Zero's Return (89 page)

“I…”  Shael wasn’t sure
what to say.  What she
could
say.  She wasn’t entirely sure what she was
seeing wasn’t a result of the dam breaking in her mind, a way for the
brainwashing to reclaim her…

Mercy is the key,
Sister-Jreet,
the apparition went on.
  By showing yours, you unlocked
the door.  It is now for the Seven Sentinels to open it, and to face it
together.

Shael swallowed, hard. 
“I’m not dreaming, am I?”

You Dream,
the
Jreet told her. 
But it is not a dream.

Shael’s heart was
pounding.  She was talking to the Black Jreet.  The
Black Jreet.
  The
Jreet’s only Seer.  “You want me to show mercy?”

You began the chain.  Now
you are supposed to remember, and to guide.  As the Black Jreet is to Vora, you
shall be to Earth.  Mercy is key.  Yours is a path foreseen throughout the
ages, and it only has two outcomes.  One of death, for all.  One of peace, for
all.  Each Sentinel must now show mercy, but only after it has been given to
them.  Guide them well, Sister-Jreet, for a single break in the chain will end
it all. 

Then the stars were
collapsing in on themselves, the void-black coils with their galactic sprays
slipping together, crushing inward, compressing, growing more compact until the
stars and galaxies seemed to be a pinpoint of light within a tiny speck of
black, and then it was gone completely, leaving Shael alone in the camp,
surrounded by sleeping experiments, only the painful wash of goosebumps and the
cold sweat on her body to prove to her she hadn’t imagined her ethereal
visitor.

“Joe?” Shael whispered
hoarsely.  She wiped her hands on her borrowed pants.  “Twelve-A?”

They didn’t stir.  Shael
swallowed and looked up at the sky.  For a brief moment, she thought she saw a
glimmer, there, a serpentine shadow moving against the night, then it was gone.

END

To Be Continued with ZERO4: Zero’s Redemption!

About
the Author

My name is Sara King and I’m going
to change the world.

No, seriously.  I am. 
And I need your help.  My goal is simple.  I want to champion,
define, and spread character writing throughout the galaxy.  (Okay, maybe
we can just start with Planet Earth.)  I want to take good writing out of
the hands of the huge corporations who have had a stranglehold on the
publishing industry for so long and reconnect it to the people (you) and what
you really want.  I want to democratize writing as an art form. 
Something that’s always been controlled by an elite few who have (in my
opinion) a different idea of what is ‘good writing’ than the rest of the world,
and have been feeding the sci-fi audience over 50% crap for the last 40
years.  (To get my spiel on character writing and what it is, jump to the
Meet Stuey
section of this book.)

To assist me in my goals to take
over the world (crap, did I say that out loud??), please leave a review for
this book!  It’s the first and easiest way for you guys to chip in and
assist your friendly neighborhood writer-gal.  And believe me, every
review helps otherwise unknown books like mine stand up against the likes of
the Big Boys on an impersonal site like Amazon.

Also, I have an email! 
(Totally surprising, I know.)  Use it!  (Don’t you know that fanmail
keeps writers going through those dark times when we run out of
chocolate???)  I love posting letters on Facebook—gives me something
fulfilling to do with my time.  ;)  Shoot me a line! 
[email protected]

And, for those of you who do the
Facebook thing, check me out: 
http://www.facebook.com/kingfiction
(personal) or
http://www.facebook.com/sknovel
(my author page) or stay up to date on continuous new ZERO publications with
The Legend of ZERO fan page: 
http://www.facebook.com/legendofzero

Afterword

In case you hadn’t guessed, this
is the second book in a (very) large, sprawling sci-fi world.  More ZERO
stories are coming out very soon, if they haven’t already, and I will very
likely write more novels in this world, simply because I’ve been told to. 
Repeatedly.  By people with that crazed, hungry look in their eyes. 
(Shudder.)  While I’m working on them, be sure to check out these great
books, short stories, and additional ZERO materials on Amazon:

The Legend of ZERO: 
Forging Zero
.  The story of how Joe Dobbs is captured from a
devastated Earth and inducted into the Human Ground Force and trained to be a
soldier for the alien army.

The Legend of ZERO:  Zero
Recall
.  (The one you just read.  It’s a play on
Forgotten.)  53 turns after Forging ZERO, Joe Dobbs is recalled to fight a
war the likes of which Congress has never seen.

 The Legend of ZERO: 
Zero’s Return
.  20 turns after Zero faces off Forgotten in Zero
Recall, he returns to Earth to fight a new kind of war—the kind that will
determine the future of the Human race.

The Legend of ZERO: Zero’s
Redemption
.  Continuation of Zero’s Return.  It’s a race to capture the
greatest telepath the Human race has ever produced, and two of Humanity’s
greatest warriors find themselves on opposite sides.

The Legend of ZERO:
 Zero’s Legacy
.  After preserving Earth’s most precious resource
from the hands of the Huouyt, Joe and his friends must now work together to
survive this new post-apocalyptic world—and find the People a home.

The Legend of ZERO: 
Forgotten.
  A Sacred Turn after Zero returns to Earth, his descendants
seek out his ancient nemesis with a bargain Forgotten cannot resist: 
Remove Earth from Congress without a single death, and Humans will give him his
freedom.

The Complete ZERO WorldBuilder
: 
A complete(ly massive) glossary, fun facts, timeline, illustrations, and cool
details that I couldn’t pack into the books.

The Moldy Dead
:  A
story about the Origins of the Geuji, one of whom plays a dominant role in
books 2 and 4.  The Moldy Dead is easily one of my best short stories.

Opening Night at the Naturals
Preserve
:  A story about Congress’ discovery of the Baga, one of whom
plays an important role in book 2.

Planetside
:  A fun
story about how the Ueshi earned the right to fly.

The First Gods of Fire:
 
The story of how Congress was formed.

Breaking the Mold
: 
How the Geuji were betrayed by Congress (again).

Beda and Shael
:  A
Jreet love story, a la Romeo and Juliet.  Except this time, it’s Vorans
and Welus.  Yeah, sparks fly.  And blood.  And scales…

Parting Gift:
  The
Vanun struggle to escape the Huouyt, both of whom evolved on the same planet. 
(Vanun on land, Huouyt in the sea).

Syuri:
  Everybody
loves lackeys.  Here’s how Forgotten got his. 
J

And keep your eyes open for more,
as I will keep putting them up whenever I have time.  Just search “The
Legend of ZERO” on Amazon.  Also, if you liked ZERO, you’d probably like
Outer
Bounds: Fortune’s Rising
.  It’s another character sci-fi that’ll rock your
world.

And guys?  Thanks.  You
are freakin’ awesome.

Meet
Stuey

Meet Stuey.  He's our mascot
here at Parasite Publications.  Stuey is a brain parasite.  Stuey
burrows into people's heads and stays there.  He takes over your
body.  He shuts you away from your senses.  He talks to you in the
darkness.  He makes you do things you would never do while you can only watch
in horror.

But he's an understandable little
monster.

Imagine your favorite
action-adventure story.  Your favorite romance.  Your favorite epic
sci-fi.  Your favorite thriller. Each one of them is going to have a
character that left you breathless, one that had you at the edge of your seat,
rooting for, screaming at, and pleading with.  Those are the
only
stories that Parasite publishes.

Our goal at Parasite Publications
is twofold: First, we want to produce memorable, sympathetic characters that
readers will still be thinking about years after finishing our books. 
Second, we want to create a team of creative minds whose work can be trusted by
readers to produce the same kind of character stories they love, time and
again.  We're forming a club.  A logo.  A place for readers to
go to read books about
people
, not places or machines.  A place for
character writers to band together and create a brand that means quality to
readers.  Readers of Parasite books will no longer have to wonder if
they're throwing their money away on novels that, even in 150k words, never
really get into a character's head.

They never have to wonder, because
that's what we're
about
.  Getting into the character's head. 
And, if we do our job right, Parasite will get into your head and stay
there.  Just like Stuey.

Check us out on Facebook at
http://www.facebook.com/ParasitePublications/info
to read more about Stuey’s mission to change publishing for your benefit.

Sara Recommends

If you’re looking for other great character novels, Sara’s
got some recommendations for you!

If you like to read:

Young Adult Paranormal Romance…

Try
Something Witchy
by AJ Myers

Sara Says:
“AJ Myers was my first honest-to-God
protégé, and we worked together heavily in the creation of this first book in
the Mystics & Mayhem series.  If you enjoyed my novels, be sure to
check hers out!  AJ’s got a spunky heroine, a wicked sense of humor, and
has a way of making people laugh with the unpredictable that I can truly
appreciate.”

Fantasy…

Try
A Song of Ice and Fire: A Game of Thrones
by
George R. R. Martin

Sara Says:
  “For all you writers out there,
George R. R. Martin is the guy you should study if you want to learn to write
compelling characters.  I can’t say he taught me everything I know ‘cause
I never met the guy (lordy, I wish…), but he’s the greatest master of the
entire range of human character that I’ve ever seen.  He’s a character
genius.  Period.  I bow to him.”

Thrillers…

Try
Changes
by Charles Colyott

Sara Says:
  “Colyott is a character writer
supreme.  I haven’t had a novel grab me and hold on this tightly since
George R. R. Martin.  He’s an independent author that blows most
traditionally-published authors completely out of the water.  His books
are awesome steeped in awesome sauce, stewed in awesomeness.  This is a
writer to watch.”

Other
Titles by Sara King

Guardians of the First Realm: 
Alaskan Fire

Guardians of the First Realm: 
Alaskan Fury

Millennium Potion:  Wings of
Retribution

Outer Bounds:  Fortune’s Rising

Terms of Mercy:  To the
Princess Bound

The Legend of ZERO: Forging Zero

The Legend of ZERO: Zero Recall
 

Coming Soon

Guardians of the
First Realm: Fury of the Fourth Realm ~ Sara King

Guardians of the
First Realm: Alaskan Fiend ~ Sara King

Guardians of the
First Realm: Alaskan Fang ~ Sara King

ZERO:  Zero’s Redemption – Sara King

ZERO:  Zero’s Legacy – Sara King

ZERO:  Forgotten – Sara King