Songs of Cosmos Prologue: Songs of Cosmos, #1

By Filip Majkić

Songs of Cosmos Prologue is an intro-book into Songs of Cosmos series, a Sci-Fi/political novel crossed with Space Opera that deals with the questions that have always been relevant to humankind. Conserve or destroy the order? What is just and on what scale? Who has the authority to set everything ablaze? Where are all the Gods and how they come into existence? Is there any such thing as supreme authority? Will we ever change and do we have the right or liability to always hope to do better than how we do today?

The story follows young Count, a System Master from the outer reaches of what will be the known Cosmos at his time. He takes over his domain, Svarog system, with some reluctance, after the tragic death of his brother on the throne world Vodan. However, he has some ideas about the order that do not correspond with the official policies, so he has to mask all his intentions and survive against the odds. To do that, he combines his civil authority as a System Master with his military authority, using his birthright to push through military ranks quickly, and his military rank to deal with his enemies, which he does ruthlessly with the help of the trusted friend and large organization they created.

This is a story that brings him to the crossroads and pushes him over the edge. Before, he was a young but not so powerful noble from the provincial system, a nobody with an old and dignified name in the eyes of central authorities. He does not only enhance his power, but gains the most dangerous ally of all - new ideology, one he is willing to fight for as he considers it beneficial for both himself and his people. In a galaxy dangerously divided among the descendants of the Wends and the Goths, that means he will either have to forfeit his life at some point and see everything he created burn to ashes, or he will push through to the very end. On top of all, the Empire faces new, mortal threat by the forgotten ones...

Stay tuned for:

Book I: Eagle’s Ascent
Book II: Whirlwinds of War
Book III: The Last Ruler of All Men
 

• Language: English
• Publisher: Filip Majkić
• Release date: Apr 3, 2016
• ISBN: 9781519939913

Filip Majkić

Tech journalist, Editor, Novelist, enjoys everything SciFi in any shape or form. Author of the Songs of Cosmos book series. Always looking forward to new challenges!

Book preview

Filip Majkić

Songs of Cosmos

Prologue

I rise up from you, oh, Nile,

I am not for the Earth, I am for the sky,

I have soared to the skies of heaven,

I have kissed the sky as a falcon,

I am the essence of a god, the son of a god, the messenger of a god

Behold! The faithful and loving has come to Osiris,

As the star of Orion, the beautiful one,

I have come that I may glorify Orion,

My soul is a star of gold,

And with Him I will traverse the sky,

Forever!

The oldest documented poem in the world, from the walls of the Egyptian pyramids

––––––––

What is the cosmos? If the cosmos is all there is, the answer is obvious­­­­. The cosmos is man's war. The continuing war of the fittest, a continuous struggle for survival. The primeval wickedness made the universe a man's tool for proving himself. The universe hasn’t always been this big, but it has always been the same. What was the universe for cavemen, or small rural communities on the fringes of major rivers? Their universe was their world, where they lived, worked, rejoiced and created. Where they survived. To accomplish all this, they had to fight. Men’s universe is war, and war is men's universe. And many thousands of years ago it was the same as today.

Not even for a tiny bit has the human race changed since it soared into the darkness of the cosmos, seeking flickers of the light, like a signpost that would lead it to a new life, new planets, new chances for salvation in the eternal expansion of infinite mass of stars, vacuum, dark matter and the elements. On the contrary, the greatest tragedies of history had just then begun. Or maybe they are just repeating, but on a larger scale, the cosmic scale that for many orders of magnitude exceeds the planetary, and every one that precedes it. For planetary tragedy has become a matter of ancient history, but still it hasn’t forced a man to learn something from it.

One lie was exchanged for another, just like the truth.

If only humankind could remember. If only young could remember suffering and pains, fears and hopes of older generations.

Despite many chances for redemption, men rarely dared to use those opportunities. It took hard work, and superhuman determination. So, is redemption even a category for humans, or a superhuman idea? Can only gods essentially forgive, and decide who is worthy of that forgiveness? 

This and other similar thoughts travelled through Yu-tan’s mind. She had always wondered if she was able to adequately portray the feelings she had while they were looking through the visor as Helios VII prepared do devour the long uninhabitable and deserted planet Svarog in front of their eyes. Of course, this wasn’t happening today, nor tomorrow, nor in the years to come, and yet, perhaps just today, tomorrow or the following year, the expanding red giant will explode and wipe the remains of its system away, the remains it had already turned into red flame. Will younger students ever realize what Svarog gave to the cosmos? Do children even understand what goes on around here? Are they able to perceive all the layers of history and heritage in their core, while they look at the sight, which could, at any given moment, become the final epic of the big star? Yu-tan wondered for a moment whether she was being selfish, if she brought the youth to the grave of the planet Svarog for the right reasons, or perhaps her students were looking at her the same way pupils looked at their teachers in the human prehistory when they talked about ancient times, without any real interest on the pupils’ side.

Just for a moment, because she was sure He had not deserved it. Someone she admired, someone whose resurrection perhaps she secretly hoped for, even though her own beliefs and all the mankind’s scientific knowledge clearly indicated that such a thing was impossible. A completely different flame once burned on this scorching planet, the embodiment of the hopes and aspirations of humanity, in the ages long since passed, neatly catalogued and – almost forgotten. For all, except for the few leading lights such as Yu-tan. And now she has to transfer that fire to youths gathered around her, whom she led to this almost forgotten part of the galaxy. Who will remember and pass on the knowledge of the Age of Enlightenment, as some call it, or the Age of Terror, as others do – if not them.

Today there are oceans of incandescent lava where once oceans of life used to be. On that exact spot dwelt a man who changed the cosmos forever. Perhaps few people remember him now, but his thoughts and deeds live forever, she thought. Even if he was never right, then my consolation will be that we shall meet after death, she used to say quietly to herself back in the days when she was in the young ones’ shoes.

Gather round! – echoed her not so strident voice, while the visor showed scenes from the golden period of the planet disappearing before their eyes. Would the characters she obsessively researched dismissively look upon them, their distant, distant descendants, with figures changed beyond recognition compared to the human race from the Age of Enlightenment? Maybe they would be considered immature because they look like elongated babies from their era, deformed... or simply inadequate? At that time, inadequacy was deadly – to the ones stigmatized as such, of course. Would they laugh, or be disgusted? However, three-dimensional visor was never two-way and the characters and events that were shown on it belong to an era long gone.

Today I will talk about the most powerful of all gods of antiquity – the one who sent all other gods into the chest of oblivion. He was born in the year 20245 of the standard universal calendar or 74 years before the so-called New-imperial time. Yes, at first he was just a man... you all probably know who I'm talking about?

Chapter I

God of war, god of death

Altman set foot on the command bridge directly from the rear chamber, which was the privilege of the highest ranking officers. Although his rank and origins did not allow him to be among the leaders of this expedition, the endless confidence of the count and the fact that he had served as his special adviser and acting adjutant commander of the expedition allowed him various things that a bastard off the street could only dream of, not only on this expedition. Their last, as many believed.

He looked down at a command position. Although he couldn’t see the commander from where he was standing, he could see the immense terminals stretching beneath them, and a bunch of people busily issuing signals and orders, communicating, and hectically and feverishly using the apparatus as if it was their last chance, cheering each other in those difficult moments. He went to the command chair while still looking at the bridge, and, knowing he couldn’t be heard by those below, uttered:

Will the gods will be on our side today, or will luck abandon us?

Hearing these words, the count Orel turned together with command chair and console, not for one second changing the look on his face. Cold, ordinary face which didn’t reveal any emotion. But Altman knew that beneath that facade Orel was permanently boiling inside, and he always liked to take the opportunity to shake up his old friend. If people of their social status, as well as military engagements could even afford such a luxury to consider each other friends, despite unbreakable ties that bind them together.

Orel was actually thankful for every occasion that allowed him to break down the facade which he had carefully been building since childhood. The count, guardian of the planet Svarog, as were all his ancestors from the noble family von Maichof, was in his late thirties. At the top of his strength, but not without experience, which many wrongly assumed, looking at him through the prism of his age which barely reached one fifth of a lifetime of an average man at that time, let alone one of a highborn. For many, it was a big mistake; they themselves were not aware how lucky were those for whom the error was not the last, and there were quite a few of both.

Altman, when did you start asking incoherent questions and pointlessly interrupting me?

A barely noticeable smile escaped Altman. At no point did he lose his willpower, you're in good hands, boys. You have no idea how good, he thought, still looking down the bridge as people frantically served terminals, tense because at any moment they may clash with the enemy.

The instruments were not of much help. The sensors were useless inside the outside cover of the gas giant, also because of densely concentrated neutrinos. Still, their presence alone spoke more than enough – the enemy was there, nearby. The escape to the subspace was virtually impossible. The battle had to be taken upon and won. Or they should silently let the enemy pass, hoping they wouldn’t notice any anomalies or quirks in the concentration of substances of the gas giant, where Orel’s fleet was hiding, defying the enormous gravity force. There is no help in space, and no one can hear the screams.

I am convinced that the God of War will justify his name, and I believe only in him, Altman said quietly, reaching down to touch the Count's shoulder just for a moment. Lasers of the surrounding guards were already pointing at his chest, back, face, retrieving only as his arm left the Count's shoulder. The matter of protocol. Pressing the button on the panel integrated in his command post, Orel ordered, Fleet, forward!

Almost instantly, his command echoed a hundred times while the operators were sending the messages to the appropriate sections of the fleet under the command of count Orel. He was born for this, everyone thought. After completing military school with exceptional grades, Orel decided to take advantage of all the opportunities his position opened. Instead of serving in the Imperial Army of the lowest ranks, which was not appropriate for the System Master, he formed his own fleet, taking many risks and investing his own savings, as well as funds of several related families. Family von Maichof was, theoretically speaking, very respectable. However, its brightest days were in the distant past; except that they were described in the archives as one of the most responsible families for the establishment of the Empire. The fact that the founder of the family was the closest collaborator of the first Kaiser was no longer so important. Friends were long gone. The sector of the universe, which used to be an important direction of expansion of the Empire became the battlefield for various conflicts, which have taken their toll. The position in the circles of nobles from the center of the Empire had been long lost, and the family ties were no longer carefully nursed, unlike many other families of the System Masters. Moreover, Svarog had for so long been exposed to the whirlwinds of the triple border of the Empire that wasn’t supposed to be, with Thor’s Children and the Collective. With trade routes suffering and being subjected to numerous attacks, Svarog was losing its importance over the centuries. To make the matters worse, Orel’s older brother Leonid died, losing a large part of the family fortune. Orel was anxious for revenge, but not so much for the love of his brother. Love was a very debatable concept among the highborn. No, he wanted revenge for the wounds of his own vanity, his family nest, his pride. But there was the time and the place for revenge. The place was Vodan, the capital planet of the Empire. Time? Who knows? Certainly not now. Now his fleet, which was obtained thanks to the earlier successful work done for the Superior Command on Terra, with his personal engagement, as well as the investments of the surrounding nobles, led an uncertain fight on the verges of life and death. No room for any desires, no room for any type of longing. Thor's Children, a group of bandits, pirates, destroyers, they had to be wiped out. For starters.

Under their direct control, Thor's Children had seven systems in the Zeta nebulas. But their sting was felt much, much further. They were growing for centuries, joined by various fugitives, avengers who bore a grudge against the Empire, victims of terror, but also nobles of the Empire who were cursing their luck and fate being left without any other options. They were all welcome to former thuggish litter on the fourth planet of the Kage Zeta system. And they all contributed to the growing ambitions, the strengthening of the organization and gaining state contours of the entire territories they controlled. They were not big enough for the Empire to take them seriously, nor were they small enough to be blown away easily by some local noblemen, especially in the galaxy of the 21 millennium of the Empire era, which had many easier targets. In other words, they were a tough nut to crack. They often went to the attacks and raids from their bases, which they usually finished successfully, managing to escape the chases and slip into the safety of their Kage Zeta system, protected by the Zeta Secunda nebula. Over time, the surrounding systems came to the conclusion that there was no point in fighting them with the hope that one day some imperial commander would remember to send his fleet their way, but that was easier to simply move out, or to conform. Then the Thor’s Children ran wild and became, among other things, one of the major reasons why this sector of space which was once dominated by Svarog turned into a lethargic point of conflict, despite enormous resources located there. Thor’s Children were not interested in exploiting them; why work when you can take? Besides, it would require systematic work, planning, and enormous human and material resources - resources that could be far better used to conquer the depths of the Empire’s territories.

It was an enemy that is Orel firmly resolved to do away with forever. In order to carry this out, he convinced the local command of the Empire to provide him with two hundred ships. He provided additional six hundred ships, from the Svarog system. Three hundred ships were given by the surrounding lords, either declarative subordinates to the von Maichof family, or simply interested in eradicating the threat that the Thor’s Children represented. However, that was not enough, especially bearing in mind the structure of the available ships. Thor’s Children had almost three thousand vessels at their disposal, nearly half of which were far faster than anything Orel could count on. Fortunately, speed was not particularly important for the fleet