Lunara: Seth Smith

By Wyatt Davenport

In the ninth book of the Lunara series, Kirkon Tibor, Robin Acadia, and Nathan Blake fight to save humanity from the evil Sephians. They're only hope is to have trust in three of the most unlikely people in order to forge an alliance capable of defeating an enemy undreamt in the worst human nightmare.

On Mars, Naomi Ravenswood is tasked with the greatest responsibly of her lifetime. Not only does she have to find a way to stop the mysterious enemy invading Mars and Earth but she must save the only person she has ever truly cared loved.

Check out the first book in the series, SETH AND CHLOE.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Wyatt Davenport
• Release date: Jan 28, 2014
• ISBN: 9781311689320

Wyatt Davenport

Wyatt Davenport was born in 1977 in Kingston, Ontario, and grew up in London, Ontario, and Atlanta, Georgia. He currently lives in Seattle with his wife Colleen and their two Siberian Huskies. An avid fan of science fiction and fantasy, Wyatt is inspired by authors like Timothy Zahn, Michael Crichton, Robert Aspirin, and J. R. R. Tolkien.

Book preview

Chapter 1

Molly Lennox, get moving, Naomi scolded the child for the hundredth time on their three days’ journey through the Martian caves.

I’m tired, Molly whined and dragged her feet. Let me rest.

Those masked men won’t rest. They’ll keep coming and coming.

This warning put a jump in the child’s step. The thirty or so people Naomi had rescued from the attack had anointed her their leader—for now. She protested that she and Molly needed to travel alone, but the people, and even Molly, wouldn’t have anything to do with that. Naomi had saved their lives, and for some reason they felt comfortable around her. She had no idea if they knew she was a traitor to Mars or if they had connected Naomi Ravenswood to her likeness. Earlier, she’d dyed her hair blond when she became a fugitive, so she had a partial disguise going. Her chance to leave Mars had passed because she chose to stay and rescue Molly, who was the daughter of her best friend, the person who had unraveled her years of lies.

Where’re these attackers from? someone close behind her asked.

The Sephians announced their arrival over the Martian comm system in Trivium Port, she replied. You heard it like I did.

Who’re the Sephians, then? someone else asked.

Naomi stopped, bristling at their questioning. She had no answers. The attackers weren’t from Earth, and they weren’t Martian. Maybe they’re from Ares—I don’t know.

But the Ares delegation sent out its own transmission disavowing any involvement with these people, an older man replied. Are they the banished humans from four hundred years ago? Or are they from somewhere else in the solar system?

Naomi’s thoughts turned to Saturn Station, but it had been so brutalized after the war started that she didn’t see a way for its people to be the Sephians, either. I don’t know. Stop asking me because I don’t know!

But—

I don’t know!

We’ll never escape! an old woman cried. Mars is doomed.

The attack against Mars had been brutal. Trivium Port, Zephyria, Old Zephyria, Promethia, and Aethpis were all in ruins. Most of Castor and Pollux had been destroyed, but a good part of these two colonies had been built underground, and a small resistance was forming there. The outer colonies, containing less than a thousand people, were still intact, without any signs of Sephian patrol ships. The moons Phobos and Deimos had also been attacked. Naomi hadn’t had the heart to tell Molly that her mother was most likely dead.

She helped Molly move up a long step in the Martian caves. The prospect of raising Molly terrified her more than fighting against the unknown enemy. She was trained for a fight, but she wasn’t prepared to be a mother. At thirty-seven, she’d never felt the urge to procreate because her job was being a spy. Spies didn’t raise kids. And they sure didn’t if their cover-husband was an abusive, loudmouthed fool.

Molly grabbed Naomi’s hand as they walked, and Naomi squeezed it to reassure the ten-year-old.

The cave system around Trivium ran for miles in all directions. She knew of this path as part of her escape plan if she ever needed to leave Trivium without a vehicle. Earth had prepared her for almost every contingency, except a global invasion of Mars. She had no good ideas for getting off Mars—only daring and stupid ones.

Where’re we going? Molly whispered.

This path leads to a small spaceport where we can steal a shuttle and leave Mars. But with thirty people and a global blockade from a monstrous invasion force, she anticipated that leaving Mars would be hazardous. She didn’t think she had the stomach to try it.

They walked downward for some time. The group was slowed by a series of two-foot holes. Everyone needed to get on their bellies and push the person in front of them. Naomi didn’t like the time it took for the group to pass through, but it did keep the masked men from using any vehicles to follow them.

Where’re we going? one of the group asked. Some of us need breathing masks now.

Naomi turned back. If you want to follow me, you have to trust me.

The man whined. But we have elders. Needing to use breathing masks makes it difficult for them. You must slow down.

Naomi let out a breath and dropped her shoulders in surrender. Have the strongest pair up with an elder and help them along. How many do we have?

Six or seven.

Naomi gestured to a group of highschool boys. You help them.

They did as they were told. The group’s speed didn’t increase much, but she didn’t hear any of the heavy breathing anymore. Being from Earth, Naomi slipped on her breathing mask to be safe. Oxygen deprivation could sneak up quickly, and she didn’t want to suffer through the rigors of the Martian flu, as it was called. Molly put hers on at the same time as Naomi.

The little girl had been a small version of Naomi since she’d rescued her. Molly wore the same brand of universal skintight suits, and on her head were a pair of the same vision goggles. The only difference between the two was Molly’s sneakers and Naomi’s high-heeled shoes. The heels in Naomi’s shoes were designed for any type of terrain, and she preferred them to a normal sneaker or boot because they added value as a hidden weapon. She’d installed blades on the inside of the stilettos in case of trouble. They’d bailed her out plenty of times.

After another hour of walking and a deviation from their path away from the small port to the countryside of Mars, she found the mouth of one of the caves. In front of the cave’s opening was a planitia stretching to the horizon. Algae farms dotted the landscape.

She moved, with Molly close behind her, out of the cave, standing for the first time in three days with only the sky over her head. The morning was warm, and the fine red sand blew hard over Elysium Planitia. The wind circled around the hill they were on, forming dust devils in spots, swirling up hundreds of feet; other spots were still, without pattern or meaning.

To her right, a road wound across the planitia’s hillside. It was paved with the typical reddish Martian concrete. Some spots were swept clean, and others were maligned with sand dunes from the constant dust hitting against the hill. The road created vulnerability for the group; yet the road was their safest alternative because it led somewhere, hopefully, to some out-of-the way oasis of civilization.

That’s Kirkon Tibor’s house, Molly said, on top of the hill.

How do you know that? Naomi asked, but the girl was right. Everyone knew that Tibor’s mansion in Elysium bored into the side of the hills.

I remember the wall. The girl pointed up the slope behind them. My class toured it last year.

Naomi craned her neck, and again the girl was correct. The perimeter walls stretched up the hill and around Tibor’s house. It might be the perfect hideout for the group. It would have its own water source and probably a lifetime supply of algae bars. Anyone living in the barrens of Mars had emergency supplies.

Kirkon Tibor was the richest man in the solar system, or at least he was until recently. He and his sister had disappeared mysteriously just before the Earth war started, probably victims of the Sephian attackers.

Naomi patted Molly on the head. Let’s go find out who’s home.

I thought you said walking outside was dangerous.

It is, she replied, but we’re far enough from Triv to risk it. We can’t stay inside forever.

I’ll get the others, Molly said.

Naomi grabbed her. No, we’ll scout first. It would be risky to have thirty people walking around. This is your first lesson in survival. Always know what’s ahead.

Molly nodded and zipped her suit to her chin.

Naomi instructed the others to wait at the cave’s entrance until she returned. They agreed, partly because they knew she was right, but mostly because everyone was exhausted.

Naomi and Molly walked up the desolate stretch of road. After negotiating plenty of switchbacks and hopping over numerous dunes, they reached the iron gates to the mansion, taller than Naomi by double. A stone wall formed a respectable enclosure around the main building. The wall seemed to be built less for intruder prevention and more for wind blocking, so Naomi was confident they could get in without much trouble.

The two quickly looked around the rungs in the doors for signs of life, or some sort of signaling device that Naomi could activate to test the goings-on in the building. They found nothing.

Your first mission, Naomi said.

What do I have to do? the girl asked sheepishly. I can’t go in there alone.

No, Naomi said, as she took off the girls backpack and goggles. She adjusted Molly’s breathing mask to fit more tightly and dusted the dirt off to double-check the girl’s sleekness. An Earth girl wouldn’t be able to make it.

Molly’s eyes widened. Through the gate?

Yep, there should be a button on the other side to release it.

Though her eyes widened with concern, Molly didn’t argue. She moved to the gate and slipped through without effort.

Naomi tried, but her hips were too big. Find the button.

Molly ran to the hut closest to the gate. Naomi could hear the girl’s footsteps on the hard floor as she spun around looking for the release.

I don’t see it! Molly shouted. Help me!

The wind picked up, and it was hard for them to hear each other.

What color is it? Molly shouted again.

Stay calm, Naomi said, but the wind was gathering, and it wasn’t easy for her to communicate with the freaking-out girl.

Molly ran out of the hut. I don’t see it. I’m not smart enough.

Naomi waved for Molly to come back to her. The girl ignored her and ran to another control panel on the opposite side of the gate. The door to the other hut was open, and Molly examined the inside.

A howling gust created an eerie whistle as it came over the top of the mansion. Debris flew everywhere, coming from whatever had been left outside the house.

Molly fiddled with the control box until finally the gate clicked. Naomi pushed it open a few inches, but it was heavy and hard to move. With all her might, she shoved it a few more inches.

I got it! Molly jumped up and down in excitement.

Help me, then, Naomi replied.

Before Molly could run over, a tarp thrown by the wind came from the house and covered the girl. Molly screamed. She kicked and thrashed at the tarp, but it appeared she was making everything worse by wrapping the material around her. She tumbled across the rocky terrain, headed toward the other side of the hill. The wind gusted again, dragging her toward the edge.

Naomi reared back and launched herself against the gate. It moved another foot. She did it again and spilled inside. Like a crazed woman, she sprinted toward Molly, arriving just as the girl managed to stop herself.

Stay on the ground, Naomi shouted.

But the girl was too much in a panic to listen, or it was too windy for her to hear. Molly stood, which created a larger surface area for the wind to grab the tarp again. It lifted the girl upward and back, and she flew through the air toward the hill’s edge.

Naomi pushed her legs hard. The acid in her muscles burned from the days of walking. Meters away from Molly and meters from the edge, Naomi dove and grabbed the border of the tarp.

The gusts continued to pull them closer to the edge. Even her weight wasn’t enough to stop them. She reached into her waist-side pouches, removed one of her throwing knives, and swung it close to Molly’s head under the tarp. With a rowing motion, she pulled the blade back and cut a large hole in the tarp.

Molly’s face was rife with concern the moment their eyes locked. Naomi dug her heels into the ground, and at the same time reached her hand to grab Molly’s arm. The girl stopped instantly. The tarp flew out around her and continued down the hill toward a lifetime on the barrens.

Naomi pulled Molly in close to her to check her for injuries. You okay?

I hate the wind, the girl said through her tears. She pulled back from Naomi. Where did the cloth come from?

Naomi looked over her shoulder. Looks like the mansion was closed down a few weeks ago when Tibor disappeared. My guess is someone didn’t do a good job of securing whatever he wanted covered.

Why do they cover stuff?

To block the Martian sandstorms. You know how rich people like toys.

Oh, probably one of those Thunderbird Hypercars.

I hope so. Naomi smiled at the girl. Maybe we can take it for a spin.

Really? Molly wiped the tears from her face. Sorry I cried.

You were brave to go in alone. That’s what counts.

They walked to the side of the mansion. The large structure was built in an adobe style. It reminded Naomi of Admiral Poole’s residence, only this house was four times the size, with an even better view. Olympus Mons towered to the east, while Adlor Mons stretched into view from the west. The planitia to the south was even more visible, with an even deeper shade of green covering the landscape.

Wow, Molly said. It’s like Earth down there.

Naomi nodded, still feeling a bit guilty at the mention of Earth. She didn’t like any Martians, even little girls, seeing her as a traitor. Let’s find a way in.

I’m not crawling through any more gates.

Naomi laughed. Unless Kirkon Tibor likes fresh air and the cold, the house is probably airtight.

The front door to the house was locked, and so were the five other doors they found along the windowed rooms to the east side of the house. Naomi figured those would be locked, as they were the master’s doors. She needed to find the servants’ entrance because they usually were forgotten. The rich didn’t think of them in their haste.

Molly found a set of stairs leading down to a single doorway. Carefully maneuvering over the sandy covering, the two reached the bottom and dug sand out a few feet from the doors. Naomi twisted the handle, and it pulled open enough for them to enter.

After fifteen minutes of walking around the mansion’s endless hallways, Molly plopped herself down on a couch and put her feet on the table. I’m tired.

Get up, Naomi said. We don’t rest until we know the mansion is secure, and definitely not before the others are here. We don’t have the luxury of napping.

You’re just like my mother with homework, the girl grumbled and rolled off the couch to her feet. What’re we looking for?

That. Naomi pointed down the hallway to the laboratory. Kirkon’s private lab for his research. He’ll have a DNA sequencer in there.

Who do we need to look for?

Naomi led Molly down the hallway into the lab. It was empty aside from the usual microscopes, beakers, burners, dishes, and tables. The masked men who attacked us. I have some of their DNA. With it, I can figure out what colony they came from. If we know that, we can start a fight against them.

I thought Kirkon Tibor built spaceships, Molly said. Why’s he looking at DNA?

You’re a smart girl to notice that. In his spare time, he looks for a cure for his daughter. She was badly injured in a shuttle accident.

I heard about that. Bobby Keeley said she roams the bottom levels of Trivium as a zombie.

Zombie?

Kari Tibor! Molly put her arms out to mimic a zombie. I’m coming to eat your brains.

Don’t make fun of her tragedy. That isn’t true. She’s in a protective bunker somewhere on Mars. Kirkon is keeping her alive until he can fix her injuries because not even a bio regenerator can help her.

She’s deformed and has pieces missing? Sounds like a zombie to me.

Stop it. Naomi removed the fragment of clothes from her backpack. The blood was dry and completely covered the fragment. She clipped off a piece and stuffed the rest back in the pack. Hand me those two pieces of glass.

Molly hopped to the end of the counter. These ones?

Yes. Grab the edges so you don’t contaminate the samples. If I discover that a little girl attacked us, it’ll lead back to you.

I won’t be sloppy. Carefully, Molly used both hands to bring Naomi two sheets of the glass.

And get me a beaker from the table, Naomi ordered next.

The girl returned with the beaker. She hopped up on the stool and rested her knees on the seat and her elbows on the counter. Intensely, she watched Naomi pour the dissolving solution into the beaker.

This’ll separate the blood from the cloth, Naomi instructed as she pushed the cloth into the beaker. Rock the beaker back and forth gently to mix it up.

Molly grabbed the beaker and circled it around in her hand. Naomi guided her to an ideal rhyme and then let go. Naomi knew Molly’s fascination had always been with activity and not learning out of books. The two of them didn’t have much hope for escape from Mars, but she did want to help the little girl have one adventure in her life. Most likely, they would be caught soon.

Place it here. Naomi pointed to the countertop. Molly put the beaker down, and Naomi guided a pipette into the solution and pulled out as much liquid as she could. With four quick squirts, she put dots on the glass sheet, then pushed the remaining blood solution into a DNA sequencer. Push that.

Naomi allowed Molly to start the machine to get the data back. The DNA sequencer vibrated slightly and started its analysis.

How long?

Two or three minutes, Naomi said.

What’s the sheet of glass for? Molly looked at it closely.

Naomi retrieved a bottle of blood-testing solution from the shelf. When I put this on the blood, it will react with our samples here and tell us which type of blood this person has. Martians are almost all type A’s and B’s, and earthlings are a mix of everything. If we get an O, we know it’s an earthling.

Can I squirt it? Molly asked.

I’ll handle this one, Naomi replied. You watch, and next time I’ll let you try it.

The four solutions for testing blood mixed with the sample. She waited a minute for the agglutination to occur in some of the samples, but nothing happened. The blood and the solution refused to mix together.

Odd, she muttered. It’s supposed to turn blue or greenish if it mixes or if it doesn’t.

It’s still red, Molly said. Did you mess up?

No, she replied. I did it correctly. Maybe Tibor’s solution is old.

Everything is so clean in here. I don’t think anything is old.

Naomi looked around. Molly was correct. The laboratory was spotless, and its labeling system seemed to be accurate. If Kirkon Tibor was looking for his daughter’s cure, he had more than enough money to keep his equipment and chemicals up-to-date.

It’s black! Molly exclaimed. What does that mean?

Naomi looked at the tar-like solution that had formed on her glass plate. I don’t know.

The DNA sequencing machine chimed loudly, startling both of them. Molly read the screen as the data came across it. Non-human. Bipedal Humanoid. What does that mean?

Means that Earth didn’t attack us.

If it wasn’t human, what was it? Are they monsters?

I’m afraid so, Naomi replied, forgetting for a moment she was talking to a ten-year-old.

Shocked, Molly backed away from the counter and hit her leg on the table behind her. She stumbled and threw her arms out, knocking glassware to the floor in pieces. What do you mean monsters? she asked worriedly. They aren’t real.

These monsters are, Naomi muttered. She had been prepared for anything but aliens. However, it explained the ships, the mystery, the cloaking, and the strength and speed of their bodies. These monsters are from another solar system, and they’ve come for us.

Chapter 2

The waving alien trees blew back from the landing area. With the barest of bumps, the pilot set down the shuttle on a tower overlooking a large open expanse of grass and trees.

Well, here we are, Pirra said to Kirkon. The planet Parrack. Remember, I warned you about the wild beasts.

We ran into some beasts on Source Three, and you said we were okay in the towers.

We are, she assured him, but look below.

From the passenger window, several four-legged animals were visible roaming across the grassy plains. They looked like rhinoceroses with two splitting horns and several ridges along their spines. If he wasn’t mistaken, the extra protection meant the beast had evolved to stop something even fiercer than a lion.

From the left, a clawed, bearlike creature dashed from the trees. It must’ve weighed in excess of ten thousand pounds, with a huge gait and a massive bulk being carried by four tree trunks for legs.

The rhino-like animals scattered away, but the hulking creature was surprisingly fast. The bearlike creature’s fur rippled with a pink hue as it came into the reddish sun of the Parrack star. It kicked hard, closing the gap in a matter of seconds. With a swipe of its claw, the beast crippled a rhino-like animal. With a violent pounce, it tore through the neck muscles, tore out the throat, and flung it high into the air as if taking part in some sort of ritual.

The people on the shuttle gasped in horror. Kirkon must’ve done the same because Pirra smirked at him with a superior, knowing grin.

Kodiaks. Don’t have the stomach for it? she kidded. You won’t last a day on Parrack.

I thought you’ve never been here.

Pirra crossed her arms. I’ve done the sims.

So you’re an expert, he chided. I’m glad we’re the only ship from Sephian Prime to come to Parrack. It’ll raise fewer questions.

Do you think they care about outsiders anyway?

It’s the number of outsiders that might come. If your people are fleeing your solar system, it’s going to be better if Parrack isn’t overwhelmed. We might be restricted then.

Outsiders won’t flee. They’re regrouping to fight.

Kirkon shook his head at her. Where? How? Fight with what? These people on the shuttle fled, so why don’t you think the others wouldn’t?

Pirra looked around at the people filing off the shuttle. I always thought we would fight.

Kirkon put his hand on her knee. You will. But not immediately.

As they shuffled off the shuttle, Kirkon stopped Pirra to warn her about the weapons she was carrying. She refused to give up her knife, and to her credit, she was prepared for such a circumstance. She inverted her jacket inside out to reveal a casual-looking blond leather coat, her knife still tucked into the sheath now inside the coat.

Kirkon ditched the laser pistols they’d stolen from the scouts into a trash bin, and they strode into the vast city known simply as the Capital. The city was constructed as a series of towers along the Serengeti-like plains that dominated this region of the planet. Each of the towers was spade-shaped, with a flat top for landing numerous ships.

Hurried by the ground crew, they traveled downward through the spiraling ramps and staircases to the wondrous windows lining the outside of the tower. Spacegates connected each of the ninety visible towers running in a flowering pattern across the terrain. Between each of the towers, the game roamed and the predators hunted. He’d seen several spectators enjoying the view.

He flicked his finger at the