Mythical Investigations: The Leslie Kim Serials, #1

By Eliza Stopps

 

In a world where genetic engineering has turned a generation of people into Vampires, some humans choose to opt-out of the Earth experience and head to Kapaton.
He's left his career as a Bounty Hunter in the past, along with his old flings and bad memories. Now, he's living on Kapaton, a planet that was discovered after they opened up a black hole to Earth and invaded.
Leslie Kim is starting fresh a private investigator.
Contracted into helping the Kapatonian government track down strange creatures that they have been studying, Leslie puts his special skill set to good use. He's living out of a rusted old camping ship that he modified for intergalactic travel and trying to break out of old routines by dating a Vampire. Things seem to be going well until an enormous cave-dwelling monster breaks out of the Kapatonian's lab and wreaks havoc on the local population. The creatures are pulled straight from mythology; a Grootslang, Gnomes, Featherwing Dragons, and more. His first case as a private investigator falls into his lap when a nervous woman appears at the door of his ship, desperate to find her missing husband. But something is off about her and it seems she may not be human after all. When Leslie finds himself falling for the director of the program, who is also a Vampire, his morals and loyalties will be tested. The only person he can trust is the artificial intelligence inside his ship. Before the once-believed mythical creature is unleashed on the Kapatonian population and the case of the missing man, Leslie was living a relaxed lifestyle. Now tangled up in both problems and he's starting to worry that he won't solve either. Can he find the creatures before they destroy the alien species? Join Leslie Kim for this fast-paced mystery set on a distant planet. This Science Fiction short read is action-packed, fast-paced, and full of Grootslang sized problems. Join the adventure as Leslie Kim juggles cases, Alien governments, and relationships, with only the aid of his unsympathetic AI, Frank.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Eliza Stopps
• Release date: Jul 9, 2017
• ISBN: 9798201072544

Book preview

Mythical Investigations

The Leslie Kim Serials, Book One

Eliza Stopps

Mythical Investigations

The Leslie Kim Serials, Book One

Eliza Stopps

Copyright © 2017 by Eliza Stopps. All rights reserved. This is a work of fiction. Any resemblance to actual persons living or dead, businesses, events or locals is purely coincidental. Reproduction in whole or part of this publication without express written consent is strictly prohibited.

Cover Art by Fierce Book Covers, 2021.

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elizastopps.com

Contents

Title Page

Copyright

Dedication

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Chapter Four

Chapter Five

Chapter Six

Chapter Seven

Chapter Eight

Chapter Nine

Chapter Ten

Chapter Eleven

Chapter Twelve

Chapter Thirteen

Chapter Fourteen

Acknowledgements

Connect With Me!

Please Review This Book

To the man who made it possible for me to drop everything and be a writer. You never doubt me, even when I doubt myself, and Leslie Kim wouldn’t exist without you.

Chapter One

The Grootslang was quarantined due to a serious infection. Its escape has the locals who live in Brugneg Cave worried. Be safe out there, Folks, and remember to contact authorities if you witness anything suspect. Back to you, Kathy.

Leslie Kim let out a laugh, nearly spitting his Mars Mocha Munch out his nose. You guys over there in IDID seem to let a new one out every day. I think your job is to contain them, he jeered at the girl currently occupying his bed in the back of his ship.

Elena Gerklova was taking her time sleeping in after a late night out. Leslie had met her at the local bar at the outskirts of town two months ago. It wasn’t supposed to be a regular thing but she’d been at his place every night since.

What are you talking about, Kim? Her voice was muffled by the pillow.

The Grootslang got out. And what exactly was it being treated for? I've been feeling a little itchy, Leslie teased.

What the hell? She leaped from the bed and ran into the tiny living area that collided with the driving station of the ship. Leslie propped himself against the dusty pillows and looked her up and down.

Oh, Elena. I never get sick of seeing you naked. It helped that she was the only other humanoid he had met since he landed on Kapaton. When he first laid eyes on her at the bar, it was a relief. You can only check out three-titted green women so many times. He gave a low whistle, and she rolled her eyes. You want a mocha? he asked.

Elena was distracted by the broadcast. The news had moved on to a story about the success of a Space Sludge stand a few kids put up down the street. Her makeup was smudged around her eyes, but Leslie had doubts that she actually slept. Vampires rarely do. It had taken him a full week to realize she was a Vampire, probably Second Generation because she seemed to have a brain.

I've got to get to work. My boss will be livid. She grabbed the mocha from Leslie's hand and hurried into the bedroom. She threw on her wrinkled dress and tossed her hair into a sloppy ponytail. Shit, I'm going to be so late. Where are my glasses? she asked.

Leslie chuckled at the idea of a Vampire needing glasses, since their night vision was perfect, but he supposed it was a result of being out during the day. Kapaton’s atmosphere let Vampires be out in the sunlight, but they still could make a possum’s eyesight seem 20/20. He closed his eyes and leaned back. I think they ended up... By the quikwave? I could be wrong.

Elena sighed as she walked back into the kitchen. She looked under piles of dirty dishes on the counter. Elena found her glasses behind the quikwave and put them on. The glasses made a dinging noise to alert her about the case. Elena waved through the files projected in front of her. She smacked her hip into the garbage incinerator trying to climb into the passenger seat.

You seriously can’t get a newer model? They have space ships that don’t come with the world’s smallest apartment, you know, she teased.

This thing might be a relic, but it’s built to last. I’m not going to buy a new ship every 2 years because of shoddy Kapatonian craftsmanship. He stood from his couch and stepped over take-out wrappers on his way to the driver seat. It was a small space but his dad had built this ship. It needed a few updates. The garbage incinerator still used a quick burn method, whereas the newer version had upgraded to smokeless lasers. He didn’t mind the scowls he got from Kapatonians he blasted with smoke on the sidewalk.

Do you want to drop me off at my hov? I think it’s still at the bar but I'm not sure I remember where I parked, she said. They had met at their usual spot, pounded a few shots, and spent a romantic evening in the crummy space RV parked in the desert. Leslie assumed her car was still at the bar, but he didn’t feel like taking the 30 minutes to drive out of the city.

I'll do you one better. I'll just drop you off at work. Leslie grinned. While Elena had slept, he had already driven to her office, well aware that she would be late. He pulled forward a few feet and then stopped the spaceship.

We have arrived, Leslie announced and rolled up the window blinds to reveal they had been parked in front of her office building most of the morning.

Are you kidding? Do you know how much shit I got last time when the guys realized I was sleeping with a human who lived out of his ship? Elena's face contorted with anger as she flung open the air locked door. Infectious Disease Immunizations Development was scrawled on the glowing sign on the side of the building.

Leslie wrinkled his nose, pretending to be upset. Are you trying to say you’re embarrassed of me?

You're an ass, she said, glancing over her shoulder. But thank you.

I know how to please the ladies, Leslie shouted. Elena slammed the hatch. He finished his mocha and tossed it into the ship’s incinerator unit. Okay, off to work then.

Chapter Two

Leslie pulled his relic of a ship from the curb and into the traffic on the hoverdrive. He was supposed to have his AI turned on, but since his ship wasn’t the regulated size for road, he had been bumped more than once by a Kapatonian hovercar. He didn’t trust a robot to drive his baby. He kept an eye on his mirrors as he maneuvered the narrow streets toward his exit on the shipway and floored it.

It was rare to see a Kapatonian driving since most of their hovercars were automated, and those robot taxis cluttered up the hoverdrive with their speed regulations and solar powered engines. He risked a ticket penalty for taking the shipway without an international destination, but he was good at pretending to have been lost, or changing his mind, or having a glitch in his autopilot.

His plan was to grab the good spot by the park that was overlooked by the hoverdrive and hope for customers. It was difficult to work without a permanent address. Still, he figured it was better than signing a contract for an apartment only to leave in a few months. Leslie Kim wasn't known to stay in one place for long. He couldn’t relate to the locals, who relied on robots for almost everything and feared the common cold. They lived in their tiny homes, stacked on top of each other, and walked through the breezeway tubes that connected their entire lives. Just like rats. Kapaton was built around tiny communities and the flood of immigrant Vampires from Earth, Aliens from other planets, and an ex-bounty hunter human, like him, made the Kapatonians nervous. They were pushed to the outskirts of town, living out of their ships, like a giant mobile home park in space. Elena was the exception since she worked for the government. Leslie never figured out how she convinced them to hire her.

The sign for Jupiter Park Exit 5004 flashed by, and Leslie took a sharp turn, nearly missing his exit. He cut off a hovercraft coming up from the hoverdrive merge lane. The man’s face boiled red. Leslie ignored the man’s obscene gestures as he navigated the busy streets.

It was always difficult to find parking during the Star Fall Festival. It didn't start until tonight, but plenty of people were hustling around the park, setting up their booths. Leslie pulled into an alley off a side street. He didn't want too much attention or the possibility of getting nicked by some yesteryear model car. Kicking his feet up, he pressed the button at his side. His windshield flickered before it displayed the words Private Investigations A few moment later it blinked, Gumshoe For Hire.

Leslie hoped that watching the sign would distract him from the group of men trying to hang star shaped lights from the purple trees that covered the park. They kept dropping them onto the sidewalk. The lights shattered against the pavement. When they dropped the third light, Leslie decided he had better walk away. He rifled through the cupboards in his tiny kitchen, but they were mostly empty. The fridge had some simulation meats and yogurt, but he didn't dare open the containers to check them. Looks like it would be take-out again. He put his trench coat on and grabbed his wallet and keys in one swipe. Locking the ship behind him, he jumped onto the sidewalk.

This is discrimination! a man with snarling teeth shouted. He looked human, so Leslie had to assume he was a