Adopted Gods (Second Contact Book 2) by Andrew Bellingham

Author:Andrew Bellingham [Bellingham, Andrew]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: LMBPN Publishing
Published: 2024-01-25T00:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER FIFTEEN

Sempa looked around him, taking in the garden he had cultivated and grown over months into a flourishing oasis of life worthy of old Eden. The greenhouse was his home. It was his sanctuary and his domain. To him, the plot of tilled earth with its growing vegetables and fruits was the colony.

He did not care to be far from it. He’d spent almost every hour of daylight turning soil and checking temperatures, humidity, and soil acidity. He had come to this new world to help foster life. Now, he was preparing to leave, to betray the ideal that brought him into the depths of space in search of a new home. He was preparing to fight.

He already looked the part for his new role. The riot gear draped over him felt heavy. Its weight was a constant reminder of the gravity of things, the consequence of what he was getting into.

He ran a hand through the tuft of feathers sprouting from his head. He counted it as a mercy and a sign that he was not molting from the stress of the last few days.

The teal and peach-skinned gene edit knelt by the radish plants, pleased to see the large, fat red bulbs poking from the ground. Another crop was ready for harvest. They were the first Edenic plant he and Xarla had managed to coax from the alien ground, and they had a special place in his heart.

The sound of the door opening caught his attention. He sighed, giving the soil an affectionate pat, then righted himself.

Xarla stood at the door, her red hair a mess and her face splotchy. She’d been crying again.

“Damn it, why do you have to be wearing that here? I thought I had myself under control, but seeing you wear that…” Xarla huffed, wrapping her arms around herself and looking pointedly away from Sempa.

“I’m sorry. I should have thought to put it on after we set out. I only wanted to adjust to wearing it.”

Xarla nodded, still not looking his way. “I wish we had known what was coming for us when Fen took over the colony. I wish we’d known how stupid it was to try to stand up to the terraformers or take back the Perseverance. Fuck me, I’m even wishing we’d listened to Haelo and hidden within the walls and never left them.”

Sempa didn’t say anything immediately. He walked out from the vegetable patches and down the walkway to where Xarla lingered. Wordlessly, he put his arms around her, pulling her into a firm embrace.

Xarla tensed in his arms, her muscles rigid with anger, fear, and upset. Sempa put his hand on her head, his teal spots contrasting with her vibrant, wildly tangled red hair.

“I don’t know if you’ve considered this, but these new aliens were probably always coming for us. That statue on the recording suggests they must have been looking for us for some time. If we had stuck with Captain Haelo’s leadership and cowered behind the walls forever, I truly think these new aliens would have found us eventually.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.