The epherium chronicles.., p.1
The Epherium Chronicles: Echoes, page 1
The Epherium Chronicles: Echoes
By T.D. Wilson
Book three of The Epherium Chronicles
The battle for Cygni colony may be over, but for Captain James Hood and the crew of the EDF Armstrong, the battle for humanity’s future has just begun. Hood’s defense of the remote outpost against the Cilik’ti aliens was magnificent, but without the timely help of an unlikely ally—a splinter tribe of humanity’s bitter enemies—the colony would have been lost and the Armstrong destroyed.
An uneasy peace has prevailed ever since. But as the humans prepare for a crucial meeting, a desperately needed Earth supply convoy is attacked under mysterious circumstances, with the lead escort cruiser’s captain disappearing even more mysteriously.
The fate of all of Earth’s new colonies hangs in the balance, and Hood is charged with protecting them against growing threats from all sides. When rebellion and unrest challenge the very leadership of the Earth Defense Forces, Hood may need to go it alone…and make the ultimate sacrifice.
71,664 words
Dear Reader,
This month I’d like to take a moment to thank all of you who read, review and recommend. Word of mouth is so critical to the success of a book, and we so appreciate not just those of you who write reviews on retailers, review sites, and your personal blogs, but also those who have a love of talking books, as I do, and recommend the things you enjoy to friends, family and fellow readers in conversation, on social media, and at parent/teacher conferences (yes, I’ve done this!). Thank you, you help us grow and thrive!
Speaking of books to review and recommend, I hope you find something in this month’s lineup that inspires you. First, we’re pleased to introduce two debut authors. In Time Served by Julianna Keyes, eight years in prison have left Dean insatiable, and a decade apart isn’t enough to stop Rachel from surrendering any way he asks. Don’t miss this sexy contemporary romance debut!
For those who have longed for something different in historical romance, Pamela Cayne delivers in The Fighter and the Fallen Woman. In Victorian London, Lady and King, a prostitute and a street fighter, are kindred souls, each trapped in their own hells. Both owned by a ruthless businessman, they have no chance at love if they don’t first risk death.
Also new to Carina Press this month is a brand new male/male space romance series from author duo Jenn Burke and Kelly Jensen set aboard a Firefly-esque freighter, following a cast of misfit super-soldiers who have been through intergalactic hell and offering up a delicious and unexpected reunion romance. Don’t miss the first book in the Chaos Station series!
For those who love revisiting favorite authors, HelenKay Dimon’s Chain of Command is available this month. Special ops Marine Sawyer Cain is ready for civilian life, trading danger for more stability by opening a gun range with his friends, but first he needs the land and that means going through Hailey Thorne…and nothing prepares him for her.
A drunken kiss between an out gay man and his supposedly straight best friend awakens long-repressed feelings that neither man is able to ignore in fan favorite A.M. Arthur’s Getting It Right.
Proving that all good things come to an end, we’re sad to say farewell to urban fantasy series Monster Haven from R.L. Naquin. In Phoenix in My Fortune, Zoey must stop the terrifying Shadow Man from breaking the ancient Human/Hidden Covenant and taking away all the Hidden in our world forever—including Zoey’s family.
Hunted by a killer, Layna Blair knows trust isn’t a mistake she can afford, but the six-foot-four Marine makes her an irresistible offer—her freedom, his rules, no questions asked in Impossible Promise by Sybil Bartel.
Author Kate Willoughby delivers another sizzling contemporary romance in Out of the Game. Alex Sullivan may be the San Diego Barracudas’ resident playboy, but he’s never forgotten his kiss with Claire Marzano. When he sees her again at a teammate’s wedding, he can’t think of anything but spending more time with her. Preferably naked.
Last, we wrap up two science fiction trilogies this month. In The Epherium Chronicles: Echoes by T.D. Wilson, Captain James Hood and his ship, the Armstrong, survived the battle of Cygni, but the victory at the new colony puts humanity in more danger both in space and on Earth.
And from Timothy S. Johnston’s science fiction mystery series the Tanner Sequence, described as Agatha Christie meets Michael Crichton, Homicide Investigator Kyle Tanner is on an emotional journey as he hunts killers in a society plagued by violence and brutality. Stranded on a disabled vessel with a hostile crew that includes at least one serial killer, he must rely on the love of a remarkable woman in order to decipher the clues and solve the mystery in The Void.
Coming in April 2015: a hot erotic romance, two new debut authors and the launch of a new male/male new adult trilogy.
Here’s wishing you a wonderful month of books you love, remember and recommend.
Happy reading!
~Angela James
Editorial Director, Carina Press
Dedication
For my boys, who enjoy strange new worlds and admiring the stars as much as I do. And to Neil Armstrong, a man who never wanted to be called a hero, but inspired us to reach for the stars.
Dramatis Personae
James Hood, Captain, EDF Armstrong
Rafael Sanchez, Commander, Executive Officer, EDF Armstrong
Maya Greywalker, Lieutenant, Chief Security Officer, EDF Armstrong
Sienna Aldridge, Lieutenant, Tactical Officer, EDF Armstrong
Juanita Wells, Lieutenant, Communications Officer, EDF Armstrong
Arlen McGregor, Major, EDF Marine Corp
Terrance Whitaker, Chief Engineer, EDF Armstrong
Dr. Derik Patton, Chief Medical Officer, EDF Armstrong
Harrison “Wolfhound” Krieg, Lieutenant, Fighter Pilot, EDF Armstrong
Emma “Reaper” Thielson, Ensign First Class, Fighter Pilot, EDF Armstrong
Alex Toronaga, Sergeant, EDF Marine Corp
Harlan “Priest” Jarvis, Sergeant, EDF Marine Corp
Henry McCraken, Epherium Corporation
Jonathan Hood, Commander, EEF Magellan
Gina Hood, Researcher, EEF Magellan
Jillian Howard, Lt. Commander, EEF Magellan
Russell Tramp, Fleet Admiral, EDF Space Forces
Jared Martin, Petty Officer, EDF Armstrong
Kadin Greywalker, Lieutenant Commander, Fighter Pilot, EDF Armstrong
Raven, Lieutenant, Fighter Pilot, EDF Armstrong
Alistair Beckett, Colonel, EDF Intelligence
Arthur Grange, Commander, EEF Cabot
Emma Gracen, Researcher, EEF Cabot
Lester Styles, Captain, EDF Cestus
Isaac Turnbow, Lieutenant Commander, EDF Cestus
Cilik’ti:
Kree, Worker, Ota N’lan
Ut’liss, Chief Elder, Hal’ta N’lan
Contents
Chapter_One
Chapter_Two
Chapter_Three
Chapter_Four
Chapter_Five
Chapter_Six
Chapter_Seven
Chapter_Eight
Chapter_Nine
Chapter_Ten
Chapter_Eleven
Chapter_Twelve
Chapter_Thirteen
Chapter_Fourteen
Chapter_Fifteen
Chapter_Sixteen
Chapter_Seventeen
Chapter_Eighteen
Chapter_Nineteen
Chapter_Twenty
Chapter One
EDF Supply Convoy
Deep Space Route to Cygni
Friday, February 21
Earth Year 2155
Two sleek Stingray fighters sliced through the expansive darkness and banked cautiously around the outermost transport of the supply convoy. In the deep, cold blackness of space, the scattered lights of the convoy offered little to pierce the darkness. Not even the Cygni star, still over a light-year away, offered much illumination.
The pilots of the fighters eased their crafts through the rest of the bulky and unarmed transports. Aided by the dim light offered by the ships, the veteran pilots surveyed each vessel for signs of damage from their long journey, while the convoy escorts’ scanners probed the bleak and endless expanse around them for hostiles.
After completing their sweep, the two fighters approached the lead ship of the convoy, a warship bristling with weapons and emblazoned with the name Cestus. The Earth Defense Force Chimera Class cruisers, like the Cestus, weren’t as large as the new Akita Dreadnaughts, but they could hold their own in a fight. And in this convoy, the Cestus wasn’t alone. Flanking the convoy of eight transports bound for the new Cygni colony were three other cruisers, each with their full complement of fighters.
Aboard the Cestus, Captain Lester Styles studied the readiness readouts from the other vessels. It had taken his small convoy almost two weeks to get this far from Earth. The Cestus, with its more advanced space-fold drive
The transports’ situation added to the list of Captain Styles’s concerns. During the entire mission, he’d been on edge, and it was obvious to him that his crew had noticed the change in his demeanor. EDF Command had labeled the transports’ valuable cargo as essential to the growth and defense of Earth’s new colony. The captain of the Cestus knew what the transports carried. He also knew what it would mean if they didn’t reach Cygni. Despite the additional travel time, Styles was determined to deliver their cargo intact.
EDF Command wasn’t taking any chances with the success of this new colony. This convoy was the second fleet of ships to make the journey since Captain James Hood, Styles’s longtime friend and former academy bunkmate, had paved the way three weeks earlier with his ship, the Armstrong.
Styles admired his old friend. He’d been ecstatic the day he’d heard the news of Hood’s posting on the newest Dreadnaught. When the original Dreadnaught, the Akita, was first commissioned, Styles often wondered what it would be like to sit in command of one of those powerful vessels. The sheer size of the new ships was incredible.
The EDF had needed a ship like the Akita Class Dreadnaughts for years. Styles knew it took a special type of leader to grasp the reins of a ship like that. When the EDF brass came to interview him for the Armstrong’s post, Styles gave them a polite rejection. But he made sure to nominate James Hood. There wasn’t a better captain in the entire EDF fleet, even if Hood didn’t believe it. Hood always had a true sense of humbleness. He didn’t shy away from anything, but he wasn’t brash and he certainly didn’t wear his confidence on his sleeve. So many young and passionate officers had come bursting out of the academy, fighting and clawing over anyone in their way just to get a command. They’d all wanted to take on the galaxy if need be, only to see their bright lights extinguished in an instant. But Hood saw things in a different way. Perhaps that was why he’d still been alive to assume command of the Armstrong.
Styles had once been a member of the young and foolish. Experience, a little luck and an old friend, who’d pulled his proverbial butt out of an impossible situation, had helped to realign his way of thinking. There were still plenty of young officers out there trying to prove themselves and maybe one day work up to one of the new Dreadnaughts, but Styles felt comfortable in command of one of the smaller Chimeras. Even before the latest tech upgrades, the Cestus was a powerful warship. In Styles’s mind, she was fast, efficient, compact and deadly. She was perfect in every aspect. He knew every inch of his ship and he knew his crew. But they were more than just a crew; they were family and trusted each other with their lives.
A tall, young officer walked up beside Styles and looked at the jump status screen. “Captain, the last remaining group of our fighters has been cleared to dock. Once they’re on board, we should be ready to jump,” the officer stated. “Should I inform the other ships, sir?”
With a calm finger tap on his terminal, Styles switched his station’s monitor to the external cameras near the docking bay. The last two fighters from his squadron’s patrol were already in position to dock. The bay’s gravity web ensnared the first fighter and hauled it inside with care. Styles nodded and turned to his new XO. “Very well, Mr. Turnbow, let’s get this convoy underway. Inform all commands that our final jump will commence in five minutes. Secure us for jump.”
Lieutenant Commander Isaac Turnbow had only been on the job as the new XO for the Cestus for a short three weeks, but Styles was impressed with his knowledge and leadership ability. Turnbow was young, but so had Raf Sanchez been when he’d held the post aboard the Cestus. Now, Commander Raf Sanchez was the new XO aboard the Armstrong.
For almost two years, Styles had taken Sanchez under his wing. He’d seen the man grow into a strong and capable EDF officer. When Styles had nominated him for the XO post on the Armstrong, Hood hadn’t been surprised in the least. In fact, he’d embraced the idea with wholehearted support.
After the lean, raven-haired Turnbow turned on his heel and headed to the nearby communications station to alert the other ships, Styles returned his attention to the status monitors. He accessed one of transports’ files on the screen and opened the manifest. The Tanner was a modified troop carrier, and her cargo pods were packed with Marines who undoubtedly held sour dispositions. After being cooped up in that cramped area on a dreary transport for almost two weeks, he would be too.
Styles liked ill-tempered Marines. They were good in a fight, and the EDF may well need them soon. War was coming. Even in the cold nothingness of space and light-years from Earth, Styles could taste its bitter foreboding. His contacts in EDF Command’s inner circle believed the same. He’d been briefed on the latest defensive fleet deployments. Movement of that much hardware in a rapid short order wasn’t just a show of strength. The fleets were supplied for lengthy campaigns. He’d seen the horrors of war and it wasn’t an experience he was willing to endure again. The Cestus’s captain just hoped he was wrong.
The troops his convoy was transporting were to be part of a permanent detachment for the new human colony. The remainder would serve as reinforcements for those assigned to the Armstrong. Hood’s ship had carried two full brigades of Marines to Cygni. Its mission was clear: make contact with the first of three colonies created by colony ships launched almost twenty-five years earlier by the Epherium Corporation—colony ships that had all but been forgotten until a few months ago. Once contact was made, Hood was to determine the colony’s viability and defend it until a lifeline from Earth could be established.
But Hood’s mission and the hope for new and viable colony worlds for humanity had run afoul. Earth’s old foe, an insectoid alien race known as the Cilik’ti, had discovered the Armstrong and attacked the new colony at Cygni. The attacking Cilik’ti forces had easily outnumbered the Armstrong and the colony’s Marine defenders.
Despite the odds, Earth’s forces had prevailed in the battle, but at a terrible cost. Casualties among the Cygni colonists and Marines were high, and the damage inflicted by the Cilik’ti was extensive, especially to the Armstrong. The Cilik’ti had deployed one of their mammoth mother ships to lead the assault on the colony. The huge alien vessel had seemed nearly indestructible. During the course of the battle, the powerful ship had forced Hood and the Armstrong to the brink of retreat from the colony.
Styles remembered the shock he’d felt after reading the report. A Cilik’ti mother ship had shown itself only once during the war, and it was never engaged in battle. Hood had needed a fleet to take that thing down. Command was surprised the Armstrong had lasted that long during the fight, but not Styles. If anyone could tangle with a giant like that and find a way to win, it was Hood. Of that, he was sure.
But Styles’s surprise wasn’t limited to the presence of the Cilik’ti mother ship alone. According to the report, moments before Hood was to order a retreat, a second Cilik’ti mother ship had arrived in orbit. This new Cilik’ti force had not only intervened, but defended the colony and the Armstrong from the first assault force.
In his report, Hood claimed the entire battle was an ancient Cilik’ti rite of honor, and the first group had violated it. The details of this so-called honor rite weren’t explained in the report, but now, nearly three weeks later, Hood’s saviors were acting as defenders of the colony. Talks of a new alliance with the aliens had even surfaced.
Personally, Styles thought the whole idea was a load of bunk. Where were these grandiose Cilik’ti honorable ideals when they’d been annihilating whole human outposts during the war? Millions of lives lost, and no one ever knew why? The Cilik’ti invasion had taught Earth and humanity painful lessons. The Cilik’ti were relentless, and it took everything the EDF had to finally drive them off. Despite the lack of contact with the aliens until now, most of the EDF had been on constant alert for any sign of their return. Perhaps Earth’s people may have forgotten what had happened, but for warship captains like Hood and Styles, the memories were still fresh.
