“That’s it, I quit.”
Alliance Officer Morgan Chavez’s
statement was met with a snort of derision from her commander. Truthfully,
she’d expected nothing different from Alliance Commander Olivia Jacobson.
“It must be Wednesday,” Olivia
said dryly. “You always quit on Wednesday.”
“It’s Tuesday. That should tell
you how bad it is. I couldn’t even wait one fucking day to quit this time.” Heaving
out a heavy sigh, Morgan didn’t wait for permission as she sat down on one of
the chairs in front of the large desk. She propped her black boots up on the
edge of the desk, then lowered the off-center zipper of her uniform jacket so
she could breathe better.
There was no need for formality
between two women since they were alone in the office. Morgan and Olivia had
been friends since their days in the Academy, back when life had seemed much
easier. Actually, that wasn’t true. Life had always been pretty fucking
complicated, even back when she’d been young.
Her childhood hadn’t been all
bad. In fact, she had been surrounded by love and laughter during the first few
years of her life. Morgan had been born on an exploration vessel that had been
sent out to discover and study other worlds.
After centuries of unrest, the
nations had come together with one common goal in mind—to reach for the stars
and explore all the possibilities that existed beyond Earth. The creation of
space vessels powered by jump drives and other technology had made traveling to
other galaxies possible, and humans had strived to explore all they could.
Morgan’s parents had left Earth
on a voyage into deep space. Her mother had been a scientist, and her father
had been second-in-command on the exploration vessel. She might not have had an
average childhood, but she’d loved every second of growing up in space. The
ship had been her playground, and the entire crew had been her family.
But things didn’t always go
according to plan out in the big black.
The exploration vessel had been
scheduled to be away from Earth for a maximum of ten years. They’d explored
previously uncharted areas of space, and they had made sure to leave ample time
for their return voyage. During their journey, they’d found several uninhabitable
planets, and they’d also discovered a few that could have sustained a colony
under the right conditions. They’d been on their way back to Earth to report
their findings when their ship had encountered a strange anomaly.
A shimmering band of light had appeared
in front of their vessel, and before they were able to change course, they’d entered
a temporal rift, which created a fissure in space and time. In the matter of
seconds, they had somehow lost sixty years, though they hadn’t realized that
anything was different until they’d arrived back on Earth.
Then they’d realized everything
had changed.
When humans announced to the
universe that they were capable of traveling the stars, they had gained the
attention of other beings…not all of which were benevolent. While Morgan’s
family and the rest of the crew had been caught in the temporal rift, the Zyphir—a
colony race of insect-like creatures that stood on two feet—came to Earth in
2960. The Zyphir had planned to annihilate the human race and deplete the world
of all resources before they moved onto the next planet that suited their
needs.
A brutal three-year war had
destroyed much of Earth, and humans had been on the brink of losing the fight until
three alien races arrived to help. The Zyphir were defeated as soon as the
Dragon Warriors, D’Aire and the Krytos joined the battle, but the consequences
of the war had left humans struggling to survive and large portions of the
Earth in ruins.
Martial law had been declared,
and the world was under the rule of the United
Federation Command Alliance, or as it was more commonly called—the Alliance. To
make matters worse, the
Zyphir had left behind a deadly virus that had killed thousands, and altered
the genetics of the survivors left on the planet. More
accurately, the virus seemed to attack the female reproductive systems, leaving
most women on Earth infertile. No matter how advanced medical technology had
become, the cause for the infertility remained untreatable.
When the exploration vessel
returned to Earth, they witnessed the aftermath of the war that had been waged
in their absence. It wasn’t long before the virus
infected every single member of the crew. Morgan and another young boy that had
been born of the vessel, Matt Malloy, were the only survivors.
With
their families gone and nowhere to go, they had been left at the mercy of the
Alliance. While they had been gone from the planet, it had become mandatory for
all children to be tested when they turned ten to determine if they would be
taken for military service. Only the strongest and brightest were chosen to
receive genetic enhancements to become elite soldiers. The elites were bigger
and stronger than normal humans, with increased reflexes and heightened senses.
These enhancements were encoded into their genes, and would be passed onto
their children.
And
their enhanced genetics were the future of the human race.
Both
Morgan and Matt had been too young to be tested. However, since they were alone
in the new world, the Council of Regents—the governing body of the
Alliance—allowed for them to receive the genetic enhancements in order to save
their lives. The virus had weakened them, but a regiment of enhancement drugs
and other medical treatments over a year ensured that Morgan and Matt recovered
completely.
Morgan
had just turned eight when she and Matt entered the Academy—the place where all
elites trained. She’d been the youngest recruit there, however, she’d had the
advantage of acclimating to her own enhancements years before her fellow
classmates. Since she’d been born in deep space, what Morgan had known about
Earth’s history were just stories, so she didn’t miss much of the old ways.
Still,
there were some parts of her new life that she didn’t like.
Staring
at her friend across the desk was enough to remind Morgan of the one thing she
hated the most about Alliance rules and regulations. Both Morgan and Commander
Jacobson had been marked with a star tattoo on the right side of their faces,
declaring that they were both infertile.
Some
human women were tattooed with specialized scroll marking on the right side of
their faces, signifying they were what men coveted most—a breeder, one of the
few women able to have children. The scroll tattoo became darker with age,
turning a mercurial black when they became of age. When a woman was chosen, the
two elite soldiers that claimed her would have their initials tattooed on the
left side of her face, marking her as theirs for the world to see.
In
return, the men would have a similar tattoo placed on their left neck,
shoulder, arm and torso as a sign of pride to have claimed a woman. These
markings took the place of archaic symbols such as wedding bands to declare
them a bonded unit. Fertile females were also implanted with nanotechnology that
made it impossible for them to get pregnant until their birth control was
deactivated when they were claimed, or if they chose to have it done any time after
their eighteenth birthday.
Morgan
hadn’t had to worry about that since the virus had robbed her of her chance to
have the family she always wanted. She knew that having children was the only
way that humans would continue to thrive, but she hated wearing a brand upon
her face that showed the world that she was lacking.
“So,
what has you quitting this week?” Olivia asked as she swiped her finger across the
tablet she held in her hand, bringing Morgan back to the present.
“Actually,
it’s all your fault this time.”
“Oh,
really?” Olivia lifted a brow as she set the tablet aside. “How am I to blame?”
“Because
you asked me to greet Regent Marks’ group to escort them to their quarters this
morning.”
“I
thought you liked Regent Marks.”
“I
do…sort of. I’ve only met him a few times when I was working in the Capital,
but he has some new fucktards on his security detail that I really didn’t like.
Two in particular. Officers Denver and Brinkman thought I should be willing to
share their bed while they’re here since I’m just a star who should be grateful
for their attention.”
Olivia tapped her finger to her
lower lip before she said, “Are you telling me Officer Fucktard and his
sidekick, Officer Scumbag, are currently in the medical unit trying to retrieve
their balls after you kicked them into their stomachs?”
Morgan let out a little snort
at that. “I should have, but I held back. I did give them a pretty impressive
verbal bitch-slap, though.”
“Satisfying, but you could have
reported them and made sure they paid for their insult to you. You know I don’t
tolerate that shit on my station.”
Shaking her head, Morgan said,
“I know. Plus, Director James is still a little pissed at me for what happened last
week.”
“Director Tight-ass needs to
get over that,” Olivia said sharply. “Those elites were drunk, and you had
every right to give them a beat down. I would have done the same if I’d been
there, and I told James that.”
Morgan laughed. “Which is just
another reason why I love you.”
Last week, she and two female security
officers had been asked to escort three Tarin females to Asylum, where they had
been granted sanctuary. Tartarus was a relatively new ally to the Alliance.
Known as the Dark Planet, Tartarus was home to a barbaric,
demon-like race that fed off the energy of others. The Tarins had recently
ended a civil war that had been raging on their planet for years, and many of
the females that had been kept as slaves now sought to escape to space stations
and other planets, far from their old lives.
The three Tarin females had
been nervous and frightened when they had landed, and their fear had increased
when the group of drunk elites had blocked their path in the hallway. One of
the drunk men had stumbled into a security officer, and a fight had broken out.
Fueled by everyone else’s emotions, Morgan had lost control of her own temper,
and she’d torn into the group of elites like some sort of crazed berserker.
When people were given the
enhancement drugs, there was no way to tell exactly how it would affect each
individual. Morgan had been one of those that had gotten a little something extra
from the genetic boost. She was now considered a Class-A Empath, meaning she
could feel or sense the emotions of others.
As a liaison officer, that
talent came in handy, which was the reason why most empaths were steered toward
that particular division. But Morgan’s abilities had turned out to be her
curse. She had to work hard to keep from being swamped by other people’s
feelings just being around them, and it was ten times worse if she actually
touched someone. It was as if she were a sponge for other people’s energy.
Whatever they were feeling, she would feel, almost like a contact high.
But when the rush of emotions
faded, it left her feeling sick and shaky.
Her abilities were so strong
that she could even read residual emotions off objects right after someone
touched them, so Morgan tried to wear gloves to minimize contact as much as
possible. But when she was in a situation like she had been in the hallway with
the security officers and drunk elites fighting, there was no way for her to
stop the barrage of emotions from taking over.
A red haze had taken over
Morgan, and in a few seconds all the drunks were groaning on the ground. She
had always excelled in hand-to-hand, but there was one tiny drawback whenever
she was in a combat situation. After the emotional high was over, Morgan had
raced over to an alcove in the hallway, promptly losing the contents of her
stomach into one of the waste receptacles.
It was an embarrassing side
effect to what she thought of as sensory overload.
Thinking back on the incident, Morgan
pushed back one of her wild, chestnut-colored curls that had escaped from her
ponytail. When she had been stationed in the Capital, she always had to keep
her long hair up in a bun while she was on duty. Her hair was the one vanity
she allowed herself, even when it was a pain in the ass keeping the long, unruly
curls tamed.
She fought the urge to rub her
temples in defense of the low-grade headache that lurked there as she
remembered how her new director had reacted when she’d told him that she and
the two security officers had put five elites in the medical unit. Director
James had been furious with her for acting that way in front of the three Tarin
females, although, the females hadn’t been afraid of her.
In fact, the Tarin females
seemed to like her quite a bit after seeing her in action. They’d even asked
for self-defense training, and Morgan had arranged for some of the female
officers onboard to teach them when they were off duty.
“I know Director James means
well, but he really is a tight-ass,” Morgan admitted. “I want to like him, but sometimes
he makes it so hard.”
“He was just promoted and needs
to relax a little. Don’t worry, he’s going to have to ease up while he’s under
my command,” Olivia promised with a grin. “I wish I could have seen the fight.
You’re pretty impressive when you lose control.”
“Yeah, but then you’d have to
watch me throw up after.”
Olivia winced. “I forgot about
that part.”
“I guess it’s a good thing I
can’t have kids. Could you imagine what would happen if I had a baby who cried
all the time? I’d be puking my guts out everywhere.”
Olivia saw the sadness in
Morgan’s emerald green eyes, despite her attempt at levity. Since they’d known
each other for years, she knew that regardless of what Morgan said, what she
desired most was a family. Olivia had gotten her dream of becoming an Alliance
Commander, but Morgan’s empathic abilities made it difficult for her get what
she wanted.
Morgan was a strong empath, and
the Alliance wouldn’t let a talent like hers go to waste even though she hated
her job. Until she found what she was looking for, Olivia would shield her
friend as best she could so Morgan could live her life in relative peace. It
was why she had requested Morgan’s transfer from the Capital to Alpha Station:
X21 when Olivia was given command of the new space station.
Olivia looked down as her wrist
unit signaled. She read the display, and didn’t hesitate to ignore the incoming
call. “I’ve been getting calls all damn week. Sometimes I want to throw my
wrist unit against the wall.” When her office link signaled a few seconds
later, she sighed. “I love being in charge of a new, state-of-the-art space
station, but it means everyone wants to come here to check it out.”
Morgan laughed. “And I know how
much you hate dealing with people.”
Olivia shrugged. “They usually
want things…and they feel this need to talk about shit I really don’t care
about. Like I give a fuck if this is the furthest someone has been out in space.
Sometimes, people just suck.”
“Poor Commander Jacobson. How
dare people bother you with such mundane information,” Morgan mocked with a
grin. “I have no sympathy for you. Compared to the amount of idiots I have to
deal with, you have no reason to complain. Besides, most of the people you talk
to everyday you can just order to leave you the hell alone.”
“Very true. Or hide in my
office like I’m doing now. I was out there earlier, and there were people
everywhere.” Olivia shuddered comically. “I’m going to be so damn happy when
this grand opening bullshit is over.”
“I can’t wait to hear your
speech for that.” Morgan tried to hold back her laughter when Olivia’s face
paled slightly.
“I…have to give a speech?
You’re kidding, right?”
“Nope. Not at all. You’re the
commander here. You have to welcome everyone, and I don’t know, declare the
space station officially open or something.”
“Can’t I do that with a
freaking memo?”
“Not a chance. Speaking of
memos,” Morgan began as her own wrist unit beeped. She looked down at the
message and sighed. “I have to get going. Some of the off-loaders that recently
arrive have space sickness and are out of commission for a few days. Director
James offered me up as a temporary replacement to help do inventory in the
storage areas as punishment for what happened last week.”
“That man needs to needs to
learn how to relax, or he’s not going to last long here. We’ve got enough shit
to worry about located near this new planet we know practically nothing about.
I don’t need a director that no one can work with here on X21.”
“Everyone else gets along with
him okay…he and I just seem to clash. He’s just one of those people that thinks
I should be able to control my abilities better. You know, tough love to push
me to my full potential,” Morgan said in a mockingly deep tone.
“That’s just stupid.”
“True, but I’ve dealt with it
before. Some people don’t understand that my abilities work differently than
other empaths.” She sighed. “At least I don’t have to deal with anymore people
today. I’m tired of being nice.”
“Suck it up, buttercup. Day’s
not over yet.”
“Don’t remind me,” Morgan moaned
as she stood and zipped up her uniform jacket.
“Go take a nap in one the
storage areas like the rest of the off-loaders do.”
Morgan laughed at that, and
headed toward the entrance as the commander’s young, fresh-faced assistant
appeared when the doors slid open.
“I’m so sorry to bother you,
Commander Jacobson. I was just notified by security that there’s been another…umm,
incident at Asylum. You told me you wanted to be informed when—I mean, if it
happened again.”
“Damn it!” Olivia’s expression
darkened as she slapped her palms down on the desk and rose to her feet. “I
can’t get through one damn day without those two males trying to maim their
customers. I swear I’m going to kill them this time!”
Morgan wasn’t surprised that security
had been notified…again, since the sanctuary was a hotspot of activity. After
all, Asylum lived up to its name in spades. However, she was fascinated by the
mix of anger and interest that flared within her friend as she ranted. A part
of her felt bad that she was peeking into Olivia’s personal feelings, but then
again, it’s not like she had a choice.
She was friends with Zade
Tavish, one of the two brothers that ran Asylum. The older brother, Axton, was
intimidating as hell, but she respected him. The lower level of the sanctuary
was probably the most secured and well-protected area on the space station, and
that was where the three Tarin females were currently living. Still, the bar
upstairs was a favored place for patrons to let loose and have fun. Since all
Krytos sanctuary’s operated by their own set of rules, it seemed like the
security force on the station still hadn’t figured out how to handle the Tavish
brothers.
“I’ve had enough of this shit!”
Olivia raged as stormed out of her office.
Morgan followed her furious
friend out, then watched as Olivia stomped down the hallway. Her friend’s anger
at the two Krytos brothers made her smile, and she couldn’t help to call out, “Suck
it up, buttercup!”
“Suck this.” Olivia’s hand shot
up into the air.
Morgan laughed when her friend
held up her middle finger in an old human gesture that had lasted throughout
the years. Feeling lighter, Morgan turned and headed down the hallway in the
opposite direction. She wished she could have been at the sanctuary to watch
the explosion when Olivia confronted the Krytos brothers, but she had
responsibilities to deal with instead.
A nap wasn’t a bad idea, Morgan thought with a sigh. Not that she’d really do that when she was supposed to be working. Maybe. She didn’t mind helping with inventory, though, and dealing with supplies was preferable to dealing with people at the moment. She might as well enjoy the peace and quiet while it lasted.
Perhaps she should plan to get punished more in the future.
BUY LINKS FOR 3013: SYNERGY
* * *
To read Axton and Zade Tavish and Commander Olivia Jacobson's story, check out 3013: ASYLUM by Kali Argent!
To read Rhen and Sabar Torven and Laesa Fen's story,
check out 3013: SCARRED by Susan Hayes
