Ascendant Saga Collection: Sci-Fi Fantasy Techno Thriller by Brandon Ellis (easy to read books for adults list txt) 📕

“Leave me,” said Bogle, her voice barely audible.

“Believe me,” replied Rivkah. “I wish I could.” They needed her. Rivkah needed her. The prophecies needed her, so Jaxx could rid this moon, and maybe the galaxy, of the Negative ETs. The Agadon could not be allowed to take over. Abdu hadn’t said much. There hadn’t been time. But what he had said was clear: if the Agadon prevailed, unending bloodshed and chaos would follow.

Plus, Bogle was growing on her. Annoying, yes. Talked too much, for sure. A pure-grade, 100% weirdo, no doubt. But Bogle was handy, full of courage, and kept up with Rivkah. And there wasn’t anything wrong with that.

“Can you move faster, Abdu? I don’t think she’ll make it.”

Abdu grabbed the next rock and positioned his foot on a small outcropping, then pulled himself up the wall even further. “Almost half way there.”

An explosion sounded somewhere in the canyon. A Leaping Lizard—a Kelhoon starfighter—zoomed upward. A ball of smoke followed in its wake. It had been on a bombing mission.

A dozen missiles blasted from the source of the smoke and hit the Kelhoon Leaping Lizard’s rear ion drives. The starfighter screeched and corkscrewed, imploding seconds later in a cloud of fire and debris.

The ground shook as a pound echoed across the gorge. An Agadon mech turned a corner, exposing itself, and coming into full view. It raised its arm and a cannon popped up from the forearm, rotated, targeted Rivkah and her friends, then glowed like hot coal.

Wapooo!

An ion expelled from its muzzle, heading Rivkah’s way. This was it. All the failures she had in life culminated to this point—death by rock climbing.

8 J-Quadrant, Solar System - Nearing East Rise, Callisto

Jaxx had to do this—had to give himself up for the benefit of all. If he didn’t, he and his friends would continually be chased by two unrelenting races—the Agadon and the Kelhoon. Running would get him nowhere and farther away from fulfilling the prophecy, especially the part where he was to convince the Kelhoon to take his side against these blue A/I demons. And he wasn’t going to rope in any one of his friends in the process.

“Fox,” yelled Jaxx. “I’m turning myself in.” He unstrapped his phaser, pointing it at Taz.

Taz grunted, looking up at the Kelhoon, then back at Jaxx, perhaps computing his options. After a few beats, it became clear Taz was going to stay put and do nothing.

Zara squeezed Jaxx’s shoulder, her voice low and urgent. “You’re doing no such thing. We work as a team. We can escape this.”

“That’s what I’m intending,” responded Jaxx, continuing to glare up at Fox. “In fact, I’m intending to end this all for good.”

“We must go, Jaxx,” cried Zara. “In order to fulfill the prophecy, we must do it together. You can’t do it alone.”

“Don’t move, Jaxx,” growled Fox from atop the rocky crest. He gestured to several Kelhoon troops. They nodded and jogged out of view.

Jaxx figured they were heading down to put him and his buddies in energetic cuffs. What they’d do to Tazz, he didn’t know. Hopefully they’d experiment on the guy, find a detonation switch in his CPU that blew every Agadon to fragments the size of computer chips. Dream on, he thought. Nothing is that easy.

“Naze watashitachiha jibun jishin ni kawatte imasu ka?” asked Kiyo-zan, his cape blowing in the wind, his weapon ready.

Good. He was alive, and now standing.

“We are not turning ourselves in, Kiyo-zan. I am turning myself in.” Jaxx tapped his wrist. “Get your shield ready. On my mark, cover yourself and Zara.”

“Are you fleeing?” Taz laughed, resting his hand on his holstered gun. “You cowards.”

“Cowards?” An image of Taz escaping from Abdu back on planet Taiyo entered his mind. Abdu had held Taz at bay and, when the chips were down, Taz had turned tail and run. “We are no more a coward than you.” Jaxx smiled. A pricking sensation at the base of his skull told him there were more than just Kelhoon lizard slime in the area. The Agadon were near as well. “When did you call more of your friends?”

“Very perceptive, Jaxx. Yes, I called them a few minutes ago. They’re around, waiting for my orders. And…”

The Kelhoon that Fox had ordered down into the canyon rounded the bend.

Taz continued, though speaking to his team. “Eg, eg unit sug-nine, commence attack.”

Jaxx pushed Zara behind Kiyo-zan. “Don’t let her go.”

Zara shoved Kiyo-zan away. “Rethink your actions, Jaxx. Be wise. Two heads are better than one.”

“Go, find Rivkah and the others,” ordered Jaxx.

Zara whipped her tail, anger spreading across her face. “Our job is to keep you alive, not the other way around, peach-fuzz.”

“Your job is to keep me alive until I give my life for Callisto and the rest of the galaxy. That’s fine, but you mentioned another prophecy which indicates we must turn the Kelhoon to our side, if we’re going to win the war against evil. And, that’s what I’ll be attempting. Otherwise, we won’t fulfill any prophecy.”

Zara gritted her teeth. “Yes, but do it with us, not by yourself. This lone path will only lead to misery.”

Jaxx gave Kiyo-zan a look, and the Taiyonian warrior gave a slight bow. He stepped in front of Zara and lifted his wrist.

Shooooooz!

A shield materialized from Kiyo-zan’s arm bracelet.

Zzzzshwop! Zzzzshwop!

Agadon soldiers in full armor, huge rifles mounted on their shoulders, rushed up the canyon, ion chargers blazing. The blasts ripped apart the edge of the ridge, dropping rocks the size of bricks to the canyon floor. The Agadon were a ways away, but with their speed they’d be swarming Jaxx’s position soon enough.

Ion charges rocketed over Jaxx’s head. The portion of the ridge where Fox stood erupted, rock splintered outward. Several Kelhoon plummeted, screaming, to their deaths.

Fox, that cunning bastard, leaped back just in time and disappeared beyond the cliff’s lip.

The Kelhoon had retreated to a safe distance, but that didn’t slow their assault on the Agadon. Ion