The Undiscovered: Strays of Lunar One, #3

By C.M. Simpson

Outmaneuvered by the girl they rescued, and running from an angry wolf pack, Oliver and Lewis must also stay ahead of the law, the bounty hunters, and two angry mega-corps, as they try to solve a years'-old mystery. Can they stay free long enough to secure a Hunt Master's rulership and reunite the pack heir with his future mate, or will they fall prey to one of their many pursuers?

• Language: English
• Publisher: C.M. Simpson
• Release date: Feb 17, 2023
• ISBN: 9798215881293

C.M. Simpson

I spent the first twenty years of my life living in different parts of Queensland and the Northern Territory. My father was a teacher who liked to travel, so he took teaching appointments in all kinds of places. I don’t think I stayed in one place for more than four years at a stretch. I wrote stories for most of that time, drawing on the different landscapes we encountered and giving a hyper-active imagination somewhere to run. Seeing so many different places gave me a lot of food for thought as I stepped into the world of adulthood and took my first full-time job, and I never stopped writing and exploring the worlds in my head. So far, I have written four collections of short stories and poetry, and a number of novels, with many more to come. I hope you have enjoyed this part of my journey.

Book preview

The Undiscovered

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Strays of Lunar One #3

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C.M. Simpson

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Outmaneuvered by the girl they rescued, and running from an angry wolf pack, Oliver and Lewis must also stay ahead of the law, the bounty hunters, and two angry mega-corps, as they try to solve a years’-old mystery. Can they stay free long enough to secure a Hunt Master’s rulership and reunite the pack heir with his future mate, or will they fall prey to one of their many pursuers?

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License Notes

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This book is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This book 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 purchase a copy for yourself, and Thank You for respecting the hard work of this author.

Copyright Page

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The Undiscovered

1st Edition

Copyright © February 12, 2023, C.M. Simpson

Cover Art & Design © October 8, 2022, Jake at JCaleb Design

All rights reserved.

Dedication

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To everyone who believed in me until I finally had to believe in myself.

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Thank you.

CONTENTS

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1—An Understanding

2—A Message from Delight

3—Arrival on Tonenda

4—An Unexpected Trust

5—Parting

6—Complications

7—Commencing Retrieval

8—Wolf Rescue

9—Ank’Regar

10—Promises

11—Veluran Complication

12—Hunted

13—Aquatic Pursuits

14—Into the Tunnels

15—Flight and Fight

16—The Lost are Found

17—An Exit Strategy

18—Confrontation and Submission

19—Resolution

Terms and Characters

Author’s Notes

More Work by C.M. Simpson

About C.M. Simpson

1—An Understanding

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Oliver gaped at the She.

You... You’re threatening us!

Lewis didn’t know whether to laugh or cry—and the look on Oliver’s face said he’d better not do either. Instead, he lay on Septu’s decking and watched the stand-off happening between his alpha and the girl.

Because she was a girl. Not much older than Giselle or Angelia, she came only to the middle of the alpha’s chest, and had to tilt her head to look him in the eye—which she was doing with all the challenge of any wolf equal his rank.

What had Lewis so conflicted was that Oliver had so far tolerated it.

Which was a problem, because the child was neither wolf nor lupari, but pure human...and a very young human at that. While she might be considered an alpha female in the Star Shadows clan, she was a young alpha female.

The fact she was the chosen She of the Star Shadows heir held more weight with the wolves than it did with the rest of the universe...but she acted like she was lupari and not human—and like the rest of the universe didn’t matter.

Lewis wondered if this was what the crew of the Shady Marie had encountered, even at eight, and how they’d chosen to handle her. Given she was still with the Star Shadows and not being raised in some Odyssey-sponsored orphanage, he guessed they’d worked out it would be better for all involved not to separate the pair.

Oliver glared at her, and she reached up and poked him in the center of his well-muscled chest.

I’ll repeat my offer, she told him. You— and here she tapped him with her forefinger before jabbing it at Lewis— "and your beta will help me finish my investigations and deal with the root of what threatens my clan and I —the finger returned to Oliver’s chest and prodded, hard— will broker your reinstatement to the clans."

And Odyssey? Oliver challenged, adding, The clans are the least of our problems, out here.

She curled her lips in a very lupari snarl. "They were until you kidnapped me a second time."

"We what?" Oliver yelped, and stooped down so his nose was an inch from the child’s.

Lewis noticed his alpha didn’t touch the girl, even though Oliver’s fists were curled by his sides.

You heard me. If Aylin Star Shadow had noticed the alpha’s fists, she ignored them, prodding his chest again.

Lewis watched Oliver’s forearms grow rigid, but the girl kept on.

We...

Tap.

Can...

Tap.

Keep. You. Safe.

Tap. Tap. Tap.

Who’s we? Oliver growled, and Septu’s calm voice intruded.

I believe she means me, he told the wolf, and Oliver’s head snapped round so he could glare at the camera mounted on the wall.

You... he growled, did not warn us you could be hired without a chance to renew.

The anger at that curled through his voice, but Septu was unperturbed.

I once told your beta he was either a very lazy mercenary, or stupid, the ship replied. Now, it seems he is not the only one. Did you not have time to investigate the meaning of working with an HMT before you signed the paperwork?

No, Oliver admitted, and the ship chuckled.

Then that is something you’ll have to take up with Rohim when next you see him, it said. In the meantime, you should know that we are hired to the letter of the contract and bound within that timeframe alone. Should you not negotiate a sufficient chance at renewal or a handover period, we are free to take the next contract as it arises...as this one did.

Do all Dasojin operate like this? Oliver rumbled, then returned his attention to the girl with a snarl as she rapped his chest again.

She snarled back, as full-throated a growl as any human could manage, and Lewis found himself having to curb the instinctive rumble that rose in his chest. Aylin’s head snapped round and her snarl grew louder. Anger flamed in her eyes, and Lewis felt his wolf shrink back.

It was all he could do not to echo the movement, and she saw it. Her lip curled in a satisfied smirk and she returned her attention to Oliver, tapping his chest once more.

As you can see, you were not astute enough to secure your transport when you needed it and that...

Tap.

...leaves you exactly at my mercy. I could turn you in to Star Shadow or Odyssey on a whim, she declared. Lowering her tone, she added, I could even hand you over to the tender mercies of Xanil Blue or Ravelin.

Oliver lunged for her, but she slid under his hand and hammered the tip of the taser into his gut, hitting him with a burst that sent him jolting back into the bulkhead in a single well-aimed blow.

You... Oliver rumbled.

Yes? she asked, dancing back on her toes so she could keep an eye on him, Lewis and on the woman currently curled on the lowest bunk set in Septu’s wall.

Oliver slid down the wall, every muscle twitching.

...have to sleep sometime, the alpha finished, and yelped as the panel behind him came to life sending another jolt through his body. His back arched and he gritted his teeth against the scream wrenched from his throat.

Indeed, she does, Septu agreed smoothly, but I do not.

The current shut off and Oliver sagged back against the wall, panting against the pain. The She came to stand astride his legs looking down at him with her hands on her hips.

"I did not take you for a stupid werewolf, she stated, her tones crisp with disapproval, so let me spell things out for you: Firstly, I have a contract that can lead to you being reinstated with not only your clan, but recognized as part of my clan. That in, and of itself, should be motivator enough."

She glared at him.

"In case it isn’t, I will explain the other benefits you gain by working with me, namely that you will be protected as thoroughly by my ship as I am. He is capable of outrunning any Odyssey or lupari ship we encounter, and he is capable of cloaking against most of their technology."

She glanced up at the camera.

Something, she told Septu, you and I will discuss further.

I look forward to it, the ship replied, amusement reverberating through his tone.

Aylin glared at the pick-up. Don’t you condescend to me, she told him.

Aylin Star Shadow, the ship replied gravely, I would not dare.

The girl clearly didn’t believe him, because she glowered at the pick-up before returning her attention to Oliver.

Now, you, she told him, Have to be the most recalcitrant male I’ve ever had to deal with, with perhaps the exception of one.

The half-smile that curved her lips left Lewis in no doubt who that other male might be, which made her next words, and the sudden sternness replacing it even more startling.

"And I don’t accept idiocy from him, so you are in no position to attempt it."

Oliver’s brows rose in surprise, and Lewis stared. No one spoke of the Star Shadow prince like that. There wasn’t a wolf or lupari alive who’d dare, and yet this slip of a girl had made that statement as though it was the gospel truth, and he couldn’t find it in himself to doubt her.

What I am offering, the She told him, "Is a safe haven and a means of earning an income until you reach safety."

She cocked her head and placed a hand on her hip. Or are you going to tell me your funds are currently available?

Oliver rolled his eyes, and then shifted his head against the bulkhead so he could look up at Septu’s camera.

Septu?

All accounts linked to you, and any alias you’ve had since leaving Alpha Nine, have been closed and their balance shifted to a single holding for each of you, for which Odyssey holds the details. Dasojin...

Aylin cleared her throat and tapped her foot menacingly, and Septu’s tone hitched, before he finished the sentence.

Dasojin expresses its interest in assisting you, once its current contractual obligations have been fulfilled.

Aylin cleared her throat a second time.

And the time for renegotiation and retention has passed, the ship added.

Thank you, Aylin told it, not taking her gaze from Oliver’s face, as she demanded, So?

Oliver groaned. Tell me you have a starting point, he replied, and Lewis got the impression he was comparing the She to the two pre-teens they’d played pet for in order to get off the Rjorijkson’s Belt asteroid station.

She arched her eyebrows and folded her arms.

You’ll take the contract and accept my terms? she pressed, and the alpha gave rough sigh.

He glanced over at where Lewis was sitting propped against Septu’s outer wall.

We are interested in taking the contract, he confirmed.

Even though it stretches your promise to Odyssey? the She pressed.

Stretches it? Oliver repeated in disbelief. It pulls it apart, shreds it and then stamps all over the pieces!

Aylin giggled. It’s not that bad, she told him, her voice taking on tones of false comfort.

Before Oliver could react, the girl’s face hardened. Watching her from under half-closed lids, Lewis realized neither Angelie nor Giselle came close to being as much of a piece of work as Aylin could be.

The girl had grown up faster than any human child had a need to. She’d kept pace with the lupari cubs in her creche, and been chosen as a companion for a Star Shadow captain’s son—and then she’d won and held that son’s attention as he transitioned to maturity.

That she had been allowed to remain with him, said the cub would likely keep her into adulthood—and that the girl had held her own against all comers. It said the Star Shadow heir was her world...and she would tear the universe apart to keep him safe.

Septu, you’re authorized to bear witness, correct? Aylin demanded, and the ship’s AI responded.

Lewis groaned. Not AI...HMT, Human Mind Transfer, a human uploaded to a machine when their body had begun to fail. This one had chosen a fast, stealthy courier craft as his flesh replacement, and his transition had been sponsored by the Dasojin corporation he now worked for.

That is correct, Aylin Star Shadow, he replied. I am authorized to witness and verify any contracts made within my shell and in my presence.

And that authorization is recognized by other legal entities? she persisted.

"That is correct. The Dasojin Corporation has been granted ratification status in ninety percent of known systems, the exceptions being two rogue human systems, and the lupari sectors.

The lupari sectors recognize me, and the rogue humans don’t count, Aylin told him matter-of-factly, and nudged Oliver’s thigh with her booted foot. Is that enough for you?

Oliver slumped back against the bulkhead. He flicked a glance at Lewis, but Lewis shook his head.

It’s up to you, bro, but I thought you already said yes. You know, before we went to warp.

"You told me I should negotiate," his alpha reminded him, cautiously moving a hand to rub the point on his gut where Aylin had hit him with the taser.

And much good it did you, Belle told them tartly. Now, if you don’t mind, I believe we have a contract to sign so we can get you back in business.

Lewis looked up at the woman on the bunk. She’d been brutally straight forward, but he’d detected a slight note of hurt in her voice...or perhaps she anticipated that she’d lose Oliver if he was ever reinstated to a lupari clan.

Belle was human, but she’d come to them in a time of need and they’d agreed to help her...just as she’d helped them—and then she and Oliver had fallen for each other in a way, Lewis wished would happen to him. He didn’t think the woman fully understood what that meant for a wolf. If she did, she wouldn’t be so worried about losing her mate—or the lupari trying to take him from her.

The She stepped away from Oliver and moved to the small desk and console revealed when Septu opened another compartment in their small compartment. Seating herself behind it, she dictated the terms of the contract, glancing back at Oliver when she was done.

Well? she demanded, and the wolf raised his eyebrows.

Well, what? he wheezed.

I do not understand why you are still over there, and not here ready to sign, the girl snapped. Do you want to gain forgiveness or not?

I am over here because you shot me with a stunner, then slapped me with a lupari-calibrated taser, and all after the joys of making a warp-transition on the floor of this compartment, Oliver told her. I’m a lupari-were, not invulnerable.

So I see, she sneered. Ank’Regar would have been on his feet.

Ank’Regar has the resilience of a pup and the bloodline augments of a lupari space captain, Oliver informed her. I am merely an alpha.

Lewis heard the frustration in his alpha’s tones, but Aylin ignored it.

At least your beta has an excuse.

Lewis knew he should take offense at that, but he just couldn’t summon the energy. There was supposed to be steak. The She had been cooking when they’d woken up...and then Aylin had shot Oliver and Belle had calmed him down before curling up on the bunk and watching Aylin and Oliver duke it out verbally.

And he’d lain on the floor feeling like he’d been steam-rolled by something big with far too many feet—and booted feet at that. He still felt that way. Aylin’s words made him smile. He was a beta and had an excuse. It was enough of a reason to let him close his eyes.

Oliver’s voice roused him to awareness, even if it didn’t give him the energy to open his eyes, again.

I take it there’s more to the story than taking a job to get away from the other bitches vying for your Ank’Regar’s attention.

If Aylin caught the double meaning in Oliver’s words, she didn’t show it.

They don’t have a chance, she stated matter-of-factly. I won him while we were cubs, and I hold him still. When the trainers matched us, they matched us far better than they ever should have.

And, yet, you are still human, Oliver noted.

The She flushed and her eyes sparked with anger.

There are ceremonies involved, she snapped. Not even Ank’Regar’s father could speed them.

Her voice softened. I would that he had, but we are walking the knife-edge of tradition and what will be tolerated as it is.

Lewis just bet they were.

The story? Oliver asked. He put both hands on the decking and pushed as though about to rise, but his legs refused to cooperate and he let himself slump, once more. He tilted his head to Septu’s camera.

Forward the documents to my implant, he instructed. I can sign them from here as well as anywhere else.

As you wish, the ship replied, and Lewis was surprised to receive a copy, as well. Please confirm receipt.

Yup, Lewis managed, trying to open his eyes.

You right, bro? Oliver asked.

Nope, Lewis slurred, managing to convince his mouth to work in the face of the overwhelming fatigue permeating every muscle to the bone. Sleep.

The sharp toe of a boot nudged him in the ribs, and an all-too-familiar voice penetrated his ear drums.

Oh no, you don’t. I need that contract signed before you flake out on me.

Kay... Lewis signed.

Oliver groaned. Bro, tell me you didn’t.

Yup, Lewis managed, and gave in to the darkness lapping at the edges of his mind.

Did he just... Aylin began, and Oliver looked up at her.

He signed. Let him sleep, he told her. He’s had a rough couple of months.

So have you, she told him, "But you are still conscious."

Alpha. Remember? he stated, and she rolled her eyes.

‘How bad a couple of months?"

That’s a story for another time, Oliver told her, And it’s not the most important story, right now. Care to tell me why you were contracting so far from your mate?

Again, that blush.

We are not yet... she began, and Oliver felt his own skin heat with embarrassment.

"I know that, he snapped. You’re too young for a start. You know what I mean."

I do. Aylin regarded him solemnly, and swiveled in her seat so she didn’t have to twist around to see him. As I said, being human and not lupari means there are some who don’t watch their words around you as carefully as they ought. While that is still to my advantage, I make the most of it. It helps, too, that I am not a very tall human.

Oliver nodded. And?

Ank’Regar’s father is being targeted for removal, she said, the simple statement holding more impact for its matter-of-fact delivery. There is a faction in the lupari hierarchy who wish to see his influence diminished and the rulership of Alpha Nine pass to a clan more...sympathetic...to their cause.

Not the Rennet’s World wolves? Oliver asked.

They are involved, the She confirmed, but whether they are the instigators or merely convenient scape goats, I have yet to discover.

This rumor... Oliver prodded.

I had been sent to the orbital to collect a...cargo, the She admitted. Ank’Regar said he trusted no-one else to bring it, that I was to sign for it and return directly with it, but when I went to collect it, I found the ship was not the one he expected, and that its crew did not recognize me.

Her brow furrowed. Although I believe that was perhaps fortunate. I signed for the package and while it was being fetched some of the ship’s passengers came also to see if there were any messages for them. They ignored me, and it was when they saw who my package was for that they laughed.

Her frown grew deeper.

I couldn’t see what was so amusing, so I pretended to be as any other human servant, and acted as though I was afraid and wished I was not there. They found that even more amusing, and turned away from me, speaking quietly between themselves. I don’t think they realized I could hear them.

What did they say? Oliver asked.

It was nothing specific, the She answered, although her cheeks glowed red but the undertone was that that Ank’Regar’s father would not be in charge of Alpha Nine for much longer if the plans in motion could be brought to fruition. When my package arrived, I took it and quickly left. It was a simple matter to have Ank’Regar order the ship’s surveillance systems hacked and downloaded on my return...and he did so through his own team.

He has his own hacking team? Oliver asked, and Aylin gave him a pitying smile.

Of course. You don’t expect him to rely on the palace teams to do it, do you? Each lupari inheritor quickly learns to create their own security sources. She shrugged. If they do not, they do not remain inheritors for very long.

Oliver frowned.

And you were able to learn enough to know you had to go to Axis Fifty-Eight?

Yes, but I had to go alone, and even though Ank said he was dealing with it, I knew he could not, that the minute his more recognizable agents became involved, he would lose the trail, so I went ahead.

And we kidnapped you... Oliver finished. I am sorry.

"You did not kidnap me, she reminded him. You realized your mistake and did your best to rectify it, don’t you recall?"

I recall, Oliver hung his head. But we failed.

You did, and you did not, the She told him. Without your clumsy interference, I would not have found the next piece to the puzzle...or what is potentially the next piece to the puzzle.

And you’d never have been in danger of being sold to some of the worst the galaxy has to offer, Oliver reminded her.

This is true. She turned to face him. Are you satisfied with the terms?

Oliver blinked. Give me a minute.

The look on her face said she’d expected him to have been done already, but he hadn’t started. She folded her arms and tapped her foot. Oliver started reading, relaxing once he’d gone through it. Lewis hadn’t signed his life away—Oliver gave his beta an exasperated look—but he could have.

He signed the contract and bounced it back to Septu.

Done, he