Renegade [RALI#1]

Preview- Alliance (RALI #2)

Found family and hidden heroes.

A past that won't let go.

A chance to get everything back.

When Xlack Ekymé had nowhere to go, Navaria Twi's team took him in. Like him, these Adjuvants are hybrids of the lost Magni race and possess extraordinary talents. Unlike him, they live in the dark nooks of Knalcal Alliance Space, believed to be myths by the worlds they protect.

The leaders do not trust Xlack, and suspicions grow when assassins from his homeworld appear. Among them is a friend he thought lost who will stop at nothing to get Xlack to come home.

With prodigies slain, children abducted, and Twi a target, Xlack dives back into the intrigues of the Napix Empire, where change eats away at the familiar. This time, he must publicly declare his loyalty. One choice can restore everything and save his homeland, but only if he abandons Twi.

Released March 24, 2024

ISBN: 979-8320082578

1| We Could Be Anything

ADJUVANT BASE ABOVE MUMIR, KNALZ, KNALCAL ALLIANCE

"Breathe, Xlack Ekymé," Twi had said on the tram,shoulder near his but not touching. "No one expects us to win this."

Expect, no. Want, though? Thanks to his Mind Talent, her longing for victory, for validation, buzzed against his skin. It tasted of metal and something not quite sweet. More lurked in its depths, old and bitter, like a dead worm in polished fruit, but he hadn't called it out.

This was supposed to be a friendly competition between Adjuvants. Admittedly, Xlack hadn't caught all the rules, but he was fairly certain children weren't supposed to fall out of the sky.

He caught that one and left the boy in the care of his teammate, Rifo. In hindsight, leaping onto the nose of a passing ship was reckless. It rocked under Xlack's weight, and the pilot glared at him through the canopy.

'Are you crazy?' The mental whisper was more than words. It was all the feeling behind them.

Xlack sent one back. 'Go up.'

He didn't have the argument or even an image to explain why, but the imperative's baked-in desperation was enough. The ship ascended, and within two heartbeats the scene was worse than he had feared.

Another child teetered over the edge of Mumir's highest platform. Her feet stabbed empty air, and her terror sliced Xlack's heart. The pilot saw her, too, and the ship dashed as close as it dared, banking hard to avoid the ravine's wall. Fighting the wind, Xlack sprinted up a steepening wing and jumped.