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    Impostor Syndrome
    Impostor Syndrome
    Impostor Syndrome
    Ebook68 pages1 hour

    Impostor Syndrome

    By Melissa Treglia

    ()

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    About this ebook

    The social horror of Among Us meets a timeless tale of tragic love, in this novella by author and poet Melissa Treglia.

    On an exploratory mission to an uncharted planet, science officer Brianna Dawson is infected by a vicious alien virus, causing her to become erratic and violent. The disease is breaking down her resistance and turning her into something strange, something other. Rhys Mayhew, the ship's chief medical officer and Bri's devoted boyfriend, must find a cure... before he ends up losing not only the woman he loves, but the rest of the crew becomes infected as well.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherMelissa Treglia
    Release dateMar 12, 2021
    ISBN9781005222321
    Impostor Syndrome
    Author

    Melissa Treglia

    Melissa Treglia lives in New Jersey with her mother, husband and three cats. She graduated from Brick Computer Science Institute in 2005 with a 3.6 GPA, after majoring in Web Design and Programming.She's been making up stories from the time she first learned how to pick up a pencil and write her name. Her first short story was written by the age of five, and she published her first poem at fourteen. In 2015, she released the poetry collection "Apocryphal Musings". The following year, she achieved top ten in the NAMI New Jersey poetry contest."Griffin Unbowed", her first novel and collaboration with Nicole Harvelle, was released on August 6, 2019. The sequel "Griffin's Kin" will be available worldwide on June 15, 2021.You can read more of her work, and stay updated on coming releases by visiting her website at www.melissatreglia.com.

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      Book preview

      Impostor Syndrome - Melissa Treglia

      Impostor Syndrome

      a novella by

      Melissa Treglia

      IMPOSTOR SYNDROME

      Digital release:

      1st Edition / Amazon © March 2021

      Print release:

      1st Edition / Amazon © March 2021

      Contents © 2021 Melissa Treglia.

      All rights reserved.

      Cover photography © canva.com

      Cover design by Melissa Treglia.

      This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents either are the product of the authors’ imaginations or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

      No part of this book may be reproduced or used in any manner without written permission of the copyright holders, except for use of quotations in a book review.

      Purchase or sale of this book is permitted through Smashwords Inc., Amazon.com, and their appointed distributors only. If you suspect that you have received this book through an unauthorized seller, please contact the publisher at [email protected] to resolve the issue.

      ISBN 979-8700985062

      ASIN B08RS9MV7Y

      For my therapist Brianna,

      who has been helping me deal

      with my own monsters,

      and to all the other unsung heroes

      who pulled me back from the brink.

      A simple thank you

      doesn't feel like nearly enough…

      but thank you.

      ALSO BY MELISSA TREGLIA

      Apocryphal Musings

      THE PUREBLOOD ARCHIVES

      (with Nicole Harvelle)

      #1 Griffin Unbowed

      "Two possibilities exist:

      Either we are alone in the universe or we are not.

      Both are equally terrifying."

      - Arthur C. Clarke

      Chapter 1

      The surface of the planet seemed empty of life, a barren empty rock devoid of oxygen – the planet having once been the victim of a magnetosphere gone astray. The stars held their pinpoint gaze without blinking, as Brianna Dawson descended into this biospheric crypt that was the deep cavern. She gently but securely clasped the line in her hand as she was lowered; the reduced gravity on this planet didn't make falling from a great height any less painful... or any less likely to be fatal. She felt a quiver of nerves shoot up through her spine, the breath she exhaled to keep calm briefly fogging up her helmet's visor as her descent continued.

      Even though she trusted her partner, fellow astronaut Daniel Hainsley, she couldn't help but feel like she was walking through a graveyard. She'd been exploring the surface of this planet with him for three days now, and there had been no signs of possible flora or fauna, beyond the faint traces of petrified bacterium that had burrowed into sediment solidified by the combination of below-freezing temperatures and the unforgiving erosion of the sandstorms that buffeted the planet. The surface of this planet was completely empty. Hopefully, the little crevices within concealed more promise.

      Being here, on this abandoned rock in the Sirius system was as alien as one could expect, yet also achingly familiar to the homesick and enervated explorer. As Brianna continued to descend down through the cavern, she found herself musing how this unnamed planet was almost like Mars. A Martian type planet tidal-locked around the white dwarf of Sirius B, and covered with black dust that could provide a grim complement to Mars' volatile red. A dark twin to the god of war.

      She breathed a sigh of relief when her feet finally touched solid ground once again. Feeling herself begin to relax, now that she no longer had so far to fall, she flicked on her headlamp and scanned it along the area.

      And she gave an exultant shout that echoed through the microphone in her helmet.

      Dan! We hit pay dirt! Brianna crowed. There's signs of life down here!

      Are you serious?! His tone was, understandably, a combination of disbelieving and thrilled beyond measure. Finally, they had made a real discovery! There's actually something kicking around on this oversized charcoal briquette?

      Well, it's not kicking, really. Doesn't look like it can go anywhere, she said, examining her find. Indeed, the thing seemed rooted to the spot, though its limbs swayed gently as its limbs climbed, not unlike a vine of ivy on Earth enjoying a gentle breeze. She found its subtle little movements to be strange and yet beautiful.

      Can you get a sample?

      I'm gonna see if I can find a little guy we can take home. I don't want to damage this big fella, she replied. And there, as if a gift from the gods to wayward space-travelers, was a smaller alien vine plant. This one was just like its much larger brother, but it having fewer limbs made her able to see it in greater detail. It had a mouth like a Venus flytrap, which was open and displaying its thin needles, as it waited for any cave-dwelling insectoid or vermin unlucky enough to wander nearby.

      She smiled. Come here, you. But keep those little teeth to yourself. With that, she pulled a clear sample jar from her bag, then gently dropped the open container on top of it, to keep it from potentially striking at her out of some alien predator-plant instinct, before she began gently digging in the ground to locate its roots. When she finally located the roots, she tenderly dug this flora – or was it fauna? – up, making sure not to sever any of those needed connections as she did so. She grinned to herself, as she sealed it snugly in the jar. All

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