Novels by Neo Moroeng

An urgent council meeting had been convened. The holographic table in the center glowed with the detailed HAARP schematics Nancy had pulled from Xam’s device, now translated into Khomani. Elders and chiefs gathered, their eyes grave, their silence more powerful than any chant."Targeting these HAARP facilities," ǂGao declared, his voice carrying through the chamber, "would cripple their control over Earth's climate. Their illusion of salvation would fall with it.""It could ignite rebellion," Ka!ri added, her voice laced with conviction. "Expose their crimes. Fracture their grip.""But these assets," one elder objected, "are heavily defended. Assaulting them is not resistance—it is a declaration of war.""And we’re still rebuilding," another elder warned, gesturing across the chamber. "Our strength is scattered. Our numbers few. A frontal assault would be suicide.""It’s not about storming gates," I said, stepping forward. "It’s about striking where it hurts. Precision over numbers. H

Darkness. Then, pain. Not a dull ache, but a searing fire ripping through my ribs, cold as the void between stars, hot as a dying sun. My eyes snapped open, adjusting slowly to crimson light filtering through crystalline panels. A low, persistent hum vibrated beneath the bio-bed. Still alive. Barely.A figure was slumped beside the bed, head bowed. Nancy."Nancy?" My voice was a raw, strained whisper, barely audible.Her head shot up. Her eyes, wide and red-rimmed, flared with stark disbelief, then flooded. A choked sob tore from her throat. "You're awake! Oh, my stars, you're awake!"She launched herself forward, arms careful around my wounded chest. I felt her tears, hot and desperate, against my neck. It was more than simple relief; it was a raw, unbridled torrent of emotion. "I thought you were gone. The perchlorates… Ka!ri said it was bad. Thought they’d killed you.”My own chest tightened, a knot of emotion forming independent of the physical wound. "I'm okay, Nancy. Just… sore.

The chilling realization of Xam’s betrayal settled like Martian dust in the comms room. My mind reeled. I could still see him—quiet, stoic, loyal. At least that’s what we thought.Minutes Before the BreachXam stood among the assembled ǂKhomani warriors in the council chamber. His gaze wasn't on ǂGao. It wasn’t on Ka!ri. It was locked on me. His posture taut. His right hand twitched imperceptibly by his side. A silent, encrypted pulse buzzed through a hidden comms device. The trigger phrase had been spoken:"War."He knew then—his mission was active.As the chamber dispersed, Xam slipped away into a side passage, his movement so routine it raised no alarm. He crouched in a maintenance tunnel and sent a compressed, encrypted signal burst:Alliance confirmed. War declared. Red Rock city location compromised.Next, he headed for Gamma-7.From a concealed holster, Xam drew a tiny weapon—a Hermes.25 ACP, a near-silent sidearm modeled after a 21st-century Baby Browning. But this one deliver

We had traveled the desert for three days, Ka!ri, Nancy, and I riding through the eerie glow of Martian moons. The silence on the comms was heavy with anticipation. "Are we there yet?" I asked."Just… wait for it!" Ka!ri’s voice rippled back.The red sand rose in a swift swell. We plunged into a chasm, riding down a narrow, bumpy tunnel until a blinding light exploded at the end. My eyes weren't ready for what they saw.An enormous city unfolded, carved from living rock. This was no sunlit vista, but a realm of subterranean grandeur, pulsating with the raw, vital energy of The Red Rock itself. Colossal crystalline structures, like petrified roots, descended from fissures high above, channeling the Red Rock's light and life from the surface. These glowing arteries latticed the cavern, syncing the underground world to distant day and night cycles.The light was a mesmerizing, deep crimson, ebbing and flowing. Instead of flora, the city boasted geodescent gardens of sculpted, luminous mi

The thrum of the newly secured military outpost was a low, steady pulse beneath my feet—a counterpoint to the frantic beat of my own heart. The echoes of the Council of Flame, of the hard-won, momentary reprieve against the 1%'s genocidal strike, still vibrated in the air. Yet, even as a fragile peace settled over the Martian plains, another kind of war stirred deep inside me.Ka!ri stood before me, her silhouette strong against the reddening sky, her eyes ancient and full of sorrow. Her voice, usually steel-wrapped command, softened now—like embers at the edge of fire."Now that the Council has been called," she said, "Nancy and I can plead for those still left behind. This is the first time I’ve felt… alive.”The confession didn’t shake me. If anything, it made her more remarkable. I reached for her cheek, and she leaned into my hand, eyes closed.“Stay with me,” she whispered. “I have felt dead for so long. This… this is resurrection.”Her words pressed into me, thick and heavy wit

The Martian night crackled with tension.A circle of torches burned low, casting flickering shadows on sandstone walls. Beneath the sky, under the looming presence of twin moons, the elders of every ǂKhomani faction gathered—some wrapped in ceremonial bonecloth, others armored in red-glass scales from the crater lakes. The ancient amphitheater—cut into the base of Olympus Mons long before the colonists arrived—was alive again.They had not gathered here in two generations.Ka!ri stood near the flame circle, her spine straight, hands folded behind her back. The weight of her brother’s presence felt like a stone on her chest. He sat opposite her, face obscured by firelight, but the scar gleamed unmistakably.Beside Ka!ri, I stood quiet. Not as a speaker. Not as a guest. But as a witness.Nancy watched from behind the outer line, flanked by curious warriors and cautious elders. Her arrival had raised many whispers. Some called her a symbol of hope. Others saw only the specter of colonize