Starfall

Book 10: Starship Bandits

by Ross Buzzell

Genres: Space Exploration; Space Marines

Synopsis

War, they say it never changes. That was before the Junkyard crew entered the fray.

With their conflict against the Valtakuntera inevitable, the Junkyard crew decide to conduct war from Kane's perspective.

Dax and his team aim for the core of the empire in a last-ditch effort to restore peace to the galaxy.

Dax will temper his reckless nature after clinging to the exterior of a starship to lure a gigantic leviathan. Sandrina and Dalia work in tandem with the remaining Bastet and Dal'no to merge their cutting-edge technologies, hoping to gain an advantage. Jun and Mark enhance their abilities with weapons and technology to make PITA an even more formidable foe on the battlefield. While Henuva toils on an experiment that's a secret to everyone but him.

Get your hands on the final chapter of the Starship Bandits as they battle the Valtakuntera and test every bond of fellowship they've built. Will all their sacrifices bring peace? Or will hope fade away like a dying star?

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Release date: August 5, 2025

Publisher: Archimedes Books

Print pages: 327

Sample

Previously On Starship Bandits

Our ragtag group of mis-adventurers spent every spare second they had cashing in
every favor they’ve garnered throughout the galaxy up to this point. They begged, bartered and
salvaged the largest force possible to stand against the Valtakuntera for their final push. With
success on some fronts, and literal dead ends on others, the Junkyard set out for a battle that will
determine the future of the galaxy.

Chapter 1: Warning

Dax stood on the hull of the Junkyard. Cables ratcheted around his lower body,
holding him in place while they drifted through space. He looked down at his restraints and
shook his head.

“I feel like this is a little too dangerous, even for me,” he called out.
“It’s not more dangerous than what we’re doing,” Jun replied.
Dax looked down into the viewport at the tips of his toes. Dalia leaned forward,

looking up at him.

“You have to have something to say about this.” He motioned toward the wires.

“If Jun has to take evasive maneuvers, I’m getting ripped into at least three pieces.”

“If that happens, you can activate your mag boots. Those’ll hold you in place so
you don’t get trisected. Then you just use your sword to cut the wires and make your way to the
airlock,” Dalia explained. “It’s less convoluted than most of the other plans you come up with.”
“Straightforward, yes, but…” He grunted and motioned to the cables holding him

down. “Really?”

“We have any power coming from the core, it’ll draw unwanted attention,” Mark
replied over the radio. “Your message has to come from outside the ship if it’s going to be picked
up.”

The lights below him flickered out, only to be replaced by red warning lights.
Everyone held on to the cockpit controls while a powered-down PITA drifted behind the crew.
Dax took a deep breath, trying to calm his racing heart, and looked at the void before him.

“Let’s hope this works,” he muttered.
“Going radio silent,” Jun called up.
His line with his crew went dead. In the darkness, he noticed a dozen red dots that
gradually grew. Their hue dimmed the larger they grew, causing Dax’s toes to tap in his boots.
His nerves burned, screaming for him to run, that this was his dumbest idea yet. He held fast.
As if appearing out of nowhere, Valtakuntera flashed into existence, their red-
shifting giving way to the gray of their hulls. Dax shook his arms, wiggling the nervousness from
them before cracking his neck on one side, then the other. Highlights flashed to life across his
HUD, framing each of the ships and providing a targeting solution to hit them.

“Yeah, my pea shooting ain’t doin’ crap against those things,” he muttered.
“Computer, lock onto encrypted frequencies for every ship your system has highlighted.
Password Zulozare1!.”

Within two seconds, Dax’s helmet was inundated with transmissions.
Confirmations of battle plans and attack vectors plagued his ears, jumbling into one deafening
wall of noise. He took a deep breath.

“QUIET!” he screamed in Valtukta.
Silence quickly fell across all channels.
“Who is this?” a man’s voice asked.
“Am I speaking to the ranking officer of this war fleet?” Dax asked.
“You are. Now, I will not ask again, who is this?” the man asked.

Dax heard someone in the background shout for them to conduct scans in the

local area for any ships. He quickly muted the channel.
“Computer, play carnival three,” Dax ordered.
He unmuted himself as circus music started to play with an upbeat tempo. Dax

gave his best Barnaum Circus ringleader impersonation.

“Welcome, ladies and germs to the rambunctious, rowdy, rambling, Rectian
Revel, the space circus to entertain your every want and need. Step right up! For a shilling or a
pound, you can play our wonderful games, like Dunk the Dalo, Box the Bastet, Drink with the
Dracolich or Ambulate with the Android!”

“Whoever you are, get off this channel,” the commander ordered, “or once we

find you, we will open fire on your position.”

Someone in the background shouted to keep scanning. Dax glanced to his right;
the void hung dark at their side. He gritted his teeth, forced a smile and threw his hands in the air.
“Now, is that any way to address a host just looking to bring a little joy to the
hearts of your men?” Dax asked. “We do have two more games you could play. One is Rout and
Run, where you turn your little genocidal fleet around and flee as fast as you can.”
“We’ve found it. It’s a single ship, sir,” someone called out.
“Any vessels within long scanner range?” the commander asked.
“No ships or fleets to account for,” the Valtukta replied.
“You’re brave, coming at us alone,” the commander mused.
A hint of superiority in his voice sent a wave of disdain through Dax’s body.

“Your scanners picked us up,” Dax said, dropping the ringleader impression.

“Take a closer look as to what’s written on the hull of this ship.”

Silence fell across the open channel. After a few seconds, murmurs poured in

from the other vessels about recognizing the ship.

“I’m judging by your silence that my reputation precedes me,” Dax called out.
Dax pointed forward. A soft glow shone from below him. Dax looked down to see
Mark’s holographic interface projecting from his staff. The young man’s fingers flew across it
before offering Dax a thumbs-up.

“What’d you just do?” the commander asked.
“I blocked your ability to send any outgoing transmissions,” Dax explained,

folding his arms across his chest.

“We can initiate target lock,” a different Valtukta shouted from the back.
At the point of Dax’s finger, Mark’s hands moved once more. A glow of purple
plasma erupted out of the cruiser before zipping through space, missing them by miles.

“I don’t think you understand the gravity of this situation,” Dax snarled. “We’re in
your systems. You have no control here. We don’t need a fleet to rip you apart in combat; we just
need one of two things: a hacker or a…”

“What are your demands,” the commander interrupted. “Our file on you says you

always give options. What are they?”

A soft red glow to Dax’s right caught his eye. His nerves immediately calmed as a

sneer pulled itself across his face.

“I don’t think you understand. That packet you have on us is a peacetime packet.
Killing Kane was enough for us to go to war against Tylira. Imagine what we’d do to the empire
that is currently en route to glass our entire planet?” Dax asked.

The red light grew while diffusing, blanketing space in the area.
“Open fire,” the commander ordered.
Hundreds of plasma cannons started to glow across the entire fleet as they

charged. Dax noticed Mark’s hands moving frantically across his controls.

“You forgot, we’ve got one more game!” Dax shouted, throwing his persona back
on. “It’s called Tango with the Terrans! Now, if I may direct your attention to your scans, you
will notice I am completely and utterly alone out here, correct?”

Silence. The cannons glowed brighter.
“Okay, bad audience participation. That’s fine, not everyone can be a winner. But

what is a circus without some magic?”

Dax glanced at the light. It grew wider, thinning as if its source was about to

break through.

“If you’ll turn your visual attention to your left, I would like to conduct a little
summoning spell for your entertainment. Abra-kadabra, Alika-zoom, I summon a Leviathan for
your DOOM!”

The redshift snapped, giving way to the beast capable of eating planets. Instantly,
every weapon turned away from the Junkyard. With nerves still on edge, Dax watched as they
opened fire on the Leviathan.

It opened a gaping maw. Like sentient darkness, it traversed space, focusing on
the generators of its food in the plasma cannons. Screams of terror and the panicked barking of
orders filled his helmet. Dax cut the channel off.

Thousands of blasts peppered the creature. Some splashed against its body,
casting eerie shadows across its Lovecraftian form. Most struck its mouth, where it consumed
each shot like an appetizer for the meal to come.

Like the last crumb of a dessert, the first ship vanished inside the Leviathan’s
jaws. Every other vessel started to turn while continuing to fire. As they accelerated, so did the
living embodiment of the void itself.

A tinge of guilt and an unnamed weight settled into Dax’s heart watching the
cruisers vanish one by one into the beast. The engines of the final ship glowed brightly, preparing
for a leap. It started to shift blue before an unfathomable maw clamped down on it, cutting the
vessel in half.

Dax’s body went limp at the sight. Zero gravity caused his arms to drift by his
sides while a tiny voice in the back of his mind asked if this was the right thing to do.
“They were going to destroy Earth,” He whispered, trying to convince himself
while the front half of the ship listed forward. Its lights flickered, losing power, and it vanished
in a second bite. The Leviathan turned, searching for its next meal before looking directly at the
Junkyard.

“That’s not good,” Dax muttered to himself.
He looked down to see Jun scrambling to get the ship back online. With a roll of
his shoulder, he activated his sword. Drawing it, Dax quickly cut himself free, returned the blade
to its sheath and activated the magnets in his boots.

“How long until leap drive’s ready?” Dax asked after reconnecting with the ship.
“Not long enough,” Jun replied. “We’re going to have to try and shoot it.”
Dax’s heavy footfalls echoed through his armor while he rushed toward the
airlock. Panic gripped him, feeling the presence of the planetary creature looming just over his
shoulder.

“You mean give it a second course?” Dax asked.
He reached the airlock. Kneeling, Dax started to depressurize the inside while
looking at the oncoming beast. A ripple ran down its side causing the Leviathan to stop in its
tracks. It snarled, recoiling.

“What’s happening?” Dax asked.
“Exactly what you were hoping would happen,” Henuva chimed in, his words

slurred. “Or maybe not. I don’t really know.”

“I’m getting readings from the Valtakuntera vessels,” Jun called out. “Routing

them to your HUD now.”

Dax’s display flared to life. Every Valtakuntera ship was highlighted inside the
creature. Waves of particles were being pulled violently from the middle of every ship, fracturing
hulls before surging through said hulls like a pressure washer.

“What am I looking at?” Dax asked.
“It’s the power cores of each ship,” Dalia explained. “The Leviathan’s body is
pulling the plasma out of those cores, violently causing critical containment failures and
meltdowns on every cruiser.”

The particles rushed out of their containers, ripping the cruisers apart. Flashes of
purple light danced down its dark body in line with the HUD containment failure display. Each

pop made the Leviathan recoil. Its face twisted in agony while the tendrils dangling off its body
tensed, pulling against its form.

Dax watched in awe as the popping ripped a hole in the side of the beast. Debris
and darkness drifted into the void. With the last ship destroyed, the Leviathan’s body relaxed. It
started to drift through space from the force of its contents spilling out of the hole in its belly.
A numbness overtook Dax at the sight. His eyes were wide and his jaw fell slack.
His attention was brought back by the airlock’s hiss. With a pull, he yanked it open and drifted
into the Junkyard.

Dax’s mind reeled at what he’d just seen. Every synapse fired, trying to make
sense of it, causing a headache to throb into existence just behind his eyes. Dax shut the external
door behind him, recompressed the airlock and opened the inside of the ship.

He climbed out of the booth, retracted his helmet and dragged his feet across the
floor before stopping on the main deck. His entire crew looked out the window, their jaws loose
as well. Henuva spun, staggered and caught himself on the wall. A drunken cackle left his lips as
he walked unsteadily toward Dax.

“I wasn’t thinking that would work,” he slurred.
Reaching Dax, he grabbed the professor by the pauldrons and leaned a little too

close for comfort, his breath stinking of booze.

“Congratulations, you just killed the last Leviathan and saved your world. Have a

drink!”

Chapter 2: Kick-Off

Blue light swirled in front of their viewport. Dax sat in the pilot seat, leaning back
with his feet on the console. His old chair enveloped him like the warm hug of an old friend.
Dalia stepped out of the kitchen. He glanced over at her as she approached, drying her hands on
her outfit.

“You’d better not let Jun or Mark see your feet up like that; they’ll get on you,”

she warned.

“Eh, it’s my seat. I’m fairly sure I’m good,” Dax countered.
“Yeah, but I think where your heels are could be the equivalent of Jun’s cheek.”
Dax quickly pulled his feet down and set them on the floor.
“Didn’t think of it that way.”
Dalia glanced around the room before continuing to walk toward him.
“Good thing we left PITA in the cargo bay. I’m sure he’d have something snarky

to say about it and rat you out the instant he got the chance.”

She approached the chair, rested her hands on its arm rests and leaned forward.

Dax cracked a smile, keeping in place while playfully arching an eyebrow.

“And you’re not going to rat me out?” he asked.
“Depends,” Dalia mumbled flirtatiously.
“On what?”
“If you make it worth my while or not.”
Dax leaned forward. He took her face in his hands and planted a deep, passionate
kiss on her soft lips. He felt goosebumps surge across her skin under his fingers as she let out a
soft groan. He broke their lip-lock before flashing an sly smile at her.

“How does that work?” he asked.
She closed her eyes and nodded in approval.
“I’ll take that as partial payment,” she whispered. “I expect interest later.”
“Later?” he asked.
Dalia slid to the ground in front of him. Her long, dark hair flowed down her

back, its silky strands gleaming.

“I think it’s just nerves, but I can’t seem to get my fingers to work around the

braids right now.”

Dax instantly ran his fingers through her soft hair. Dalia’s head leaned toward his

touch.

“Did you just admit to having a shaken nerve?” Dax asked.
“This is it,” she said softly. “The last push. The fate of the Dal’no, the Bastet, any

race that the Valtakuntera deems a threat. If we lose this, we’re all extinct.”

“I guess that’s a valid point,” Dax replied.
He divided her hair into three parts. From there, his fingers went to work in the

same pattern they’d done a thousand times before.

“You mean you’re not worried?” Dalia asked.
Dax shrugged. He pulled her hair just enough to get the braid tight without

hurting her scalp.

“Of course I am,” he replied. “I’d have to be a certified sociopath not to be. I

guess it’s just a matter of knowing who I have on my side.”

He leaned down and gave the top of her head a kiss. The scent of flowers and

berries was a stark contrast to the onion when they’d first met.

“Countless times, the smaller, less equipped force has beaten the more
overwhelming foe by just fighting smarter. We have Kane’s battle doctrine on our side,” Dax
explained, his fingers continuing to work. “And if we’re able to play our part loud enough, and
make a large enough scene, we’ll walk right into the mouth of our enemy with the equivalent of
an atomic bomb strapped to our chest.”

“Yeah, it’s the escaping before it goes off that has me worried,” Dalia replied.
“I don’t think that’s something you need to worry about with him,” Henuva

mumbled.

Dax looked up to see the Valtukta leaning against the hallway wall leading from

his room. His eyes were half shut, and one hand rested on his brow to block the light.

“Can you turn the lights red, please?” he asked.
“Once I’m done with Dalia’s braid,” Dax countered.
“But it’s so bright,” he whimpered.
“No, it’s not, you’re just hung over,” Dalia countered. “You’re a tough guy, you

can handle a little bright light.”

“Clearly, you’ve never been ‘I’m about to be eaten by the thing that bit my world
in half’ drunk before,” Henuva countered. “That brings on a special level of hangover because I
wasn’t counting on being alive to have to deal with it.”

Dax looked down at Dalia’s hair. His fingers slowed their work as he passed the
halfway point. He wanted to put off having to take his hands off her for as long as he could.

“I find your lack of faith in me disturbing,” Dax said.

“Listen here, Sky-guy,” Henuva quipped, pointing at Dax. “Even Lord Vader’s
ships got shot down more than he landed, and two of his most powerful weapons were blown up
literally out from under him.”

Dax’s heart skipped a beat. He looked up at the Valtukta with a wide smile on his

face.

“You watched Star Wars?” he asked.
“Of course I watched Star Wars. It was amazing,” Henuva said, shielding his eyes
from the light. “And if I had the tech and know-how, I’d make every single one of us a lightsaber
immediately.”

“And how would that go with your hangover?” Dalia teased.
“Not great,” Henuva countered before making a circular motion with his other
hand. “But that’s past the point. My point was, the guy playing crisscross-applesauce with your
hair right now managed to escape my ship with minimal effort, and after being dosed with
something that was supposed to knock him out.”

Dax gave Henuva a cheesy grin while reaching the bottom of Dalia’s luxurious

hair.

“It’s not a matter of if, it’s more a matter of how, but he’ll find a way out before

that bomb goes off.”

Dalia reached back and gave Dax’s forearm a gentle touch. “I know, I just want to

make sure he’s fast enough to outrun it,” she replied.

Henuva glanced around the room from behind squinted eyelids.
“What are you looking for?” Dax asked.

“A comment about you being ‘fast enough.’ I’m waiting for PITA to chime in

with some inappropriate joke.”

“He’s in the cargo bay. He got zoomies after the Leviathan died and knocked
Mark on his face, so we put him down there until he could calm down,” Dax explained.
Henuva nodded with approval before pushing off the wall and shuffling toward

the kitchen.

“I’ma go bury my head in something until this headache goes away,” he

grumbled.

“Sounds like a plan,” Dalia teased.
He gave her a thumbs-down before slowly making his way into the kitchen,
shuffling to the booth and falling face first into it. A few seconds later a muffled, frustrated
scream rose from the seat.

“He forgot there’s a light directly above that table?” Dalia asked.
“Yep,” Dax replied.
Dax reached the bottom of her hair. Finishing up her braid, he tied it off before
gently rubbing her neck and shoulders. Dalia’s head fell forward. He heard a soft groan leave her
lips.

“That feels nice,” she said softly.
Dax gently dug his thumbs into her muscles. It felt like pushing against steel

cabling. A few knots resisted him. With a roll of his fingers, he worked them out.

“Tenser than usual,” Dax said.
“I wonder why,” Dalia playfully countered.

“I think everyone could use a good spa day after this. I think the trouble is going
to be finding any spas that survive this.” Dax chuckled. “But I’m sure your people will let us use
the temple again.”

“My people will let us, yes, but I highly doubt Jun would be all too pleased with

Mark taking part, given his history of wanting a priestess,” Dalia replied.

Dax paused. His head tilted to one side as a wicked idea fluttered into his mind.
“Do you kind of want to see that fight?” he asked.
Dalia immediately looked up, face beaming, and nodded.
“You beat me to that question by like, half a second,” she replied, reaching toward

his face. “And that is why I love you.”

Henuva’s whimpers echoed louder from the kitchen. Dalia gave Dax a gentle pat

on the cheek.

“You’d better go make sure he’s still functional,” she mused.
Dalia stood up. She ran a finger across Dax’s cheek before giving him a flirtatious

look that sent chills down his spine and made his heart race.

“Don’t stay up too late,” she said.
“I think Henuva’ll be fine,” Dax replied, standing up as well.
Dalia put a finger on his chest. He could’ve pushed past for anyone else. Because

it was her, the Dal’no was able to hold him in place.

“You’re the captain of this crew. You’ve done a good job making sure we’re all
even keeled. Henuva is clearly without port. He needs you to anchor him,” she said in a soft,
guiding tone.

Dax looked at the facedown Valtukta. A reluctant weight pressed on his chest at

the sight. He sighed and nodded.
“You’re right, I guess.”
“Of course I am; I’m always right.” Dalia beamed. “Don’t worry, I’ll stay up for

you.”

She leaned in and gave him a kiss on the cheek. As she turned to walk away, Dax
gave her a light pat on her backside. She giggled and made her way down the crew quarter
corridor.

“You hate to see me go, but you love to watch me leave,” she called back.
“Literally by half a second,” Dax replied.
He stood motionless for a few seconds, weighing his decisions.
“Okay, brain,” he relented. “Looks like we’re listening to you.”
He leaned over the controls. With a few taps and a quick swipe, the main lights
were replaced by red emergency lighting. He made his way into the mess hall before walking
toward the kitchen.

“Is that better?” Dax asked.
A muffled yes rose from the booth. Dax grabbed two cups and filled them both
with water. Grabbing a pinch of salt from their sparse seasoning rack, he dropped some in
Henuva’s cup.

“On a scale from one to ten, how bummed are you that we succeeded right now?”
Another muffled reply sounded. Dax tilted his head and made his way toward the

booth.

“Was that a seventy-five?” he asked.

He watched the back of Henuva’s head move up and down. Dax slid onto the
other side and placed one of the cups in front of the Valtukta. Henuva didn’t move.
“You know, if you don’t rehydrate and get more electrolytes in your system,

you’re going to just keep getting worse,” Dax said.

Henuva’s hand appeared over the edge of the table. He slammed it down with a
thud, only to groan immediately after. With more labored grunting, he pulled himself into a
sitting position. His normally pristine hair was frazzled in every direction. His eyes were puffy
and the usual sharpness that filled his golden irises was gone.

“I’m sure if you had white sclera, your eyes would be extremely bloodshot right

now,” Dax teased.

“Good thing they’re not,” Henuva replied. “Makes it harder to tell I’m hung

over.”

“I hate to break it to you, buddy, but a blind man could see you’re hung over from
a thousand yards away,” Dax countered, sliding the cup closer to his friend. “Drink up. After you
finish one or two of those, I’ll make you something greasy to help stop your body from
absorbing any more of the booze that may still be in your system.”

“I don’t think there’s anything left in my system,” Henuva said, grabbing the cup.

“I could’ve re-watered an entire planet with what came out.”

“Put that on the top of the list of things I didn’t need to hear,” Dax replied.
Henuva closed his eyes and held the cup tight for a few seconds before taking a
deep breath and bringing it to his lips. He chugged the whole cup before putting it down and
grimacing.

“Why are you giving me sea water?” he asked.

“The salt’s an electrolyte. A little bit of it will help get everything rebalanced and
rehydrate you a lot faster. If we were on Earth, I’d just take you to the store and get you a sports
drink full of them and a bunch of sugar.”
Dax slid his cup over.
“What flavor?” Henuva asked.
“I always thought blue was the best,” Dax replied.
“Blue’s a color, not a flavor.”
“Not for the ’rade it’s not,” Dax countered. ...