by Matt Larkin
Fall of Angels
Sins of Angels, Book 5
Matt Larkin
J. S. Morin
Magical Scrivener Press
Copyright © 2014 Matt Larkin, © 2017 Matt Larkin & J.S. Morin
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law. For permission requests, write to the publisher, addressed “Attention: Permissions Coordinator,” at the address below.
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Publisher’s Note: This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are a product of the author’s imagination. Locales and public names are sometimes used for atmospheric purposes. Any resemblance to actual people, living or dead, or to businesses, companies, events, institutions, or locales is completely coincidental.
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Matt Larkin & J.S. Morin — Second Edition
ISBN: 978-1-942642-56-5
Printed in the United States of America
Contents
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
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
Chapter 50
Chapter 51
Chapter 52
Chapter 53
Chapter 54
Chapter 55
Chapter 56
Chapter 57
Epilogue
Authors’ Notes
More Books by Matt Larkin
More Books by J. S. Morin
About the Authors
1
“Water is the element that giveth life. Mankind rose from water, and to water he shall return.”
The Codex, Book of Arariel, on the creations of the rahabim
FEBRUARY 10, 3097 EY — REHOBATH, ANDROMEDA
The Tabernacle was gone. Rachel had dared to hope peace might follow its destruction. To save the Sentinels, to save mankind, Rachel and David had led an assault against the Tabernacle itself—the very symbol of his civilization. And in destroying it, their worst fears had manifested. The Sentinels, now free from angel monitoring, had collapsed into civil war, rebuffing David’s attempts to mediate peace between them.
After all, why should they flock to the man who led them to this chaos?
Rachel sat on the bed across from David in the quarters they now shared, her legs folded beneath her. This was supposed to have been their honeymoon. Instead, David sat transfixed by the Mazzaroth screen, watching the reports.
Asheran leviathans seizing control of Mizraim space. They had already taken half of the Pegasus Dwarf galaxy, and with the Sentinels too busy fighting each other, any attempt to stand up to the Asheran advance proved short-lived.
“How could they do this, Rach?”
Rachel shrugged. “Did you expect the alliance to endure once the angels disappeared?”
“I had bloody well hoped so.”
Well, so had Rachel. Working with the Asherans got them called traitors by some, but it had represented an enormous stride toward greater peace in the universe. Or so she had thought.
“We could let it be …” Rachel said.
David shook his head, resigned sadness wafting off him in a choking cloud. “You know I cannot do that, Rach. I have a responsibility to …”
“To everyone. Yeah, I know.”
David stepped up to the Mazzaroth screen. “Contact Aluf Mishma Lamport.”
The screen flashed for a moment. “Call refused,” David’s personal Mazzaroth voice said. Again.
David sighed and leaned against the wall, head between his hands.
So much for that little alliance.
Rachel moved to put a hand on his shoulder. “If we hadn’t worked with them, we might not have brought down the Tabernacle. It at least stopped the angel attacks.”
“For how long? Right now, they’re just waiting for us to finish tearing ourselves apart. We’ve shown we can hurt them, aye, so now they sit back and let us solve the problem for them.”
She slipped her arms around his waist and leaned her head against his back. She couldn’t feel his warmth through his uniform, but the contact helped. With all that had happened, at least she was here with him. There was one person in the universe she knew would always be on her side.
Her husband.
If only they’d been able to get that damned honeymoon.
“I just hoped …” he said.
“You hoped it would be the first step to a united humanity,” Rachel said. “Yeah, I know. Me too. I’m an expert in that sort of self-deluding optimism, David. We don’t have to do this anymore, you know. We could … just go. Somewhere. The angels have given us a reprieve.”
Run away from the whole off-rotation mess. Escape to some world on the fringes, and build a life. Except, they both knew the angels would be back, sooner or later. When humanity had worn itself out with civil wars, the angels would return and resume subjugating mankind.
And Rachel couldn’t allow that any more than David could.
David turned around in her arms and led her back to the bed. He pulled her down to sit in his lap and held her without speaking for a long time. Rachel leaned against his chest.
Comfortable. Peaceful. For a moment.
The Sentinels were divided because, with the loss of the Shekhinah and the Sanhedrin, they had no clear leader. Without a central authority, each captain had to make his or her own decisions about what was right. That had led to three factions they knew of and a bunch of lone ships acting on their own. Some had sided with David. Friends of his, like Hannah Hertz, still worked to bring the Sentinels back together. But so many of the others blamed David for the chaos, he had thought it best he step aside and let Hannah take charge of reunification.
David thought Hannah had more chance of swaying the angel loyalists than he did, but Rachel had her doubts. David had natural charisma and a profound dedication that inspired people.
Then there was a separatist movement calling themselves the New Eden Republic. A faction led by a growing number of captains who wanted nothing to do with either angels or David’s people, whom they consid
ered traitors. The separatists planned to start their own republic around mankind’s recently rediscovered homeworld. The Seekers of Eden had thrown their lot in with NER. From what Rachel heard, because of the psychic ghosts on Eden, they had been building camps on the other planets in the system.
Under other circumstances, Rachel would have joined them. But she’d never do so without David.
The NER might actually be their best chance for allies if she could just get them to sit down and discuss it. Seemed as though almost no one wanted to speak with them these days. And why not? Half the universe thought she and David were responsible for starting Armageddon.
At last, David sighed. “Rach, we can’t stay here. I need to go help Hannah however I can.”
Rachel folded her arms across her chest. “So let’s go.”
“You know I have to go pick up Leah.”
The rahab had requested personal leave down on Rehobath. Enjoying the planet Rachel had barely even gotten to see for her own damned wedding. Now she glowered.
“Rach …”
“Oh just go get her.”
“Have you ever seen Floating City?”
Rachel shook her head.
“Then you’re coming too.”
She barely suppressed a groan. Much as she’d wanted to see it, this was not what Rachel had had in mind.
2
“The wealthy of Mizraim see Rehobath as a tourist stop, but we know better. The true value of the planet comes from the empyreal crystals found on and beneath the ocean floor. We employ a veritable army of rahabim to excavate those crystals, so absolutely no interruption of the process can be tolerated.”
Abarron Weber, Zebulun executive
REHOBATH, ANDROMEDA
David had visited Rehobath several times before, or at least the capital, Floating City. As the named implied, it was a platform floating on the equator. Leah’s family, like most, lived up there. Underwater, a column reached down several hundred meters to connect to the lower city—commonly known as the Benthic.
The planet had no proper spaceport but rather an orbital-docking platform. From there, he and Rachel took a shuttle down to Floating City. She stared out the window at the oceans as they landed on a shuttle pad.
The truth was, knowing her feelings for him, it was probably best he give Leah some space. He could have her transferred to another ship—the Wake of Stars, maybe. Hannah could certainly use the help. Of course, he would miss the lass terribly. For years, she had been his best friend and confidant. Rachel had begun taking Leah’s place in those aspects, but he still missed the rahab.
“I can see fish in the water,” Rachel said, pressing her face to the glass.
“Aye. Around these parts, the ocean’s clear as the rivers on New Rome … as they were.”
“Mmmm.” She scurried out of the shuttle and over to the pad’s rail. “Do you think the water’s cold?”
“Not here, no. There’s an artificial beach in the south district. Tourists come here to swim with the dolphins and rays. It’s bloody deep down there, though. Not like stepping off a beach at home. Go out far and you’d just fall off the shelf.”
Rachel beamed like a double sunrise. “Okay. Totally got to try that. How … how big are the rays?”
David smiled and began leading her to the beach. Nice to see the lass enjoying herself like old times. Back when the universe was simpler. Back when angels were a memory to be revered, instead of aliens to be fought. “Mantas get to be almost ten meters in wingspan.”
“Holy shit. That’s huge. Are … are there sharks? Whales?”
“Whales, aye, but not in these waters. No sharks. Angels never seeded them here. Guess it would have interfered with the mining operations.”
“I like this planet,” she said. She rushed down another street, gazing at palm trees and shops selling margaritas.
The buildings here weren’t as tall as those on other planets—five or six stories, usually no more. Here, the city built down, not up. The platform was wide—several kilometers in diameter, which meant there was no chance of it capsizing. The angels knew what they were about when they designed the place.
Most of the buildings were painted white or light blue, and tropical flowers grew everywhere. Though Zebulun controlled most of the planet’s industry, the locals had turned Floating City into a relaxing paradise for suits or Sentinels needing a vacation. Once, he’d taken shore leave here with Leah. The lass had five sisters, four of whom still lived here. They’d fawned over him, offering him mojitos, spicy boiled shrimp, and anything else he needed. Carmel, the oldest, was a professional masseuse and had given him the finest massage he’d ever had.
David smiled at the thought and followed Rachel as she dashed down the beach. Pink sand kicked up under her boots when she ran toward a concession stand. A wide palm umbrella shaded a local rahab selling cocktails.
“Uh, lass,” David said. “If you’re going swimming, best save the alcohol for after that.”
Rachel rolled her eyes but shrugged at the vendor and walked toward the sea. She unbound her jacket and tossed it aside. “Where can we get swimwear?”
Her suit was waterproof, but he supposed she’d want to feel the water on her skin. David scratched his head. “Uh, on this planet, most people don’t bother with that.”
“They swim naked?” she asked.
David pointed at people out in the water. Because the waters were so clear, it was obvious most wore nothing.
“Huh,” Rachel said and stared.
David folded his arms and watched her, trying not to grin. “Still want to go swimming, lass? If you’re feeling shy, I’ll bet you could find a tourist shop with a bikini.” Most of the sunbathers did have some kind of undergarments on. They just tended to strip them off when swimming.
Rachel scrunched her face and stuck out her tongue. “You’re the one with the fair Calnehian skin. I don’t burn.” And she pulled off her undershirt and tossed it on top of her jacket.
David unabashedly stared at her breasts. “God, I love you.”
“Oh, you’re coming too.”
“Aye?” He followed her lead and stripped his clothes, then chased her into the sea.
For a short distance, they could walk along the bottom, but the slope was steep, and soon he had to swim. Rachel dove underwater, and he followed. Not far off shore, dolphins played with tourists and local rahabim, long accustomed to their presence. For an hour, he swam with Rachel. She was panting when they crawled back onto the beach.
“You know, lass,” he said, a little winded himself, “you can get a breather. If you want to dive longer.”
“I might,” she said. She slipped back into her undergarments and headed for the concession stand. “Maybe a break first.”
“Aye.” David pulled his own clothes back own. “You can check into a hotel if you like. I need to find Leah.”
Rachel nodded, then ordered a drink.
David left her to relax and headed toward the city center. If he remembered correctly, Leah’s family had a condo there. He toured the buildings until one looked familiar, then tapped its console. “Suzuki family.”
A moment later, the screen filled with Carmel’s face. “Hello? Oh! You’re Leah’s boyfriend, right? Want another massage?”
“Uh … I’m not …” David cleared his throat. Had the girl misunderstood, or had Leah misled her? Most likely the former. He couldn’t see Leah doing that … not really. “I’m actually her commanding officer. Is she around?”
“Yeah, Mac-something … that’s who she said. She went diving down from the Benthic. Red Chamber, I think.”
Diving. Meaning no comm.
“All right, thanks, lass.” He released the console and headed toward one of the lifts. Both the column and lift had smart glass walls, allowing him to see the rainbow assortment of fish as he descended. Truly a beautiful sight. In the distance, he caught sight of a manta, the largest he’d ever seen. With luck, Rachel would get the chance to see the behem
oth.
The lift settled down, and he followed lighted panels toward the Red Chamber. Color-coded lights led to seven different diving chambers, in addition to several research and storage stations down here. Mostly rahabim came to the dive chambers for mining work, but some came just for recreation. Norms and other non-rahabim couldn’t well swim this deep, so it was private, secluded from most tourists.
Red lights lit the ceiling of the Red Chamber. When he entered, a half-dozen workers loaded hauls of crystals onto a hover transport. Some wore shorts and loose shirts, but others wore nothing. David tried not to stare. Had to remember local customs varied on each planet.
A man popped up from one of the dive pools—large circular wells all around the Red Chamber—hefting a fiber net filled with empyreal crystals after him. When he broke the surface, micro hover jets on the net activated, allowing him to lift it clear.
David watched for a moment, then someone rose from the waters of another pool. Leah. Completely nude.
She stepped free of the pool, beaming at him. “Mac!”
He coughed and looked at the floor. Knowing she had feelings for him made seeing her naked all the more awkward.
