Icarus realm book 3, p.1
Icarus (Realm Book 3), page 1
ICARUS
H.G. AHEDI
CONTENTS
Characters
1. Where We stand
2. The Other Side
3. Lost Cause
4. The Last of Us
5. Black Sphere
6. Mysterious signals
7. Red Planet
8. Buried Secrets
9. Probes
10. Way Back Home
11. In the Dark
12. Delta Two
13. The Sphere and the Ghost
14. Celestine
15. Future
16. Past
17. Know Your Enemy
18. Wrong side of Town
19. Home
20. Caelestis
21. The Underdog
22. Interiors
23. Puzzles
24. Sphere
25. Close Target
26. Family ties
27. Death Ship
28. Friends and Foes
29. Honey Trap
30. A Piece of Mystery
31. Steal Thy Not
32. The Lost Dead
33. The Waiting Game
34. Blind Spots
35. Bloodlines
36. Maybe it’s a Cat
37. The Survivor
38. Nests
39. Nightmares
40. Fathers and Daughters
41. Monsters
42. For Humanity
43. Purification
44. Finders Keepers
45. The Vault
46. Death of Hope
47. The Void Takes All
48. The Lost City
Coming Soon
Author’s note
About the Author
Acknowledgments
Also by H.G. AHEDi
First edition published in 2022
Copyright © H.G. Ahedi 2022
All rights reserved
No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means without the authorization of the Author.
All characters in this publication are fictitious, and any resemblance to real persons, living or dead, or scenarios is purely coincidental.
ISBN: 978-0-6451055-5-1(eBook)
ISBN: 978-0-6455056-6-5 (Paperback)
ISBN: 978-0-6455056-7-2 (Hardcover)
Book cover concept by H.G. Ahedi
Book cover designed by Rebecca covers
Author’s website: harbeerahedi.com
To Find the Realm series by H.G. Ahedi scan
Created with Vellum
For Dad, always
Dedicated to my nephews
Parampreet & Harshmann
“Life is infinitely stranger than anything which the mind of man could invent.”
Arthur Conan Doyle
CHARACTERS
Characters in 24th Century
Emmeline Augury: The young cadet of astrophysics who started it all.
Commander Anastasia Waters : Commander of Titan, a leader everyone looks up to.
Lieutenant Commander Adrian Olson: Titan’s pilot, second in command and Evan’s best friend.
Lieutenant Evan Weeds: The infamous operations officer on Titan
Lieutenant Edward Hawk: Titan’s tactical officer
Lieutenant Cyr Storm: The strong-headed engineer on Titan
Dr. Chris Kent: The ever-curious head of the astrophysics lab on Titan (Crystal Lab)
Dr. Aceline Keston: Argon’s mother, historian and an archeologist on Titan
Selina Keston: Aceline’s daughter, who can see what others can’t.
Ensign Todd Walters: Takes over Titan’s helm when Adrian is on the Sphere.
Ensign Rhys Kade: Temporary operations officer while Evan is on the Sphere.
Dr. Isaac Finch: Exobiologist from Earth, who comes to Titan to study the Orias.
Dr. Zac Scheben: Medical doctor on Titan.
Captain Mykel Lockhart: Captain of Prometheus, love interest of Anastasia.
Commander Katia Hart: First officer of the Prometheus
Lieutenant Nick Colson: Pilot of the Prometheus with a personal vendetta against Evan
Lieutenant Seiko Ishimoto: The nerdy science officer of the Prometheus who has clever ideas
Lieutenant Ingrid Elrod: The quirky engineer of Prometheus
Ensign Patrick Terra: The anxious communicator officer of Prometheus
Lieutenant Lyle Hagg: Prometheus’s dependable tactical officer.
Ensign Edna Lamer: Junior tactical officer, who takes Lyle’s place on the bridge of Prometheus
Dr. Peter Hudson: Medical doctor of Prometheus
Lady Vermont: Tribunal of the Imperial Command. Over a century old, she holds the secret to humanity’s future or its extinction.
Captain Desmond Allan: Captain of the Aurora
Cadet Argon Keston: Emmeline’s love interest and the leader of the Titan Squadron who dies before Titan falls.
Cadet Byron Thames: Argon’s best friend who takes over the leadership of Titan Squadron after Argon and is now trapped on the Spector’s ship.
Cadet Clio Ranger: A part of the Titan Squadron. Taken by the Specter Clio believes that their fate is sealed.
Cadet Micah Dew: A friend of Argon, and part of the Titan Squadron who suspects Byron is changing.
Delta Dune: Pilot of the private ship Astra and Emmeline’s best friend who dies on Delta 1 (the planet where the 1st piece of the mythical device is discovered.)
Phoebe Walker: Katia Hart’s (first officer of Prometheus) partner
Admiral Jacob Donovan: Captain of Freedom who dies in the battle of the perimeter
Arthur Augury: Emmeline’s father, a powerful man who will do anything to save his daughter
Alexander Hendrix: Emmeline’s forefather who studied the plaque in 23rd century and led the team that studied Nemesis
Dr. Gage Suarez: Head of the genetics Lab on Earth and the man who imprisoned Lady Vermont when she was young.
Dr Peter Lathom: Lady Vermont’s best friend and her savior.
Director: Head of the Imperial Command and the most powerful woman in the solar system.
Admiral Vince: Third Tribunal of Imperial Command on Earth
Admiral Maia Keller: Strategic head of the Imperial Command
Orias queen: The queen of Orias who wants the mythical device at any cost
Aithon: Right hand of the Orias queen
Tier: The sister of the queen whose death remains a mystery
The Spector: An ancient being on Proxima 8 that captures the Titan squad
Characters in 21st Century
Roumoult Cranston: Discovers the second piece and takes it to New York
Angelus Walker: One of the Roumoult’s best friend, private detective and his bodyguard
Dr. Ivan Payne: The archeologist who leads the project in Antarctica.
William Sterling: Roumoult’s oldest friend and a medical examiner
Captain Tom Nash: A NYPD captain and Roumoult is his long-lost daughter’s godfather.
Jack Calvin: Fasting thinking computer engineer and a valuable resource for Roumoult. He prides himself in thinking he is the best.
Alice Kennecott: Manager of Cranston Enterprises, and one of Roumoult’s most cherished friends.
Cassidy Cranston: Daughter of Roumoult Cranston who likes to drive his car without his permission.
Ayden Cranston: Son of Roumoult Cranston who thinks the house is his playground for conducting weird experiments.
Emma Cranston: Roumoult Cranston’s wife.
Sapphire: A hired assassin with secret mission.
Xavier Dixon: Roumoult’s rival who is after more than just his company.
WHERE WE STAND
21st Century
RAVEN
Standing in the center of the cockpit, Emmeline watched in disbelief. “No. No. It can’t be true!”
“My calculations are accurate,” said the AI.
She huffed and turned to the scanner. The computer compared the present and the past star charts. Then she re-scanned the man-made object flying to the edge of the solar system. It had no engine and was equipped with cameras, transmitters, and solar panels. A technology she had never used in her lifetime. The AI was right. She scanned the third planet from the sun. Her heart stopped for a second. Earth was intact. There were no black craters in the Northern Hemisphere. Nemesis had not struck.
“I am right,” repeated the AI.
Emmeline didn’t answer, and lifted her head to stare into the black space. Her entire life ran in front of her eyes. The vision of Orias ships chasing her, the voice of Lady Vermont pleading for her to stop, and the bright lights of the portal which had brought her to a time where she did not belong.
“Oh my god,” she muttered.
Tears built up in her eyes. She had been robbed of everything she loved. Her family, her friends, her life, or what was left of it. She unconsciously touched her neck as she watched the ancient craft. The air turned colder, and her mouth drier. Her head spun a little, thinking about the consequences. “Can it detect us?” she asked the AI, already knowing the answer.
“No. Its cameras are not powerful enough to detect the Raven at this range.”
Silence returned to the cockpit. Her hands shook, and her pulse rose.
“What are we going to do?” the AI asked.
“Can we return to the twenty-fourth century?”
“It might be possible.”
Emmeline weighed her options. Going b
I have to try.
She was about to get up, but stopped. The plaque led her here. It meant the second piece of the mythical device was ready to be found. She might return to her future, but what would she gain? The consequences were dire. She would probably spend her life behind the brig or on the run? Returning home was impossible. Her friends were gone, any support she had was lost. She was all alone.
I have to go on.
The thought pained her. She had lost everything. What was she doing? Was the piece worth it? A voice echoed in her mind.
You started this; you have to finish it.
Argon’s words reminded her why she was on this journey, and she had to keep her promise. She had to do this, for him and for her.
Accepting her situation, she turned her attention to the ship. She admired the new smooth surfaces with fine keys. It reminded her of Titan. The higher resolution screens and the updated computer were impressive.
It saved me.
She turned to the computer and wondered about her escape. Without the mythical device, she wouldn’t have survived. Either the Orias or the Imperial Command would have captured her. She picked up the piece and closed her fist around it. The plaque was the key to completing the mythical device, and out of seven, she had found two. Just one piece had done wonders. Her eyes roamed the cockpit. It had transformed her ship.
What else was the piece capable of?
“Emmeline, we should move from this position in order to avoid being detected by other crafts that might be monitoring this region of space.”
She nodded.
The AI took control, and the ship reversed to vanish behind one of the biggest moons of Neptune, Nereid. She watched as the Earth craft was replaced by the stellar moon.
“I am guessing we are staying?”
She looked at the AI. “Do we have a choice?”
“I follow your orders. I don't have to choose.”
Emmeline ran her hands over her face. “Okay, we have traveled to the twenty-first century. Our greatest challenge is trying to keep the timeline as it is. What are the possibilities?”
“There are three working theories.”
“The grandfather paradox,” she muttered.
“Precisely. The oldest and the most theorized concept about time travel. It states that if you travel to the past and kill your grandfather before he meets your grandmother—there is a high possibility that you won’t exist. You would be erased from history.”
“Yes, and let’s remember, it’s a theory. What can we do about it?”
“Don’t kill your grandfather,” stated the AI.
Emmeline couldn’t help but smile. “Theory number two?”
“We unknowingly get involved in a major or minor event that forever changes this timeline. The history you and I know would be forgotten or completely wiped out. For instance, Nemesis, the comet that almost destroyed Earth a hundred years ago, may not strike at all or completely annihilate Earth.”
Emmeline fumed. “There is no way of knowing what will affect this timeline!”
“Precisely. So, it’s useless to theorize.”
She ignored it. “Can you estimate how or what can affect the timeline?”
“There are too many possibilities.”
That was true.
“Theory number three?”
“The scenario where you might unknowingly change an incident in the past or avoid one. But what’s supposed to happen will happen because the universe adjusts accordingly, not affecting the overall timeline. For instance, if person A was going to get hit by a bus, and you saved him, that fate might pass on to person C. In general, it states, what is meant to happen will happen one way or another.”
“I prefer that theory,” she muttered.
“Unfortunately, we cannot know how our presence here will affect this timeline.”
A thought occurred to her. “Or we are stuck in a loop,” Emmeline whispered.
“Correct. We don’t know if this is the first time you have found the plaque and the Orias attacked our system.”
Emmeline held her head and glanced at the piece in her hand. She put it aside and picked up the plaque. It was silent again because it was waiting for her to collect the second piece.
I have found only two pieces, and it has brought mayhem and chaos. I hope it’s worth it.
“What are we going to do?” asked the AI.
“Find the piece and leave.”
She focused on her location. Raven was concealed behind the Nereid. The third largest moon in the system, which orbited around Neptune. She had never gotten used to its irregular shape or neutral color. Its surface looked like it had been bombarded by rocks leaving craters of different sizes. The solar system hadn't changed, and she felt like she had never left in the 24th century. Obviously, there was no Titan, Discovery Colony, or Challenger Colony, and the perimeter did not exist. It was strange, yet familiar.
I should focus on finding the piece.
Dismissing her thoughts, she began scanning. When her search came to an end, she gasped.
“What?” asked AI.
“This is rather unbelievable. It can’t be,” Emmeline said, checking again. “This can’t be. Earth? It is on Earth!”
The AI simply said. “Yes. The sensors are working perfectly. Earth is the origin of the signal.”
“But how could it be on Earth? And why didn’t I detect it in the twenty-fourth century?”
“Perhaps it is not a matter of place but time,” said the AI.
“It might be detectable only in this era.”
“I thought I said that,” remarked the AI. “The signal from the Southern Hemisphere of Earth matches the one you found on Delta one. The rogue planet that you visited with Delta.”
Her heart sank. Delta, she had almost forgotten about her best friend. She was the one person Emmeline could share everything with. She recalled they found the rogue planet, and as a joke, Delta had suggested naming it after her. What she didn’t know, Emmeline had. Tears were hard to control as she heard Delta’s screams and saw her falling into the valley. She was gone, and her death was on Emmeline. She shook these thoughts away. Now the second piece was on Delta two, AKA twenty-first century Earth.
