Of Blood and Angels (The Two Moons of Rehnor, Book 3)

The Two Moons of Rehnor

Book 3

Of Blood & Angels

J. Naomi Ay

Published by
Ayzenberg, Inc.

Copyright 2012-2016
Ayzenberg, Inc
.

All Rights
Reserved

131215

Cover Art by Robert
W. Cabell

Also by

J. Naomi Ay

The Two Moons of
Rehnor Series

The Boy who Lit up
the Sky, Book 1

My Enemy’s Son,
Book 2

Of Blood and
Angels, Book 3

Firestone Rings,
Book 4

The Days of the
Golden Moons, Book 5

Golden's Quest,
Book 6

Metamorphosis,
Book 7

The Choice, Book 8

Treasure Hunt,
Book 9

Space Chase, Book
10

Imperial
Masquerade, Book 11

Rivalry, Book 12

Thirteen, Book 13

Betrayal, Book 14

Fairy Tales, Book
15

Gone for a Spin,
Book 16

Firesetter Series

A Thread of Time,
Book 1

Amyr’s Command,
Book 2

Three Kings, Book
3

Exceeding
Expectations, Book 4

Table of
Contents

Prologue

Chapter
1 – Shelly

Chapter
2 – Katie

Chapter
3 – Berkan

Chapter
4 – Caroline

Chapter
5 – Katie

Chapter
6 - Caroline

Chapter
7 – Katie

Chapter
8 – Caroline

Chapter
9 – Shelly

Chapter
10 - Caroline

Chapter
11 – Katie

Chapter
12 – Berkan

Chapter
13 – Katie

Chapter
14 – Leesa

Chapter
15 – Caroline

Chapter
16 – Katie

Chapter
17 – Berkan

Chapter
18 – Leesa

Chapter
19 – Berkan

Chapter
20 – Shelly

Chapter
21 – Senya

Chapter
22 – Berkan

Chapter
23 – Katie

Chapter
24 – Senya

Chapter
25 – Katie

Chapter
26 - Senya

Chapter
27 - Katie

Chapter
28 - Berkan

Chapter
29 - Senya

Prolog
ue

It smelled of decay and the air was thick
with the dust.  There were no droppings of any sort, just tiny skeletal remains
of insects scattered about.  The windows and doors were long gone but the lamp
was still there swinging above the altar on a rusted chain. 

He approached the altar and the lamp
cautiously, his bare feet disturbing that which had been untouched for ten
millenniums, kicking it up into clouds behind him.  Then he turned and surveyed
the cathedral, hearing the songs of the ancient people who had worshipped here,
who had celebrated their lives and rituals here.  He heard the whispered voices
of those who had died here too, their bodies and bones vaporized, their
molecules joining together in the dust.

He knelt down before the altar and he
prayed.  This was a tremendous task.  This was more than anything he had done
before.  His resolution faltered. 

“I don’t want to,” he said aloud.  “I
don’t want to do this!”

“You must,” a voice said.  “This is why
you are here.”

“This is your mission,” another voice
added.  “This is why you are as you are.”

“You have become too attached to your
mortal being,” a third chastised him.  “You have forgotten.”

“I haven’t!” Senya protested.  “I know, I
remember.  I want…”

Senya felt the warmth of his companions
surrounding him and filling him with their light and their strength.  His body
surged with the power they bestowed upon him.  He would accomplish the tasks
that he had been set down to achieve.  He would do as he had been bid.  He
would not want nor would he ask again for his freedom.  All would be as it
should be.  He prostrated himself beneath the lamp and begged forgiveness for
his selfishness.

“Goodbye, brother,” the voices called and
disappeared into the oblivion.

Senya rose slowly to his feet and dusted
himself off.  He would start here.  He scanned the decrepit ruins of the
building once again and then raised his hands.  He willed the dust to form into
the stained glass panes that had once filled this room with multi-colored
light.  He willed water to rain down upon the walls and floors and wash away
the remnants of insects and cobwebs and to polish the floors until the smooth
granite stones glowed with luster.  He willed the holes in the roof to close
and clay tiles to form in the ridges where they had gone missing.  Lastly, he
willed the sacred lamp to shine again and he called upon the flame within it to
burn forever more.  When that was accomplished, he held up his wrist and
brought forth his knife to consecrate the sacred Temple with his blood. 

His cell rang, interrupting him.  He sent
the knife away and reached in his back pocket for his phone.

“Hi!” his wife’s voice called.  “Where are
you?  Are you still at the office?”

“No,” he replied softly.

“Ok.  Are you coming home soon?  I’m
leaving the Landbase right now.  I was just wondering what you felt like for
dinner.  Shall I pick up something or do you want to go out?”

“I don’t want to go out,” he whispered,
leaving the cathedral.  “I want to stay home.”

“Ok, I guess I’ll figure out something. 
Why are you whispering?  Did I interrupt a meeting?”

“No.  My meeting is over,” he replied
swinging shut and then locking the newly created door.  “I will come home now
too.”

“Good,” she said.  “I’ve missed you all
day.  Love you!”

“I love you,” Senya replied as the call
disconnected.  He held the cell in the palm of his hand for a moment as he
turned back to the Temple which glowed in the twilight of the coming evening. 
He could feel the warmth of the sun reflecting off the newly clean granite
walls.  He would consecrate it another time.  His brothers were right, he was
too attached to his mortal being.  He was too happy in this life, too in love
with his wife.  Though he said he would not want, he still did.

“Let me be free,” he whispered.  “If only
for a little while, please let me be free.”

Chapter 1

Shelly

They were arguing and I could hear it
because the door to his office was cracked open a bit.

“You had the opportunity to get out of
it,” she said.  “Don't tell me that you don't want it when it's clearly not
true.”

“What I want is irrelevant,” he replied
distractedly.  “It is what I need to do.”

“Why?” she demanded.  “Who said so?”

“God.”

“God?”

“God.”

“What, like you actually spoke to Him or
something?  Maybe he texted you or left you a voicemail and said, ‘Hey Senya,
you need to do this.’”

“More or less.”

“More or less?” she shrieked.  “You're
crazy.”

“Katie,” he sighed.  “I'm busy.  I'll see
you at home tonight.”

“I thought we were going to have lunch
together.”  I heard a paper sack rustle.  “Forget it," she snapped.  “I'll
eat my tuna sandwich by myself.  You can just go order out for Fois Gras and caviar
or whatever in the hell Crown Princes are supposed to eat.”

“You are very clever,” he replied.  “Give
me my lunch.  I want a tuna fish sandwich too.”

“No, I'm not clever,” she cried.  “I'm
very stupid.  I believed you when you said you weren't going to have to deal
with this now and besides that I made you egg salad.”

“Katie.”  He sounded annoyed.  “I have
three surgeries starting at 6 AM tomorrow which I have not even reviewed yet. 
We have a new product release that is scheduled to ship on Friday to more than
ten thousand customers that has not been certified for OR use because of a
software error.  On Monday, I am supposed to be in Talas III to make a
presentation on neural synapse repair to the Intergalactic Conference of Neuro
Surgeons and I have not given a thought to what I will say.  I have a meeting
the day after in Altaris VI, where we are going to explore purchasing a 500
unit hospital chain, and then the day after I am to go to New Mishnah for a
board meeting.  Just because, on occasion, I take a call from Lord Dickon or Loman
asking my opinion or advice on a matter, it does not mean that I am dealing
with Rehnor now.  Please do not start this harping at me.”

“Harping?”

“Yes, harping.”  He laughed a little. 
“Can we just discuss this later?  Please?”

“When later?  After you purchase another
fourteen trillion Mishnese dollars to prop up their economy some more?”

“Katie, I will speak with you on this
another time.  You will leave now.  Ah!  Leave me the egg salad sandwich.”

“Yes Sir!  Yes, Your Majesty, Crown Prince
Dude, Duke of Everything and all the ships at sea.  You have ordered an egg
salad sandwich and here it is in this solid gold lunch bag before you.  You are
the boss man, your word is law, and if I don’t like it, well I can just plan on
getting my head split by a piece of that window or something.”

“Kari-fa!” he said under his breath.  “Are
you purposely trying to piss me off?”

“No, not me, Sir,” she replied.  “I'm only
here to provide your noon entertainment.”

Silence.

“Noon entertainment, eh?”  You are indeed
very entertaining.”

“What do you think you're doing?  I
thought you wanted me to leave.  You're too busy, remember?  Board meetings,
product releases, hospitals to buy and people’s heads to cut open?”

“Mhm.  I can spare ten minutes.”

A throaty laugh from Katie.

The door clicked shut.

I laughed.  Ah, to be young and in love
again.  Katie had been here on Rozari for several months now and as far as I
could tell they were doing fine.  The both of them positively glowed when they
were together.  Only a few weeks ago, Katie had thrown a big barbeque party at
their villa and the grandkids finally got to swim at their beach.  Katie was
due to go back to space in another week though and Ron wasn’t the only one who
was going to miss her tremendously.  She had been working as an adjunct in my
husband Tim’s office and he was enjoying her assistance.  Nearly every day he
came home and raved about what an excellent officer she was.

Katie came out of Ron’s office about
fifteen minutes later.  Her face was red and her hair was a tangled mess of
blonde curls.  Her uniform was a little askew.  I smiled at my vid and tried
not look at her.

“I am so going to get kicked out of
Spaceforce,” she said, straightening her uniform.

“If you go out looking like that you
certainly will,” I replied and pulled my hand mirror out of my purse.  “Why
don't you fix your hair before going back to base?”

“Thanks, Shelly.”  She blushed furiously
and twisted her curls back into a Spaceforce regulation bun.  “Rehnor is
nothing but Planet Podunk, right?  It’s about as strategic as Monaco. 
Furthermore, he's got Rozarian citizenship.  I'm not doing anything wrong.”  I
wasn’t sure if she was asking or telling me.

“As long as he's not doing anything wrong,
you're not,” I said. 

“But all the same, we're not going to tell
Admiral Tim, right?”

“I'm not telling him,” I scoffed.  “I'm in
as deep as you are.  Thad and me both.”

She nodded and then came around the desk
to hug me.

“Thanks, Shelly.  Will you write to me
while I'm back in space?  Tell me everything that's going on here?”

“Of course I will, honey.”  I hugged her
back.  “And don't worry, you'll be back home in no time.  Your contract will
fly by.”

“I know,” she nodded, “and Senya's coming
to space in a few weeks too.  I got him a family pass to come aboard the ship
whenever he can.”

“I used to get that too.  The boys and I
would go aboard for a month at a time to live with Tim.  Both Larry and Thad
hated being in space.  I guess that's why neither one joined Spaceforce.”

She smiled.  “We’ll be dark for a little
while though.  If something happens…”

“Nothing will happen,” I said
confidently.  “He’s a big boy.”  I used to hate when Tim went into the dark but
I didn’t tell her that.  The families at home were forced to endure months of
communications blackout, never knowing if your loved one in space was alive or
swallowed by a black hole.  I guess it worked both ways, those in Spaceforce
worrying about their families back home as much as we worried about them.  “Are
there a lot of kids on board now?” I asked cheerfully.

“Yes,” she replied.  “A kindergarten full
of them.  All the restaurants even have kid's menus.  Of course, they all have
to go home when we go dark.”

I glanced at her as she stared off into
space wondering if it was even possible for them to have one of their own.

“Anyway,” she said, grabbing her hand bag
and heading to the door.  “Write to me every day and especially let me know how
he's doing.”  She pointed at the inner office.

“I will,” I promised. 

Katie turned to head out but abruptly
stopped.  “Shelly?” she said, coming back to my desk.  “Have you seen all those
little cuts on his arms?”

I shook my head.  Rarely did I see him
without a lab coat or one of his nice long sleeve dress shirts.  “What cuts?”

“Just little ones,” she said, running her
finger along her own arm.  “There's the big one.  That was from when we went to
Karupatani but now there's a whole bunch of little ones.”

“It can't be drugs,” I insisted.

“No,” she replied adamantly.  “Drugs are
pinpricks.  I know he's not doing that now.  These are cuts.”

“Did you ask?”

“Sure and he replied, it's complicated.”

I rolled my eyes.  “Did you expect another
answer?”

“No,” she laughed.  “But if you find out
anything…”

“You'll be the first to know,” I said and
turned to answer the ringing vid.