{"id":11494,"date":"2017-10-10T10:00:00","date_gmt":"2017-10-10T15:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.onelowerlight.com\/writing\/?p=11494"},"modified":"2017-10-10T08:16:22","modified_gmt":"2017-10-10T13:16:22","slug":"wip-excerpt-patriots-in-retreat-3","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.onelowerlight.com\/writing\/wip-excerpt-patriots-in-retreat-3\/","title":{"rendered":"WIP excerpt: Patriots in Retreat"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"I finished the 2.0 draft of\u00a0Patriots in Retreat<\/strong> (Book 6 of\u00a0Sons of the Starfarers<\/strong>) yesterday, and it’s turning out a lot better than I expected. The next step is to send it off to my editor, and if all goes well, we should have it up for preorder by November. I’m definitely excited to get it out!<\/p>\n

In the meantime, here’s an excerpt. Enjoy!<\/p>\n

\n

Ayesha wasn\u2019t sure what to expect as she boarded the Starflight II.<\/em> For that reason, she activated her pocket AI before she stepped into the airlock.<\/p>\n

Calculating threat level,<\/em> the pocket AI whispered silently in the back of her mind. A stream of data appeared on the edge of her vision, giving her a rundown of the ship she was about to board. She touched her right thumb to her middle finger, and the text disappeared, though the targeting display in the center of her vision did not.<\/p>\n

Though she was careful not to show it, her mood always soured at these subtle reminders of her lack of humanity. She was a cyborg, a human with enough cybernetic implants to no longer legally qualify as a person. Most of her implants were hidden from sight; her long black hair hid the neural jacks in the back of her neck, and her eye implants were disguised with cosmetic surgery. Still, they were always with her\u2014as well as the memories of her life before she\u2019d received them.<\/p>\n

Prepare for high functioning mode,<\/em> she ordered as her fingers flew over the airlock control panel. Her energy pistol was holstered and uncharged, but the laser-blade in her boot was ready to be drawn at a moment\u2019s notice.<\/p>\n

Time slowed as the door hissed open. Hyper-awareness flooded her senses as stepped onto the ship. A short corridor led to a standard cabin: wall compartments, double bunk built into the bulkheads, retractable table with a holoscreen surface, and a small corner alcove with a food synthesizer and kitchenette. A door on one side led to what she presumed was the bathroom, while a narrow doorway led to the starship\u2019s cockpit.<\/p>\n

The place had a peculiar musky smell, like faded sweat in an old shirt that has been recently cleaned. It was not unpleasant. The hum of the ship\u2019s ventilation system was soft enough that she probably wouldn\u2019t have noticed it if she weren\u2019t in high-functioning mode. The air was comfortably warm, and surprisingly fresh for a ship of such small size. Though the wall compartments were all closed and the floor was clutter-free, the bed was unmade, revealing velvet bedsheets that were remarkably smooth.<\/p>\n

Sweat began to pool in the back of Ayesha\u2019s neck, so she stood down from high functioning mode and returned her metabolism to normal. It was clear enough that she wasn\u2019t in immediate danger.<\/p>\n

She found Samson in the cockpit, making preparations to leave. While he was distracted, she slipped into the copilot seat beside him. If her presence on the ship unsettled him, he made no visible sign of it.<\/p>\n

\u201cIs this the way you always greet your guests?\u201d she asked, crossing her slender legs.<\/p>\n

\u201cI hope you\u2019ll forgive me if I\u2019m a bit pre-occupied,\u201d he said, his eyes never leaving the ship\u2019s holoscreen displays. \u201cGetting out of this sector is a rather high priority at the moment.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhy is that?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cCats don\u2019t play well with wolves. Hang on.\u201d<\/p>\n

The floor shuddered, and a deep metallic clang told her that they had undocked from the Starfall.<\/em> Moments later, the bulkheads began to hum, and a growing sense of nausea told her that they were about to make a jump. She closed her eyes and used her cybernetic implants to induce a meditative state that dulled the disorientation of jumpspace. The moment they were through, she opened her eyes and assessed the situation.<\/p>\n

No sign of Outworld warships,<\/em> she observed as she looked out the forward cockpit window. He hasn\u2019t betrayed me\u2014yet.<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cYou can relax,\u201d he said as he powered down the engine. \u201cI don\u2019t know the location of the Confederate fleet, and even if I did, I wouldn\u2019t turn you in.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ayesha bristled a little at how easily he had read her. She sat back in her chair and affected nonchalance.<\/p>\n

\u201cAn interesting choice of metaphor. Some would say that the Outworlders are the true wolves.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWolves are pack animals by nature, and highly territorial. Outworlders are more like cats: untameable, independent, and free.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBut ultimately leaderless.\u201d<\/p>\n

He glanced at her sideways. \u201cYes, there is that. Too many housecats and not enough lions.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cDo you consider yourself a lion?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cFar from it. All the lions have enlisted by now. I\u2019m more of a stray.\u201d<\/p>\n

Though his body language was casual, she detected a subtle yearning in his voice. But there was also something he was careful to keep hidden from her. That didn\u2019t surprise her, considering the circumstances. But if Admiral Orion expected her to hold Samson at gunpoint for the duration of her mission, he had no appreciation of her finesse.<\/p>\n

She rose to her feet and stood in the doorway, facing the cabin. \u201cI take it you\u2019re rarely alone on these voyages.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cDid the second bunk give it away?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt looks like you only use it for storage.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI generally do.\u201d<\/p>\n

She smirked. \u201cThis isn\u2019t the first time you\u2019ve been in bed with the enemy, I take it.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhy should I think you\u2019re my enemy?\u201d<\/p>\n

His question made her turn. If he noticed her reaction, though, he made no sign of it.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve only seen a lion once,\u201d she said, more to cover for herself than anything else. \u201cIt was in a zoo on the capital world, Gaia Nova. Magnificent beasts, but they\u2019re horrendously expensive to maintain.\u201d<\/p>\n

Samson grunted. \u201cThat\u2019s only because their homeworld no longer exists. On Earth, they lived in the wild.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou still believe the myth about a place called Earth?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cDon\u2019t you?\u201d<\/p>\n

She shrugged. \u201cI suppose such a world could have existed. More likely, Gaia Nova was our homeworld, but the ancients turned it to a desert and recolonized it during the Earthseeding.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cInteresting theory. I haven\u2019t heard that one before.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cTheories bore me,\u201d she said, running her fingers along the back of his chair. \u201cAnd lions belong in captivity, not the wild.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s why I\u2019m more of a stray.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI assure you, I\u2019m more than capable of keeping a stray like you under control.\u201d<\/p>\n

He glanced at her and smirked. \u201cAnd what makes you think that?\u201d<\/p>\n

She parted her hair and showed him her neural jack. He nodded, duly impressed. Then, to her dismay, his smirk turned to a smile.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou remind me of a girl I gave passage to the Nova Minitak system. She was a cyborg not unlike yourself, and also just as gorgeous.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ayesha scowled. \u201cThe thorns on this rose are sharp.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOf that, I have no doubt. And it\u2019s not my intention to pick you.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThen what are your intentions?\u201d<\/p>\n

He rose to his feet and stood just close enough to be uncomfortable. She fingered the laser-blade hidden in her smartskirt.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019re not one of them.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOf who?\u201d she asked, frowning.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou know. The Imperials. They haven\u2019t tamed you yet.\u201d<\/p>\n

Their eyes locked, neither of them yielding. Samson didn\u2019t realize it, but their little game of words had crossed a line. She rolled up her left sleeve, revealing her tattoo of the double-headed eagle of the Gaian Empire. In its talons, it held two planets: one, the old Earth of legend, the other the dome-covered world of Gaia Nova.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou are wrong. Long live the Emperor!\u201d<\/p>\n

He said nothing, but continued to smile. She rolled her sleeve down and folded her arms.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou will work with us to defeat this Outworld Confederacy. Then, when the New Pleiades are fully pacified, you will be free to do as you please.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAs free as you? Branded into a life of Imperial service?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t know what you\u2019re talking about,\u201d she lied.<\/p>\n

He leaned forward ever so slightly, as if expecting either a kiss or a slap. Perhaps both.<\/p>\n

\u201cMake yourself comfortable, Ayesha Bint Hasan Al-Hasani. You\u2019re my guest, not my enemy.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

I finished the 2.0 draft of\u00a0Patriots in Retreat (Book 6 of\u00a0Sons of the Starfarers) yesterday, and it’s turning out a lot better than I expected. The next step is to send it off to my editor, and if all goes well, we should have it up for preorder by November. I’m definitely excited to get… Continue reading WIP excerpt: Patriots in Retreat<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[1019,855],"tags":[474,985],"class_list":["post-11494","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-ssf-vi","category-ssf","tag-excerpts","tag-wips","entry"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p7iXK-2Zo","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.onelowerlight.com\/writing\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11494","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.onelowerlight.com\/writing\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.onelowerlight.com\/writing\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onelowerlight.com\/writing\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onelowerlight.com\/writing\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=11494"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.onelowerlight.com\/writing\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11494\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":11495,"href":"https:\/\/www.onelowerlight.com\/writing\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11494\/revisions\/11495"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.onelowerlight.com\/writing\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=11494"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onelowerlight.com\/writing\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=11494"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onelowerlight.com\/writing\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=11494"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}