Zhalem trepidatiously opened the door to the ornate office. She didn’t want to. She had to. What made it worse…he would understand that she had to. She hated that he would be understanding. It wasn’t fair. “Your Imperial Majesty,” she said, quietly, “we have received word from Gama Fleet. The…they….” “Antero is missing. I know, …

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Four Imperial Days Later Jolu Ikno stumbled toward the cavern, hoping it wasn’t delirium that led him there. He was the last one. Of the twenty-one who’d gone into drift, four had deserted, six had been killed by something along the way (pick your poison – falling into a crevasse, being bit by a poisonous …

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Alex stared across the crowded room as people, as his family, waited for any sort of news on the unfolding events that would affect them all, regardless of the outcome. He watched as his daughter played with the twins, who were a few years older but not so much older that they didn’t want Asteria …

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Six-and-a-Half Imperial Days Before the Battle of Tau Ceti…. “We need to kill Khora Perol,” Scylane said, pacing. “I thought we needed to kill Palsa Temis,” his top lieutenant, Abrylyar Kurusu, said. “We need to kill him too,” Rimosi said. “And what about those outside agitators?” another officer said. “We have a lot of people …

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Two days after the secession of the Federation…. Baeus Thalo felt bad for the men and women running for their lives toward the untamed wastes of Kembror, phase cannon fire scouring the ground at their heels. “Wing two, targets are heading into drift. Keep firing behind them until they’re beyond marker ten.” “Yes, ma’am.” She …

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Mikkael Uksahkka stood in front of the board of investors with sweat dripping from his brow, his stiff collar felt extra tight, and his knees like they were going to buckle. He rested a hand on the table, and with all the gumption he could muster he leaned forward and narrowed his eyes. “The political …

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“…And so by reverse engineering the virus designed to target Titans, but not humans, we were able to synthesize a vaccine to counter-act the related plague that was designed to affect humans but not Titans. Are there any questions?” Dr. Nick Archer was currently in Melbourne, Australia in order to give a lecture on the …

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Alex was treading lightly. Asteria was asleep, and while he was small enough that waking her was unlikely, he was taking no chances. He loved his daughter as fiercely as he loved his wife and his son, both of whom he worried about. Rixie was away on some mission with Vanser that almost had to …

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“Something wrong, my dear?” Pryvani looked up from gazing out the window of her office to find Zhan standing on her desk by her wrist. She smiled softly and shrugged. “Nothing really,” She sighed and shook her head. “I’m just pondering what it is I’m supposed to do now.” “I don’t follow.” Zhan replied as …

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This covers the Tol-Bot competition of 2102, the year Iron Maiden retired, and The Marionette reached his first final. Rixie cursed as the door buzzed for the second time. “Alex, can you get that?” she called, finally winning the battle to close her pack. “I’m the size of your thumb,” he reminded her. “Right. Well, …

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