The Colony: Colonial Expansion, #1

Table of Contents

Copyright

Title

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

Chapter 14

Chapter 15

About the Author

The Colony

Copyright © 2017, 2022 by Laurel Richards

––––––––

First e-book edition publication: January 2017

Republished with minor changes and new cover: April 2022

––––––––

Cover design by Laurel Richards

Images used under license from Shutterstock.com. Licensed images are being used for illustrative purposes only, and any person depicted on the cover is a model.

––––––––

All rights reserved. The unauthorized reproduction or distribution of this copyrighted work is illegal. This copy is intended for the original purchaser only. No part of this book may be reproduced, distributed, resold, or transmitted in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except in the case of a reviewer, who may quote brief passages embodied in critical articles or in a review. If you would like to share this book, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient.

––––––––

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

––––––––

Warning: This book is intended for mature adults only.

––––––––

Blurb

Not everyone will make it out alive.

_

Responding to a distress call, Officer Alexander Valerian and the rest of his security team arrive at the human colony on the planet of Jangala to find blood and gore all over the walls. All the colonists are dead or missing except for Dr. Elisa Everett, a pretty paleontologist he finds injured and nearly suffocated in a ventilation shaft. Now Alex has to figure out how sixty-nine colonists were wiped out in a single night, but Elisa’s account of killer monsters just raises more questions. Has the colony really been attacked by bloodthirsty beasts, or did everyone succumb to a powerful hallucinogen that made them turn on one another? He had better find out fast, because Elisa’s life is in his hands.

_

Content: m/f romance, love scene, attacks on humans, no cliffhangers, can be read as a standalone book

The Colony

(Colonial Expansion Book 1)

by

Laurel Richards

Chapter 1

Human colony, planet Jangala...

––––––––

What the hell is going on?

Dr. Elisa Everett huffed out the demand as she ran into the colony’s security room. Her hand wasn’t quite steady as she took a hit from her asthma inhaler and got her first good breath since sprinting here from her lab in the southwest wing. The blaring overhead alarm nearly drowned her out.

From her seat in front of the security monitor, her sister shot her a concerned look while she punched buttons that were blinking a violent shade of red.

All hell is breaking loose, Bria shouted.

Her remark was punctuated by the frantic squawking of the nearby intercom.

Elisa strode closer to get a look at the screen and was overwhelmed by the kaleidoscope of images. Section N1’s camera revealed two male colonists pounding at each other with their fists. They were both swaying on their feet, but they didn’t let up. In another frame, a woman in section NW2 was gesticulating wildly and evidently talking to herself. The Jameson cousins in R3 stood atop the cafeteria table and waved at the lens for help. Five other displays were down and filled with static.

Elisa muttered a prayer. Where’s your commander? What happened to your backup?

Her sister was a Beta security officer here at the Jangala colony. She wasn’t supposed to handle something like this by herself.

I don’t know! Bria cried above the alarm. Someone triggered the fire alert in the northeast wing. Commander Walsh took Donaldson with him to check it out. I didn’t see flames, but Guy Robbins was spraying extinguisher mist all over the damn place. I saw someone tackle him through the haze. By the time the fog cleared, Guy was lying there with his head bashed in. Nobody is answering their radio, Commander Walsh ran for the north door ten seconds before we lost picture for that whole wing, and then my emergency panel lit up. We’ve got an outbreak of assaults, reports of killer insects, and— Oh, my God!

Elisa followed her sister’s gaze and gripped the edge of the table. Framed at the top of the screen was Liddy Harper, a petite eighteen-year-old who usually wore a star-bright smile. The girl was currently throwing herself against the walls of one of the workrooms in the northwest wing. A gash on her forehead bled profusely, and blood smeared the room where she’d pinged around like a fly in a bottle.

Elisa’s mouth went dry, which only made the medicinal aftertaste from her inhaler more noticeable. She’s hurting herself. We’ve got to stop her.

She’s on the other side of the compound, Bria pointed out, but she was already heading for the door. We need stunners. Weapons locker, sublevel.

Elisa didn’t argue. She just concentrated on her breathing as she followed her sister’s quick, athletic strides.

The air grew stale as they hit the cold metal staircase that descended to the basement. They’d almost reached the last step when the lights cut out. Elisa rocked back on her heels and clutched the handrail as they were plunged into total darkness. Her sister cursed in front of her, and the alarms fell silent.

Bria’s voice rose from the void. Elisa, you’re only one or two steps behind me. Reach forward and find the back of my jacket.

Okay. Elisa ignored the tremor in her hand as she reached blindly ahead.

When she made contact with nothing but air, she slid her shoe forward to find the step’s edge with her toe. Both she and Bria jumped when her fingertips hit her sister’s hair, but then she managed to pinch a crease in the back of Bria’s security jacket.

Her sister took control. Good. Step down the rest of the way with me, and we’ll walk to the weapons locker together. It’s going to be down the hall to the right, second door on the left.

Got it.

As one, they started moving. Elisa felt a moment of disorientation when they first hit the landing, but she got her bearings once she was sure there were no more steps. After navigating the narrow hallway, they found the door they wanted.

How you doing? Are you taking nice, easy breaths? Bria knew stress always made the asthma attacks worse.

Maintaining, Elisa replied, and she hoped she could keep it that way.

Her palm grew sweaty against Bria’s jacket, but she expelled a breath of relief when the code panel beside the doorframe lit up. She could just make out her sibling’s outline in the eerie green glow of the buttons. Bria punched a few numbers, and the lock opened with a snick.

Hand lights, her sister announced as she plucked one from the shelf and clicked it on.

Elisa released her grip. We’d better grab a couple of extras as backup.

Good idea. Bria took her suggestion. The sun has already set, and I don’t know how long it’ll take to get the power back on. It could be we tripped a breaker or burned out a generator.

There’s more than one generator, Elisa pointed out, and they’re zoned.

Given the pandemonium upstairs, she was sure this was more than a simple electrical short.

Bria didn’t debate the issue. First priority is to get the lights back on. Things are bad enough without everyone freaking out in the dark. We’ll go to the generator room and see what’s what. Maybe we’ll bump into one of the engineers on the way.

Is it safe to go back up there? Although she had been the one to suggest going to Liddy’s rescue, Elisa didn’t want to wind up bruised and bloodied. The darkness only made the situation more frightening.

It is with an I-100 Suppression Taser in hand. Her sister slapped one of the short, bulky stunners into Elisa’s palm. You’ve just been deputized.

Bria! You’ve got to be kidding me. I suck at shooting these things.

I taught you well enough, Bria argued.

This isn’t the same as stunning an overzealous boyfriend. I’m not trained for this. You’re the warrior woman. I’m the science nerd, remember?

Don’t give me that, her sister hissed. Look, you probably won’t have to use it, but I want you protected. Panic makes people dangerous. We’ll be in close quarters up there, and we’re still not sure what’s going on.

And no, she added before Elisa could speak. I’m not leaving you here to bounce off the walls like Liddy Harper. Now come on.

Elisa huffed as she followed her big sis out the door and down the hall.

Just try not to frag me, Bria muttered as they reached the stairs.

Despite the situation, Elisa smiled.

When they reached the top landing, her sister stopped abruptly.

Elisa nearly plowed into her. What? she asked, but then she heard it too.

Far ahead of them, dozens of people were screaming.

It’s only the dark, Bria whispered after a moment. They’re just scared.

Elisa might have found the statement reassuring if not for the quaver of doubt in her sister’s voice. She had to draw on her courage as they started walking again.

Staying close, Elisa followed Bria down the narrow corridor. What do you think is happening? This is like some kind of mass hysteria, but what set it off? Could this be a new strain of neurovirus or contamination in the food?

I don’t know, her sister admitted. Whatever it is, it struck fast. Margaret Ross wigged out a month ago, but the doctor cleared her. We thought it was an isolated incident. Now this.

Elisa swallowed hard. She could still hear screams, though the noise was partially muted and distorted as the sounds bounced around blind corners and pierced through closed doors. With each step, she and Bria drew closer to the first intersection with the main corridor. The shadows ahead of them slithered away from their small handheld lights. Elisa’s beam jiggled more violently when some of the screams were cut short.

What’s that smell? Bria asked.

Elisa wiped at the sweat on her upper lip. What smell? Her chest was so tight she couldn’t smell a damn thing.

Her sister motioned with her hand. Put your light out. There’s enough moonlight dropping through the skylights ahead. We’d do better not to draw attention to ourselves.

In agreement, Elisa fumbled off her light and shoved it into her pocket. That allowed her to grip the stunner with both hands.

Peeking carefully around the corner to the east and west, they made sure it was all clear before they continued down the main corridor. They headed toward the residential section at the center of the H-shaped compound. There was a sense of movement far in the distance, but Elisa didn’t see anyone yet. Fewer and fewer screams sounded in the dark.

With Bria in the lead, they pushed on for what felt like forever. Although this building—this colony—had been their home for nearly a year and a half, this place now felt like a cage. The walls and the darkness were closing in.

Bria? Elisa whispered, but her sister held up a hand to stop her.

She suddenly grabbed Elisa and dragged her through the door of the supply room on their left. Qui-Qoppan Terrorists, Bria rasped against her ear. Two of them, armed to the teeth.

Elisa was caught between horror and disbelief. Terrorists? Here? Why would they attack us here? We don’t have anything they could possibly want. We’re not even a strategic base.

Shhh. Her sister dropped her voice to the barest whisper. "How should I know what they want? There are two, maybe more, and they’re wearing the sign of the inverted Q on their chests. I saw a broadcast about their leader in the last news download. Do you have any idea what they do to people? To innocent civilians?"

Elisa gulped and waited in silence.

Then Bria put her ear to the door and stiffened. Oh, my God. They’re looking for us. They’re talking about two sisters, one in the security office.

I don’t hear anything. Elisa concentrated, but all she made out were the distant sounds of terror from her fellow colonists.

They’re coming toward the door! Bria grabbed Elisa’s arm and dragged her deeper into the storage room.

Elisa still didn’t hear anything, but she trusted her sister implicitly. Although her heart pounded and her lungs began to burn, she tried to remain silent and still.

After a fraught moment, Bria heaved a sigh of relief. That was close. They must be on their way to the security office. They didn’t think to look for us here.

So what’s the plan? Elisa asked. Do we still go for the lights, or do we try to get outside and make a run for it?

Her sister thought about it for a moment. Lights. We have no idea how many are out there waiting for us. If we get the lights back on, at least we have a chance of organizing everyone and regaining control. No, wait. She rubbed her forehead. We should get out a distress call first. The transmission equipment in the telecommunications office is on an independent backup system like the med clinic. We need to get out a call and warn our people about the situation. Then we can restore the lights and try to hold on until a rescue team arrives.

Elisa agreed. The telecommunications office was in the wing directly across from the generator room. If they could get to one, they could probably reach the other.

Bria cautiously opened the door. She stepped out of the storage area and led the way.

Most of the colonists had been heading for the central residences, but there still should have been people at this end of the building. Instead, it was eerily empty. As they slipped through the shadows, Elisa wished desperately that she could turn on her light again. Everything looked more sinister in the dark.

The tension was as thick as the cold sweat that trickled down her lower back. When they reached the heart of the colony, the wails and scuffles grew louder, although the danger still remained out of sight. Something made a loud scraping noise in the side hallway they’d just passed, but they pressed forward.

Elisa got a firsthand look at the aftermath of what she’d witnessed onscreen: furniture upended, broken panels, and dark spatters on the walls. There was an added ingredient now, though. Here and there were dark, sticky pools of blood, standing like puddles after a hard rain. Even she could smell the brassy tang in the air. It was already beginning to sour, or maybe that was only her stomach.

She didn’t have time to be sick. The sound of heavy breathing emanated from one of the side passages up ahead, followed by the deep, rhythmic thud of footsteps. Judging by the sound, it had to be a big, heavy man, or else someone who was weighed down. Elisa envisioned somebody lugging a dead body, but she couldn’t actually see anything through the gloom.

More footsteps—these moving much faster—reached her ear, and she tensed when she realized they were coming directly toward her and Bria. A residential door gaped open to their right, so she and her sister jumped inside. They wound up in a woman’s bedroom. The small space was unoccupied and had clearly been ransacked. Bria grabbed the door to tug it closed, but one of the hinges was mangled. The door groaned and remained jammed open about fifteen centimeters.

Elisa’s heel slid on the debris littering the floor, but she caught her balance against a metal wall unit. The racing footsteps outside came closer. Fear, combined with the scent of shattered perfume, made Elisa’s lungs burn and ache. She had a death grip on the stunner, and both she and Bria aimed for the doorway when the steps slowed.

There was a pause, as if maybe their ears were playing tricks. Then a denser shadow coalesced on the other side, and Elisa half depressed the trigger before Bria cried out, Donaldson!

The battered man gasped and jumped back. He turned and sprinted several meters away before Bria darted into the hallway and said his name again. He stopped and finally looked at them.

Everett? he asked tremulously. Is that you?

Yes. Bria stepped closer to him. I’m here with my sister. We’re on our way to the telecommunications office. We have to get out a distress call. Is the way clear?

Clear? He wiped his face with his palm, and Elisa could see his left temple and cheek were discolored. No, the way is not friggin’ clear! Those things are crawling all over the place. They’ve already killed most of the colonists and hauled them out. It’s Malterra all over again.

What? Bria demanded. What things? What do you mean things are crawling around killing people?

Officer Donaldson trembled so hard his teeth chattered. Animals. Predators. Claws and teeth and ripping people to shreds. They’re hunting us. Eating everyone.

Indigenous? Elisa asked, though she knew of no such predators on Jangala.

Maybe biological weapons, her sister said. The terrorists might have brought some kind of attack animals. Maybe they’re using this colony as a test site.

Terrorists? Donaldson parroted. He shook his head. Look, you’ll never make it to telecommunications. We’ve got to go back and get the others.

Others? Now Bria was the one repeating things.

Elisa kept a close eye on the surrounding passageway and waited for the two officers to pull it together. She hoped they’d hurry, because she wanted to keep moving.

There’s nobody down that way, Bria explained. When this started, everyone was coming off shift and heading to the cafeteria or their rooms. You and Commander Walsh left and answered the first call.

Donaldson keened under his breath. There’s no one? There has to be. Where the hell is the rest of our security team?

I don’t know, Bria hissed. Night shift was supposed to have come on, but no one had reported in yet. It’s up to us. We’ve got to get out a message.

The whites of his eyes flashed through the shadows. We’ll never make it. They’ll kill us all!

No, they won’t. We’re going to stay together, and we’re going to make it. Panic doesn’t help anyone, so calm down. Bria turned to Elisa and cursed. You too, she added, softening her voice. You need to calm down and breathe. Where the hell is your inhaler?

Elisa hadn’t realized she was audibly wheezing, but suddenly the intermittent whistle sounded enormously loud. Normally she didn’t need another hit so soon. She often managed this problem so well that she went for days between doses. But spring with all its blossoming glory had landed on this planet, she’d hidden in a perfume-drenched boudoir, and fear had a stranglehold on her. There was nothing normal about this situation.

She fumbled in her pocket for her trusty inhaler and wound up with the hand light she’d shoved in there. Before she could make the switch, Bria jostled her back inside the room. Donaldson joined them, and he felt sticky and overheated as he pressed against Elisa’s side. Now there were three of them packed inside, all avoiding the broken bric-a-brac on the floor.

Be quiet! Donaldson snapped at her.

Elisa tried, but her breathing continued to whistle.

Suddenly he had her pinned, and he slapped his sweaty palm over her mouth. She didn’t like anyone touching her during an asthma attack—the slightest brush only added to her sense of constriction—and this was more than a touch. He was squeezing her too tightly and obstructing her mouth.

She continued to wheeze slowly through her nose. As hard as her heart was pounding, it should have been a fast pant, but slow and labored was all she could manage. It felt like sucking air through a tiny straw.

Donaldson’s body tensed, and he slipped his hand farther upward to muffle her nose as well. Elisa began to struggle. She felt her sister’s hand snatch the rescue inhaler from her pocket, and then they were both fighting him.

Bria finally put her stunner to his head and whispered, Let go of her, or I’ll drop you.

Are you crazy? He spoke just as quietly. She’ll give us away.

Let go. Bria issued the command in a lethal tone.

Elisa still fought to pry his palm loose. The room had grown darker, and she worried she would pass out. Just when she couldn’t hold on any longer, he finally released her. She couldn’t even gasp.

Her sister pressed the inhaler to her lips, and Elisa battled to get enough of the medicated mist past her constricted throat. Her breathing finally eased before she heard heavy, measured steps right outside.

The door was still ajar, and she could see a sliver of hallway from her vantage point. Whoever was coming, he was on the far side of the nearest skylight, about a meter and a half away. The shadows outlined someone huge and muscular. She couldn’t make out specifics, but there was something very wrong with the way this guy moved. Then he stepped into the light, and prayers and curses wrestled in her mind.

She felt her heart ricochet around her ribcage as she stared. It wasn’t a man out there. It wasn’t a human being at all. Donaldson was right. Some thing was loose inside the compound.

Elisa’s mind—trained