Dedushka's Legacy

By Gabriella Bradley

Yuliana has been raised in a cave by her Russian grandfather. She is devastated when her deda doesn't return from a shopping excursion.

After three weeks, Yuliana decides to break open her grandfather's desk to look for clues. In it, she finds his memoirs. When she reads them, she is shocked at the first recorded date. Impossible. It meant that her deda was more than three-hundred years old.

Completely confused by the journal, Yuliana has no idea what to do, or what the pearl in the oyster shell means. Should she embrace it? When she places her hands on it, she is shocked to hear a voice behind her, and she faces a young man—the man she'd seen in her visions…

• Language: English
• Publisher: eXtasy Books Inc
• Release date: Jul 6, 2020
• ISBN: 9781487428754

Book preview

Prologue

Captain, we have to evacuate! Our engines have failed! The ship cannot take much more! Lex shouted.

An unexpected meteor shower had come out of nowhere without warning. Meteoroids pummeling their spaceship had already penetrated the shield, almost instantly damaging the engines. The noise was deafening. Lex could hear the grind of tearing of metal. The viewscreen showed chunks of their ship hurdling into space, the walls slowly cracking under the immense pressure.

All they could do was remain strapped in and hope for the best until the captain gave the order to abandon ship. He wished his magic could save the craft. Though forbidden to use it on board, in this case, he would have disobeyed that order. But it was no use because his powers could not extend beyond the walls of the ship into space.

Engines down! All systems failing! Abandon ship! All crew members to the escape pods! Captain Veldraco ordered over the com system. May the gods be with us all!

Lex undid his safety harness and hurried to sickbay. He lurched from side to side, fell several times, but doggedly continued. Knowing his mate, she would not abandon the two patients who had been hurt badly during their last away mission while exploring another planet.

The doorway to sickbay failed to open automatically. He cursed softly and punched a code into the pad next to it. The door shuddered, opened a few inches, then stopped, so he grabbed the edge with both hands and pulled. It moved a few more inches. Wedging his body into the small opening, he put all his weight against it and managed to open it a little more. Giving up on the manual method, he used his magic to enter.

Ana, we have to leave. You heard the captain.

Anasta stood next to one of her patients. Lex, how did you get through the door? It would not open for me. I need help to get Druvo and Janeta to an escape pod.

Lex looked at the two patients. Ana had strapped them down securely, and both were unconscious. You really need to ask how I came in? We cannot carry them. I will go and get help. He rushed back to the door only to find it closed again. No matter what he tried, it would not open. He would have to use his magic again. It did not matter now that the captain had forbidden him to display his magic to the crew, or to ever use it on the ship. There was no one to witness him disobeying the order.

Ana, come here and hold my hands! he shouted.

I will not abandon them, Lex.

Stubborn woman, he muttered and rushed to her side. I will transport you to an escape pod and come back for—

His words were cut off when the ship jerked, sending him flying against the infirmary wall. The last thing he saw was Ana wedged beneath a collapsed bed. Ana... he whispered.

Lex groggily opened his eyes.

All was quiet.

Too silent.

And dark.

He closed his eyes and concentrated. A glowing orb soon lit up sickbay. It was in shambles. Druvo and Janeta lay inert, still strapped to their beds that had collapsed, half-buried beneath pieces of metal and debris. Janeta’s head was bleeding profusely from a piece of metal that had penetrated her skull.

Ana! he yelled. No answer. He shoved debris off his body and managed to stand. Ignoring stabs of pain, he searched and found her in a corner, behind a broken bed. Quickly, he knelt beside her and felt her neck. Her heart thumped strongly beneath his fingers. She was alive. Of course, she would be. What was he thinking? They were immortal. Physical damage or illness could not kill them. With the exception of fire, nothing could.

Ana, wake up. He shook her gently until she opened her eyes.

What happened? Where are we? The meteor shower, the ship—

I have no idea where we are. Maybe it threw the ship off course, and we are drifting aimlessly. Can you get up? I will get us to an escape pod.

Helping her, she stood, unsteady for a few moments, but then she found her bearings. Druvo and Janeta...

I will check on them now. Janeta is gone for sure. A piece of metal pierced her skull. Lex hurried to the two fallen patients, but after checking Druvo, he found no life signs. They are both gone, Ana. He sighed.

Only he and his mate were immortal. None of the other twenty-four crewmembers had special gifts. Had the rest of the crew made it to the escape pods? The captain?

He turned to Ana, who sat on her knees beside Janeta, tears soaking her cheeks. Come. We will check on the rest of the ship. He gently took her by the arm and urged her to stand. He held her hands and concentrated on the bridge.

They were not drifting in space. What remained of the ship had crashed, and a gaping hole greeted them. Only half the bridge was left, its computers and instruments hanging from fried wires.

Lex looked up to see an inky sky dotted with stars. I think we have crashed on the small planet we were orbiting and studying. He tapped his com button on his collar. Hello? Is anyone still on board? There was no answer.

I hope the others all escaped safely, Ana said softly.

As you noticed, I did not get a response. If they did and survived, they more than probably landed on this planet somewhere. Since none have special powers, they will be unable to communicate. I can only hope they have the sense to destroy their escape pods before the primitives find them. Lex let go of her hand and walked to the jagged edge of the bridge. He gazed out but only saw the vague outline of mountains etched against a moonlit sky. We will wait until daylight.

They cleared a small space near a still-standing wall and sat, leaning against each other. What did you discover about this planet and its people, Lex? Ana asked.

Not a whole lot. We had only just begun studying it. The population is about a billion, and they appeared to be still quite primitive, so we decided not to send down an exploration team. There were no computer systems for us to hack into to learn more about them. The probe we sent down relayed some images. They are human, like us, although of many different skin colors and facial appearances. Transportation is similar to what ours was thousands of years ago. About seventy percent of the planet is covered in water. The atmosphere is mainly nitrogen and oxygen, making it compatible with our own.

Ana uttered a wry chuckle. Obviously. That is why we can breathe normally.

He placed his arm around her shoulders and pulled her against him. Let us try to get some sleep.

Sleep? By the gods, Lex. How can you even think of sleep after what we have just gone through?

In response, he squeezed her and closed his eyes, praying silently to the gods, hoping for directions and answers.

Lex, wake up!

Without wanting to, he had slept. Opening his eyes, he blinked against bright sunlight. After kissing the top of Ana’s head, he stood and stretched, then walked to the edge of the bridge. He gazed out at mountains and forests, and up at a bright blue sky with a single sun. He moved closer to the edge and saw a lake not far from where the ship had crashed.

We need to try and make contact with home, Ana said behind him. None of our instruments are salvageable by the looks of it. We will have to try using the pearl.

Her mention of the pearl set him into action. He made his way to where the doors used to be, and since the elevator would not work, he used the emergency exit stairs to get down to their quarters. It was difficult. The narrow passage had undergone damage and was quite treacherous in places, and the steps were bent out of proportion.

To not use his magic had become automatic. He chided himself and shrugged. There was no one aboard to witness him transporting magically.

He got to their living quarters to find the room in a jumbled mess. The thick glass of the viewport in their living area had splintered into a thousand fragments that had scattered all over, the shards glittering like precious gems from the sunlight streaming in. Lex went to the cupboard that held the pearl. The safety lock would not open, so he used his magic. To his relief, the large shell was in one piece. He took it out carefully and opened it.

Thankfully, it is safe, Ana said as she entered.

Yes. Nothing can destroy an artifact belonging to the gods. Let us be grateful that it was this part of the ship that crashed here, or the pearl would be floating somewhere in space.

Lex set a fallen chair on its legs, and placed the shell on it, then cradled the pearl with both hands. A soft glow lit up the shell’s pearly interior while the pearl pulsed gently. Lex closed his eyes and concentrated, attempting to get a message through.

Do you think it worked? Ana asked when he opened his eyes.

Maybe. We will have to wait to see if rescue arrives.

If the crew made it to the surface, none of them will have any means of contact.

We do not even know if the pearl can help us. I have never used it to make contact with home base.

Its power appears weakened.

Yes. It is strange. I have no idea why the gods insisted I bring it along on this mission.

Ana nodded. The gods do not tell us everything. There must be a reason, and we will know in the future.

We will wait. Meantime, I will explore our surroundings.

I am going with you.

"No. We have no idea how much danger awaits us. Let us go and see what we can salvage from the galley. I am hungry. I will eat something first before I scout the area. And while I am gone, you can gather our things, and pack anything that we can use to survive, like our tents. It looks as if we are far from any civilization, but just in case, we will need to destroy the ship and find shelter