The Confluence: The New Dawn: Book 6

By Valerie J Mikles

Tray wanted to stay with his son...

... his crime-boss father-in-law had other plans.

Tray hated spaceships and micro-gravity, but he loved Saskia, and not just because she was a weapons expert and protector. She would have made a good step-mother, and he a good father, if they hadn’t been taken hostage on their 400-year old cargo ship.

Sikorsky wanted power.

Despite his money and his teleportation power, he had no army, and he barely had a plan. But a storm was brewing on Terrana, and Sikorsky planned to seize control. If Tray didn’t help, his family would disappear.

One plan was for mutiny...

... one for a government coup.

It was time to fight back.

You will love this space adventure, because even when the walls come down around you, your family will be there.
Get it now!

• Language: English
• Publisher: Valerie J Mikles
• Release date: Nov 2, 2019
• ISBN: 9780463057698

Valerie J Mikles

I'm an aromantic, asexual, agender person who is currently using she/her pronouns. Writing has given me the opportunity to discover and represent so many identities, and in turn find myself. I feel like diverse identities should exist in literature without being a central aspect of the plot. I have created several short films about asexuality, inspired by my own journey to self-discovery. Learn more about my creative side and my writing at http://www.valeriejmikles.comI'm also a PhD astronomer and former black hole hunter. I defected from academia and currently work for NOAA as a Senior Systems Engineer on a polar-orbiting weather satellite. My motto in life is that I can be everything I want, just not all at the same time

Book preview

THE STORY SO FAR

#1 The Disappeared – Oriana’s crew became the target of the Terranan Guard after a former Disappeared, Amanda Gray, escaped her Elysian prison and resurfaced. The non-corporeal Elysians are proven real when disgraced Guard, Diana Solvere, leverages their power to pursue Amanda across the expanse of outer space. In the fight for their lives, Oriana loses their pilot, Corey, and the ship crashes far from home.

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#2 Sequestered – Sky and Hawk join the crew when Oriana makes a mad escape from Rocan, a dying city in desperate need of Oriana’s resources, both technological and human. In exchange for Hawk’s help, Captain Danny Matthews promises he will help search for medicine to save Hawk’s people.

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#3 Trade Circle – While exploring the ruins of an ancient city, Danny and Saskia fall victim to a disease called Havara Pytr, the Jaws of the Ancestors. Sky reaches out to the nomadic tribes in the area and invites a heap of new trouble when her spirit-carrier nature is revealed. Although Oriana’s crew is offered the medicine, the demanded price of Sky’s life is too high, and they rush to save her.

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#4 Hybrid – Oriana arrives in Boone expecting a technologically advanced civilization only to find a ghost town. The sole survivors of the destruction are two human-spirit hybrids, Kerris and Liza. Realizing that Hawk is a hybrid as well, Liza becomes convinced Hawk can teach her how to undo the destruction of Boone. When a nearby tribe realizes that Liza may be able to resurrect their lost family members, they force her to try, and trigger an even worse destruction.

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#5 The Gray Market – Danny and Tray learn that their mother once had a business of capturing hybrids and selling their powers. In their absence from Quin, Lois Ketlin has risen to power by stealing their mother’s technique, and she is determined to destroy the Matthews brothers in the process. In the aftermath of Ketlin’s defeat, Morrigan and Chase join the crew to escape the city and start their lives fresh.

THE CREW

Danny Matthews – After his stepfather rejected him, he moved to Terrana, only to be caught in a Revolution. After the Revolution, he became part of a Citizens’ Channel, transporting refugees from Terrana to Aquia. At many points, he found himself captured, interrogated, and abused by the Terranan Guard. He became captain of Oriana after reuniting with his estranged brother, Tray.

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Tray Matthews – He comes from wealth, but grew up not knowing he had a brother. After a falling out with his father and a messy divorce, he went seeking family and has been clinging to his brother ever since. Tray recently found out that he has a son, and they finally reunited on his return to Quin, but disagreements with his ex-wife may yet keep them apart.

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Saskia Serevi – A former Terranan Guard, Saskia joined Oriana’s crew three captains ago after a paralyzing injury drove her from service. She was recruited by General Santos, and he still believes them friends. She takes the mantle of the stoic warrior, but also nominal mechanic and medic. She and Tray have a blooming romantic relationship.

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Amanda Gray – A former Disappeared, she has a strong connection to the spirit realm, and has recently learned that she can echo the powers of others. At some point in her captivity, she developed schizophrenia, and it has gone untreated for so long that she often has difficulty parsing her spirit-world insights from her delusions.

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Douglas Hawk Hwan – Hawk only recently learned that his aptitude for machines comes from a hybrid nature, and he’s now learning how to unlock doors, jam weapons, and turn electrical devices off and on with the power of his mind. He worries about his children growing up with untapped hybrid abilities, but feels like he can’t go home without medicine for his people.

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Sky – A spirit-carrier, she has no ability to communicate with the Seer that possesses her. She lives her life as a traveler because she fears if she stays in one place too long, Spirit will find a way to kill her and jump into a new host. Although over a hundred years old, Spirit keeps her looking young. On hearing that Janiya Coro was a prisoner, she helped the woman escape Quin.

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Dr. Morrigan Zenzele – After Lois Ketlin killed her parents, Morrigan used drugs to escape her pain. Lois, the reigning drug lord of Quin, tainted her supply, and she would have died had Tray Matthews not arrived in dire need of a doctor. Morrigan killed Lois with the very drugs that were meant to kill her, and she joined Oriana’s crew as a doctor because she is no longer allowed to practice medicine in Quin.

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Chase Du Plessis – Chase met Danny five years ago when they designed and built the Bobsled together. His passion for building and fixing ships drew him to Kemah to help with Oriana’s repairs. When he discovered his fiancée was pregnant with another man’s baby, he joined Oriana’s crew to escape the pain.

1

The gray moon Terrana loomed large in the forward window and Saskia Serevi watched her former home approach with practiced detachment. The dark spots marking the shadows of the lunar domes against the gray surface were long at this time of month. It looked deceptively peaceful, but not at all inviting. Terrana had left scars on her body that would never heal. After being shot and crippled in the Terranan Revolution, Oriana became her home and gave her the drive to walk again, but she’d never regain her ability to have children. That loss hurt more now that she saw Tray doting on his son.

Tray Matthews, the captain’s little brother, spent five years trying to crack her shell. He made her laugh, and she loved him dearly. But he belonged on Aquia with his son, and she belonged... somewhere else.

Tray had only recently discovered his son, and his ex-wife didn’t want him intruding on their lives. Mikayla Wright was the daughter of a Quin crime boss called Sikorsky, and his power over Tray’s business life further complicated things. Sikorsky had paid for Oriana’s repairs and a rival boss named Damien Coro for the fuel for this trip.

Floating to middeck, Saskia checked the charge on the weapons in Oriana’s armory. They had six new pulse rifles, two finger-mounted stunners, and a shock-dart. Saskia kept at least one stunner on her person at all times, but she still didn’t have a plan to overcome the two crime bosses in her passenger bay.

Twenty-five minutes, Captain Danny Matthews said, floating past her as he propelled himself toward the bridge. His preferred weapons were his knife and pulse rifle, but he wasn’t carrying either. Do you think we can win this?

I think we can get ourselves killed, Saskia replied with only a hint of sarcasm.

So I should cancel the mutiny? Danny asked, the forced joke making their dire situation worse.

It’s not a mutiny if you’re already captain. We should have jettisoned them before we left Aquia, Saskia grumbled, adding a shock-dart to her thigh holster. Tray wasn’t usually armed either, and she knew she could trust him to handle the less lethal weapon.

Danny shook his head. Sikorsky and Coro are too strong there.

They’re not the only ones getting weaker, Saskia pointed out. Four days in micro-gravity was enough to render them all helpless on landing.

They’re going to be hit with the same gravity as the rest of us. There’s a good chance we’ll adapt first and have the advantage, Danny said. Is Hawk downstairs already?

Engine room, Saskia said. He’ll sit in a chair for landing if that chair is on the bridge.

Danny made a face. He didn’t like her leaving Hawk alone with the engine, but Saskia didn’t see the danger. Hawk was a human-spirit hybrid, and he’d already proven he could fly the ship with the power of his mind. He was in his early twenties—not much older than Saskia had been when the Revolution started on Terrana.

I told him to keep his feet on the ground, Saskia shrugged, leaving the captain to stew and gliding down to the lower deck. She paused when she heard Tray’s voice emanating from the passenger lounge. She could tell he was arguing with the bosses, because he was using his swank voice. She’d always known he was an aristocrat, but she’d never felt the difference in their economic classes until she saw him with the crime bosses.

You’re not going to convince a bunch of peaceful Panoptica to come out of hiding and fight your battles for you, Damien Coro ranted, referring to the rumored colony of hybrids on Terrana. He and Sikorsky been arguing the point since the day they cornered Danny and forced this journey to Terrana.

I’ll have you fighting on the front line once you realize the kind of man Deivon Parker is, Sikorsky said, his voice a low, powerful rumble.

Saskia floated into the doorway, and Tray met her eye, his confident nod assuring her that he did not need her intervention. Yet. All three men were dressed formally, and their business suits looked bloated in the micro-gravity.

Yes, I’ve always been afraid of the spiritual kind who think meditation is the key to achieving Confluence, Coro sneered. They were halfway to Terrana before Sikorsky even mentioned the threat of Confluence. There wasn’t an exact translation for the word in Lanvarian, but the notion was that hybrid powers flowed from a ritualistic channeling of spirit energy, as opposed to innate ability like Hawk seemed to have. Sikorsky was drunk that night, and Coro had been mocking him ever since.

Parker’s not spiritual, Tray snickered. He measured his tone, careful not to deride his ex-father-in-law. Even if he were, Confluence is no more dangerous than any other mental exercise masquerading as spiritualism. If people could meditate their way to hybrid power, there would be hybrids everywhere.

Consider that Parker’s connection to that realm is different than the average meditator. By your own testimony, he is in league with an Elysian creature that teleported a homicidal Guard onto your ship, Sikorsky said. Saskia knew he could teleport, but he hadn’t used the ability since they left Quin.

Amanda, what have you been telling him? Tray snapped, shooting a ceiling-ward glare. Amanda floated overhead, her glazed, green eyes following Sikorsky.

Galen opened the door right there, Amanda said, pointing to the middle of the room. Galen was the name of Amanda’s Elysian abductor and she had some degree of Stockholm syndrome about him. Her world was too colored with schizophrenic hallucinations to know much about Galen, but he did have hybrid power. They weren’t sure if the Elysians were different than the Panoptica Sikorsky sought, but it seemed likely they were one and the same.

With or without Galen’s help, the embargo is a sign. Parker’s about to overthrow Governor Cheoff and take control of Terrana, Sikorsky said.

But Quin enacted the embargo; not Terrana, Tray argued.

He orchestrated the conditions that forced the actions, Sikorsky insisted. Once Cheoff is dead, Parker will step up. He’s in position as Lieutenant Governor.

Coro snorted in disbelief. So he’s been biding his time for decades, convincing the general public that Elysia is a myth, gaining Cheoff’s trust, orchestrating the Revolution, arranging the embargo...

And now he’s reached the final phase of his plan. Bringing Elysia to the surface, Sikorsky said.

What makes you think that’s his plan? Tray asked.

Because it was my plan, Sikorsky said. It was mine, and he stole it from me. It helped that he had Galen.

I told you Galen was real, Amanda whispered.

He’s not helping your case, Amanda, Tray said.

Is Galen a soldier or an equal? Saskia asked. After seeing the destruction of a Boone, she knew they couldn’t underestimate the threat of even a single hybrid.

Not helping, Tray muttered.

I will not let Parker create a throne for himself over the most powerful beings in the solar system, Sikorsky said.

No, of course not. You want to sit on that throne yourself, Coro scoffed. That’s his plan. Kill Parker. Kill Cheoff. Set himself up as ruler of Terrana.

Ten marks says Galen makes him Disappear first, Tray said.

Sikorsky drew a shock-dart and grabbed Tray by the collar. Mock me again and your son will be talking to ashes tonight.

Saskia’s stunner was out in a flash, but Sikorsky gloated at the sight. As long as he had a hold of Tray, the stunner would shock them both, but the boss didn’t separate toying with his prey and injuring him. Amanda’s hand slid into her boot and she drew her knife. Amanda was the bigger threat. Launching into the room, Saskia fired her stunner at Sikorsky, then spun upward in the micro-gravity, catching Amanda and taking her knife. She tossed the knife across the room, sending it flying into one of the chair cushions, and kept hold of Amanda, whispering soothes in Terranan.

Morrigan, we need some help in the passenger lounge, Saskia said, tapping her Feather. She glanced at Coro, but the man postured arrogantly next to the chairs they were all supposed to be strapping into.

I’m not crazy like him, Coro said. I’m here for one purpose. To find my wife.

Twenty minutes to gravity, Saskia said.

2

The inertial dampeners kicked in, flooding the engine room with noise and heat. The change in acceleration propelled Danny into a wall, and he grabbed hold of one of the handrails to keep from bouncing off again. Inside the engine room, Hawk flailed and flew back, smacking the ceiling and bouncing off. Grappling for the handrails, he scrambled to put his feet on the floor, muttering in his native Rocanese.

I told you to strap in, Danny harped.

Saskia said I could stay here and there are no chairs to strap into, Hawk said, doing more flips just for fun. His fine, dyed-red hair splayed around his face in a spiky halo as he spun.

She’s not the captain, Danny said. Go down to the passenger lounge and strap in, Hawk. We’re twenty minutes to landing and there’s a good chance Chase will land us right side up.

You need someone here in case there’s a problem, Hawk protested, his cheeks flushing. He tapped his toes against the ceiling to slow his spin.

Not you. I can’t have you miscommunicating with the thrusters at the wrong moment, Danny argued.

Hawk was crestfallen by the accusation. He’d only recently learned that he was a hybrid, and that his knack for fixing machines was a supernatural ability, not a natural intuition.

Fine. Go to the bridge and help Chase. It’d set my mind at ease if you were strapped into a chair. And you can focus all your positive thoughts on landing, Danny relented.

He needs your help more than mine, Hawk said, resisting the order. I’ve never landed the ship on Terrana.

Danny sucked in his cheeks, but Hawk was right, and of all the battles he needed to win this week, this was not worth the fight. Make sure you have both feet on the ground when we reach gravity, he grumbled.

Yes, Captain, Hawk said, doing another backflip while he still could. Seventeen minutes!

Danny laughed at his enthusiasm, wishing he’d come to space travel with so little weighing him down. Crossing the upper deck to the bridge, Hawk’s euphoria gave way to Chase’s panic.

Danny, you need to fly this thing, his new pilot begged, white-knuckling the yoke. Chase’s normally muscular frame had shrunk significantly during their journey in micro-gravity, and now his olive skin looked as green as Tray’s.

Are you sick? Danny asked, diving into the captain’s chair, but not taking the controls.

I don’t know what I was thinking. I’m not a pilot, Chase rambled. Chase was an engineer by trade, but he was an old friend and he wanted desperately to get out of Quin. This is crazy. Amanda is a better pilot—

"Amanda is sick, Chase, Danny said. It’s you and me, and we’ll get through this."

Except you keep floating off, Chase groused, little lines creasing around his lips when he frowned. He had a few years on Danny, but having spent his life in Quin, with consistent access to medical care, he looked younger than his forty years. ‘The ship flies itself.’ It doesn’t fly itself.

What do you expect, Chase? I’m trying to make sure we don’t get killed when Sikorsky tries to overthrow the Terranan government, Danny snapped.

I’d sure like to hear his plan. I mean, who doesn’t love an impromptu coup? Chase remarked, a wry grin accompanying the sarcasm.

Ask him his plan. I dare you, Tray croaked, hanging off Saskia as the pair floated onto the bridge.

Tray, what happened? Danny cried. Tray never handled micro-gravity well, but Sikorsky’s generous re-stock of their medicine should have given him a ton of options to settle his stomach.

It’s handled, Saskia said tersely, unfolding Tray’s jump seat and loading him in. Tray didn’t look sick, and up close, Danny could see the burn marks on Tray’s skin.

You didn’t drag Hawk in here? Saskia asked, seeing the middle seat empty.

He pouted, Danny said. Get to the engine room. You gave him permission. It’s your job to keep an eye on him.

Her lips quirked, giving a hint of smile. Yes, sir.

And I don’t mean watch and laugh, Danny amended.

Saskia gave Tray a kiss on the cheek before leaving. It was more chaste than she wanted, but all the public affection Tray could handle from her. His knuckles brushed hers, but he was lethargic.

Did Sikorsky have a plan? Danny asked. He couldn’t stop the man until he had some idea of what they were stopping.

No, but his vivid imagination has filled in most of Parker’s, Tray said tiredly. And I thought the Confluence thing was a drunken rambling, but now I think he actually believes Parker can talk to Galen or channel his power.

Maybe Danny can use his spirit guide to fight Parker’s, Chase quipped. You used to do that meditation stuff, right?

Before I died, Danny joked back, punching Chase’s shoulder. Sometimes, it felt like he was the only one clinging to spiritually. I just hope this coup doesn’t get in the way of our plans to rescue Sky.

We have a plan? Tray asked.

I thought the plan was to leave the back door open, Chase replied.

I don’t think that’ll work, Danny chuckled.

Worked when you died, Chase commented, swatting Danny’s arm. She’s a runner, Danny. What makes you think she needs a rescue?

Sky and Chase had a history—a brief affair ending abruptly when Sky took off. Chase was right; she might already be gone.

Thirteen minutes, Tray croaked, picking up the ship-wide Vring. Hello passengers and crew. Please make your way to your seats and strap in.

Danny bit his lip, comforted by the routine of Tray’s speech, but worried about landing.

The gravity comes faster than you think, and Morrigan is too sick to deal with broken bones, Tray continued. Keep your seatbelts fastened until we have all wheels on the ground, at which point the little seatbelt blinky light will go off. Wear your seatbelts the way marathon swimmers wear their trunks—low and tight across the hips.

Chase cringed at the mention of swimwear. His fiancée—or rather his ex—was a competitive swimmer. Danny wasn’t sure if Chase was here because the engagement had been broken, or if the engagement had broken because Chase was here.

As Tray lectured about port protocol, the Terranan settlement filled the front view. Ten minutes to gravity. Ten minutes. Danny felt his throat closing. He shouldn’t have come. He shouldn’t have brought Amanda here.

Was Amanda there when Sikorsky shot you? Danny asked Tray, rubbing his brow.

Saskia kept her calm and Morrigan’s with her now, Tray replied, examining the burns on his skin. Danny would have suggested that Tray lie down, but Tray preferred watching the landings. Coming up on the moon, watching the little wrinkles and shadows become massive mountains and craters, was breathtaking. But as the craters rose, so did Danny’s stress level. He rose from his seat, feeling waves of inertia pushing him back down.

Danny! Seatbelt blinky light! Tray exclaimed.

The walls of Oriana vibrated as the braking thrusters fired and the inertial dampeners dialed up. The safety harnesses on the chairs in the passenger lounge rattled eerily. This room felt more like a prison than a passenger bay, and even though the cushions had been refurbished and the safety harnesses cleaned, Amanda was convinced she could smell her own blood on the fabric. Danny had locked her in here and tied her up when she was having a psychotic episode. Probably more than once, although her memory was too hazy to know for sure. There were marks on the floor where tables and lounge chairs had been removed. The upper half of the walls were covered with chipped, blue paint, suggesting that this place had once been cheerful and inviting. All that remained were the eight chairs on this wall, and eight beds on the opposite wall, most of which were folded flat and stowed.

Take your salt tabs, Morrigan Zenzele reminded her. Morrigan had mocha skin and millions of braids wrapped under a multi-colored scarf. She smelled soothing, like oils and lotions, and looked like an angel despite the sickness that came from micro-gravity. Her lips were pale, with a pink sheen painted on for moisture and color.

A ship like this should have gravity. This is undignified, Coro complained. He had the beginnings of a beard and a bald spot on his head, where Sikorsky had the smooth skin and thick hair of someone whose youth was artificially enhanced.

I didn’t see you paying for the refitting, Sikorsky snipped, wiping at the stunner-singed threads on his fancy shirt. He was a weak hybrid, able to teleport with limited accuracy. Amanda wanted to stay out of arm’s reach, but that meant sitting closer to Coro.

I didn’t see you paying for the fuel, Coro retorted.

Amanda? Salt tab, Morrigan said, pushing the tablet between her lips.

Amanda raised her brow, testing her Occ. She didn’t have a manual for the visual enhancement device, but she was surprised that it hadn’t signaled danger given the uncertainty she felt. The Occ turned the room a surreal shade of white, with turquoise and fuchsia highlights. This was not helpful, but it was amusing. The color change made the flush in Morrigan’s cheeks and the sweat beading down her neck more obvious.

You look sick, Amanda said, the twitch of her cheek triggering the Occ and restoring the world to its normal color. Amanda didn’t want to see how sick her doctor was.

I don’t like free fall, Morrigan said, directing Amanda to a chair equidistant from the two crime bosses. She took the seat on Amanda’s right, setting herself as a physical barrier between Amanda and Sikorsky. Her cold, clammy hands gripped the armrests, and her eyes were pressed shut as she prayed for dear life. It was Morrigan’s first time in a spaceship.

I don’t like this room. Or this harness, Amanda said, fingering the clasp on the harness. The curved seat was uncomfortable and confining, and the view dismal. She wanted to be on the bridge, but her meds made her dizzy today.

Got to observe the seatbelt blinky light, Morrigan smirked. She often sounded irritated at everything, and perhaps she was. They wouldn’t let her practice medicine in Quin anymore because after her parents’ death, she went off the deep end prescribing drugs for herself.

It’s starting to affect you isn’t it? Sikorsky said, leaning around Morrigan to look at Amanda. We’re getting close to Terrana, and you can feel those pathways that allowed you Disappear.

Sikorsky, you’re not the only one with a weapon, Coro threatened. You want Terrana and you have no plan to get it. Let me save my wife, and then you can do whatever you want to this little world.

The only reason you had a wife is because Parker sold her into slavery, Sikorsky sneered.

That’s enough! Morrigan snapped, her anger rattling the empty seats next to her. Coro, if we find Janiya, you ask her if she wants to return home, and you respect her if she says no.

You are nothing—