Outer Red: The Complete Edition: Outer Red, #1

A FAIRYTALE SET TO SPACE

What if Little Red Riding Hood was set to outer space? What would be the best way to make that interesting and adventurous?

That’s what I asked myself nearly fifteen years ago. I wanted to make science fiction stories with old fables of childhood tales. But it wasn’t easy to put to imagination. There have been many stories about Red Riding Hood and other fables, most dealing with the modern age or of the supernatural genre. But I saw nothing about them being put into science fiction. At least, nothing I ever saw on the shelves of bookstores.

Maybe I wasn’t looking hard enough, or browsing in the right aisle, but I saw nothing about it in the realm of science fiction. So, I thought, What if the world of Red Riding Hood was more like galactic setting of Star Wars? I’d make her an adult, with a travelling computer companion, and they could be on their way to grandma’s house. Or, maybe something like it? What started out as passing thought, turned into something more and took shape rather quickly.

This was the only time in my life when I didn’t dream of the premise or the characters there in. I had no clue where she was going, who she’d run into, or even that she would have her own ship. Usually, I tend to dream about my stories. Like one would sit at a movie theatre, or watch TV; Everything I ‘envisioned’ was played out in the depths of my mind––except the entirety of this particular story. Outer Red was a completely blind storytelling event for yours truly. In fact, I didn’t even consider making it into a full novel. My intent was to make it only a short story and move on to the next idea.

The funny thing is, the short story I posted of it, on amazon, way back in 2011, insanely became the number one ebook upon release. I kid you not. Well, for at least a day. Then it slowly got pegged down as other books pushed it out. But, hey… that made me smile like nobody’s business. It also made me realize that I could keep going. I could keep the stories pumping out.

Well, that seemed a tad ambitious, of course. I decided instead to break them up into ‘parts’ of one book. An expanded storyline of the original short story and keep the adventure going. Part One (Off The Given Path), would be given a tad more story to help beef up the chapters. Part Two, would take Commander Red into the danger of being chased. Part Three would be the meat of the plot line, giving Red more backstory and villains to confront; And then Part Four, well, that would be the end and resolve the whole arc of the mission she was on.

Was Part Two and Three successful? Well, no… no they were not. Which kind of bummed me out about that, to be honest; I really tried my best to keep it fun and interesting for the readers. I even attempted to keep it kid friendly by not having too much swearing or even putting any sexual situations in it. Just a young woman, and her trusty computer buddy trying to save the galaxy. An adventure that would be perfect for all ages and focused squarely on the adventure aspect. What’s not to love about that?

I thought it was a safe way to introduce my writing style to the masses. A unique and different spin on the classic fables that would surely appeal to those looking for books like this. Part One (Off The Given Path) did that, by leaps and bounds. However, the following parts weren’t as well received.

Since my sales were abysmal for the rest of them, I had to act quickly and find another way to gain readership. I chose to write other books and novellas with more adult themes and plots; Titles like: The Mysterious World Of Professor Darkk And Miss Shadow, The Long Lost War, and Your Service Is Required, to name a few. As those books got more attention and reviews, with more sales, the greater my confidence started to build.

I grew comfortable in writing and expanded my growing library of titles. It was in this time that I felt the need to return to the world of Outer Red and started work on Part Four. I wanted to end out the series (as I originally planned) and let the work speak for itself. I just plugged away till I could think of a perfect end and give the book the closure it needed. Like I said before, this was never intended to be a full on vision of mine, which (for a ‘cinematic dreamer’ like me) was really strange and uncharted territory.

Outer Red is (was/shall always be) a complete shoulder shrug on where the adventure would take her and Grimm. Do I know what the next book will be about? Kinda, sure… she definitely won’t be in the Galactic Kingdom anymore. And she’ll probably meet many weird new creatures. But, I’m getting ahead of myself here. That’s when and if I get urge to write Book Two. For now, this first book is what I wanted to focus on. Now that all the parts are together, completing Book One in it’s entirety, is monumental. I really hope you (the reader) enjoy this reimagined fable, set in a science fiction/fantasy universe.

Don’t be shy about telling me what you thought about the series as a whole. That’s the only way I can continue on with more of these books or not. I want you to have fun, to put yourself in that universe and live the adventure as Commander Red. What I require from readers, such as yourself, is feedback, online chatter, and sharing the stories with others. Authors love having you spread the word about what they’ve written.

Despite all my former misgivings mentioned before, I truly am proud of this book. Now that it’s done, and out there in the world, I have a sense of satisfaction and love for this completed story. It was always my dream to bring imaginative stories and great characters to life for everyone to enjoy.

Again, when and if I do Book Two, it might be a full novel. That is, if I get so inspired to do it, or given encouragement to proceed with it. The only way to do that, is by sending me comments, reviews, social media posts… or even asked in interviews (hint, hint, hint…). Okay, that smacked of desperation, but hey… can’t blame a writer for wanting to get some feedback.

For now, I will let you go and read this book. I hope you enjoy the story, as I set you into another galaxy, far, far away… into a universe of my own creation.

With thanks and appreciation,

Jeff Walker

June 21st, 2022

THE GALACTIC KINGDOM

For over seven centuries, The Galactic Kingdom has governed over most of the known galaxy. A collective of worlds and star systems overseen by a ruling council and their elected sovereign. King Gregory Cole The First has maintained the peace for nearly twenty-five years during his time on the throne. The governing Council of the Kingdom abides to his wisdom and authority, feeling him to be a just and righteous ruler.

But the history before his time was anything but peaceful. The Galactic Kingdom was once ruled by the King And Queen of Hearts; a royal duo that failed to keep the harmonic balance between their status and that of the elected council members. This was a kingdom plagued with power struggles, conspiracies, scandals, and bitter rivalries that led to deadly conflicts. Of course, since the foundation of the Galactic Kingdom, there have been many schisms and politically motivated campaigns that were just as disruptive; Years of deadly wars with neighbouring star systems that stubbornly refused to join and merge into one singular regime.

It was during the last major battle, known as The Giant Wars, that changed the course of history and brought a new generation of superior technological warfare. These were the days of despair and horror. No world remained safe as the fight for dominance over another encompassed them all. Legendary battles of almost god-like stature swept across the galaxy; those new technologies and unfathomable super weapons nearly wiped out whole solar systems in their wake. Magic and science had merged, giving rise to a new evil that sprang out of its inception.

The planets that once opposed to joining The Galactic Kingdom, finally agreed to unite with them and bring about an end to this drawn out conflict. Their combined strength and knowledge helped to create a device of unlimited power; one of such infinite magnitude that it brought an end to The Giant Wars once and for all. Evil was defeated, peace (at long last) was restored. The Kingdom created a new governing council, one where all could freely share their input and balance the power equally. The throne remained as a figure head, one that could be the deciding factor in all affairs and implement authority when justified.

The newly formed council deliberated about what to do with this ultimate weapon they had made. It was no longer necessary, now that evil was vanquished, and it was far too powerful a weapon to be trusted to any one world or ruling sovereign. Yet, all agreed that something had to be done with it, nonetheless.

The Riding Hood Guardians of Hoodarianus, along with the other noble noted Giant War victors, took it upon themselves to hide the device from the galaxy; no one would know of its location, not even the King himself. That action caused a rift amongst the council, fracturing them yet again, as many worlds became isolated and built empires of their own.

It was in this era of uncertainty that a new enemy arose. A chaotic sector of space beyond the Kingdom’s border, known as—The Dark Woods, gathered the leftovers of the remaining evil minions of The Giant Wars. They became The Darkness Domain. At the centre of this new evil was The Dark Queen; the surviving witch of the Giant Wars. Her lust for vengeance was unleashed, and began a whole new war, one that was as devastating (if not more) than the last.

Again, the galaxy was plunged into turmoil, and on the verge of collapse. The Darkness Domain was relentless and savage as it tried to carve a kingdom out of the existing one. All seemed lost, and this time, no one was sure if they would survive.

It was up to the surviving four guardian clan groups; The Giant Killers, The Witch Hunters, Knights Of The Magic and The Riding Hoods. They joined forces once more to protect the Galactic Kingdom and all the surrounding systems near its borders. The years of mistrust between them had ended, and the time for unification re-surged. Fractured worlds were rallied back into the monarchy, and now they fought as one against a common foe.

The Darkness Domain War lasted five long years, nearly destroying all the surviving four guardian clans, they gave their lives to protect those who could not defend their own planets. Their heroism and bravery became a symbol to all. Most notably, The Riding Hood Guardians were at the forefront of this elite stature. Their leader, Thomas Huntsman, organized all other clans and did the impossible, by wiping out all The Darkness Domain in one final battle.

His leadership and strategy showed all in the Galactic Kingdom that they could work together and achieve a common goal. It brought The Riding Hood warriors to a legendary status; they were given a seat on the Council Of The Kingdom. Thomas Huntsman chose otherwise, he refused the king’s offer, deciding to his world to live in peace instead.

But before he could enjoy such well deserved and lasting peace, a tragedy fell upon his world. Unbeknownst to anyone, a shadowy group seeking revenge launched a sneak attack, and wiped out all the Riding Hoods on Hoodarianus—all but one.

To this day, no one in the Galactic Kingdom knows who the attackers were, where they were from, or how they managed to disappear without a trace. The Council of the Kingdom launched countless searches, they even dared to explore into the old Darkness Domain sectors and found nothing. It would be a mystery that echoed in the halls of the Kingdom for many years to come.

As King Cole was enjoying his Twenty-fifth year of being the elected sovereign, word spread of a threat that could endanger the galaxy once more. Outer worlds were being ravaged and destroyed, with fleeing refugee ships being attacked at random. Since this was going on beyond the Kingdom’s border, no one could be certain if there was any validity of this skirmish. Pirates often raid various systems, ships and lay waste to their victims, but this was far too coordinated and deadly to be any mere space pirate.

They needed to dispatch a courier immediately to rendezvous with an alien group that had vital information about this threat. The King felt he could only trust one person with such a task. The Council Of The Kingdom agreed. They instructed the female commander of this mission to retrieve and return with the alien messenger at once. But––most importantly––the council stressed to her that she was not to stray from the given path…

PART I

OFF THE GIVEN PATH

1

NEVER STRAY FROM THE PATH

On the surface of a jungle world, far from the Galactic Kingdom, the mid-sized spaceship called, The Goldilocks, remained dormant in its impact crater after crashing to the surface hours earlier. The ship, still smouldering away as the hull continued to cool. The dense jungle canopy that surrounded the ship nestled it like a blanket. The Goldilocks, was a stylish, well-polished gold plated designed vessel. The mirror-like finish reflected the surroundings as it lay dormant; The Goldilocks was a tough little ship, despite its impact to the ground, it could be space-worthy in a moment’s notice, if the damages weren’t too severe.

The interior of the ship was just as golden (if not more) than the outer shell itself. There were silver accents along the honeycomb designed walls and floors. The bridge of the ship was almost rounded, with slotted walls with computer stations in each section. At the centre, was a lone seat with only crescent computer console surrounding it.

The pilot, a red-haired woman, was still in her seat but half sprawled over the advanced-looking station. A few sparks shot out from the computer intermittently, with vaporous smoke leaking out as the power struggled to snap back on. She slowly awakened, the noise and the fumes caused her to rouse and choked slightly. Her eyes opened; they were a shade of emerald green and it seemed to compliment the redness of her hair. She blinked rapidly from the sudden brightness, being unconscious for so long, the woman was not prepared for the sharp light source.

Without a second thought, she quickly freed herself from the black leather command chair and gazed up towards the large bridge window. The sun was slowly setting in the distance; she could see a lush, deep jungle-like forest, almost dwarfing her view of the fading light. The woman gave a passive sigh and stumbled while stepping around the damaged bridge. There were some blackened areas where fire had burned and left a mark, with some wires and opened panels littering the floor.

As she tried to survey the carnage to her precious vessel, a sharp pain to the head caused her to wince, and then tried to rub it with her right hand. There was a cut just above her left eyebrow — more than likely due to the debris that had shot across from the impact. With no crew, other than her, she was alone to tend to her wound, as well as the ship.

The red-headed pilot tapped the console in front of her. Panic was the least thing on this young, fair skinned pilot’s mind. Instead of focusing on the pain, she opted to continue on her mission and focus on that. She pulled back the sleeve of her leather-type black-grey officer suit; it revealed a smooth, solid gold polished bracelet that covered her right wrist.

Transfer link, she instructed at it while tapping the bracelet twice. Upload and sync.

A brilliant blue ball of light arose out of the defunct console and shot over quickly to the young woman’s gold bracelet. Images and scrolling data hovered above in translucent blue as her eyes studied the information booting up.

Process is complete. An electronic male voice spoke. Greetings Commander, I take it we did not have a smooth landing.

No, Grimm… the young woman mocked.

Are you injured? He inquired. I could give you a quick scan to make sure.

It’s nothing, she dismissed lightly. I’m fine, for now.

Are you certain?

Grimm, please… Enough about me, I need to know our location and damages to the ship.

Very well, Commander.

A large flash of light emanated out of the bracelet, it encompassed the inside and outer hull of the ship as it made a full scan.

The Goldilocks has minor damage, thankfully, the hull is intact and is still capable of space travel. The power source, however, is completely drained I’m afraid. As for our location… hm… I’m sorry Commander, it seems my charts are unavailable. All planetary data was stored in the ship’s primary memory core, and it is offline for the time being. I cannot access it.

What about your backup files? She inquired. You should have some charts for this area?

Searching… Grimm responded. It took only a few seconds for Grimm to find the information and gave a sombre tone as it notified her of the results, I believe my files have been compromised due to the crash. I was in mid-diagnostic mode when it happened. All charts are incomplete and still residing in the mainframe of Goldilocks. Once again, I am sorry, Commander.

Of course… Fantastic…

She couldn’t believe her luck. With a deep inhale, the woman tried to find the courage to not get upset. Instead of lashing out, the Commander made her way to the back of the bridge and forcefully pulled the back door open with her hands. It led into a smaller room with a large column sticking out from the floor. She crept down to the base of it and tried to open a small panel on the side.

The piece came off with a bit of force and she could then activate a lever on the inside. The column soon opened as it exposed the ship’s main power core; a small glass enclosed cylinder that attached to the upper and lower nodules touching it. The young woman gave a bitter exhale, as she could see the power was completely gone, just as Grimm had stated. Pulling out the small container pod, the young woman studied it with frustration.

Great, just great… now how will I get back home?

And back to the mission as well… Grimm interjected.

Right, she passively exhaled. The mission…

The woman sat on the ground for a second, eyeballing the pod, and shook her head of the predicament they were in. Grimm, being the ever observant AI, tried to give a boost of confidence to her.

The power can be replenished, Commander. All it needs is a compatible power source to convert and–

Oh, really? She spoke, heckling him in mid-sentence. We’re stuck on a jungle world with no way of converting matter or light into a viable power source, Grimm! Not to mention I have no way of contacting The Galactic Kingdom’s Central Command to send me a ride back. You don’t even have enough power to last long on this portable wrist band either.

I am fully aware of the dire nature of our situation. Grimm stated back, in a slightly less arrogant manner. However, I have detected a power source within our vicinity that could be converted.

What? She glared at the bracelet. Really? Where? Give me specifics, Grimm.

As you wish, Commander. I am triangulating it now…

The woman took the small empty energy pod with her and returned to the bridge of the ship. Now the sun was setting even more; the night blanketed the area forbiddingly. She darted a gaze out the window and looked helplessly for a location just as he announced it.

Approximately sixteen point five kilometres from our present location.

The commander kicked on a floor panel near the console and a storage cabinet popped out. She grabbed a few items and large black backpack. Once she had what she needed, she then pushed the compartment cabinet back into the floor.

Do I want to know what the power source is? She inquired while strapping on the backpack full of supplies and light equipment for the journey.

I am not close enough to give a complete diagnosis of the specific make or type of power source it may be. Grimm responded, My scanners cannot reach that far in such dense surroundings, unfortunately, but it does appear to be generating a wave length signature that closely matches that of The Goldilocks.

Well, that’s good enough for me then…

The young pilot zipped up her bag forcefully and flung it over her shoulder with equal strength. There was determination in her eyes; a rush of mixed emotions as well about what kind of power source lie in wait for her, but determination nonetheless. Whatever the feeling of danger was, the fact remained, the ship is dead without it. So rather than heeding to caution on this strange world, the Commander made her way to the airlock and slammed the override control hard. The doors opened quickly; the sound of the hydraulics and the pressure releasing from it echoed within the ship and outside into the jungle-type forest.

I take it we are going then? The computer asked sarcastically.

You bet. She quipped back, Into the woods we go.

2

THE JUNGLE PLANET

Outside the deep and dark green jungle, the young commander got a view of the ship as it lay there tangled and embedded in the ground. The ship was still golden in appearance (though tarnished in spots from the crash). She noted of how the trees and foliage had draped over it like camouflage. That pleased her, at least it would remain well hidden till her return. The commander patted the hull gently and looked at it with a satisfied grin.

She’s fine. Golden locks and all.

Agreed. Grimm said, The ship survived the attack.

The ship’s five back engines did indeed look like coiled locks of hair, a design that was unintended, but a well-suited iconic look for this vessel’s namesake. Grimm could never understand her constant need to fawn over this ship as if it were a little child, it was just a spaceship to him, but to her, yeah… this was more than that, for some reason.

Some minor burns to her pretty lil’ head, but– She patted the ship again, You’ll be ok won’t you, baby.

It was in that moment as her hand stroked the scorch marks ever so delicately that it never occurred asked the most obvious question. Perhaps it was the trauma or the shock of impact that made her forget; It may even well be the slight moment of dizziness that made her stumble slightly, but it was a question that should have been raised the moment she came too.

Grimm, do you have any idea who shot us down? I thought you said earlier that the long range scan of the sector was clear?

Yes, it was. The he stated. Prior to the precise course were given, but, Commander, I do believe you strayed from the path. Therefore, I had no long range scan of the altered course.

I thought you would, ya know, do that anyway.

Without instruction from the pilot first? He said with mild surprise. You of all people should know this. Besides, you entered the course correction yourself, remember? I tried to warn you agains it.

It was the same way, just, ya know… a slightly different approach, that’s all.

Ah, yes… A ‘shortcut’ I believe was your exact words.

Yeah-yeah-yeah, The woman rolled her eyes. My fault, I got ya. Look, I’m sorry, okay? Now, about that other ship that attacked us. Just give me the facts already.

Most of the data is still in the main memory core, and wasn’t uploaded to my backup files in time. But, from the little information I do have, I believe it arrived at the same time we did, if not sooner. Grimm sighed. I believe the vessel was too fast and heavily shielded for our scanners to obtain any in-depth analysis.

So… we don’t know anything about it. She glared at her bracelet.

Um, yes, in a manner of speaking.

Great, The woman grumbled. For all we know that ship up ahead might be the one who put us here in the first place.

A strong possibility… Yes… 

The young commander checked her backpack while placing it on the ground temporarily. From it she withdrew a weapon; a standard issue pulse blaster that had a flat muzzle and faint blue power indicator. She flung the bag back over her shoulder and checked the weapon. Pressing down on the settings display, the weapon hummed with power as it switched on.

You know, She said with a sigh. I think I need to create a better backup system for you. One that won’t be linked to the main computer core of the ship.

That would be more efficient. Grimm acknowledged. Any chance of that happening soon?

Not right now, buddy. She snickered. We’ve got a bit of a situation here, so, let’s put that on the ‘to-do list’, m’kay?

Fair enough, He stated. I’ll try to remind you of it at a more opportune time.

Thanks, appreciate it.

The young woman held the gun tight her hand as she started to enter though the dense forest. It started out as a brisk walk but then it turned into an energetic sprint; She kept the pace steady even though the terrain was full of obstacles and thick foliage. Yet every time she landed down firmly on her right side leg, the woman felt a shot of pain and grunted in discomfort. Something else was wrong inside of her.

This jungle-like world was indeed a formidable. The foliage and other plant-life was rather hard to slice through with nothing more than the butt of her weapon in hand. The commander pushed on and occasionally swore as some of the branches and thick leaves smacked back in her face as she tried to step through. It was becoming harder and harder to make her way through this labyrinth of a jungle forest. She almost wanted to forget the whole thing and head back to the ship instead.

No, she thought. I’ve got to do this. The ship needs power, otherwise, I’m not going anywhere.

Taking a few more bold steps on, she suddenly squinted; The pain returned. It was coming from right side. It throbbed due to all the exertion, causing her to exhale in short bursts due to the sharpness of it, and yet, it also helped to motivate the young woman as the adrenaline subsided the intensity of it now and then.

Keep going… She lowly muttered to herself. Don’t think about the pain, just keep going…

I beg your pardon, Commander?

Nothing, Grimm, she replied back. I’m just talking to myself.

I see… Grimm responded back, stretching out the words with a slight sarcastic inflection. Does it help talking to yourself more than it would talking to me?

It might, she snickered. If you keep up with the snarky attitude with me, maybe…

Snarky? He said with puzzlement. I’m not snarky, I’m just suggestively vocal.

That’s what I said, the commander grinned while slapping away another branch out of her way. You’re snarky.

Hm… He responded back. "Guess I’ll have to add that terminology to my character profile. Snarky Grimm,