Evacuation (The Boris Chronicles Book 1) Read online

  CONTENTS

  Dedication

  Legal

  Social Links

  Series List

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Paul's Author Notes

  Michael's Author Notes

  To you, The Fans

  These stories

  would not be nearly

  so enjoyable to write

  without your

  enthusiasm!

  The Amazing Beta Readers for

  The Boris Chronicles - Evacuation

  Bree Buras - Our Aussie Lady

  Dorene Johnson - Our kick-ass navy lady

  Diane Velasquez - Our original Chinchilla lady who kicked off so much…

  The Lady (Editor) who beat us into submission

  (Ok, mostly Paul.

  Since Mike is writing this dedication,

  he gets to type whatever the hell he wants.

  He (I) bets this doesn’t happen again).

  Kat Lind

  Thank you to the following Special Consultants

  for The Boris Chronicles - Evacuation

  Nikolaus Beattie - Australian Army

  Jeff Morris - US Army

  Both men supported questions for “Things that go ‘Boom’”

  This book is a work of fiction, All of the characters, organizations, and events portrayed in this novel are either products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Sometimes both.

  Copyright (c) 2016 Michael T. Anderle

  All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, recording or otherwise, without the prior written permission of the author.

  Cover art by Sean at High Impact Cover Designs @ http://highimpactcovers.com - Just mention Mike Anderle or Paul C Middleton sent you for a 25% discount on your first cover…Actually, you don’t have to mention our names at all - Sean has a free 25% off for first time customers. Sean in no way actually approved anything I said, but it’s all true, I swear it! Sean was super fun to work with and so damned laid back it was embarrassing to me (who was working from Vegas and kept having shiny objects take my focus away from answering Sean’s emails. So, big thanks to Sean for being so patient!)

  Want More Paul C Middleton?

  Join Paul’s Email List here: http://eepurl.com/bZxFvD

  Join Paul’s Facebook Group Here: https://www.facebook.com/Betrayed-by-Faith-1110766018944080/

  Want more Kurtherian Gambit?

  Join the Kurtherian Gambit email list here: http://kurtherianbooks.com/email-list/

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  Series Titles (will) Include:

  The Boris Chronicles

  TBC 01 - Evacuation (This book)

  TBC 02 - Revolution (Coming Soon)

  TBC 03 - Revelation (Coming Soon)

  TBC 04 - Restitution (Coming Soon)

  (A side story happening during Books 10-14 of The Kurtherian Gambit Series)

  More books By Paul C. Middle

  Paladin (Betrayed By Faith 01)

  The Kurtherian Gambit Series

  The characters who are in this book are drawn from the Kurtherian Gambit Series World by Michael Anderle. Fans of those stories have asked to know more about some of the people populating that world and enjoy the side stories which have been written.

  This story comes out of a collaboration between a Kurtherian Gambit Reader and Author Paul C. Middleton and Michael Anderle (The Kurtherian Gambit series creator). Read Paul’s Author notes at the end to get the story on the … story ;-)

  All the best,

  Michael Anderle

  For a list of every Kurtherian Gambit book, please see my author page as the count keeps going up. Twelve titles out as of July 14th, 2016.

  http://www.amazon.com/Michael-Anderle/e/B017J2WANQ

  CHAPTER ONE

  TQB Base Colorado - USA

  Michael had been right. Hitting these cowards from the rear was fun. More fun than Boris had enjoyed in years.

  The merc at ‘tail-end Charlie’ sensed something coming up from the back of the group and turned to fire at whatever that was behind him.

  In his momentary shock at seeing what looked like a standing bear, Boris grasped the barrel of his rifle in one of his pawed hands and wrenched. Pulling the mercenary toward him. Boris impaled the man with his free hand, slung the rapidly-dying man off to the side, and dropped the gun.

  It’s killing time.

  Death on two legs advanced with determination. Boris planned to kill the mercenaries attacking the base as they came within his range. His powerful legs propelling him forward, the mercs found that it was difficult to hit him without shooting a teammate since the men were tightly grouped. They were finding out how deceptive the speed of a bear could be, while Boris’s movement was even quicker than that of a normal animal. Most humans who saw Boris had but a few seconds of shock before they had to react or die.

  The confusion he was causing must be helping the defenders ahead. Boris was glad to be helping Michael, glad that the svolic he had been working for would get their comeuppance.

  Send him to kill children would they? Especially children under Michael’s protection or this woman who had finally captured his attention. If he had time, he’d offer his services to help hunt them down.

  His roar of joy reverberated down the narrow confines of the hallways. The pain of his constant headache was overcome with the chemical cocktail that saturated his body in this shape. The fear of those in front of him was a scent that exhilarated his ferocity and crammed him with a wicked cocktail of both rage and relief.

  Then, suddenly, his ability to constrain his actions while in this form was lost when a bullet fired from someone in front glanced off his skull and the headache he had been suffering overcame everything.

  In his pain, he lost it. Lost control, lost his mind, lost his humanity and ability to think.

  The headache flared, and he roared in maddened anger, charging forward through the squad. Sending bodies, arms, heads, and legs flying to bounce against the walls, the blood of the dead splashed high to coat the rock walls with a picture of life passing.

  He reached the one that had shot him and ripped his attacker’s head from his body.

  Standing on his back feet, he roared in anger at the decapitated head and crushed the skull with his paws in revenge.

  There was a cresting wave of pain as he felt himself shifting back to human form. Slowly, he dropped to the ground and fell into unconsciousness surrounded by a bed of bloody body parts.

  —

  Eric and a handful of the new Queen’s Guardians were doing a sweep of the corridors to confirm that all the attackers had been killed, and none were hiding.

  He and the small team of Guardians turned a corner to see a scene of destruction and death. Walls splashed in blood, bodies torn in half. Flesh, blood, and parts were everywhere.

  Eric was impressed. This hallway might qualify as being as bloody a mess as Bethany Anne had left in Costa Rica that time she went berserk.

  Eric could hear one Guardian at the back throwing up. Their noses had told them what to expect, but the visual impact was something else. Some stomachs and people would never be the same. Never enough mind bleach to clean up this kind of memory.

  Eric noticed one whole body in the mess. It was a large man, bearded and part
ially nude. He had blood seeping from his eyes and dripping from his ears, clothes torn but no significant wounds. The lead Guardian paused at the body and knelt down to touch the neck, “This one’s alive boss… and he’s a bear!” He turned to look at Eric, a question on his face.

  Eric stepped over and looked closer, “Shit. That’s Boris. He helped Michael get the kids back and warned us about the nuke.”

  Eric paused for a moment to consider before reaching up to his shoulder and clicking on his radio, “Lance, it’s Eric. Do you think you and TOM can ask Bethany Anne if we can put Boris in the medical pod? It looks like Michael’s support is severely injured, and I’m for giving him whatever it takes to help him all things considered.”

  Lance responded immediately. “ADAM is already spoofing the satellites and Bethany Anne agrees. It might be nice to salvage something out of all this shit.”

  Back on the Polarus, Bethany Anne had told TOM to shut her feelings down. She was still hurting, deeply, but could not take the time she needed to really feel those emotions now.

  Later, later, she would take the time.

  They still had to sort out a lot of things on the base and ships. She turned to Stephen and asked, “So what do you know about Boris?”

  Stephen paused and then shrugged “I haven’t heard much recently about him. Honestly, I hadn’t considered much about the Russian situation with all of the other issues we have been fighting. I was there when Boris challenged Michael. So was Peter, one of our original brethren.” His vision clouded briefly in grief.

  Stephen continued his commentary as he bit down on his own hurt, “He was trying to prove himself to his Pack leader more than anything. I consider him an honorable leader for his people. He leads them and continues to protect those sworn to him. Peter, our late brother, mentioned that he preferred having Boris deal with Nosferatu problems and the younger Forsaken. With Boris, it’s all professional and very little emotion. Some of Peter’s other people would try to do a rush job to impress, and fail to get the little details accomplished.”

  Stephen sighed, “He is also the only Pricolici I know of who managed to master the change for more than a century without succumbing to the temptation and madness. I warned him of the danger, and he apparently listened. When I last asked Peter, he admitted ‘that's why I still need to use others. Four years in five I can call on him’. I suspect that is why he took mercenary work. Staying in his human form may be an asset to controlling the mixed shape for him.”

  He shrugged “When he gets out of the pod we should ask him.”

  “What about the people, the town, he protects. Do you know what that is all about?” Bethany Anne asked.

  Stephen said, “Yes, but it would be better if you can wait and let him tell his own story on that.” Bethany Anne nodded her acceptance.

  “I’m going to go pick him up,” she told Stephen, starting to walk toward her suite, “Please ask the captain to announce over the speakers that Ashur needs to meet me there.”

  CHAPTER TWO

  TOM's Ship, Earth orbit

  Two hours later in TOM’s spaceship, Bethany Anne regarded the Russian through the glass. She had walked the Etheric from the Polarus to the base, grabbed Boris, and she and Ashur traveled to the ship. She prepped Boris and stuck him in the medical pod, while TOM explained the settings to use.

  TOM spoke up, The pod has analyzed the nanites in his blood and found them to be similar to the type found in all Wechselbalg. However, their programming differs significantly from that base, altered beyond what would be required for the different form he can take. I can understand no clear reason for that.

  Bethany Anne started pacing in the room, as TOM continued.

  It seems that these nanites are more similar in programing to what I had on my ship and injected into Michael. There are two significant differences. The first is that his Etheric draw is stronger than others we have tested. This would probably cause a female so modified to be more fertile rather than less like that of most Weres that we know about so far. The second difference is a form of coercion control that is paused, but still present. The Pod will modify and destroy that programming. His genetic makeup is remarkably close to the original genotype these nanites were designed to support. I posit that this may account for his extended age. It may be that he was born with the nanites in his mother’s system, which would have meant less potential for damage and less need for extensive modifications than if he were already born.

  How long until he comes out of the Pod, TOM?

  About ten more minutes. He had a significant Etheric balance before he went in that has aided the healing process. However, the pod has still not identified what may have caused the initial damage. After he has come out, may I route the information to ADAM to receive his opinion?

  Sure, but how about we ask him? Maybe it has happened before. He would be capable of healing from this damage, right?

  Yes, Bethany Anne. His Etheric charge, so to speak, helped significantly reduce the time required.

  —

  Boris woke up. He was trapped in a bubble of metal. He took a couple of deep breaths to calm down and remember what had been happening. He had been taking on a group of mercenaries. Playing with them, really. Then the pain in his head had grown terribly, and he had… lost it.

  For the first time in a century or more, he had succumbed to blind rage and couldn’t remember anything but bits and pieces of…well, bits and pieces. He cursed at himself in Russian before realizing he was doing it without pain… Pain that had been a constant companion for so long.

  He relaxed in the Pod and closed his eyes, reveling in the painless quiet bliss he hadn’t known for at least a year.

  The cylinder popped open. He winced as the headache came back. He blinked several times as his eyes fought to focus against bright light. When they focused, he saw a woman he did not know. She was a great beauty. He thought that she must be the one that Michael referred to, this Bethany Anne. She was worthy by poise and grace to be a Czarina.

  Boris looked down and realized he was naked, and blushed. “Do you have some clothes I can vear?” He asked as he covered himself with his hands. Bethany Anne smiled and pointed to a bench next to the wall. It was a small, but lovely smile, shadowed by pain and loss.

  As he got dressed, Bethany Anne asked “Why did you come to America? And on such a risky enterprise. Surely you knew Michael was awake, and if he found your involvement, he might have killed you.”

  Boris zipped the pants up and put on a belt while thinking of his answer. Finally, he shrugged “It was better than losing my control at home and killing my own people, da? Someone would have come after me, and these damned headaches have been getting worse. When I saw what was on the news, it occurred to me that this new technology might be the cause. I needed to find out what was going on! I figured there were three options, and one of them left me alive, so I went vith that plan. I fail to see any stupidity in that.”

  “Besides, I have helped. You put me in that cell da? Why you let me out if you tink I a danger to you?”

  Bethany Anne was exasperated. “I know your English is better than that Boris. Knock it off. I’ve spoken with Stephen and with Michael’s death, I have little patience for games right now.”

  Boris froze, and then two great tears formed in his eyes. He bowed his head, “I am sorry, Czarina. Michael could be a harsh man, could be a dangerous man, but he was a great man. In the short time since I was re-acquainted with him, I saw the joy his love, whom I must assume is you, had brought him.” He said in a polished, nearly accent-less English. Bethany Anne nodded and pursed her lips.

  “But,” he paused to massage his temples, “These headaches are wearing on me. I can only assume that they are somewhat related to the new technology you have created?”

  Bethany Anne said, “Perhaps we should go down and tell the tale to everyone.”

  “Ashur,” she spoke aloud, and Boris raised his eyebrows at the size of the white German She
pherd that walked into the room. “We will get a small team together, Boris. Let me take you back to the Polarus and pull in a few people. We need to stay away from Colorado right now.”

  Ashur came up to Bethany Anne, who grabbed him in one hand and put a hand on Boris’s shoulder and then took a small step into the Polarus. Boris collapsed onto her dressing room floor, grabbing his head in pain.