QSFer Clint Green has a new queer sci-fi book out: Star’s Odyssey.
In the depths of uncharted space, a unique vessel stirs. “Star,” once a majestic living creature, now a hybrid of organic life and mechanical ingenuity, charts its course through the cosmos.
When a ragtag crew of survivors – victims of the cruel Vrexen Empire – find themselves aboard Star, they are thrust into an adventure beyond their wildest dreams. Led by reluctant captain, Alex O’Keefe. this unlikely group of allies must navigate treacherous galaxies, confront their darkest fears, and fight for their newfound freedom.
From the remnants of their shattered lives, they find strength in unity and a common purpose: to heal their living ship and protect it from the very forces that seek to enslave it once more.
“Star’s Odyssey” is a tale of resilience, camaraderie, and the enduring spirit of freedom. It’s a journey across the stars where every moment is filled with heart-pounding action, profound discoveries, and the unbreakable bonds of a chosen family fighting against the odds.
Warning: Torture, kidnapping
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Excerpt
Alex awoke to the dreaded sound of hissing and clicking that had become hauntingly familiar to him. It was starting again. The chill that covered his body hit at first as his senses woke one by one. His skin prickled, and he sensed the dull ache where his left leg used to be. The coldness of the glass against the stump at the end of his right arm. The pressure of the restraints, biting into his skin.
The smell came next, that acrid scent of steel and rotting leaves, that was the only thing he could relate it to. It seeped into his nostrils; the fear creeping into him with it. A sudden rush of adrenaline sharpened his focus. He knew what he would see next and willed himself to close his eyes, but his body disobeyed. No matter how hard he tried, he wouldn’t be able to move this time, no more than he could the previous times.
As his vision cleared, the room slowly came into view. He was there again, the other man. Hanging in his suspension tube opposite Alex. The man had sandy blond hair that was shaved, and Alex could see a section on the side of his head where his skull was partially exposed. One of his eye sockets was empty and a small trail of blue liquid seeped out like an iridescent tear. His other eye stared wildly and locked onto Alex’s own.
They had only spoken once before, and the others took that ability away from them quickly after that. No names. Nothing more than a rushed string of words from the other man.
“Hey, Hey, buddy it’s ok. It’s ok. Focus on me. Look me in the eye and don’t look around. HEY BUDDY! You. Look at me. It’s gonna to be ok. Just focus on me and don’t show any pain. Don’t let them….” and then it was gone.
That was the first time he had seen the creatures, their captors. The first time he lost his mind in fear, confusion, and helplessness. The second time was no better. Alex couldn’t count the times they had woken him up from whatever stasis they held him in, and each time, he and the man wordlessly faced each other and tried to bear what was to come.
The man’s eye flickered sideways briefly, then bored into Alex’s own. Alex felt this heart beat faster as he knew that the man has seen the creature coming and if the man had seen it, then it was coming for Alex. A shadow fell across his face and the fine hair covering his arm and the sensitive stump of freshly healed skin rose. He felt a coldness touch his side, and he wondered what they would take this time. Forcing his eyes open, he looked at the creature’s face, emotionless beneath a breathing mask and goggles. He took in the familiar grey, scarred skin and then…Darkness.
Alex awoke again for the twentieth time. As the blur cleared from his eyes, he looked over to the Sandy haired man and his breath caught in his throat. The man was there, suspended in his tube, arms pinned to the wall, but at the base of his torso there was nothing. His legs had been removed completely and the end of his spine trailed below. There was no blood, no viscera. Everything was smooth and sealed except for the bone of his spine dangling below, just beneath the ribcage.
Even worse, something had completely removed the man’s brain, cut open his skull, and replaced it with wires and more of the metallic blue liquid. The man stared lifelessly ahead, almost in a mockery of the eye contact they used to make. Alex started with a shock as he realised they had meticulously healed his eye at some point and replaced it in his socket. He couldn’t fathom why they would do that if they were just going to kill him anyway.
He felt the sheer sense of loss and desperation shudder through him and the tightness along his side meant that they had taken something from him too, but too paralysed by the machine to move or feel pain. He could only guess at what. As he breathed deeper, trying to calm himself any way he could, Alex slowly became aware that the room was deathly quiet. None of the clicks of hissing that usually accompanied an awakening, none of the movement he could usually sense off to the sided and no smell of mulch and metal. What was different?
As his breathing slowed and he resolutely avoided looking at the man opposite him, he realised he was the only one here, the only one awake. He didn’t know how many more people were trapped here with him, but he could only see the now dead man and the sight of the edge of another suspension tube next to him, hinting at there being many more victims.
His heart beat now almost back to normal. Alex concentrated on listening to the room around him for any sign of someone entering, but still nothing. His mind raced as to what could have happened, but then there was a click and a bubbling sound as he felt the anaesthetic once again work its way into his system.
As sleep gently took him again, Alex wondered briefly if the creatures were not there, who had woken him?
Author Bio
Clint now lives in the North of England after living in London for many years. He loves sci-fi and fantasy and has two one-eyed rescue cats. Give him an old ruin to explore and he’s happy. Star’s Odyssey is his debut novel and is part one of a series…
| Author Website | www.clintgreenbooks.com |
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| Author Facebook | https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61556762575304 |