Orion Colony Complete Series Boxed Set J.N. Chaney (books for new readers .txt) 📖

“I have faith that we’re going to drag this hunk of steel over to that pile and others are going to use it to construct this wall,” I said, finally looking down at him. “How’s that for faith?”

He smiled with a genuine grin I wasn’t expecting. Crooked teeth waved to me behind his white beard. “We have to start somewhere.”

I was beginning to think this guy might not just be some kind of religious member but actually crazy himself.

We made it the rest of the way to the pile of scrap metal and placed our deposit down. He rubbed his dirty hands together, trying as best he could to clean them before extending his right hand.

“My name is Lou Ruiz. It is nice to meet you,” Lou Ruiz said.

“Dean Slade,” I said, taking the offered hand. I knew I should just break the conversation there and then, but my inquiring mind got the best of me. “You some kind of priest or something? Church of Saints?”

“No, no, nothing like that,” Lou said. He gave my hand a firm squeeze then released my grip. “Just someone who has faith in a higher power. Someone who believes this place we landed on is special in a way we have yet to discover.”

“It especially wants to kill us, if that’s what you mean,” I said, thinking about what happened to Ira and the report Doctor Allbright had come back with when we first found her. Doctor Allbright’s story about the monsters in the mist to the south of our position was one I remembered well.

“No, that’s not what I mean.” Lou shook his head. “There is more to this place than meets the eye. I believe—”

“You two going to start moving?” Stacy’s familiar voice sounded behind me. “Or does a girl need to do all the work around here?”

I turned in time to see Stacy lift a hunk of metal the size of her upper body and toss it onto the pile of scrap metal. She wore a blaster on her hip. Sweat trickled down her brow.

“Yes, of course,” Lou said, nodding to Stacy and then to me. “We’ll talk later, Dean Slade.”

“Right,” I said.

Lou moved on to grab another piece of metal.

“You looked like you could use some saving,” Stacy said with a wry grin on her lips. “I thought you didn’t like people. You sure are chatty around strangers for a guy that wants to be left alone.”

“Yeah, well, I’m not sure being left alone is an option for me anymore,” I said, walking with Stacy back out down the trough-like indentation of dirt the Orion had made.

“How’s Elon?” Stacy asked in a low tone. “Arun said he was pretty down and you went to go talk to him.”

“I think he’ll be alright,” I said as memories of the limping Eternal hurling bottles at the wall came to mind. “He just needs some time to get his head straight.”

“I think we could all use some time for that,” Stacy said with a weary sigh. “Most everyone has been laboring around the clock to get the water and food supply working again. Now it’s building this wall and getting Iris’ long-range scanners up and running again. I don’t think any long-term rest is in store for us anytime soon.”

“Are you trying to cheer me up right now?” I asked, arching a brow at Stacy. “Because if this is your pep talk, it sucks.”

“Not a pep talk.” Stacy grinned. “You’re just one of the few people who knows all of the truths around here. Really, you’re the only one I feel like I can talk to honestly about any of this.”

“Really?” I asked, surprised. “You seem pretty close with Arun.”

“Don’t get me wrong. Arun and Elon are my friends, but they’re keeping the truth of what happened to the ship and what’s really on this planet a secret. I don’t agree with that,” Stacy said. “Captain Harold knows now, but that man’s something different. I don’t know if he feels he has something to prove or what.”

I searched the area around us for any sight of the captain. I didn’t see him at the moment. I had no doubt he was out there somewhere doling out orders and giving instruction.

Stacy and I worked side-by-side for the rest of the day. Soon the yellow and orange suns had fallen, and we chose to call it. Dinner, a shower, and sleep came soon after.

6

I knew I was in a dream. I knew this wasn’t happening right now. It had happened before. It was an event I was forced to live over and over again. I couldn’t wake up. I could never wake up from this dream. Maybe I didn’t want to. It was the closest to her I would ever get again.

I was in the locker room of the largest stage in gladiator history. The Titan Coliseum roared overhead as thousands of fans readied themselves to witness the fight for the championship belt.

I was with my trainers and coaches, staying loose, checking and rechecking the wraps around my hands and ankles.

“Just do what you do best.” Jonny Bones, my head coach, was saying from his spot behind me where he worked over my shoulders. “Do what you were born to do. Ain’t nobody got your talent or spent the hours dedicated to the craft of hand-to-hand combat like you.”

I nodded along with his words. Going through my pre-fight routine, I saw the fight happen in slow motion in my mind’s eye. I saw the strikes come from my opponent. I saw them miss and batted away. I saw myself winning the fight and holding the belt over my head.

I smelled the stale sweat of the locker room. The harsh vinegar tang touched my nostrils and strangely comforted me. This was the world I knew well. I heard my coaches talking to one