In the middle of working on a sequel to my latest novel I found myself sketching out the beginning of a short story. I have so much fun creating new stories. Now I want to share the beginning of
Blue Moon with you.
Blue
Moon
The
Beginning
One
final scorching war on Earth caused the Terrans to scatter across the universe.
The planet suffered from a war of paralyzing toxins that sent the survivors
scrambling for clean air. They searched for soil unfettered from the poisons that
covered the ground, making Earth an impotent ball of rock. It had become a dust
bowl unable to produce any kind of growth. Through the search for better land,
the clans sprang up. They were groups of people bound together for survival. Connor
was a rare specimen, who still had muscle mass even on the food supplements his
clan could provide. Because of this, he became a protector. A warrior in his
clan, trained to fight and win.
Although
food was scarce on Earth, technology continued to increase. Interplanetary
travel had been developed for large groups and many clans left Earth for more
fertile worlds. Connor’s clan was small, with only fifty-four ships in its
fleet, so they didn’t have enough firepower to win a skirmish over a place to
stay. They became galactic gypsies; trading their services and goods for a
brief respite on a planet. That is, until they found what was called the Blue
Moon orbiting the large planet Arcturus. The Blue Moon was a century’s old,
uninhabited planet that was rejected by other civilizations because of its
proximity to the well of evil that occupied Arcturus. That evil called itself
the Hunters.
The
Hunters possessed technology that was arcane to most worlds and they used it to
create a weapon so terrible that it was outlawed on most other planets. This
was the latchpin. A device that, on its highest setting, would melt its way
through a Terran, leaving only fizzling goo behind. The Hunters were proud of
their skills at domination and supremacy. They would make war on all who would
appear in their quadrant. Those that survived became their slaves.
Connor’s
clan hadn’t met up with their society before, but they were desperate for a place
to rest and recuperate. Regardless of the latchpin stories, they decided to
negotiate a treaty with the Hunters. After all, they couldn’t let a perfectly good planet
go to waste.
I hope you enjoyed this prologue to Blue Moon. The entire story will be available near the end of the year. I'll keep you posted.
