Essence: Amber is the third of a science fiction series written by Nick Braker. This novel takes off right where Essence: Alta ends and brings this continuing saga to the next level.
While the previous books were heavily focused on limited locations, allowing for a focus on character growth, Essence: Amber enables the reader to really sink their teeth into a universe that, until now, we’ve only had a taste of.
Now that the events explored previously have come to an head, the world beyond is blown wide open. The reader quickly realises that there is much they don’t know, and that the next page might bring revelations of treachery, conquests, or the threat of eradication. This uncertainty will leave the reader to question the fate of the group until the very end.
Alas, there is still much in this universe left to explore. While the main storyline has ended cleanly, there are other avenues left to explore. Those will hopefully be answered in Essence: Candice due for release December 2020. I can’t wait!
I’ve had a chance to read through Essence: Alta, a science fiction story by Nick Braker. This is the sequel to Essence: Septima and starts off moments after the first book finished.
Whereas the first book was chaotic due to the conflicts swirling within the main character’s being, this novel shifts its focus on the external threats, while still delivering on a stream of sexual conquests. The story also coalesces key players in order to explore the ramifications of their attempts to out-manoeuvre one another.
All the while, the main character learns to live with the fusion of two souls. Answers will trickle in on this new reality, giving the reader more insight on the history and world Nick created.
What we don’t get is a satisfying ending. This story is a bridge to Essence: Septima and sets the scene for Essence: Amber. How everything falls into place will have to wait for the sequel. Mercifully, the book is already available for your reading pleasure.
Essence: Septima by Nick Braker is the first book in a series about alien contact and abduction. While this book’s trappings are science fiction, it does manage to push into the realm of the fantastical.
The story revolves around a young man who is nearly paralyzed by his fears. During an abduction, he is recognized as being someone else, which inexplicably begins his metamorphosis. Readers will witness an individual once afraid of going outside become a general who will lead a people to freedom.
The characters are nuanced and complex, with a depth that is difficult to fathom at first. The reader quickly becomes aware that there is more than meets the eye. The author appears to use the main character’s many conquests (and failures) as a mechanism to bring details to life.
Nick writes an action-packed story that will allow the reader to navigate through the murky waters of his world. As the character gains more insight on his own state of change, the reader will gain awareness on what is at stake.
Since this book is part of a series, readers may feel like much is left unresolved. They are right. Fortunately, the trilogy is complete, and Essence: Alta is just a click away!
Breanna snapped up from the console, and left a puddle of drool on the surface. Her eyelids felt as though they weighed a ton, and with some effort she managed to pry them open. What a shame, the world turned out to be nothing more than a haze.
As her eyes focused on Mason, she realised that her mind had been exploring a memory. Now she hated him even more for taking her out of it.
“What?” Breanna asked annoyed.
“Any updates?” Mason queried.
“What? Oh!” Breanna said while she wiped the drool off her display.
Her fingers glided over the display with more difficulty than usual, and she grimaced every time the wrong functions were triggered. Breanna’s mind was lingering on that memory and would not compensate for her smaller, thicker, and less agile digits.
Eventually, she had the information they sought and said, “Nothing yet.”
Mason asked, “How much time do you need?”
“The system is running at full capacity,” Breanna said. “Since the shockwave really messed things up, we will need a lot of resources to unravel what happened.”
Mason looked around the room. In the back corner, Brett was replacing the floor tiles one at a time. Every move he made was slow and laborious; his mind was clearly not in it. All of their minds were wandering.
“Okay. Go home,” Mason said.
Breanna blinked several times and was severely tempted to pinch herself. Nonetheless, she thought it best to confirm, “What?”
“You’re running on fumes,” Mason said. “We all are. So let’s leave these systems on auto. We can check on them tomorrow.”
Breanna did not need to be told twice. She grabbed her coat and phone before heading towards the door. Then it occurred to her that it was probably sensible to smile and thank him.
“Thanks,” Breanna said with a meek smile. “Have a good night,” she added, managing to sound sincere.
Mason spotted Brett trying to make a break for the door, “You’ll need to close up this floor before you leave.”
Brett looked as though he was about to toss out one of his witty remarks, but reason must have gotten the better of him. Without a word, he turned around and headed directly for the stack of tiles.
Breanna smiled, and for a split second did not hate Mason that much. Although, this would wear off when that ass reverted to his regular charming self.
Disclaimer: This chapter is currently in development. There are likely typos, errors, omissions, inconsistencies and so forth. Please do not treat this as a polished and completed work!
Breanna looked out through the window as nearby stars streaked by. Those farther away moved at varying speeds, while others appeared to be fixed points in space. The harsh lighting of the overhead fixtures created a superimposed reflection on the surface of the window. She reached out to her mirror image with long and slender fingers. This was a rare occurrence, since their grey flesh absorbed most of the light. It was a defense mechanism for their kind, one that guaranteed unwavering uniformity.
Her gaze shifted to that mouthless face, dull grey skin, oversized cranium, and reflective eyes. This image was mirrored in her eyes, the light bouncing back and forth to create an infinite number of copies. The only aspect not duplicated was her information overlay, courtesy of her cybernetic implants.
Breanna dropped her head to get that image out of her thoughts and turned to her right. From this vantage point, she gazed down the length of the ship, a massive vessel that stretched out farther than her eyes perceived. The overlay included a map of the ship in the top corner of her vision, along with an indication of what she could see. She could see about a third of the ship with her enhancements and would soon see only a fraction of that.
The ship appeared to be silent, although she knew that was nothing more than an illusion. The fusion generators were always operational, autonomous, and powerful enough to propel this vessel through the vast distances between stars. The sounds they generated had long ago been relegated to background noise.
She again turned to the right and faced a series of glass panels that shielded the stasis chambers. There were rows upon rows of workers in a hibernation state. They would remain as such until they were needed for missions or upon arrival at the next star system. Normally, she was tapped into their thoughts, a feature of cybernetic implants. Alas, in preparation for her mission, the link had been severed. For the first time in her life, Breanna was alone with her thoughts. The sheer magnitude of that solitude weighed heavily on her.
Soon, the visual overlays would be gone followed by the implants themselves. All of these steps were required before they genetically modified her cellular structure, all because her new configuration would reject the implants.
“Breanna,” the ship’s public address system blared out.
She turned around to face the control console. When travelling within a solar system, this place was a hive of activity, swarming with workers. This far out, the ship required nothing more than a few to maintain a vigil. Truthfully, the computer handled all day-to-day operations while travelling through deep space, so her presence was largely superfluous.
She had been scheduled to return to stasis in a couple of cycles, but a new mission objective altered those plans. The ship was about to move beyond the range of a passing system, so they would no longer be able to send in quick insertion teams. They needed a long term presence to deal with the locals. To prepare for her mission, she was relieved of her duties to undergo a series of invasive treatments to alter her genetic structure.
By the end of it, she would be indistinguishable from the native inhabitants of the third planet of that yellow star they bypassed. For now, it was not worth their collective attention, but after a bit of manipulation…
“Breanna,” the public address system repeated.
Breanna glided over to the nearest console and ran some diagnostics. The logs confirmed that the loud speakers had not been engaged since they left their home system.
“Wake up,” came a voice from behind.
She turned around, but saw nothing. This part of the ship was empty, or at least there was no one within earshot. To say she was confused would have been an understatement, but that quickly morphed into panic when a warm hand grabbed her shoulder…
Disclaimer: This chapter is currently in development. There are likely typos, errors, omissions, inconsistencies and so forth. Please do not treat this as a polished and completed work!
