One Night at Kedasi
By Mac_Ashton
This story is my homage to some of my favorite action-SciFi films/novels. It immediately follows The First Ambassador to Crustacea (started here, on ABCTales, kickstarted and available in print now), and will hopefully serve as the first full novel in a series. Enjoy! As always, feedback is welcome :)
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One Night At Kedasi (Prologue)
This story might take a while to complete, but I'm going to post it as I go. Prologue – Asset Reclamation Dillon swept his rifle-mounted flashlight...
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- 2371 reads
One Night at Kedasi (1)
Previous Chapter 1. Drinking in Cheap Bars Zip sat in a corner booth nursing the dregs of a mediocre glass of whisky. It would be the last for a...
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- 284 reads
One Night at Kedasi (2)
Previous Chapter 2. Wealth and the Word ‘No’ Tom was nervous. He had been on Prota with Zip for almost a year but couldn’t get used to the speed of...
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- 158 reads
One Night at Kedasi (3)
Previous Chapter 3. An ‘Agreement’ Zip recognized several faces along the oblong table. Most notably, a Cheri with singed fur and a penchant for...
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- 144 reads
One Night at Kedasi (4)
Previous Chapter 4. Picking Teams Tom had never experienced being picked last in gym class, but sitting with the other mercenaries in the hallway, he...
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- 223 reads
One Night at Kedasi (5-1)
Previous Chapter Had to split this chapter in two as it's a long one. Link to the second part at the bottom, happy holidays! 5. The Undercity Zip let...
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- 87 reads
One Night at Kedasi (5-2)
This is a continuation of a previous chapter Tom made his way forward, picking his way delicately through the crowd. Zip stifled a laugh at the image...
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- 94 reads
One Night at Kedasi (6)
Previous Chapter 6. Best Laid Plans Tom didn’t like Docking Bay Ninety-Four. It was the only place that felt like home on Prota - aside from Zip’s...
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- 97 reads
One Night at Kedasi (7)
Previous Chapter 7. Assassins Are Expensive Zip barely had time to see the figures’ cloaks shift before they started shooting. She was halfway behind...
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- 223 reads
One Night at Kedasi (8)
Previous Chapter 8. Insignificance and the Task at Hand Tom wheeled the loading skiff around, sliding its tongs delicately beneath the final unloaded...
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- 149 reads
One Night at Kedasi (9)
Previous Chapter 9. An Attempt at Inspiration Zip didn’t captain large crews. Even though The Hog had enough room to house ten, having four on board...
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- 89 reads
One Night at Kedasi (10)
Previous Chapter 10. An Interlude with Air Traffic Control Paul took pride in is work for the Private Cay Docking Company. A fifteen year plaque...
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- 151 reads
One Night at Kedasi (11)
Previous Chapter 11. Hit and Run Zip watched the grey walls blur past as The Hog rocketed out of Private Cay’s two-mile launch tunnel. Somewhere...
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- 128 reads
One Night at Kedasi (2:1)
Previous Chapter Part 2 - Kedasi 1. Warp Speed, It Just Works Tom had been through ten launches in the last year, but he never felt fully prepared...
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- 909 reads
One Night at Kedasi (2:2)
Previous Chapter 2. Message in a Bottle Zip felt herself fading in and out of sleep but refused to leave the captain’s chair. It was unrealistic to...
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- 121 reads
One Night at Kedasi 2:3
Previous Chapter 3. A Shrimp in a Vacuum Tom waited in the cargo bay and scrolled through the protocols that came along with an official UCP distress...
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- 417 reads
One Night at Kedasi 2:4
Previous Chapter 4. The Last Party Zip’s heart hammered. Inside her veins, stimulants waged a war with the depressants she had been using at warp,...
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- 307 reads
One Night at Kedasi (2:5)
Previous Chapter 5. An Interlude with Kane Kane could feel the fire in his guts. The others were celebrating their survival, probably thinking they...
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- 84 reads
One Night at Kedasi (2:6)
Previous Chapter 6. Special Delivery Tom sat in The Hog’s galley with the rest of the crew. Calling the mood tense would have been an offense to the...
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- 71 reads
One Night at Kedasi (2:8)
Previous Chapter 8. The Plaza Tom stood in The Hog’s cargo bay staring out at the smoldering wreckage of six practice dummies. Despite only firing...
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- 63 reads
One Night at Kedasi (2:9)
Previous Chapter 9. The Happiest Place on Asteroid Zip could feel every muscle in her body, taught and ready to snap at the slightest provocation...
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- 81 reads
One Night at Kedasi (2:7)
Previous Chapter 7. Leave Your Cares Behind The first thing of note about Kedasi was the massive orange gas giant sitting right behind it. Chaotic...
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- 255 reads
One Night at Kedasi (2:10)
Zip and the crew of Nana's Hog find themselves in a sit down with a rival mercenary group, and Tom discovers not all is as it seems.
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- 347 reads
One Night at Kedasi (2:11)
Previous Chapter 11.The Past Zip’s heart was a kickdrum, vibrating the vacuum suit with each furious pound. She had barely heard Tom finish his...
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- 54 reads
One Night at Kedasi (2:12)
Previous Chapter 12. An Interlude with the Designer of Adventure Canyon “This is Adventure Canyon!” Joe beamed, sweeping the cloth off a 1/10 th...
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- 59 reads
One Night at Kedasi (2:13)
Previous Chapter 13. Trapped Tom stared up at the canyon walls with wonder and delight. Even at night, they were illuminated in bright orange and red...
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- 68 reads
One Night at Kedasi (2:14)
Previous Chapter 14. Can This Thing Go Any Faster? Zip was kneeling in one of the rollercoaster cars before she had time to process the idiocy of the...
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- 156 reads
One Night at Kedasi (2:15)
Previous Chapter 15. In the Dark Below Tom listened to the screaming of the train’s skeletal conductor and the hiss of the wheels against tracks with...
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- 296 reads
One Night at Kedasi (2:16)
Previous Chapter 16. Rage, Pure and Simple Zip smashed her fists into anything that would remotely buckle. Despite the faux rock’s solid appearance,...
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- 58 reads
One Night at Kedasi (3:1)
Previous Chapter Part III Infestation 1. All Aboard Zip looked up at the magnificent train station, somehow even more lavish than the park’s already...
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- 85 reads
One Night at Kedasi (3:2)
Previous Chapter 2. Crystalline Stink Tom could barely see. A long time ago, his eyes had been adjusted to dim water, but after a year of bright...
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- 53 reads
One Night at Kedasi (3:3)
Previous Chapter 3. At Least There’s Gin Zip sat at the edge of a lavish welcome bar off to the side of reception. Her rifle was at her side, and...
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- 115 reads
One Night at Kedasi (3:4)
Previous Chapter 4. Out of the Frying Pan Tom struggled in the darkness. The orange goop was hardened tight around his abdomen, and for the second...
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- 94 reads
One Night at Kedasi (3:5)
Previous Chapter 5. This is Why We Can’t Have Nice things Zip held down the trigger like there were no other options in the world. Her knuckles were...
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- 263 reads
One Night at Kedasi (3:6)
Previous Chapter 6. High Rollers The VIP suite looked like a mix between casino décor and the golden age of a civilization long past. Like the rest...
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- 80 reads
One Night at Kedasi (3:7)
Previous Chapter 7. Diamonds are Heavy Tom moved through the tunnel with great difficulty, the diamond strapped to his back weighing down his many...
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- 50 reads
One Night at Kedasi (3:8)
Previous Chapter 8. Tunnels, Why Did It Have to Be Tunnels? Zip had never been in a bug tunnel. In fact, she had done everything she could on...
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- 115 reads
One Night at Kedasi (3:9)
Previous Chapter 9. The Third One Tom barely had time to make a half turn before the barb slammed into his back. Luckily, his natural armor plating...
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- 77 reads
One Night at Kedasi (3:10)
Previous Chapter 10. Journey to Old Earth Zip had read all about dinosaurs as a child. To some extent, she still never believed the history that Old...
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- 271 reads
One Night at Kedasi (3:11)
Previous Chapter 11. Every Shot Counts From Tom’s perspective, the conversation turned deadly quicker than a blink. In one moment, Zip and Jack were...
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- 87 reads
One Night at Kedasi (3:12)
Previous Chapter 12. Enjoy the Ride Zip had experienced her share of weird days in her time passing through the galaxy. Staring at a seven-foot-tall...
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- 46 reads
One Night at Kedasi (3:13)
Previous Chapter 13. Trouble in Paradise Tom did his best not to think about the creatures following them. It took his concentrated effort to help...
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- 138 reads
One Night at Kedasi (3:14)
Previous Chapter 14. Don’t Touch My Ship Zip rose from the dust of The Hog’s antimatter guns, trying not to think too hard about what all was...
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- 66 reads
One Night at Kedasi - Epilogue
Previous Chapter Epilogue 1. Legal Ramifications “Kedasi, is a planet unlike any other – Well, because it’s not a planet, it’s actually an asteroid,...
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- 72 reads