Origin by Scott Jasper T

Author:Scott, Jasper T. [Scott, Jasper T.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Science Fiction, Adventure, Fantasy
ISBN: 9781493645329
Amazon: B00GAPWQC4
Goodreads: 18815240
Publisher: Anthem Press
Published: 2013-10-23T07:00:00+00:00

Ethan awoke to the sound of a woman screaming.

Where am I? he wondered.

He tried to sit up, but the warning jolt which passed through his wrists gave him pause. His hands and feet were bound with stun cords, and he couldn’t move too much without provoking a shock. Rather than try again, he just turned his head where he lay to get his bearings. The room was dark. Shattered transpiranium panels glittered on the floor beneath a row of floor-to-ceiling window frames. Far below those broken windows lay a hangar deck and a crashed upside down transport.

Suddenly Ethan remembered, and he knew where he was. He was in the ruined control tower of one of the Valiant’s venture-class hangars. They’d managed to get aboard the carrier just before it had jumped to SLS, but like a right skriff he’d shot off his mouth about having been here before with Gina. Back then he had been wearing a holoskin of the pilot Adan Reese, and he’d been forced to explain to his squad mates and Gina that he’d been working for Brondi—which explained why he was now wearing stun cords. It also explained the throbbing pain in the side of his head where he vaguely recalled that Gina’s elbow had connected with his skull.

The woman screamed again, and this time Ethan heard heavy footsteps approaching. He turned away from the broken viewports and saw Alara, limned in the pale white light spilling in from the broken windows and the shadowy hangar bay beyond. Even in the dark he recognized her. She sat on a sleeping pallet beside him, looking around with wide, terrified eyes. Then the booming footsteps stopped, and they both turned to see the dark outline of a zephyr appear in an open doorway at the far end of the room. “Shut up!” the vanguard sentinel hissed.

Alara just screamed louder.

“Shhh! Shut the frek up!”

“Where am I? Who are you? Why is it so dark?”

“Alara, calm down,” Ethan said.

“My name’s not Alara, it’s Angel!” she replied.

Ethan’s heart sank. Her slave chip was working again in full force.

“Angel, huh?” the sentinel said. “Well shut up, Angel, before you bring a whole regiment of Brondi’s men down on us. They can probably hear you screaming all the way from the bridge.”

“Brondi?” Alara asked, sounding hopeful. “Where is he?”

“In his quarters, sleeping like a good little crime lord, would be my guess. Now go back to sleep.”

Ethan thought he recognized that vanguard’s voice. He guessed it was the medic who’d attended Alara’s injuries. “Exalian!” he said. “Where is everyone?”

The vanguard turned to him. “Frek, now you, too! Don’t you two get it? We’re undercover —at least I am. Just my luck to get stuck babysitting the two of you. I’m more likely to get killed here than with my squad! Look, if either of you gives us away, Brondi’s men are going to kill us. Get it? Real simple.”

“Why would they do that?” Alara asked.

“Because we’re here to take this ship back from them—that’s why! Now shut up or I’ll stun you both.

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