Bonds of Resolve (Cadicle #3): An Epic Space Opera Series Read online

  BONDS OF RESOLVE

  by

  Amy DuBoff

  BONDS OF RESOLVE

  Copyright © 2015 by Amy DuBoff

  All rights reserved. This book is protected under the copyright laws of the United States of America. No part of this eBook may be used or reproduced in any manner without written permission from the author, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles, reviews or promotions.

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

  www.amyduboff.com

  Published by BDL Press

  Editor: Nicholas Bubb

  Cover Illustration: Copyright © 2015 Tom Edwards (www.TomEdwardsDesign.com)

  ASIN: B012HEKVPU

  First eBook Edition: 23rd October 2015

  Kindle Edition

  Table of 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

  Next in the Cadicle series

  Acknowledgements

  Glossary

  About the Author

  CHAPTER 1

  Vibrations wracked the shuttle as it rocketed through the atmosphere. Saera Alexander gripped her harness, her stomach rising into her mouth. The force of the seemingly impossible upward trajectory had Saera pinned to her seat. Her breath was ragged from nerves and the pressure, but she was exhilarated. In that moment, she felt like anything was possible. She was about to start a new life.

  With one final surge, the shuttle broke orbit. It was suddenly quiet, serene.

  A grin spread across Saera’s face, igniting a spark in her jade eyes as she took in the view out the window. Earth was a glowing orb beneath her, shrinking with every second. I’m in space. I’m in freaking space!

  It all felt like a surreal dream. A week before, she was trying to survive high school like any other teenager. Then the TSS came to find her, and everything changed.

  The notion of intelligent life outside her home planet was considered farfetched by many. Personally, Saera was always drawn to the idea. The chance to visit other planets, to see the culture of another species—she used to daydream for such an escape. But the TSS didn’t reveal the kind of alien world she envisioned. The Agents looked just like her. Except, they possessed incredible telekinetic abilities, and they said she had them, too.

  The two other passengers on the shuttle supposedly had latent telekinetic abilities, as well. Both of the boys were a year or two older than her. One was from Japan, and the other from Germany, or maybe Austria. Their English wasn’t great, so they hadn’t talked much before boarding the shuttle.

  Saera glanced over and saw that their eyes were glued to the windows next to their own seats. She returned her attention to the outside.

  Earth was no longer visible, but she could see part of the moon. As the shuttle approached, the terrain became more distinct—broad, pitted plains interrupted by the lips of craters plunging a kilometer or more into shadow. She was mesmerized by the foreign landscape. Looking through a telescope didn’t begin to compare to real life.

  On the final approach, the shuttle turned to the side so the moon was underneath, arching around the equator to the dark side of the moon. At first, Saera couldn’t see much beyond the gray lunar surface that seemed flat and featureless in the dim starlight. Then, the edge of the TSS spaceport came into view. Her mouth dropped open.

  The massive spacedock stretched for as far as Saera could see from her vantage. Ships of all sizes were berthed along long, glass-wall corridors. The central dome of the dock stood out as a delicate bubble that shined with a pearlescent sheen under lights along the perimeter and gangways.

  The shuttle headed toward a wing on the far side of the dock that berthed other small ships. On the way, they passed by what looked to be armored warships that would dwarf even the largest aircraft carriers on Earth. None of it seemed possible—that such an incredible facility could be hidden behind the moon she’d stared up at her whole life. But that was just the beginning. There was a whole civilization of people living across distant worlds, and she got to be a part of it.

  The shuttle shuddered as it came to rest.

  Saera and the two other recruits looked at each other, not sure what to do.

  After a moment, the man who’d introduced himself as Agent Franeri when they met on Earth emerged from the front of the shuttle. He reached inside his sleek black overcoat and pulled out a device that looked something like a smartphone. He spoke into it, and the device stated, “Unstrap your harnesses. Time to go,” in English, then short phrases in Japanese and German.

  Saera unclipped her harness and the boys did likewise. She stood cautiously and tightened the ponytail of her auburn hair that had slipped in the jostling of the launch.

  The Agent placed his hand on the side door of the shuttle. With a hiss and a rush of cool air, the door slid upward. Franeri stepped out onto the gangway.

  Saera reached under her seat to grab the bag containing her belongings from Earth. She took a deep breath and was the first to step toward the door. Her initial steps felt strange—like there was more bounce. It’s artificial gravity. I’m not on Earth anymore. The thought was both terrifying and thrilling; but, for the moment, the thrill was winning in her subconscious battle.

  Saera’s breath caught when she saw the spacedock’s interior, and she heard the boys inhale sharply behind her.

  In front of her was a holographic star map of the galaxy, suspended at the center of a two-story rotunda. The map rotated slowly, rendered in stunning realism that brought out the rainbow of nebulae between the star systems. The arm of the galaxy that contained Earth was illuminated with a red point, and blue points stood out across the rest of the map. Other small shuttles were docked in a semi-circle around the rotunda, and a broad corridor extended to the core of the spacedock. The seamless dome of the transparent roof offered an unobstructed view to the surrounding starscape. Windows arched all the way to the floor, with the moon sprawling several kilometers below.

  Saera’s heart raced as she took it in. It’s like I’m in the future.

  Still awe-struck, she followed the others down the corridor toward the center of the port. As they walked, she admired the technological ingenuity of the structure. Touch-surface consoles with holographic projection displays were placed intermittently along the hall, and interactive readouts were integrated into the transparent walls next to the gangways extending to the vessels docked on either side. The floor was a fine metal grating, interspersed with segments of dark blue carpeting.

  The Agent led Saera and the boys through the port to a row of waiting shuttles. They garnered looks from the other people traversing the corridors. Most were wearing dark gray uniforms, but there were a handful of others dressed in black like their Agen
t escort.

  Once inside the shuttle, the Agent sealed the door and directed the compact craft to the moon’s surface. Saera stared out the panoramic window with wonder at the gravity anchor securing the space station to the moon’s surface. The underside glowed with aqua light from the thrusters to keep the station stabilized, and a massive chain spanned the five kilometers to the rocky surface below. The shuttle glided down and docked at the surface port.

  The port had three branches, and they walked along the upper right segment to the hub at the intersection. A semi-circle of elevator doors curved around the lobby. With an air of routine, the Agent indicated a destination on a touch-panel next to the doors.

  Saera tried to see where they were going, but the written language on the panel was completely foreign to her.

  After a minute, one of the doors opened. The Agent ushered the recruits into the elevator car. A padded bench upholstered in gray fabric wrapped around the back of the car, and Saera sat down in the center next to the Agent with the boys to her left.

  The door silently slid closed. There was no sense of movement, but a white light pulsed next to the door, possibly indicating travel down the shaft. After two minutes, there was a loud thud outside. Saera and the boys nearly jumped out of their seats.

  The Agent made a soothing gesture with his hands. “It’s fine. We’ll explain after you can understand what I’m saying,” he said through the device in the three languages.

  Are we going to learn whatever language it is he’s speaking? Saera sat back on the bench and tried to relax.

  Several more minutes passed in silence. Then, the interval between the white pulses of light next to the door slowed and turned blue. The door opened.

  Outside, a decorative lobby with marble-like stone was surrounded by elevator doors with openings to hallways along each quadrant. The two boys inhaled with surprise. Saera grinned. When she was told the TSS was essentially a military academy, she had expected concrete and corrugated steel. She couldn’t wait to see what else the facility had in store.

  The Agent led them to a set of double doors down one of the halls. The doors slid open, revealing what looked like a medical office. The Agent spoke to someone at a front desk and gestured to the recruits.

  Two men and a woman, all dressed in white uniforms, came to meet them. Each held a device similar to what the Agent had used to communicate with the recruits.

  The woman dressed in white greeted Saera through her device in English, “Hello. My name is Sheila and I’ll be assisting with your orientation.”

  “Hi,” Saera replied. She caught worried glances from the boys as they were all led in different directions.

  Sheila took Saera into a private room down a short hall. She directed Saera to sit down in an upright chair on a pedestal that reminded her somewhat of an optometrist’s office. A contraption was suspended from the ceiling above the front of the chair.

  “The easiest way to begin your integration is through neural imprinting,” Sheila explained through the translator. “We’ll give you the basic linguistic building blocks for New Taran, the standard language throughout the Taran worlds. It will take some time for your brain to map all the syntax, but your preliminary understanding of the language will be almost immediate.”

  Saera’s grin returned. “Cool.”

  “Now, this may be a little disorienting. It’s simple cortical imprinting via retinal stimulation. Very standard.”

  That doesn’t sound simple at all. “Using light to encode data in my brain?”

  “That’s right. It may not be commonplace on your world, but Tarans have used similar techniques for millennia.”

  This is all amazing compared to what we have on Earth now, but it doesn’t feel like they are technologically millennia ahead. “If it’s been around for so long, then why don’t you use it for learning everything?”

  “Well, it’s highly effective for encoding things like vocabulary, but each person’s brain maps things differently,” Sheila explained. “Plus, there are other sensory and emotional components to long-term cognitive formation that no amount of programming can fully replicate. We’d have to overwrite those innate patterns and unique characteristics in order to imprint larger volumes of information. Don’t want a bunch of uniform drones!”

  “So, you’re saying I’ll still have to go to class the old-fashioned way.”

  “Afraid so.”

  Saera nodded. But what about the other technologies? In thousands of years they could have developed anything, yet all of this reminds me of what we have on Earth. “All right. Let’s do this.”

  The contraption lowered from the ceiling. Saera’s chair adjusted to the proper height for her to look into the device.

  At first, the device only gave a few sporadic bursts of light.

  “It’s calibrating to your neural structure,” Sheila stated. “We’re about to begin the imprinting.”

  The device flashed one final time. Then, it illuminated with a full spectrum of pulsating colors. Five minutes later, the device rose back up to the ceiling.

  Saera blinked, dazed. The room was spinning a little.

  Sheila said something without the translator. The sounds were nonsense at first. Then, words started to form as an echo in Saera’s mind. Slowly, the word jumble transformed into a sentence, “Can you understand me?”

  Saera nodded. A word came into her head, and she mouthed the sounds in the foreign New Taran language, “Yes.”

  Sheila smiled. “Good. Now, let’s look you over. Come with me.”

  The words took a moment to process, continuing to echo as meaning gradually came to the unfamiliar tones. Saera got up and followed Sheila back into the hall and down to another room. A circular dais a meter in diameter was at the center of the space with a matching component suspended from the ceiling.

  “Step into the scanner,” instructed Sheila.

  Saera went over to the device. When she was standing still in the center of the platform, the upper part of the device illuminated and beams formed a web that encircled her entire body—first from head to foot and then around her. “What was that for?” she asked when the lights extinguished.

  “Body scan for clothing sizing.” Sheila made some entries on a touchscreen console. “It can also run a med eval, but all of you were cleared down on Earth. Looks like you and the boys also already got your standard Taran citizen immunizations and contraceptive implants?”

  Saera nodded.

  “So you’re all set.”

  A panel in the side wall opened, and there was a whirring of machinery. Saera watched as a stack of light gray clothes were deposited behind a transparent door.

  Sheila took out the stack of clothes and handed it to Saera. “Made to order,” she said with a smile.

  The material was soft and airy, like a fine cotton. Saera thumbed through the stack and saw that it contained everything from undergarments to a light jacket. “That was fast.”

  “Why would it take any longer? At any rate, there’s one set for you. More will be delivered to your quarters once you’re settled in.” The machine started whirring again. “Your shoes will be ready in a minute.”

  Saera looked down at her jeans and long-sleeve T-shirt. “Should I change now or...?”

  “Yes.” Sheila opened the door to the hall and directed Saera to a room containing a reclining bed and monitoring equipment. “You can put what you’re wearing in your bag, if you want to keep it. I’ll get your shoes while you change.”

  Saera was left alone in the room. She let out a slow breath before she started to undress. The technology wasn’t as alien in appearance as she feared it might be, but it was unnerving not knowing how anything worked. She liked having some sense of control. I’ll get used to it. Anything is better than back home.

  She finished changing and crammed her old clothes into her travel bag. It was almost at capacity already, so she had to kneel on the top of the bag to get it zipped again with the extra items. She slung
the bag back over her shoulder and waved at the door like she’d seen Sheila do before. It slid open.

  Saera stuck her head out into the hall.

  Sheila was pacing. She thrust the new shoes at Saera. “Come on, we’re late for check-in!”

  * * *

  “Banks, we need to talk.” Wil Sights slammed the door to the High Commander’s office.

  High Commander Banks sighed and looked up from his desk. “You know there’s a buzzer by the door.”

  “Yeah, well, you ignored my emails so I thought a more direct approach was in order.”

  “There isn’t anything to discuss.”

  Wil sat down in the one of the visitor chairs across from the High Commander. “Really? Because I think assigning me a class of Initiates to train in advanced navigation theory is something that would have warranted a heads up.”

  “It’s time you get in some teaching experience,” Banks countered.

  Wil crossed his arms. “That’s not what I’m debating. You should be well aware that I’m finally making progress on the independent jump, and this will only be a distraction.”

  Banks folded his hands on the desktop. “Well, we’re going to need some navigators that actually know how to use the thing once you finally figure it out.”

  “That can wait.”

  “I disagree.”

  Wil stared down the High Commander. It’s as if that agreement he made with Taelis last year doesn’t mean anything. They haven’t eased up one bit. “Do you want me to finish the independent jump drive design or not?”

  “Of course.”

  “Then back off and let me work.” Wil stood and started to walk toward the door.

  “You’re not getting out of teaching that class,” Banks stated.

  “Me teaching a handful of teenagers isn’t going to get me command experience.”

  Banks steepled his fingers. “It’s a start.”

  “There are more effective ways of going about this than dropping another last-minute assignment in my lap.”

  “Great, then you’ll get some excellent command proxy experience figuring out that alternative approach.”