The Soul Eaters (The Thin Hex Line Book 1) by Gwyndolyn Russell (e reader txt) 📕

so bloodthirsty anymore. Instead he just looked...pitiful.

I wrapped my arms around the valkyrie's snout, pulling him in close. His forehead came to rest against mine. Pricked by his teeth, I didn't care at all. The pain was worth it.

Fenris was quiet, his eyes dimming. He let me hold him for as long as I wanted.

With a soft breath, I said, "I don't want to lose you, too."

All lists had been submitted to Reaper that same morning. He checked them and handed them off to the logistics Lieutenant. Now he just had to wait. They would stay here for as long as they needed to. Upgrading the ship was easiest while it was docked. Granted zero gravity meant less energy would be used when moving the larger objects around.

Having found out about the data Reynolds downloaded from Avant-Garde, he tasked her with figuring out as much about the eos as possible before they would leave Solstice.

A great mistake in the war, he noticed, was the lack of understanding the enemy. When the war first started, humanity took a drastic loss. They had not even mastered space travel, yet they were forced to fight in it.

He did not want to make that mistake again. He knew they could beat the eos back, whatever they were.

He decided a glass of liquor would be a good idea before he ate his dinner. He retreated to his office. Already there were notifications on his computer. New additions to the ship stock. He scrolled through them, reading the notes if there were any.

One glass in, Reaper kicked back. A new ping showed up. This time it beeped incessantly. He half expected it to be Jackal calling him. When he looked, he nearly jumped out of his seat.

He hit the button to pick it up and dropped his feet to the floor.

"Captain Phillips!" Came a fairly cheery voice. The screen showed the camera of the man on the other end. A well decorated Admiral.

"I hope I'm not calling you too late in the evening." A professional smile.

"No, Admiral, it's never too late." Reaper returned the smile.

"I must confess, I didn't call you for chit chat, I have an important assignment I believe only you could handle."

"What's the mission, sir?"

"We've received intel about a Garchtan who has gone AWOL. A soldier known as The White Death due to her white armor which starkly contrasts Garchtun's orange and yellow standard issue."

"Why would she go AWOL? Isn't Garchtun one of the wealthier nations?"

"It seems she was involved in a classified mission. She killed her own squad and each person that has gone after her."

"This sounds like a serious problem."

"I want you to find her. Apprehend her. This is a great opportunity for us to extend an olive branch."

Reapers eyes averted from the camera. Of course something would come up to delay their trip. He couldn't decline, not if the Admiral was personally choosing him.

"Are you lacking confidence?" The admiral questioned.

"No, sir! I was hoping to continue an investigation." He wanted to choose his words carefully. His hesitation to keep speaking gave the Admiral a chance to stop his train of thought.

"I haven't gotten word of any investigation. Is it related to the eldiravan?"

"No, sir. Have you heard anything of creatures called eos?"

"Eos? I've heard tales, but those are just silly stories from the edge."

"I can promise you they're real. I mentioned them in my report about the Utopia."

"I've had that report sitting on my desk for a while. Haven't had time to read it." The admiral glanced at something off screen. "What are they?"

"That's part of the problem. We don't know specifically. Monsters is the easiest way to describe it. According to the valkyrie we've found there is a population of them on B-58. We were headed that way."

"Valkyrie?"

"From my understanding a soldier. He has been a wonderful addition to the team and his strategies in battle are exceptional. He's how we know what we do already. Though I'm afraid Dr. Reynolds would better explain. She's working on a report as we speak, but there is a lot to learn."

"Be careful, Phillips. Some battles are best left unfought."

"Yes, sir."

"Keep up your investigation, but prioritize finding this White Death soldier. Once you have her in custody, call me."

"Do you know where she was last seen?"

"Thacatis. There is a joint colony called Caelestus. Fleebeeron and Ardrizi. She's most likely seeking protection."

"We'll head there right away."

THIRTY-ONE

It turned out Thacatis was on the way to B-58. Reaper couldn't believe their luck. He had the new course plotted, but knew the chances of them headed straight to Fenris' planet afterwards was slim. He did not want to leave Solstice in a rush this time. At least not until they had everything they needed on board. They could dismantle and upgrade parts as they headed to Thacatis.

They stayed one more day, making a late night launch. The reactor had been upgraded with new stabilizers and coolants. Systems upgraded for better efficiency. Half of the air thrusters were upgraded for better power output, the other half to be upgraded later. The synthesizer was fully functional and freshly stocked, with an additional freezer added for raw foods that could be accessed easily.

Fenris didn't seem to care. It understood the chain of command. If the Admiral said so, then it must be done.

Seemingly motivated to help in preparations, Fenris busied itself by helping Jackal with stock. It continued its nightly game with Reaper as well. Though now Fenris turned it into something to help Reaper train. It found a way to create custom units, and recreated some of the most common eos it had encountered best to the game's allowance. Shocked, he took it to heart.

It made him happy to know Fenris was willing to do what it could to prepare them instead of leaving them in the dark.

When they made it to Thacatis, their priorities changed. Engineers continued working on the ship. Jackal assembled a team of Fenris, Mjolnir, and Ruby to