Rumors of Wars: The Askirti Chronicles - Book 2 Read online

  Rumors of Wars

  The Askirti Chronicles

  Book 2

  Danny A. Brown

  dannyabrown.com

  Published by DKVOI Publishing Company

  Jacksonville, Florida

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, businesses, companies, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

  Copyright © 2017 by Danny A. Brown.

  170630

  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.

  Editing by Marion Dillion

  Cover Illustration by Tom Edwards

  tomedwardsdesign.com

  Table of Contents

  Table of Contents

  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

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Epilogue

  Afterword

  Prologue

  I was dead, and am alive again. I have delivered them from the evil ones. Yes, they will love me, they will worship me!

  Jackie remembered that seductive thought, after saving the Commonwealth’s home planet of Wellington, her body at the time flowing with incredible power, seductive power.

  I remember my neck snapping after we were struck with a skip-jack beforehand, I hit the ceiling so hard.

  She grimaced, thinking of her death when the highly illegal missile hit the WFS Nemesis. It was her sentient AI, residing in her head using a multi-dimensional quantum computer, that flooded her body with tiny little machines to perform critical repairs and restart her heart.

  Who would have ever thought I’d have nanites, and they could perform an emergency resurrection?

  Sprawled out in bed at her cheap hotel, Jackie just looked out the window and sighed.

  At least here they leave me alone.

  She had reached so far up, having been the executive officer on a ratty little destroyer, then by a fluke of destiny it seemed, she was the XO on the newest, most modern ship in the Westerly Federation, the Nemesis. Then savior of the capital planet for an allied empire.

  Doesn’t matter, they threw me away anyway.

  What a rush! Playing such a pivotal role in one of the most important battles in the past few decades. At the Battle of Wellington, she discovered she was like a mythical bird able to rise from the ashes.

  And they still dismissed me. I barely escaped a dishonorable discharge!

  After annihilating tens of thousands of enemies with her abilities, having genetic access to a previously unknown power that was under the crust of that world, she had overcome the temptation to use it to seize control over the kingdoms of men. Her reward was being booted from the military.

  Perhaps I could use my powers to make them kiss my butt.

  She sighed again. It used to be the hunt for justice that was her driving force, knowing she was making life safer for families, for children. Piracy was on the rise, and what pirates did to families, what they did to her family…These past few days, the only pleasure she felt had come from the drug highlights, of which she had been injecting an ample supply.

  I have all the power of a god, and where has that got me?

  She shoved the pure white hair out of her face, and tied the rubber band around the alabaster white skin on her right bicep, then picked up the needle with her left hand and injected herself again with that wonderful drug that kept her from dreaming.

  As she released the band, the high from the drug was felt immediately, her body was suddenly feeling oh so good. Closing her emerald green eyes, she drifted off into a dreamless sleep, for which she was thankful. For in her dreams her enemies were there…in her dreams, she was the hunted…in her dreams, she watched her family die a violent death again and again…in her dreams all she knew was terror.

  Chapter 1

  Loyola Sentra System

  Loyola Prime

  Rick Amori was no longer a commander in the Westerly Federation Marine Corps. He was not sure how he felt about that, being a private citizen again. For someone of his status, he had an impressive amount of money saved up and no one to spend it on, and instead of a rigid schedule, he now had all the time in the world.

  It had been more than a decade since his wife and daughter were murdered by pirates while traveling to visit a distant relative. In that time, he had become a hard man, working harder than most trying to be the best marine he could be, pouring himself into his job.

  His primal driving force had been to bring justice to this universe by doing his part to fight piracy. They were a group with no honor and the more he could capture or kill them, the better he felt about his place in this life.

  Then he met a woman, and everything changed. He did not think he could have feelings for anyone again, as his late wife had been his school-age sweetheart, but now he found himself eager for this new woman’s attention. It wasn’t just something physical that the young felt, it was so much deeper than that. He felt a spiritual connection to her, and he knew he could never let her go.

  At first, he had flirted with the idea of her and him as she would come to spar with his marines onboard Anderson Station. She possessed a warrior’s heart inside of her, perhaps that is what got his attention in the beginning, but now it was only one of the many things he loved about her. He knew the nasty names others had for her, Ice Queen they would say behind her back. He did not let it deter him.

  In a rash move, he pulled some strings to have himself and his company stationed on her destroyer during the next tour. That is when his life changed forever. This woman was a real leader amongst her peers, gifted in everything she did. He especially liked how she found pleasure in bringing the pain to the pirates as that was his comfort zone as well. Every pirate brought to justice meant some family somewhere was just a bit safer.

  Some truly spectacular events followed while her past began to unfold in a very public fashion. He could see the pain in her eyes at the very public disclosure of her past as a citizen of Earth, surviving the epic massacres that occurred there, the worst in Westerly history, along with the discovery that she was the sole survivor of Orlando, where the pirates had killed millions. Then he witnessed the call of destiny upon her life. He knew she had no equal, she truly was meant for greatness. She brokered a treaty with the powerful Commonwealth, a treaty the Westerly Federation had coveted for decades. She accessed an ancient secret, wielding her power for the good of all in the Battle of Wellington, what happened there was a story for the ages.

  And how did they reward her? They took everything away from her by forcing a discharge. He heard they even sought a dishonorable discharge against her, but after some favors were traded she had an honorab
le one. But still, the military had been her life, and she had become his life.

  If she were not part of this military, he would not be either. He promised her he would be there and would never let her down. Such was the love in his heart for her, he resigned his commission to chase this woman.

  He had received a call from a mutual friend, an annoying AI that she had acquired. An AI! A real working AI was…dangerous? He did not know nor did he care. The AI cared for her wellbeing, and that was good enough for him. It summoned him to a sketchy part of town, to a scary looking hotel. Walking to the room number given to him, he tried the handle, and the door opened.

  Lying unconscious on the bed, with a needle hanging out of her arm was Jacqueline Campo, former naval commander, executive officer of the mighty WFS Nemesis, and the most powerful woman alive, capable of slaughtering thousands with but a thought.

  As he walked into the room, the smell was the first thing to hit him as the place reeked of alcohol, vomit, old food, and body odor. He closed the door and walked over to Jackie. Her clothes were filthy. She was filthy. He looked down at her arm and gently removed the needle from it.

  He closed his eyes and whispered, “I keep my promises.”

  ##

  Jackie opened her eyes, feeling groggy but not perturbed by it.

  Another sweet night of dreamless sleep.

  As she started to rouse, her pulse quickened as she realized she was no longer alone.

  “Hello,” Rick said.

  Oh crap! Nobody has ever seen me like this!

  Startled, the first thing she thought of was she did not look presentable, her clothes, her hair, and when was the last time she bathed? And the drugs?

  I left plenty of evidence.

  “It’s okay, I didn’t expect perfection,” Rick said calmly, looking at the small table where her stash lay out in the open.

  “Well, how about out of my mind?” Jackie answered.

  “You’re not out of your mind,” he replied flatly.

  “The Nemesis was supposed to ship out,” she said, changing the topic.

  “Yes, and it did,” he answered.

  Alarm bells went off inside of her. That is when she noticed what Rick was wearing.

  “Why are you out of uniform?”

  There was a knot in the pit of her stomach.

  “I resigned my commission,” he simply added.

  She gasped.

  “W-why?”

  “I had to come for you, did I not? If not me, then who?” he said.

  Her eyes got big.

  “I’m a mess. My life is a wreck!”

  “You got the shaft, Jackie. But your life is not as much a wreck as you suppose.”

  “Rick, I’m not well.”

  “What do you mean?” he asked.

  “Look around you! This place, the drugs! I take them because of what I see at night,” she said with much sadness, “These past few days, that hasn’t even been enough! I’ve been having dreams, waking dreams! I’m not asleep when I see them! I’m barely hanging on!”

  “Okay,” he said, unsure of himself. “Tell me what you are seeing.”

  “I see battles. I see war, endless war. I see thousands of ships burning, multitudes of worlds are ablaze. I see myself seated on a throne, legions of leaders bowing before me!” she was becoming very emotional, almost sobbing. “I’m cracking up!”

  “You see this while you’re awake?”

  “Yes,” she whimpered, her bottom chin quivering at this point.

  While what he was hearing could be easily construed as a person losing their sanity, this was not just anyone, but a certain someone who wielded great powers that nobody had ever seen before. While it did sound wild to him, he was smart enough to know that he couldn’t dismiss it out of hand.

  Seeing that she was about to be pushed over the edge emotionally, he decided to change the direction of the conversation.

  “Listen, it wasn’t one hour after I had left the marines I received a call from that Wallace guy.”

  “His Eminence called you personally?” she asked, the sudden change in conversation calming her down.

  Tom Wallace, prime minister of the Commonwealth, was a true believer in prophecy. He was a true believer in Jackie.

  “Said he could not get in touch with you.”

  Pari?

  Pari was the name of her sentient artificial intelligence and could communicate with her using her thoughts. While the AI was aware of everything, it’s programming was very particular. It was subservient to her in every way, although it would get “mouthy” on occasion.

  <>

  I could care less.

  High Queen was the title she was to inherit as a future leader of the Askirti sect on Earth before the invasion and subsequent massacre. She was now the last of her kind as her people were completely wiped out. She found out in Wellington, the Commonwealth capital world, that she was a direct descendant of the former ruler of an empire that once spanned the galaxy, an empire that had fallen so many eons ago, virtually all knowledge of it had been lost.

  <>

  “Pari said the treaty is in danger,” she said, pushing her hair out of her face with an “I don’t care” look on her face.

  “Among other things, yeah, that was in one of the several messages the prime minister left you,” Rick answered.

  Uh, how many times did this guy call me?

  <>

  She just rolled her eyes.

  “Okay, why are you here.”

  “I am here for you. It took me a bit longer to resign than for them to fire you. But I came here for you,” he said, looking her in her eyes. “Not for a what you might be, or what you might be capable of…just you. If you want no part of the Federation or the Commonwealth and say, ‘screw them’, I am on board. I’ll take you anywhere you want to go.”

  Her face drew a blank look. She never considered in the past fifteen years that anyone would volunteer to be part of this disaster of a life she led.

  “Where should I go?” she asked, not knowing what to do.

  He got out of his chair and sat on the bed next to her and took her hand.

  “Where you go, I will also go, Jacqueline Campo.”

  “Okay, that was kind of cheesy, but seriously?” she retorted.

  “I was serious. But what do I think? I think you should take the prime minister's call. He and I share a common theme, we both believe in you,” he said, pointing his finger at her.

  She stared off at the window across the dirty room, at the crack in the glass, enjoying holding Rick’s hand. Here was a man who truly saw her at her worst, yet offered no judgment in his voice nor his eyes, only forgiveness and grace. How long had it been since she felt that? It had been since she lost her husband Henry, murdered by pirates back on Earth, that she had felt this.

  She looked at him and said, “take me out of this hell hole, time to deal with the Commonwealth.”

  “Let’s go. Oh, by the way, where’s your ‘special items’?”

  Rick referenced the relics gifted to her by the prime minister of the Commonwealth. Gifts originally gifted to the Commonwealth on the Westerly Federation’s behalf. They were estimated to be worth more than a battle fleet.

  “Under the bed.”

  The look on Rick’s face was priceless. He immediately arranged for private and anonymous transport of the items to his hotel room in a better part of town.

  ##

  Jackie had showered before they left that crappy hotel, though there was little to be done about her clothes other than burning t
hem once she purchased replacements, which was their first stop.

  Rick enjoyed the time he spent with her that day, no military protocol, no pirates, no wars. They shopped, they ate, they even caught a flick. Just him and the most powerful woman in the universe.

  She was so strong, yet so frail. She put her future in his hands that day, and he knew it. He felt no small amount of responsibility knowing that she allowed him into that secret place in her heart. It was a start as the incredibly thick layers of pain had hidden her heart so well. He was a gentleman and was determined to do right by her. He knew winning her completely over might take years, but it hardly mattered to him right now. He enjoyed the seconds, the minutes, and the hours she spent with him that day.

  He decided years back never to love again because of the pain of losing his family, though meeting her had changed his mind. He understood why she retreated so deeply, shutting people out, and engaging in substance abuse. But he was her lifeline, her way back, and she was his. He felt deep in his heart they were each other’s redemption.

  Having completed a pleasant day out on the town, he took her to his hotel, which was in a much better area of the city than the one he found her in, having already rented one of the nicer suites that morning. As they entered, the package with the artifacts was there in the middle of the floor. He took the box and her bags and placed them in the second room, not his room.

  He could tell just looking at her she appreciated that he was a gentleman, and not presumptuous. She went into the room, closed the door and took another long, hot shower. Finishing up, she dressed in one of the nicer outfits she had purchased that day and came out to the living room where Rick was.

  “You like?” she said as she turned around.

  He smiled, “you look spectacular! Come, let’s eat!”

  He had ordered in as he was certain she had not been eating properly these past few weeks.

  After the meal and some small talk, he asked, “you sure? I did promise I would take you anywhere.”