Wanderer 3: Tainted Universe (48 page)

Vorn turned to the captain.

“Captain, I don’t appreciate having halfwits filling important roles on my ship.  Find me someone capable of doing this job properly.”

“
You don’t understand Admiral,” the sensor officer said.

Shock at what he was seeing caused him to do argue with Vorn - something that was both unthinkable and almost certainly fatal.

“No one has ever seen anything like this,” he continued.  “Look — it's starting to become visible.  It looks like… like…”

Words failed him.  Staring at the screen Vorn’s anger at the officer evaporated.  The officer was right.  This was like nothing Vorn had ever seen.  He knew the patterns a ship entering or exiting jump space made.  This was nothing like it.  Space behind the
Wanderer
seemed to be bucking.  Spinning.  Swirling.

Then he realised he
had
seen something like this before.  Frequently.  It looked just like water swirling down a plughole.  But this was on a massive scale.  It dwarfed the
Wanderer
.  And rather than water it was space itself that seemed to be flowing.

The effect became stronger, which made it easier to see.  Rainbow colours cascaded throughout the disturbance.  It looked like an oil slick being sucked down a drain now.

And the
Wanderer
was right on the edge of the disturbance.  Not yet affected but… no.  Now it was.  The
Wanderer
was starting to move.  Not under its own power.  Space around it was being dragged into the vortex, and the
Wanderer
was going along for the ride.

Slowly for the first few seconds, then accelerating.  Soon it was moving at a massive speed, far faster than a ship should be able to.  Moments later it was gone from sight.  Sucked into the vortex.  But to what end?  Had it been destroyed?  Or did the vortex lead somewhere?

It must lead somewhere.  He became certain that the
Wanderer
had engineered this escape.  Fine.  Where the
Wanderer
went, he would follow.  Especially if the wreck of the
Wanderer
could survive the journey with no shields.

“
Signal the fleet,” Vorn ordered the captain.  “Retrieve the assault shuttles.  We follow the
Wanderer
.”

“
Sir, are you sure?  It must have been destroyed!”

The captain looked pale.  He knew that he was questioning a direct order, and that Vorn was likely to have him executed painfully for doing so, but he stood his ground.  Vorn was actually impressed.  He glanced at his console.

“The
Wanderer
is intact.  Look — the tracker is still locked onto it.  Whatever that vortex is, the
Wanderer
has survived it.  And so will we. 
Send the order.
”

The captain gulped and nodded, before quickly relaying the order.  The fleet formed up on the
Starslayer
.  For a moment Vorn considered ordering another ship to take the lead, then he dismissed the idea.  If he was wrong, if the vortex did destroy the
Wanderer
and his ships, then so be it.  There was no turning back now.  He had burnt too many bridges.

And he couldn’t afford to give the
Wanderer
time and space to repair itself.  Despite its amazing escape they had almost captured it this time.  Thinking over the one-sided battle he realised they had actually assisted the
Wanderer
’s escape.  Forming the vortex must have taken massive amounts of energy.  Energy that the
Starslayer
had provided in the form of the Omega Beam.

Vorn wouldn’t make that mistake again.  The
Wanderer
was already ripe for the taking.  The Omega Beam wouldn’t be needed again.

He watched silently as the
Starslayer
closed upon the vortex.  The closer they got the more impressive it was.  This was something far beyond the abilities of the Empire.  Yet another reason to capture the
Wanderer
and unlock its secrets.

Vorn didn’t show it but as they drew closer to the huge vortex he started to feel fear.  What would happen if the vortex vanished while they were in it?  Would they be in jump space?  Or somewhere else?  Would they be trapped somewhere they couldn’t escape from?

Another fear was far stronger though.  Fear that the vortex would collapse before they reached it.  That they would be left stranded where they were, forced to chase the
Wanderer
through normal means without knowing if the
Wanderer
was even in the same universe.

As they crossed the threshold into the Vortex Vorn gripped his console tightly.  He could feel the difference immediately.  The
Starslayer
seemed to be being pulled forwards.  Almost imperceptibly at first.  But faster and faster.  Until the vortex swallowed the
Starslayer
and every ship in the fleet.

Chapter Fifty-Six

Forty minutes after the explosion destroyed Greenseed, Clay got the peace he wanted.  The few fighters that could have closed for a fight had kept their distance then headed back to the fleet.  The heavily damaged destroyer had been evacuated and then blown apart by several frigates while the rest of the fleet had systematically destroyed all Greenseed’s remote defences.

The fleet had reformed, collecting the surviving fighters, then nothing had happened until a few seconds ago.  Without warning the fleet left, disappearing into jump space.  Clay immediately changed course, putting himself on a significantly different bearing.  He planned to make random course changes at least twice more.  Just in case.

In truth he knew he was safe now.  Safe and alone.  For the first time in what felt like weeks he was at peace.  He was in his beloved fighter drifting through the cool, clean darkness of space.  What more could he possibly want?

At the moment nothing.  That wouldn’t last though.  His body would need water and food.  The ship had a small supply of each.  With no jump drive he was stuck in real space, where travel between stars took years even for light.  He could survive a few days in slight discomfort.  A few more days after that if he chose to suffer.

He suspected he wouldn’t.  The ship was still rigged to overload the engines.  If he chose to trigger the explosion while still aboard it would all be over in an instant.  Dying in his fighter, surrounded by nothing but the void.  He could think of far worse ways to go.

That was for the future though.  A smile spread across his face as he relaxed in his chair, simply drinking in the feeling of peace.  The knowledge that he would never again be forced to obey orders he vehemently disagreed with.  That he would never again have to worry about the tainted.  If dying was the price he must pay for such peace of mind then it was a price he was glad to pay.

*****

Sal sat quietly aboard the
Dark Shadow
, thinking about the future.  About the Quarantine Zone.  It was time to spread the Gift to the other half of the Empire.  The
Dark Shadow
’s stealth abilities would make breaching the Quarantine Zone easy.  Then the unique abilities she had gained would make it easy for the gifted to establish a strong foothold.  One that could never be destroyed.  That was critical.  As long as half the Empire remained free of the Gift Imperial forces remained a major threat, in potential at least.

After that… after that she would return.  She had unfinished business with Jess.  With Teeko.  And most of all with the
Wanderer
.

*****

Jess stared in amazement at the shimmering tunnel that the
Wanderer
was diving through.  The
Wanderer
had no more idea of what the tunnel was than he did.  They weren’t in jump space, that much was for sure.  And they were travelling safely despite having no shields.

Whatever the tunnel was, the
Wanderer
had brought it into being.  This was what the instructions had been leading them too.  And this was what had been sapping all the power from the ship.  As soon as the swirling tunnel entrance drew them in the
Wanderer
’s engines had started to output power again.  Apparently the process was self-sustaining, or it was finding energy from somewhere else.

The
Wanderer
might not know what the tunnel was but it was certain of its destination.  The tunnel was carrying them to the
Wanderer
’s home system.  And at breakneck speed.  A journey that should have taken them months even in jump space was going to take a mere seven hours.

Jess couldn’t help grinning.  This was amazing.  In just seven hours he would finally get to see the
Wanderer
’s home system!

If you enjoyed this book please consider leaving a review – every review makes a difference.

Leave a review @ Amazon US Store

Leave a review @ Amazon UK Store

Leave a review @ Goodreads

Or tell your friends about the book

Facebook
    
Twitter

Turn the page for special offers…

To receive alerts for…
 

Free Kindle book promotions

Newly published books

Free print book competitions

& Access to free short stories

Sign up to the mailing list…

http://www.simongoodson.com/subscribe/

Or view the blog…

www.simongoodson.com

Turn the page for more books by Simon Goodson…

Dark Soul Silenced

Part One & Part Two

What is left when the darkness is burnt from a vampire before it makes its first kill? Something not seen in thousands of years.

A chance encounter leaves Daniel in just that position. With no memories of who he once was, and powers he barely understands, can he survive in a world where all magical powers are viewed as a sign of darkness? Can he convince others that he is free from evil?

And is he? Has the darkness truly been purged from his soul? Or is it merely driven into hiding deep within, silenced for now but waiting to strike again?

Buy Part One now @ Amazon US Store

Buy Part One now @ Amazon UK Store

Part Two concludes the story.

Buy Part Two now @ Amazon US Store

Buy Part Two now @ Amazon UK Store

Wanderer's Escape

Wanderer's Odyssey: Book 1

Jess was born a prisoner, grew up a prisoner and at sixteen knew he would die a prisoner.  When his turn comes to try to break through the traps protecting a spaceship it seems his day to die has come.  The ship, and others like it, have already claimed hundreds of prisoner's lives.

Instead he manages to avoid the traps and gain access to the ship with two other prisoners, beginning a frantic flight to freedom.  Soon Jess finds himself loose in a brutal universe ruled by the Empire and riddled with pirates, slave traders and worse.  Can Jess manage to learn the rules of the universe and the capabilities of the ship he has stolen in time to stay alive?

Buy it now @ Amazon US Store

Buy it now @ Amazon UK Store

Wanderer – Echoes of the Past

Wanderer's Odyssey: Book 2

Freedom was only the start.  The crew of the Wanderer face ever greater challenges as their journey continues.  Knowing the Empire will hunt them down Jess and the others must seek help from another source.

Turning to the criminal underworld seems like their only option, but it soon threatens to end in disaster.  Especially when past events return to haunt the present.

Will even the incredible Wanderer be enough to keep Jess, and those he cares about, safe? 

Buy it now @ Amazon US Store

Buy it now @ Amazon UK Store