Jovian Veil: Sentient

By Kurtis Rinas

Taking place a few moments after the dramatic events in Menticide, Llaus finds himself buried within his subconscious, but he can’t ascertain whether he’s dead or caught in some type of meaningless purgatory. Driven by his will to live and fueled with an insatiable desire for revenge, he is fatefully used as a pawn in a sinister plan devised by the Lt. Commander. But chance does not define predestination, as he encounters something dreadful that shifts his perception and alters the course of their fate.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Kurtis Rinas
• Release date: Oct 18, 2018
• ISBN: 9781775122234

Kurtis Rinas

Kurtis Rinas is the author of the 'jOvian veiL' science fiction novella series and is also a multi-instrumentalist in the 'jOvian veiL' band.

Book preview

jOvian veiL - Sentient

Published by Kurtis A. Rinas at Smashwords in 2018

Copyright Kurtis A. Rinas 2018

This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you're reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to your favorite ebook retailer and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

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, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior permission of the copyright owners.

For information regarding permission, email [e-mail]

This book is a work of fiction. Any references to historical events, real people, or real places are used fictitiously. Other names, characters, places, and events are products of the author’s imagination, and any resemblance to actual events or places or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

Ver. 2018-10-18

Table of Contents

Chapter 1 - Pulse of the Eclipse

Chapter 2 - Transience

Chapter 3 - Blessed are the Cursed

Chapter 4 - Journey into the belly of the Sun

Chapter 5 - Prey for the Surge

Chapter 6 - Sentient

About jOvian veiL

Acknowledgements

Chapter 1: Pulse of the Eclipse

Scene I

The biggest of seven suns dominated the landscape as it breached the horizon and set in the distance. The warmth of its life-giving light was slowly dissipating as it appeared to sink deeper and deeper into the abyss of an enormous body of water that stretched out as far as the eye could see. Llaus took a deep breath of the cooling dusk air then slowly exhaled as if he was releasing all of the stress and worries of the day. His mind was blank as he absorbed the serene and peaceful surroundings, but before he could wallow in the tranquility of the moment he felt something gently grab his hand.

He was confused and slightly disoriented as he attempted to look down to see what it was. His reaction was delayed almost as if he wasn’t in control of his own motions. The suddenness of the touch and his delayed reaction startled him to the point where he felt a surge of fictitious intoxication. It was an odd sensation. Standing beside him and looking up with a mischievous grin was a little girl dressed in a beautiful summer dress. She couldn't be any older than 4 or 5 he thought as he tried to steady himself.

‘Who is she?’

‘Do I know her?’

The surge of questions triggered something within Llaus and he instantly remembered what had happened in the moments prior to meeting this young girl.

His awakening…

Outer space…

The descent and crash…

Absorbing the life force…

The Lt. Commander and his goon Doctor…

The torture…

And now this…

‘Am I dead?’

‘Is this what happens after you die?’

Llaus searched and scanned within himself to see if he could feel the life force, Rryl, that attached itself to him, but there was a void within him now. The space that was occupied before was empty, he was empty… and yet, once again he wasn’t alone, only it was different than before. He didn’t know how or why, but a part of him felt like he'd already been here before, that he knew where this was and who she is…. or was?…. He tried to speak but the words wouldn’t come out. He tried to turn towards her but once again he felt like he wasn’t able to control his own actions; he just stood there looking down at her… in admiration?

‘Are those my feelings?’

An uncontrollable sense of swelling pride and love washed over him but, in his mind, he wanted it to stop. He wanted to let go of the little girl’s hand and look around and see where he was, but he wasn’t in control. He felt like he was captured in the mind of another, witnessing first person what they were doing. The sensation was awkward and clumsy, like watching a TV show in first person from the perspective of one of the characters. Llaus wondered if his mind had been transposed into some form of virtual reality that lets you witness and experience the world through the eyes of another. Only you can feel and taste and smell and hear everything as if you were there. But the reality felt too genuine and too authentic to be a fabricated reality, he could sense it. Not from within himself but through the other that he was part of. It was an odd and disorienting sensation of being… a passenger? … but before he could fully rationalize his immediate circumstances the little girl spoke.

Are we going to the beach tomorrow? she said in a squeaky little mouse voice, full of excitement and enthusiasm as if she was already anticipating a favorable answer.

Yes, we are sweetheart he replied; only Llaus didn’t intend to say anything.

Just a moment ago he tried to speak but couldn’t say anything at all and yet just like that he had responded to her request without any thought of his own. Llaus was still struggling with his inability to control the situation he was in. It was like he was forced onto a roller coaster ride, just strapped in and going through the motions. Though he was seemingly unable to control his movements, when he spoke or where he looked, he quickly realized that he was able to control his attention and focus. As long as something was within the peripheral vision of the other then he could look at it.

Llaus continued to observe all of the surroundings as the other continued to look in admiration at the little girl standing beside him. He hadn’t noticed this before, but everything appeared to have a faded blue hue that sort of sucked the life and energy out of everything other than the little girl that held his hand. She was vibrant and bright and lit up the world around her. She was emitting an energy that pulsated and emanated from her core and radiated to her surroundings. Also, everything had a slight blur to their contours, almost out of focus, almost mystical but it didn’t seem abnormal. It felt real, but it didn’t feel present. Llaus felt as though he might be reliving a moment from his life that he had forgotten, or was it just a dream? Perhaps he was dead and this is what the afterlife was really like. Some sort of sick and twisted version of reincarnation that lets you live vicariously through the eyes of another, as a passenger.

Llaus turned his attention back to the beautiful little girl beside him and studied her features as they continued to walk hand in hand. She had long black wavy hair that went past her shoulders by several inches and her eyes were jet blue with tiny little purple specks, they were absolutely stunning. They made her look much older and more mature than she probably was. Her smile was mischievous and playful yet naïve and innocent. She was still holding his hand and walking beside him, but her steps were more like bounces, like a kangaroo hopping and skipping along. She was humming something to herself as she bounced, obviously very happy and comfortable with whoever’s hand she was holding. Even though Llaus was only a passenger in this odd scenario, he could feel and sense the love and admiration this person had for the little girl because ever since she grabbed his hand, the gaze hadn’t shifted away from her.

Can we get ice cream? she asked without looking up or skipping a beat. My favorite is mint chocolate, it’s so yummy! she declared as if stating her favorite type would assure a favorable answer.

Of course we can my dear. Today is your special day he replied with a slight chuckle.

As the sun continued to set he could feel the temperature starting to drop a little. Whatever planet this was had multiple suns and judging from their position in the sky it didn’t appear as though it was going to get completely dark despite the fact that the largest sun was rapidly setting on the horizon. Time was funny in space but time was also funny wherever he was and he wondered if this planet ever had complete darkness.

Look at the butterfly! the little girl proclaimed joyfully as she let go of his hand and went chasing it into a park area ahead. Her hair flowed in the wind as she lifted her hands to the sky to try and catch the floating insect. Llaus, within the other, stopped walking and just stood there watching and admiring her as she ran across the path in front of him, smiling and laughing. Once again, he could feel a sense of love and admiration from within the other but this time he felt it from within himself as well. Although he had only seen this little girl for a few moments he knew he loved her as well. He tried to reason with himself that this was likely an artificial sensation that he was experiencing through the other but the more he watched her, the more he knew that his emotion was real. Her childlike innocence was such a contrast to who he felt like he was and her ability to marvel at something as simple as a butterfly was foreign to his cold and calculated way. Her beauty and purity resonated deep within and touched a part of him that he didn’t even know existed. The other took a shallow breath and tried to hold it in, as if trying to fight off the urge to cry. Then as he exhaled, everything began to disintegrate in front of him. It was like he was blowing away reality and dissolving the landscape in front of him with his pent-up emotion. He looked down at his hands and watched them transform into nothing more than a pixelated blur, and then to nothing at all.

Scene II

Just as everything had disintegrated in front of him, the void of blackness started to change and morph into a new shape. The black shifted in contrast and started to revolve; taking on the shape of a circle with swirling colours that gravitated towards the centre. Llaus was fixated on the circle as it rotated around and around. It was hypnotizing and warm; he could feel heat radiating from the colour transformation swirl, then just like that, he found himself staring up into a sky directly at a sun.

He squinted and instinctively lifted his hand to shield his eyes from the sun, then shifted his gaze out to the horizon. He could see several suns setting in the distance, only this wasn’t the same horizon that he was looking at moments ago; it was dead and desolate. A smoky haze hung onto the desert-like landscape, billowing across the plains as the wind swirled, but like a morning fog, it lingered and clung to the ground.

The smell of dust was mixed with an indistinguishable chemical smell, like Sulphur only sweeter and less potent; it was definitely a non-organic smell that irritated the senses. Despite the haze, Llaus was still able to see for miles into the distance. The rugged terrain stretched as far as the eye could see, reminding him a great deal of where he was prior to entering the Fortress.

‘Prior to dying?’ he wondered.

He still wasn’t sure where he was, if he was dead, where he was going or what kind of journey his consciousness was on but once again he could sense that he was just a passenger, though he seemed to be more in sync with the other this time, or perhaps he was just acclimating to his new role. There was something serene about this setting and once again