Space Race (Space Race 1) Nathan Hystad (ebooks children's books free .TXT) 📖

I stared at the thing, the destructive tentacles wavering through space, and I wondered why the enemy hadn’t advanced. “It’s waiting for something.”

“Witnesses?” Holland asked.

“Maybe.”

Once the comms were up, I took a risk and sent a message to Bello’s ship, Velvet, assuming she’d be in the vicinity. Varn had pulled his Racer around and came to my side, facing the enemy as well.

“Hawk, what is that?” Bello answered the call. Grid was beside her, taking up two-thirds of the screen.

“Bad news. This visitor has already blasted one of the new Defenders, and seems impervious to our technology.” The power had been reset by Jade, and gravity returned, along with our full lights and any other random features we’d cut.

“How is this happening?” Bello asked.

“I need to speak with Eclipse. Where is she?” I asked.

Bello glanced at Grid, and her large husband spoke. “Hey, Hawk. The plan is the same. Stomp the Primaries. Sorry, man. Whoever this is, might be a good thing for us. They’ve already helped.”

I shook my head in disbelief. “Bello, let me speak to Eclipse.”

“Sorry, Hawk.” The call dropped.

“What is the matter with these people?” I slammed a fist on the chair arm. “This thing…”

The hundreds of usurpers directed toward Boardroom. And the fifty or so weaponized corporate ships stayed in their positions, unwilling to move out of the new enemies’ path.

“They can’t do this. We have to work together!” Holland was at the dash, his words hopeless.

“What can this thing do?” I asked Luther.

Jade arrived with a grim expression on her face. “Luther, I attached the CER-1905. You’ll have a lot of firepower. It’s the same tech the Defenders are using.”

“How do you know?” I asked.

“I saw something when I was working at Luna, right before I left. I didn’t think anything of it, but it was confidential, shipping to Sage on Mars. Luna owned the tech for the CER-1905, which is what we’re outfitted with, but Sage wanted to increase the power for a larger range operation. If that’s the case, this gun won’t work against this enemy. But…”

“Can you get on with it? We’re about to be in the middle of a full-scale assault!” My patience had been fried a long time ago.

Eclipse continued moving, and I felt the tension through the entire region. Neptune hung behind the Boardroom from my perspective, the huge ship blocking the equator from my line of sight.

“I reversed the polarity,” she said.

“Of what? I don’t understand,” I admitted.

Luther bobbed his head, as if trying to determine what that would accomplish. “Could be a change. The reverse polarity will neutralize some of the energy pulse, but most shields are designed to defend against a specific pattern.”

It was worth a shot. I glanced at the ship beside me and sighed. I tapped the communicator.

“Hawk, what the hell is going on?” Varn was white, his upper lip drenched in sweat.

“You tell me. Sage invite a special guest?”

“Not us. Must be Eclipse.”

That wasn’t true, but I kept it to myself. “We’re not exactly friends, but I think it’s time to work together. This bastard isn’t leaving without a fight. Let’s make them wish they’d never shown up to the party. Is your Core still operational, or did you blow it?”

“We’ve replaced the couplers. I’m no amateur,” Varn said in a huff.

“Then follow me.”

“To do what? We’re just a pair of Racers.”

“You’re pretending you don’t have a hidden CER-1905 on that bird?” Jade asked, arms crossed.

Varn pursed his lips. “You weren’t supposed to know about that.”

“Reverse it. The polarity. We have a plan,” I told him.

He barked an order to someone behind him, and when he stared at me again, his resolve had hardened. “I’m listening. And for the record, congratulations on winning Space Race.”

Twenty-Two

Varn disappeared from the screen, and Jade’s console beeped, drawing our attention. “Arlo, I’m picking up a transmission from Octavia on the Boardroom to one of the fleet.”

“You can do that?”

“Sure. Want to spy?” she asked.

Did I ever. She pushed it to the main viewer, and there were Eclipse and Octavia in split screen.

Holland waved a hand in front of his body. “They can’t see us, right?”

“No.”

“Eclipse…Ellie, this has to end. I’ve already explained my reasoning!” Octavia’s eyes boiled with fury.

“Little sister, you’re too blind to see your own lies,” Eclipse said.

Sister? I peered at the others, who seemed as perplexed by this as anyone.

“I’m not lying. There never was a merge.” Octavia pointed away. “All we wanted was some fanfare for the expansion into Proxima, though we didn’t expect SeaTech to win this Race.”

“Why didn’t you tell me?” Eclipse asked.

“Because you never believe me. You only see red when it comes to my role, and the Board. I’m here to make things better, not worse. What happened to your son is not my fault.” This changed the conversation. It had turned personal. Two sisters with deep issues.

“That’s what you always say, but I don’t believe it. Who is this ship? What have you and the Primaries done?” Eclipse was in the same white uniform as before, her hair dusted with gray. Seeing them side by side, it was obvious they were related, but I hadn’t picked up on it earlier. It seemed no one had.

Octavia stared at the corner of her screen, probably nervously watching the tentacled beast. “We have no idea, but they’ve proven their power. I’m not sure what they’re waiting for. I thought they might be with Liberty.”

“There’s no way we’re involved with them. I’m sorry, Octavia. We didn’t come to cut a deal. I owe it to the other corporations to see this campaign through. We cannot return to Earth with things the way they are.”

I squinted as I watched Octavia lean back in her chair, glancing at the viewscreen beside her.

“We merged assets strictly for the sake of expanding into Proxima. We all know we lost Obelisk on that dreadful mission, and we can’t duplicate that.” Octavia’s eyes were red-lined, her head dipping as she finished.

“Whose idea was this?