The Spectrum Force Volume Three by Heather Ray (ready player one ebook txt) 📕

she noted the large green leaf that served as a canopy, held by the diligent arm of the Green Enforcer. Yellow and Purple were at either side, the former bubbling with excitement and the latter exhaling with relief.

"Thank God!" Tamara gushed, tightly wrapping her arms around Jocelyn's neck.

"How do you feel, Joce?" Rachel inquired.

"Can you walk?" Keith wanted to know. "No offense, Kid, but that Freshman Fifteen has definitely taken its toll."

"Hey!" Jocelyn grumbled, jamming her elbow into his stomach. Of course, the armor dulled whatever injury she was capable of doling. She glared up at Keith, who snickered as he settled her on her own feet.

"I'm teasing!" he insisted raising one hand in surrender, "Just wanted to see if your strength's back."

She sneered at him. He kept his arm on her shoulders for a few moments, making sure she retained her balance, before stepping away.

As soon as there was room, Matt descended on her, one hand dutifully holding up the leaf while the other touched her chin. "You're still so pale..." he murmured.

Jocelyn blinked. She'd never heard Matt talk like that. He seemed... worried.

She stared into his visor, as if trying to meet his gaze. Then, her glance dropped, noting her pallor with growing concern. "What... happened to me?"

"What do you remember?" Rachel asked.

Jocelyn rubbed her forehead as if trying to stir the memory. She grimaced, pulling her hand away and staring at the sweat that had gathered on her fingertips. "It was cold... and black," she reported, shivering at the memory. "And heavy. I felt so heavy, I couldn't move. Couldn't breathe..."

She squeezed her eyes shut, sucking in a cleansing breath. "That's all I remember after the black stuff swallowed me."

Matt squeezed her shoulder tighter. She looked at him again, staring into the reflective blue visor questioningly. But before she could voice her confusion over his anxious concern, a more pressing matter sprang to mind.

"Guys, what happened to Craig?"
Chapter Thirty

"Ooooh," Craig groaned, squeezing his eyes tightly to combat the pain. Instinctively his hand lanced to his head, from where the most stabbing pain pulsed.

Wearily, he opened his eyes... only to abruptly close them when faced with a blinding white light hovering above him.

His legs squirmed, long blades of grass tickling his bare legs...

Wha?! I'm in my basketball shorts! What happened to my armor?!

He opened his eyes again, this time shielding his sensitive vision with his hand. He slowly sat up, frowning in confusion at the sight.

Tiny huts... each no more than five feet in height, clustered near each other on either side of a small creek. Grass that nearly reached a foot high stood upright, untouched by any breeze at all. Surrounding the huts were walls of stone, and judging from their ragged surfaces, they appeared to be natural formations.

And finally, hovering directly overhead, a sphere glowed brilliantly.

He rose to his knees. "Hello?"

In answer, four forms seemed to materialize out of nowhere. Short beings, cloaked in heavy rags that would suggest they were in the Arctic.

One stepped forward, nodding its head to Craig. Then, a strange, shrill sound pierced Craig's ears.

Craig stared unabashed at the form in front of him. Damn... I really must have hit my head hard!

Part Three

Chapter Thirty-One

For the fifth time within a minute, Spectra glanced at the chronometer, the digital display slowly incrementing. The Force had embarked on their first interstellar mission over eight hours ago.

She permitted a rueful smile. How much time did

it take to thwart a power-mad Denebian monarch's scheme to steal the most powerful object in the universe? Surely more than eight hours.

Unfortunately, logic provided little comfort. They had spent hours in a hazardous, alien terrain, searching blindly for a gem whose power they could never hope to fathom, and a man whose face they'd never seen.

A man who had already been captured. And only the gods knew what kind of vicious tortures Phaedra's twisted mind would brew.

One time, Gaius had been a member of the notorious Denebian aristocracy. One time, he had been one of them

… living for selfish pleasure, giving no care to the universe beyond the bounds of the expanding Empire.

He was another man, all those decades ago. It was almost impossible to imagine what kind of person he had been, for he had become one of the most dedicated, selfless warriors of the Light.

But Phaedra was a stubborn woman. She would never forget what he once was; what they once had together, before she was promised to the Heir, and he was approached by the Remnant.

On one occasion… before their falling out… Spectra's natural curiosity raised the issue. And on that one occasion, Gaius glanced down at the question lurking in her soft pink eyes, and spoke of his past.

"We were young, Spectra. Young, spoiled, fearless. Two children of nobles, both with great expectations hanging over our futures. We had lived in the moment, knowing a time would come when responsibility would chain us. What we had together was youthful fancy. Wild and reckless… we did what we wanted, when we wanted. But that all changed, when Emperor Lethe selected her to wed his son."

It was almost a romantic story… if one could picture the bloodthirsty, manic empress a tragic heroine, forced to marry for position rather than love.

Yet, the story awoke even more disturbing questions. Spectra knew enough of Gaius' past to know the circumstances of his Crossing. He was frustrated by Phaedra's wedding, to such an extent that his concerned father sent him off-world, to prevent him from interfering with the ceremony.

He had been miserable when Luminus found him, and introduced him to the mission of the Remnant… of living for something far greater than self-gratification. Would he have listened to Luminus had he been happy?

And did he still

love her, after all those decades? When he built a family of his own, was he compromising

his true feelings? Did he ever genuinely love his wife? And what of the daughter they'd brought into the world?

It didn't seem so, when he decided to leave Lumina City to protect the Diadem. When he decided to… leave them.

And then, the terrible battle for the planet Kryl.

Thirty years had passed, but the wound was forever fresh and bleeding in Spectra's heart. Phaedra's son killed Hemera. With his own two hands.

Had Gaius remained with the Remnant… had he remained with his family

… perhaps Hemera wouldn't have died.

And even after she did, Gaius still didn't return. Not to say goodbye… not even to comfort Spectra.

She blinked, her focus forced to return on the project at hand. There was nothing to gain by mourning the past… of contemplating that heart-breaking betrayal.

"But… I'll be damned

before I just leave him in Phaedra's hands."

Her conscience had nagged at her from the moment she sent the Force. He had summoned her

. He had asked for her

help. And she sent the Spectrum Force in her stead.

It truly was her fight. Yes, the entire universe was in jeopardy… but despite the overreaching implications, it was still a painfully personal matter.

She had a duty to protect her family. She also had a duty to her mission… to insure Earth was safe from Phaedra's Throneship. Gaius may have elected to sacrifice the former in behalf of the latter, but Spectra knew firsthand what that cost.

She would not make the same sacrifice.

Chapter Thirty-Two

Craig watched as the four small-statured beings held their position. They were so still, they almost seemed like mannequins; but the hard, observant stares that made his skin crawl proved otherwise.

The young man drew himself to his knees, slightly startled that he was taller than them even then. "Who are you?"

He gulped as one of the beings stepped closer.

It approached him slowly, reaching out one shrouded arm. A thin, wiry hand emerged from the heavy cloak, and Craig was quick to note only four fingers stretched from the furry hand.

The four fingers rose to remove the shadowy cowl. Craig found himself staring into two large, spherical eyes, with exaggerated pupils that were far out of proportion with the being's tiny body. A shock of thick black curls sprouted from its… her

head, nestled between two long, pointed ears. A coat of fine, short fur covered the alien's skin, giving her a midnight black coloring to match her mane.

The being's fur and hair reminded Craig of a lion…