End of the Innocent Read online

  End of the Innocent

  Clark Graham

  Cover art by Jj Schutza

  elvenshore.blogspot.com

  [email protected]

  End of the Innocent

  © Clark Graham 2015

  All Rights Reserved

  End of the Innocent

  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

  Chapter Fifteen

  Chapter Sixteen

  Chapter Seventeen

  Chapter Eighteen

  Chapter Nineteen

  Chapter Twenty

  Chapter Twenty One

  Chapter Twenty Two

  Chapter Twenty Three

  Chapter Twenty Four

  Chapter Twenty Five

  Chapter Twenty Six

  Chapter Twenty Seven

  Chapter Twenty Eight

  Chapter Twenty Nine

  Part II Zedra’s Story

  Chapter Thirty

  Chapter Thirty One

  Chapter Thirty Two

  Chapter Thirty Three

  Chapter Thirty Four

  Chapter Thirty Five

  Chapter Thirty Six

  Chapter Thirty Seven

  Chapter Thirty Eight

  Chapter Thirty Nine

  Chapter Forty

  Chapter Forty One

  Chapter Forty Two

  Chapter Forty Three

  Chapter Forty Four

  Chapter Forty Five

  Chapter Forty Six

  Sample Chapter

  Chapter One

  Andaria Major (3rd Planet from the Sun Centarus Solar System)

  Country of Santeria

  Smoke billowed out of the large new diesel tractor as it headed across the field. Zedra’s Dad Pethran was proud of it. The tractor did twice the work of the old one. It was a massive machine that was painted blue, like all of Pethran’s tractors. He loved blue. Zedra had been sent to call his father and his brother Greten to supper. It wasn’t an easy task because he had to wait to be spotted. He could not shout over the noise the engine made. He looked over the rolling hills around his father’s farm. Across the newly plowed fields he saw them. The tractor’s smoke was a dead giveaway. Their old gasoline tractor didn’t smoke like that, but it didn’t have the power of the new one either.

  Zedra started waving his arms to get their attention. It took a while but finally Greten spotted him and waved back. Greten got into the tractor with his father and the two of them started heading to the barn. Zedra headed back into the two story wood frame house. It wasn’t blue like the tractors and barn; it was green. That was the color his mother loved. Dad had lost that round.

  “They are on the way,” he said to his mother. She was older, grey haired and tired. A strong woman, she had wrinkles that betrayed her age, although she was as loving and caring as any mother could be.

  She ruffled Zedra’s naturally curly brown hair. “Thank you, my son.” She smiled at him.

  Zedra was a strong lad of sixteen. Next year he would be working in the fields with his father and brother, but for now, he was with his mother so she could teach him to read and write. It was her job to train the boys in arithmetic too. When Zedra was done with his education, he would work the fields like his father did and his grandfather did and many generations before that. The land had been in the family for two hundred years.

  Pethran and Greten came in the door, wiping the dirt off their hands. They both headed to the sink to wash up for dinner. Pethran had just a touch of grey on the side of his head. He looked years younger than his wife, but they were the same age. Greten did not get the curly hair that his father and brother had. His was dark brown and straight. He liked to keep it short.

  “Well, my lovely Sara, what do we have for dinner on this wonderful day?”

  “Chicken chowder. We had that old hen that would not lay eggs anymore so she was put in a pot where she will be useful one more time.”

  “It smells good,” added Greten.

  “Thank you; let’s eat.”

  As they sat down Sara dished up a bowl of the chowder to each one of them. “Do you think you will be able to get all the crops planted soon?” Sara asked while still dishing out the food.

  Greten had a mouth full. As usual he had not waited for the rest of them but had dug in so his father had to answer.

  “Yes, with the new tractor it’s going twice as fast. It should be done in two more days.”

  “Nothing feels better than a crop in the field growing in the bright sunshine.”

  “Dad, Jamie and Lee are going to town to the dance hall tonight to listen to the radio. A lot of people will be there. Can I go with them?” Zedra’s face was hopeful as he asked.

  “We should get one of those radios for the house so you don’t have to go to the dance hall all of the time,” Greten interjected.

  “I don’t mind, as long as your studies are all done,” his father replied. “As for the radio, it has to come way down in price before I’ll buy one.”

  “Majory and her family have one, Dad. She said it wasn’t so expensive.”

  “I have tractor parts to buy before I can afford any radio. I will have another set of hands next year and I need to get that old tractor of ours running before then.”

  Greten looked disappointed but said, “I guess I will go to the dance hall, too, then, if that’s okay?”

  “Sure, you can drive with your brother and his friends then.”

  Zedra smiled, “thanks, Dad.”

  After dinner Zedra helped his mother clean up and then he called his friends on the old crank phone and told them the good news. They came running over from the nearby farms and Greten got the car out of the garage so he could drive them to town.

  “I don’t know if this thing will start. It was a cold winter and we have not run it in a week,” Greten said. He wanted to worry his brother.

  “If it doesn’t start, we can just pile onto Dad’s new tractor for the ride to town.”

  Greten just shook his head; he knew that wasn’t an option. He cranked the car and it started. “Okay, you guys, jump in.”

  It was a five mile trip to town. The three boys chatted endlessly, but Greten just sat there bored. He knew if the boys got in trouble, it would be on him, so he would have to watch them endlessly. It didn’t matter; he would have nothing better to do. His girlfriend, Majory, would not be in town. She had her own radio so would not be listening to the one at the dance hall.

  They pulled up to the dance hall and parked the car. The three friends piled out and went in. Greten followed at a distance. It was embarrassing for him to be seen with the group of younger boys, so he entered by himself. The music was loud and the radio was turned up high. The latest dance tunes echoed through the long wooden building. At the tables nearest the front sat old men playing skrat. It was a game that used different colored stones to block the other player’s attempts to get a line from one side of the board to the other. Players of the game took up to an hour per game. In front of the skrat players was a coffee bar where you could order different flavors of the black liquid. Greten ordered a mint coffee and then sat down to watch the boys.

  Zedra was already dancing with Sallis. His Dad would not approve. She was from the other side of town where the non-farmers lived. Her Dad was a wealthy merchant, the kind of man that Pethran disliked because he did not work with his hands. If you did no
t work with your hands, you weren’t a real man, in Pethran’s mind.

  They were there about an hour when the radio suddenly stopped the music. The announcer came on. “We bring you a breaking news event from Tricola. Large crafts have come from behind the moon, dislodging black clad warriors who are attacking the countryside. The army of Tricola is trying to hold them back. We will have more information as it becomes available.”

  The whole dance hall was staring at the radio by this point.

  Chapter Two

  Country of Santeria

  Town of Meadervil

  The music started back up, but it was hard to hear over the din of people talking. Everyone seemed upset or confused at what was happening. “Airships from the sky, black clad warriors, what is happening?” Sallis asked Zedra.

  “I don’t know, but it sounds ominous.”

  It was not that the people of Tricola and Santeria, where Zedra lived, were friends; indeed the opposite was true. The two nations had fought several wars against each other. They had been limited affairs, mostly for control of territory, but relations had warmed over the last two decades. An attack from the sky was something different altogether and it was a threat to everyone.

  The radio cut the music again.

  “We bring you a special report. Our correspondent in Tricola is on the line reporting the latest.”

  When the reporter got on the line, there was the sound of gunfire in the background. “This is Pedra reporting from Tricola. The invasion has begun. This morning, strange winged craft came out of the sky and thousands of black clad warriors landed. The Tricola army met them in battle but they were defeated soundly. The invaders have some type of ray guns that spew out strange lights killing anything they hit. Even now I am with a part of the army and we are retreating towards the capitol in hopes of making our stand there.”

  The announcer came back on. “This is the report we have received only minutes ago. The line has since gone dead. We will give you further information as we receive it.”

  The music came back on, but no one wanted to dance. The sheriff came into the dance hall with several of his deputies. “What is going on? I hear Tricola is under attack by aliens.”

  “Yes, they have defeated the Tricola army and are headed toward their capitol,” Greten replied. He was visibly upset.

  “I can’t believe it.” The sheriff sat down at a nearby table, and his deputies followed suit. “I’m waiting for the next report.”

  It wasn’t long in coming. “This is a special report. The chancellor has called on all army units to head to their assembly stations immediately. All of those who belong to the army reserve and the army affiliate are being called up. I repeat all those of those belonging to the army reserve and the army affiliate are being called up and are to head to your assembly areas immediately.”

  The whole room was now in shock. Could the spacemen actually come to Santeria? Greten had joined the army affiliate as a way to make some extra money. Almost all the men his age did. He only had to assemble every other month and the pay was good. Now he was second guessing his decision.

  “We will be okay.” Zedra told Greten, “You can go, we will find our own way home.” Zedra looked concerned.

  Two of the deputies got up, “Greten, we are headed to the assembly area, you can come with us.” They were part of his affiliate regiment.

  “Yes of course,” he replied. He was visibly shaken. He then turned to Zedra and asked, “Can you get the car home? Dad will need it.”

  “Lee drives; I will have him take us back home.”

  “Tell Mom and Dad what happened. Tell them not to worry. This is just a precaution; no one is invading us yet.”

  The news came back on. “This is a special report. The capital of Tricola is being invaded. We have correspondent Malday on the scene.”

  “This is Malday reporting from Tricola. Large alien craft have descended down on the city spewing forth green death rays as they come. The army is still a ways away, fighting the aliens that landed nearby. Black clad warriors have overrun the Emperor’s palace. There is panic in the streets as people are running away from the alien hordes in an effort to escape the onslaught. The city is lost, I repeat, the city is lost.

  “That is all we have received up to this point. Here in Santeria the chancellor has called up all army units including reserve and affiliate. All of the men belonging to the army reserve and the army affiliate are to report to their assembly stations.”

  “We should get home,” Zedra said to Lee and Jamie. They nodded and all three headed for the car.

  The sheriff just sat there shaking his head. He now only had one deputy with him. “What is the world coming to? Is this the end?” He felt hopeless. He knew that any army that could defeat the Tricolian army could defeat them also.

  No one answered him.

  When Zedra and Lee arrived home, Lee got out of the car and started walking to his place. The boys were each in their own thoughts and barely remembered to say goodbye to each other. When Zedra entered the house his Dad was setting up a new radio in the front room.

  “You bought a radio?” Zedra asked. He was very surprised.

  His mother was the one that answered. “When we started getting phone calls about strange things happening in Tricola, Dad took the tractor to town and bought one. It was one of the last ones that they had available and he had to stand in line to get it. Have you heard what’s going on?”

  “Yes, they are being attacked by aliens. Do you think they will come here?”

  Just then the radio came to life. “And now we hear from our correspondent in Samilia.”

  “This is Wasner, reporting from Samilia. This small country just south of Tricola has also been attacked. The Samilian army has been fighting strange invaders that came out of the sky for the last five hours. Most of the capital is now in ruins and the king has been reported to have been captured. His fate is unknown at this time.”

  Suddenly there was an earsplitting sound and the line went dead.

  The announcer came back on. “We have lost contact with Wasner in Samilian. We will try to get him back on the line. Meanwhile we can tell you that all reserve and affiliate army members are to report to their assembly points.”

  Zedra’s mother got a concerned look on her face. “Where’s Greten?” She had just realized that he had not followed Zedra through the door.

  “He’s on his way to report. Lee drove me home.”

  There were tears in her eyes.

  “He said to say that it is just a precaution and that the aliens have not landed here yet.”

  “Honey, he had to go, they said immediately.” Pethran reassured her.

  “But he didn’t say goodbye.” She ran into the bedroom to have a good cry.

  Pethran just shook his head and went back to listening to the radio. After a few minutes the phone rang. When Pethran answered he heard, “This is the sheriff, grab your guns and get to town. We are starting a local militia and we need to train.”

  Chapter Three

  King’s Palace

  Livolis, Capital of Tricola

  Commodore Zurken sat on the old throne of the King of Tricola. It was uncomfortable. The middle aged man was regretting setting up his headquarters there to begin with because it caused animosity from the people he had just captured. If indeed he had captured them. Some of the planets he had taken over were in awe of the space travelers and wanted to join their ranks. This planet’s residents just wanted to kill them. He took off the blue cap to his uniform and brushed back his black hair and then replaced the cap. He could not stand the chair any longer so he stood up and took out his weapon and blasted it.

  Several of his aides came running in when they heard the discharge of a weapon. The most senior aide asked, “Sir, are you alright?”

  “What a lousy throne that was. Bring me my command chair from the cargo ship Konora and bolt it to the floor. I don’t want to sit on that cold, uncomfortable throne anymore.”r />
  The aide thought to himself, ‘you can’t sit on it now that it has a large hole in the seat.' He did not say that out loud to the humorless Zurken; it would have not been good for his career.

  “Yes, Sir, right away, Sir.” It was the only reply that would work.

  All of the servants scrambled out of the room. No one wanted to be around the unpredictable commodore when he was in one of his foul moods.

  Captain Revlov came in a few moments later. He did not wait for the aides to announce that he was here; he just entered the room. He was an aristocrat in the Galactic Empire, the grandson of one of the ten princes. His great grandfather was the emperor himself. He walked straight and tall with an egotistical swagger to his walk. His perfectly fitting uniform and immaculately cut black hair attested to his money and breeding.

  “Andri, you lost another man today, I heard. One of these barbarians dropped a flower pot on his head. He had to be evacuated to a surgeon on the hospital ship. Why don’t you just start blasting away at these creatures every time they injure your men? I would like permission to blast that building into rubble where the flower pot came from, with everyone in it.”

  “Permission denied, and don’t call me Andri; it’s Commodore to you.” The use of his first name had been a slap in his face. Revlov was a nightmare for any commanding officer. Well bred and well connected, he was more powerful than the commander. The captain’s previous commander told the planners that it would be a good experience for Revlov to be with the invasion forces. It had been a way for him to get rid of the troublesome underling.

  “How are we to teach these people that we are the rulers if we let them get away with hurting my men?”

  “Find the person who dropped the flower pot and punish him, not anyone else. We have to turn the hearts of these people to us and not against us. That way we will not have to fight them anymore.”

  “Your heart has gone out of war, Andri. We must strike fear into them.”

  The commodore cringed again at the use of his first name. “That does not work, that has never worked. They will only hate you more if you take needless lives of the civilian population. You will have many more flower pots and worse things dropped on your men’s heads.”