Ascendant Saga Collection: Sci-Fi Fantasy Techno Thriller Brandon Ellis (ebook reader for comics txt) 📖

a specific world he wanted to travel to while inside a pyramid, and it would teleport him through the energetic tubes, across the galaxy if need be, and to the tube that connected to the specific world. It only took seconds.

“Get in a combat-mech. We’re heading to a very wonderful place. Let’s hope the Agadon don’t follow us,” said Abdu. “We’re heading to Taiyo.”

Jaxx shook his head vehemently. “No. We’re not taking ourselves or these Agadon to Taiyo.” The Kelhoon attacked them, along with the SSP, and ravaged their world. It was only a few years back when he helped the Taiyonians stave them off, push them back and out of their solar system. The Taiyonians had been in repair, emotionally and physically, ever since. “The Taiyonians have been through enough.”

Abdu, walking beside him, smirked. “The prophecy says we are. They, and we, will be your helpers.”

“Helpers for what?”

Abdu held onto his chains. “You’ll see.” He gestured to the vial in Jaxx’s hand. “Drink up.”

Jaxx jumped up a ladder leaning against a twenty-story mech, found some footholds, and climbed into the cockpit. The ladder reminded him of the ones the SSP had, only it was larger.

Abdu and Zara climbed into their mechs on either side of Jaxx.

Abdu held up a vial, full of the same red liquid in Jaxx’s. He lifted it in a toast.

Jaxx lifted his own vial, then brought it to his lips. He drank it down. Then spat what was left in his mouth down the side of the mech. “Gross! Seriously, what’s in that?”

Abdu laughed, his hand on his belly. “It’s Golgath piss—a four-legged animal on Leonia. It will give you lots of energy.” He continued to laugh. “You’re going to need it. Trans-world world travel is…well…let’s call it enervating. You’ll be glad of the Golgath piss when we get to the other side. Trust me.”

“Everyone, get ready,” said Zara. “Destination; Taiyo.”

Jaxx’s body vibrated and a wave of sharp energy shot through him. His chest violently lifted toward the ceiling, his back arcing away from the cockpit’s seat. A flash of brilliant, electric blue light swirled in front of him, then encapsulated his vision. The pyramid network displayed before him and a golden shaft of light shot up from him and his mech. He glanced up, seeing the translucent tube. This time he was inside it, ready to blast off this planet and to another.

Then darkness.

And silence.

A splash of light, bright and unforgiving, penetrated his soul. Stars appeared. He was in space with hundreds of ships and mechs around him.

A planet, blue and green, like a glowing jewel in the night, floated in space no more than a few klicks away. His heart ached for Earth, but the planet’s tell-tale moons, Utsukushi Tsuki—an all blue, water moon—and Mori Tsuki —a forested moon, mostly green and brown, from the dense forests from a high carbon dioxide environment—confirmed that the planet was Taiyo.

A beep on his sensor told him bandits were near. He flipped to reverse vid cams, seeing exactly what he didn’t want to see.

Giant ships. Agadon ships. A blue hue, mimicking fire, danced at the bottom of a few frigates. The starfighters, starships, and destroyers were in formation—ready to attack.

The Agadon had followed.

Jaxx had not only brought hell upon the Leonians. He brought hell upon the Taiyonians. He was a curse upon all peoples. He was the bringer of death.

He slammed his hand on the console. “Son of a...”

“Attack formation. Move!” ordered Zaya.

Jaxx adjusted his thrusters, pushing port boosters to full, and flipped around. He turned his missile batteries on and targeted the nearest enemy starfighter, his screen glowing a deep red, telling him he had a lock. He put his finger over the trigger. “I’m ready to engage.”

19

Edge of M-Quadrant, Nearing Jupiter - Starship Atlantis

Shaughnessy leaned over and vomited in the trash can next to his computer station. He was shaking, sweat dripping down his face as if he’d just taken a break halfway through running a marathon. He put his head in his hands, his lips trembling, his mind full of excuses not to do this, not to risk his life. “Oh...no.” Another hit of nausea came over him.

He brought the trash can up to his face and dry heaved. There was nothing left in him, except weakness.

He couldn’t be weak. Not anymore. This was for Jaxx. Yes, what he was doing now—sabotaging the Secret Space Program by changing their coordinates and locking it in—was ordered by Senator Ken Furr, but only Jaxx was on his mind, only Jaxx deserved any help, any respect. Senator Furr was doing what Jaxx would have wanted—diverting the fleet away from Callisto, so no harm would be done to anyone or anything on that moon.

And he’d just diverted Starship Atlantis back to Earth. Soon, everyone, including Slade and the president, would know.

It was time to change SSP’s coordinates.

He swiped his hand on the holographic button on his holoscreen, patching into the Secret Space Program’s fleet’s main network—the same fleet accompanying Starship Atlantis to Callisto, the same fleet created by the United States government in secrecy, designed to explore the cosmos and protect the United States from outside threats.

In truth, all Shaughnessy knew about the Secret Space Program was what Jaxx had told him, and that had been garbled at best. Something about missions to a planet Taiyo, blasting the Kelhoon out of the sky. Jaxx merging with starfighters, saving the Taiyonians from total annihilation. All Star Wars shit if you asked him and none of it made a lick of sense, but if Jaxx thought it was central to the safety of the galaxy, then Shaughnessy was on board.

Shaughnessy pushed his glasses up the ridge of his nose, staring at Star Haven’s blueprint. The fleet’s network was mainframed into Star Haven, a Secret Space Program Second Class Star Carrier. The star carrier was manned by SSP’s very own Fleet Admiral Lon Vernadore.

“Let’s automate your flight and see if the rest of the fleet follows you, including