Hachi + Araine: The Dream Series by Michael G. Hurston
After waking up from a thousand-year cryosleep to a world they no longer recognize, Hachi and her golem Araine embark on a perilous journey with human scavenger Sara to find others like themselves, navigating a world of romance, tragedy, and self-discovery along the way.
The stories need to be read in order.
Series Links
BOOK DETAILS
BOOK 1
Book Title: Hachi + Araine // Awake: The Dream Series Book 1
Length: 45 000 Words
Release Date: October 20, 2023
Genres: Science Fiction, Space Opera, Romance
Tropes: Polyamorous and Pansexual relationships
Themes: Strong Female Protagonist, Self-discovery
Heat Rating: 3.5-4 flames
It is not a standalone story and this book ends on a cliffhanger.
Buy Links – Available in Kindle Unlimited
Blurb
Hachi is an unstoppable Tau-born juggernaut on the battlefield with her golem Araine. The two wake up in a cryopod after a thousand-year sleep to find the world she knew is gone, and the others who came with her are nowhere to be found. Determined to find others like themselves, Hachi and Araine embark on their search, encountering a human scavenger named Sara, and a treasure hunt through space ensues.
While Hachi is confident in her abilities as a warrior, she is insecure and unsure of herself in social interactions. She is forced to deal with not only the loss of her own kind, but with people she doesn’t know, and more than she could have expected. Throughout their adventure, Hachi must confront her vulnerabilities, even as she battles against seemingly insurmountable obstacles.
With the help of Araine and Sara, Hachi must not only find others like herself but also discover the truth about the new world she finds herself in, regardless of what tragedies occurred and what may yet still befall them.
It’s cold. Wet. My eyes squint as the glass tank opens slowly, and clear liquid is sucked into vents below my arms. I feel plastic on my face. I reach for it and remove the tube fitted to a mask covering my mouth and nose. I gasp as I sit up.
Where am I?
As I stand the lights come on, slowly, but they hurt my eyes. An alarm rings in my ears making my head throb. I feel the blood rushing through my body before I feel faint and lean against the tank to steady myself.
A cryogenics pod. I look around the small circular room. Bone-colored metal walls, dim lights, my pod in the middle, dripping fluid. I try to recall a memory, any thought from before now, it’s jarring, cloudy.
I’ve been asleep too long, how long then?
A green light clicks on with a beep against the wall across from me. It’s slowly growing in size upwards, a progress bar for the container attached to the wall.
I’m not alone.
I hear footsteps, rushing, faster, no, closer, heavy boots. The door slams open and a voice yells at me something unintelligible.
I look at the door. Three soldiers, no markings, outfits don’t match, not soldiers, raiders. The green and gray colored combat armor they’re wearing, a mismatched set of old Earth army, maybe Martian, a helmet covering the head and face, looks new, lots of optical tech gadgets attached to it.
My thoughts are broken as one pushes their way in and puts the barrel of a 9mm rifle to my face. The earth weaponry probably works fine enough to put a good-sized hole in my head if it could hit me. He pokes the rifle into my face again as he motions me back, I lean against the open cryogenic container’s door. The two other raiders enter the room and come over, their voices and language begin to make sense to me.
“Pretty one here,” A man’s voice, lustful, the one with the rifle, his head moves down slowly as he looks me over, lingering in a downward gaze, “What do we sell this one as?”
I suddenly realize how exposed I am, naked and damp from the cryogenic’s fluid.
“Collar her,” A woman’s voice, stern, commanding, maybe their leader.
“Some fun?” The other’s voice, another man, grabs his groin before pulling a device from his gear bag, a literal collar, some special markings, cabling, and clasps with sharp hooks, probably some type of muscle or nerve inhibitor used for keeping slaves subdued.
“If you leave her good enough to sell,” The woman’s voice again.
Another beep from behind me and a quick gust of air. I feel a sensation in my spine not from an implant, but a part of me, the thoughts in my head receiving and transferring to another. The raiders turn to look at the container against the wall behind me.
“Shi-” The woman’s voice doesn’t finish the word.
“Too late,” I want to say those words aloud, slowly and calmly so they can hear, but they remain unspoken as a series of thoughts and movements happen before they can react.
“Arms.”
The man with the rifle in front of me loses his arms, the severed limbs hold tightly to the rifle as it falls to the floor.
“Collar.”
The man with the collar in hand is decapitated in one swift motion, his head rolling quickly until it connects with one of the far walls.
“Hold her.”
The woman is disarmed and her arms pinned fast behind her back.
Araine, my symbiotic-linked golem, stands before us. Her metallic-like purple skin glistens; intricate rune-like markings and symbols of power are seared into her flesh covering every inch of her body. Four appendages extend from the back of her torso, their sharp retractable razors remain still. Two large antennae rise and curl backward from her head like horns on a ram.
Her visage resembles more of a spider than a human, with four sets of eyes gazing out from each socket, covered in a translucent layer of the membrane. Her lips are a dark black, grimacing, hiding back two fangs that protrude slightly when she opens her mouth. As I behold my protector pinning the woman’s arms behind her back with her elongated claws, a sudden sense of satisfaction fills me.
BOOK 2
Book Title: Hachi + Araine // Nightmares: The Dream Series Book 2
Length: 45 000 Words
Release Date: October 20, 2023
Genres: Science Fiction, Space Opera, Romance
Tropes: Polyamorous and Pansexual relationships
Themes: Strong Female Protagonist, Self-discovery
Heat Rating: 2-3 flames
It is not a standalone story and this book ends on a cliffhanger.
Buy Links – Available in Kindle Unlimited
Blurb
Taking place immediately after the events of book 1, Hachi and Araine have now recovered their memories as well as been granted a boon from the Founders. Together the pair are tasked with locating the remaining unopened Tau-born vaults hidden somewhere across the Sol System.
Determined to complete her mission and return to the man she’s known all her life. Araine and Hachi set out on a quest that takes them through the universe and back, but for every action, there is a reaction, and they’ll need to face the consequences of every decision they’ve made.
Meanwhile Lamant and Mira work tirelessly to attempt to restore the woman Hachi loved back to life, though things take a darker turn when an unknown ship appears suddenly on the outskirts of our galaxy.
BOOK 3
Book Title: Hachi + Araine // Falling: The Dream Series Book 3
Length: Approximately 45 000 Words
Release Date: October 20, 2023
Genres: Science Fiction, Space Opera, Romance
Tropes: Polyamorous and Pansexual relationships
Themes: Strong Female Protagonist, Self-discovery
Heat Rating: 2-3 flames
It is not a standalone story.
It does not end on a cliffhanger, but leaves some aspects open.
Buy Links – Available in Kindle Unlimited
Blurb
One year after the events of book 2, Hachi is trying her best to help lead the new world she created, even as her relationship with Araine is strained. A new series of challenges, both emotional and physical awaits her.
A celebration gone awry, a mission to the belts to rout out the last remnants of the old regime, and ongoing struggles with relationships are now just par for the course for Hachi and Araine. Along with the help of Gemini, Scarlet, Darius, and KAD their goal is to bring safety and a lasting peace to the people of Sol.
But the clock is ticking as Amrita has warned her. Will any of Hachi’s actions matter once they face off against entities known only as the First Children. Unfamiliar beings from Draco that rival the abilities of the Founders and want nothing more than to consume all life within Sol.
I’ve worked in MarTech/WebOps for the last twenty years. Most of my daily writing is spent on Business Requirement Documents, Project Plans, and Engineering Tickets.
I started creative writing in my spare time. I enjoy writing fantasy and science fiction as well as d20 campaigns.
Everything I make from writing goes to helping provide a better life for my cat.
Author Links
Blog/Website | Amazon Author Page
