Mirrobius: A Book Excerpt

Below is an excerpt from my new novel, Mirrobius.

The train zoomed into the station and came to a perfect noiseless stop. The T logo taunted him from the doors that slid open a moment later. He stepped on and slumped into the first free seat that he could find. 

Zane pulled out his phone to check for any new messages and his face fell. No reply from his brother even hours later. Zane looked out the window, not truly seeing anything he passed. The worry from the previous evening returned as he wondered what could be causing this lack of response. As tense as their relationship could be at times, they still weren’t prone to leave each other hanging like this. 

Once again, he racked his brain for something he might have said. A scroll through previous messages produced no obvious culprit. A similar recall of recent conversations–brief as they tended to be–didn’t bring any revelation either. Was he just overly busy with some work project? Could he have found a companion with whom he was currently too infatuated to bother with a quick check-in? 

He brushed these theories off. He knew his brother’s tendencies, and they didn’t include ignoring people in favor of work or relationships. Aron was either upset with Zane for some reason, or something even worse had happened.

Zane’s reverie was broken as he recognized his stop. After exiting the train and descending to the street, he walked another half block to arrive at the entrance to Defenders HQ. 

These doors, at least, did not have the Temzen logo. Instead, they featured two sets of parallel lines intersecting each other inside a circle. The center square produced by the lines was colored in. It replicated the device that attached the Pistos Gem to his uniform, the Gem itself placed in the center.

Zane stepped forward and the doors slid open. A moment later, he was strolling through a vast atrium, brilliantly lit mostly by the floor-to-ceiling windows on the front of the building’s curved facade. Large white metal beams reached upward to support them, meeting at the semi-dome of the roof. The other floors above were visible, made so by half walls over which occupants of each could peer over into the lobby. The same symbol marking the entrance doors adorned other key spaces around the concourse, including a particularly impressive version embedded in the center of the floor.

As on most days, the room was bustling with others wearing the same blue uniform with the same features, the names on the patches being the only variation. They moved mostly in pairs, although several larger groups also commiserated around the space. Four were seated behind a prominent circular reception counter, strategically placed so that all angles of the area could be monitored constantly.

“There you are! I thought you might have knocked back one too many last night!” Lana bounded up to Zane, regarding him mischievously. She was also more put together than the previous evening, her patch emblazoned with ICE.

Zane smirked back. “I came pretty close. Getting up today was rough.”

“I admit I got a little carried away, too. Kai always keeps us well taken care of.”

“Yeah. I need to cut back on how much I take advantage of that.”

The pair began walking toward the elevators. Lana glanced toward her partner. “So, any word back?”

Zane shook his head. “Not yet. I don’t want to hound him, but this is really starting to feel off. And like, not just Zane Being Zane feeling off, either.”

“Well, we could start looking into it. Request that someone head over to his place to check on him. Maybe even–”

“Don’t say it.”

“Maybe even visit Temzen to see if he’s there. You know how this would work, Cac. All possibilities means all possibilities. Plus, if you’re that worried, I don’t see why you wouldn’t want to check his workplace, too. I think they’re shady as much as you do, but if it was my brother I’d be over there without a second thought.”

They arrived at the elevators. Zane pressed his thumb to a black glass plate and a set of doors opened a second later. They stepped inside, turned to face the front, and were quickly propelled upward. 

“Besides,” Lana continued, “we have the authority to go where we’d need to go, even there.”

“I know,” Zane acknowledged. “But would they respect it?”

“As much power as they have over everything…” The elevator stopped and the doors opened. “…what we have is a bit better.”

They stepped into another open area with many of the same trappings of the lobby, with LED fixtures supplementing the generous light from the windows. A smaller reception desk was straight ahead with the familiar symbol on the wall behind the two uniformed workers maintaining it. Many others milled about, their conversations creating an indecipherable hum. Several large screens were built into the wall to the left of the desk. Rotating graphics appeared every 15 to 20 seconds, interspersing announcements with quotes from mission statements. Zane and Lana passed the desk and turned right. 

Lana continued, “Besides, from what I know of Aron, not just what you’ve shared but the few times I’ve met him, I can tell he’s not a grudge holder. He seems like a pretty straightforward guy. So again, if you want to move on this, we can do that. And I hope that I don’t need to tell you that a lot of others around here would be glad to help out.”

“What are we helping with?” A diminutive black woman with close cropped hair approached, looking at the two of them expectantly. A man with smooth light blue skin, dark purple hair, and whose uniform hugged his well-developed arms strode close behind her. Their patches read SHELL and MIDNIGHT, respectively.

Lana beamed. “Oh hi, Tash and Vincent. I was just sharing with Zane here about how much his co-workers love and appreciate him, and how they’d help him in times of crisis. Like, as a random example, the potential disappearance of his brother.”

Vincent frowned. “Wait, Aron might be missing?”

Zane held up a hand. “That is not for sure yet. I just haven’t heard from him in a while and it’s weird.”

Lana bumped her shoulder into Zane’s. “Except he’s starting to freak out about it, but he’s trying to cope with it on his own.”

Tash raised an eyebrow. “So, the usual.”

Zane rolled his eyes. “Why’s this always have to turn into a damn psychoanalyzing session for me?”

Tash folded her arms. “Because as much as you try to avoid showing too much emotion, you end up wearing it all on your sleeve. You make it easy.”

“Ah, okay, cool. Hey Tash, how are things with your girlfriend?”

Vincent covered his mouth to stifle a laugh. Tash narrowed her eyes. “They’re fine.”

“Fine? So you’ve finally told her you don’t feel ready to move in together yet?”

“I’m waiting for the right moment.”

“Yeah, that makes what, three weeks now? Not a single right moment in there anywhere?” Zane looked at Vincent. “What are you laughing at? Hey, wild guess that you gamed for hours last night to avoid all your real problems. Easier to talk to your online buddies, right?”

Vincent turned sheepish. “Those guys have gotten me through a lot.”

Zane turned to face Lana, who in anticipation also turned toward him.

“And finally,” he began, “has a thought ever passed through your head that you haven’t felt the need to share?”

“Why no, I don’t think so.” She batted her eyes. 

Tash recovered herself first. “So, points made. But seriously, if your brother might need help, we’ve got you.”

“And I appreciate that. I know I suck at asking sometimes, but I really do. Just let me think on it a bit longer, okay?”

Tash and Vincent nodded. Lana lightly touched his arm reassuringly. 

The four entered a room already occupied with many of their colleagues. Rows of chairs took up much of the space; some were seated but others were still standing. A few trickled in as the low hum of chatter filled the room.

Finally, a tall, broad-shouldered black man with graying hair appeared in the doorway, and much of the talking hushed almost instantly. Those who were standing quickly found seats. This included Zane and the others, who sat near the back.

The man set a tablet on a clear podium and took his place behind it. His patch read THUNDER. He cleared his throat. “Greetings, Defenders.”

In unison, the crowd answered, “Greetings, Commander!”

He stoically surveyed the gathering for a few beats before beginning. “For the rookies in the room, I am Commander Simeon Beaumont. You should all know that by now, but your nerves might be getting the best of you today, so I like providing that reminder. If you have any questions or concerns as you get acclimated, don’t hesitate to approach me, or make an appointment with my office. And just remember that the anxiety you feel will pass, but it’ll probably get worse before it gets better.”

A soft laugh rose from the group.

Simeon continued. “Now, updates for the day. First up, there have been two more reported disappearances over in the Old Azure neighborhood. That’s six in the last two weeks. Mostly unhoused folks, and that population is getting more and more nervous. Many of our citizens wouldn’t consider that a priority, but we don’t operate like that, do we?”

Again, all answered in unison: “No, sir!”

“Correct. Those who are patrolling that area need to be eyes open and minds engaged. We have a team assigned to investigate, but anything you happen to notice will be helpful. Next, we’ve been making dents in the network that has been smuggling weapons in from off-world, but we could stand to be doing a lot better on this front. We’ve had some good leads that have allowed us to bust some major storage hubs and we’ll keep on those. But what we really need is to find the people coordinating this. The Interrogation Unit has given us some medium-sized fish, but I want whales. Flipping some higher-level workers would help with that. Whatever assistance we can give them while out on the streets is appreciated. Understood?”

“Yes, sir!”

“Good. One final thing. We’ve received a request from the Temzen Corporation to help with a matter they’ve been encountering–”

Zane perked up. A reaction stirred among the gathering, and Simeon put his hand up to quell the noise. 

“I know the attitude many of you have toward them, but let’s remember that we benefit from their innovations here as much as anyone else does. Like it or not, their problem can reach society-wide very quickly. So as I was saying, they’re reporting that something is diverting energy from their servers. Not constant, just occasional massive drops. Their internal staff has tried a number of things to address it with no luck, and so they’re starting to suspect an outside interloper. Meaning trespassing and theft. Meaning that it very much concerns us. Meaning we’re going to handle it the way we’re meant to. Is that clear?”

“Yes, sir!”

Simeon raised his chin. “Good. We don’t yet have a team assigned to this, but I’ll be making those decisions soon. Any questions about anything I’ve talked about?”

A few heads turned to look around, but the room remained silent. Simeon nodded with satisfaction.

“All right. Double check the screen kiosks for possible assignment updates. Any need for clarification on those, contact my office. Sarian and Freis, stay put for a few minutes after dismissal.”

Zane and Lana both sat up a little straighter in their chairs and responded in unison. “Yes, sir.”

“Thank you. For the protection of all!”

Once more, the room answered: “For the protection of all!”

“Dismissed.”

Everyone but Zane and Lana stood to file out. Tash gave them supportive glances and Vincent patted them both on the shoulders as they passed. Soon they were the only ones left with Simeon, who waved them toward the front of the room. They obliged, not doing much to hide their curiosity. Simeon placed a hand on the podium while the pair stood more formally, their hands behind their backs.

The corners of Simeon’s mouth curved upward in amusement. “You can both relax. This isn’t that kind of conversation.”

They allowed their arms to drop. 

Simeon surveyed them both. “How have things been for you two lately? Anything you’ve noticed out there?”

They both shook their heads. Lana offered, “No, sir. Mostly minor issues. Squabbles between store owners and patrons, petty thefts, a few drunkards causing disturbances. That sort of thing.”

Zane chimed in, “Oh, there was that car accident over on Second. One guy blindsided another, and the owner of the car he hit pulled a weapon.”

Lana snapped her fingers. “Oh yeah. That was an exciting day.”

Simeon leaned in. “And how’d that go?”

Lana smirked. “Pretty smooth, really. I froze the assailant’s brandishing arm. He had no chance to do anything.”

Zane agreed. “She acted as soon as she saw it. Like she said, no chance.”

Simeon was impressed. “Very good. And life outside of here? How’s that going?”

The two looked at each other. Again, Lana ventured first. “Going pretty well. I check in with my family almost every day. The new satellites have made the calls much clearer. We’ve been talking about me taking a shuttle back home to see them in the next few months.”

“And that’s to the planet Gele, correct?”

“Yes sir.”

The Commander nodded. “Great to hear. How about you, Sarian?”

Zane stammered. “Um…fine. Good. Things are fine and good.”

“Well, I’m convinced.”

Zane sighed. “The truth is that I haven’t heard from my brother in a while and I’m becoming worried.”

Beaumont raised his eyebrows. “Oh? Is that something for us to look at?”

“I…I’m not sure yet. I’m still trying to put some pieces together for myself.”

“Okay. You know that you can talk to me more about it if you need to. And I can put some people on this if it’s warranted.”

Zane avoided looking at Lana. “Yes, sir. Thank you.”

“All right. Onto what I need from you. We have a group of cadets that our Training Team has found a bit challenging. They’re not taking to the regimen very well. They have a lot of promise, but their understanding and application isn’t coming along at the pace we’d like. I had the idea that they might benefit from spending an afternoon with some active agents to see how everything they’re getting in their training is put together. You were the first two that came to mind.”

The two shared another glance.

Commander Beaumont continued. “You’ve both been here, what, five years now? You’re pros. You’re capable. I figure you can head over, talk to them a little, do some hands-on combat drills. The trainers can help you figure out what will truly benefit them, but I have a feeling this will go a long way to push them forward. We’ll shuffle some others around to cover your patrol, so don’t worry about that.”

“I…we’re both flattered that you’d consider us, sir.” Lana was clearly trying to stifle her enthusiasm.

Zane concurred. “Yes, sir. This sounds like a great opportunity. We’ll do our best.”

Simeon looked at them knowingly. “Great. Because I already told them you’re coming. They’re expecting you right after lunch. Thank you for your assistance.”

The Commander removed his tablet from the podium and left the room, leaving Zane and Lana to excitedly ponder the day’s assignment.

Mirrobius is available on Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Apple Books, and Smashwords.