SHIAM Conspiracy- Book 1 by Joseph Heck Read Free Book Online Page A

to even consider.
    Never the less, the words of Dr. Raghnall
continue to pull at him. “...a strong disturbance within the
ethereal layer...”
    Or was it too farfetched?
    He had detected something at the
Grimrok building. Well, he was fairly certain he had detected it
anyway. It had been so weak that it was little more than a
suggestion. Or maybe it was only his imagination. He remained
unsure. The RAAID unit hadn’t picked anything up. But then, Zak’s
Elvish blood had managed to outperform the unit before. Sometimes
you had to rely on your own abilities rather than machines. That
being said, he was still too uncertain of what it was he’d
felt.
    Zak had never met Dr. Raghnall, but he
regularly used the services of the Institute of Occult and
Paranormal Sciences. The use of integrated magic had become an
indispensable part of a well-planned network security system. Since
Zak refused to have anything to do with magic beyond his own
sporadic ability to detect it, he regularly subcontracted the
magical aspects of his network configurations to the Institute.
Maybe he should call in the Institute on this one. Their trained
sorcerers could perhaps detect more than his untrained, and often
limited, abilities could.
    He decided to contact the Institute when he
got back to his loft and request a sorcerer. Their services
guaranteed confidentiality, so it should not be an issue with
Grimrok. He leaned back in his seat and shifted his attention to
the rest of the newscast.
    “ Tension mounted once again today between
Orkensha Nations and the Aragne Commonwealth over land claims
concerning the Akkasson Mountain Range. Stretching from the
Gwainroch Sea in the north to the Kusanar Ocean in the south, the
Akkasson Mountains have been the subject of ongoing dispute between
our country and the Orkensha for thousands of years.
    “ The Akkasson Mountains make up the entire
eastern border of the Aragne Commonwealth, while also falling
within the borders of the Orkensha provinces of Orkkanta, Dhann Khi
and Bh’ag Mur. The rich ore deposits located within the Akkasson
range have always been an essential resource for both nations. The
contention of ownership of the mountain range only intensified when
large deposits of arganite ore were discovered.
    “ While Prime Minister Sarte has been
working diligently to find a peaceful resolution to the land
dispute with the Orkensha, many of Aragne’s energy corporations are
criticizing the Prime Minister for his willingness to compromise.
Sol Corp and Mega Thrust, Aragne’s two leading corporations in the
energy field, have been particularly critical of the Prime
Minister’s efforts. Representatives from both corporations have
come forward to state that it is vital to both our domestic
well-being and to the continued expansion of our interstellar
commerce for us to take our rightful possession of the Akkasson
Mountain Range.
    “ In a related story, Aragne Minister of
Defense, Gerold Hakkim, released a statement early today accusing
the Orkensha Nations of escalating tensions between our two nations
by continuing its build-up of military strength inside the Kelthar
Pass. He went on to say that the Orkensha Nations have no right of
claim along the western edge of the Mountain Range. Minister Hakkim
concluded his statement by saying that the Aragne military is fully
prepared to defend our borders against any threat...”
    Zak’s pulse quickened as he listened. The
bastard Orks were going to keep pushing until things went too far.
His hatred for them was automatic and had been a part of him for a
lot of years. That part of him would welcome war against the
Orkensha. He’d be more than willing to re-enlist and do another
stint in the military if it came to that.
    “Yeah, right on!” Kam’s entire body was as
animated as some spastic cartoon character. “We’re gonna kick some
Ork ass, hoohoo!”
    The kid’s comment snapped things back into
perspective for Zak. In spite of the open wound