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Novels by T.R. Harris
REV: Renegades
Prologue
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Untitled
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Chapter 31
Chapter 32
Chapter 33
Chapter 34
Chapter 35
Chapter 36
Chapter 37
Chapter 38
Chapter 39
Chapter 40
Chapter 41
Chapter 42
Chapter 43
Chapter 44
Chapter 45
Chapter 46
Chapter 47
Chapter 48
Chapter 49
Epilogue
The End
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Novels by T.R. Harris
Copyright 2018 by T.R. Harris
All rights reserved, without limiting the rights under copyright reserved above, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means (electronic, mechanically, photocopying, recording, or otherwise) without the prior written permission of both the copyright owner and the above publisher of this book. This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, brands, media and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.
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Novels by T.R. Harris
The Human Chronicles Saga - Continuum
Mission Critical (An Adam Cain Adventure)
The Human Chronicles Saga (original series)
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
Last Species Standing
Invasion Force
Force of Gravity
REV Warriors Series
REV
REV: Renegades
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
Available exclusively on Amazon.com and Kindle Unlimited.
REV: Renegades
Prologue
The Human Enclaves on the Earth-Standard worlds were havens for devout followers of the Order, and one of the most-fervent of these was Dr. Davide Caspary, of the Harmony Enclave on Iz’zar.
Davide was only ten when the aliens came to Earth, and twelve when his parents immigrated to the planet. He had been indoctrinated into Judaism as a young man, yet when his parents converted to the Order, Davide found that the religion of the aliens made more sense on multiple levels. From that point on, he gave his all to its study, advancing through the years until he became one of the foremost experts in the Order, as well as one of only a handful of Humans to ever visit Antara—the homeworld of the religion. He was also the only off-worlder ever allowed into the revered reading rooms to view the original sacred documents.
The aliens needed Humans who could spread the word of the Order with complete conviction, and Davide was one of them. During his trips to Antara, he was allowed to study from the original Book of Order itself, even touching its sacred cover in a spot dedicated to such acts of reverence—yet under the watchful eye of the Antaere priests. He was told of the Corollaries and the reason they were written. Again, it made sense. Times changed, and with them so must the tenets of the Order.
What Davide didn’t know at the time was that he was to become one of only a few—Antaere or otherwise—to ever view all the chapters of the Corollaries, even if the series of events leading to the viewing was purely unintentional.
It occurred on an evening during his third visit to Antara.
Davide was in the ancient Hall of Records, with the original Third Corollary encased in a protective glass container on a table before him. Although reading translators were available, Davide knew the Antaere language intimately, and he reveled in the joy of experiencing the actual words for himself. There was a unique poetry to the text that wasn’t found in the English translation, along with subtle meanings Davide’s native language couldn’t convey.
An Antaere assistant was with him, a young male studying for the priesthood named Sazin. He had been assigned to Davide for this trip and had been very helpful, if overly enthusiastic in his contact with the Human. Davide was the first alien he’d ever met and he was anxious not only to learn from him, but to please him as well.
“Have you read the Corollaries, Sazin?” Davide asked his young Antaerean assistant.
“Not all of them. The remainder will become available to me when I reach Fourth Level Priest.”
Davide raised an eyebrow. There were only five levels of Antaere priests in the Order, and it seemed unusual that a segment of the Corollaries would remain hidden to anyone below fourth level. Yet here was Davide—an alien—having access to documents that were restricted to a large portion of the Antaere population. He had to smirk. At any time he could simply ask for the entire collection to be brought out and Sazin would oblige. He could then turn them so Sazin could see, thereby revealing to him the forbidden texts. The young priest-in-training would be ecstatic. Still, why would his own people restrict access, yet give it freely to a Human, especially during a time of war between the two races?
The reason dawned on Davide a moment later: There were more chapters than just the ones for which he had access. That was why the Antaerean had said ‘not all of them.’ There were more than Davide had been told.
Initially stunned by the revelation, the Human researcher didn’t suspect any deception on the part of the Antaere priests regarding his access to the holy texts. Although he’d been supposedly granted access to all of them, he understood that all was a relative term. All that ap
plied to him and his studies. All he was allowed to see. All that weren’t marked: For Antaere Eyes Only.
Even still, he would love to see the forbidden texts.
“It is a shame that you are not allowed to see the other six Corollaries,” Davide said, attempting to bait the alien into revealing more details.
“Six? No there are only three that I have not seen. You must be confused by other sacred documents you have viewed.”
“Of course,” said Davide. “I do that often. I get so little opportunity for study on Antara. And yet, I have been granted full access.”
“That you have,” said Sazin, his face animated and full of awe. “You are the first alien I have ever known to have such status.”
“It is because of my deep loyalty to the Order…even for an alien.”
Sazin mirrored Davide’s thin smile, warm in its acceptance of the young priest, yet with a slight wickedness to it as well.
“You know my passcode should give you access to the entire collection,” the Human said softly. He continued with the deception. “What you are missing in not viewing the remaining three texts is quite profound and would surely help you along your journey to the priesthood. It is a shame you are not allowed to see the rest of them…as I have already.”
Sazin’s mouth fell open and his yellow skin turned a shade darker. Davide panicked, thinking he’d crossed a line, a line which could get him barred from the archives forever—or worse.
“Forgive me, Sazin, I was thinking only of your future. I meant nothing untold that would get you in trouble.”
Sazin’s yellow eyes blinked several times. “That is not the reason for my reaction. I realize the Corollaries will be revealed to me at some future date, a time to be determined by others. The fact that I will eventually be given the honor proves that this is but an arbitrary decision to keep them from me. And yet you—as you say, an alien—have seen them, and that has created in me a sense of…of betrayal. Why is an alien worthy, yet I am not?”
“I cannot answer that, Sazin. Please, let us forget this conversation and move on to other topics.”
The young Antaerean pressed his thin lips together. He was becoming more frustrated by the moment. “It is not right; I am an Antaerean. There are none above us, with the exception—apparently—of a Human from the enclave on Iz’zar. This is not what we have been taught.”
Sazin looked around the room quickly. They were alone; even security cameras were not allowed in the sacred chamber for fear that images of the texts could be captured and broadcast.
“You say you have seen the remaining Corollaries?”
“Eh, yes I have,” Davide lied.
“Then give me your code key. I will retrieve the last of the Corollaries and bring them to your table for study. If inadvertently my eyes were to fall upon them, then that would simply be an act of providence.”
Davide handed him the key. The alien rushed away and returned five minutes later with three thin glass cases containing the last chapters of the Corollaries, the ones denied him.
Davide’s heart raced as Sazin laid the cases on the table. If what he thought was true, he would be the first outsider to ever gaze upon the holy documents. He was both excited and terrified by the thought. Sazin was sweating, too, while his eyes furtively ran over the heavy writing on the square pages of the first document in the stack.
Davide set to work. He would read the pages as quickly as possible and then have the young priest return them to their storage chamber. The longer they lay on the table, the more chance they would get caught. At that point, Sazin would recite the lie Davide had told him, and that would be the end of his study privileges—if not more. The Antaere were very serious about their religion, and they had every right to punish Davide as they saw fit.
The first document looked innocuous enough, proclaiming Antaere superiority over their alien followers, and how non-Antaere should exist only to serve the master race. This was already a well-known attitude of the Antaere, if not official doctrine. It appeared now that the belief was indeed sanctioned, at least according to this document.
The next chapter was a little longer, consisting of three square pages with the boldface printing. It spoke of a time in the future—the Final Glory, the Book of Order called it—when all of nature would be in balance. It was similar to the Rapture in Christianity, but covering life everywhere, not just on Antara or the colonies. The passages spoke only of the Antaere and what would happen to them at this sacred time.
Davide was enough of a realist to understand that most of the Book of Order consisted of symbolism—as did all religious documents—and was not to be taken literally. He knew that the pursuit of Order was what all intelligent beings should strive for. Whether or not the Final Glory ever came to fruition was irrelevant to bring meaning to the true believers. The journey was what mattered. According to this chapter of the Corollaries, the Antaere insisted on remaining the focal point of the religion all the way to the bitter end, and that was their right as Guardians of the Order. Davide would grant them their final pat on the back.
But then he looked at the last document. It was a single sheet with only a few paragraphs written on it. Sazin scanned the document first; even with Davide’s knowledge of the Antaere language, he still couldn’t match the reading speed or comprehension skills of the young native. When Sazin recoiled from the table, Davide rushed to finish the text.
It read: The Final Glory of Mentar, Universal Corollaries of the Order of Light…and so much more.
Sazin snatched up the document, along with the others, and stood back from the table.
“Why do you not react to this?” he asked.
“I, I am a believer, Sazin. I accept all that is written. Besides, I have seen the Corollary before,” said Davide as convincingly as he could.
“Then you are fortunate, for I cannot believe others would be so tolerant. I will now return the text and forget I ever saw it. You will wait here for my return.”
The alien rushed off to the far end of the room.
Davide’s heart pounded and his breath came in fits. He had no idea what Sazin would do next. Would he implicate himself in the unauthorized viewing of the Corollaries? Or would he place all the blame on Davide? Then he realized that Sazin was more worried for himself than of Davide’s viewing of the final three Corollaries. After all, according to the Human, he had already seen them. It was the young priest who was breaking the rules of the Order, not him.
Davide began to relax. He had to convince Sazin to remain silent, and from the reaction of the young priest before he ran off, that shouldn’t be a problem. Sazin was not allowed to have knowledge of the contents of the last three Corollaries, not for many years to come. Revealing details prematurely would only prove his guilt. He would remain silent, if only out of self-preservation.
But Davide was in a quandary. The message contained in the Corollary—details of the so-called Final Glory—was devastating. In an instant, Davide’s view of the Order—and particularly of the Antaere—changed forever. And why wouldn’t it? He knew now the true intentions of the Antaere with regards to their alien followers. This wasn’t something he could keep to himself. As a Human, he had a duty to report it, and to someone who could make a difference.
After Davide Caspary and Sazin left the Hall of Records, Congin Bornak studied the surveillance footage with satisfaction. Sazin was at his side, nervous and uncertain.
“The Human did not appear to react to the contents,” said the young priest. “Perhaps he is as devout as he says.”
“No, my young friend,” said the older Antaerean. “I know Humans better than you and can read their body reactions. He is fully aware of the significance of the Corollary. He will play his part. We must now plant the seed that a copy of the Corollary is in the Temple on Iz’zar, a much easier target for the Humans than Antara. They will make their plans and we will help. You have done well and will be rewarded for such.”
“I thank you, maste
r. I live only to serve the Order.”
Congin placed a hand on the young Antaere’s shoulder. “Yes, you live for the Order…and you shall die for the Order as well.”
Sazin didn’t see the long, thin blade that appeared in Congin’s left hand, nor when it penetrated the soft tissue under the priest’s rib cage. The knife extended into his body until it reached the heart, where is split the vital organ in two. Congin supported the limp body of his young co-conspirator before placing it gently on the floor.
“I do this to protect you from yourself, young Sazin,” said Congin Bornak in a reverent whisper. “This way you cannot reveal secrets that you should not.”
He wiped the blood from the blade on the clothing of the young priest. He would call cleaners to the room, personnel who would ask no questions. Yet Congin Bornak wasn’t worried. He was the personal assistant to the Rowin, Andus Zaphin, the next in line to the Antaerean throne, and as such had absolute power over life and death, as had just been demonstrated. Now his plan could proceed, before other loose ends had to be tied up at the proper time.
