Read Online The Mirage on the Brink of Oblivion (The Epic of Aravinda Book 3) by Andrew M. Crusoe - Free Book Online Page A
Authors: Andrew M. Crusoe
Tags: Science-Fiction, adventure
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consciousness.
CHAPTER10
A HATCHLING WORLD
Across the unspeakable vastness, invisible tendrils of thought bind all beings together, and for especially sensitive people, the presence of another may be felt across great distances, even across galaxies.
Zahn was not one of these people.
As he rested within the sunset suite perched on the edge of Mirage City, he had no inkling of the anxiety that grew within his father over fifty-thousand light-years distant, way out on the radiantly blue world of Avani, nestled within the fourth band of the western spiral arm of the galaxy. In fact, he wasn’t even aware of Asha lying beside him in his dormant state.
Meanwhile, their parents were sleeping less and less. None of them had heard from Zahn or Asha in days, until that morning when Asha’s father had finally received a message from Navika. The message was short and bore an official Confederation seal, but after learning that his daughter had been recruited on yet another mission, Yantrik grew frustrated.
He knew quite well what Asha and Zahn had already accomplished together, and he wanted to trust the wisdom of the Confederation. Yet he confessed to Zahn’s father Vivek that his faith in them was slipping. After all, he was a talented engineer and pilot, as well as the owner of Outpost 33, and they hadn’t recruited him for anything.
More importantly, as Asha’s father, he wanted to be there for her, with or without Confederation approval.
So when Yantrik disappeared for the rest of the day, Vivek grew concerned. He knew all too well the feelings of protectiveness that he’d felt when Zahn had left on his journey, and he hoped he could calm Yantrik’s anxiety.
Maybe it was silly, but Vivek felt that if he could remind Yantrik that their kids weren’t alone out there, he wouldn’t feel so bad and then perhaps they could all sit down and talk about it together. So he searched the house and the forest around it.
He couldn’t find Yantrik anywhere.
In most situations, Zahn’s father was not the kind of person to observe a friend without their knowledge, but in this case, he made an exception. Vivek knew the trails within the sapphire forest just as well as Zahn did, and Vivek used that knowledge to search for Yantrik in near silence.
From the familiar forest path, Vivek could see nothing, no fighter ship, no technology of any kind. So he stepped off of the path, searching instead with his intuition. And as he quietly searched the forest, Vivek spoke to the trees around him.
“Hello forest,” he whispered. “I know it’s been a while since we spoke.”
He followed what appeared to be a recently trod path under a gap in the blue canopy and froze, listening carefully.
“If you can give me a sign, some signal about where my friend is, I’d really appreciate it.”
SNAP.
Vivek looked up to the left where the sound had come from, and approached as quietly as he could. After another minute, he came upon something nestled within the forest that Yantrik’s cloaking field could never hide: a large depression in the layer of ferns that carpeted the forest.
“Thank you,” he whispered and grew closer, choosing his footing so carefully that his footsteps scarcely made a sound.
He held his breath and strained to listen.
Just above the dark depression in the ground, he heard a hiss.
What’s he doing in there? Repairs? If he’s doing repairs, that means he’s getting ready to leave. But would he really leave without telling us?
The hissing stopped, and Vivek considered what to do as a light rain began to fall.
He retraced his steps and followed the path back to the house. He didn’t like being out in the rain without a rain shield, and something about sneaking up on Yantrik felt wrong to him.
In the end, he decided to reflect on the situation over tea. He couldn’t talk about it with his beloved Darshana yet because she was upstairs sleeping, so he sipped his tea in silence, trusting that the
CHAPTER10
A HATCHLING WORLD
Across the unspeakable vastness, invisible tendrils of thought bind all beings together, and for especially sensitive people, the presence of another may be felt across great distances, even across galaxies.
Zahn was not one of these people.
As he rested within the sunset suite perched on the edge of Mirage City, he had no inkling of the anxiety that grew within his father over fifty-thousand light-years distant, way out on the radiantly blue world of Avani, nestled within the fourth band of the western spiral arm of the galaxy. In fact, he wasn’t even aware of Asha lying beside him in his dormant state.
Meanwhile, their parents were sleeping less and less. None of them had heard from Zahn or Asha in days, until that morning when Asha’s father had finally received a message from Navika. The message was short and bore an official Confederation seal, but after learning that his daughter had been recruited on yet another mission, Yantrik grew frustrated.
He knew quite well what Asha and Zahn had already accomplished together, and he wanted to trust the wisdom of the Confederation. Yet he confessed to Zahn’s father Vivek that his faith in them was slipping. After all, he was a talented engineer and pilot, as well as the owner of Outpost 33, and they hadn’t recruited him for anything.
More importantly, as Asha’s father, he wanted to be there for her, with or without Confederation approval.
So when Yantrik disappeared for the rest of the day, Vivek grew concerned. He knew all too well the feelings of protectiveness that he’d felt when Zahn had left on his journey, and he hoped he could calm Yantrik’s anxiety.
Maybe it was silly, but Vivek felt that if he could remind Yantrik that their kids weren’t alone out there, he wouldn’t feel so bad and then perhaps they could all sit down and talk about it together. So he searched the house and the forest around it.
He couldn’t find Yantrik anywhere.
In most situations, Zahn’s father was not the kind of person to observe a friend without their knowledge, but in this case, he made an exception. Vivek knew the trails within the sapphire forest just as well as Zahn did, and Vivek used that knowledge to search for Yantrik in near silence.
From the familiar forest path, Vivek could see nothing, no fighter ship, no technology of any kind. So he stepped off of the path, searching instead with his intuition. And as he quietly searched the forest, Vivek spoke to the trees around him.
“Hello forest,” he whispered. “I know it’s been a while since we spoke.”
He followed what appeared to be a recently trod path under a gap in the blue canopy and froze, listening carefully.
“If you can give me a sign, some signal about where my friend is, I’d really appreciate it.”
SNAP.
Vivek looked up to the left where the sound had come from, and approached as quietly as he could. After another minute, he came upon something nestled within the forest that Yantrik’s cloaking field could never hide: a large depression in the layer of ferns that carpeted the forest.
“Thank you,” he whispered and grew closer, choosing his footing so carefully that his footsteps scarcely made a sound.
He held his breath and strained to listen.
Just above the dark depression in the ground, he heard a hiss.
What’s he doing in there? Repairs? If he’s doing repairs, that means he’s getting ready to leave. But would he really leave without telling us?
The hissing stopped, and Vivek considered what to do as a light rain began to fall.
He retraced his steps and followed the path back to the house. He didn’t like being out in the rain without a rain shield, and something about sneaking up on Yantrik felt wrong to him.
In the end, he decided to reflect on the situation over tea. He couldn’t talk about it with his beloved Darshana yet because she was upstairs sleeping, so he sipped his tea in silence, trusting that the
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