Keera caught an unconscious Tanelis with one arm while she also grabbed her sonic grenade, threw it inside the trunk, and punched the metal back into place. She jumped from the hood to the backseat of Jackson’s car with Tanelis in her arms. The moment they both landed on the aged leathery seats, the sonic grenade exploded.
“Now, Jackson! Get us the hell out of here.”
Lightning bolts sizzled around the car before it became engulfed in flames and then exploded into a large fireball. Keera used her body to shield Tanelis from the flying and flaming debris. A piece of burning shrapnel pierced through the back of Keera’s shoulder. The pain was excruciating, and for a second, she thought she might lose consciousness, but she powered through.
She grabbed the still burning metal and pulled it slowly from her skin, then threw it outside the car.
“Crazy doesn’t even start to describe you, Keera,” said Jackson as he stabilized his car’s flight path. “Where to now?”
Keera checked Tanelis. She had duct tape on her mouth, and her eyes appeared irritated, most likely from tears. She passed her hand through the girl’s beautiful blond hair.
“Anywhere, but here.”
Keera activated her ship’s hyperspace engine and set it on autopilot. It was time to check on Tanelis. Recovering Eleni’s ship and the stash of credits had gone smoothly, but it had forced Keera to give the little girl a sedative while she took care of business.
The child had been through enough and Keera didn’t want to risk her life when she went to the bank to recover Eleni’s possessions from the safe deposit box. That had been a wise decision since the DTs sent another pair of assassins to that location. But it was nothing Keera couldn’t handle.
Her shoulder still hurt, and she knew she should take care of the wound now that they seemed to be out of the woods. But first, she wanted to check on the child. She briskly walked to the ship’s living quarters.
Tanelis was waking up, and she screamed the moment Keera entered her room.
“Easy, Tanelis; I don’t mean you any harm.”
Tanelis crawled back on her bed until she hit the bed frame and curled into a ball. The poor thing was visibly terrified, and Keera could understand why. She must have witnessed the assassination of the man who was taking care of her.
Keera approached the girl’s bed cautiously; her hands forward in a non-threatening way, but Tanelis would not yield yet. Tears started flowing from her deep blue eyes.
“Hey, that’s okay. I won’t let anyone hurt you; I promise.”
Tanelis gingerly scanned the room. “This is mommy’s room; where’s my mommy? I want my mommy!”
Keera’s heart bled. How was she to tell this little girl that her mom was gone? And while she hadn’t intended for Eleni to die, Keera felt even more responsible for her death now that she saw her innocent daughter asking for her dead mother.
“I’m afraid your mommy couldn’t be here, but she sent me to get you back from those bad men. She asked me to bring you to…”
Keera stopped in mid-sentence. Was the girl even aware she had a father? Keera had no idea what Eleni had told her about the subject. But she would have to meet him soon, so it wasn’t like Keera had much choice; perhaps preparing Tanelis in advance would give her time to adapt.
“She asked me,” continued Keera, “to bring you to your father.”
Tanelis’ eyes widened, and she wiped the tears from her eyes.
“Father? I don’t have a daddy.”
“You do, Tanelis. His name is Georgios, and we’ll be with him soon. He will take care of you from now on.”
Tears filled Tanelis’ eyes once more, and Keera realized that she shouldn’t have given her this piece of information. So, she lied to take some of it back.
“Until your mom comes back, that is.”
That seemed to calm Tanelis somewhat.
“You must be hungry,” said Keera. “Want some ice cream?”
That did the trick and Tanelis’ eyes lit up at the mention of the word. They both ate ice cream, and soon after, Tanelis fell asleep in her mom’s bed while Keera told her a bedtime story, one her own mom used to tell her as a child.
Keera pressed the doorbell, and a tall bearded man answered the door. It was Georgios alright. She recognized him from the holo-picture Eleni had left in her safe deposit box, along with a letter addressed to his attention.
“Yes, what can I do for you?” asked Georgios.
“We need to talk. E— Eleni sent me; she needs your help.”
The frown that filled Georgios’ face was not a good sign.
“I don’t want to have anything to do with you or Eleni, I’m sorry,” said Georgios before attempting to close the door.
Keera stuck her foot forward to prevent the door from closing.
“Please, just give me a minute of your time; I guarantee you’ll want to hear what I have to say.”
“Look Miss…” Georgios let the words hang.
“Keera, Keera Hawking.”
“Look, Miss Hawking, once upon a time my heart belonged to Eleni, and it took years to get over her. There’s nothing you can say that will be of any interest to me.”
“Does the name Tanelis ring a bell?”
Georgios pulled his head back. He and Eleni had talked about names for their children, should they ever have any. “Where did you hear that name?”
Keera took the holo-projector from her pocket and turned it on. Tanelis’ holo-picture came to life.
“This is Tanelis, your daughter. She just lost her mom, and I think she’d be thrilled to get to know her father.”
Tears filled Georgios’ eyes.
He opened the door fully.
“Please, come in.”
Georgios fixed Keera some coffee as she explained what had happened during the last few days and gave him the letter she had acquired from the safe deposit box. No matter what he had said earlier, he was deeply saddened when he learned Eleni had passed away.
“It’s my fault; I should have been more careful. I— I’m sorry.”
“I can’t blame you. Eleni chose her own path; she was always a strong-headed gal, and no matter what she did, danger always seemed to gravitate toward her. I don’t think you’re responsible for her death, and I suggest you stop blaming yourself for it.”
“That’s not the reaction I expected from you.”
“Look Keera, you seem like a nice person. I can tell you had a rough time as of late, and all that matters to me is that you’re bringing me Tanelis. You didn’t have to, and you could have sold my daughter, or worse, let her die. So, thank you for keeping your word and bringing her to me. By the way, where is she?”
“She’s just outside, playing with a cat. I’ve asked the old lady by the bench to look after her. Let me bring her in.”
“Thank you, Keera.”
Keera nodded. “Sure thing.”
It took Tanelis more than an hour to start talking with her father. Even though she needed to go to make her deadline in giving Tron’Tak his money back, Keera didn’t feel like leaving until Tanelis was used to Georgios.
Following Keera’s advice, he offered her ice cream. After that, Tanelis wouldn’t stop talking about all her favorite flavors. It made Keera smile and lifted some of the weight that she held in her heart.
“I have to go,” said Keera.
Tanelis dropped her third bowl of ice cream and ran toward Keera and grabbed her leg. Keera’s heart sank.
“Don’t go, Keera!”
Keera knelt down and took Tanelis by the shoulders as their eyes filled with tears.
“You’re in good hands, now. Georgios will take good care of you.”
“Please, Keera.”
“I can’t kiddo. If I don’t go, I will get into trouble.”
Tanelis frowned, but Keera could tell she understood what trouble meant.
“Will you come back to visit me?”
“I’ll try, kiddo. I’m so glad you’re getting to know your
father, and I want you to know that your mother loves you very much. I will miss you. You’ve been a great co-pilot.”
“I’ll miss you, too, Keera.”
Keera kissed Tanelis on the cheek before saying goodbye to the both of them.
“Let me walk you out,” proposed Georgios.
Once outside of Georgios’ apartment, Keera took a deep breath.
“One more thing; I couldn’t take Eleni’s body with me. I had to space it as it didn’t feel right to leave her in the transport where she would decomp…” Keera’s voice caught.
“I understand; she wouldn’t have liked that either.”
Keera took a small tracker from her pocket and handed it to Georgios.
“What’s this?”
“That should give you her location in case you’d like to send a salvage team to recover her, and perhaps…”
But Keera let the words hang.
“Have a proper funeral.”
Keera nodded.
“I can’t guarantee that she’ll still be there, but there’s a good chance. I just thought you might want to have the option.”
“Thank you, Keera, for everything.”
Back on her ship and in space, Keera added the medical scan to Eleni’s decoy file and sent it to the DTs through a darknet address that should be untraceable.
Keera reflected on recent events. It had been a long time since she felt that her job had actually made a real difference for someone. Still, her adventures over the past couple of weeks had cemented something in her she had been feeling for a while. She didn’t see herself keeping this profession for much longer. She needed to get one or two very well paying warrants and retire somehow.
She accessed the intergalactic network and pulled up the advanced search option and filled in the minimum warrant reward field with one million credits. Only one result popped up. She couldn’t believe her eyes. There was a warrant for an Argos Thanatos, wanted dead or alive, for a thirty-five million credits warrant. If she could catch or eliminate this Argos, she could finally retire.
The thought warmed her heart. Keera was not stupid, though; she knew that if someone were willing to pay such a crazy amount of money, then this Argos person would probably be very dangerous. However, if she could pull off the job, she would be set for life.
While Eleni’s ship was quite comfortable, she would have preferred to get her own ship back from Tron’Tak, sell this one, as well as the precious cargo onboard her ship, and then buy the necessary hardware for the mission and perhaps hire some additional muscle to help her succeed in catching Argos Thanatos.
“It’s settled, then,” she said out loud.
Keera set a course for the Ponos One station and activated the hyperspace engine.
The End.
If you enjoyed Keera’s adventure, I recommend you check out the Universe in Flames series. Keera’s first appearance in the series begins in Book 3 - Destination Oblivion. I recommend you get the First Universe in Flames book here: http://mybook.to/UiF1
You can check out more about my books on my website at https://www.christiankallias.com
Keep reading for a special sneak peak at a new Universe in Flames - Dark Legacy series.
Destination Oblivion
By Christian Kallias
Copyright
Copyright © 2015 by Christian Kallias
All rights reserved. This book or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of the publisher except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
First Printing, 2015, Version 1.2
Cover artwork by Christian Kallias
Christian Kallias
[email protected]
www.christiankallias.com
www.facebook.com/ChristianKallias
www.twitter.com/kalliasx
Dramatis Personæ
Earth Alliance
Lieutenant Commander Chase Athanatos – Earth Alliance Fury hybrid (formerly Star Alliance Lieutenant Commander)
Commander Sarah Kepler – Earth Human (formerly US Navy Commander)
Commander Daniel Tharraleos – Earth Alliance Human (formerly Star Alliance)
Commodore Adonis Saroudis – Earth Alliance Human (formerly Star Alliance Captain)
Chief Engineer Yanis Tixichos – Earth Alliance Human (formerly Star Alliance)
Ryonna Isch’ys – Droxian Warrior (a fugitive Droxian smuggler)
Tar’Lock – Gorgar (Insectoid & formerly a Hellstar prisoner)
Admiral Ally Thassos – Earth Allliance Human (formerly Star Alliance Admiral)
Commander Fillio Steriopoulou – Earth Alliance Human (formerly Star Alliance)
R&D Engineer Spiros Malayianis – Earth Alliance Human (formerly Star Alliance)
Olympians
Aphroditis – known to humans as the goddess of love
Ares – know to humans as the god of war
Furies
Argos Thanatos – Fury and Chase’s twin brother (head of the Zarlacks)
Other Characters
Cedric – Earth Human Scientist
Keera Hawking – Humanoid Bounty Hunter
Gaia – Artificial Intelligence created on Earth, speaks for the planet
The Story So Far
Warning: If you haven’t read all the previous books in the series, you’re exposing yourself to SERIOUS spoilers by reading this part.
This section was created for readers of this series to refresh their memories (should they need to) before reading this new book. It can, of course, be used by new readers but I’d recommend you start reading the series at Book 1: Earth – Last Sanctuary (it’s free).
Volume I: Earth - Last Sanctuary
Following a devastating attack by the Obsidian Empire, helped by the mighty Zarlacks, a band of survivors led by Chase Athanatos from the Star Alliance blind jump away from their home world (Alpha Prime) and end up in an uncharted part of space, near a planet called Earth. Guided by the Olympian goddess of love Aphroditis, Chase and his friends rescue planet Earth from an alien attack and form a new alliance (Earth Alliance). But soon the Obsidian Empire tracks them down and decides to launch a full-scale attack on the blue planet. In the midst of the epic battle that ensues, the leader of the enemy forces captures Chase’s new love interest, Commander Sarah Kepler. He reveals to Sarah that he is Chase’s brother.
Volume II: Fury to the Stars
Chase learns of his Fury heritage and starts developing powers while he tries to rescue Sarah from the hands of his evil twin, Argos, currently torturing her for information. Another Olympian, Ares, trains Chase and helps him harness his emerging powers. Meanwhile, Earth is suffering random terrorist attacks that put the new Alliance’s frail status in jeopardy. After going to Hellstar Prison to get Ryonna out, Chase fights Argos and is finally reunited with Sarah, but something is off. A long-range distress call from a former Star Alliance scientist (Spiros Malayianis) brings Chase and Argos on yet another collision course. Chase is put into the impossible position of choosing between preventing sensitive weapon schematics from falling into Argos’ hands or saving Sarah’s (and his unborn son’s) life. She has been brainwashed to do Argos’ bidding and is also responsible for the wave of terrorism back on Earth. Chase reluctantly destroys Sarah’s ship.
And now the continuation . . .
1
Chase swiped his index finger under his nose and looked at the blood. He rubbed the blood between his index and thumb and got back up.
He looked at the tall Droxian standing in front of him. A mix of cheers and boos came from the crowd outside the laser-illuminated arena. Some of the public were waving and flailing their arms; others gave him the thumbs down sign.
The Droxian launched himself at Chase with a powerful right kick. Chase dodged the blow, caught the leg on his right shoulder and locked it in place. With empty eyes he crushed the leg at knee level with a quick wave of his left hand.
The Dr
oxian shrieked in agony as the blow dislocated his kneecap. Chase then threw the leg back at him. He fell to the ground with a loud thud as the crowd cheered uncontrollably.
“Chase! Chase! Chase!” they chanted now.
He took no pleasure from this, none at all. But he needed to feel the pain these fights brought. At least when he was letting himself be beaten to a pulp, which wasn’t the case much tonight. This was his fourth and last opponent for the evening, and while he let himself get injured on purpose and for the show, patience wasn’t a welcome guest in his thoughts today.
The Droxian was on the ground, holding his leg, clearly regretting landing the previous blow that had made Chase’s nose bleed.
This is utterly useless, thought Chase.
His opponent wasn’t in a position to cause Chase the physical pain he craved lately. But in his soul he knew that no amount of pain from these fights would cover that within his heart. A tear escaped his left eye but he quickly wiped it away.
“Finish him!” demanded the crowd.
Chase took two steps towards the Droxian, still on the ground, and the anticipation from the crowd intensified. He hated this, but this was how the fights had to be conducted on board the Obsidian station Ponos One. To the death.
He didn’t know what made the Droxian react—adrenaline and impending death, probably—but he was glad he did. He punched his own knee back into place with a painful, cracking noise and then stood mostly on his good leg, resuming a fighting stance.
Why did it have to be a Droxian? thought Chase. Of all the scum roaming these rings. It had to remind him of his past, a past he wanted to forget at all costs. But there was no brushing away the weight and pain of these memories as they rushed back into Chase’s mind, reigniting the deepest scars within his soul. He could obliterate his opponent with a thought; there was no challenge . . . But Chase wasn’t looking for challenge, only pain.
Universe in Flames – Ultimate 10 Book Box Set: An Epic Space Opera Adventure Page 87
