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Touch of Blue

By: Michael W. Davis

What is our destiny?

(Buy locations available at Davisstories.com)

Reviewa fast paced ride from start to finish. The writing is tight, storyline fast paced and characters are

quite interesting. If you are looking for a short novella to take you to places amid the stars, then grab

this wonderful SF adventure. I look forward to seeing more stories set in this fascinating world,LR&M Reviews

BlurbRiggs, a retired Intel officer, is forced on a mission to el! a government e demises e"!and teir

control into new regions of s!ace. #e discovers te trut about is wife, wat$s a!!ening on %dora

rime, and umanity$s ultimate destiny.

''R* +

Soft gamma ray emissions from the distant Gabriel Magnetar reflected off

the residual gas of the neighboring nebula, except for the occasional maverickscintilla that ignited firefly like sparkles in the dense atmosphere of Adora Prime.

The interaction beteen the planet!s magnetosphere and the deflected particlesin its trailing orbital ake formed blue ribbon shapes like the aurora borealis of

old earth.

"iggs had vieed this rare celestial phenomenon in the holographic theaterprior to launch, but those #$ images paled in comparison to the electrical

battlefield enveloping %asper, the inner most moon of Adora!s three lunarsatellites. Though he had never visited this sector before, the visual experience

outside his portal as familiar. The bursts of cold light, the blue streaks darting

out and in each time to particle streams intersected& he had seen it,somehere, only stronger, more intense, almost as if the beams ere alive,

performing some divine ballet ith its on purpose, its on'()reathtaking, isn!t it*+

e -erked at the soft feminine touch on his right arm. "iggs had forgotten

he as on a class our Stellar /umper ith three do0en other curious sets of eyespeering outard at the end of their three1month -ourney.

e nodded at the petite female from 2ega Minor and returned to the viefrom the portal. (3es, and very rare. 4!ve never seen anything so appealing, so

beautiful, except maybe...+ e felt the discomforting rumble in his gut again andreached for the vacuum tube, (5xcuse me.+

+

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"iggs covered his mouth ith the suction device, barfed tice, pushed thecleanser spray button to ash the acidic material off his face and tried to smile at

the female pathic still stroking his arm. She conveyed an enticing smile. (My

name is 3arra. 3ou haven!t taken any recharger -uice, have you*+e shook his head, (4!m "iggs,+ and then 6uivered as he tried to sallo

the traces of bile in his throat. ($amn stuff tastes like they extract it out the backend of an 7realian samp skunk.+

The girl giggled, (4!ve never sucked on the ass end of any creature, but 4!llagree& in its natural form, the recharger mix is bitter as hell.+

Quite a spunky little thing arent you. Just like Cali.

(A big guy like you needs to replenish his electrolytes.+ She dabbed hismustache ith a moist ipe and rubbed gently across his mouth, (4 love soft

lips.+ She surveyed the steardess three isles over, reached into her personalbag and removed a small flask. (ere, give me your dispenser.+ She didn!t ait

for a response, but 6uickly s6uirted a li6uid into his recharger bag, massaged it

ith her thin tapered fingers, and suggested, (Try it no.+

e took a sip from the stra, ($amn, that!s almost good.+ e inhaledanother mouthful of the spicy butterscotch flavored li6uid, (8hat the hell is'+

She pressed gently against his ear and hispered, ()arian ale.+

e hispered back, (That!s illegal, isn!t it*+

She smirked, (8ant to give it back*+"iggs chuckled, (9o.+

(4t!s all 4 have left from our celebration. 5ach of us,+ she motioned to theother pathics around the ship, (took a 6uarter of our sign on bonus and thre a

fareell to our friends back home. And it as one hell of a party,+ she poked her

tiny elbo in his ribs and pulsed her eyebros, (if you kno hat 4 mean. 4nursed a killer hangover for the first to eeks of the flight hile e ere inside

the crossover corridor, then 4 ent into the suspension chamber like you beforee entered )rane space.+

e pulsed his eyebros right back, (3es, 3arra, 4!m familiar ith suchcelebrations.+ The blue skinned telepaths ere notorious for the physical antics at

their parties. That!s ho he met his ife, %ali.

3arra tended his hand, draing delicate shapes in his palm as she probeddeeper, (5ver been to 2ega*+

(3es, many years ago. 4t!s here 4 met my'4t!s been a long time.+She examined the crevices of his right hand. (4 don!t blame you for not

going back. The exile colony is a dismal place. That!s hy 4!m here.+ She pointed

to her chest ith pride, (4 as selected as a recruit for the Pallium harvestingpro-ect. %an you believe it* 4 tried for years to get assigned to one of the

battleships as a sensor amplifier, but the ar ended and 4 figured 4 ould neverbe alloed to leave that ugly place. 9o look at me. Am 4 lucky or hat*+

e studied her -ubilant beaming face. 5ven at tenty or tenty one years

old, she retained the expressive innocence of an adolescent, -ust like %ali, -ustlike all pathics from 2ega. To be a child ripped aay from your family, imprisoned

on an arid orld for no sin of your on, -ust the inhumanity of an arrogant

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government& it as difficult to fathom ho they fostered such a constant positiveattitude.

"iggs felt her leg sneak a touch ith his thigh and his male senses -umped

to attention. e surveyed her soft hairless scalp, oversi0ed pupils, and tinychildlike lips, How could anyone not find them stunning creatures.

(4 guess hat they say about the side affects of )arian ale on pathicomen is true.+

She inked, (3ou see the sparkle in my eyes don!t you*+e tittered, (3es, 4 do, but it!s been a long time and 4 as much younger.+

She moved closer and flared her small nostrils, (4!d ask if that as a

problem but 4 can tell from the tempo of your pulse and your thoughts that'+She covered her mouth ith delicate nail less fingers. (4!m sorry, so sorry.+

She buried her face in the crux of her arm, (Please don!t tell them. 4 don!t antto go back. 4 aited so long for my chance. Please.+

''R* Paxton motioned "iggs into his office hile he concluded a call, (4 get it,

e!ve got problems. 8e!ve alays got some damn problem. 3ou get a lot of

credits to solve :em, remember* 9o, you be creative. 4!ll be don to the

operation center in fifteen minutes. $on!t make me pissed hen 4 get there.+e smacked the comm set on his ear. ($amn, "iggs, it!s been a long time.

;ost a little eight. ;ooks good on you.+"iggs scanned the spider pattern of scars emanating from beneath the

patch on Paxton!s left eye. (%an!t say the same. 3our ass and gut remind me of a

Tufus balloon beast. Maybe you should give up the -elly stuffed marshmallos.+

The man across the desk glanced at the pink s6uare in his hand, popped itback in the glass -ar on the table and grunted, (Alays, ith the smart1asscomments.+

Paxton stood and alked to a steel cabinet against the all. e inserted his

thumb in the security box and the double doors opened to four shelves lined ithro after ro of pint bottles. e removed one, relocked the doors, and returned

to his desk. (%ost me a month of credits, but it!s orth it.+Pax took to shot glasses from the top draer of his desk, (The natives

that ferment this stuff refer to it as the Nectar of Angels.

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"iggs shoved the glass back so 6uickly, the top 6uarter inch spilled on thedesk. (4 said no.+ e pointed to the comms device, (4 see you still en-oy tisting

arms of those belo you, Pax. 3ou never learn, do you*+

(Shit, man. 3ou!re not still holding me responsible forever scre up in yourlife, are you* 4 had nothing to do ith your ife!s'+

()ullshit===...)ullshit, Paxton. 3ou didn!t pull the sitch but you delivered usto the devil himself. And no you!ve brought me back again, to help a

government 4 don!t believe in. 8hat do you plan to hold over me this time* 3oualready took %ali. 8hat, you think 4 give a shit about my life.+ "iggs came across

the desk, (3ou scarred faced piece of shit. 4!ve been aiting for this moment for a

long time.+>AP

"iggs dropped to the floor and spasmed three times before going numb. ecame too ith scar face leaning over the desk. (4 figured it as ?@?@ you!d react

like that so 4 had them install the barrier.+ e placed his pulse pistol back in its

holster. (As for myself, 4!d be -ust as happy to burn your head off, but 4!m under

strict orders from the council. 3ou kno, 4 shoot you, they shoot me. 5verythingfor the common'+

"iggs rubbed his chest, ($on!t say it. 4!m sick of hearing that shit.+ e

used the desk to pull up and plopped back in the chair. (8hat makes them think

4 care hat they ant* They have no leverage. 3ou of all people shouldunderstand that, or does ugly sink deeper than your face.+

Paxton smiled, (3ou!ve got granite balls, "iggs. Alays did.+ e lifted thepatch to reveal a cloudy glass eyeball, ("emember, the lost eye and most of

these scars came from our first encounter.+ Pax cast a sinister grin, ()ut 4 don!t

hold it against you. See, 4!ve become compassionate in my old age.+"iggs bit don on his tongue, (Anser the 6uestion, hy am 4 here, and

hat makes them think 4!ll help.+(Trust me. 8hen 4 explain your mission, you!ll ant to help.+ Paxton issued

a peculiar expression for one so evil. (9o, you!ll beg me to let you help.+"iggs sat back in the chair and observed the inged a6uatic creatures in

the all1si0ed a6uarium behind the desk. (Get to the point. 8hy am 4 here,

Paxton*+or several seconds, Paxton picked at the palm of his left hand. 4t as as if

he ere trying to remove a thorn that had orked its ay deep inside andfestered. 9o, it as more like he as struggling against'hat* Above the hite

scar tissue, ithin that one black eye, he as hiding something, a secret he

refused to reveal for fear of'"iggs decided, he hell with it. !end me to a penalcolony.

e drilled into Paxton!s sick mind, only at the primal level, not into hiscognitive functions.

"ear###uncertainty

Paxton pushed back, struggled to bury something else so far don in therecesses of his brain, even a ;evel Six couldn!t penetrate his vault.

"iggs snapped his head.$uilt.

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That as the core emotion he as fighting to hide. "iggs became confused.8ith all the pain this slab of pus had caused in his life, hy no ould Paxton

fear exposure of anything* 9o, it asn!t past discretions& it as hat they ere

doing here, no, at this facility. )ut Pax never violated the %ouncil!s directions.8hat ever as happening on Mors 4sland ould be at the ill and approval of the

%ouncil.(7ut of my head, "iggs=+

/