Sarin's War Read online

  Rebirth (Game of the Gods, book 1)

  Copyright © 2018 by L. Fergus

  @FallenAngelKita

  http://FallenAngelKita.com

  Cover art by mrinmoykar999

  * * *

  Formatting by Mark Gardner

  @Article_94

  http://article94.com

  This is a work of fiction. Any resemblance of characters to actual persons, living or dead is purely coincidental. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted, in any form or by any means without the prior written permission of the author, nor be otherwise circulated in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published and without a similar condition being imposed on the purchaser.

  For my #1 fan.

  Contents

  Part I

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Part II

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  About the Author

  Li’Ve Sneak Peek

  Also by L. Fergus

  The door of the shuttle opened, and a ramp extended. A dozen soldiers with rifles exited and lined the ramp. A pair of officers flanking Sarin guided her out of the shuttle. She wore a simple red dress, and a set of combs pulled back her short, platinum hair. She stepped onto the ramp cautiously, wearing a pair of red pumps.

  The Political Bureau shuttle sat on a private landing pad. The logo of Gjord Industries painted across it. The giant planet Neptune loomed large in the view from the inner edge of the space station that ringed the planet. Her father, a handsome man with a stylish suit, looked nervous while tapping his foot, as he waited at the bottom of the ramp. An expensive float car, with two armed men in suits, waited behind him.

  Sarin’s slow, monotonous steps matched the dead feeling she portrayed in her eyes. The Political Bureau officers escorted her father.

  “Mister Sven Gjord?” The senior officer asked.

  “That’s me, General.”

  “I’m here to hand over your daughter, Jane. Please, sign here.”

  Sven signed the pad. The officers retreated as Sven hugged Sarin, but she didn’t respond.

  “My poor moonbeam. What did that monster do to you? Come, Jane. Let’s get you home.” He gently took Sarin’s arm and guided her toward the car. Sarin stumbled over a bag at her feet.

  “Where’d that come from?” said Sven. “It wasn’t on the manifest. Bane, did you see who dropped it?”

  “The officer dropped it, sir.”

  “Put it in the trunk,” Sven ordered.

  “No. With me,” Sarin whispered in a shaky voice.

  “Of course, dear.”

  The group loaded themselves and Sarin’s belongings into the car. With a whisper, the vehicle took off toward Neptune’s sky lanes. Sarin sat with her legs crossed and her hands in her lap, staring out the back window.

  “Did they treat you well, Jane?” Sven asked.

  Sarin ignored him. When she felt the bag by her foot vibrate, she clapped her hands over the faces of her two guards. Two blue puffs came from her hands. “Car, vacuum cycle the air,” she ordered, while the two guards choked and collapsed to the floor convulsing. The cycling air caused her father to gasp for breath.

  “Sorry, Daddy. But, you don’t want my gas to get close to you. I’m called Sarin for a reason.”

  She bent over and unzipped the bag. A silver orb floated out of it.

  “Do you have control of the car's systems?” Sarin asked it.

  “Yes, Mom. You were correct. The Political Bureau does have your father under surveillance.”

  “I was afraid of that. Did you know that, Daddy?”

  “What…You…killed them?”

  Sarin chuckled. “I’ll explain sometime, Daddy. What did they tell you about me?”

  Sven took several deep breaths to regain his composure. “The reports were thin. You’d been a prisoner of a deranged psychopath and suffering from Stockholm Syndrome. They were putting you through extensive drug and psychotherapy.”

  Sarin huffed. “Hardly. Those idiots wouldn’t know psychiatry if it slapped them in the face.” She smiled. “It does give me the chance to tell you that I earned my doctorate and postdocs in psychiatry while I was away. That idiot Galina should have known better.”

  “I…Congratulations. When you’re healthy, we can open you a practice or—”

  Sarin laughed harshly. “I have in the past had a practice, but I can’t do that now.”

  “Well, your health does come first.”

  Sarin kicked off her shoes. “Ugly damn things,” she muttered as she unzipped the dress and wiggled out of it. Sven’s mouth fell open. “What, Daddy? This isn’t the first time you’ve seen me naked.”

  “No, of course not. You look like your mother.”

  Sarin rolled her eyes. “Hardly. You paid way too much money to engineer me to have me look as plain as her.” She reached into the bag and pulled out her schoolgirl skirt, a sleeveless, black button down top, red stockings, and knee-high combat boots. When she finished putting on her outfit, she pulled out a silver armband, studded wristband, and a collection of earrings. With great care, she put each on. After putting on her spiked choker, she pulled the two combs from her hair. She shook her short hair, and it grew into a six-foot-long mane. When her hair finished growing, it braided itself, complete with a spiked ball on the end. She clipped into her hair a pair of black and red skull clips. Passing a hand over her face, her subtle makeup changed to the vibrant red and black she preferred. She reached into the bag, pulled out her pistol holsters, strapped them to her legs, then pulled out her pistols and put them into their holsters. Next, came the two pieces of a sniper rifle, which she leaned against a dead guard. Lastly, she pulled Razzorsplitter from the bag. The blade of the six-foot sword vanished when she looked down it. She smiled when she saw the look on her father’s face.

  “The bag is bigger on the inside.”

  “What is all this?” Sven demanded.

  Sarin’s wings, patterned after a blackbird, grew from her back and filled her side of the car. “It’s me, Daddy, your daughter. I’m an Angel now. Neptune’s rings, it feels good to be me again.”

  “You’re still…brainwashed?” he asked his voice full of fear.

  “If you call love brainwashed, then I suppose I am,” Sarin smiled happily. “I was never brainwashed, Daddy. I grew up, fell in love, and learned to survive in a very harsh world. Kita is my partner and the love of my life. I’m a doctor, I’ve led nations, fought in wars, and become a mother.”

  “A mother? Are there any…?”

  “Grandchildren?” Sarin asked, amused at his first thought. “Meet Athena,” Sarin waved to the floating sphere. “She’s one of them.”

  “Greetings, Mister Gjord. It is good to meet you finally.”

  “You can meet her properly once we get her into a holographic projector and server.”

  “She’s a VI, then?” Sven asked.

  “No, Mister Gjord. I am an AI.”

  Athena was scalable in design, allowing her to inhabit multiple systems at once. She could enter any UEE computer system and take it over. Previously, she had run the Empire of Ha
des, overseeing the entire country’s computer system.

  Sven raised an eyebrow, unable to hide his unease. “Unshackled?”

  Sarin laughed. “Very.”

  “What happened to Omega?”

  Sarin sighed. “That cranky bastard died, but he lives on through his daughter.”

  “Do we need to help her?” Sven asked. “I owe him a great deal for taking care of you.”

  Sarin smirked, knowing Omega’s prime directive. “Denver is a very capable Angel. I don’t know where she is.”

  “Can I ask how you came to mother an AI? Did you create her?”

  “No,” Sarin answered with a frown. “Athena was partnered to one of my other daughters, Quill. She, her twin sister Spike, and her partner, Leo, were killed soon after I was captured. I’m sorry, Athena, I know you don’t like to talk about it.”

  “It’s all right. I’m very capable of compartmentalizing, but Quill is always in a box near my heart.”

  Sarin nodded. “Lina and Nina were my other daughters killed by the Empire. I guess Nell is also a daughter, technically. She was Nina’s partner.”

  “What happened to Nell?”

  “I don’t know.”

  “No sons, heh?” he asked, sounding depressed.

  “Kita doesn’t like men. All of the Angels are girls. It was a rare and lucky male who became her friend.”

  Sven turned up his nose as Sarin toyed with one of the bodies with her foot, making its arm flap comically. “What you can make a dead body do never ceases to amuse me.”

  “Did you have to kill them? They were good men.”

  “And working for the Political Bureau.”

  “They were vetted thoroughly,” Sven retorted.

  “And Athena is better at digging than your people. You would have joined them if we found anything suspicious on you, Daddy.”

  “I’m alarmed at how casual you are about killing them, and me.”

  Sarin shrugged. “I’d be unhappy if I had to kill you, but I’ve killed thousands, Daddy. What’s two more? I’ve been imprisoned for more than ten years. You know how long it’s been since I killed something? It’s a great stress relief.”

  “What happened to my little girl?”

  “I told you, I met Kita, and I grew up. She helped change me from a hyper-sexed, brain-dead party girl—to an intelligent, calm, and controlled Angel.”

  “Some say, she made you into what she wanted,” Athena said in a teasing tone.

  “Yes, and I made her into what I wanted: refined, elegant, feminine, someone to be my equal.”

  “I think she would say the same thing.”

  “Of course she would. Why the armed guards, anyway? I thought weapons were illegal.”

  “They are, but there’s a war coming,” Sven admitted.

  “Well then, it looks like I’ve arrived at a good time.”

  “What do you plan on doing here?”

  “We’ll be preparing for Kita’s arrival, whenever that is.”

  “She’s coming here?”

  “Yes, but I’m not sure when. It could be a while. Still, when Kita does get here, she’s not going to be happy over what Galina did on Base Station. And, it won’t be the kind of unhappy that produces the cutest, pouty face in the equation. It’ll be more the let’s-destroy-the-planet-and-turn-its-inhabitants-into-artwork kind of unhappy. Personally, I’d rather not see the station be destroyed by her rage and fury.”

  “What kind of monster is she?” Sven asked disgust lacing his voice.

  Sarin looked at her father harshly. “Kita is not a monster. A monster is what sent me back here, and killed my babies. For those who are loyal to Kita, she has a heart of gold.”

  “So, you’ve sworn some oath to her?” Sven asked sounding relieved.

  Sarin held up the finger with Kita’s ring. “Partners forever. She’s as loyal to me as I am to her.”

  Athena chuckled.

  “Hush, you,” Sarin replied to the AI playfully.

  “She’s coming here because of you? If we sent you somewhere else, would she not come?”

  “Oh, no. Galina betrayed her, and Kita won’t quit until she has her.”

  Sven shook his head. “Unbelievable. This can’t be real.”

  Sarin reached over with her wing and stroked the side of her father’s head with her feathers. “It’s very real, Daddy. Kita’s wrath is my wrath.”

  “How much damage can she do to the Empire?”

  “If the Emperor hands over Galina, she won’t do a thing. If the Emperor chooses to oppose her, well, hell has no wrath like Kita on the warpath.”

  The car pulled into an underground garage and parked.

  Sarin sighed. “I guess it’s time to go back to my act.” Sarin vanished and reappeared looking like when she’d arrived. “Once Athena has the house secure I can return to normal. Come, Daddy. Let’s go get me settled in.”

  In the informal section of Gjord Villa, Sarin sat crying, while Athena’s holographic projection comforted her. In front of them, floated a holographic picture of Kita.

  “I’m sorry, Mom. I wish I had time to recover her belongings,” said Athena.

  “It’s not your fault. You were busy sneaking into Galina’s computer systems and trying to protect me. I just miss her and have ten years of tears built up waiting for a safe time to come out.”

  Athena put Sarin’s head on her shoulder and stroked the other Angel’s hair. Footsteps coming from the hallway caused Athena to close the hologram of Kita.

  “What’s the matter, moonbeam?” Sven said, entering with a platter of fruit. “Who’s making my girl cry before breakfast?”

  He placed the platter down in front of the Angels.

  “Sorry, Daddy. I’m not hungry,” Sarin said softly.

  “You need to eat, dear.”

  “Mom just ate four days ago,” Athena interjected. “At her current rate of energy consumption, she won’t need to eat for three weeks and four days.”

  “Humans, even those with wings, need to eat several times a day,” said Sven.

  Sarin’s eyes flashed red as she stood. “I am not human, Father. I am an Angel. We’re stronger, faster, and have abilities humans only dream about. Quit believing that slag Galina keeps feeding you. I am not deranged, unstable, or brainwashed. And I’m done,” she slammed her fist down on the holoprojector table, smashing the corner and ripping it from its floor anchors, “having you pretend I am the girl that left ten years ago. It’s insulting and degrading. I’ve put up with it for a week, but no more. Athena has finished securing the house,” her wings appeared, “and I can walk around as I am. If you don’t like it, try and throw me out.”

  “Jane, darling, calm down,” Kisha Gjord said with a light-hearted laugh as she entered with a bubbling champagne flute and wearing just a button-down shirt.

  “Don’t start, Mother,” Sarin snapped. “Take your drunken ass back to bed.”

  “I am not drunk, sweetie. I’m just continuing the buzz from last night. Were you at a costume party last night?”

  “I’m going to kill you both,” Sarin roared in frustration.

  “Mom, stop,” said Athena, jumping in front of Sarin. Her grayish-blue wings that matched her skin and hair appeared and blocked Sarin’s line of sight from her parents. “You have to give them time to adjust. You left behaving like your mother and returned more like your father. They don’t understand life on The Mass—what it’s like to kill to survive and have others wanting to kill you, or who Kita is to you.”

  Athena grabbed Sarin’s shoulders and locked eyes with Sarin as she shook with fury. “Come on, Momma-Jane, we need them. They just need to see the light. They won’t survive us beating it into them. Please, calm down.”

  Sarin snarled and huffed, but relaxed.

  “What’s wrong? What happened to the holoprojector?” said Kisha looking drunk and confused.

  Athena turned from Sarin to the humans. She pointed to the far side of the sitting area. “Sit, both of
you.”

  “I’ll just leave this to your father.”

  “Sit,” demanded Athena.

  “I’m sorry, whoever you are, but I’m not going to ruin my hundred million dollar, one-of-a-kind fiber couch by sitting on it. I haven’t gotten a chance to clean up if you know what I mean.” She giggled playfully.

  “Ugh, Mother,” Sarin growled.

  Kisha looked at Athena more closely, studying her gray skin. “Where did you get that costume? It’s like a second skin.”

  “That is because it is my skin, Madam Gjord. I could make it look human, but then I would be dehumanizing myself.”

  Sarin laughed harshly. “You have a long way to go to catch up with her.”

  “Jane, don’t speak about your mother that way,” Sven snapped.

  “I’m not the one refusing to sit because she’s still sticky from a night with some guy she can’t remember. She did it to herself and brought you down with her.”

  “Your mother’s and my marital affairs are none of your business.”

  “But Kita’s and mine are yours?”

  “It’s not a real partnership.”

  Sarin roared. “I’m going to bloody kill them.” A pistol appeared in her hand, and she fired three times.

  Athena’s wing stopped the bullets. With her other wing, she knocked the pistol down.

  “Mom, stop,” Athena said firmly. “We’re here for Momma-Kita. This is not helping. It’s in our best interest to make them understand us.”

  Athena looked at Sven and Kisha who were cowering behind the couch.

  “Jane’s temper is legendary, second only to Kita’s. She doesn’t need a weapon to kill you. She is a weapon—I recommend you remember that. I suggest you listen carefully to what your daughter tells you about Angels. What we have are not tricks or gimmicks. Those bullets I stopped were real. Cells in Sarin’s hands generate a deadly nerve gas. She can control a number of her internal systems, combined with other upgrades to her body allow her to be the best sniper and gunslinger in the universe. As an Angel, she is second only to Kita.”