Ghosts of Lyarra Read Online Free Page A

long time to go unnoticed in the very connected reaches of the Empire.
    Instinctively, Aen flooded the observation chamber in heat from the star that resided within him, making the temperature a few degrees warmer so that he could detect the shift in temperature when his ‘guests’ joined him. He left his back to the door to further invite the stealthy killers to continue to sneak up on him thinking he was unaware of their presence; he was anything but! The door was always open, so there was no noise to alert him as the three assassins crept through it. But the coolness of their dark armor coming into contact with the warmer air inside the room let him know they had arrived like an infrared scanner. Now, as they slowly moved towards him he knew exactly where they were and it was time to have some fun.
    Aen slowly turned to face his adversaries; the glow from the event horizon cast an ominous tone to the room in hues of orange and red. Once realizing they had been made, the three assassins stopped dead in their tracks and waited to see what Aen would do. He was curious, more so than he should be and not realizing the gravity of the situation. The Forgotten were sent to kill him and leave no traces, but he was sure they did not know what they were truly up against so he let them make the first move.
    It didn’t take long for them to take the initiative and attack as the three leapt in unison towards him in an attempt to overwhelm him. Again Aen smiled to himself; they had no clue who it was inhabiting the station only that they were to kill him. Any other being would have cowered as the three assassins jumped to strike, but Aen simply waved his hand and changed the gravitational fields in the room and slowed time as well, leaving them hanging helplessly in mid-air. The scene intrigued him, three trained and ruthless killers now hung helplessly at his mercy as he stood a few meters away with a curious look on his face. Behind their masks, he was sure they were more than furious!
    With a motion of his hand - opening it from a fist while reaching out to them - two of the Forgotten were reduced to smouldering ashes; burning away so hot and fast there was little time for flames as he reached deep within them to superheat their cells to over 5000 degrees in mere seconds. It was so quick there was no time for his victims to even scream. The middle assassin hung in the air until Aen pushed him with his mind and threw him across the room to strike the wall with a crunch. Aen wasn’t in a hurry, so instead of rushing straight in for the kill he circled like a shark that had injured its prey to see what was next, choosing the wide angle to approach his fallen foe. He could tell his opponent’s arm and shoulder were hurt badly the way it hung lifelessly at its side as it struggled to regain a defensive stance.
    “Heretic!” it hissed at him. Aen didn’t reply as he closed in slowly.
    “You trespass on holy ground! More will come to cleanse your filth!” it spat. “Those who sent you will be destroyed, the Guild demands it!”
    The assassin reached with its left hand behind it and drew a plasma blade, throwing it quickly at Aen. It struck home in his chest, but did little to stop his advance. Aen grabbed the creature by the neck and lifted it up to eye level, listening to it choke on the blood he was sure was drowning it from broken bones and internal bleeding. Calmly, he let his heart burn the blade to cinders to demonstrate how little the strike affected him.
    “Why does the Empress send her killers to hunt me?” Aen demanded.
    “She does not guide us on our journeys! The Guild is not hers to command!” it hissed back with great effort.
    “Iana is the Guild. She is their Goddess and their sworn leader.” Aen replied with a response designed more to learn more without revealing much of what and who he was.
    “Stupid heretic. There is a storm coming and in its wake is change. You know nothing of the world in the shadows and