Unknown Earth Volume 2 (eBook)

Frank Wallace (Autor)

eBook Download: EPUB

2018 | 1. Auflage
200 Seiten
Bookbaby (Verlag)
978-1-5439-4580-5 (ISBN)

Infos

Follow the ongoing adventures of Nemmy Le Beau and the motley crew of the ISF Boomslang, at the rough edges of the Human Imperium!

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Nemmy's first 6 months in command of the ISF Boomslang haven't been easy. They aren't going to get any easier. Having only just escaped from the secret installation, she faces an array of problems. People are still being assassinated and now her father, the Sector Regent Rayne Le Beau, has taken a personal interest in matters. Relationships with her crew are ever shifting, with some surprising revelations to come. Her mother's political machinations are never-ending, particularly with the Summit between the Confederation President and His Most Glorious Majesty, the Emperor, on the horizon. Andres Orion's Swinefleet grows in power and influence, and the Space Force might not be strong enough to stop them. But worst of all, what appears to be a simple search and rescue mission leads to a terrifying discovery that may threaten not only the entire Human Imperium but perhaps the survival of humanity itself.

Textauszug

Repercussions

“They’ll be alright, won’t they?” Nemmy asks. On the viewspace, Callendra responds with a tilted nod.

“I’m certain. Sedatives will keep them calm until I can have a medical professional look them over. But they weren’t in long enough for permanent damage. I’ll take them somewhere safe” she replies in that controlled, soothing voice of hers. Both Kenji and the Fren had struggled during the escape from the station, alternating between sobs, seizures, and unconsciousness. Despite Callendra’s reassurances, the trip back to the Boomslang had been harrowing for Nemmy.

Not least due to fretting over the tiny detail of committing treason against the Imperium.

“Thanks for your help Callendra. If I can repay you-“

“There is no need” Callendra cuts her off. “You have helped me more than you realise. If anything, I should repay you and I shall. I’m aware that another ship is approaching, so I must depart. Until next time” she says, with the faintest hint of a smile. As the comm link ends, Nemmy checks her console to confirm the arrival of another ship. She notices as she does that, that Amira is not in her chair. In fact, she hasn’t seen the Major since she got back on board. Her console quickly confirms another ship is indeed approaching rapidly. Non-ISF but transmitting Imperial codes. A Regency carrier…

“Oh God, what now?” she moans to herself. She stands up, giving her tensed up muscles a much-needed stretch.

“Emily, can you confirm the identity of the approaching ship?” she says loudly. The young Shipmate whirs round after a quick check of her own console.

“Yes, Captain, it’s a Regency ship, the Unbending Light. If I’m not mistaken, that is-“

“I know. My father’s ship” Nemmy said, rolling her eyes. Sector Regent Rayne Le Beau. The man in charge of everything that her mother wasn’t. The civilian authorities were in theory more powerful, having larger organisations with more involvement in daily life. But in practice, the Imperial Space Force is the primary focus of Imperial activity, hoovering up vast amounts of public money. Still, Sector Regents command profound influence in society, even amongst the military branches. Clearly, something important was afoot if her father has left his plush office to travel all the way out here. Nemmy checks her console again. Callendra’s ship has already departed, and the Unbending Light had not changed course to follow or even initiated any kind of scan. She relaxes a little. Whatever they are here for, it’s not related to that secret station. Probably.

“Captain, they are requesting communication,” Emily says. Nemmy takes a breath before activating the viewspace. The distinctly elaborate bridge of the civilian ship fills the screen, vibrant colours, and decorative fixtures all around, and in the centre of the wide circle of chairs and consoles, sits the finely dressed and well-tanned Sector Regent.

“Hello, father. How are you?” Nemmy asks. Rayne smiles, a lopsided grin on his long, thin face.

“Nemantha, my princess! It’s been far too long. How are you enjoying your first ship?” He responds.

“Uh…it’s…interesting” she replies with more than a little embarrassment. Someone on the bridge chuckles at her response. Best avoid any more issues and just get straight to the point, she reasons. “How can we help you?” she asks.

“I’ve arranged an Extraordinary Regency Assembly, and I’d like you to attend. Come aboard when you are ready” he states, his mood instantly serious. Before she can say anything, he cuts the comm link. Her concerns return as quickly as they had left. ISF officers aren’t supposed to be involved in higher level Regency operations at all. As Nemmy heads for the door, she wonders if her mother is aware of this situation, then immediately gives herself an amused rebuke. Of course, she is.

Nemmy arrives at the shuttle bay expecting to find it swarming with the activity that often happens after a docking event. But it’s eerily quiet. Most of the lights are off. She creeps forward, trying in vain to spot movement.

“Hello?” she squeaks.

“Who’s there?” comes a sharp voice. Nemmy follows the sound, to one of the shuttle nooks. She wraps a shaking hand around the grip of her pistol as she peeks around the corner. She releases the breath she had been holding when she sees Amira hunched over a console.

“Oh, it’s you. Why are you in the dark?” Nemmy questions her. Amira reluctantly tears herself away from the console.

“No reason. I was…I was just doing something”

“Are you ok? Can I help you with some-“

“No! I mean. I’m fine. I just need some time to work on something,” Amira gasps. Her voice wavers slightly. Nemmy finds her behaviour deeply confusing, but with Amira, it’s best to let her be.

“Ok. Well if you want help, just ask. I need one of the shuttles” she offers. Amira grunts and waves an arm, which Nemmy takes as approval. She doesn’t want to bother Angela with this one. It’s only a short jaunt across to the other ship, after all. She enters one of the small shuttles and goes through the pre-flight process as quickly as she can. Angela had explained the process a few times, but she always breezes through it. Might as well practice when there’s no chance of crashing into anything. Or little chance, at least.

She gingerly takes the shuttle out, towards the Unbending Light. The civilian authority ships tend towards sheer white colouring as opposed to the green and white mix of the ISF. Compared to the more austere look of the military vessels, these ships also leaned towards the artistic, almost impractical designs. Nemmy has to admit that the brilliant white curves are attractive to the eye as she approaches the shuttle bay. But she prefers her own ship. She chuckles to herself as she slowly passed through the shuttle bay doors. When she first saw the Boomslang, it looked to be nothing more than a floating pile of scrap. Now every ship pales in comparison.

She manages to land the shuttle with a slightly uncomfortable thud. Stepping outside, she finds her father is already waiting for her. Not quite as tall as her mother, but still an impressive height, and considerably more pleasant in manner.

“You know that you can have someone do that for you, yes?” he jokes.

“I like to practice” she replies with a smile. They share a mildly awkward hug before he leads her out of the shuttle bay. They pass a pair of Imperial Police Force constables, operating as ship security.

“So why am I here, dad?” Nemmy eventually asks, as they turn a corner and head towards a swooping, ornate doorway.

“We have serious issues to talk about. Don’t worry my darling, you’ll always be safe though” he says with a not so reassuring pat on her shoulder. They march through the doorway into a conference room. A large grey-shaded oval table dominates the otherwise bland room. Looking around, Nemmy doesn’t know anyone else here, but the pristine white uniforms are instantly recognisable. At least two dozen Regents are in the room, each in charge of their own star system. Everyone is dressed the same, except for two individuals, a man, and a woman, standing at the back of the room. Nemmy doesn’t recognise their blue uniforms, but they carry Imperial insignia. Her father directs her to a seat before taking his own, drawing the attention of everyone with a soft clap. The mild chatter dies down as the area outside the table darkens.

“Now that we are all here, let’s begin,” he says, revealing a datapad and inputting some instructions. Screens rise in front of everyone from the table, scrolling a list of names. Nemmy immediately recognises this list.

“As you know, we have located several instances of these hit-lists. In each case, it was during a failed attack on one or more of the individuals on the list. Retrospectively, we’ve been able to confirm the deaths of some individuals on these lists that previously had been recorded as accidents”

Murmurs fill the room. Nemmy had no idea that other people had been killed. This problem is more extensive than she thought.

“I’ve brought you here as you are all on the list. As well as Captain Le Beau here, who can also provide a military view of the issue” Rayne continued.

“They obviously aren’t doing anything if people are being killed” one of the Regents snaps, drawing a few agreeable mutters.

“Captain, do you have anything to contribute before we go on?” another one asks, causing everyone to focus on Nemmy. She caught herself for a moment. She did know about the ISF researching the attacks, and indeed the weapons the assailants had used. But there was no way to elaborate without revealing her actions with Callendra. She can already feel her cheeks flushing as everyone glares at her. She has to offer something.

“Uh…There are people looking into it, not me personally. The ship we discovered was recovered, or the wreckage was and taken to a…research location as far...

Produkt-Details

• Erscheint lt. Verlag: 27.8.2018
• Sprache: englisch
• Themenwelt: Literatur ► Fantasy / Science Fiction ► Science Fiction
• ISBN-10: 1-5439-4580-5 / 1543945805
• ISBN-13: 978-1-5439-4580-5 / 9781543945805