Shadow Cursed Read online

  Shadow Cursed

  Book One of the Dark Descendants Trilogy

  By

  Jason Sander

  Copyright © 2012 by Jason Sander

  All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the author, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other non-commercial uses permitted by copyright law.

  v1.0

  AKNOWLEDGEMENTS

  Thanks to my parents for all their help and patience in letting me pursue a writing career.

  A big thanks to Stuart for inspiring me to become a writer and Ashley and Julian for encouraging me.

  To all those who read Shadow Cursed, I hope you enjoy Aurora.

  CONTENTS

  CHAPTER 1

  CHAPTER 2

  CHAPTER 3

  CHAPTER 4

  CHAPTER 5

  CHAPTER 6

  CHAPTER 7

  CHAPTER 8

  CHAPTER 9

  CHAPTER 10

  CHAPTER 11

  CHAPTER 12

  CHAPTER 13

  CHAPTER 14

  CHAPTER 15

  CHAPTER 16

  CHAPTER 17

  CHAPTER 18

  CHAPTER 19

  CHAPTER 20

  CHAPTER 21

  CHAPTER 22

  CHAPTER 23

  CHAPTER 24

  CHAPTER 25

  CHAPTER 26

  CHAPTER 27

  CHAPTER 28

  CHAPTER 29

  CHAPTER 30

  CHAPTER 31

  CHAPTER 32

  CHAPTER 33

  CHAPTER 34

  CHAPTER 35

  CHAPTER 36

  CHAPTER 37

  CHAPTER 38

  CHAPTER 39

  CHAPTER 40

  CHAPTER 41

  CHAPTER 42

  CHAPTER 43

  CHAPTER 44

  CHAPTER 45

  CHAPTER 46

  CHAPTER 47

  CHAPTER 48

  CHAPTER 49

  CHAPTER 50

  CHAPTER 51

  CHAPTER 52

  CHAPTER 53

  CHAPTER 54

  CHAPTER 55

  CHAPTER 56

  CHAPTER 57

  CHAPTER 58

  CHAPTER 59

  CHAPTER 60

  CHAPTER 61

  CHAPTER 62

  CHAPTER 63

  CHAPTER 64

  CHAPTER 65

  CHAPTER 66

  CHAPTER 67

  CHAPTER 68

  CHAPTER 69

  CHAPTER 70

  CHAPTER 71

  CHAPTER 72

  CHAPTER 73

  CHAPTER 74

  CHAPTER 75

  CHAPTER 76

  CHAPTER 77

  CHAPTER 78

  CHAPTER 79

  CHAPTER 80

  CHAPTER 81

  CHAPTER 82

  CHAPTER 83

  CHAPTER 84

  CHAPTER 85

  CHAPTER 86

  CHAPTER 87

  CHAPTER 88

  CHAPTER 89

  CHAPTER 90

  CHAPTER 91

  CHAPTER 92

  CHAPTER 93

  CHAPTER 94

  CHAPTER 95

  CHAPTER 96

  CHAPTER 97

  CHAPTER 98

  CHAPTER 99

  CHAPTER 100

  CHAPTER 101

  CHAPTER 102

  CHAPTER 103

  CHAPTER 104

  CHAPTER 105

  CHAPTER 106

  CHAPTER 107

  CHAPTER 108

  CHAPTER 109

  CHAPTER 110

  CHAPTER 111

  CHAPTER 112

  CHAPTER 113

  CHAPTER 114

  CHAPTER 115

  CHAPTER 116

  CHAPTER 117

  CHAPTER 118

  CHAPTER 119

  CHAPTER 120

  CHAPTER 121

  CHAPTER 122

  CHAPTER 123

  CHAPTER 124

  CHAPTER 125

  CHARACTER LIST

  CHAPTER 1

  General Storm

  General Storm leaned unconsciously towards the radio on his desk as he listened to the traffic. Each green light on the machine was a military station broadcasting their situation. One by one the green dots turned yellow indicating interference and then red as the waveband turned to static.

  Removing the earphones he switched the radio off and stood up. For a moment he swayed unsteadily, gripping the edge of the desk until his fingers turned white. He closed his eyes as he gathered his strength and took a deep breath. Feeling a semblance of control returning he opened his eyes and breathed out.

  He reached for the framed picture of his wife and son with trembling hands. Removing the picture he slid it inside his jacket pocket. Needing routine to calm his nerves he tidied himself up, straightening the creases in his clothes and tightening his tie before putting his cap on. As he left his tent he found his voice and his familiar bark reached even the far ends of the silent field as he gave the order to break camp.

  All around him soldiers began loading trucks with provisions and the civilians picked up their meagre belongings.

  The General of the Army tasted ash in the air and glanced up at the sky. Above him lightning danced in intricate patterns within the dark clouds and he tried to remember when he had last seen blue skies, but couldn’t.

  As the heavens opened up again he climbed into the waiting jeep and the driver sped off towards the command tent. Mud flew off the wheels and the driver almost lost control at the first turn. General Storm placed his hand comfortingly on the driver’s shoulder and the jeep slowed to a safer speed, mirroring the calm that came over the driver.

  Many survivors had never seen the Titans that entered through the portal in Australia, only the glow on the horizon as they burnt everything in their path. Fewer had seen the photos of the monsters that towered up to thirty or more stories into the air. The military had suppressed the enhanced shots taken of the Titan’s skin that showed shapes distorting their flesh as if terrified creatures were trying to free themselves from within. General Storm was haunted by those pictures; some creatures had seemed human but most were not.

  The jeep pulled to a stop in front of the command tent as one of the gates was being prepped for another activation, its large capacitors charging off nuclear fuel cells for the initial kick start required to reach across space to find a suitable planet. Thirteen failures already but the scientists learnt from every one of them.

  General Storm entered the tent, passing the exhausted scientists on the way to his chair. He sat down and questioned the head of research, “Gerald, what’s the situation?”

  Gerald removed his glasses and rubbed the dark patches under his eyes. His unruly red hair fell forward covering his freckled face as he hung his head for a moment to regain his energy. As he raised his head he responded curtly but with a bit of hope that wasn’t there yesterday. “We have confirmed that the target planet has earth like conditions. There may even be life on it but we can’t be sure yet. The last twelve attempts so far have not managed to remain open for more than a tenth of a second, but the thirteenth managed to stay open for nine seconds, long enough to verify the planet’s conditions before the connection broke. I believe we can keep the next gate open for at least ten minutes, long enough to send my robots through to construct a stabilizing gate on the other side but the passage will damage everything we send through until the gate is fully stabilized including the robots.”

  R
eplacing his glasses and grimacing through the cracked lens he continued, “We’ve also finished the construction of the armoured shells for the robots that should protect them in transit and can hold the materials they’ll need on the other side. When you’re ready we can start up one of the gates but as I’ve said before, opening a gate seems to draw the attention of the Titans. If it remains open for too long they will come.”

  General Storm saw fear in every eye in the room as he announced, “There will be no more experiments. Every gate will be opened today and remain open as long as it takes to move everyone through, whatever the cost.”

  “Wha...” Gerald started to ask, and then realized what the General meant. “Yes sir! Conrad, get the other gates hooked up and ready to fire. Jasper, get the robots ready for launch. Sarah, prepare to synchronize the gates as they come online.”

  The General was pleased that the despair dissipated as the room burst into activity around him. He turned to Gerald and asked, “What about the other plan you’ve been working on, will it work?”

  “I believe that it will sir, we’ll be able to bloody their noses when we leave. I’ve taken the liberty of setting up a control panel that will activate the cascade program. The panel will work with your personal key,” answered the scientist “It would be an honour if you allowed me to stay behind to activate it sir.”

  The General looked into Gerald’s vengeful eyes and recalled a detail from his file. No surviving family. But most of the files were the same, everyone had lost somebody. “That responsibility is mine Gerald, and the burden if any men or women remain behind when the time comes to use it. Your job it to make sure it works.”

  The scientist’s eyes flared with anger for a moment but he regained control and said with determination, “It will!” He turned back to the computer to run more checks on the cascade program.

  The General pulled his personal key out from under his shirt by its chain. As he clenched the key in his hand he thought about his own family. His wife had died when New York was destroyed. The Titans had risen from the sea with no warning, causing tidal waves that flooded the streets and prevented any escape. Only his son would survive him if the evacuation succeeded and he would not allow the Titans even a small chance of reaching Gabriel on this new world.

  CHAPTER 2

  Titans

  Thirteen soulless metal eyes stared towards the burning horizon. Circuitry and wires hissed and smoked within as rain seeped through the cracks in their shells. Their only defining marks were the numbers welded to the top of each gate.

  White sparks formed in the centres of the gates as they began to spin a web across space to another world.

  Across the planet thousands of Titans turned in unison and roared as they sensed the breach between worlds.

  Teams of suicide bombers waited with nuclear weapons as the Titans drew closer to the camp and one after another the Titans crumpled to the ground in a flash of blinding light and shockwave of sound.

  When the smoke cleared the Titans rose unscathed from the ground and continued their slow march towards the gates.

  CHAPTER 3

  General Storm

  Sarah worked feverishly at her keyboard trying to synchronize the twisting portals so that they would appear within the same area on the target planet. At first they spun wildly out of control but finally she managed to get gateways two and three to synchronize with gateway one. The others spun more and more out of control until the guidance computer froze with the calculations required. She cursed and hit the keyboard in frustration.

  Gerald asked, “How many did you manage to synchronize.”

  “Gates one through three are linked, they should appear within radio distance of each other. The others will reach the planet but I can’t predict where they will be in relation to each other.”

  The General sighed and said, “At least we have a chance now.”

  Across the room Gerald gave new orders, “Sarah, monitor the gates and tell me if there are any problems. Jasper, are all the robot pods ready to go?” Jasper nodded without taking his eyes off the computer screen. “Good. When Sarah tells you to launch them - do it. We don’t have time for individual launches so we’ll send the pods through in waves.”

  Sarah said with relief, “Gates four through thirteen are within limits, and one through three. We are go for launch, Jasper.”

  “Initiating launches, wave one firing rockets, wave one is away.” Jasper monitored the feedback from the first wave of robots and the gate teams as they prepared the next wave. “Wave two is preparing to launch, wave two rockets are firing. O God - a pod at gate five just blew up.”

  The General leant forward and said, “Carry on, the gate team will sort it out!”

  “Yes sir,” acknowledged Jasper shakily. “Wave three is ready except gate five, firing rockets. Wave three is through.”

  Gerald ordered, “Jasper, monitor gate five please. Sarah, how are the other gates holding up?”

  Minutes passed before she looked up from the monitor. “Gates four through twelve are stabilizing, five is stabilizing but very slowly. Thirteen is destabilizing, one through three are beginning to stabilize.”

  Jasper interrupted her, “Gate five appears to be going critical, I think the explosion may have damaged the reactor. I recommend immediate shutdown.”

  “Do it!” ordered Gerald.

  An army officer burst into the room, “Sir, the enemy are closing in on us from all directions. Estimates are four hours until they reach us.”

  Ignoring the terrified soldier the General looked at Sarah and asked, “Are the gates stabilized yet.”

  She focused her attention back on the screen and answered, “Gates one through four and six through twelve appear ready sir. Five is shutting down and thirteen appears to be fluctuating, I wouldn’t recommend using it.”

  Gerald ordered, “Jasper send any remaining pods through gate thirteen and see if you can stabilize it. Have gate five dismantled and ready for transport. Robert, move the scout trains immediately through the viable gates - I want to know what we’re up against.”

  “Yes sir,” acknowledged Robert as he monitored the scout trains as they moved through the gates and deployed the scout vehicles.

  The General turned to the officer. “Tell the generals to begin moving through the gates as soon as the evacuation signal is sent. First defence teams, then engineers, followed by heavy ordinance and then generals and staff. Once the base camp is secure send in the civilians and supplies. Dismissed.”

  “Yes sir!” The officer ran out the door in his haste.

  “Gate thirteen is still not stabilizing sir, we have no more pods to send. I think it’s a lost cause,” announced Sarah.

  Gerald cursed, “Damn, two failed gates could be a problem. Shut it down Sarah. Jasper, you know what to do. Robert, what’s happening?”

  “All portable mainframes are functioning, the air scouts are already moving out. I’m beginning to receive data. Gate six appears to be an underground cave, air is breathable and temperature is warm. Sonar appears to confirm a network of tunnels,” reported Robert.

  The General ordered, “Gate six is a go. Redirect drilling equipment, extra food and water supplies to gate six.”

  “But sir you can’t possibly send people underground,” said Sarah shocked.

  “We don’t have the luxury of choosing our destinations and we don’t have backup gates anymore. I repeat, gate six is a go, begin evacuation through it. Robert, continue with the reports.”

  “Yes sir. Gates one through three are within radio contact as predicted and appear to be a few days drive from each other. The maps are being synchronized now, I’m putting it on the main screen. They are positioned along a coastline with very steep cliffs. Grassland reaching a few hundred feet from the cliff and then a forest extending indefinitely into the west. Gate one appears to be almost on top of a cove with sheer walls. Gate two is to the south of gate one and gate three is to the north near a river.”


  The General nodded. “Gates one through three are a go. Redirect civilians from gate five to gate one and adjust the food rations accordingly, Send General Allister through gate two, General Esperanza through gate one and General McMillan through gate three. What about the other gates?”

  “Gate four appears to be in a mountain range. Only our vertical launch scouts have been able to search the area and several of those have crashed already. The winds are strong and below zero degrees. No radio contacts reported.”

  “Send extra winter clothing and heaters as well as food supplies. Divert all vehicles from that gate and replace them with pack animals from the other gates. Send any spare air scout units as well.”

  “Gate eight seems to be in the middle of a large fertile plain but there appears to be no life at all.”

  “Send grain, any grazing animals we have and water boring equipment,” ordered General Storm.

  “Gate seven also appears to be on a plain, the mainframe signal is very faint and there’s a lot of static. The land is fertile, moisture in the air indicates that water is present, no signs of life. There seems to be something wrong with the video and data feed. The mainframe just went offline, no further contact.”

  “Send the mainframe from gate five’s scout train immediately, deploy a recon team with it and get me a verbal report if necessary.”