The Blood Solution (Approaching Infinity Book 3) Read Online Free

Stusson blinked, stumbling over his words, trying to master his emotions. “ Fuel ,” Stusson finally said, making an effort to meet Braams’s steady gaze. “It seems so inappropriate a word for the blood—the lives—of so many who have given themselves to this project. We are still collecting the blood required for activation. Though close to it, our preservation process is not perfect. There has been some loss, so collection will necessarily continue up until the actual invasion. Until now, our contract holders have given their blood upon their natural deaths. When the time comes, in five years, some will have to give up everything, sacrificing themselves for the greater good of the Three Worlds. This is Keska Kessel’s Blood Solution, the answer to the King of Spades.”
    Braams’s gaze did not falter, but tears quivered in his eyes before streaking his bronze face.
    “Mr. Braams,” Stusson said, pausing. “I brought you here today to ask you—no, to beg you—to be our champion, to lead with Kan Fosso and Bask Sosa our army of Entitled. Accept the Blood Frame, become the King of Hearts. You alone, the third ever Initiate of the Seventh Secret—that being Creation—have the ability to produce the fusion reaction that will give the Blood Frame life. You are our best and only hope.”
    “Chief Steward—Sar Stusson—I will not say that I haven’t worked hard for what I’ve attained, but perhaps, in comparison to others, the study of Entitlement has come easy to me. During these last several years on the fight circuit, I’ve enjoyed the adoration of fans from all over the Three Worlds, and I’ve taken full advantage of that adoration for my own selfish gratification. While I do not apologize for this, I recognize that I must put such behind me. I’ve lived well, but I’ve shirked duty, responsibility. I’ve left many children I will likely never meet.”
    Braams paused for a moment, his jaw tightening to check renewed tears. “Please believe me when I say that it is for them and not for further self-aggrandizement that I humbly and gratefully accept your request. My sincerest hope is that I can live up to Keska Kessel’s expectations, to yours, and to those of all who live in the Three Worlds. You asked me if I had ever thought about becoming a steward. I have now, sir, and if an invitation to stewardship accompanies this proposition of yours, I will do whatever is necessary to rise to the office.”

2. THE ISOLATED PRINCE
     
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    Raus Kapler stepped out onto the roof of his family’s tower, a glossy blade of obsidian rising up from the flat earth. From here the Kaplers had ruled Sarsa unopposed for untold generations. The sun had set, but even if it shone, there would be little light to grace the dull, gray sky.
    Raus ran his hand along the underside of the Lightning Gun’s barrel, counting his steps as he went. He remembered a time, long ago, when he couldn’t reach so high and it had taken him far more than the current twelve steps to walk the barrel’s length. He stood at the roof’s edge, looking down over the waste that made up his family’s kingdom.
    Rows and rows of crudely marked graves encircled the tower, a morbid reminder of the cost of absolute power. Scattered fires on the horizon marked the camps of the resistance groups. The groups had given up their forays years ago, finding the Lightning Gun as impassible as it was deadly, but they wouldn’t remain deterred indefinitely. The cycle always repeated itself. In time, fear of the Lightning Gun would subside, the resistance would storm the tower, and the surrounding fields, the Black Fields as the locals had taken to calling them, already lush with death, would stink once again with a new harvest of ozone and charred flesh. Each time the cycle took less time to complete itself, spiraling Sarsa’s already dying civilization closer to its inevitable end.
    Raus wondered if she was out there. He knew it didn’t matter. If