I.S.S. Starkiller Chronicle: Part Four Read online

  He gulped. “Well, this is going to be interesting.”

  “Yes, it will be interesting,” a voice said from the door. There was a small hiss and chime as the door opened. When the door opened, the strange Eridani walked in. The one that had stunned Garret.

  Garret licked his lips. “How are you—”

  “Walking? Not stuck in a grav-chair like the rest of the pathetic grey-skinned freaks?” The Eridani asked, a smile on his strange bulbous head. The elongated diamond eyes held a malevolent red glint to them. “I am the pinnacle of the research of this facility, even at half-capacity. The Eridani Brotherhood turned their back on my brethren. The Unity will succeed where the anemic Brotherhood failed.”

  Garret had no idea what the Eridani was talking about, and was sure he didn’t want to find out.

  The creature strode forward, and Garret was surprised by how tall and strong this thing was. The body was six-foot-seven, rippling muscle, and without a stitch of clothing. One thing it did share with all the other Eridani Garret had ever come face-to-face with was the lack of genitals. “So, why am I tied up? You into something kinky?” Garret asked with a raised eyebrow. “Because my safeword is ‘mustard,’ just so it is out there.”

  The sneer of the freak Eridani disappeared. Fuck with him and maybe I can find out where I am. And maybe give Yamahara some time to get me.

  “I don’t think that your captain will return any time soon. You and I are quite alone here. And very safe. At least for one of us,” the Eridani said, smiling in a cold way that sent shivers down Garret’s spine.

  The Eridani moved closer to him. “You are here to fulfil a purpose, nothing more. There is a reason you are still alive. For now.” He stepped behind Garret’s eye line. Then a cold liquid dipped down his shoulder along his right arm to his elbow. “Once your DNA is harvested, you’ll be of little use to the Unity.”

  Alastair looked up from his star maps to his visitor. “What do you want, Reynolds”

  Reynolds squeaked when Alastair said his name. He moved forward, pulling out a piece of paper from a thick dossier folder. “Leader, we need to deal with—”

  “Reynolds, I don’t want to hear about Starkiller.” Alastair waved a hand to ward off the lackey.

  “Leader, we need to talk about it,” Reynolds said, placing the sheet on top of the multiple star charts.

  “Reynolds, so help me God, I will kill you if you ruined my calculations.”

  Reynolds stepped back, not wanting to risk his wrath. Alastair smirked smugly.

  “Is there anything you wish to discuss, Reynolds?”

  Reynolds shook his head quickly. “No, Leader. May I be excused, please?”

  “You’re dismissed, Reynolds.” Alastair waved a dismissing hand at Reynolds.

  Reynolds left the office, though Alastair really didn’t care or really pay attention to his leaving. With him gone, Alastair went back to the maps to settle the last figure to pinpoint Starkiller. He’d pored over the maps and charts for most of the day.

  He’d used charts like this for fifteen years before he had trusted a computer enough to use their calculations. He had needed their speed in the Battle of the Line. Still, he was the one who knew exactly where to attack the former I.S.S. Collective to shatter them. Granted, the Eridani had chosen that moment to stop and retreat as well. So, it was truly a win-win for him. He had been sure that had the I.S.S. put on a strong enough force during the Battle of the Line, they would have succeeded. Of course, with the former collective gone, he had stepped in and then taken power.

  And now, he was close to having complete control. Yamahara, Garret— that throwback, and rogue AI Cerberus were the last of his roadblocks. Without them, he’d made sure his allies were in place. Even if Yamahara came back, she’d be seen as someone who fled. No one would remember Garret. And Cerberus… if the Eridani did their job, that AI would be his ace in the hole for everything. He was sure that Yamahara was lost somewhere in Wild Space. That was part of the plan the entire time. Get rid of Yamahara, and he would leave all of his enemies in the dust. No one would be able to forestall his ascension anymore. His full ascension. He had that sycophant Narrows patrolling the border where Starkiller had last been in contact in case Starkiller showed. Better not fuck it up.

  A message icon appeared on his wrist datalink. He tapped it and settled back. The room fell away in his vision. He sat back, looking at the projected image of Narrows on his retina. The man’s heavy frame stood at a poor man’s attention. Narrows had been eating, Alastair could see the remains of some meal on Narrows’ uniform and on his chin. Alastair was thankful the hologram didn’t input smells. “What do you have to report, Narrows?”

  Narrows jump into a slightly less pathetic attentive stance. He worked his lips for a few moments before answering. “Leader, I have to report she slipped away.”

  “Where?” Alastair hissed. So help me Narrows, if you’ve…

  “Back into Wild Space, Leader.”

  Alastair felt a smirk bloom on his face. “Good. Stay there for now, if she returns… destroy Starkiller.”

  “Leader, I tried.”

  “Do better,” Alastair said. “Or I’ll find a less bloated captain to fulfil the duties.”

  Narrows stammered, “I need an order, Leader. Otherwise—”

  “Consider it an order. Starkiller will be listed as a rogue ship. Attack on sight.”

  Narrows gave Alastair a nod. “Yes, Leader.”

  When Narrows disappeared and his room refocused itself, Alastair felt a bit better. He was close. So very close.

  He smirked thinking of what Yamahara was dealing with. The renegade Eridani were causing her trouble, he knew. His spy on board reported as much. The idea that he had snuck a spy onto Starkiller and that Yamahara had no idea who it was made him laugh. He allowed himself to relish a loud peal of laughter for a handful of moments before killing it and straightening himself to continue his planned ascension. He had claimed his title, and for all intents and purposes, he was the Emperor of the I.S.S. There were still a few holdout territories and colonies that wanted to talk about a more republican government. The reports from these places were enough to make him shake his head. The only one that would cause a headache was Stardock-08.

  It was a long-time holdout and one of the few places that was not technically in his sphere of influence. It was one of the far-flung stations in the Oort Cloud, and they had their own ships that were a match for anything that the I.S.S. could access. Unless Starkiller comes back. The Eridani better fulfil their end of the deal.

  There was a part of him that wanted Starkiller to fail. To get destroyed in Wild Space. It meant he wouldn’t have Yamahara or Garret to deal with. Still, the Eridani were duplicitous. It was very possible they would take Cerberus for themselves and not return him in a guise of the old Starkiller, but as an Eridani-made ship.

  If they did, he had other assets to tap to help him achieve his final goal.

  Emperor of the Inter-Solar System.

  ALSO BY LON E. VARNADORE

  Starkiller Part 1-3: A link to the first three parts of the Chronicle

  Mostly Human: A sci-fi noir set on Mars. 4Pollack is on the hunt for a chimera killer. Can he find him before it is to late?

  Blood for the Empress: First of the Empress Trilogy, a space opera filled with adventure, snarky cats, dinosaurs and an Empress.

  Table of Contents

  Table of Contents

  Previously on Starkiller

  Starkiller Chronicle Part Four

  Also by Lon E. Varnadore

 

 

 
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