The Kartega Chronicles Series
Kartega 2.0: A Star Reborn, Book 2
Letting her escape was their biggest mistake.
After barely escaping Kartega with their lives, Sid and her friends find themselves hiding on the Arcturus in an endless loop of counted days. Between fixing the rust bucket of a ship they live in, struggling to contain the numbing magic of the keys implanted in her neck and fighting her growing feelings for the brooding warrior on board — Sid has her days full. As days turn into weeks, Sid grapples with the possibility of returning back to the star, the place she’d like to one day call her home.
But how could she ever find her way back without jeopardizing everything they’ve fought so valiantly to achieve?
While Sid tumbles through space, the vicious and blood-thirsty queen takes control of Kartega once more. As the domes fall under attack, no one is safe from the queens wrath. With supplies running low and time running out, Sid must decide if she will stay in hiding or risk everything to return to Kartega and save the domes from destruction.
What began as a rescue mission becomes a fight for freedom and Sid finds herself, yet again, in the center of an epic battle for control of the star.
Unfortunately for Sid, sometimes when you wish to find where you belong, you get exactly what you wish for…
EXCERPT
Chapter One
The Arcturus groaned and moaned as Sid tightened the bolts of the panel back into place. She wiped the sweat off her brow with the back of her suit sleeve, leaving a black line of soot across her forehead. It had been weeks since they docked the original ship that aided in their escape from the star; weeks she’d spent patching up the old rusty ship as they orbited Kartega without concrete plans in place. Sid found it ironic that the failing ship that forced her to go down to the star in the first place was now her only refuge; like starting from the beginning again.
She let out a deep breath and let her gaze drift over the grated ceiling of the engine room. Even from where she was sitting, Sid could see rust form and spread across the metal, reaching its diseased fingers through the skin of her ship. Not far from her, lights flickered which Sid wrote off as yet another problem to add to her list of growing concerns.
Since their arrival on the Arcturus, Sid had managed to repair the faulty oxygen supply valve with parts from the original ship, though she didn’t stop there. The human ship was a treasure trove of parts, each one finding a useful place in the mechanics of the Arcturus until her old ship was ten times better than when she left it. Sure, it still creaked and clacked from time to time — causing Sid nothing but worry — but it worked just fine for what they needed at the moment. Better than fine, if Sid had to wager, she’d guess they could stay aboard for eternity, if it wasn’t for the limited reserves the ship provided.
The supplies on the Arcturus were growing thin, and Sid’s patience grew thin with them. How many more weeks until they ran out of food? How many days?
Sid ran the numbers daily, each time trying to find a loophole to keep them on the ship for longer. To keep them away from Kartega and Leona’s wrath. But as the days turned to nights and more time passed, Sid could find nothing even close to a solution. While the rest of the crew spent their time finding things to entertain themselves with, Sid stayed away, choosing instead to concentrate on the Arcturus and its many problems. No matter how much she tried to fit in with her friends, to joke and laugh with the rest of them, her mind was never with them at the end. It was her fault they were up here in the first place, her fault they had to leave their home behind, and the guilt of forcing them to sacrifice themselves for her was eating her alive.
Everyone was nice enough, giving her the space she needed to process the situation but it still didn’t feel like enough. Sid had grown used to be alone on the Arcturus, having spent most of her life roaming its halls uninterrupted, and having a gaggle of friends in tow made the place she once called home feel foreign and cold. She hated that she stayed distanced from the rest of the crew — especially Ashlan — but having them here only reminded her of everything they left behind and despite knowing better, Sid resented every minute of it.
Sid gripped the sides of the large pipe she was under and pulled herself to standing. “Rusty, run a test on the engine core, please!”
Filling her mouth with air, Sid puffed her cheeks and waited eagerly for the ship to respond.
“THE PREVIOUS ALERT IN THE CORES ENGINE IS DISENGAGED. ALL SYSTEMS OPERATIONAL.”
Sid breathed out, patting the cool metal casing of the wall next to her. “Good, that’s good, Rusty! We’re back in business!”
Her voice echoed down the corridor, and Sid wondered what other secrets the ship had swallowed whole since they docked. Had it heard her scream in the night when she woke up breathless and covered in sweat? Had it heard her cry when she was alone in her sleeping quarters? It had been weeks since she let herself relax, and as far as Sid could tell, there was no end in sight for the building anxiety in her gut. To make matters worse, the keys implanted in her neck were nothing but a constant reminder of the people she left behind; the people trapped on the star with a vicious queen set on their destruction. At least while Sid was out of Leona’s reach, the keys were safe, and there was no chance of the Circulum System getting reinstated. A small victory in an otherwise bleak outlook for the future.
“Still there?” A gruff voice sounded from the end of the corridor, and Sid turned to see Dalrak make his way toward her. The overhead lights blinked on and off, their electricity drawn to Dalrak’s magic like a magnet.
The warrior's leg muscles bulged with each booming step as he neared her, and Sid had to avert her eyes as they trailed up his exposed thighs. Would it kill you to put a suit on? She grimaced, knowing full well that no suit could stretch enough to cover the warrior's massive body. The fully defined muscles that ran along Dalrak’s arms and legs were almost unfair, and Sid often found herself having to look away before her face flushed as her gaze met his dark, glistening skin. It was as if he was purposefully trying to distract her from what she had to do.
“Where else would I be?” She asked, rubbing the dirt off her forehead before the warrior took notice. She wasn’t sure why it mattered, he’d seen her in worse condition; he was the only one she let in when the terrors of her dreams haunted her in the night. Still, there was no point looking entirely disheveled if she could help it, not that Dalrak would mind. He was completely oblivious to all things filthy from what Sid could gather, though maybe that was just wishful thinking on her part. “Any news?”
The warrior grunted something under his breath, pausing to lean against the wall just centimeters away from her. Sid could feel the magic drip off his body, reaching for the rushing energy of the keys in her neck. It had been this way for days now; the magic in her amplifying when he was around. She chalked it up to the power in the keys, and their pull on her but sometimes Sid wasn’t so sure. Sometimes she wished for it to be something more.
Dalrak’s arms wrapped around his mid-section and while Sid was grateful for less of his naked skin to be catching her eye, she knew the residual pain from his injury on the star during their battle in the towers was still bothering him. The nanite bandages they applied to his wound for days on end had done wonders in healing the injury, but she could tell it still troubled him at times. Sid could understand that; she could still feel the pain under the scar that ran along the back of her neck like it had happened yesterday.
Carefully, she reached for his hand, applying just enough pressure to get his attention. “Kil seta?” She asked in almost perfect Kartegan. “You all right?”
“The older human wants you upstairs,” Dalrak said, brushing her off.
“Abbot?” Sid asked. “He has a name, Dee. Geez.”
“Yes, that one,” the warrior grumbled. “Upstairs.”
“Now what?” She asked, but her question fell on deaf ears. Dalrak had already spun on his heels and was halfway down the corridor.
Sid lifted her goggles off her eyes, using them to secure the unruly mess of hair off her face and took off after him. This should be good, she thought as she watched the warrior’s wide back retreat. Maybe Abbot has a plan.
* * *
Abbot did not have a plan. In fact, he had the opposite of a plan. A knot formed in the pit of Sid’s stomach as she watched the telescreens the general pulled up in the ship’s observatory. Her eyes focused and unfocused like the broken lens of a heat sensor, jumping from one horror to another. The star that she so desperately tried to save was in chaos.
Bodies of dead Domers lined the streets of Tower City, and the once serene gardens were nothing more than a graveyard. Sid’s gaze traced the piles of limbs that lay stacked over trampled foliage and choked back the sob that had been trapped in her throat for what felt like forever. She could almost smell the destruction and death, could almost taste the iron that likely filled the climate-controlled air of the city.
The telescreen jerked, switching to a recording of armed Starblades at the entrance of the bridge that connected the domes to the city. There were hundreds of them, standing tall and proud as they pointed their blades at attention. Sid knew the weapons were no longer powered by the magic the humans siphoned from the Domers through the ring, but that didn’t make them any less volatile. Magic or not, a blade was still a blade as far as she was concerned. It could still kill if needed.
“What is this?” Sid finally asked, wiping the tears that ran down her face. “Why are we watching this?”
“She’s been replaying this on a loop,” Abbot tensed at her side, his blue eyes narrowed in concentration. “As a warning to the rest, I assume.”
Leave it to the general to find rationality where there otherwise was none. After Colton’s death, Sid never thought she’d find anyone else quite as collected as the man she loved like a father. But she had to admit, Abbot came pretty close. Somehow, he always knew just what to say make Sid see reason. Or just what to say to push her buttons until she felt like she could explode. It was always one or the other with Abbot.
“A warning of what? They don’t even have enough energy to run their stardamned city anymore!”
“That doesn’t mean Leona will stop until she’s gotten what she wants.”
“And what does she want?” Sid asked, though she already knew the answer.
The only thing the queen ever wanted was power and control. Without the keys, without Sid, her grip on the star lessened but Abbot was right — that was not going to stop her. Leona wouldn’t rest until she either had the keys back or she killed every last Domer left on the star. Sid’s heart felt like it had frozen in her chest, a lump of ice that could do nothing but melt until it was gone entirely.
Abbot shifted his weight, turning to face her. “These aren’t isolated instances, Sid. She’s planning something.”
“You think?” She scoffed. “Isn’t she always planning something? But she can’t do anything. If you’ve forgotten, I have the keys. No keys, no ring. She’s a stardamned fool!”
“Not necessarily,” Abbot nodded.
“What?” She asked, eyes widening. From behind her, she could hear Dalrak lean in to listen, and she was relieved to know she wasn’t the only one confused at that moment.
“Leona has the numbers. Trained Starblades and guards, enough to take down every Domer that steps foot in the city. Not counting the Magistras.”
“Why would they bother leaving the domes? If she’s playing this on a loop they can see the danger they’re in. Why would they even try to get inside the city?”
Dalrak’s shoulder brushed her side, and she turned to see the warrior frown beside her. “Anger.”
“He’s right,” Abbot nodded in agreement, “she’s doing this to get them upset enough to do something foolish. Don’t forget, they have their magic back now so they likely think they have a shot at winning this thing.”
Starspit!
Sid faced the general, her hand cocked on her hip. “Do they? I mean, you said it yourself, they have magic now. She has, what? Useless weapons?”
“My people,” Abbot paused, and she could hear the disdain for the words on the general's lips, “have taken the star before when Kartegans had magic. They’ll do it again if they have to. Don’t underestimate Leona, unlike her mother, she has no boundaries when it comes to getting what she wants.”
Sid’s gaze shifted to the large panes of the observation deck, landing on the star. It wasn’t that long ago that she sat here, staring slack-jawed in wonderment of the mass of land below. Not that long ago that she wished for nothing more than to walk amongst its people, to be with the humans, to meet the queen. Now, Sid’s priorities had altered so much she could barely recognize the girl she was. She had lost so much, grieved for so many dead. Colton’s face flashed before her eyes, and she looked away, refusing to let the memories of the human who saved her when she was a child cloud her judgments. Never again would Sid let herself get fooled by the falsehood of the queen and the humans on the star. She would never step foot on the star again; nothing could convince her otherwise.
