Extinction: The Will of the Protectors

  Extinction:

  The Will of the Protectors

  By

  Jay Korza

  Table of Contents

  Dedication

  Introduction

  Cherta Proverb

  Prologue

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Jenarah and Kuruk

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Shar’tuk

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Epilogue

  Excerpt from: This Is Not What I Wished For…

  Extinction Biographies

  Daria

  Seth

  The Warrior

  Emily

  Scan

  Surgeon

  Davies

  Snake

  Bloom

  Reaper

  Jeeves

  Beast

  About the Author

  Alternate Cover Art

  Dedication

  This sequel is only my third book but has been by far the hardest to write.

  My first book was just me putting words down on the pages, not knowing whether anyone would like them. I wrote for more than thirteen years, picking it up at odd times of my life and finally finishing it as the newest and most profound chapter of my personal life was being written.

  My second book, This Is Not What I Wished For…, started as a short story and ended as a full-fledged novel. The premise was easy; I love zombie movies and the genre in general. But as I watched movies, read books, or watched and rewatched The Walking Dead, I was always frustrated at different things.

  Why weren’t the characters doing this or that? It doesn’t make sense to run into that building! Holy crap, don’t let that guy live!!!

  So I wrote a story that addressed some of those issues. It was easy: it was something I was interested in and enjoyed talking about.

  So why was this sequel harder to write than the original Extinction? Because I now have fans. I never thought I would be saying that sentence, but it’s true: I have them. And I’m not including my mother or fiancée in that statement.

  I only have a few, but they are there. Writing me emails of encouragement, posting on my blog and Facebook pages and asking for the sequel. As well as a few reviews on Amazon hoping for the sequel to come out quickly.

  That’s a lot of pressure. The other two books didn’t have any expectations from anyone other than myself. Now, my three fans have these lofty expectations for me to meet! Maybe I have more than three, but even if I only had one fan, I would hate to disappoint them.

  The other day I watched the series finale of the US version of Being Human. I can’t tell you how much I loved the writers of that show for ending it the way they did. The closure was complete; nothing else could have made it better.

  I hope this sequel can deliver that same feeling to my readers. So to my known fans: Pete, Athena, Jill, Jon, Randy, Paul, Alan, Guru, William, Stephen, and G.L. — thank you so much for your reviews and encouragement to keep writing the sequel. For all of my unknown fans, thank you for having faith in my writing and coming back for this second and final installment. Regardless of which camp you are in, this book is for you.

  P.S.

  I hope I didn’t screw it up.

  Introduction

  This novel is a sequel to Extinction and as such, you should know right up front that you really should read the first story before you start the second, it’s not a must, just a suggestion. The prologue will give a basic review to remind the readers of what they went through with the characters in the first book. I think this sequel will still have a great story that a reader could follow and enjoy regardless of whether or not they read the first book, but they will definitely be missing out on character development, plot depth, and past interactions that may have some bearing on scenes within this novel.

  Wait! Don’t return this book if you haven’t read the first one; just go get Extinction and read it. I promise it’s worth it.

  And just in case you don’t want to do that, for the Kindle version of this book, I will include all of the character biographies from the first book at the end of this one. The biographies are short stories about the backgrounds for twelve of the main characters.

  The biographies were woven into the main story of Extinction and also made available for free on Kindle and iBooks as a separate collection of stories. The biographies will give you a little more insight into the characters if you haven’t read Extinction - or if you did read it, can give you a quick reminder of everyone’s relationship with each other. As characters are introduced in this novel, you will see that their name is also a link. That link will take you to their biography short story. At the end of the biography will be another link to bring you right back to where you left off. Of course, you can also find the biographies through the table of contents.

  Whew, okay, now we can move on. Thank you for coming along on this journey with me. I’m very happy to have you here and I can’t wait to see what happens in this story. I guess I should get to writing it…

  Cherta Proverb

  Some say life is full of wonder, joy, surprises, possibilities, mystery, and etcetera.

  They lie.

  Life is empty.

  Now the universe—the universe is a different story altogether. The universe is full of all these things and more. As sentient beings, we can witness these states of the universe, and to a certain minuscule extent, interact with these events in our own limited way.

  But no matter how much we try to claim these ideals for ourselves, we cannot. These concepts have always and will always belong to only the universe.

  As an empty vessel unable to truly be filled with wonder, life will continue to move through the universe with its insatiable desire to experience these things for even the briefest of moments.

  By making life empty, the universe has infallibly ensured the never-ending exploration of its deepest and darkest secrets.

  -Unknown Cherta Philosopher

  Prologue

  Seth’s heart pounded. He ran faster than a Shirka with his fur on fire. There were no more points of cover or even concealment as he retreated to the newest skirmish line his fireteam had set up. He wasn’t sure whether it was the zigzag pattern he ran in or the ineptitude of his enemy that kept him from getting shot, but he didn’t really care so long as his luck held out for another twenty meters.

  “Just fucking run, Cadet! Why are you dancing out there?!”

  ~

  For Seth and his team, just over two years had passed since their first mission together. But the story they were now a part of, started millennia before they were even born.

  The story began when the Nortes developed genetically engineered warriors to maintain their dominance over the galaxy. The warriors went from world to world, conquering and enslaving as they went. They were unstoppable.

  Just over a thousand years ago, the reigning Nortes Emperor knew that his warriors had to be stopped, but he was in the minority. Even the power of the Emperor could not change the will of the Nortes people and their military. The Nortes people were satisfied with being the rulers of the known galaxy and had no desire to give up their position or their slaves.

  Emperor T’Leh devised a plan to segregate a special colony from the Empire and then dest
roy his warriors from within. The plan worked, at least in the beginning, and the Nortes people who desired a new way of life finally had their freedom from the Empire that held them on high but was oppressive none the less, even to its own people.

  Centuries passed and the full breadth of the plan never came to fruition. The warriors still maintained control over a dying and collapsing Empire, but they never again ventured from their corner of the galaxy. The Nortes people who had escaped, were thriving on a new world, bent on improvement and advancement rather than conquering.

  Into the galaxy a new species ventured, bringing with them the Coalition. The humans had brought together many diverse cultures and races to form the first galactic democracy. Together with other worlds at their side, the humans pushed outward into the unknown.

  During a scientific expedition, a group of Coalition archeologists uncovered the first Nortes settlement that had fractured off of the old Empire. The scientists unknowingly activated a distress beacon that beckoned the warriors back into what was now Coalition space. The warriors’ first forays into the Coalition were stopped by two Special Forces units, one of which Seth was a part of.

  The Coalition had won the first round, but the future of the Coalition and its member races were still uncertain…

  Chapter 1

  18 Months Ago

  First Sergeant Mike O’Connor stepped up to First Lieutenant Seth Fields and removed the silver rank insignia from both of Seth’s epaulets. Mike then replaced the single silver bars with two silver double-bars.

  With the new bars in place, Mike stepped back one pace and smartly saluted the new captain, who was also his friend, protégé, and new team leader.

  Mike, a.k.a. Surgeon, had been the team leader for the Special Forces unit that had kidnapped and subsequently volun-told Seth he was going to be a member of a highly classified mission. Now that Seth was being promoted to captain, and had more than shown his worth in the field, he was going to take over the team leader position from Mike.

  “Captain,” Mike began, “with your permission, I request to be relieved of my watch.”

  Seth saluted back but felt the gesture didn’t adequately demonstrate the respect he felt for his mentor. “I have the watch. You stand relieved, First Sergeant.”

  Mike and Seth simultaneously finished rendering their salutes. Mike performed an about-face, marched to his position in the rank and file of his teammates, came to attention, and then settled into a parade-rest stance.

  All eyes were on Captain Seth Fields. “For almost a year now I have lived, trained, fought, bled, and mourned with most of you. For those of you who are new to this unit, we still have a lot of fighting and bleeding to do together. I believe in the Coalition and what it stands for, but I want you to look at the person to either side of you. When we are out there on the line, that is the person you are fighting for. They are the reason you will not give up. They are the reason you will win.

  “The Marine Corps could not have given me any greater honor than to allow me to take over as the commanding officer of this unit. Together, we will not fail in our mission to the Coalition, our planets, or each other.”

  Seth turned his attention to Surgeon. “First Sergeant.”

  Surgeon came to attention. “Sir, yes sir!”

  “Take charge of the company formation.”

  “Sir, yes sir!” Surgeon performed an about-face and addressed his team as their new First Sergeant. “Company! Atten…tion! Fallout!”

  The company came to attention, and then in unison gave a resounding “Ooh-Rah!” They dispersed their ranks and wandered the auditorium, some going to the buffet of food and others to the bar—most of them went to the bar.

  The promotion ceremony and changing of team leadership was a private event for the operators only, but as the ceremony ended, the doors to the auditorium opened up and other soldiers walked in to join the party. The first to walk through the doors was Captain Emily Riley and her best friend, Daria O’Connor.

  Emily was still in command of the Force Recon team she had joined with and they had been reclassified to a new and unique designation within the Marine Corps; they were the first ever Force Recon Science unit in the Coalition. The unit was formed to create a highly skilled combat team that could perform scientific research anywhere, including areas of the galaxy that were in severe conflict.

  Daria was the corpsman for the team and third in overall command. She smiled as her husband, First Sergeant Mike O’Connor, came over to greet her.

  “Hi honey.” Daria reached up and gave Mike a small kiss on the cheek.

  “Hello, Chief Petty Officer O’Connor.” Mike teased her. He was proud of his wife’s promotion and knew she deserved it. He also knew that Daria was not at all comfortable yet with being called Chief.

  “Shut up.”

  “I still outrank you, Chief. You need to get used to it. It absolutely suits you.” Mike beamed at his wife.

  “It really does, Daria, um, Chief.” Emily corrected herself.

  “I’ve always wanted to be a chief, but now that I am, I miss my caduceus.” Daria touched the rank insignia on her shoulder that now had the gold anchor of a chief petty officer.

  All corpsman loved their caduceus; it was the symbol of who they were and what they did. The caduceus had gone through many changes in the earlier times of its history, but for the last several centuries it had gone largely unchanged. It was a staff with two snakes intertwined around it and a set of wings lifting up the staff.

  Most people didn’t know what all corpsman did: that their beloved caduceus was actually originally a symbol for the Greek god Hermes. Hermes was the messenger of the gods and his staff allowed him to visit Hades, the Greek version of hell, and return unharmed. The wings of life were lifting the staff from the serpents guarding the gates of hell.

  The true medical caduceus is the Staff of Asclepius. Asclepius was the Greek god of healing, son of Apollo and the nymph Coronis. Asclepius learned the art of healing from a centaur named Cheiron. Asclepius became so skilled as a healer that he was able to bring one of his patients back to life. Zeus thought that Asclepius had become too powerful by gaining the power of providing immortality, so he struck down Asclepius with a lightning bolt. Apollo grieved his son and asked Zeus to place Asclepius among the stars, and so he became the serpent-bearer constellation Ophiuchus.

  These two symbols got mixed up at some point in human history and now, the caduceus that belonged to Hermes was the most widely recognized symbol for medicine in the galaxy. And Daria missed having hers on her uniform.

  “Don’t worry Chief,” Mike said, “we all know who you are and what you do regardless of the symbol you now have on your shoulder.”

  “Thank you,” Daria said. “And let’s not forget your promotion, First Sergeant.”

  “Yeah, well, after they killed me in a training flight, it was really the least they could do.” Reunited with his wife, who for a short time thought she had been a widow, Mike was able to let go some of the anger he still held towards the Marine Corps for faking his death.

  Seth walked over to join the group. “It looks like promotions for everyone, right?”

  Emily blushed. She was professional enough not to act like a teenage schoolgirl when Seth was around, but her biology was out of her control and she still flushed a little when he was around.

  “Well, now that we’re both captains, you don’t have to call me ma’am anymore,” she teased. “Though I did get my bars first, so I’m technically senior in rank to you.”

  “Yes, ma’am.” Seth gave her a crooked little smile. He turned to Mike. “It’s going to feel strange being your commanding officer.”

  “You deserve it, kid. I mean sir.” Mike ruffled Seth’s hair like a big brother, purposely trying to get a reaction out of him like he used to when they worked out together in the training simulator.

  “Not in front of the ladies.” Seth didn’t rise to the bait.

  “What are your orders
, sir?” Mike could tell that his playfulness hadn’t bothered Seth, but it seemed that Seth had come over to the group with a purpose beyond chatting things up.

  “I’ve been summoned to the captain’s ready room. The president is waiting there and would like to have a meeting with Emily and me.” Emily looked surprised; she hadn’t been personally notified of the meeting. Noting her expression, Seth carried on, “I was asked to relay the information to you; the captain is fairly busy at the moment. I was thinking you would like to join us, Mike. As my squad leader, I’m sure you’ll be interested in and need to know whatever information is going to be put out during the meeting.”

  “Thank you, sir.” Mike purposely took on a more serious and militaristic tone. “But this is your first high-ranking meeting. You don’t want to show up with your first sergeant in tow. I know that you are anything but weak; however, that’s how you will be viewed if you don’t do this yourself.”

  “Good advice, First Sergeant.” Seth admitted to himself that he actually was a bit nervous and that was part of the reason he had asked Mike to tag along. He was glad that Mike was the kind of guy who would always be upfront with him; this was a good first piece of advice from his mentor.

  Emily looked at Daria but kept silent. She was actually going to ask Daria to tag along, much for the same reasons Seth had asked Mike. But after she heard Mike’s advice, she decided to keep her mouth shut and just leave with Seth. They both said their goodbyes and then took their leave.

  “Well,” Daria began, “looks like we have the kids that you never really wanted.”

  “Ha!” Mike laughed. “At least we don’t have to change all of those diapers.” He turned to look at his wife fully. “First off, I never said I didn’t want to have kids. I just said I wasn’t sure. Secondly, once this upcoming conflict resolves, we should seriously revisit the topic.”