Children of the Void: Book One of the Aionian Saga

by Jack Halls

  “I’m trying,” said Sophia, but now Takomi could tell she was too far away. She thought she could just make out vague shapes in the distance, but couldn’t be sure it wasn’t her imagination.

  Takomi felt a surge of panic rising up in her. She would have given anything for just a little bit of light. “I don’t think I can reach you,” she said, trying not to let the fear into her voice. She pushed her arm out further until the bones of her shoulder were smashed between the bars. She probed the surrounding area but could only find the cold floor. She pulled her arm back, ignoring the pain as it scraped the skin off her arms. She moved down to the corner of her box and shoved her arm through the bars once more.

  This time she felt more bars continuing in a straight line from her own cage. Two cages side by side. “I feel something,” she said. “I think our cages are stacked together.” She felt around the cage, feeling the bars and floor and ceiling. Suddenly her hand touched something soft and wet. She recoiled, ripping her arm out from between the bars. She cursed again.

  “What is it?” asked Sophia. “What did you find?”

  Takomi retreated the the back of her cell. She tried to catch her breath between terrified gasps. “Something’s in there,” she said. “I felt it.”

  “In where?” asked Sophia, her own voice tinged with panic.

  Takomi took several deep breaths, recovering slightly from her moment of panic. “In the cage next to mine,” she said, inching back toward the center of the cage. “I felt something in there, through the bars.”

  “Do you think it could be Joseph, or Gideon?” asked Sophia. “They’ve got to be somewhere.”

  Takomi felt embarrassed that she hadn’t thought of that herself. It very well could be one of the boys, but she still kept her distance from the walls of the cage.

  “It could be,” said Takomi. “I kind of freaked out when I felt it, so I didn’t have time to check.”

  “Well can you check again?” asked Sophia.

  Takomi gulped. “I… I don’t know. What if it’s not one of them? It could be anything in there.” She heard movement coming from Sophia’s direction. “Is that you moving around Sophia?”

  “Yeah, it’s me,” answered Sophia. “I’m seeing if I can figure out what it is. I don’t feel anything outside my cage. You’re going to have to check again.”

  Takomi felt her heart skip a beat. The idea of sticking her arm out into the darkness again made her skin crawl. She tried to convince herself that the thing she felt was Gideon or Joseph’s arm or leg, but her mind kept on coming up with more horrifying alternatives. She swallowed hard, then slid herself closer to the bars.

  She found the corner of her cage again. She strained to see something in the darkness, but it was as if she were blind. She leaned forward as close as she dared. “Joseph?” she whispered. “Gideon? Is that you?” She listened for several seconds. She thought she could hear something breathing nearby. She closed her eyes as tight as she could, then opened them again, but the darkness remained.

  “Can you hear me?” she said, just a tiny bit louder. Still nothing but the faint sound of breathing.

  “Can you feel it?” asked Sophia. The sudden sound made Takomi jump.

  “Not yet,” said Takomi. She couldn’t bring herself to tell Sophia that she was too frightened. She clenched her jaw, then crawled forward to the edge of her cage. Her hand crept through the bars and along the ground. She concentrated on the texture of the floor to keep her mind off of the possible horrors within the next cage. Her fingers bumped into something, and she flinched. She hesitated a moment, then reached out once again.

  This time when she came into contact with the object she did not pull away. She poked at it, and found that it was soft. She allowed a few more fingers to trail over it. It was warm, and covered in something wet. Her stomach clenched as she prodded the sticky wet object. She moved up along the object until she came to a spot that was no longer wet. Without the disturbing wet sensation, she gained a bit more confidence.

  “It’s not moving,” she said. “It’s warm. It feels like…,” she slid her hand farther up the object and felt something that felt like cloth. “I think it’s an arm.”

  “Is it one of the boys? Can you tell?” asked Sophia.

  “Not yet,” answered Takomi, feeling the fear replaced by curiosity, and maybe even a little hope. She grasped the object, squeezing it gently. As she moved up it definitely felt more like an arm. She came to a shoulder, a very large shoulder, then to a thick neck. Her hand moved up until it came to a chin, then a face. She felt the big nose and lips, then felt the close cropped hair on the head.

  “It’s Joseph,” breathed Takomi. “It’s gotta be him.” Sophia sighed in relief as Takomi felt Joseph’s head. Her hand came to something crusty in his hair. She probed gingerly, and felt soft, sticky flesh where there should have been hair. Takomi gasped.

  “What is it?” asked Sophia.

  Takomi gently touched the edges of the wound, finding it to be several inches long. “He’s hurt,” she said. “Bad. There’s a big cut on his head, and I think I felt blood on his arm.”

  “Is he…,” Sophia let the words hang in the air.

  Takomi felt for Joseph’s neck and put two fingers to it. “He’s alive,” she said after a moment, remembering that she had heard and felt his breath. She gripped his shoulder, shaking him slightly. “Joseph,” she said. “Joseph, can you hear me?” But there was no reply.

  “Do you think he’s okay?” asked Sophia. Takomi detected fear and pain in her voice.

  Takomi readjusted to get a few more inches of reach. She felt along as much of Joseph’s chest as she could. “There’s a lot of blood,” said Takomi, almost too quiet to be heard. She felt a lump in her throat, and before she could do anything about it tears started running down her cheeks. She wished there was something she could do. She pulled her arm back into her cage and wiped the blood off on her shirt. With her other arm she wiped away her tears.

  “Gideon?” she said, as loudly as she dared. “Gideon, can you hear me? Where are you?” There was no reply. Takomi rolled over on her back and positioned herself with her feet up against the bars. With a grunt she kicked hard against the cage. She kicked again, and again, but it was useless.

  “Takomi what are you doing?” asked Sophia.

  Takomi repositioned and started kicking against the ceiling. “We’ve got to get out of here,” she said between grunts. “Wherever here is.”

  “Stop,” said Sophia. “You’re just going to hurt yourself.”

  Takomi paused. “Well what do you suggest?” she said in a tone that was more angry than she realized. “You just want to rot in some cage? Joseph is hurt. I can’t find Gideon. I don’t even know where we are?” She kicked once more against the unyielding cage and let out a frustrated scream.

  There was a bright flash and Takomi winced, covering her eyes in pain. Sophia cried out as well. After some time Takomi uncovered her eyes and blinked as she tried to adjust to the light. Eventually she could make out her surroundings. Her cage was indeed a dull gray metal, barely big enough for her to move around. All around her were boxes and crates, like a large warehouse. Her cage was stacked on top of something else, so that she was a meter or two above the ground.

  She looked over and saw that she was right about being next to Joseph. The huge boy was covered in blood, and the wound on his head was worse than Takomi had feared. As she moved closer to him she noticed the puddle she had woken up in was blood as well. She looked down at herself and saw she was covered in it. She had cuts and scrapes all over her body, but none so bad as Joseph’s.

  Beyond Joseph’s cage she saw Sophia a few meters away. She was propped up on one elbow looking around the warehouse. She too was covered in dirt and blood. Takomi could see a large wound in Sophia’s abdomen, and the older woman looked very pale. They locked eyes, and Takomi could see a look of terror in Sophia’s eyes. She wondered if she looked the same.

  “Whe
re are we, Sophia? Where’s Gideon?” she asked.

  Sophia just shook her head and looked around. “I don’t know.” Sophia moved to the edge of her cage, wincing as she did so. She looked down into the room, and her eyes went wide. Takomi crawled over to look down at whatever it was Sophia saw. Joseph’s cage was in the way, but Takomi was able to see half of something that looked like a long table. It was dirty, and had an assortment of straps hanging off of it. On a crate next to it sat a silver tray with an assortment of sharp, metal tools.

  “What is this place?” whispered Sophia. The two of them looked at each other, and Takomi thought she had never seen anyone look so terrified.

  There was a loud screech of metal from somewhere behind Sophia. They looked as a huge metal door slid open, letting in even more light. Takomi blinked and saw the silhouette of two large figures in the doorway. She couldn’t make them out at first, but as they marched into the room she saw what looked like two massive insects walking towards them. She recoiled into the back of her cage, and out of the corner of her eye she saw Sophia do the same thing.

  The insect-things came closer until they were right next to Sophia’s cage. They reared up until they were at the same level as Sophia. She screamed, desperately trying to get as far away as she could in the confined space. The creatures grabbed for her, latching onto her ankles and pulling her towards them as she kicked and flailed.

  One of them produced a long instrument and stuck it between the bars. It glowed and hummed as the creature waved it over Sophia. The creatures made clicking noises, then released Sophia, who again retreated to the back of the cage. They made their way towards Takomi and reached into her cage. She too tried to fight them off, but their long fingers wrapped around her ankles and pulled her in. They repeated the process with the wand, then released her.

  Takomi cowered at the back of her crate and watched as the creatures moved toward Joseph. They reached in and waved the wand over him, clicking and squawking to one another. When the finished, one of them pounced up on top of Joseph’s crate with minimal effort. Takomi couldn’t see what it was doing up there, but a moment later the front of Joseph’s crate swung down and banged loudly against the crate below it. The creature then jumped back down to join his comrade.

  Takomi lunged forward as the two insectile things reached for Joseph. “No!” she yelled. “Don’t touch him.” The creature closest to her moved with lightning speed, shoving the wand in between the bars of her cage. When the tip of the wand contacted her skin it sent a jolt of electricity through her. She cried out as the pain knocked her to the ground and temporarily blinded her.

  She blinked and shook her head as she pushed herself back up. When she could finally see again, she saw the two creatures hauling Joseph away as if the huge boy were her size. She slammed her fist into the bars as the creatures took Joseph through the large metal door they’d entered through. “Stop!” she yelled, but a second later the door slid closed again.

  Takomi felt tears streaming down her face as fear and anger shook her whole body. She looked at Sophia, who was gripping the bars of her cage so tightly that her normally tan hands were white. The two of them locked eyes, each communicating a feeling of helplessness and frustration. A second later, the lights went out.

  Acknowledgments

  Trying to list all the names of those who’ve helped me write this book is no simple task. Friends, family, teachers, perfect strangers — so many people helped me accomplish my life-long dream of publishing a novel. I can guarantee you I’ll miss someone, but it’s easy for me to figure out where to start.

  Without my wife’s support, I never could have done it. Meredith encouraged me to pursue my dream when I had no confidence in my abilities as a writer. When I was worn out and wanted to quit, she was my cheerleader. When the story was stuck and I didn’t know where to go, she was my muse. When self-doubt and depression spread through my mind like cancer, she was my therapist. And tonight, like hundreds of other nights, she’s upstairs putting babies to bed so that I can write.

  Right up there with my wife are my parents. As far back as I can remember, my mom, Rebecca, has nurtured my imagination. She’s the one who introduced me to Narnia, Middle Earth, Ender Wiggins, and Atticus Finch, and was the first to tell me I could create my own worlds too. My dad, Keith, taught me to work hard, to do the job right, and to never quit.

  I wouldn’t be who I am today if it weren’t for my siblings. With my six sisters KayDe, Kim, Kara, Kristen, Kenna, and Kelsey (no good explanation for the alliteration exists), I can quote Han Solo in one breath and Anne Shirley with the next. We shared books, movies, and games into the wee hours of the night all through my childhood. Much of my inspiration comes from our adventures together.

  To this day my older brother, Nate, is one of my greatest role models. Like my dad, he’s taught me the value of hard work. Whether it was coaching me in the gym to get ready for football season, or spending some time at the range getting ready for hunting season, he’s been a patient teacher and friend to his goofy little brother.

  My brother’s wife, Andrea Halls, has also been an indispensable mentor. Not many budding novelists have a professional editor for a sister-in-law. With her help I made some major changes to the plot and characters that made all the difference. She’s also been a fount of knowledge regarding the publishing industry.

  The rest of my very large extended family deserves to be acknowledged for their enthusiastic support. Naming them all in print would kill a very many trees, and so I’ll spare the forests and give the rest of my aunts, uncles, grandparents, in-laws, cousins, and nieces and nephews a big collective thank you.

  During this process I’ve been very fortunate to connect with a few of my favorite science fiction writers via the internet. Specifically I’d like to thank Jennifer Foehner Wells, author of the Confluence series, for dispensing nuggets of wisdom about editing, publishing, and cover design. A.G. Riddle, author of the Origin Mystery books, was the first author I’ve ever written to that actually wrote back. His words inspired me to keep on going and to write the best book I could. Lastly, I’d like to thank Michael Bunker, author of the Pennsylvania Omnibus, for giving me editing advise like only an amish science fiction writer could. All three of these authors top the bestseller charts for a reason. I encourage you to look them up.

  Beta readers have been invaluable. Jordan Noble caught things that I never would have thought of and helped me tighten up the story. Jonathan Match was a good enough friend to be brutally honest about what sucked. Landon Dixon scoured an early draft with an engineer’s eyes, and is living proof that every science fiction writer needs a very smart beta reader. My sister-in-law Nicole didn’t critique the book so much as tell me how awesome I am. Every writer needs this person too.

  I need to give a special thanks to Amy DuBoff, an up-and-coming author who has gone above and beyond to be helpful to a fellow author she barely knows. She’s been extremely generous with her knowledge of publishing, marketing, and editing. Amy’s an example of the camaraderie between writers that makes this community so wonderful. Besides being a talented author she’s also a kind and generous person, so please look her up and support her work.

  My brother-in-law Dale Pedersen and my good friend Tricia Peterson both helped me get my website going. Ryan Hatch continues to teach me all about social media marketing while helping me perfect my golf swing. I was lucky to find a great editor on short notice named Therin Knite who convinced me to rewrite a third of the book. Many others have read the book and given me great feedback and support. So many, in fact, that I can’t remember them all.

  Last of all, I want to thank you, dear reader. In today’s world of YouTube and Pokemon GO, there are millions of things to entertain and distract you, but you chose to read this book. You may have even paid money to read this book, which gets me a few cents closer to writing full time. If I entertained you for a while, then it was all worth it.

  Thanks for coming along for the rid
e.

  About the Author

  Jack Halls was born and raised in a small town in the shadows of the Rocky Mountains; the kind of town that had only one stop light, everybody knew the mayor, and nobody bothered to lock their doors.

  He spent his childhood catching frogs in the nearby stream, racing his ten speed past dairy farms and alfalfa fields, and of course, reading books.

  Although his dream has always been to write fiction, to pay the bills he's worked as a finish carpenter, a backcountry guide, and a stock broker. Somewhere in the middle of that he earned a B.A. in Latin American Studies and even lived in South America for a while.

  Currently he resides in the mountain west with his wife and two daughters.