《Salvage Claim [Book 1 of Dyson's Game]》Prologue
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Dyson’s Game
Book 1: Salvage Claim
Prologue
The Kal'Dari System
In the space between planets, a lone torch drive burned bright against the backdrop of twinkling stars. Metallic struts shimmered in each reflection, holding golden foil in between, and they rippled and shimmered as the whole assembly folded into itself, clacking onto the sides of a metallic hull.
This ship sailed through the deep dark, its trajectory set to an ignoble end. Cargo containers of corrugated metal were released from their locking clamps, the precious cargo within sent spiraling off into the blackness of space. It would serve as a distraction for those who would prioritize riches over bloodshed, for the cargo contained within would've made any Kal’Dari rich beyond their wildest dreams.
Sadly, the ship’s lethal pursuer ignored it all, a missile locked onto one target alone.
A few seconds pass, and the distance between the ship and its pursuer grew smaller. Ten thousand kilometers shrunk to kilometers. If someone had been paying attention to the intermittent ladar sweeps that swept across the system, one would’ve noticed the odd occurrence of the missile flipping and burning as it locked onto an intercept course with the ship.
The ship's crew noticed. But they would be rendered a non-issue as the seconds ticked on.
Five seconds passed, before the sound of crashing metal echoes through the ship, the blue glow of its torch drive cutting off with a wink while emergency protocols slammed into place. The grinding of metal echoed throughout the crew’s ears, an ear-splitting, burning sound that dug into the souls of everyone present and chilled them to the core.
“Boarding torpedo”, one of the crew whispered, horror in its face as it quickly began hammering away at its console. The sound of klaxons ringing throughout the chamber was silenced with a smashed hand, just before a hologram burst into existence on top of the crewman's console.
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"Makir? Did you--?"
“Pijoras, scuttle the ship now! We’ve been boarded by…!”
The crewman paused, whirling around to see the door to its chamber smashed open by a cybernetic arm. Without thinking, the crewman immediately reached for the gun underneath their console, a fluid movement borne through years of experience…
… But it wasn’t enough.
Another crash echoes through the little chamber, broken by high-pitched clicks and whirs of the thing that the crewman faced. It lifts them up through the broken, mangled console, watching as the crewman fires the gun in its hand to no avail.
Without saying anything, the thing slams the crewman onto the ground, the metallic floor denting under the impact and causing blood to erupt from the smashed head. The thing looks around its immediate area once more, taking in the emergency green lights, the sparking console, and the cooling corpse of what had once been a Kal'Dari eking out their last breaths.
The sound of cycling pumps cuts through it all however, causing the thing to stand straight once more. With a wordless sound, the creature traces its footsteps back where it came from, the only thing distinguishing it from its surroundings being the soft whir of a pump located on its back, pumping a red-green fluid throughout its body.
For the next few minutes, the thing gets to work. With wordless mien and brutal efficiency, the ship’s crew were introduced to its tender mercies, their blood splattering the metallic bulkheads. It reached forth towards another console, this time facing the pulsing, beating heart of the ship... and shuts down the sequence meant to overload the reactor and render all of them into irradiated dust.
All the while, the spot were the boarding torpedo had pierced through the ship kept on leaking air, until there was nothing left but vacuum.
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It only takes a few minutes before the grisly work was done, and the creature circles back to where it first arrived onto the ship, staring into the large gash that provided a few of the deep dark. As the thing contemplates on whatever thoughts it had behind its faceless helm, the red-green fluid pumping throughout its body slowly shifts into a sickly yellow hue.
With a shudder, the creature seems to shrink back, collapsing against the nearest bulkhead as it curls in on itself. Its body rises and falls with each blink of the emergency lights, until it eventually comes to a stop, dead. If one can simply ignore the rhythmic click and whir of the pumps attached to its body, jutting forth like towers of steel against pus-ridden scales.
In the meantime, the ship continues to twirl and whirl, its trajectory slowly falling towards the twinkling star far off in the distance. As the last of its systems power down, beginning to register as nothing more than a stray rock in system-wide scans…
… Its deadly cargo sleeps, waiting for when the time is right.
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Tales From the Terran Republic
We tried, you know… We really did. We tried so hard to be… better… We actually were better once. No, seriously. We were enlightened, generous, peaceful… Stop laughing! We were! We were peaceful, dammit! No, I’m not “tugging your winglets.” It’s true! Look, if you’re going to be like that, I’ll just push the launch button right now. See ya, don’t wanna be… Oh, you ARE interested after all? Ok. Hey, I just got word that your captain will be ok. We were able to get him into a med pod quick enough… Of course, we tried to save him. Just what sort of people do you think we are?... Now that was harsh… completely accurate, mind you… but harsh. Anyway, like I was saying, we were a prosperous, peaceful people, and war had been nothing but a distant memory for over five hundred years before it happened... Before Yellowstone happened! You don’t mean to tell me that you didn’t know about that… massive supervolcano? Blew the Hell out of our planet? Two years where nothing grew?… Anyway, that’s what started it, the Sol Wars… Oh, you have heard about those, huh? Well, needless to say, all that enlightened, generous, and peaceful didn’t exactly make it through the two years of complete famine and the wars that followed… Maybe it’s more accurate to say the enlightened, generous, and peaceful among us didn’t survive… (laughs)… You’re right. It does explain a lot, doesn’t it? Probably for the best, though. “Enlightened” and “peaceful” aren’t really all that useful out here in the galaxy at large, are they? That reminds me; thanks for the ship. You guys did a great job with this one. Oh, don’t be like that. At least it was us what got you and not one of the really messed groups like the Harlequin or the Black Angels. We’re just going to take your shit. It could be worse… trust me... Well, anyway, we loaded the life pods down with some good food, and you guys can drink alcohol, right? We put in a couple of fifths in there, too. It’s about forty percent ethanol, so be warned. Most species will want to dilute that. We’ll drop your wounded off somewhere safe once they are stable. Your fleet patrols this area fairly regularly, and we’ll drop the distress beacon right before we jump… Well, It’s been fun and no hard feelings, right?… Oh, you want to know some more? Sure. I got time to kill… Let me tell you about this one pirate and her crew. They’re Terran scum, but they are still… Why do we hate the Terrans? Hoo Boy… How much time you got? *** It’s the thirty-second century, and humanity is now part of a galactic civilization comprised of hundreds of worlds. Humanity has been savaged by natural disaster and war and has been fractured into several separate populations, all of which loathe each other (some things never change). This is a gritty drama-driven rambling tale that swings between action, drama, horror, and plenty of very, very dark comedy. Warning: contains adult situations, absolutely horrible language, bathroom humor, implied ultra-violence, actual ultra-violence, drugs, alcohol, pirates, mercs, xeno prostitutes, moral ambiguity, deranged AI's with identity issues, giant commie space slugs, and a poor little frog girl who just wants to sell coffee. Updates twice weekly on Tuesday and Friday. *** Note: This story can get rough. Those warning tags? They aren't for show. I recently received a review and as a result I want to make one thing clear. Portraying something is NOT endorsing it! Many "heavy" topics are touched upon and just because a character says or does something does not imply that the author feels the same way. I selected the "Anti-Hero Lead" and "Villainous Lead" tags for a reason. Rule number one of this story is "no good guys". A good description of the story is, "bad people doing bad things to worse people". There are a few good characters, here and there, but they are the exception to the rule. If you want a hard-hitting, exciting, gritty sci-fi story that doesn't pull any punches, or shies away from "difficult" concepts, welcome! If you are set on a pure and noble knight that runs around and slays conveniently evil monsters and rescues totally innocent princesses... or your sensibilities are easily offended... You're not going to be happy with this one.
8 682Mythical Conquest
*THIS STORY HAS BEEN REWRITTEN AND WONT CONTINUE HERE! USE THE LINK BELOW FOR THE NEW & IMPROVED VERSION!* Here’s the rewrite link: https://www.royalroad.com/fiction/20225/young-adversary Because of certain events in his past, Logan Cross isolated himself and did everything possible not to stand out. This is despite possessing a body and mind that far surpassed the normal human. One day when taking his normal route home, through the back alleys, Logan was caught up in an incident that led to him killing a group of men before dying himself. Now finding himself in complete darkness, Logan was offered a second chance at life by the dragon goddess Tiamat. To which he replied: "No thanks. Just make me a panda or something. They have it easy." Tiamat of course denied his wish, and plunged him in a world where every being of myth not only exists, but they even choose champions called Proxies to represent them in a war that decides who rules the world! This is a story about a boy who made it his lifetime goal to eradicate the gods! Watch as he slay gods, demons, heroes, and beasts; and become the Ultimate Evil!
8 193The Forgotten Shield and The World Heroes (Remake).
When 10 students find themselves being transported into another world, 1 of them will find a home and new adventures in this new place while the other 9 gets themselves involved in a war. The world Heroes have been summoned, a lost "title" has come back, and a world of fantasies and adventures is waiting to be explored. This story is a remake in English of "El escudo Olvidado", you can also find this story on WattPad.https://www.wattpad.com/story/126788458-the-forgotten-shield-and-the-world-heroes-remake
8 152The other Cullen
A tale about the cullen twins.This is a Twilight and Vampire Diaries fan fiction
8 71Finding Yourself
A collection of quotes and proses that will help you to find yourself 💞This is my first book so please do vote for the chapters you like and also leave your feedbacks via comments. I would love to hear from you.
8 200Bethany Adamson has done everything that her strict parents and uncle Brian have demanded of her. Straight A's every report card. Never missed a day of school..... ever! In return, her parents were supposed to pay for half of her college tuition. They backed out. They also inform her that her uncle Brian, is her father. She joins the Army to help pay for her college. Bethany excells in breaking secret messages quickly. This catches the eye of Tanner 'Demo ' Cline. Leader of an elite special ops unit. Can they keep their feelings to themselves? Can Bethany keep Demo and his unit safe? Can Demo keep Bethany safe? This story is fiction. All locations, events, and people are made up in my head. Although the Army has certain ranks and units, I do not know how they operate. It is rated mature for language, sex scenes, and violence. Thank you for reading! Remember to vote and/or comment. If you find an error, please let me know. Lots of love, Menarhodes!
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