Free Bane of the Dead (Seraphim Revival Book 1) by Jacob Holo

after all.
    “An exciting possibility, isn’t it?” Jack said.
    “You know it is.”
    Jack brought the tram closer. “So, will you help me?”
    “It doesn’t matter what you offer. I don’t trust you and neither will the Executives.”
    “That makes two of us. But I think you’ll find we both have something to gain here.”
    “Prove to me this isn’t some Aktenai trick.”
    “You want proof?” Jack said. “I’ll give you proof you can’t ignore.”
    Dominic crossed his arms. “That is something I’d very much like to see.”

Chapter 6
    Reunion
    Seth and Quennin folded space to the solar system.
    The fortress planet of Aktenzek loomed ahead. Its entire surface gleamed like a pearly sea. Ten-kilometer-thick mnemonic armor shrouded the whole planet. Forests of fusion cannon towers and mountain ranges of exodrone control pyramids covered the surface.
    Just beyond Aktenzek was its younger twin, Zu’Rashik. The Earth was a swirl of blue-white in the distance, its orbit unaffected by the presence of the two foreign worlds.
    From space, the fortress planets were identical. Inside, however, was a very different story.
    As part of the Treaty of the Alliance, Aktenzek had remained in Earth orbit, safeguarding the vulnerable Earth Nation from Grendeni aggression. Unsatisfied with their world’s new sedentary nature, the Choir had ordered the construction of a new fortress planet for operations elsewhere.
    Zu’Rashik had started its life as an unremarkable airless rock. Over the past twenty years, the Aktenai had poured their immense industrial might into creating from that rock a fortress planet every bit the equal of Aktenzek.
    “It’s good to be home,” Quennin said.
    “Yes, it is. I sometimes forget how much I miss Aktenzek.”
    “When are the first settlers moving to Zu’Rashik?”
    “This year, I think. Enough habitat caverns should be carved out by now. Perhaps we should join one of the new cities?”
    “Ha! As if you could ever sit still long enough.”
    Seth grinned. “Too true.”
    “Let’s not keep the Sovereign waiting.”
    Quennin unfurled her flame-red wings. Emerald lightning crackled within the large kite-shaped gems embedded in the side of each wing. She took off with a burst of speed. Seth diverted power to his wings and followed her descent to Aktenzek.
    They fell towards the planet, passing massive arrays of robotic frigates, whole squadrons of dreadnoughts, and a pair of Aktenai seraph squadrons competing in sparring exercises. Aktenzek grew larger until its horizon was flat.
    Seth and Quennin skimmed across the fortress planet’s surface. Lanes of gigantic fusion towers flashed by. Drone control pyramids rose seventy kilometers into the black, airless sky. Seth and Quennin broke through the towers and climbed, cresting several large white domes each the size of a mountain. They sped past an expansive metropolis that crawled and plodded across the surface, affixing additional fusion towers as it crept along.
    A vast iris of mnemonic armor opened ahead. Seth and Quennin flew up, looped over, and sped down the mammoth tunnel. They dodged around lanes of automated transports, rushed through zones of light and dark, then took a sharp turn at a T-junction. Mnemonic security shutters snapped open, permitting their entry.
    Seth and Quennin shot through a coin-shaped habitat cavern several kilometers across. A simulated sun shone through a simulated sky, its light gleaming off towers of gold and glass. They arced around the spires and slipped through a square exit.
    They followed the twisting network of tunnels deeper into the planet, past reinforced security checkpoints, several habitat caverns, and two industrial complexes. After several minutes, they arrived at the planet’s center.
    The Core of Aktenzek floated in a grand spherical chamber with no visible support: a planetoid within a planet, smooth and white. Tightly packed mechanical cylinders crammed the sky, buzzing with the colossal