Starstruck Sonata: Days of Resonance Episode Five

By Brett P. S.

The battle against Voidspire ended in a loss greater than anything Fortune could bear. She rid herself of the fool who cared more about besting his foe than protecting her daughter. Rebecca Adamson, Lady Fortune, set out in the hopes that she might someday find her fallen Star, so much so that she'd make a deal with the one man she hated more than Caleb. A year apart is far too long, but what dangers await her heroes in the Primal Verse?

• Language: English
• Publisher: Brett P. S.
• Release date: Jul 1, 2017
• ISBN: 9781370285013

Brett P. S.

Brett Sawyer (1986), born in Old Saybrook, Connecticut, is an indie author who writes short stories & novellas, from science fiction to superheroes. He graduated from Eastern Illinois University in 2015 with a Bachelor’s in education and currently teaches game design at Lake Land College. Short Change arrived at retailers in November of 2014, the start of a superhero series where ordinary people gained powers over oddly specific domains, following the story of a shorter than average hero who can telekinetically manipulate small units of currency. Short Change is free on “smashwords.com/profile/view/BrettPS” and Barnes & Noble along with other samples and short fiction. Brett’s popular releases in science fiction include “Dark Station” and “Tales from the Colony: An Interstellar Saga.” Dark Station is a deep space thriller set aboard an abandoned orbital science station where Ben Gebbley and his crew secretly investigate the disappearance of the original staff before others come to claim the lost assets. For updates on Brett’s projects, follow his blog at “brettps.co” or follow him on twitter, at “twitter.com/BrettPsWrites”

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Table of Contents

PROLOGUE

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

EPILOGUE

Prologue

Sound of Music

Paris, France

Six months following Knight’s defeat of Count Voidspire …

Nathaniel Pratt had grown accustomed to the harsh hands of Pinnacle. He’d come to love the thrill of the chase and of being chased. No sorry bloke on God’s green earth could catch the mighty Pop. One crack of his knuckles, and distance lost all relevance. Sure, a bullet could put him down easy, but he’d never let it happen, not if he could help it. In practically the time it took to blink, one snap and in a flash, he’d vanish.

Nate wore a sulking grimace on his face. He was eighteen with a world of action ahead of him, but the structure he’d known all his life was fading as quickly as Count Voidspire indoctrinated raw recruits. Voidspire left his mind intact though. The thing about messing with the human anatomy was the more you did it, the less a person could manage in some of the more complicated tasks. Nate scratched his head. He probably didn’t do it much at least. No way to tell now, and with Voidspire dead, he didn’t know what to do.

Nate walked down a quiet street in a southern patch of Paris. Stone masonry stood beside him, with a brick wall and a speckled street that branched off through to an alley up ahead. He took the path through, moonlight hitting him from above. Paris was a quiet place, what with fat cat Fortune watching over it. There weren’t many places where gods among men took special care. For Magnum, it was the States. For Fortune, it was here in the heart of her empire.

She’d probably kill him if she saw him. He wouldn’t blame her though. Just need to stay alert. Can’t let them get the drop on him. Why he chose Paris tonight tugged at his heart. He wanted to tell the old crone, but the thought of unspeakable horrors she might inflict gave him pause. It was enough to look up at Fortune Tower, enough to know she was still trying, still looking.

She’s out there, lady, he said. Somewhere. I saw her.

Saw and heard to be exact. He didn’t quite know why. The phenomenon had never occurred before. Nate cracked his knuckles and let the light take him. He whisked away to the peak of Fortune Tower, emerging in a flash, but not before Star’s visage flashed before him. In the instant it took to transmit his person, time slowed down as it had a number of times recently. Nate’s ears perked up to a familiar tune, a song from 4Love’s concert. Little Miss Adamson had some impressive pipes, and while he’d only heard it a dozen times before, he’d all but memorized the tune. Wherever she was, Star was singing.

Nate sighed and cracked his left pinkie. He whisked away to the rendezvous point, a still, dark garden in northern Paris. Deep green shrubs decorated the venue and a cobblestone path flowed in from the east and west, converging on a flowing fountain in the center. Nate glanced up and squinted in the moonlight. He stretched his legs and proceeded to take a seat, but his arms and legs refused to move.

You don’t need to do that, he said. I’m not going to run from the likes of you.

A chuckle sounded in the dark beside a brick cottage to his left. Two figures strode out from the shadows. The first, he didn’t recognize in the slightest, just some bloke with a top hat and trench coat. The second, however, was Alan, otherwise standing in as his former cohort. The good old days of Repulsa were over though. Pop and Locke no longer stole the show. On the bright side, Alan no longer needed to worry about Pinnacle hunting him down.

Sorry, friend, Alan said. Can’t be too cautious. It took months to track you down.

Who’s the stiff? Nate asked.

The stiff opened his mouth as if to speak, but Alan gestured for him to stop. Guess Nate knew who was fronting the paycheck.

He’s the reason I was able to find you.

Well, you have me now. What’s the occasion, friend? Nate said, rolling his eyes.

He’d had quite enough of the bravado from folks like Magnum and Stoke Keep. What happened to Star was terrible, but Nate had committed far worse. The only difference was that Fortune had nigh-unlimited resources and the fires of passion only a mother could know. He’d spent enough time here already. This conversation needed to end quickly.

Alan continued