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    Ava Episode Four: Ava, #4
    Ava Episode Four: Ava, #4
    Ava Episode Four: Ava, #4
    Ebook173 pages2 hours

    Ava Episode Four: Ava, #4

    By Odette C. Bell

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    About this ebook

    They're separated. This time for good.

    There's no way John can survive this one. Leana'x has hours to live and no help against a galaxy that wants her dead.
    This is their last chance. Fail, and the Force will finally win.

    ….

    Ava follows a distant royal and a fiery commander through a galactic-wide plot. If you crave space operas with action, heart, and a dash of romance, grab Ava Episode Four today and soar free with an Odette C. Bell series.

    Ava is the 6th Galactic Coalition Academy series. A sprawling, epic, and exciting sci-fi world where cadets become heroes and hearts are always won, each series can be read separately, so plunge in today.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherOdette C. Bell
    Release dateDec 15, 2017
    ISBN9781386513285
    Ava Episode Four: Ava, #4

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      Book preview

      Ava Episode Four - Odette C. Bell

      1

      Leana’x

      Dying. She was dying. No way to stop it. From inside and without.

      She was so weak, she couldn’t push herself off the floor of the escape pod. She couldn’t even raise to her feet and clutch the window to try to see the fate of the strike ship.

      She tried to tilt her head to the side, tried to blink through her sweat covered eyelashes to catch a glimpse of that window, to see the bright flash of blinding light she knew should be there.

      But nothing.

      She couldn’t move.

      This was torture in every way possible. Torture of the mind and body.

      And yet just when she wanted to give into the swirling unconsciousness threatening to claim her from every angle, something… something started to rise up within her.

      At first it felt like a dull, numbing sensation, as if her tortured brain had finally had enough and was shutting down every last process. Then she felt it. The unmistakable presence and power of AVA. In her mind, softening the pain, somehow promising her that everything would be all right.

      Leana’x immediately wanted to fight back and point out that nothing could be all right from now on. John was dead. Even if she hadn’t picked up the inevitable flash of the strike vessel being destroyed, it was the only conclusion that would make any sense. And even if he wasn’t technically dead… she’d seen what had happened to his mind. The Admiral had finally taken control.

      So none of this mattered anymore. Striving to stay alive, fighting…. What was the point when everyone around her was dying or dead?

      The point was survival. Not just of her, not just of her people, of the whole damn galaxy.

      It had been a long time since Leana’x had communed with AVA. The process of holding that great intelligence had well and truly taken its toll. She’d only briefly accessed AVA back in the palace when AVA had pointed out to Na’van that John had to come along.

      But now? In Leana’x’s darkest moment, she could feel something spreading through her mind. This quiet, reassuring presence unlike anything she’d ever experienced.

      Calming, determined.

      That was it. It was determined in a graceful way, and it reminded her of falling into the arms of safety.

      There is a point in continuing to live. That point is in saving everyone, that quiet, muffled, whispered voice in her head repeated once more. No one else can do it but us. You must fight, Leana’x. You must gather strength from every last corner of your body, and you must hold on.

      AVA. AVA was finally communicating again. But it was too damn late.

      Just as Leana’x wanted to spiral down into yet more despair, she felt AVA’s presence wrap around her like arms securing around her middle.

      You cannot give in. You are now the only force that stands between the Milky Way and total destruction.

      But I’m dying, Leana’x said out loud. She couldn’t move, but her eyes could still work fine, and tears welled through them, streaking down her cheeks, marking the smooth floor beneath her.

      We will find a way.

      How? How the hell are we going to get to the throne room? That’s the only place that can save me now. But we’re in a life pod, I can’t move, and everyone I know and care about is dead.

      We’ll find another way, AVA promised.

      Blood had started to trickle from Leana’x’s nose long ago. It mixed with her tears and slicked the floor. As Leana’x focused her eye on it, inside, another part of her withered and died.

      Have faith, Leana’x; we’ll find a way.

      What was the point of having faith anymore? Faith could no longer save her. Only circumstances would.

      …

      Prince Maqx

      He stood there in front of the communications panel, his eyes so wide, it felt as if they would fall out of his Replacement head. His lips were stuck up hard around his teeth, and he only drew breath when he absolutely needed to.

      Close. Soon. Soon.

      Forces were mounting against Leana’x, and there was nothing she could do.

      Prince Maqx was keeping a close lock on all Coalition communications services, so he was well aware that a strike vessel had found and engaged the ship carrying Leana’x.

      But communications with the Captain of that strike ship had ceased.

      That could mean one of two things. Somehow Leana’x had managed to access the full power of AVA and had used it to overcome the ship, or they were currently engaged in a battle for Leana’x’s life.

      Prince Maqx needed it to be the latter.

      Prince Maqx’s body had never had the same Replacement issues Admiral Jones’ had. It had held up fine until now. But there was something to do with the combined stress of waiting for Leana’x to fall into his lap that was costing Maqx dearly. He wasn’t weak. Yet. He hadn’t started to bleed. Yet. But slowly and yet surely, cracks were starting to form in his mind. With Replacement technology, it was always the mind that went first. For the mind had never been the concern of the Force. They cared not about people’s sanity, but their ability to carry out orders.

      Prince Maqx had to keep reminding himself to breathe, and with a rattling wheeze that echoed through the communications room, he almost lost the ability to stand. At the last moment, he clamped his hands on the console before him, and he regained his balance. Again, never blinking, he returned his laserlike gaze to the main holographic screen in front of him.

      He waited on tenterhooks for news from that strike vessel. But the news… wasn’t coming. Either the strike vessel had been obliterated, or the communication lines were completely down. Even then, the secret communication devices given to members of the conspiracy would’ve had to be destroyed, too.

      You see, Prince Maqx had personally selected the vessel to go after Leana’x’s ship. Not just for the fact that it was one of the fastest and best equipped the Coalition had, but because at least 10 percent of the crew were loyal to the conspiracy. Including the Captain and the Chief Engineer.

      Both were outfitted with unique Force inspired communication devices that should theoretically be able to achieve subspace communication. Unless something were to jam them.

      Prince Maqx found himself leaning even further down against the console as if he almost wanted to rest atop it. There was so much tension locked in his shoulders and back, he looked like a man who was carrying the weight of the world on his shoulders.

      Come on, come on, he spat through bared, clenched teeth, spittle flying over his lip and dashing against the hologram. But as soon as it reached the hologram, it hissed into steam and evaporated. So there was nothing to challenge his view.

      And yet, the news still would not come.

      Prince Maqx knew he was now in a truly powerful position, not just to take on AVA by himself and depose Admiral Jones, but to finally be the one who opened the vault of the Artaxan Protectorate and allowed the Force entry into the Milky Way. But Prince Maqx was also a rational man. That was the primary difference between him and the idiot Admiral Jones. If Jones had simply been more rational, Leana’x would have been killed long ago. No, there was no disputing that Maqx was smarter and had always been better placed to complete the Force’s directives. And the reason for that was this. Maqx suddenly and abruptly pushed himself away from the communications console. Though at first, for some reason, his legs were a little wobbly, as if he’d just run a marathon, immediately, he strengthened his posture, tipped his head back, and breathed.

      There was only so much one could achieve by hiding and waiting. And the time for that was over. The time to be proactive was here.

      Prince Maqx whirled on his foot and pushed through the door.

      Immediately, he set his gaze on the view of Artaxan Prime just through the massive windows that lined the wall. He could see the ships holding position beyond the great shields. He briefly glanced their way. Then he tipped his head back, curled his hands into fists, and walked away.

      If Leana’x was still out there, he would find her. For it was time to draw more forces into this battle. The Coalition was one thing, the Barbarians? Ah, they would be another. It was time for the Coalition to learn they couldn’t fight on every front. When mere simple soft biological races are forced to fight in every direction, they become confused. And those who are confused cannot think straight. They cannot see what is before them. And, most importantly, they cannot understand they are about to lose.

      Prince Maqx smiled. Then he enacted the plan forming in his mind.

      2

      Commander John Campbell

      He wasn’t in control of his own mind anymore. He’d been relegated to the back. He was like a prisoner in his own head. He couldn’t describe the sensations, because the sensations weren’t his anymore. It wasn’t just that he couldn’t control his body – it was that his body now beat with the sensations of somebody else. And those sensations? You shouldn’t be surprised to find out they were primarily anger.

      The ship hadn’t exploded. At the very last moment, this unusual blue-gray light had spread through the vessel, locking everything and everyone in place. Though most of the crew had managed to get to the escape pods, those who hadn’t had been… trapped in some kind of stasis field. It was the same with John. He’d been pushed off his feet, and he now hovered there like nothing more than an armored mannequin.

      There’d been no communications from the flight crew. Nothing from the Captain. No voiceovers on the PA system. No nothing. Just this blue-gray light. And even though John’s mind was locked on no longer being in control of his body, he could appreciate one thing. This would come from Na’van. She must have managed to do something, get to the bridge in time, and turn off the self-destruct.

      But what exactly she’d done, John had absolutely no clue.

      Still, he was alive and Leana’x had escaped.

      But the Admiral? He was still strong and screaming.

      Whatever force had lifted John’s body off the ground wasn’t a complete stasis field. It didn’t stop John from moving, just suspended him in the air. So there was nothing to stop the Admiral from thrashing about. His legs and arms kicked this way and that, making John look like a child having a tantrum. Though there was nobody else on John’s floor, he could hear other people, and they were all screaming in surprise and fear. John didn’t exactly know how many people hadn’t managed to make it into the escape pods, but from the voices he could pick up, it seemed as if there were at least 10 or 20 in range.

      John just hoped… he just hoped that Ne’van had managed to save Leana’x as well.

      Though John couldn’t control his eyes, he wanted to close them, wanted to catch a glimpse of her face one last time, but as he tried to do that, drawing the memory of Leana’x up in his head, his lips suddenly jerked wide. You are nothing but a fool, Commander. A man drawn on by pathetic feeling without the understanding of what truly matters.

      For the first time since the Admiral had gained complete control of John’s body, he felt his own heart beat with his own emotions, but it didn’t last. The Admiral tipped John’s head back and laughed. Listening to John’s voice being used for such wild, violent sounds made John want to retch. Instead, he said nothing and did nothing.

      The Admiral wasn’t about to give up.

      He continued to laugh, and John’s stomach pitched with every single god-awful sound that bellowed from his throat.

      This, this is why you fools will be so easy to control once the Force is finally here. You do not understand what true feelings should be used for. You allow them to manipulate you, and nothing more. Well, the Force will gladly manipulate you. It’ll take your emotions, it will use them against you, and it will bring the Milky Way the future it so justly deserves.

      Though John had been keeping quiet

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