TALIONIS By Eliot Bishop
Voidborn Story 1.0
Action & Adventure Science Fiction Soap Opera Novelette
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Two wrecked ships, one deadly secret—will the crew of the Strix make it out alive?
The crew of the Strix are no strangers to dangerous territory and even murkier legality. Captain Hedge runs a tight but flexible ship, navigating the shadowy lines between legitimate salvage and “creative acquisition.” When a tip surfaces about two colossal vessels that fought a brutal battle before crashing, the Strix sets course.
Their mission is straightforward: board, salvage, and disappear before anyone else can claim the wreckage. But once aboard, the crew finds more than they bargained for—evidence of a struggle so fierce it defies explanation. The walls bear scorch marks, once-sealed bulkheads are ripped open, and every corner hints at a strange, haunting desperation. As they delve deeper, searching for valuable scrap and secrets alike, they begin to suspect that whatever tore these ships apart may not have left the wreckage empty.
Now, with the clock ticking and their suspicions mounting, Captain Hedge and the crew must decide if the salvage is worth the risk…or if some battles leave nothing worth saving.
Talionis is part of the Voidborn space opera series by Eliot Bishop.
Voidborn:
1.0 Talionis
…and more to come!
Science Fiction, Action & Adventure, Space Opera, Novelette
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Excerpt
EXCERPT FROM TALIONIS
COPYRIGHT © ELIOT BISHOP 2025
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
Location:
Scutum-Centaurus Arm
355.6954°
61,567lyFS
‘Dark Space’ 0.67ly from local system JL48-2022 “Lincoln’s Reach”
I woke when I fell hard against the cot.
“Damn it Jive.” I yelled at them, without much energy to my cursing.
“Yeah yeah, wakey wakey Hedge.” Jive chirped back, speaking around a plastic stir stick stuck in their teeth.
“Could you, for once, just give me some warning that you are restoring gravity?”
Jive just giggled and continued tapping at the air as they sat in the pilot seat. I grumbled and got out of the crash-cot in the back of the helm. I picked my jacket off the deck and gave it a sniff before shrugging and throwing it on.
I had a cursory look at the mirror above the vac-sink at the back of the helm. Same messy brown hair, rough stubble, green eyes. I took off my brown leather jacket and quickly changed my blue shirt with the large soycaf stain on the front for a yellow shirt with a soycaf stain near the hip. At least the jacket would cover it.
“Hey, is it there?” I asked Jive as I climbed up next to the chair.
They took the twisted and chewed stir stick out of their mouth and pointed the wet end towards the view screens. The screens flickered to life as they pointed. They showed just the empty void around us.
They put the stir stick back into their thin-lipped mouth and lifted the operators googles. Their bright neon-purple eyes still caught me by surprise every time I saw them. Pale white skin in contrast and not a single hair on their head. Not even brows or eyelashes. They might have their own personalities and quirks, but I wouldn’t ever get used to the look of androids.
“Yeah, Hedge, right there.” They had settled into a higher pitched voice today. It sounded like a giddy child. I hated it right away. Way too much cheer before I had my caf.
“I’m only seeing void here. Can you zoom in?”
They nodded in response and flicked one pale finger in a twisting motion.
The view of space in the bottom right of the screens jumped toward us. Black void with white streaks flew over the screens. The image settled on an irregular mass of black that blocked the pinpricks of stars behind it.
“Won’t get a better picture than that Hedge. We’re still five thousand clicks out. But both transponders register correct. That black squiggly bit in the middle? That is the wreckage of the Allied Sol Corporation Starliner YTK-736 Rugged Expanse melded with the wreckage of the F.F.O.C.S. First Stone battlecruiser.”
“The tip was good then.” I didn’t go so far as to sigh, but relief washed through me.
“Yeah Hedge, it’s good news. Better news, I’m not picking up any other transponders within half a light year. We should be alone for a good while.”
“Good, glad to hear it. Thanks Jive.” With a pat on their shoulder, I turned to leave.
“Yep yep. Hey, do you know what the First Fleet of the Origin Church of Sol was doing out this far? Or why they wrapped their ship around a Corps Fleet transport?” Jive asked.
I didn’t turn back as I answered.
“Nah. And I don’t really care. We’re here for salvage, not to investigate. Get in, get out, get paid. Let’s keep this tight. Did you wake the crew?”
“I’m’a guess the grav-kick did that for me!” Jive giggled manically and slipped the operators goggles back down over their eyes. I just shook my head as I left through the back hatch towards the galley.
