{"id":10531,"date":"2016-05-07T08:00:00","date_gmt":"2016-05-07T14:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.onelowerlight.com\/writing\/?p=10531"},"modified":"2016-05-03T13:29:31","modified_gmt":"2016-05-03T19:29:31","slug":"captives-in-obscurity-excerpt-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.onelowerlight.com\/writing\/captives-in-obscurity-excerpt-2\/","title":{"rendered":"Captives in Obscurity \u2014 excerpt 2"},"content":{"rendered":"

Gulchina reached for her holster and pulled out an energy pistol. Reva\u2019s breath caught in her throat, and for an instant, her heart stopped. Behind the glass, the corporal\u2019s eyes went wide.<\/p>\n

\u201cMercy is for the weak,\u201d Gulchina continued. \u201cVictory is for the strong. Will the stars show you mercy? Will the universe hear your pleas? No! Among the spaceborn, only the strong survive.\u201d<\/p>\n

She turned again to the airlock, where the naked corporal now stood trembling.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat would you have me do with this man?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cKill him!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThrow him out the airlock!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cLet him breathe vacuum!\u201d<\/p>\n

Soon, the whole crew was calling for the corporal\u2019s death. Their cries of outrage echoed across the bulkheads and caused the floor to shake. The corporal shook his head and pleaded, the word \u201cno\u201d on his lips, but his voice was trapped behind the glass.<\/p>\n

Stop it,<\/em> Reva thought to herself, her hands shaking. Don\u2019t do this. Make it stop.<\/em><\/p>\n

Gulchina stood by calmly, allowing her men to vent their rage. When she raised her hand, though, the room fell instantly silent.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt pains me to kill one of my own,\u201d she said. \u201cBut because of his betrayal, he is no longer worthy to be counted among my loyal sons. Those who are faithful prove themselves worthy of food and air. Those who do not shall not have place with us.<\/p>\n

\u201cNevertheless, I will not condemn any of my sons to death without giving him the opportunity to die honorably.\u201d<\/p>\n

The door to the airlock hissed open, and Gulchina stepped inside. The corporal\u2019s pleading cries were barely coherent, and the terror in his voice cut Reva to her core.<\/p>\n

\u201cCaptain, please! Please forgive me! I don\u2019t, I didn\u2019t\u2014no! Don\u2019t do it! Please don\u2019t!\u201d<\/p>\n

Gulchina bent down on one knee and slid the energy pistol across the floor. It came to rest at the corporal\u2019s feet, within easy reach. Since his hands were still shackled to the ceiling, however, he couldn\u2019t pick it up.<\/p>\n

\u201cCaptain! Captain, listen to me! Please\u2014Captain!\u201d<\/p>\n

Her face still calm, she stepped back through the airlock and palmed it shut. Once the door was firmly closed, she keyed another series of commands, and the shackles came undone. The corporal fell on his hands and knees to the floor.<\/p>\n

\u201cThrow him out!\u201d the man next to Reva shouted. His voice was so loud, it made her jump. Soon, the whole crew took up the chant.<\/p>\n

\u201cThrow him out! Throw him out!\u201d<\/p>\n

Reva\u2019s breath caught in her throat, and her heart pounded so hard she thought it would explode. In the airlock, the corporal picked up the gun and rose slowly to his feet. His hands were trembling as he brought the gun to his head, but he could not bring himself to pull the trigger.<\/p>\n

\u201cTHROW HIM OUT! THROW HIM OUT!\u201d<\/p>\n

Gulchina lifted a finger to her cheek and wiped away a single tear. The gesture was so perfect, so full of grace and subtlety, that Reva couldn\u2019t help but feel her heart cry out to her. Gone was the monster who was about to commit a brutal act of murder, replaced by a goddess who meted out life and death through the almighty power she held in her hand. The loyalty that she commanded was stronger than the cords of death.<\/p>\n

The outer door of the airlock suddenly slid open, revealing the vacuum of space. The corporal stumbled and grasped wildly for purchase at the explosive decompression. Reva gasped, and the chanting stopped. In the airlock, the corporal clutched his throat as if he were choking. His eyes bulged and the veins on his wrists and forehead stood out sharply against his skin. He staggered backward as the last of the air was sucked out, pulling him with it. With the starfield shining dimly behind him, he closed his eyes and floated out into the infinite void.<\/p>\n

Gulchina calmly removed her gloves and placed them in her breast pocket. To Reva, it seemed as if she were washing her hands. Perhaps in some metaphorical way, she was.<\/p>\n

\u201cDismissed.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n

Captives in Obscurity,<\/strong> book 5 in the\u00a0Sons of the Starfarers<\/strong> series,\u00a0will be available in ebook form on May 15th. Pre-order or find out more below:<\/p>\n

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<\/a>\r\n
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Captives in Obscurity<\/h1>\r\n\t\t
\"Captives<\/div>\t\t
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There is no escape beyond Star's End.<\/h2>\t\t\t
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Isaac and Reva are running out of time. Gulchina's cruelty knows no bounds, and on the edge of known space, no one can stop her. But an unexplored planet holds an ancient alien secret that may prove to be a game changer.<\/p>\n<\/div>\r\n

<\/div>\r\nOrder Now!<\/a>\t\t<\/div>\r\n\t\t
<\/div>\r\n\t<\/div>\r\n<\/div><\/a>\r\n
\r\n\t
About the Book<\/div>\r\n\t
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There is no escape beyond Star’s End.<\/strong><\/p>\n

The deadliest pirates in the galaxy have stolen the technology that will transform it. Now, on the edge of known space, they are poised to start an empire of their own.<\/p>\n

Isaac and Reva are running out of time. Neither of them knows the extent of Gulchina’s plans, or whether the madwoman will keep them both alive after she achieves them.<\/p>\n

But an unexplored planet beyond the Far Outworlds holds an ancient alien secret that not even Gulchina has uncovered. That secret will tip the balance in<\/p>\n

SONS OF THE STARFARERS<\/strong>
\nBOOK V: CAPTIVES IN OBSCURITY<\/strong><\/p>\n\t\t<\/div>\r\n\t<\/div>\r\n<\/div><\/a>\r\n

\r\n\t
Details<\/div>\r\n\t
\r\n\t\t
\r\n\t\t\tAuthor:<\/span> Joe Vasicek<\/a><\/span>
\t\t\tSeries:<\/span> Sons of the Starfarers<\/a>, Book 5<\/span>
\t\t\tGenres:<\/span> Science Fiction<\/a>, Space Opera<\/a><\/span>
\t\t\tTag:<\/span> 2016 Release<\/a><\/span>
\t\t\t\t\t\tPublication Year:<\/span> May 2016<\/span>
\t\t\t\t\t\tLength:<\/span> short novel<\/span>
\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tList Price:<\/span> $9.99<\/span>
\t\t\teBook Price:<\/span> $2.99<\/span>
\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\r\n\t<\/div>\r\n<\/div>\r\n<\/a>
Order Now<\/div>
$1 off the ebook with coupon code: BUY DIRECT<\/a><\/div>
FREE ebook when you buy the audiobook direct!<\/a><\/div>
\"Buy<\/a><\/div>
\"Buy<\/a><\/div>
\"Buy<\/a><\/div>
\"Buy<\/a><\/div>
\"Buy<\/a><\/div>
\"Buy<\/a><\/div>
\"Buy<\/a><\/div>
\"Buy<\/a><\/div>
\"Buy<\/a><\/div>
<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/a>
\t
<\/div>\t
\t\t
Joe Vasicek<\/div>\t\t

Joe Vasicek fell in love with science fiction and fantasy when he read The Neverending Story as a child. He is the author of more than twenty books, including Genesis Earth, Gunslinger to the Stars, The Sword Keeper, and the Sons of the Starfarers series. As a young man, he studied Arabic at Brigham Young University and traveled across the Middle East and the Caucasus Mountains. He lives in Utah with his wife and two apple trees.<\/p>\n<\/div>\t<\/div>\t

<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/a>
Other Books in the \"Sons of the Starfarers\"<\/div>
<\/a><\/div>
Brothers in Exile<\/a><\/div><\/div>
<\/a><\/div>
Comrades in Hope<\/a><\/div><\/div>
<\/a><\/div>
Strangers in Flight<\/a><\/div><\/div>
<\/a><\/div>
Friends in Command<\/a><\/div><\/div>
<\/a><\/div>
Patriots in Retreat<\/a><\/div><\/div>
<\/a><\/div>
A Queen in Hiding<\/a><\/div><\/div>
<\/a><\/div>
An Empire in Disarray<\/a><\/div><\/div>
<\/a><\/div>
Victors in Liberty<\/a><\/div><\/div>
<\/a><\/div>
The Complete Sons of the Starfarers<\/a><\/div><\/div>
<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>
Some of the links in the page above are \"affiliate links.\" This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, I will receive an affiliate commission. You will not receive any additional charge.\r\n\r\nAs an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.<\/div><\/div> <\/div> \n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Gulchina reached for her holster and pulled out an energy pistol. Reva\u2019s breath caught in her throat, and for an instant, her heart stopped. Behind the glass, the corporal\u2019s eyes went wide. \u201cMercy is for the weak,\u201d Gulchina continued. \u201cVictory is for the strong. Will the stars show you mercy? Will the universe hear your… Continue reading Captives in Obscurity \u2014 excerpt 2<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[964,855],"tags":[474],"class_list":["post-10531","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-ssf-v","category-ssf","tag-excerpts","entry"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p7iXK-2JR","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.onelowerlight.com\/writing\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10531","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.onelowerlight.com\/writing\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.onelowerlight.com\/writing\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onelowerlight.com\/writing\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onelowerlight.com\/writing\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=10531"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.onelowerlight.com\/writing\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10531\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":10550,"href":"https:\/\/www.onelowerlight.com\/writing\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10531\/revisions\/10550"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.onelowerlight.com\/writing\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=10531"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onelowerlight.com\/writing\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=10531"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onelowerlight.com\/writing\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=10531"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}