The Evaran Chronicles: The Arrival | The Awakening | The Fredorian Destiny | The Purification | The Time Refugee | The Evaran Origin | The Shadow Connection | The Human Factor | The Cosmic Parallel | The Unification | The Portal Effect | The Time Cube | The Evaran Impact | The Cosmic Artifact | The Cult Of Evaran | The Final Evolution | The Evaran Chronicles Box Set: Books 1-3 | The Evaran Chronicles Box Set: Books 4-6 | The Evaran Chronicles Box Set: Books 7-9 | The Evaran Chronicles Box Set: Books 10-12 | The Evaran Chronicles Box Set: Books 13-15

Jerzan Graduul knew that as the leader of the Bloodbore mercenary group, when a large derelict alien ship appears out of nowhere, you loot it clean, take slaves, and kill those who get in the way. He had been napping in his living quarters when his command crew contacted him. After six months hiding away on a cramped ship, he was ready for a change of scenery.

Resources were low, and the crew’s morale showed it. He had no doubt they would come across something, and one thing the Bloodbores were known for was getting what they wanted by any means necessary.

His crew was mostly Dalrun, like he was, and stood on average about six feet tall, with pale skin and humanoid bodies. There was no doubt in his mind that his crew could handle anything, and he had been hoping to come across a pleasure cruiser. Those were always the easiest to raid and much more enjoyable than a cargo transport.

After slapping on his formfitting under armor, he went to the command center. When he arrived, he took a quick look at the various screens that covered the circular room. A captain’s chair stood in the back of the room, with six high-tech workstations arranged in front of it in a half arc, lining up against the curve of the wall. The lighting was bright, but that was typical of any Dalrun merc ship.

He saw his fellow Dalruns Galkett Karus, Jahl Kinobkin, and Hulldar Ricast working at their stations. Hosk was the lone Greer on the crew, and his humanoid assault robot, G-85, stood off to the side. The Greer were four-foot reptilian humanoids, and Hosk was typical of their species.

Galkett was a recent member, and Jerzan had his doubts, but up to this point, Galkett had been solid. Hulldar was wild and unpredictable, and his face was normally used when the viciousness of the Bloodbores was discussed. Even now he was just wearing boots and underwear. Jahl, Jerzan’s second in command, was reliable and had been with Jerzan for as long as he could remember. Hosk always looked like he was ready for battle, and with his piloting skills, Jerzan knew the ship was in good hands.

“So we gonna check that alien ship out?” asked Hulldar, looking around.

“What do you think, shit for brains?” asked Jahl.

Hosk and Galkett laughed.

Hulldar smiled. “Fuck you.”

“All right, all right,” said Jerzan.

Everyone focused on him.

“What do we know about this ship?” asked Jerzan.

Galkett swayed his head. “Not much. Something’s not right.”

Jerzan sighed. “You say everything’s not right. Is this that Evaran shit again?”

“Look at the facts. Tolkus Gare, Jalt, and Dolgus Kree were captured a while back. The top three most wanted by the Bilaxians. Rumor is that Evaran was involved.”

Jerzan raised a finger. “Allegedly involved.”

“Maybe so, but there were eyewitness accounts of seeing someone that matched the historical records, and there were sightings of his weird ship. He’s been around for a long, long time, from what I studied, just messing up those who harm others,” said Galkett.

Hulldar tossed a hand out. “So what if he’s on this ship? We’ll waste ’em.”

“I don’t usually agree with you on much, but on this, I do,” said Jahl.

Galkett pointed at his console. “And what about that mysterious … anomaly … that popped in out of nowhere before that alien ship appeared? There was something else that came through and docked on the alien ship. It looks similar to Evaran’s ship.”

“Your eyes are playing tricks on you,” said Hulldar. He slapped Hosk’s arm. “Probably just a stray pilot. Not all of them can be Hosk.”

“Damn right,” said Hosk in a gravelly voice.

Galkett shook his head. “The capture of the three most wanted was unusual, and now we have something unusual before us, and in all cases, Evaran’s ship was around.”

Jerzan could see Galkett’s logic; it was one reason Jerzan liked Galkett. He had an analytical mind, but the lure of potentially high-value salvage, not to mention whatever else might be on the ship, was just too good an opportunity to pass up. Jerzan glanced at Galkett. “I understand your concern, but we’re Bloodbores. We’ve got twelve highly trained mercs that can easily handle one person, mythical or not.” He motioned at Jahl. “Any objection to hitting it?”

“None. Let’s raid this bitch,” said Jahl.

Jerzan tipped his head up at Hosk. “Take us in.”

“Going in,” said Hosk.

Galkett exhaled from his nose as he eased back into his chair.

“It’ll do us all good to get off this ship, even for a little bit,” said Jerzan. He eyed Galkett. “If you’re going to be a problem, sit this one out.”

“I’m fine,” said Galkett.

“I’ll be with him,” said Hulldar. He grabbed his crotch. “If this Evaran guy shows up, I got something for him.”

Everyone laughed.

“If you don’t do him in, the smell will,” said Jerzan. “All right, Jahl, make sure the others are aware of the situation, and geared up accordingly. It’s time to collect.”

Hosk, Jahl, and Hulldar whooped and hollered.

Jerzan nodded at everyone and exited the room. The thought of all the salvage they might get ran through his mind. If there was crew alive on the alien ship, then maybe another urge could be satisfied. There would also definitely be food and drink supplies, something they could stock up on. The alien ship was just what the Bloodbores needed, and Jerzan would make sure they took advantage of it, regardless of if Evaran was there or not.

People do not normally walk through trees, as far as the laws of physics were concerned. Yet looking through his office window, Dr. Albert Snowden had seen it happen twice in the last hour. With his fair-skinned hands clasped behind his back, he observed the large, open quad area with its sprinkling of trees through his second-floor office window.

It was 2:00 p.m., Friday, March 1, 2013, and he was between classes that he taught at a college in Northwest Columbus, Ohio. There was only one class left on his itinerary for the day: Introduction to Astronomy. He sighed as he walked over to his office chair. After easing into it, he ran a hand over his balding head, with its two gray tufts. He hoped he was not losing his mind.

The glitches, as he was calling them, seemed to be increasing in regularity, and it was not just people walking through trees. It ran the gamut from people flying through the air to animals moving through cars. He knew those things should not be possible, but he had no rational explanation for the phenomena.

The thought of losing his mind was not something he wanted to entertain. There was so much more he wanted to do in life. He fiddled with his brown bow tie that sat over his white shirt and brown vest. At least he could still dress himself. He passed his hand over his well-trimmed beard.

Knock! Knock!

He exhaled sharply as he stood, smoothing out his brown twill pants. “Come in.”

A middle-aged man, similar in size to Dr. Snowden at five feet eleven inches, entered the room. It was Dr. James Bryson, a fellow astronomer and professor, and also an old friend.

“Hey, ready for lunch?” asked Dr. Bryson.

“Sure. I wonder what monstrosity awaits us in the cafeteria today,” said Dr. Snowden.

Dr. Bryson grinned. “To be fair, you get free food as a tenured benefit, so I wouldn’t complain too much.”

“You’re right, you’re right,” said Dr. Snowden. He checked his pocket to make sure he had his card. “I’m good to go.”

As they walked between campus buildings, Dr. Bryson cast a sidelong glance at Dr. Snowden. “You all right? You seem kind of out of it today.”

Dr. Snowden sighed. “I wish I could say I was okay, but … I’m not sure, to be honest.”

“Well, what’s on your mind?”

“All right … Have you seen anything out of the ordinary lately?” asked Dr. Snowden.

“Besides Janet being on time to faculty meetings?”

Dr. Snowden laughed. “I’m being serious.”

“I can’t say that I have,” said Dr. Bryson. “I’m assuming you have.”

“Yeah … it’s … hard to describe.”

“Try me.”

They began to cross the grassy quad area.

Dr. Snowden pointed at the tree he had seen earlier. “I saw someone sort of … phase out, then reappear in the tree, then pop back out of it.”

“They walked through a tree?”

Dr. Snowden shook both hands out. “I know, I know, it sounds crazy, but I’m telling you, I saw it. Not just once, but twice today.”

“I see,” said Dr. Bryson. He eyed Dr. Snowden as they continued to walk. “How much rest have you been getting?”

Dr. Snowden shrugged. “It comes and goes, although I’ve pegged it at a three-week cycle. One cycle I can barely keep my eyes open, the next I can barely sleep or nap.”

“And we all know how much you love napping.”

Dr. Snowden chuckled as he swatted Dr. Bryson’s arm. “That aside, I have considered that lack of sleep, or too much sleep, could be a cause of these … glitches.” After a moment of silence, he said, “Crazy, right?”

Dr. Bryson bobbed his head. “Well … what you describe sounds like someone rubber banding.”

“Huh?”

They crossed a sidewalk and stood outside the building with the cafeteria on the ground floor.

“You know I play games on my PC from time to time, right?” asked Dr. Bryson.

“Oh yeah.”

Dr. Bryson smiled. “Sometimes players in a multiplayer game would rubber band. They would appear in one place and then reappear in another. It had to do with latency. You would get these hilarious situations sometimes, with players or objects doing things they weren’t supposed to be doing.”

“Like … flying through the air?”

“I’ve seen that. So maybe … the universe is a simulation, and you’re seeing glitches for some reason.”

Dr. Snowden rolled his eyes. “Not the universe-is-a-simulation thing again. We settled this at the Saint Louis conference.”

“Give it time. There’s still a lot of research to be done on it,” said Dr. Bryson. He nodded toward the cafeteria. “Maybe some food will do you good.”

Dr. Snowden nodded and slapped Dr. Bryson on the back. “Let’s go.”

After fifteen minutes, they had their food and were seated at an isolated table.

Dr. Snowden poked at the crispy chicken patty on his plate. “I think this is chicken.”

“You never know,” said Dr. Bryson, laughing.

Dr. Snowden enjoyed spending time with Dr. Bryson. It made everything feel normal, and hearkened back to a time when they were roommates in college, when there were no glitches or unusual sleep cycles. As Dr. Snowden looked up and around, he saw someone fall through the floor, then reappear a bit ahead back on the ground. His breathing went haphazard as his eyes widened.

“What is it?” asked Dr. Bryson, following Dr. Snowden’s gaze. “You seeing another glitch?”

Dr. Snowden sighed as he drew his lips tight. “Yeah.”

“You know what? You only have one more class for today. How about I take it, and you head home and get some rest.”

“I … I think I’d like that,” said Dr. Snowden. “I didn’t mean to drop all of this on you today.” He shook his head. “Today just seems … worse than the others.”

“You should maybe check in with your doctor.”

“I already did a while back. She said nothing’s wrong and I just need more rest.”

Dr. Bryson nodded. “Just like I did.”

“You’re both probably right. I need to call Emily before I start the drive home to give her an update,” said Dr. Snowden. Emily was his niece and had lost both her parents. Dan, Dr. Snowden’s brother, had died from cancer on February 4, 2011. Sarah had passed away giving birth to Emily. Dr. Snowden was the only remaining family member she was close with, so she was staying with him while she finished out her second semester of her senior year at the college where he taught.

Dr. Bryson rubbed his chin as he eased back into his chair. “How’s she holding up now after Dan’s death? It’s been a while.”

“She’s still grieving, even after two years, but … I think she’s handling it well,” said Dr. Snowden.

“And you?”

Dr. Snowden’s throat constricted. “I don’t think you ever get over your big brother dying.”

“Right, right,” said Dr. Bryson. He cleared his throat. “All right, get going. Have a good weekend, and if you want company, give me a call.”

Dr. Snowden stood and laid a hand on Dr. Bryson’s shoulder. “I will. Thanks.” As he walked out of the cafeteria, a wave of relief swept over him. Letting someone else know about the glitches besides Emily could be dangerous, but he trusted Dr. Bryson. Maybe it should have been discussed earlier. Dr. Snowden would update Emily on the drive home.

Emily sighed as she sat on a wooden bench on the platform surrounding a sand volleyball court. Her heart was still pumping from the pickup game she had played, but she felt like she could fall asleep at a moment’s notice.

She felt bad when Brad, the captain of the other team, had come over to talk to her and then left after she was short with him. It was not his fault. She was just out of sorts. She ran her fair-skinned hand through her dirty-blond hair and then tugged on her ponytail. Her classes were done for the day, and a good rest seemed in order. Her eyes caught her girlfriend, Jennifer, approaching.

“Hey, that was a good game,” said Jennifer, sitting next to Emily. Jennifer leaned in and kissed Emily on the cheek.

“I guess.”

Jennifer tilted her head. “Everything all right?”

“I’m … not sure. I’m really tired.”

“The three-week-cycle thing?”

Emily nodded. She did not understand why she could barely keep her eyes open sometimes, while others, she was wide awake. She had hoped caffeine and other stimulants would be her best friends for the last week, but nothing seemed to help. It scared her to think that there might be something wrong with her.

“Anything I can do to help?”

Emily shook her head. “I’m fine.” Her cell phone played an incoming call sound. “I have to take this. Don’t go anywhere.”

Jennifer smiled as she nodded.

Emily put the cell phone up to her ear. “Uncle Albert? You’re calling early.”

“Yeah … I’m going home,” said Dr. Snowden.

“You’re having a bad day.”

“Unfortunately, worse than any I’ve had in a long time. Something’s different this time.”

Emily swallowed hard. “Different how?”

“I can’t put my finger on it but … more glitches, and everything seems … off,” he said in a wavering voice.

“Okay. How about I make us a good dinner? I’m done here for the day, so I can head home,” she said.

“Up to you. I don’t want to ruin your day with mine.”

Emily’s throat constricted. “It’s fine. I’ll see you soon.” Living with Dr. Snowden for the last two years had brought her closer to him, and she could not imagine her life without him. The thought that Dr. Snowden might pass was troubling.

“Your uncle having another bad day?” asked Jennifer.

“Yeah. I probably should head home and see how he’s doing.”

Jennifer nodded. “Okay. I know you probably want to be alone, but if you need me for anything …”

Emily leaned in and gave Jennifer a deep kiss.

After they pulled back, Jennifer smiled. “That’ll hold me.”

They shared a chuckle.

“All right, I better get going,” said Emily. She exhaled from her mouth as she lightly squeezed Jennifer’s hand. “I’ll see you tomorrow. I think tonight will just be settling down Uncle Albert.”

“I’ll see you then,” said Jennifer, rising as Emily did.

Emily watched Jennifer head out. Although Emily wanted Jennifer to come over, Emily was not sure what the environment would be. Dr. Snowden sounded almost panicked on the call, something she never associated with him. Short-tempered, sure, but she could not recall the last time she heard him so unsure of himself.

An hour later, she was home and ready to spend the rest of the night relaxing. She saw Dr. Snowden napping on his favorite recliner, but opening the door caused him to snort and wake up.

“Oh, that was quick,” said Dr. Snowden.

Emily raised an eyebrow. “You were napping hard.”

He chuckled. “Yeah … but it’s not helping much. I bet you’re as tired as I am.”

“Yeah, I am,” she said. She took a seat next to him. “So you saw more glitches?”

“Three this time. Two were someone walking through a tree. The third was someone falling through the floor. How about you?”

“Just one,” she said. “At my volleyball game, I went to spike a ball over the net, and I swore I hit it. I know I did. But … everyone around me said I missed it. When I went to look for the ball, it was where it would be if I had missed it.”

He tilted his head. “Huh. At least I know I’m not crazy, I think. The fact that you’re getting them makes me think there’s something wrong with the environment.”

Emily looked around. “What do you mean?”

“Everything seems … less. Like … a little less colorful.”

She chuckled. “Like it’s losing power or something.”

Dr. Snowden rubbed his chin. “That’s a good analogy, actually. Maybe over the weekend, we could plug ourselves in.”

She swatted his arm. “Now you’re being silly. You have any plans for the weekend?”

“Just grading papers.”

“Ahh. Jennifer will be over tomorrow.”

Dr. Snowden nodded. “It’ll be good to see her. I’m glad she makes you happy.”

She laughed. “I’m glad she makes me happy too. Anyways, how about I make us some burgers and fries, your favorite,” she said, grabbing his hand.

His eyes lit up as he tapped her hand with his free hand. “I could go for that.”

It did her good to see Dr. Snowden in a better mood. “Okay, you rest up then. I’ll bring it out to you when it’s ready.”

“All right.”

Although her stomach was still churning at the thought that something was wrong, not just with Dr. Snowden, but with everything, she would focus on making dinner. She was not sure what she could do to help with the glitches. Maybe they would pass, but she had the sinking feeling that it would only get worse. At least a good dinner would be had.