“I’m sorry,” Thyllia said, yawning. “We aren’t being the best hosts.” Vwokhu smiled as she set down the main course. “Nonsense, dear, you are a new mother. Namø did not sleep for…how long was it, Akwe?” “Sixteen years,” Akwe said, dryly. “Parenthood is wonderful, but do not expect to get a full night of sleep …
Author: D.X. Machina
Interlude: 1848 MA Titan: Birthright by D.X. Machina and Johnnyscribe
“The attack on Utgarlthar has left almost ten thousand dead. And though it’s hard to say that this is worse…it’s disrupted the processing of ore from the mines around Vaehash Aegdrasal.” “Oaibi Ukkoson, how badly will this set us back?” the Dronung asked, fearing she already knew the answer. The officer’s countenance told her, to …
Chapter Twenty-One: Lines of Descent Titan: Birthright by D.X. Machina and Johnnyscribe
As the shuttle descended, Rixie could not help but feel a sense of déjà vu. It had been just over a month ago that she’d taken a shuttle ride to a memorial reception for a member of the Ten Noble Families. Granted, that time she’d been heading for the palace instead of the Umbas estate, …
Chapter Twenty: Somewhere Down the Line Titan: Birthright by D.X. Machina and Johnnyscribe
“We have too many friends,” Alex said, thumbing through his pad on the armrest of the sofa. “Why do you say that?” Rixie asked, as she lounged on the couch, frowning as she read through her fifth attempt at Iron Maiden’s speech for the upcoming Tol-Bot banquet. “Really, it’s just the Archer-Dande-Kramer-Mavoy-Prias. Another wedding invitation …
Chapter Nineteen: The Receiving Line Titan: Birthright by D.X. Machina and Johnnyscribe
The autoshuttle cut through a driving rain – well, to the Titans it appeared more like a driving mist, but that’s merely a question of scale – as it banked toward the Palace of the Three Shaars. The usual protocol would have been to have the reception on Rimne, in the Sjedi family estate. But …
Chapter Eighteen: Next in Line Titan: Birthright by D.X. Machina and Johnnyscribe
Once more, Kullervo Throden had been summoned to the Palace of the Three Shaars. This would be about Tursas. What a terrible shock that had been. He was a good man, Lord Sjedi, a good person. More than that, he had been Kullervo’s big cousin, and once Kullervo had settled down and stopped being a …
Chapter Seventeen: I Walk the Line Titan: Birthright by D.X. Machina and Johnnyscribe
Rajenlif walked out of the secure comms room of the ISS Bay of Tuaut and turned to her husband. “We need to return to Jutuneim,” she said. “It’s urgent.” It was a testament to Tiernan’s trust in his wife that before asking any questions, he pushed a button on his desk. “Yes, sovereign?” a voice …
Chapter Sixteen: Cancel Half a Line Titan: Birthright by D.X. Machina and Johnnyscribe
Two Imperial weeks later, Rajenlif was getting ready to leave. It was always bittersweet, getting ready to leave Naesavarna; Rajenlif had long ago come to think of it and Tuaut as co-equal homes, but Naesavarna was always first among the equals, even if the time spent there was somewhat less than that spent in Tuaut. …
Interlude: 2093 MA Titan: Birthright by D.X. Machina and Johnnyscribe
The ISS Gyfjon was finishing a lazy turn at Jupiter, continuing its patrol of the Earth Restriction Zone; there was nothing much to report, other than one of those weird flashes of gamma radiation from Earth. These had worried the military brass when they were first sighted a few years back, but there didn’t appear …
Chapter Fifteen: A Very, Very, Very Fine House Titan: Birthright by D.X. Machina and Johnnyscribe
There were many reasons that Rixie was grateful for the fate that had brought Alex into her life; his ability to talk to anyone about anything was high on the list. It wasn’t that Rixie wasn’t a skilled conversationalist, she was. Even if she hadn’t spent the last Imperial quarter-century working as a consigliere to …