H.A.L.F.: The Makers
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Authors: Natalie Wright
Tags: #Children's Books, #Science Fiction & Fantasy, #Science Fiction, #Alien Invasion, #First Contact, #Teen & Young Adult, #Aliens, #Children's eBooks, #Science Fiction; Fantasy & Scary Stories
Book Two
THE
MAKERS
NATALIE WRIGHT
A Boadicea Press Book
Copyright © 2016 by Natalie Wright
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are the product of the author’s imagination or used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or to events or locales is coincidental.
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without the express written permission of the author. For permission or other information, contact the author at:
[email protected]
.
For teaching tools and book group discussion questions, please visit the website:
http://www.NatalieWrightAuthor.com
.
H.A.L.F., The Makers and associated logos are registered trademarks of Natalie Wright.
ISBN: 1523820926
ISBN-13: 978-1523820924
For Pete
and
Sarah.
In loving memory of
Mom, 1940-2015.
April, 2016
What a year it has been since
H.A.L.F.: The Deep Beneath
launched! I travelled over 10,000 miles and more than 200,000 people passed by my display at book festivals, comic cons and book events from Portland to Santa Fe and points in between. Thank you to the many readers who have loved
The Deep Beneath
well and encouraged me to continue the tale.
I pulled together the same great team that worked on
The Deep Beneath
to bring readers the follow-up,
The Makers
. I think it’s my best book yet. I hope you’ll think so too.
Much gratitude and my eternal thanks to Alyssa, content editor extraordinaire at Red Adept Editing and Publishing; thank you to Jason G. Anderson for flawless eBook formatting; to Dane at eBook Launch for another great cover; and last but not least thank you to Pauline Nolet for final line editing. Cheers to a great team!
In a year of great loss, a special thank you to my sister Michelle, who helped me get through it all.
Thank you and a shout out to the lovely folks at Brewd coffeehouse. You supply the caffeine that keeps my fingers moving!
And thank you as always to Pete and Sarah. Together you form the shore to my sea. The ocean pitched and rolled this year, but you kept the light on for me.
| Pronunciation | Definition | |
| badi | bädē | Father. |
| baji | bäZHē | Female servants that care for children. |
| banch | banch | Butt. |
| Council of U | Council of ōō | The ruling body of the M’Uktah people. |
| danx | daNGks | A sweet yet tart fruit used to make wine. |
| dashi | däSHē | A term of endearment. |
| Doj | ZHō | The spiritual leader of the M’Uktah. |
| Doj’Owa | ZHō ouä | The head of the Temple of Doj. |
| Dra’Knar | dreknar | U’Vol’s intergalactic starship. |
| drosh | drō SH | A black, hard, carbon-like metal. |
| Eponia Tu’Vol | epōnēya too väl | U’Vol’s third wife. |
| flaghen | flag en | Conflict. |
| Ghapta | gäptä | A lush, watery planet with plentiful game. Harvested by the M’Uktah. |
| Ghozam Tu’Vol | gōzam too väl | U’Vol’s fourth wife. |
| K’Sarhi | k sari | The M’Uktah name for Earth. |
| kagha | kägä | Bad luck. |
| Kreelan | krēlan | A planet harvested by the M’Uktah but on which there was an uprising. |
| krindor | krin door | Mechanized exoskeleton. |
| Lij | lēzh | The administrative ruler of the M’Uktah. |
| M’Uktah | mooktä | A race of hunters from the planet Uktah. |
| mach | mäSH | The toilet. |
| madi | mädē | Mother. |
| manthruin | manTHrooin | A spice similar to cinnamon. |
| Mocht Bogha | mäk bōZHä | A naturally occurring vortex in space that allows the M’Uktah to travel quickly across the galaxy. It’s cyclical and appears approximately every three years in the Uktah solar system. |
| Navimbi | nävimbi | One of the planets that the M’Uktah have harvested. |
| phlegering | flegi(e)rng | A large, feathered, winged beast from Ghapta. |
| Quelander | keylander | Someone from the planet Queland. |
| raichta | rayshä | A small rodent on U’Vol’s home planet of M’Uktah, similar to a kangaroo rat. |
| Sarhi | sari | The M’Uktah name for humans; earthlings. |
| scryr | skrier | A psychic and seer. |
| Shree’ka Tu’Vol | SHrēka too väl | U’Vol’s first wife and head of his household. |
| Threka Tu’Vol | THreka too väl | U’Vol’s second wife. |
| threkka | THreka | The lead servant in a ruling-class household. |
| thukna | thuknä | A hairless, horned beast that lives on the planet Ghapta. |
| U’Baht | ōō bäht | U’Vol’s friend and mentor. The representative of the Vree class to the Council of U. |
| U’Fengh | ōō fang | A member of the Council of U. |
| U’Vol Vree | ōō väl vrē | Captain of the Dra’Knar . |
| Uktah | ooktä | The M’Uktah planet in a star system in the Milky Way but 1000 light years from Earth. |
| ulv | ōōlv | The wolf-like ancestors of the M’Uktah. |
| Vij Tu’Vol | vēZH too väl | U’Vol’s youngest child. |
| Vrak Tu’Vol | Vrak too väl | U’Vol’s oldest son. |
| Vrath | vraTH | The current Lij of the M’Uktah. |
| Vree | vrē | The space-faring hunting and harvesting class of the M’Uktah. |
| Vree’Kah | vrēkä | The hunters of the Vree class. |
| Vree’Sho | vree shō | Farmers/ranchers of the Vree class. |
| Wa’Nar | wā nar | U’Vol’s landing ship. |
| zheshamine | ZHeSHamēn | A type of vine with sweet-smelling flowers. |
| Zhichta | ZHiktä | The capital city of Uktah. |
1
ERIKA
The cold void that had swallowed Erika’s scream as she entered the alien ship enveloped her. Her once-again boyfriend Jack was no longer below her. Ian was not beside her. She didn’t know where Tex or Dr. Randall were. She was surrounded by darkness, the only sound the frantic beating of her heart.
The fat, wet tears that had spilled onto her cheeks evaporated into the cool, dry air. She’d feared being compressed into nothingness, but the pressure subsided. She tried to kick her legs and run, but she was paralyzed, able to move only her eyes.
She couldn’t tell if she was floating in the center of the alien ship or hovering in a void of nothingness. She could have been upside down and not known it.
Erika screamed for Ian, but no sound came from her. Despite the chill in the air, sweat dripped from her temples. Her eyes flitted wildly from side to side, trying to see something – anything. She closed her eyes in an effort to shut out the unnatural vacuum around her, but it was no good. The dark inside her mind was no better than the black emptiness of the ship she presumed she was in.
Don’t panic, Erika. Maybe they immobilize us for our own safety.
Since humans had not achieved interstellar travel, there was no reference point for how it was done. She remembered Jack’s words.
“Cowboy up,”
he’d said. Erika wasn’t sure she was cowboy enough for space travel.
As much as she tried to talk herself out of abject terror, fear wound itself into every fold of her grey matter. She couldn’t shake the feeling roiling away in her gut like a bubbling cauldron that she had made a big mistake. And she’d pulled Ian along with her into an abyss of the dark unknown.
But did I really have a choice?
If she’d stayed at A.H.D.N.A., Commander Sturgis would have finished the job she’d started. The thought brought her no comfort. Jack was alone now in Sturgis’ hands.