When Earth Reigned Supreme (The Human Chronicles Saga Book 12) Read Online Free Page A
Author: T.R. Harris
Adam knew it went along with the territory. Still, part of him was bothered by the intrusion.
With the Sol-Kor now indiscrimanently destroying entire planetary populations without harvesting, Adam agreed it felt like a personal reaction by the Queen. Her son—Panur—was gone, probably for good, and she was blaming the Milky Way galaxy for her loss. With the SK fleets concentrating on the Union, obviously she was holding the Humans more responsible than others. If she wasn’t stopped, her hatred could eventually lead to the Earth being sterilized, just like all the others.
Adam could see the need for such a mission, but launching from aboard a Klin starship added an incalculable degree of danger. Sure, there was a good chance he and his team could get through. It was getting back home that would be the issue. Any escape route would be closed off within seconds of the team’s passage into the SK universe.
Yet with the Union controlling a full transport portal, there could be a way. The strike team would need to acquire a starship. But then there was no telling where the matching portal was on the other side, if it even worked that way. Or could any large portal be linked to the one on this side? And if it could, then how exactly was that done? It would require gathering intel…
Monroe let Adam think, but after about a minute he stood up. “I assume by your silence and look of concentration that the mission is a go?”
“There’s a lot of unknowns, questions that won’t be answered until we’re on the other side.”
“That’s why you and Mr. Tarazi are the perfect leaders for such an operation. You’ve proven time and again you can adapt, improvise, and overcome.”
“That’s a Marine slogan, Mr. Monroe, from back in the day when we had Marines. In the SEALs we used to say, ‘If you ain’t cheating, you ain’t trying.’”
Monroe laughed. “I’ve read your jacket, Captain Cain, and hearing that now I can see why you’ve been so successful throughout the years.”
“Yeah, rules are for saps. I prefer to make things up as I go along, no matter what others say is the proper course of action.”
Adam got up off the bed as Monroe approached. The two men shook hands.
“Good luck, Captain.”
It was a simple sentiment, but Adam sensed the not-so-subtle meaning: Monroe believed this to be a suicide mission—just as Adam did. But if it could stop the slaughter of trillions of intelligent creatures, then it would be a sacrifice worth making.
He just hoped Riyad would see it the same way.
********
“So, do you miss her?”
Riyad looked at Adam with a frown. “Who…Sherri?”
“No, the Queen.”
“Oh, her…every lonely night, my friend. My thoughts are consumed by her. But, honestly, I think we need some new material if we’re going to take our act on the road.”
Adam laughed. “Yeah, on the road…again. That’s what I want to talk to you about.”
Riyad and Adam were in one of the many ready rooms aboard the Mount Rushmore , taking an inventory of their gear, preparing for the assault on the Sol-Kor portal array. This one was scheduled to be a nuke attack, but in the event that it didn’t come off, Adam and his strike force had to be ready to go. This time there would be over five hundred ground troops, not the hundred and twenty like before. Hopefully they wouldn’t be needed.
Riyad set an assault rifle down on the bench and turned to his friend. His eyes narrowed, his bushy eyebrows nearly joining as a frown carved his dark forehead.
“Why did the hair just stand up on the back of my neck?”
Adam’s answering grin was…well, goofy.
Riyad cocked his head and his eyes widened when he understood. “That’s a suicide mission and you know it.”
Adam wasn’t surprised his friend had been able to not only read his thoughts but immediately conceptualize the mission before a word of it had been spoken. Riyad had spent a lifetime in the planning and execution of
With the Sol-Kor now indiscrimanently destroying entire planetary populations without harvesting, Adam agreed it felt like a personal reaction by the Queen. Her son—Panur—was gone, probably for good, and she was blaming the Milky Way galaxy for her loss. With the SK fleets concentrating on the Union, obviously she was holding the Humans more responsible than others. If she wasn’t stopped, her hatred could eventually lead to the Earth being sterilized, just like all the others.
Adam could see the need for such a mission, but launching from aboard a Klin starship added an incalculable degree of danger. Sure, there was a good chance he and his team could get through. It was getting back home that would be the issue. Any escape route would be closed off within seconds of the team’s passage into the SK universe.
Yet with the Union controlling a full transport portal, there could be a way. The strike team would need to acquire a starship. But then there was no telling where the matching portal was on the other side, if it even worked that way. Or could any large portal be linked to the one on this side? And if it could, then how exactly was that done? It would require gathering intel…
Monroe let Adam think, but after about a minute he stood up. “I assume by your silence and look of concentration that the mission is a go?”
“There’s a lot of unknowns, questions that won’t be answered until we’re on the other side.”
“That’s why you and Mr. Tarazi are the perfect leaders for such an operation. You’ve proven time and again you can adapt, improvise, and overcome.”
“That’s a Marine slogan, Mr. Monroe, from back in the day when we had Marines. In the SEALs we used to say, ‘If you ain’t cheating, you ain’t trying.’”
Monroe laughed. “I’ve read your jacket, Captain Cain, and hearing that now I can see why you’ve been so successful throughout the years.”
“Yeah, rules are for saps. I prefer to make things up as I go along, no matter what others say is the proper course of action.”
Adam got up off the bed as Monroe approached. The two men shook hands.
“Good luck, Captain.”
It was a simple sentiment, but Adam sensed the not-so-subtle meaning: Monroe believed this to be a suicide mission—just as Adam did. But if it could stop the slaughter of trillions of intelligent creatures, then it would be a sacrifice worth making.
He just hoped Riyad would see it the same way.
********
“So, do you miss her?”
Riyad looked at Adam with a frown. “Who…Sherri?”
“No, the Queen.”
“Oh, her…every lonely night, my friend. My thoughts are consumed by her. But, honestly, I think we need some new material if we’re going to take our act on the road.”
Adam laughed. “Yeah, on the road…again. That’s what I want to talk to you about.”
Riyad and Adam were in one of the many ready rooms aboard the Mount Rushmore , taking an inventory of their gear, preparing for the assault on the Sol-Kor portal array. This one was scheduled to be a nuke attack, but in the event that it didn’t come off, Adam and his strike force had to be ready to go. This time there would be over five hundred ground troops, not the hundred and twenty like before. Hopefully they wouldn’t be needed.
Riyad set an assault rifle down on the bench and turned to his friend. His eyes narrowed, his bushy eyebrows nearly joining as a frown carved his dark forehead.
“Why did the hair just stand up on the back of my neck?”
Adam’s answering grin was…well, goofy.
Riyad cocked his head and his eyes widened when he understood. “That’s a suicide mission and you know it.”
Adam wasn’t surprised his friend had been able to not only read his thoughts but immediately conceptualize the mission before a word of it had been spoken. Riyad had spent a lifetime in the planning and execution of
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