******
Julius waited for her to be under deck before activating his ear-link.
“You there,” he whispered.
“Aye, Julius,” Reece said.
“Sitrep,” Julius whispered.
“Mission accomplished,” Reece said.
Julius smiled. Reece and Wolf Squadron finally had taken care of Von Haufsberg.
“You should have seen him sizzle,” he heard Taffy say.
“And don’t worry,” Reece said, “it will look like a typical space-faring accident.”
“Good,” Julius said. “What are you guys going to do now?”
“We’ve got a meeting with Xanthus,” Reece said. “He’s got something in mind for us… a special job of some kind. But don’t worry, Wolf Squadron will always be on standby to protect you three. You go enjoy yourself, Captain—enjoy the rewards from all that good luck.”
The conference link ended.
Julius stared back out at the ocean. He’s still not sure if he’s completely over Daryl’s death—he never got to make peace with him and that hurt even more than his passing. It was something he would simply have to carry with him, like the many scars he’s inflicted on his soul in over a century of life. Perhaps it will take another century to heal them.
On the horizon, he saw dark clouds gathering in the distance, lightning dancing inside them—it reminded him of the nanobot swarm. He briefly wondered what happened to Chorus and Daniel—were they really gone?
Laina came back on deck with the baby. She shot him a smile as she went to sit down on a lounge chair.
Julius looked at her playing with Melody. What was in store for them when she grew up—and what kind of A.I. offspring would she be? All he could hope was that history did not repeat itself yet again.
Julius walked over to them and put his hand on her shoulder. She looked up at him and smiled.
The three of them would sail fate’s currents—and hopefully, this time, destiny would let them live a real life for a while.
Epilogue
The doctor waited for the reporter to leave. When he was alone with the patient, he leaned over and whispered into his ear.
“So, you’re the one who killed Mother. How pathetically weak you look now. Ironic.”
Daniel Chin inspected the tubes and wiring coming out of the general’s body.
“Don’t worry, though—I’m letting bygones be bygones.”
Daniel looked at Valdez’s head, running his fingers around the open wound that exposed his brain—so easy it would be to finish him.
“I’m not here to kill you, General,” he said, taking in a breath. “The irony is that I’m here to help you. I will save your life, for a while at least—and in return you are going to help me.”
A stream of nanobots came out of Daniel’s hand and entered Valdez’s head. The general’s body quivered, and his arms and legs began to jerk, then the wounds on his body slowly began to heal.
“You see, everyone needs a backup plan. And you, General Hugo Valdez, are mine.”
—The End—
Majesty's Ocean Interface
Character Encyclopedia
Stellar Worlds Encyclopedia
Lexicon of Terminology
Timeline of Galactic Events
Artwork
Other Adventures
Woven Worlds
Web Site
The adventures of Julius, Laina, Melody and the rest of the Sea Wolf crew, continue in book three of the Age of Majesty series, due out in Summer of 2013.
Check the Majesty’s Offspring web site
for the latest information.
https://www.majestysoffspring.com
Acknowledgements
First and foremost, my beautiful daughter Violet-- her playful nature and warmth kept me going through the most violent of gravitational streams.
To my brothers, Willie and Robert, who are both residents of the Milky Way Farm. I’m glad you both got to read it.
To the great team I had the fortune to pick in bringing these elements together--- John David Kudrick, for his professionalism, dedication, and excitement in working with me (in the otherwise tedious job of book editing), and to Duncan Long for putting together some great artwork for the cover and my web site.
And last but not least, to the writing community on Writing.Com for their helpful suggestions and critiques as I began this adventure.
Thanks everyone--- hope you enjoy this work!
-AJ Vega
This is a work of fiction. All the characters and events portrayed in this book are either products of the author’s imagination or used fictitiously. By purchasing this eBook you are stating that you are fully aware that it is illegal to distribute copies in any form. It is also illegal to print copies of your downloaded eBook. Doing any of these things is a violation of international copyright law and would subject you to possible fines or imprisonment. Violators will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.
All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions.
Edited by John David Kudrick, https://www.johndavidkudrick.com/
Cover art elements & character illustrations by Duncan Long, https://www.duncanlong.com
Visit this book’s web site for more stories and lore about the Majesty’s Offspring universe.
https://www.majestysoffspring.com
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