Eden: The Galatian Exchange book 6, page 1
Eden
The Galatian Exchaange, book 6
Pepper Pace
Contents
A Word From The Author
Chaos
Part I
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Part II
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Part III
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Chapter 31
Chapter 32
Chapter 33
Chapter 34
Chapter 35
Chapter 36
Chapter 37
Chapter 38
Chapter 39
Chapter 40
Chapter 41
The Galatian Men
TGE Master Key and Emotional Colors
Pepper Pace Books
About the Author
For More Information About The Author
A Word From The Author
Hello, and welcome back. I am sure you are familiar with my author notes from the prior five books, so I will change it up a bit and respond to one of the biggest questions I get concerning The Galatian Exchange: Will I continue the story where the Kindle Vella left off.
Yes, I will. I am working hard to publish this series for all to read—especially those who were unable to access Kindle Vella in countries outside of the United States. Also, I have no plans to release this story behind a pay wall such as patreon. In truth, it is nice to take a break from writing twice weekly episodes.
I hope you are enjoying the journey as much as I enjoy writing it. As a reminder, the series should be read in order and is intended for mature readers as it contains adult content such as sex, language, abuse and racism.
-PP
©Pepper Pace Publications
Copyright © 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024, 2025 The Galatian Exchange, book 6 Eden. Pepper Pace.
All rights reserved, including the right to reproduce this book or portions thereof in any form whatsoever, except for short excerpts appearing in book reviews. This novel first appeared on Amazon’s Kindle Vella. For reprint or excerpt permission inquiries, please contact the author by e-mail at: pepperpace.author@yahoo.com.
This novel is a work of fiction. Characters – including their names, places, and incidents are products of the author’s imagination or are otherwise used fictitiously. Any similarity from this book to events occurring in real life – including locations, or persons living or dead is wholly coincidental. The use of musical titles and the naming of musical artists is not an infringement of copyright per sections 106 and 106A, the fair use of a copyrighted work.
Chaos
Victory demands everything – but can they survive the price?
At long last, Ragna is in the possession of Rafe, Karma, and their team! The odds have never been higher as they face the ruthless forces of the Interplanetary Collection and the Queen's Council. Amid the chaos, Karma’s estranged father, James Chambers, resurfaces, bringing his deep-seated hatred for alien life but offering an unexpected advantage in their fight.
As their enemies unravel from within, pushing the boundaries of their depravity, a groundbreaking revelation threatens to reshape everything they know about Galatian history. Do they dare risk life and limb for an opportunity at normalcy?
Part One
Chapter One
“Wait. Lt. Sigur,” Garry called after them.
Rafe paused to look at the doctor.
“You can’t put her back to sleep so close to the last injection. She’s simply too young to take another dose right now.” He glanced behind him at the cocoon floating in the swirling Galatian waters.
“I can monitor her vitals here. She can stay in her suit until it’s safe to put her back to sleep.”
“Are you suggesting that you guard my daughter—here, in the same room with the very same prisoner she’s already tried to kill?”
“I’m suggesting that your daughter not be banished to a small chamber for twenty hours while she’s wide awake.” He gave M an amused look at her shocked expression. Some of the strongest warriors had completely lost it if they awakened while still encased in what would quickly begin to feel like a tomb.
“And, no,” Garry continued. “It’s not safe for the prisoner to be left unprotected—and by that, I mean the prisoner isn’t safe. I’m returning her to the transport where the electrical dome in that pool will keep her secured until we arrive in Eden.
“In the meantime, your daughter can remain in her suit and do some chores around here to help work off some of this damage she created.”
Rafe considered this non-violent type of punishment. Not that he had ever intended to physically punish her. But since punishing children in any way went against the beliefs of a Galatian, he felt instant relief at this idea.
But then he looked at the doctor dubiously. Perhaps this man underestimates his daughter. It would be unwise to do so. Ragna was a testament to that.
“Or,” Garry shrugged. “Just be sure to monitor her vitals—or bring her back here every few hours for me to do it.” The doctor turned with a sigh and lifted his wand to continue his work with the prisoner.
Rafe looked at his daughter. “You will stay with Dr. Brookstone. And you will do as he says. For now, he is your Commander, but my eyes will still be on you, Little One. Your monitor is to remain on visual.”
Yes, Papa.
He clenched his teeth and then gave her a brief hug before exiting the bay without her. He called out his final instructions over his shoulders, allowing his tail to observe them. “I expect you to be on your best behavior, M. I will send two Galatian Guards to escort Ragna.” And then he was gone.
Garry looked at the child. She looked so sweet and innocent, and yet he had seen with his very own eyes what she was capable of. She had whipped the tar out of two full-grown Galatian males!
“Well, you can start by cleaning the specimen containers and pipettes before we recycle them. Everyone tends to complain about the smell of urine and blood in the incinerator.”
M’s nose went up, but she wasn’t complaining. She knew she’d have to face her punishment head-on. The problem is that it would have been worth it to have the bad lady dead. She had hurt her papa, was being punished, and she hadn’t even achieved her goal.
They were sitting on rolling stools several hours later, having a meal break. Just as Rafe stated, two Galatian Guards had taken Ragna away, and he was able to confirm through the ship’s controls she was secure and her vitals were stable.
There was no eating in the regular way when wearing the full suit. Therefore, they had to take their nourishment through ports in the suit which secreted nutritional enzymes against the flesh. It was only a short-term solution to starvation. But no one had factored in the food cravings while considering the logistics of building the life-sustaining device.
“You’re not feeling hungry, are you?”
The little girl shook her head.
“Good, because this suit is equipped to nourish you in every way.” He whispered the next. “There’s even a flap in the back if you have to use the toilet. But the suit slows all of that down, so you shouldn’t need to do any of that.”
M tried to look over her shoulder at the back of the suit for this flap. She couldn’t see it if it was there. She looked back at the doctor again for her next task.
So far, she had washed like a hundred clear little cups in a solution that was supposed to kill the stink before they were recycled. Her big gloves had made the task hard, but she did it. Afterward, she had to wipe down all the furniture. Dr. Brookside had claimed she had made a mess of things, but it wasn’t true. The only thing a mess was the electrical cage that had protected the Black Mask.
At first, she was mad at the doctor. But then he told her that if she had reached the pool and touched the electrical barrier, she would have died instantly. Then he had fussed at her a little.
‘I told you about the barrier and that no one could get in or out. Didn’t you understand what that meant… ?’
He had been right. Her plan had been to get close enough to throw the electricity into the pool. She would have touched the barrier to do it. She would have died. She had been stupid about her need to get rid of the threat against her family. That is why a true warrior made plans, but was open to change. A warrior didn’t just hope for the best!
‘Look,’ he had said. ‘I understand why you did what you did. I even see by that Galatian suit you want to be a warrior.’ Her chest had puffed out. She was a warrior. Garry continued as if he understood her expression. ‘I have fought for my beliefs—killed for my beliefs. But I make a plan, so I can live to fight another day.’
Afterwards, M wanted to hear him talk. And talk he did. He talked about his travels, about why he had no pigment, and even about the kids he worked with. What he
But he wouldn’t give her details. Still, M decided she liked Dr. Garry.
“You ready for your scan, kiddo?” He asked while standing.
She made a face. She would rather stay awake with the doctor.
Garry sighed when he looked at her monitor. Per her father’s requirement, it remained stationary so that he could visually monitor her, but it also meant she had to walk across the room to use the controls to speak to him.
He wished he could take a look at why she was unable to speak. He was sure that Lt. Sigur had gotten the best of the best in physicians, which didn’t always mean they were the best in pediatrics. Children’s injuries and disabilities often changed with the onset of puberty but definitely as they grew. M’s case could use another look.
He felt bad that it wouldn’t be him to do it.
Garry scanned her vitals and then nodded in approval. “Yes. You’re ready.”
She looked distrustfully at one of the chambers.
“Sorry that I can’t give you your communicator back, but since you know how to use it as an escape mechanism…”
M shook her head as if to tell him it was okay. She didn’t need it.
Garry used her communicator to speak to Rafe. The visual only went one way, but there was no audio unless it was activated. He assumed Rafe was too busy to listen to their idle chatter.
“Lt. Sigur, your daughter is ready to enter the chamber. I will be administering the sedative now.”
“M,” Rafe’s voice came through the communicator. “I am unable to return to the sick bay. Things are very hectic. But I am watching, so I am here with you.” M nodded. “You aren’t afraid, are you, Little One?” M shook her head adamantly. “Good. We will talk when you wake up.” His voice had become a mixture of stern yet filled with love and concern.
M nodded again.
The protocol was to leave her in her suit within the chamber and after making sure she was comfortable; he input a tube into one of the suit’s ports and administered the sedative.
She looked a bit lost in the large suit, and Garry’s heart went out to her. What life had this little girl led to cause her to do such a thing?
“M. Count backward from ten. You’ll be asleep before you reach zero,” Garry said.
M gestured for the communicator who was on a rolling cart. She probably wanted to tell her dad bye before she went under. He retrieved it and handed it to her.
But he saw her turn the audio to only be heard in this room. So, it was him she wanted to speak to.
You think I stupid for what I did. I not. Grown-ups think they know best, but they know too much. When you know too much, you have too many choices. And the most important thing is not important anymore.
My daddy say he gonna kill Black Mask. He wants to kill Black Mask. But something will happen that he thinks is more important. And he will say I’ll do it later. Then she will heal and get stronger. There is nothing more important than her dying.
Garry thought about her words and then he nodded. “I agree with you M. I do. I saw what she did and I know terrible people like her; people who kill babies… ” He looked away as if he wanted to exorcise distant memories. With a sigh, he looked at her again. “Your father is consumed with hatred and the need for revenge. When the little boy I wanted to adopt was murdered by his father, I annihilated that man. I took his arms, then his legs, and finally his heart—and I kept him alive while I did it.
“I thought it would make me feel better. But it made me into a monster because deep down I knew there was another side to that story. I know he made himself and then Oskar believe that he was evil in order to do what he did. And then he had that child murdered… and he did it because his other children were starving. He didn’t take the money and run, he bought food. I saw…”
M watched the doctor, not completely understanding the story, but understanding enough.
Garry let out a soft breath. “That’s a road I can’t and won’t travel down again. I just… want you to know why I’m doing this. You will never have to worry about that lady again. But right is right and wrong is wrong.”
M frowned in confusion. But Dr. Garry was already administering the sedative.
Chapter Two
“Rafe Sigur has made a great deal of demands,” Amalia stated. “I do not like it.”
Commander Einar said nothing. He absolutely did not want to return to Rafe with another request for an interview. Humans had an old saying called ‘eating crow’. He didn’t understand the origins, but he knew the sentiment. It had taken everything in him not to demand obedience. But Rafe was no longer “his” to command. He didn’t want to go back with his tail between his legs begging on behalf of the Queens.
Amalia’s brown tint became purple with annoyance. “I suppose there is nothing to be done about it. He knows that in this matter, he has the control.”
Einar hid his surprise at that statement. If the Queens thought Rafe had the upper hand, then did that mean he was on the losing team? Einar felt a jolt of regret. It was never a matter of not agreeing with Rafe. But he knew who held all the power because he had done their bidding since joining the military.
But what if he was allowed to think for himself? What if his many decades of service meant he actually knew his job better than Queens, who sat on thrones deciding the fate of others on a whim?
“Einar!” Amalia snarled.
He jerked to attention. “Yes, Most Exalted?”
“Are you listening to me? I said I don’t trust Rafe Sigur one bit.” She didn’t trust Einar, either. He had worked closely with Rafe’s team for too long not to think his loyalty might not be in question. “Repeat exactly who he wants present at the parley.”
Einar kept his temper even as he replied. “He wants his mate…uh the human mate, his teammates, their Bound Mates and consorts, the entire Queen’s Council, The Black Mask war council, the Japoxillian delegates from the Inter-planetary Collective, and finally Mayva Heath to face his mate.”
Amalia stared at him for an extended time. “Tell him we accept his terms with one exception: Mayva Heath does not agree to be included. Go.” She turned off the communicator and leaned back on her throne.
She didn’t think Rafe was behind the disappearance of Mayva Heath. It was obvious the Keengalese had appropriated their human spokesperson. Those types were grateful to be in the good graces of The Collective but also understood their great value. If Pod was ever located, he would be forgiven. His particular abilities were too important.
No, Rafe wasn’t behind her disappearance, but Amalia was certain he was behind Ragna’s. Why else hadn’t he specifically named her to be in attendance at the parley? He was specific about Mayva Heath facing his human. But it was Ragna who had orchestrated the attack, and Rafe knew it was she who had killed his unborn son.
Although the female Galatians did not possess the colorful scales of the males, their emotions did show a bit on their brown scales and hers were tinted pink in good cheer.
Rafe had murdered Ragna—and good riddance. She had never liked that one! But it meant he’d also broken the terms of the amnesty. And that meant he would be put to death—no questions and no trial!
