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    Stellar
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Stories posted in this category are works of fiction. Names, places, characters, events, and incidents are created by the authors' imaginations or are used fictitiously. Any resemblances to actual persons (living or dead), organizations, companies, events, or locales are entirely coincidental.
Note: While authors are asked to place warnings on their stories for some moderated content, everyone has different thresholds, and it is your responsibility as a reader to avoid stories or stop reading if something bothers you. 

Veil of Shadow - 21. Epilogue

November 12, minutes before 2pm:

"Sir?"

The queries that came from the directorate CEOs were expected, and prepared for.

"I am sorry, sir." The CorpSec representative shook his head. "He will be late. I apologise for the inconvenience taken."

"Really?" The PM&S magnate seemed confused. "My only experience has been constancy."

"As has mine." ParaTech's CEO was unequivocal. "I don't believe this should take so long. What's the hold-up?"

"Just a minor glitch," he informed the man, "and fixed soon enough. Then you'll have his full attention."

"Hmph. I have no patience for theatrics," muttered the third CEO, the other three nodding their agreement in concert. "It was his decision to call this meeting to order. I don't want to wait any more."

No further waiting was required.

"Give me just a minute, ladies and gentlemen, then it will begin."

The CorpSec officer ducked out of the convention suite and walked through the garden surrounds. The meeting place was private AMSCOR property and far from the prying eyes of the general public; secluded and with all the facilities one could want. It was ideal for a congregation of the world's richest few. On a liftpad at the garden's end, an executive shuttle was waiting. He climbed the steps and through the shuttle's side entrance. Sitting in the passenger chair was the absent member of the directorate, a taller man in a finely tailored suit, tumbler with a splash of brandy in hand. He was gazing out the side window, mind resting in idle thought.

"Sir, we are ready."

The AMSCOR director did not look at him, but spoke back, a cultured and mellifluous tenor. "You have taken care of all of it? There cannot be any missing pieces."

There weren't.

It had taken years to organise and to finalise in all the secretive and muddy detail shrouding the directorate, but now? Now they were ready, and with little time to spare.

"Sir. I have seen to it."

The director nodded, then glanced pointedly to the empty seat across from his.

"Pilot, begin the ascent." The exterior door closed and the shuttle began to lift off. The director offered a glass like his own, a slosh of amber swirling in it, and he took it. "Mr Quân, you have been a loyal servant to MFM, and I will not forget your faithful service. This is your reward: you get to see the corporation transformed from an oligarchy into something much less ... cumbersome. You get to do it."

He handed Quân a second item: a data pad with the schedule plan active on it. In the middle were two large virtual buttons.

Quân reached out, no hesitation at all, and hit the green button.

Execute.

All over the world, in dozens of different locations, over the next twenty seconds, more than a hundred people died.

Young and old, man and woman, child and senior; the genealogies of six families were wiped away as scores of CorpSec agents enacted the plan. The targeted were erased from history as thoroughly as anyone could be.

From space, three CorpSec cruisers fired down at the private gathering, the building site reduced to rubble in moments from the bombardment, the six CEOs still inside.

"Sir, I-"

"You may use my name, Mr Quân. You have earned the right."

The director stood, watching the exterior view. They were arriving in low orbit, moving to dock with his private vessel, the shuttle gliding into a hangar and being swallowed by the larger ship.

"My Lord Hartley, you give me a great honour."

"I know." Tytos Hartley, the usurper and sole authority of MFM's titanic power, smiled and sipped his cognac. "The first of many, Mr Quân."

Moments later, the vessel jumped, through the infinite pathways. Away from Earth and the conflict to come, it reached afar, skimming past the universal horizon of the veiled shadow.

div>Thank you for reading my second book. You have finished Veil of Shadow, but the story is not done. It will continue on in the third and final book of the trilogy, where all your questions will be answered completely and unambiguously! In the interim, please take a look at my forum post, located here.
Copyright © 2017 Stellar; All Rights Reserved.
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Stories posted in this category are works of fiction. Names, places, characters, events, and incidents are created by the authors' imaginations or are used fictitiously. Any resemblances to actual persons (living or dead), organizations, companies, events, or locales are entirely coincidental.
Note: While authors are asked to place warnings on their stories for some moderated content, everyone has different thresholds, and it is your responsibility as a reader to avoid stories or stop reading if something bothers you. 

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Tytos Hartley, newly-minted supervillain and Mr. Quan his evil henchman simplify things, then immediately leave the party.

 

What a delightful pair! Cheers!  

 

:2thumbs: 

 

 

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19 hours ago, Stephen said:

Tytos Hartley, newly-minted supervillain and Mr. Quan his evil henchman simplify things, then immediately leave the party.

 

What a delightful pair! Cheers!  

 

:2thumbs: 

 

 

 

Oh, he is very much a super-villain! The Hartleys are back! Though, it'd be more accurate to say they never left. They were here all along, in the background, watching and waiting and planning in secret.

 

Thank you!

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Yes, I think these Hartleys are like rats and cockroaches, -nobody acknowledges that they exist where they live, but they ARE there!

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1 hour ago, Bleu said:

Hartley? Hartley!

Now where have I seen this name before?

;)

 

You know, I have NO idea what you're talking about. None!

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I fully enjoyed reading this amazing, well-written story.  The intricacies of the plot were fascinating even though sometimes difficult to follow. The characters were described in such detai that their appearance, characteristics and mannerism were clear and relatable. Shay and Mira were incredible. Following the development of their expertise with Aqumi was fascinating, and sharing in the growing intimacy and depth of their relationship was a joy.

I hope that we can have an HEA, and  the main characters will succeed in their battle with the arbiters and the other aliens.

 

Stellar you have given us many hours of pleasure, thank you so much.

 

Now to book 3!!

Edited by Cinnamon
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The Mother of all Cliffhanger's

Brilliant in the way it's so cruel ?

A really great story that now has me pleading for book 3 

*** PLEASE***??

Edited by mutch71
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On 20/03/2017 at 1:02 PM, Cinnamon said:

 

I fully enjoyed reading this amazing, well-written story.  The intricacies of the plot were fascinating even though sometimes difficult to follow. The characters were described in such detai that their appearance, characteristics and mannerism were clear and relatable. Shay and Mira were incredible. Following the development of their expertise with Aqumi was fascinating, and sharing in the growing intimacy and depth of their relationship was a joy.

I hope that we can have an HEA, and  the main characters will succeed in their battle with the arbiters and the other aliens.

 

Stellar you have given us many hours of pleasure, thank you so much.

 

Now to book 3!!

 

Thank you for reading! I think the plot was not done any favours by the serialised nature of the chapters and the long writing time, because memory of detail can easily fade with time, especially when there is so much of it. Nonetheless, I am thrilled you took a liking to the characterisation and the effort employed to make the cast as real as possible, not least of all the main pairing.

 

I can say that *some* of the cast will live to see a happy conclusion, but certain individuals will not. Veil of Shadow was actually quite light on the character death count, but you can bet your ass Book 3 will pull no punches. There is a LOT left to come!

 

On 20/03/2017 at 10:24 PM, mutch71 said:

The Mother of all Cliffhanger's

Brilliant in the way it's so cruel ?

A really great story that now has me pleading for book 3 

*** PLEASE***??

 

Haha, yes! The invasion has begun, the civil war is underway and the Herald has come to finish things, not to mention the Hartley family back in the picture! Couldn't get much worse than that, could it? I am glad you enjoyed Veil of Shadow, though I cannot yet give an sort of ETA on when you will see the sequel begin production. Watch this space.

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ARRGGGGG.  I was so hoping that maybe some how you would have finished the story off in the last couple of chapters.  I got caught up in Hidden Sunlight and then enjoyed Veil of Shadow although it was a bit harder to follow at first.  Please Please Please put the third story into words.  Thanks

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On 09/05/2017 at 1:02 AM, Charlie.Surfer said:

ARRGGGGG.  I was so hoping that maybe some how you would have finished the story off in the last couple of chapters.  I got caught up in Hidden Sunlight and then enjoyed Veil of Shadow although it was a bit harder to follow at first.  Please Please Please put the third story into words.  Thanks

 

Hey Charlie, thanks for commenting! Unfortunately, there is far too much left to fit into the end part of Veil of Shadow. It was intended as a trilogy from quite some time ago, so the story conclusion will by necessity be in the third part, as you've now surmised. However, it may be a while before I revisit this to write Book Three, as I am taking a break from this particular series, but in the meanwhile I hope you'll join me for my interim project, a fantasy novel that will begin posting to GA in the near future. Thanks for reading, and I'm glad you liked my books!

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I always thought I finished this story are u going to finish it soon? It's really a great story one of my all time favorites on this site

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1 hour ago, Nana Atuwa said:

I always thought I finished this story are u going to finish it soon? It's really a great story one of my all time favorites on this site

Is that so? I believe when you commented on Chapter 17 on your previous account, you described 'part two' (being Veil of Shadow) as 'a bit of a snooze fest', which was hardly a glowing compliment.

I took a break from this series to write Spirit of Fire, which has been my main focus until its completion in December 2019. Now that the fantasy novel is finished, there are two options for what I will do next, and the thread about this can be found here.

 

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7 hours ago, Stellar said:

Is that so? I believe when you commented on Chapter 17 on your previous account, you described 'part two' (being Veil of Shadow) as 'a bit of a snooze fest', which was hardly a glowing compliment.

I took a break from this series to write Spirit of Fire, which has been my main focus until its completion in December 2019. Now that the fantasy novel is finished, there are two options for what I will do next, and the thread about this can be found here.

 

Am sorry that's what u thought I meant I stayed on this site cos of ur story I loved it that much I always say I would watch it if it was a movie cos its a block buster ,its the waiting for the next part that I don't like this are stories I don't want to put down want to keep reading yh great stories always

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Oh please kind sir!!!,

                                   Have pity on those of your fan's who wait with baited breathe to read more of this wonderful story!!... Please!!... :) .

                                                                                                                                                                                                           N.

 

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On 2/14/2020 at 9:40 AM, Norrin001 said:

Oh please kind sir!!!,

                                   Have pity on those of your fan's who wait with baited breathe to read more of this wonderful story!!... Please!!... :) .

                                                                                                                                                                                                           N.

 

Well, what I write next was put to the popular vote when Spirit of Fire was completed, and the poll can be found here. If you haven't voted in it, you still can! The results of that poll will be made final some time during March, in the next couple of weeks.

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Dear author! Thank you so much for a great story! Just finished reading it) Love every chapter! Starting with the first chapter of Hidden sunlight to the epilogue of the Veil of shadow it made me feel so engrossed in the story. Couldn't stop reading. Felt like I was there with Shay and Mira and then with Konstantin on their long journey... 

Now I'm patiently waiting for the third story. 

P.S. Sorry, english is my second language. I read and understand it much better, than write. I wish I could tell you so much more, but I can't express my  feelings from this story in more words. I wish you all the best! 

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16 hours ago, NellaBlueN said:

Dear author! Thank you so much for a great story! Just finished reading it) Love every chapter! Starting with the first chapter of Hidden sunlight to the epilogue of the Veil of shadow it made me feel so engrossed in the story. Couldn't stop reading. Felt like I was there with Shay and Mira and then with Konstantin on their long journey... 

Now I'm patiently waiting for the third story. 

P.S. Sorry, english is my second language. I read and understand it much better, than write. I wish I could tell you so much more, but I can't express my  feelings from this story in more words. I wish you all the best! 

Thank you so very much for taking the time to let me know. I've been seeing your reactions to my writing, and it's a source of joy to know how satisfying the read was for you. There are few things more gratifying to hear as an author than that.

I do wonder where you are from (and how you found my writing, out of everybody on GA). I would love to hear you expand more on your thoughts, but I understand the difficulty in transcribing thoughts from one branch of linguistics to another. In any case, thank you. ^_^

Edited by Stellar
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Thank you! )))

I'm from Russia. I've read the first book some time ago. If I remember correctly, I found out about your story on GA)) Loved it very much))

Edited by NellaBlueN
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5 hours ago, NellaBlueN said:

Thank you! )))

I'm from Russia. I've read the first book some time ago. If I remember correctly, I found out about your story on GA)) Loved it very much))

Oh, that's wonderful!! I'm actually rather excited to know I have at least one reader from your country, because I have a fascination with Russian history and culture that has no doubt contributed to my choice of characters. I hope Konstantin, and also Kerensky, have felt like genuine reflections of identity to you and not any kind of flat stereotypical caricature.

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Thank you)) Nice to know))) 

Yes, I like these characters a lot. I can easily imagine the guy like Konstantine. I see him like a person and definately not just some plain character)) That's for sure. That's what I like about your writing) Your descriptions, story line and the writing language are great. Once I started reading, couldn't stop. It's like I was there with them, following our guys on their journey, or watching from somewhere nearby. While reading I was imagining Mira, Shay, Konstantine, Lily and others very vividly. Lucere as a planet, the catastrophe that happened there, and what it looks like now, a couple of hundred years later. 

And yeah, in the beginning I was surprised that a russian guy turned out to be on Lucere somehow))) But then it all fell into places)) 

So now I'm patiently waiting for the third story. I understand that as a writer you need an inspiration and lots of time to do it right)))

Edited by NellaBlueN
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52 minutes ago, newgrl said:

I love your world-building ability, Stellar.  Thank you so much for sharing your gift.  

Thank you for reading and complimenting my work! Much appreciated.

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7 hours ago, Forevermotion said:

Well that was interesting.

Uh, that's good, presumably?

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