Along the Curve: A Collection of Short Stories

By Maquel A. Jacob and Keith A Johnston

Dive into the side of the Curve Series universe with this collection of short stories.

Each one focuses on minor characters briefly mentioned or worked behind the scenes to make a big impact.

Meet the first human Sphere Wielder. An average warehouse worker minding his own business who ends up caught in a government fight.

See

• Language: English
• Publisher: MAJart Works
• Release date: Aug 20, 2022
• ISBN: 9781950438105

Maquel A. Jacob

Maquel A. Jacob writes gender shifter social sci-fi with a little bit of romance and a touch of gore. Originally from the Windy City of Chicago, she now resides in Oregon. Since the age of seven, Maquel has had a passion for the written word, reading everything she could get her grubby little hands on, including encyclopedias and the thesaurus. At twelve, she had an encounter with a Stephen King novel and was hooked. This was the inspiration for writing her own brand of fiction by combining multiple genres to keep things interesting. Always ready to learn new things, her search for knowledge never ceases. She has an Accounting degree, a Business Administration degree, was a certified Nail Technician and studied Digital Film and Video at the Art Institute of Portland. She is a huge Anime fan, loves a great bottle of wine and rocks out to heavy metal music. For cool limited-edition Swag, updates, FREE short stories, Newsletters ...and more Visit: www.majacobauthor.com Like Maquel A. Jacob on Facebook  https://www.facebook.com/MaquelAJ1 Follow on Tumblr @MaquelAJ1 Twitter https://www.twitter.com/MaquelAJ1 Also find me on Goodreads

Book preview

along_the_curve_for_kindle.jpg

ALONG THE CURVE

Side Stories from the

Curve of Humanity Series

BY

MAQUEL A. JACOB

All rights reserved.

No part of this book may be reproduced in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of the author, except in the case of brief quotations embodied on critical articles or reviews.

Cover art by:

Keith A. Johnston

https://.keithdraws.wordpress.com

Published by:

MAJart Works

www.majartworks.com

Hillsboro, Oregon

©Copyright 2020

ISBN: 978-1-950438-10-5

BOOKS BY MAQUEL A. JACOB

CURVE OF HUMANITY SERIES

ORIGINS

SHADOWMEN OBJECTIVE

PURGE SEQUENCE

CRIPPLED EARTH

AFTERMATH

HOMECOMING

THE CORE TRILOGY

CORE OF CONFLICTION: BOOK 1

SEEDS OF CONVICTION: BOOK 2

BONDS OF CONTRITION: BOOK 3

WELCOME DESPAIR

A COLLECTION OF SHORTS

THE BLOOD SAGA

BLOOD DOCTRINE

BLOOD DOMINION

CONTENTS

SPHERE WIELDER

First published in NIWA Anthology ARTIFACTS

THE CYBOK TRADE

First published in Boundary Shock 4

CATCH AND RELEASE

First published in Boundary Shock 1

A DISH SERVED COLD

First published in Boundary Shock 6

EYE OF THE BEHOLDER

First published in Bounday Shock 5

INTRODUCTION

Welcome to a small glimpse into the vast universe of the Curve of Humanity series. A gender shifter social Sci-Fi, with a bit of romance and touch of gore, it brings into question what it means to be human and how we define ourselves.

After fleeing the front lines during a brutal battle, an alien fleet crash lands on Earth with the enemy not far behind. They’re determined to finish the fight and don’t care if Earth is caught in the crossfire. Interbreeding jump starts human evolution and the population is not ready.

With so many characters trying to find their own way throughout the story, I decided to pick a few side personalities who play an integral part in the works but are only briefly mentioned. Each piece was previously published in other collections, specifically:

The Northwest Independent Writers Association (NIWA) and Boundary Shock Quarterly Sci Fi Magazine.

If you’re familiar with the Curve series, you may recognize the characters and get a deeper insight. Haven’t started the series yet? No problem. This is a great teaser to give you an idea of what’s in store.

SPHERE WIELDER

A slight breeze brushed against Flynt’s bare neck sending shivers as he walked through the dark, deserted park for some alone time. Streetlights lined the pathways, their candescent glow giving an eerie ambience. Stars filled the cloudless night sky, its deep navy blue adding to the contrast, and the air was borderline freezing.

His breath drifted upwards in cloudy puffs as he listened to frozen leaves crunch beneath his feet. Towards the middle of the park was a clearing He stopped with eyes closed, face tilted upwards as he soaked in his surroundings. After taking a few slow breaths, he opened his eyes.

Seeing the stars shine bright, he smirked. With the discover of aliens living among humans a decade ago, society had not changed much. He felt disappointed, expecting some technological leap with a unified race.

Instead, human relations got worse and governments around the word broke into different factions of themselves. In the United States, the President and Congress were no longer the top of the food chain. The whole world pretty much sucked as he saw it.

His apartment was only a few blocks from the park, so he had come without a cap, gloves or scarf despite it being winter. He figured a literal cold snap would make him feel better. The day had been stressful as usual due to social skills not being a part of his wheelhouse.

Making friends was harder than it should be and never worked out, especially on the job. After a year and a half of working in a manufacturing warehouse, he still didn’t get the respect he deserved.

He spotted one star appear to get larger so he squinted to adjust his focus. The more he stared at it the more he realized the light was actually coming down. Fear mixed with fascination took hold of him like a vise grip and he stood unmoving, eyes wide as it got closer.

Move! He screamed to himself.

But his body wouldn’t obey. As the light came right at him, he stepped back with one foot and raised both arms in defense with hands out to block the assault. The loud sizzling of its approach invaded his ears. It hit him. Hard.

His entire body lit up in a ball of light, the impact knocking him backwards into a flip. He was sent tumbling across the ground like clothes in a dryer. When he finally came to a stop, landing face down, a fiery pain blossomed in his chest as he tried to regulate his breathing. Wet grass lay beneath him. His clothes were soaked from the icy air turning to mist from dispelled heat.

The white out in his stinging vision slowly receded until it became a pinpoint in the distance. Artic air wafted in his nostrils when he sniffed, causing a brain freeze. He blinked and saw the light once again resembled a star in the night sky.

Tremors went through his whole body while strange images of faraway nebulas, bipedal alien life forms similar to humans engaged in brutal battles, and ethereal beings resembling angels flooded his mind.

The park was still, no movement or noise around him. Beneath him, where the pain radiated, lay a smoldering metallic cylinder. Vibrations coming from the object resonating with his brain causing him to wince. He could feel and hear it calling to him in soothing undertones.

He took hold of the object, expecting intense heat and instead found it slightly warm. Pain flared up in his chest again as he made his way onto hands and knees.

Something about the silence made him look around again, fearful of what or who may be lurking nearby. The park had been empty, true enough, but it was near a large intersection.

Did no one see that light besides me?

Rising to his feet, he trudged off to the park gates, the cylinder half dangling from his grip. The streetlights were a hazy blur of rainbow circles. On the sidewalk he glanced up at the sky again through tall trees, his body swaying. Sound returned and he could hear the soft wind rustling their leaves. Up ahead street traffic flowed with cars whizzing by. Nothing seemed out of place.

Dazed, he continued walking home. His night stroll violently interrupted.

Flynt stumbled down the hallway of his apartment floor, hugging the wall. Every muscle hurt and his body still shook. At his door, he pulled the keycard out of his pocket and tried to insert it in the lock. His hand moved in a zigzag motion while his vision tried to focus on the panel.

Finally, it went in and he was able to hear the mechanism click over. It sounded like a gun shot and he realized his hearing still wasn’t fully corrected. The door opened and he fell in face down.

Crawling forward, he kicked the door shut and inched his way onto the living room carpet. The metal cylinder made soft clinks as he used his hands to reach out and pull himself along. He flipped over on his back and blinked a few times to clear his sight. His breathing was ragged but the pain in his chest was subsiding. Everything around him had an eerie aura; the tables, the rug, the vase on the counter. He felt like throwing up yet his body would not comply.

What’s happening to me?

He squeezed the metal cylinder as he lay in the dark. Exhausted, he fell into a deep sleep.

•

Flynt bolted upright, the alarm screeching in short bursts scaring the bejeezus out of him. His heart pounded in rapid succession, making him feel like he was on the verge of hyperventilating. He calmed down and found he had slept in his clothes. The smell of urine caused scenes from the night before to come back and he grimaced.

I pissed myself. Great.

His alarm grew louder. Jumping to his feet he ran haphazardly into the bedroom to shut it off.

Sunlight peeked through gaps in the curtains. A light dusting of snow covered the landscape. His hand felt like it was going numb.

He flexed his fingers and heard a thud. The cylinder lay on the floor dull and cold. For a moment he stared at it confused then remembered where it came from. The thing had no identifying features, just a plain piece of brushed nickel.

He picked it up and strange carvings glowed amber along its surface. Surprised, he flung it onto the bed and watched them fade away, the cylinder once again unimpressive. Backing away, Flynt went into the bathroom to take a shower. He had to clear his head, or he was going to be late for work, again.

After being under the water for nearly two minutes, unaware of his own being, his brain kicked into gear and he found himself still fully clothed.

Aw, fuck!

He peeled off the drenched clothes, the struggle more than he’d liked since the fabric was stuck to his skin then tossed them out the shower door onto the floor. Hands on the wall before him, he leaned forward, letting the hot water wash away his weariness.

Dressed in jeans, a polo shirt with the company logo, and steel toed shoes, Flynt grabbed his wallet and headed out. He pulled on his coat and closed his apartment door, glancing around to make sure his neighbor from across the hall wasn’t hanging around. She was beyond nosy and had surely heard him come in last night. The coast clear, he left the building.

Morning rush hour traffic created a cacophony of sound from honking horns and brakes screeching to people yelling into their smart phones or each other. Flynt found it unusually unpleasant today, the noise giving him a slight headache.

Since he was already tipping the scale on lateness, he waited patiently at the crosswalk. Everything seemed to be painted too bright and when he forced his eyes to adjust, he was able to focus on a street sign some two blocks away. Startled, he clumsily stepped back bumping into a passerby.

Hey! Watch it, you dumbass!

The woman carried a briefcase in one hand and a cellphone to her ear with the other. As she resumed her stride by going around him to cross the street, he recognized her from his company’s HR department. He snorted and raised one hand, miming a pushing motion.

She stumbled forward, yelling in fear as her body went sailing speedily to the other side, her legs dragging on the ground. She landed, sprawled forward, hands and knees on the sidewalk. People stepped away from her. Some looked around for what may have caused her to falter while others kept on to their destinations. Finally, someone helped her up.

Flynt backed into the wall