Prometheus Unites (The Great Insurrection Book 5) Read online

  Prometheus Unites

  The Great Insurrection™ Book Five

  David Beers

  Michael Anderle

  This book is a work of fiction.

  All of the characters, organizations, and events portrayed in this novel are either products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Sometimes both.

  Copyright © 2021 LMBPN Publishing

  Cover Art by Jake @ J Caleb Design

  http://jcalebdesign.com / [email protected]

  Cover copyright © LMBPN Publishing

  A Michael Anderle Production

  LMBPN Publishing supports the right to free expression and the value of copyright. The purpose of copyright is to encourage writers and artists to produce the creative works that enrich our culture.

  The distribution of this book without permission is a theft of the author’s intellectual property. If you would like permission to use material from the book (other than for review purposes), please contact [email protected]. Thank you for your support of the author’s rights.

  LMBPN Publishing

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  Las Vegas, NV 89109

  Version 1.00, September 2021

  eBook ISBN: 978-1-64971-660-6

  Print ISBN: 978-1-64971-661-3

  Contents

  The Written History of the Great Insurrection

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  The Written History of the Great Insurrection

  Author Notes - David Beers

  Author Notes - Michael Anderle

  Also by David Beers

  Books By Michael Anderle

  Connect with The Authors

  The Prometheus Unites Team

  Thanks to our Beta Readers

  Kelly O’Donnell, John Ashmore

  Thanks to our JIT Readers

  Dave Hicks

  Rachel Beckford

  Jackey Hankard-Brodie

  Angel LaVey

  Diane L. Smith

  Editor

  SkyHunter Editing Team

  Dedication

  For my brother, Danny.

  — David

  To Family, Friends and

  Those Who Love

  to Read.

  May We All Enjoy Grace

  to Live the Life We Are

  Called.

  — Michael

  The Written History of the Great Insurrection

  Three months had passed, and life had changed tremendously for all of us.

  Our people had a planet to live on, and Prometheus had sent for them.

  Prometheus immediately went to work on the board, the laboratories, and understanding the complex economy of this planet as well as the nature of the life that had been made. Not just the gigantes and rocs, but the other lifeforms too.

  He would deny the term, but for all intents and purposes, he was the ruler. People brought questions to him, and he found the answers.

  For those three months, I think it was as close to peace as we ever knew during this entire endeavor, at least for most of us. I could see the itch in Prometheus, the desire to get moving, to find his way back to his wife. He held firm during those months, however, knowing where his duty lay. He had come to a planet and killed their leaders. He had to make things right, or as right as he could.

  The universe has a strange arc to it. We had found peace, Faitrin and I, Servia, even the AllMother. The old one who had brought us all together didn’t rush anyone. She seemed at home on this strange new planet. She rested a lot, and though she still looked weaker than she had on Pluto, her strength began returning.

  The universe, though, wouldn’t let us have that peace.

  The eyes that had fallen on us decided that it would be better to kill us than let us live in peace. Perhaps those distant warlords knew another warlord when they saw one. They understood that Prometheus wouldn’t be sated by this planet, and while they misunderstood his end goal, they saw a war in his future.

  So those warlords came to snuff the new warlord out, and our peace ended.

  Chapter One

  The planet was a cold one, with snow and ice stretching as far as the eye could see. There were no roads, and anyone who came to this place was forced to travel by air or by animal. It had been cheaper to build transports than roads.

  A nondescript one-story building sat in the middle of the tundra. There were no other structures in sight, only the transports that had arrived thirty minutes ago.

  There were three main groups of transports on three different sides of the building about a mile away. Some men and women occupied them, while others stood in the snow, wrapped in layers of clothing and holding weapons. No one standing outside the building dared fire on an opposite cohort. To do so would mean destruction for all involved.

  Those outside the single-story building waited for the people inside, Two men and one woman. They had not met face to face in ten years, not since the last war that had gone on for far too long. The death toll had finally grown so high that the three warlords were forced to sit down and bargain.

  For ten years, their shaky peace had held.

  Now, this new warlord—a man from Earth, no less—threatened their peace.

  Those on the outside didn’t know what was being said. They only hoped that the people inside managed not to kill one another and could somehow find a way to stop the force of nature known as Prometheus.

  Cristin de Monaham was thin, and she was from this cold world. Living on a cold world since birth made one hard, or it killed one. There were no other options.

  Galer de Brinston was the fattest of the group. A scar stretched down the side of his tan face, and he usually wore his long hair back, not bothering to hide the war trophy.

  Simo de Colombus was between the woman and the other man as far as weight. His hair was cropped close to his head, and his eyes were like stones.

  Each of the three had one person standing behind them, their second in command. They held different titles for these people, though it amounted to the same thing. The seconds were here to remember what was said and to light a cigar or cigarette if such a thing was requested. In short, they would act as servants and confidants. The position was coveted and only bestowed on one person until their death or retirement.

  All six people in this room had been in it ten years previously.

  Cristin spoke first. Her voice was naturally soft, sounding much like the cold wind that blew across the wilderness outside. “We all know why we’re here. Something has to be done. The question is, how should we deal with him?”

  Simo, who was sitting directly across from Cristin, spoke next. He waved his hand like he was swatting a bug as he began. “His quarrel is not with us. It was with that corporation and those monsters they breed. Or the Commonwealth from Earth. Why should this concern me?”

  Galer raised his eyebrows. “The monsters they breed? How many gigantes do you have in your service? How many are sitting out there in the snow right now? And don’t act like the three of us are without guilt when it comes to selling the monsters.”

  The two men looked at Cristin. Her business was not as widespread as the others, b
ut it was growing. She bred the creatures to create a solid alternative to what had once been a monopoly.

  Simo shook his head. “I was against that business from the start. It still has nothing to do with me.”

  Cristin’s face was a mask of disdain. “If he comes for me, Simo, he’ll come for you too. Why stop with my army? Why not free the gigantes you two possess? You’re being stubborn right now, and I’m not sure why. You didn’t come here to tell the two of us no, so can we stop this charade?”

  Simo grew quiet. The woman’s words were true. Their armadas hadn’t flown to this world because they thought this man wasn’t a threat.

  “It’s a pretty wide opening, especially since he took out the Daxes and their board,” Galer said. “He may have halted production there, but we can get it started again fairly quickly. If we go there and end his little rebellion, the bred-for-hire mercenary market would be ours.”

  Simo spoke again. “His little rebellion destroyed the largest mercenary corporation in our galaxy. Underestimate this man at your peril, de Brinston.”

  The fat man placed his hands on his ample stomach. “I’m not underestimating him. I’m not overestimating us, either. He took out the Daxes by utilizing a glitch in their breeding process. He was stronger than them, and they ended up without the necessary warriors to fight back. That’s not going to happen here.” He nodded at Cristin. “Her breeding is different, for one thing. Two, our militaries are not based on the gigantes. He won’t be able to turn them against us. He won, through luck or strategy, I don’t know, but neither of those things will work against us.”

  He leaned forward on the table, his scar prominent under the bright light.

  “He did us a favor by taking out the Daxes. I vote we go there and remove him from power, as he did them.” He leaned back in the chair. “We can work out the details about management and profit-sharing later.”

  Cristin and Galer looked at him.

  “I agree,” Cristin said.

  “And if I don’t? What then?”

  Galer shrugged, still leaning back in the chair. “Things remain as they are here, but Cristin and I will go kill this Titan. We’ll share the profits of the endeavor.”

  All three knew what that meant and why Galer had said it. The big man thought the chances of them winning with Simo were higher. Perhaps they even needed him. Yet, if they went forward and he didn’t, his position would be weakened as the other two gained more credit and power, at least over time.

  Simo gave a small nod, knowing that to join them might mean death, but to sit it out would almost certainly mean the same. The Titan might be dangerous, but Galer was right. However he had won, it couldn’t be repeated. In some ways, the Daxes had set themselves up to be defeated by creating a primitive creature who would follow any strong man who came along.

  The Daxes had thought themselves so intelligent, so high above the crime lords they sold to. They had engineered the creatures and created a legal enterprise, though they’d been nothing more than common criminals. Now they were dead.

  “I’m in,” Simo told the others.

  They nodded.

  Planning would come next, but that was just details.

  The Titan was as good as dead.

  Chapter Two

  Warlords were gathering in another galaxy as Alexander de Finita decided his next move. His spies had told him of Kane’s newest triumph. The former Titan had gotten himself an army, apparently by destroying the heads of a corporation that de Finita had never heard of. The universe was truly vast, and even the Imperial Ascendant was learning how far humanity had stretched.

  He’d kept his empire contained to the Solar System, but he was now wondering if he shouldn’t venture out farther once this threat was eliminated.

  Alexander had spoken to Caius a few hours before. The old Propraetor was taking Kane seriously, and he was whipping the other Propraetors into fighting shape. Alexander had called a meeting with them for next week. They would all travel to Earth (some were probably already on their way), and he planned on letting them all know the stakes.

  The Fathers had called Alexander early this morning; clearly, the same message he’d received had also been delivered to them. The dead bastards were starting to get on his nerves, and he wished more than anything he could simply shut down the whole system. Yes, his forbearers lived inside the artificial intelligence system, and yes, it had helped the Commonwealth rule this Solar System with an iron fist—

  But godsdamn, it was annoying.

  Perhaps it was petty for an Ascendant to be thinking in such terms, but he couldn’t help it. He hated the Fathers right now.

  Alexander knew he couldn’t shut them down, though. Whatever he might personally think about Kane, he knew his duty, and they weren’t wrong. The ex-Titan’s strength was growing by the day.

  The message Alexander had sent about Kane’s wife hadn’t worked. It felt like a lifetime ago that they’d had Kane on the dreadnought. Back then, Alexander had felt as if he were somewhat in control of the man.

  He had been.

  No longer. They couldn’t play an offensive game. Now they would have to wait for the ex-Titan to return.

  And he would. Alexander held no doubt about that. The Fathers could calculate everything, and Alexander could access their calculations without having to go see them. The man, Kane, was blinded by his love for his wife. There was a ninety-seven percent chance he would return to see her, which to Alexander was insane. He could understand devotion to one’s progeny and one’s lineage, but to a woman?

  It was lunacy.

  That madness clarified things for Alexander, though. The Propraetors were important, but the woman Luna was key. Controlling her was crucial to winning this. It might be the only way now.

  Don’t be dramatic, the Ascendant told himself. You sound like the Fathers. He might have an army of half-breed mutants, but you control a star system.

  Alexander was on his way to Luna’s room. He’d kept her isolated for the past month, knowing that isolation would cause psychological issues and make her more prone to accept him as her savior. He also wanted to see if she’d talk about what had happened on her own. She hadn’t yet, but maybe the isolation would force it.

  She’d had contact with her servants, but no one of any importance. To the outside world, the ex-Titan’s wife had simply disappeared.

  Her father was beginning to cause issues, and the man held some sway on Earth. Nothing the Ascendant couldn’t handle, but he knew he’d have to let the woman speak to someone soon.

  Yet, the isolation had been necessary.

  Because Alexander understood something had happened with the woman, just as something had happened with the Fathers. They had almost demanded that he march down the moment they felt it and question her. Alexander had seen the security video from her room, the one recorded two and a half seconds after the Fathers had their little private conversation.

  The Fathers were positive the ex-Titan had somehow managed to travel across space in a way never before seen. They said they’d spoken to the man. Alexander didn’t believe it, of course. He’d had the AI run multiple systems checks, but it had detected no abnormalities.

  Then there was the security video. The woman had asked who was in her room, shock on her face, trembling and crying.

  All of it had made Alexander wonder what had taken place. He still didn’t believe what the Fathers told him, and that was why he’d waited before talking to her. Alexander wanted her primed to talk, not to continue the game Luna Kane was so adept at playing.

  Alexander wanted to kill her just as he did the Fathers, but he understood that might doom the entire Commonwealth. Right now, she could be used as a pawn, but if she died? It would ignite something in the ex-Titan that nothing in the universe could extinguish. Alexander realized it would be like setting off a supernova right next to Earth.

  If he kept her alive, she could still be used.

  He reached her door. His body’s sign
ature could open it, but he had more decency than to do that to a lady. He waved his hand in front of the panel on the left side of the door and waited for her to check the panel on her side.

  After a few moments, the door opened by sliding into the wall.

  The Ascendant stepped in. Luna sat with her back to him, a DataTrack open on the table in front of her. He monitored everything that went through the thing, and much of the outside world was blocked from Luna.

  As she well knew.

  “Salve, Luna,” the Ascendant said, understanding that her back turned to him was a message in itself.

  “Salve, Imperial Ascendant,” she responded without looking at him. “Am I free to leave the Imperial Residence, or am I a captive here?”

  She turned around and faced him. She looked different than she had when she’d first arrived. She’d lost weight, and there were circles beneath her eyes, dark ones that spoke of the little sleep she got at night.

  “Would you like to leave, Luna?” Alexander asked. He folded his hands behind his back.

  “I’d like to know what is happening and why I’ve been denied access to my family. I’ve willingly done what you asked. I’ve been on board with everything you’ve asked, my liege, but I’m being treated like a prisoner.” She gestured at the DataTrack. “Even the information I’m allowed to see is restricted.”