Starfallen Universe: Outlaws

By David Bachar

Four outlaw brothers ride into the wrong town and must face off against supernatural foes.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Lulu.com
• Release date: Jul 12, 2016
• ISBN: 9781365254321

Book preview

Starfallen Universe: Outlaws

Starfallen Universe: Outlaws

Created and Written by David Bachar

Book II

Chapter 1

Since ancient times, the human race, has built their civilization upon the belief that all living creatures are connected through the one Great Spirit, which gives them great power, and with discipline and training, one can tap into this power and manipulate it to do great things, such as push one’s own limits beyond normal capacities, and heighten their senses. Some have learned to heal themselves, and others, by drawing from their own spirit and passing the energy they possess into the hurt area of another allowing them to regenerate quicker. Others can use their spirit to move objects from one place to another without touching them. Others have learned to wield the power of their spirit as a weapon, creating energy balls and weapons, capable of slicing nearly through any obstacle. These individuals are known as Artisans. Those who have mastered each one of these techniques are known as Grand Artisans. Like Wielders, Artisans were deemed too dangerous and were hunted down, forcing many of them into hiding. Ironically, many sentients learned to be Artisans to help defeat wielders, only to be betrayed, by the Realm, once the Wielders were thought to have been wiped. As modern day Wielders live in secrecy, Artisans have also dived into the shadows, hiding from public prejudice and scrutiny.

Chapter 2

Reido is believed to be the cradle of the human civilization, however, centuries of war, plagues, and natural disasters have turned the once fertile and lush planet into a desert wasteland. While many humans have migrated to other worlds across the Realm, those who stayed have learned to live with and thrive in its dangerous conditions. The population of Reido is spread out, across its vast deserts, on 7 continents. Very few, commercial, cities have risen, mostly lying along the coasts of these masses of land, influenced mainly by Coalition law, however, the small settlements sprinkled across Reido’s surface, thrive on their own. Many of Reido’s citizens work as farmers, cultivating roots and other dry vegetation. While money is made through selling and trading these harvests, luxuries many of the Coalition’s worlds’ take for granted, are rarely seen in the small settlements on Reido, like levicars and holotabs. Medical advantages available to Coalition ran worlds and territories, are also absent in many parts of Reido. Medical facilities located in the big cities along the coasts, are usually too expensive for the simple farmers and cattle men, and women, of Reido.

Chapter 3

Sheriff Dunang, chief shepherd of the small town of Sento, lost his wife to an aggressive disease that attacked her nervous and immune systems, called parvis, because he could not afford the medical care needed to save her life. Dunang made constant trips to the coastal city of Lambdin, for to treatments. Each attempt to save his wife brought her closer to her demise, as the treatments were too strenuous on the body and mind, until one day she passed away in her sleep. Devastated by the loss of his wife, Dunang and his son, Matty, cursed the Great Spirit for their despair.

Dunang and Matty held a funeral their loved one, allowing the town, to pay their respects. After the ceremony, each of the townspeople walked up to Dunang and Matty, offering their sincere condolences, shaking their hands and gently embracing them. Each gesture made the two men feel uneasy. They were offended when someone would she was in a better place. What kind of God would let their beloved ‘gift’ suffer so much?! Dunang would answer.

Sento’s holyman, Marcus, walked up to Dunang and Matty, and calmly tried to ease their tension, You might not see it now, but soon the Great Spirit’s plans will be revealed. We have to be patient and have faith in that everything happens for a reason. Dunang and Matty pushed through the holyman and made their way to their vehicles. Marcus watched them as they drove away.

Chapter 4

Weeks passed since Dunang laid his wife to rest, and the shepherd’s pain grew stronger. Matty, seeing the damage their loss was doing to his father decided to give the Great Spirit one more chance. He visited Marcus, at the town’s church, Assembly for the People of the Light, and asked him, How are you supposed to keep your faith and believe in an ultimate destiny, when there is so much pain and suffering going on? Marcus looked at Matty, kindly placing his hand on Matty’s shoulder, Faith is what keeps people pushing toward their destiny. Without faith, we are lost. Faith drives us and pushes us to do things we never expected we could do. We are constantly challenged by forces, beyond our reach, and loosing ourselves every now and then is inevitable, but finding the strength to get back on your path is what defines you.

What forces are challenging us? Matty asked

The pull towards the dark or the light, answered Marcus, the universe we live in, which we call the Realm, is constantly expanding. New worlds and life are discovered every day, and they are all apart, as we are, of the same being which gave us life. The ancients of our world named this being Seirei, or the ‘Great Spirit.’ They believed that the Great Spirit is constantly trying to balance itself out. Dark and Light energies attract and oppose each other, and those same energies affect us. We contribute to the Great Spirit by choosing our paths, whether we are drawn to the light or the darkness. If we just live the life we were given and trust that the Great Spirit will guide us to the right path, then everything will end as it should.

Matty, irritated, yelled at the holy man, It is all bullshit!

Marcus asked Matty to calm down. Your mother went through a lot of pain in her life. She did not, however, let her ailment cloud her happiness. Through her suffering, she found ways to brighten the days of others, she found happiness in herself by being there for others. She did not die angry, she passed on smiling, knowing she made a positive difference for everyone here, in Sento.

Matty turned his back to Marcus and walked out of the church, saying, If there is a great being out there, giving us life, why would he let the good ones suffer? We are plagued by drought, infestations, dust storms, ravagers… blood sucking little bastards and disease we are too poor to treat. Are we still supposed to believe it all happens for a reason? Fuck that!

Marcus stood at the door, watching as Matty walked away.

Chapter 5

Three weeks had passed since Matty’s talk with the holy man, and tensions between his father and he, arose. On patrol, Dunang and Matty could not sit in the same squad vehicle without snapping at one another. When in separate vehicles the two cursed each other over the transmitters. Dunang ended up stripping away Matty’s deputy title, embarrassing him among the other shepherds. Dunang, later, came to realize, he was taking his anger out on his son. Dunang visited Matty’s apartment intending to apologize, but Matty wasn’t home. After knocking on the door a few times with no answer, Dunang left back to the station. Matty’s patrol vehicle was still in its parking spot. Dunang asked the other officers if they had seen Matty but no one had. Two days passed with no contact from Matty. Worried about his son Dunang lead a search team to scout the area around their small town.

Revolver! shouted Spooka, another deputy and Matty’s best friend, as they searched through the wasteland. Revolver became Matty’s nickname after he demonstrated his lethal aim with his shooter, during a top shot fundraiser for the Sento annual fair, hosted by the town’s shepherd‘s department.