Keira woke up entangled in her hair. It was still dark out, she gasped as her fingers traveled over a body next to her. She cringed; Caleb will have a field day about this. She was certain she had put up her pillow tower the night before. She tried remembering the previous night; she remembered how Caleb had to take her home after the dinner and introduction to society. She had three glasses of champagne and it had hit her hard. She had never had champagne before, it was something that everyone knew of but nobody had laid their eyes on. She quickly removed her hand from Caleb’s bare chest. She was extra careful not to wake him up.“Don’t tell me you have never had champagne before.” She jumped when she heard his voice in the darkness. “I have not.” “I know, you had told me a couple of times last night.” He halted and moved around in the covers. “I must say, I rather like you when you are not stiff as a plank.” He was having fun with her and she hated it. Bits and pieces
In the year 2304, settlements have been established in the wastelands as people hope for new beginnings. What remains of the past are mere fragments of history due to the many wars that took place. The first settlements were founded on the planet Meraki in the late 2200s when space travel was still limited. Unfortunately, only the wealthy and famous were able to settle there, leaving the poor and those who suffered from the wars to fend for themselves. Unfortunately, peace on Meraki was not a given, and a lot of wanderers and techies with the dream of fame and contentment found a way to overthrow the once peaceful planet. Keira, a promising soldier from the eagle tribe, has been called to join one of many attempts to take Meraki back. The Eagle tribe is the name of a group of soldiers in one of the bigger settlements that started from a once flourishing town. A town they decided to call New Hope. Keira returned the knife to its holster. In these times, obtaining weapons was a di
After training, she took a long shower. She felt tired, and although she knew she wasn't going to hurt now, she was sure she would feel it tomorrow morning. Don was already busy in the kitchen, and surprisingly, he was in a chirpy mood despite the early hour.“That is what you get for joining the men’s workforce.” He was whistling a tune while busying himself with the potato broth in front of him.“You are way too friendly for an old chap waiting for his daughter to come home.”Don ignored her last statement and just carried on with setting the table. “So I take it your old fella is the only one going to the dance on Friday.“I might be going.”There was a long pause. “Oh? A frown emerged on his forehead. “Josh the reason for your change of heart?”She combed her fingers through her damp hair. “It is not that I had a change of heart, it is just the possibility that something might happen on one of our missions and it feels like I have not experienced life at all.”“It is normal t
Sleep evaded Keira as her thoughts were consumed by Friday's events. Things between her and Josh had changed. He did not come to visit as he usually did over weekends and she did not think it would affect her the way it did. She would have to report to him in the morning and she had no idea how he was going to react. It was just before six when they had finished fitness training. She did her best to blend in and not make any noticeable mistakes to bring attention to her. Josh was fully in control and mentioned where everyone could improve. He did not so much as look at her, she knew he was intentionally ignoring her gaze. After training each got a written manual just to familiarize them about the spaceship. There were a lot of listed safety protocols and how to handle the g-force with lift-off. Luckily by the time that people inhabited Meraki Space travel was a norm, and with added technology, it got easier and quicker so that the normal person on the street could be trained
"Do you think he will make it?"Keira was busy eating a piece of toast."Josh has a strong will, and Doctor Atkins knows what he is doing. Don't worry he will make it, for now,lets focus on the current developments.' Don touched her shoulder."Who is going to handle the interrogations?" She knew the answer to the question, but she asked anyway. Don could not help himself, he was born for this it was in his blood. He did not handle retirement with grace."Major is going to stand in for Josh and I believe that at this stage I will help out." He combed his hands through his hair. "We are short-handed at this stage, and as you know new rookies keep on streaming in. I think that is the reason for the attack last night, we are getting too much exposure at this stage. People talk, that is the problem. By now most tribes know our plans everyone wants a part of it. Whether you want safety or to gain riches people talk.""So are you going in alone?""I can talk to Major and ask if you c
There was a sense of exhilaration brewing inside of her. She did not know if it was due to the liftoff day drawing closer or that she was about to do her first interrogation. Some raiders were merciless they had no value for life. She always wondered what drove people to do certain acts. Can one human be that cruel, or did life make them numb to violence and hurt? She had to remember that the suspects were probably the same and she should handle them accordingly. Don was quiet but she understood, she knew he had to do things in his past that he was not proud of. It's funny how you are seen as a hero when you do unspeakable things. She saw it behind the curtains of his eyes, she read it in the way he drifted off sometimes or small things like how he looked at his hands. She knew that Don did not want this for her but if she did pursue it she needed to be prepared in any situation. It was for her protection. "Are you ready?" Don broke the silence. "It is still early so it gives us en
Every muscle she had inside her body was on fire. It was worth it she thought as she looked at the group. A couple of days had passed since she last saw Josh and she welcomed the break. There was no space for distractions, the thought of him made her shudder. Their last encounter had awakened a lot of mixed feelings within her. Major had separated the weak from the strong. They were divided into different categories, she was now part of the elite, like a group of titans who would strike fear in the minds of anyone they would encounter. They were as one, moving swiftly through every course taking into account any new danger that could lurk behind dark corners. Long nights of planning brought in different outcomes to take into account. She was motivated and had one goal; save her people and take control over Meraki.She grabbed her water bottle and splurt the remainder over her head. The group had dismantled, there was no more friendly bickering the air seemed different. It
Josh did not take rejection lightly. "Sutton!" He shouted. "How many times do I have to repeat this? Aim for the nose, not the eye. You want to inflict pain not give the guy a black eye!""There is no problem with my aim." She said a bit too loud. More like the instructor she thought. "Excuse me? What did you say? Get down and give me twenty, and that counts for everyone who questions my authority.""Who rattled his cage?" Sasha whispered from above. "Don't ask." Josh knew everyone's strengths and focused on improving techniques. For someone his age he was well-rounded, it was like he had an extra sense. The night he got injured was the first time she had seen him harmed reminding her that teamwork was a must. No matter how good you were even if you were the best at something we all need help sometimes. Days went by, there were only a select few who knew that construction of the ship continued at night. It was now ninety percent complete which meant the day drew near