Resonant

By LC Morgans

In the year 3030, an alien race named the Thrakorian’s invaded Earth, and won.

Over twenty years later, the humans have finally discovered the truth behind their invasion, albeit too late. The Thrakorian’s weren’t on Earth to protect or to preserve the dying planet and its overpopulated race. They had an ulterior motive. The were there on a research mission, looking to their distant cousins for aspects of their DNA that might be used to help cure the Thrakorian’s of a vicious disease plaguing their kind—Ehrad.

Having taken what they wanted, they’ve left the Earth behind to die, along with billions of humans refused sanctuary on their home planet of Thrakor. And so, with their precious human cargo in tow, the Thrakorian’s are headed home with hopes of a better life for all those affected by the Ehrad disease once they reach it.

Aboard their mother ship, Kyra Millan has been stowed away by her boyfriend and Thrakorian superior, Thrayke. His plan is to keep her hidden while onboard and then sneak her home with him so they can be together, but all without the attentive eye of their leader, King Kronus, watching over them. Watching her.

If only things were that simple...

• Language: English
• Publisher: LMauthor
• Release date: Jan 5, 2020
• ISBN: 9780463267684

LC Morgans

LC Morgans is an author with an obsession for telling powerful stories. Her YA science fiction series is a story set a thousand years in the future, and one where humans have used and abused the planet beyond repair to both the earth itself and to society. Close to cataclysm, an alien race called the Thrakorian's step in to save the planet, and the humans, but at a price. The human race is then enslaved to their new masters, albeit willingly, and this is the story of a young girl and her journey into adulthood beneath their reign.

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Resonant

Book #3 in the Invasion Day series

By LC Morgans

Copyright LC Morgans

All rights reserved

This book is also available in print.

License Notes

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 destroy it and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are the products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

Cover art by LC Morgans

Cover photographs © courtesy of www.bigstock.com

When you lose it all, perhaps all is not lost.

But then again, maybe it was never yours to begin with…

A Brief History of Earth, humankind, and its demise.

(If you needed a reminder…)

"The human race will ultimately be responsible for its own demise. It is with great certainty that I alert you of this now, and you heed my warnings. What we have called the ‘benefits culture’ hundreds of years has caused profound chaos to our world and its economy, and it is damage I fear we will not return from." President of the USA, Harold Chant, the year 2465.

~~~~~~~~~

"We need to find alternative fuels and a cure for overpopulation. But short of a miracle or genocide, I fear it’s too late…" Queen Anastasia of England, the year 2989.

~~~~~~~~~

In the year 3030 an alien species known as the Thrakorian’s attacked Earth. On Invasion Day, the extraterrestrial race invaded the planet by force, however such influence was not needed. The Thrakorian’s took control easily from the indigenous race that foolishly believed they possessed it, and any who opposed the new reign were killed instantly. Many were slain publicly to demonstrate that the invaders weren’t interested in taking prisoners and some lives were taken just show how uninterested the Thrakorian’s were in negotiation with the leaders of the old world. Soldiers stormed the streets, homes, businesses, schools, and churches. They obliterated over half of all the human population on their first wave, and then enslaved the rest who would go on to either work or die under their new leader, King Kronus. They had travelled millions of light-years to Earth for the invasion and the mission was carried out with precision and tact. It was by all accounts an easy harvest and the humans were left ashamed by their lack of fight—and rightly so.

Thraks looked human, and spoke their various languages, but soon replaced the previously adopted concepts of both nationality and race with a simplified version. Those who survived were given one language to speak exclusively—English, and were henceforth simply called ‘humans.’

Their lives as they once knew were shattered by the new powerful regime. In the days that followed, humans were split into classes and sectors, microchipped like cattle, and put to work. None could match the strength, skill and intellect of the Thrakorian race, and their technology far surpassed that which the humans had once believed to be innovative and impressive.

From that day forward, every human knew their place and were taught to be grateful for all their powerful masters had given them, or else suffer.

And yet, they weren’t there to protect or to preserve a dying planet and its overpopulated race. They had an ulterior motive. They were there on a research mission, looking to their distant cousins for aspects of their DNA that might be used to help cure the Thrakorian’s of a vicious disease plaguing their kind—Ehrad.

Everything changed when the Thrakorian scientists finally cracked the human genetic code and found the answers that’d been evading their reach for over two decades. They took what they wanted and left the Earth behind to die, along with billions of humans. And so, with their precious human cargo in tow, they headed home with hopes of a better life for all those affected by the Ehrad disease once they reached Thrakor.

If only things were that simple…

Glossary of terms, and general information regarding the Thrakorian reign.

Earth’s new class structure (in descending order):

King Kronus

Kings Guard Service (a separate entity to the regular Thrakorian army consisting of its highest honored members.)

Thrakorian Royal Armed Forces

Thrakorian civilians

Mixed-breeds (those whose families were forged years before Invasion Day to establish a presence on Earth prior to the arrival of their species. Many ensured they were appointed heads of state or elected Kings and Queens of countries due to be overruled by King Kronus on his arrival.)

Gentry (Humans with extraordinary talent, intellect, or skill worthy of a higher standing above all others of their race. They are handpicked by the King’s chief advisors, and are expected to work hard if they want to keep their place. Many were branded as traitors to their race, while most were envied for the strength of will and readiness to serve—and their sinister tactics were well rewarded.)

Human Royal Armed Forces (dependent on rank)

Human upper-class

Human middle-class

Human lower-class

Convicts (those tried and judged by the Lawbringer for crimes against their King. They are treated like vermin and ordered to work for nothing but basic food and shelter rations in service to their overlords and housed in specialized areas away from the general human population. In return for training and further provisions, many well-behaved convicts are often given more responsibility if they show willingness and repentance for their crimes.)

Rebels (the lowest of all humans, and considered to be of zero worth to the Thrakorian reign. They are hunted down and killed on sight, while their sympathizers are gunned down or exiled in the arid lands formerly known as South America, where the radioactive atmosphere and barren landscape offered nothing but a long and painful death.)

~~~~~~~~~

Human Royal Armed Forces rank structure (in descending order):

Gentry:

General

Elite Officers:

Colonel

Captain

Secondary Soldiers:

Lieutenant

Sergeant

Primary Soldiers:

Corporal

Recruit

Convict

~~~~~~~~~

Thrakorian Royal Armed Forces rank structure (in descending order):

King Kronus

Kings Guard Service: (Only one of each title is awarded, and they are masters of all soldiers beneath them.)

Chief of Defense

Lawbringer (judge and juror of all who stray from the laws)

Besieger (Capturer of rebels and rogues)

Master Protector (the personal guard of the King)

Marshals of the Army, Navy, and Air force

Regular Thrakorian Royal Armed Forces:

Paladin (the highest rank bestowed on a soldier, given to those renowned for braveness, intellect, heroism and loyalty to the King.)

Lorde (a superior warrior, respected and heralded for their mastery in their field or fields.)

Duke (the strongest fighters and most experienced conquerors.)

Sentinel (a soldier who guards their division and keeps watch over their comrades.)

Inquisitor (a soldier who’s highly trained to seek out information, by any means necessary. Nothing is forbidden, and a long and painful death would come for any human who refuses them.)

Master (regular soldiers who work alongside humans to ensure they are following orders and not deviating from their given class and sector.)

~~~~~~~~~

Chapter One

Earth was finished, its remnants nothing but dust travelling through space. People and the places they’d called home. Creatures and forests. Cities and the landscapes of both the old and new world. All nothing but debris. Dead. Gone.

Kyra’s ancestors along with the humans from generations before had used and abused their planet thinking nothing of the consequences, and it’d finally fought back. It was her generation who had lost everything because of what they’d taken for granted and in the end, it’d been the Thrakorian’s who had added years to Earth’s life, but it had only been a temporary fix. Kyra wept for the losses to her race while the overjoyed Thrakorian soldiers gladly celebrated the end of their mission and readily began their long journey home. And all the while, she was still trying to come to terms with the realization that she and her kind were suddenly without a planet to call home. But Kyra couldn’t deny she was also incredibly thankful that her protective boyfriend had rescued her in time to stow her aboard his beings’ ship and take her with him to his home planet of Thrakor.

Months of isolation and fearful silence were ahead of her following Earth’s final days, and it filled her with anxiety even thinking about how cooped up she was sure she was going to feel. Kyra knew she had to hide herself away if she had any hope of making it to the other side in one free and unburdened piece, though. Those of her kind who’d been welcomed aboard were only there for one of two reasons—to serve their alien overlords as slaves or to be used as lab rats for the betterment of their kind. The human race held the key to the Thrakorians’ survival and they needed the chosen one percent who met their criteria, but not her. Kyra was a failure, according to her test results. She ought to have been buried in a shallow grave with all the others but had been both foolish and fortunate enough to have been given a reprieve. Death wasn’t coming for her quite yet, or so it seemed.

But still, Kyra wanted to get away from it all. She wanted to be rid of their kind like some petulant child throwing her favorite teddy from the pram. But, she couldn’t hate them, and she certainly could not hate him. Even after everything that’d happened, she still couldn’t bring herself to truly loathe King Kronus for all that he’d done. She couldn’t wish him ill or deny she was glad his mission had been successful. A mindless and loyal pawn until the bitter end, or so she figured.

But then there was another Thrakorian she could never bring herself to despise. One who she loved so much that all of this had been worth it. Thrayke had been her rock and had helped her transform. He had watched her grow while shaping her along the way. Molding her to become stronger and more capable of surviving Earth’s downfall and the endangerment of the human race. Kyra wasn’t broken when she was with him, and seeing herself through Thrayke’s eyes made her want to succeed. He brought back the girl from the slums who had not backed down or taken no for an answer. He had made her strong again. No matter the consequences Thrayke had faced for doing so, he wanted her by his side and was willing to do whatever it took to get her back to Thrakor safely. Kyra understood the risks and certainly wasn’t going to do anything to jeopardize that dream they now shared.

The journey ahead was long, though. Thrayke had warned Kyra how it would take them the equivalent of a human year to get back with their large ship and huge cargo haul, as well as the fleet of smaller ships surrounding their mother ship to provide protection and a convoy. He and the other Thrakorian soldiers were still expected to work hard throughout the journey back and would spend the time de-briefing and working on their collected data to pass the travelling time, rather than relaxing or celebrating their successes. Kyra knew not to expect that she and Thrayke could simply hide away together and enjoy the passing of time until they arrived on Thrakor. She would have to spend most of the time alone with her thoughts.

Thrayke had already been called into numerous meetings with the Kings Guard that lasted entire days, and all the while Kyra could do nothing but wait silently in his quarters for him to return. A sentence worse for her than she might have once thought. Once mute, her voice had miraculously returned when she’d screamed her heart out at witnessing the implosion of her home planet. Kyra loved being able to speak properly with him again, but was forced back into silence and even when Thrayke was with her, she still kept her voice low in case of anyone who might overhear them.

In the early days aboard the huge ship, she was often too afraid to move in case she knocked over one of Thrayke’s many ornaments and artifacts from Earth and alerted someone to her presence. Instead, she spent the time either sat curled up behind his desk reading or lying on the bed looking out the huge window into the nothingness beyond. Kyra often found herself watching the blackness of space as it enveloped their craft, and thanks to her background in the Intelligence Division, there was a big part of her that marveled at how this was even possible—from the advancements in space travel to the technology behind the ship’s engineering. She soaked up as much detail as she could from Thrayke, before she then began reading through his huge book collection, including the manuals for the craft they were currently aboard. Kyra was astounded by the advanced applications of computer and scientific methods needed to steer them back to Thrakor and had to give their species credit where it was due. It was no wonder the human race had been so far away from competent space travel before the Thraks had invaded. Journeys to their moon and neighboring planets were child’s play in comparison to the numerous Thrakorian missions to planets thousands of light years away from their own. Their technology surpassed even the most advanced and innovative minds her race had to offer by a long shot, and she loved reading about their various missions both near and far to their reportedly huge home planet.

By all accounts, the Thrakorian’s were indeed a superior race to any other they’d discovered along the way, and they had reveled in their victories and takeovers like the hunters they were. There were times when Kyra herself felt as if she was simply another of their conquests. Thrayke had won her heart and lured her away with him, but she was at his mercy forevermore and hated that she owed him a debt she could never repay—not that he ever made her feel that way—but she guessed that was the beauty of being human. They were an inherently modest species. It didn’t feel right to celebrate her survival because the guilt over those that’d been lost weighed so heavily on her shoulders. Kyra was flawed and foolish, but she was slowly learning to accept the life Thrayke had offered her at great risk to both his own future and his position as one of Kronus’s right-hand-men.

When he was finished with his work and returned to her, Thrayke was always attentive and understanding of the whirlwind of emotions she still tackled. He put up with the frequent outpouring of guilt and shame that often made Kyra throw temper tantrums, albeit ones as quiet as she could make them. She’d never considered herself capable of having such outbursts before being locked up with nothing more than her thoughts and emotions for company, and hated that she was lashing out in her pain and loneliness. Thrayke would simply sit back and leave her to it, rather than try to reason with her or tell her off. He often watched in silence as she screamed into her pillow with her revitalized voice or cried on his shoulder. She felt like an immature coward, and yet her protector was always there to kiss away her pain or hold her until the sobs subsided and she was able to catch her breath again. Together, they helped each other move on from the painful past, and soon her memories of the bad times were nothing but distant thoughts, rather than overwhelming presences still haunting her like they had during her final days on Earth.

Thrayke did everything he could to help her through the hard times, while endeavoring to make her smile at every opportunity. He sneaked her favorite food back for her from the canteen, as well as the odd bottle of wine he’d stashed secretly away in his trove of human treasures. Unlike most Thrakorian’s, he liked to drink, but never to excess like Kyra herself had been known to do. Thrayke had a refined palette and incredible taste, and Kyra always enjoyed listening to him talk about the subtle flavors and tones in the glass of wine she would’ve supped down without even knowing how to appreciate its intricate elements.

Tell me how things are? What’s going on? she asked one evening, and Thrayke didn’t hesitate to answer her, as always.

All the humans aboard are still in stasis and we received word that the coranium was successfully retrieved in time. The full mission data is still being analyzed, but will be a long time yet, so I doubt much will change from now on, he said flatly, and Kyra nodded. She poked at the rehydrated piece of meat on her plate, and pushed it away. The lack of activity in her day-to-day life had left her with a lessened appetite. It also meant she needed less sleep, and she was desperate for the chance to go for a run or at least find something of interest to occupy her time with. She hated being locked away, regardless of knowing it was for her safety. Her entire life, she’d worked and trained, but knew her time aboard the ship was nothing more than a waiting game, rather than her chance to brush up on her computer skills or train like she had whilst still in Kronus’s army.

How is he? she had to ask, and Thrayke frowned. He was used to this question by now, thanks to her having asked almost every day since they’d evacuated her home and left it to die, but she knew Thrayke still hated her need to enquire after his leader’s wellbeing. Her memories of Kronus and the way he’d once been so affectionate and caring were still with her day and night though and she missed him, as both a friend and as the Thrak who she had idolized since he’d saved her life as a child. Although she loved Thrayke for all that he was and everything he’d done, Kyra simply couldn’t forget her affection for Kronus, no matter how much it pained her to think of him.

He’s quiet, reclusive, grumpy, and he’s let his beard grow again. He still rubs it when he’s anxious, which seems to be a lot of the time—despite the success of his mission to Earth. Thrayke left his food as well and watched Kyra with a sad look on his weary face. He asked about you and your final days again. I think he misses you and grieves your death. I know he’d never say it, but I believe there’s a tremendous amount of regret hounding him for the way your life went in the end. And how he treated you.

How can you tell if he won’t say it though? she asked, ignoring the iciness rolling off him.

Because he looks like I know I would if I’d lost you that day. Like he’s left a part of himself behind, and whether he admits it or not, I know it’s the part of himself he gave to you. Kyra’s heart pounded harder in her chest.

Does it worry you? she asked and Thrayke frowned.

Yes, it terrifies me, he told her, and Kyra got up out of her seat. She climbed straight into his lap and welcomed his powerful arms as they cradled her. It didn’t matter what Kronus did or didn’t mean to her, she loved Thrayke and was glad he believed it when she told him so. He kissed her temple. "In all honesty, I’d hoped he’d get over you and move on. If he discovered I’d stowed you aboard and tried to take you from me again I think I’d go mad with rage. I wonder if perhaps I’d even try and kill him. I let