On the Shores of a Dark Sea (Dark Seas Series Book 2) Read online

  On the Shores

  of a Dark Sea

  - A Novel by -

  Damon Alan

  For my wife, Shannon, without whom I wouldn’t even be able to dream.

  Special thanks to everyone who bought Book 1 in this series. Taking a chance on this new author inspired me to push on. Let’s keep pushing on together until our dreams of a spacefaring humanity are a reality.

  © Damon Alan 2015 All rights reserved, including internal content and cover art. This book may not be reproduced without the express written permission of the copyright holder. Cover art may also not be reproduced without written permission, except for usage that pertains to bona fide blogging, review, or other legitimate journalistic purpose associated with the content of this book.

  This is a work of fiction, and any names, places, characters or events are created solely from the mind of Damon Alan, and then revealed via this book to you, the reader. Any resemblance to any human of the estimated 100 billion humans who live or ever have lived is purely coincidental. I’d also like to meet that person who has commanded a fleet of starships.

  1st Edition E-book, distribution solely via Amazon Kindle Direct Publishing.

  1st Edition print book is available on Amazon.com via Createspace as printer.

  Chapter 1 - A New Life

  Chapter 2 - The Caught Fish

  Chapter 3 - A God is Born

  Chapter 4 - Unexpected Squatters

  Chapter 5 - Captain's Personal Log

  Chapter 6 - Beetle Demon

  Chapter 7 - First Contact

  Chapter 8 - Captain's Personal Log

  Chapter 9 - Becoming a Guard Dog

  Chapter 10 - Advance of the Demon

  Chapter 11 - A Room Full of Demons

  Chapter 12 - A Magician on Our Hands

  Chapter 13 - Captain's Personal Log

  Chapter 14 - The Toll of the Demon

  Chapter 15 - A New Fight

  Chapter 16 - Captain's Personal Log

  Chapter 17 - The Dusty Road

  Chapter 18 - No Person Left Behind

  Chapter 19 - Take the Long Way Home

  Chapter 20 - Captain's Personal Log

  Chapter 21 - The Elder

  Chapter 22 - I Surrender

  Chapter 23 - A Near Miss

  Chapter 24 - Two Birds in the Hand

  Chapter 25 - A Trail in the Woods

  Chapter 26 - A Betrayal Discovered

  Chapter 27 - Fire Ridge

  Chapter 28 - Birth of a Deity

  Chapter 29 - A Long Reach

  Chapter 30 - Captain's Personal Log

  Chapter 31 - A Trail in the Sky

  Chapter 32 - Captain's Personal Log

  Chapter 33 - Hindsight

  Chapter 34 - Crew Unity

  Chapter 35 - Prophecy

  Chapter 36 - Eislen’s Rage

  Chapter 37 - On a Good Day

  Chapter 38 – Captain’s Personal Log

  Chapter 39 - Divinity Intensified

  Chapter 40 - The Gods Fall Silent

  Chapter 41 - Battle Plans

  Chapter 42 - In Hot Water

  Chapter 43 - Call to Action

  Chapter 44 - A Time to Kill

  Chapter 45 - Captain’s Personal Log

  Chapter 46 - Boots on the Ground

  Chapter 47 - Striking at God

  Chapter 48 - Struck, Soul and Body

  Chapter 49 - Ascension

  Chapter 50 - Sacrifice

  Chapter 51 - Search and Sacrifice

  Chapter 52 - A Push

  Chapter 53 - Immortality

  Chapter 54 - The Meeting

  Chapter 55 - Captain's Personal Log

  Chapter 56 - Union

  Chapter 57 - Into the Dark

  Chapter 1 - A New Life

  20 JUNI 15327

  Fleet Captain Sarah Dayson looked over the crewmen assembled before her. The memorial for lost crew was on every non-critical viewscreen in the fleet.

  She looked at the large weapons storage bay and at the bodies laid out across the service floor. Strong lighting lit the area from above, emphasizing the harshness of the setting. Her heart stung as she looked at the dead. Brave souls whose sacrifice meant the others standing before her would live.

  Emotion took her, and she waited for it to pass so she could speak. Her crews didn’t need to see her crying at this moment. Inside her heart anger burned. But there was also joy. The star system they were currently in was so far from any other that it was unlikely the Hive or other humans would ever visit it. In seclusion, it was possible the human race could avoid extinction.

  Back in control, she cleared her throat, clasped the podium before her, and then spoke into a microphone. “To my left is missile tube sixty-three. Not remarkable in any way, except that it is the means by which we will commit our dead to eternity. Today it will be removed from wartime service, never to see conflict again.”

  Almost imperceptible nods of approval were scattered through the assembled troops.

  A smile touched the corner of her mouth. Her people were with her, in heart and mind. “Without the sacrifice of our fallen comrades, the Michael Stennis and the remaining ships of the Seventh Fleet may have fallen long ago to the scourge we left behind. The Hive, an enemy ruthless and seemingly unstoppable, are now an enemy that can no longer reach us.”

  For once in her life Sarah was grateful for a slight hangover. The dull pain focused her mind into clear words. “We, the remaining souls of the Seventh Fleet, have been delivered to a rich star system deep in intergalactic space. Whether by accident or luck, we are the final hope for humanity. Whether by fate or fickle circumstance, we are now colonists, warriors no more.”

  She gestured toward the fallen with a swept hand. “Let these be the last warriors we lose. Do not waste their efforts, but let us build upon their example as each of us sacrifice small comforts for our future. Any sacrifice on our part pales compared to theirs. We will make their loss mean something by creating a prospering civilization like humanity has never seen.”

  Sarah stepped back from the podium.

  Commander Franklin Gilbert stepped forward, yelling into the open space of the bay. “Attention on deck.”

  The attending crew snapped to rigid attention.

  “Face the fallen.”

  Men and women in dress uniforms snap pivoted to face the hundreds of bodies.

  “Present arms,” Sarah’s XO called out. One deck below seven defensive railguns cycled kinetic slugs onto their magnetic rails, ready to fire.

  “Fire!” Gilbert bellowed.

  The deck rang as the railguns fired in unison, creating a harmonic resonance in the adjacent hull plates of the Stennis.

  Seven.

  “Fire!”

  BRAAANG!

  Fourteen.

  “Fire!”

  BRAAANG!

  Twenty-one.

  Sarah paused as the sound of the shots dissipated. “Deck Chief Urecht, please commit our fallen to the eternal drift.”

  “Sir, I am committing our fallen to the eternal drift,” the deck chief replied.

  “Order arms!” Gilbert barked.

  Across the deck salutes fell in unison. One by one the dead were loaded into missile tube sixty-three, then shot into space. Each of the fallen was encased in a small capsule, bearing the Starred Circle of the Alliance. The process was automated, but still took a few hours.

  Completing his somber task, the deck chief marched across the deck, stopped, then pivoted to face Sarah. He, and the crew assembled behind him, saluted. “Sir, the fallen are committed to eternal drift.”

  S
arah saluted the assembly.

  “Deck Chief Urecht, you are relieved of this wretched duty.” Sarah dropped her salute.

  “I stand relieved,” he answered, dropping his salute and returning to stand at the missile tube.

  Sarah returned to the podium. “When we arrive at our new home and we move to colonize this untouched world, our first act will be to remove missile tube sixty-three. It will be the heart of the monument we build to remember our lost. Now, more than ever, we must work as a unit. I am proud of you. I have faith in you. There is zero doubt we will rise to face coming challenges.”

  Sarah stepped back from the podium.

  Commander Thea Jannis, fleet chief medical officer, stepped forward. She lowered her head to the microphone, which squealed with feedback until she pulled away. “We still have hundreds of wounded across the fleet. Those of you who have not given blood in the last thirty days, you are scheduled to do so again. You will be sent a notice of when to report to medbay. Thank you for your assistance.” Jannis turned her head to look at Sarah, which struck Sarah as a request for approval.

  Sarah nodded at the doctor, a gesture that seemed to satisfy the woman.

  “You have an appointment as well,” the doctor whispered as she returned to her position on the dais.

  Commander Gilbert stepped forward one last time. “Seventh Fleet. You are dismissed to your stations. Shuttles are standing by to return you to your respective ships.”

  Sarah stood with Gilbert as the crew filed out of the room. Dr. Jannis left immediately. Sarah listened to the crew speak among themselves as they left.

  Solemn, but she detected a small underlying current of excitement. This gathering was intended to bury the dead, but also to put the bad days behind them and bring unity of purpose to the fleet.

  Gilbert spoke, startling her. “I think the crew like the idea of being colonists instead of warriors, Captain.”

  Sarah agreed. There was an undercurrent of hope she’d not seen in a while. “I think so, Mr. Gilbert. How do you feel about it?”

  He shrugged his shoulders. “Mixed emotions, I suppose. I’m a marine in my core. I’m supposed to just shrug it off and push on. But it’s not that easy, is it? We left comrades from our fleet behind at Hamor. They’re probably dead. Many of these guys,” Gilbert swept his hand toward the departing crewmen, “left behind families they’ll never see again.”

  Sarah didn’t answer. Gilbert was right. The price paid to get here was staggering.

  He looked at her strangely. His face reflected concern. “Are you alright?”

  Her last XO didn’t ask that question even once. “I’m fine. I mourn the dead like you do, but I’ve come to terms with abandoning our role as warriors for a future as… well, as whatever we need to be to build a civilization.”

  “I’m trying to do that,” Gilbert replied. “Come to terms with it, I mean. It’s a bit much to digest. Colonist. We’re a war fleet. I hope everyone else is adapting to the idea quicker than I am.”

  Sarah looked up at her XO, studying his face for a reaction. “We can’t go back. They know that. It’s not like we have a choice.”

  “Even if we could go back, we shouldn’t.”

  She looked at him with approval. “I’m surprised to hear that from you.”

  “Why? With us here, humanity won’t go extinct. We are safe, Captain. For the first time in our lives, you, me, and all of them are safe.”

  Sarah watched the last of the crew leave the bay. She hoped Gilbert was right. He had to be. “Let’s get to the bridge, Mr. Gilbert. We have a star system to colonize.”

  Chapter 2 - The Caught Fish

  Afternoon of Secondday, cycle 114, year 8746

  The fish hovered over the water, struggling as it asphyxiated.

  “Kill it, without losing it. Show me your control,” Merik said.

  Alarin concentrated on the flows of energy and information around him. The nature of the river water unfolded for him. The air around the fish, comprised of small dancing bits, told him its secrets. Even the heat radiating downward from Em’Jalai registered in his mind. The coursing lifeblood of the fish spoke to him as it pounded through the veins of the suffering animal.

  Alarin didn’t enjoy the agony of the creature, he sensed it as his own. Animals had emotions, even fish. This fish exuded panic, confusion, and fear, all bathed in the despair of helplessness. But Merik didn’t need to know his feelings on that, she already thought him soft.

  Alarin shifted enough heat from the heart of the creature to cook the small brain. The struggle stopped and the dead fish floated in the air, steam rolling from its gill slits and mouth.

  “Excellent control, Alarin,” Merik said. “Most adepts are brutes, unable to grasp the finer details of the gift. Lesser than you and I, they cover their inadequacies with excessive force. The true mark of an adept such as you is finesse.”

  “Thank you, master,” Alarin replied.

  Merik huffed and crossed her arms. “I don’t want you calling me that anymore.”

  The fish slid through the air toward the shore, to be eaten and not wasted. As Alarin moved it across the river, the information flow from his gift moved with it. He detected another life hidden in the shade of a towering water oak. There, in the cool darkness, a young girl with a cane pole searched for her own fish. Alarin lay his catch at her feet as a gift for her family that evening.

  Task complete, Alarin faced Merik and answered her feigned indignity. “I sometimes cannot believe you and I are betrothed. When I believe it is a dream, I call you master.”

  Merik watched the girl run off with the fish. “You are soft in ways a ruler should not be.”

  Alarin rebutted the woman who was his master, his teacher, and his promised bride. “That is how you were raised, Merik, to rule with a stone fist. I will be a counterbalance to your hard will.”

  Merik giggled, “You insult me yet I love it. Why is that so with you?”

  Alarin leaned in toward her. “Because I am the one.”

  Merik’s voice softened, and she tilted her head inviting his kiss. “So you are.”

  The lovers embraced under the water oaks, falling back against the trunk of a tree. Alarin kissed Merik’s face, lavishing her with love. She returned his passion, and as their minds danced around each other during the embrace, both knew it true.

  Merik was a strong leader, but her charisma among non-adepts left much to be desired. Alarin was her balance. The gods almost always made it so. When the ship of life was loaded too heavily on one side, a counterbalance was made, or an adjustment.

  The gods adjusted Merik’s father, the previous ruler of Zeffult. A tyrannical man, Merik was a forgiving and relaxed soul in comparison. In the breath of one season the gods changed the leadership of Zeffult, and balanced the results with Alarin. The love he carried for Merik was the gods gift to him, an appreciated reward for his devotion to the goals of Heaven.

  Merik pulled back a few finger spans from his face. “Let’s walk. We can continue this later.”

  Alarin looked at others passing on the river walk as he spoke to Merik. The passersby bowed their heads toward the woman beside him. “You’re right, this probably isn’t the most appropriate place for what I want to do to you.”

  Merik giggled again. “I think not.” She straightened her blouse, and slapped tree bark from her breeches. “We’ll continue our lesson as we walk.”

  Alarin frowned. “Now that I am distracted?”

  “There is no better time. Surely much greater distractions await when you rule as my second.”

  “Second Adept. It has an appeal to it, if only I were worthy.”

  “Your humility fools the priests Alarin. It fools the common merchant as you mingle with them, or the children when you do magic for them in the square. But it doesn’t fool me.”

  “Nothing escapes you.”

  They walked in silence for a while, holding hands, dead leaves crunching underfoot. Swathgrass dotted the few areas wh
ere the oaks allowed light from Faroo to reach the ground.

  Merik broke the silence. “You speak of my upbringing. I’m glad my father failed to kill you before—”

  Alarin stopped walking and turned her toward him. He placed a finger on her lips. Then he spoke, once he saw she would willingly be silent. “As am I.”

  “I didn’t know that’s what he would do when—”

  Sensing her growing despair, he pulled her closer, cupping her face in his hands. “Neither did I.”

  Alarin watched a tear drip from her chin. He flicked it away with a thought before it dotted her blouse.

  Merik stepped back. Despite efforts to control her breathing, her voice quivered. “His blood is on my hands. It always will be.”

  “No. It’s on our hands. I share your pain every time our minds touch, then wear it in the times between. The gods gave their approval of your father’s fate when they gave one so young as you mastery of the gift. No other could have faced him.”

  Merik, in turn, placed a finger on his lips. “Don’t speak to me of gods.” Her voice quivered no more.

  Alarin fell silent.

  Her smiled surprised him. She was very quick to change moods as of late.

  “Let’s continue your lesson,” she said.

  After a while, lesson concluded, they walked up the hill to Merik’s palace. Crossing the front archway, Merik paused. As he’d done to her earlier, she grabbed Alarin’s arm and turned him to face her. A hand, in half his previous gesture, snaked up to caress his face. “I gave everything for you, and now you will be my everything.”

  “I understand you chose my life over your father’s.” Alarin’s eyes closed, he savored her touch. “I will never forget what you have sacrificed to love me.”

  Her voice changed, and the tone behind her next words left Alarin cold. “Do not leave me wanting.”