Orion Uncharted: An Intergalactic Space Opera Adventure (Orion Colony Book 2) Read online

  J. N. Chaney

  Copyrighted Material

  Orion Uncharted and Renegade Star Copyright © 2018 by Variant Publications

  Book design and layout copyright © 2018 by JN Chaney

  This novel is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either products of the author’s imagination or used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, or persons, living, dead, or undead, is entirely coincidental.

  All rights reserved.

  No part of this publication can be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, without permission in writing from JN Chaney and Jonathan Yanez.

  www.jnchaney.com

  www.jonathan-yanez.com

  1st Edition

  Books in the Renegade Star Universe

  Renegade Star Series:

  Renegade Star

  Renegade Atlas

  Renegade Moon

  Renegade Lost

  Renegade Fleet

  Renegade Earth

  Renegade Dawn

  Renegade Children (Out Now!)

  Renegade Union (January 2019)

  Renegade Empire (March 2019)

  Standalones:

  Nameless: A Renegade Star Story (Out Now!)

  The Orion Colony Series:

  Orion Colony

  Orion Uncharted

  Orion Awakened (January 2019)

  Stay Up To Date

  Chaney posts updates, official art, previews, and other awesome stuff on his website. You can also follow him on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter.

  He also created a special Facebook group called “JN Chaney’s Renegade Readers” specifically for readers to come together and share their lives and interests, discuss the series, and speak directly to him. Please check it out and join whenever you get the chance!

  You can also join Jonathan Yanez’s fangroup, called Jonathan’s Reading Wolves. Check it out for more info about his upcoming releases.

  For updates about new releases, as well as exclusive promotions, visit the author’s website and sign up for the VIP mailing list. Head there now to receive a free copy of The Amber Project.

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  Enjoying the series? Help others discover The Orion Colony series by leaving a review on Amazon.

  Contents

  Book Description

  Orion Important Characters and Terms

  Orion Uncharted Map

  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

  Epilogue

  Check Out the Renegade Star Series

  Get a Free Book

  Books in the Renegade Star Universe

  About the Authors

  Orion Uncharted

  Book 2 in the Orion Colony Series

  J.N. Chaney

  Jonathan Yanez

  Book Description

  Orion Uncharted: Orion Colony Series #2

  The Orion has fallen.

  After barely escaping with their lives, the crew of the Orion has scattered across an unknown world. With a diminishing hope of returning home, they have no choice but to band together.

  But between the local wildlife, lack of supplies, a missing crew, and a strange, ominous door that can't be opened, Dean and his new friends will need everything at their disposal to survive.

  This isn't the home they expected, but they didn't come this far to give up and die.

  Explore a strange new world and fight for the future in this second entry to The Orion Colony series. If you’re a fan of Firefly, Battlestar Galactica, or Indiana Jones, you’ll love this epic, space opera adventure.

  For Jonathan,

  And the many adventures to come.

  -J.N. Chaney

  To everyone who’s gotten knocked down following their dreams.

  You get back up. You don’t give up. That’s not who we are.

  -Jonathan Yanez

  Orion Important Characters and Terms

  Humans

  Dean Slade : Former gladiator world champion fighting under the name Dean “Steel Hands” Slade, current mechanic on the Orion.

  Stacy Wilson : Civil Authority Officer Special Agent. Stacy infiltrated the mechanic ranks on Earth acting as an undercover agent for the Civil Authority. Her mission was to acquire information working in the yards where the seed ships were constructed. After the Orion’s crash she has taken a more active role as a Civil Authority Officer.

  Ricky Matthews (Rick) : Dean’s only friend going into the events of Orion Colony. Ricky is a mechanic and has a gambling issue. He also has a crush on Arun Drake one of the Eternals leading the Orion.

  Boss Creed : In charge of the mechanics on Earth as well as on the Orion. Boss Creed is a fare but stern foreman.

  Dr. Kelly Allbright (The Professor) : Gifted doctor well versed in caring for the injured and sick. Doctor Allbright has cared for Dean a handful of times already despite their short term of affiliation.

  Dr. James Wong (Al) : Head of technology on the Orion. Doctor Wong was responsible for treating the technology that allowed Dean and the rest of the team to find the second Disciple on board. His receptionist was in fact the second Disciple discovered on board the Orion and the one that brought the seed ship down.

  Maksim Aleksandre Kuznetsov Petrov: Disciple, AKA Jeffrey Hooke, AKA Trevor Bishop, AKA the Assassin. Discovered while trying to sabotage the Orion. Captured and imprisoned in the prisoner cell block aboard the Orion.

  Mutt : Genetically engineered to be larger, stronger and faster than normal canines. Mutt met Dean on the Orion when Dean stumbled on Maksim trying to infect the animals with a violent strain of rabies. Mutt found Dean again once the Orion crashed.

  Eternals

  Arun Drake : Arun is one half of the sister, brother team leading the Orion. Belonging to a wealthy Eternal family, Arun’s passion is to help those less fortunate than herself. She sees this trip on the Orion her chance to offer aid to Transients she sees as equals. She’s loyal to a fault and ferocious when it comes to protecting others.

  Elon Drake : Much like his sister he sees this trip as an opportunity to aid the Transients he sees as his fellow man. Pilot of the Orion, Elon sacrificed his own life to stay aboard the Orion and land the ship. In the process he lost his leg.

  Cognitives

  Iris : Cognative in charge of the Orion, Iris is one of the sentient Artificial Intelligences coupled with the twelve seed ships leaving Earth. After the Orion’s crash, Iris has been given limited power. The long range scanners, navigation, and communication sections of her ship are currently down.

  Other Terms

  Eternals : Advanced humans who have been genetically modified with advanced healing and extremely long lifespans. After a few centuries, an additional mutation caused the Eternals to develop albino features, giving them a distinct appearance. They are responsible for most of Earth’s advanced technology, including the seed co
lony ships, such as Orion, as well as Tritium Cores, slipspace drives, and Cognitives.

  Transients : Normal humans who do not posses the Eternal gene. After Eternals arose on Earth, Transient humans were delegated to the lower class, unable to accumulate wealth or obtain high-level positions in either business or politics. This stagnation led to a rebellion in which the Transients demanded equal opportunity. To satisfy this need, the Eternals offered them a deal: venture out into the far-flung reaches of the galaxy and colonize distant worlds, taking their lives into their own hands. The Transients agreed, and so began the greatest mass exodus in Earth’s history.

  Slipspace : A dimension beneath our own in which faster-than-light travel is possible. While it is not fully understood, many theorize that slipspace tunnels are in a constant state of nuclear fusion and fission, destroying and creating atoms simultaneously at all times. It was believed that slip tunnels were a naturally occurring phenomenon, but this is incorrect. In truth, the slip tunnel network was created by ancient ships from Earth as they expanded across the galaxy. While some tunnels collapsed over time, many remained to this day, providing modern ships with a faster-than-light means of transportation. Since modern ships cannot create their own tunnels, they must continue to rely on the existing network to travel. The Orion is able to create these tunnels.

  Kronos Five : The original planet the Orion was headed to before it was sabotaged and taken off course.

  The Orion : One of the twelve original seed ships made to take Transients off Earth. It is shaped like a small moon. It is capable of carrying one hundred thousands passengers. With hundreds of levels including storage, housing and recreation the Orion is a small city in itself. When it crashed the Orion was broken in two. The front half of the ship was landed by Elon, the back half broke into multiple sections scattered around the planet.

  Civil Authority : The ruling power policing Earth at the time the Orion launched. Stacy Wilson is Civil Authority Officer, she acted as an undercover agent until the Orion crashed. The Orion was accompanied by a strong presence of Civil Authority Officers upon launch. Only a handful of Civil Authority officers survived the Orion crash.

  The Disciples : The first and oldest cult to oppose the Eternals. The Disciples believe that any genetic mutation or evolution of the human body is evil. They’re an underground terrorist group responsible for multiple attacks on Eternal businesses and Eternals themselves.

  1

  The Orion crashed. Like the ancient ship of old, the Titanic, the impossible had happened. Those of us who survived the crash were deposited on a strange planet that grew stranger and stranger every day.

  This last bit rang truer than even I could have imagined. Boss Creed and I led a team north from the Orion. The idea was to get a decent perimeter set up around the ship in order to get a proper read of the land.

  Turned out the planet’s ecosystem allowed for a variety of habitats to coexist in a relatively small area. Not more than five kilometers from the Orion, a vast jungle lay before us.

  “Are we going to go in there?” Ira asked. He was one of the few suits aboard the Orion to make it out alive after the crash. He was a good kid but a little whiny if you asked me.

  I was surprised when he directed the question at me.

  “Don’t look at me,” I said before motioning over to Boss Creed. “Ask him.”

  Boss Creed’s hard eyes roved over the perimeter of the jungle. The leaves were so green they looked fake, like something from a painting, while the bark of the trees had gone black. A variety of foliage greeted us in all directions as if the land were trying its best to hide its true face.

  “We should probably go in. I mean, at least a few meters,” Meenaz, the last human member of our scouting party, suggested. She was average height with short curly hair, a grim look settling in her eyes. A familiar look, I recognized. Oh, yes. She’d lost someone in the crash. I would have bet my life on it. She turned to look at me. “That’s why we came here, right?” she asked, and I sensed a coldness in her voice, as though all the emotion in her had gone out.

  Mutt trotted over to the jungle and growled. The wolf-like dog wasn’t really the needy kind. He came and went as he pleased. He never left my side too long, as if he were worried about me doing something stupid and came to check in on me from time to time. When we geared up for this mission, he decided to grace us with his presence.

  Boss Creed looked down at the dark grey blaster he carried in his hands. He turned the safety off before motioning us to do the same.

  “Let’s go take a look,” Boss Creed said, taking time to look at us each in turn. “Safety’s off.”

  I looked down at the blaster I held in my hand. The weapon still felt unfamiliar, even awkward. I’d used a blaster only a handful of times in my life before my journey with the Orion. To be honest, I’d always felt better about using my hands than a gun, but I also couldn’t deny the benefit of having one. No matter how talented a fighter I might have been, there was just no comparison. If there really were alien creatures roaming around the planet, I’d need more than my bare-knuckle fists to protect myself.

  Boss Creed took the lead with me on his right, Ira and Meenaz following behind.

  One of the weirdest parts of the planet—and that was already saying a lot because the place was like something out of a dream—was the lack of noise up until this point.

  Both in the woods where Ricky and I crashed and at the Orion crash site itself, there were no birds, no insects, nothing living beside us. For some unknown reason, this all changed once we entered the jungle.

  As soon as we crested the line of trees marking the entrance to the jungle, a cacophony of noise hit our ears, from the chirping and squawks of birds overhead to the clicks and ticks of insects on the ground.

  “Did you see that? There!” Ira shouted, pointing his rifle into the air above us.

  The thick foliage blocked out the suns at certain points of the jungle interior. The spot Ira indicated sat a few meters to our left in a thickly shaded portion where two trees met.

  What looked like a fat monkey with three eyes stared at us as if we were the strange ones. It just sat there unmoving with its three weird eyes, judging us. It cocked its fuzzy head to the side as if it were discerning our intent.

  Mutt sniffed the air, noticing the creature too, and wagged his tail.

  “Hold your fire,” Boss Creed warned. “This is its home. Live and let live.”

  Instinct told me to raise my own blaster at the animal. I lowered it to my side slowly.

  “He’s not that bad,” I said. “If he were bigger, he’d remind me of a crime boss I knew back on Earth.”

  Boss Creed looked over at me with a raised eyebrow.

  “Trust me, it’s a long story,” I told him.

  He seemed content with that as our small party moved deeper into the jungle. Mutt padded along with me, sniffing anything and everything he could get his nose on.

  A few minutes later, Ira stopped us again.

  “I don’t think we should go any deeper.” Ira was looking down at the smart pad in his left hand. “We’ll risk losing communication with the Orion if we do. We might be out of range already.”

  “Report in to Iris,” Boss Creed said, wiping a line of sweat from his brow. “Let’s see how far we are.”

  “Orion, this is Expeditionary Force One,” Ira said into the device. “We’ve discovered a jungle, and we’re checking in to test our range of communication. Do you copy?”

  “Expeditionary Force One,” Iris’ familiar voice came through the opposite end. “This is Orion. We can hear you, but you’re on the outer limits of our range at the moment. I would advise that you don’t travel much farther.”

  While the conversation was going on, I looked at the fourth member of our group. Meenaz was looking up at the jungle canopy above us. Motion at her feet caught my eye at the same time a low rumble came from Mutt.

  Something long and black slithered just behind her boots.
Whatever it was, it was nearly the same color as the jungle ground itself.

  “Hey, watch out!” I shouted, already lifting my blaster to take aim at whatever the thing was behind her.

  In the space of a heartbeat, a creature that resembled a giant snake with a mouth full of sharp teeth and spines coming out of the sides of its head reared up behind Ira.

  The creature was so long in length, what I had seen behind Meenaz was actually the middle of its body. Its serpentine head came up towering over Ira as it struck out with vicious intent.

  The creature had to be twelve meters in length, probably even more. It was as thick as my torso with blackish-brown scales covering it from head to tail.