Blockade Snippet 4

Sitrep:
I just got Blockade back from Rea. I've incorporated some last minute changes from Poon and then wrapped it up and sent it to Goodlifeguide. So, the clock is ticking.

In other news, I've been trying to work on the droid now that the workbench is free. I've already messed myself up though, kicking myself over it. I'm not sure of a fix. And my CR-10 is acting up again. :P

I've tabled fixing it until I'm done with We the People.

Anyway, on to the snippet!

Still in chapter 3. On Garth:

-~~~///^\\\~~~-

Lu Chu'ng Hock, aka Rainbow 4, shook his head as he heard another complaint. "Look, Mrs. Patterson, I get it. I do. But it's not up to me or you. And I know you are upset. But I have to tell you, I'm really rather busy," he said, indicating the desk. As one of the resistance, he'd been tapped to help reform the government. His skills at leadership and business began and ended with his involvement with his family's line of restaurants though. He was feeling a bit overwhelmed by the project.

Mrs. Patterson sniffled and dabbed at her eyes with a hanky. "It's just, I had such grand plans!"

"I know," he said with a nod. "And you can still fulfill them, but it will take a bit longer to achieve them. Keep working on your goals. We're still going to get support from the Federation government to rebuild."

"We are?" she asked, looking up at him with sudden dawning hope. He tried to ignore the sight of greed in her green eyes too.

"Yes," he said with a nod. He didn't like being beholden to any government. None of the others in the government did either, but they weren't going to turn the charity down either.

"My late husband did a great job with his furniture and picture frame business …," Mrs. Patterson waved a hand.

"I bet he did. You said you are rebuilding it and looking to export?" he asked as he went and got her a cup of tea.

She nodded as he handed it to her. "Such a polite boy," she murmured, relaxing. "I'd planned to do enough business to export some of our goods. Dead Drop has plenty of trees, and I'm employing dozens of people …"

Lu nodded. That was certainly true and the main reason he's been forced to put up with the sniveling woman and get her to calm down and sort herself out.

"I was even exploring some light fixture designs. There is a lot of call for plastics and glass, but I know some contacts in the glass blowing business I can work with," she said. "But the nonsense over all the restrictions!" she waved a helpless hand, nearly spilling her tea.

"I'm sure you'll work your way through them. There are automated systems to help," he said.

"But, I thought that was where you came in?" she asked, lower lip quivering.

"I am supposed to oversee a small part of the rebuilding of businesses. I am still learning the finance side," he admitted. What he really wanted to do was to be in the military. But someone in the Federation State Department had pushed for him to be utilized on his homeworld for the time being.

He'd tried to complain, but he'd been quietly counseled to go with the flow for the moment and not make waves or future enemies.

"It's also this stupidity over incandescent lights over LEDs. And scanning? Security checks? Import and export fees?" she shook her head. "Taxes?"

He frowned. "I'm not sure about the lights," he said with a helpless shrug. The rest are a part of exporting or importing goods I believe." He pulled up the files and then nodded. "Yes. Everything has to pass through a security screening. They scan the goods. There are lists of goods that are banned."

She nodded.

"The fees are normal. We're discussing fees for our world too to help pay for the rebuilding," he said.

She blinked and pursed her lips. He could tell from her set expression she wasn't pleased over that news.

"Not a lot," he said hastily. "A half credit or less depending on the item. There are no export fees I believe, at least, not from us. And you don't have to pay import fees at ports where the goods pass through, just carriage and storage unless you go with a shipping company."

She nodded.

"Currently, we're one jump away from the frontlines, so we can't get much help from the growing Federation merchant houses. Once the front stabilizes in Garth, we'll be cleared for civilian traffic," he explained.

She nodded again.

"And, the merchant houses can help with the paperwork. You can negotiate with them through the ansible."

She frowned. "I don't like that. I don't like the idea of typing into that thing and trying to negotiate something so delicate. I mean it's so dry! So impersonal! We don't get to know each other, feel the other side out, make connections …." She shook her head.

"Well," he drawled cocking his head. "You could send someone to do the negotiating for you or if someone comes here wine and dine them here," he suggested.

She smiled brightly. "Such a devious boy," she gushed.

He chuckled at her charm.

-~~~///^\\\~~~-

Blockade Snippet 3

Here we go:

Chapter 3

Protodon

 

Brigadier General Valenko Kodiak received his movement orders to go to Dead Drop in the next convoy when his new command ship arrived. He was to be joined by an Army division as well as supporting forces. The other divisions would be invading Dead Drop. His was designated for Garth, though General Pendeckle's Second Division might join him if Dead Drop turned into a dud. "About time." He waved to his staff. "Come come! We have some planning to do."

There was a good natured groan from some of his staff.

"You have a better idea?" he rumbled. A few heads shook. "Ah good then. I need the latest intelligence extracts on Dead Drop. Set up a system to draw on them right up until we get underway. I believe there is an ansible in B-95a3 but not another until Dead Drop itself since the navy took the one down in Dd001ns."

"We're going to Dead Drop not SNHH?"

"Aye. SNHH can be bypassed, it seems the powers that be agreed with me finally on that. Dead Drop will be tricky. Garth I hear is a mess. Make sure you draw briefs on both. We may find ourselves moving on to Garth as well."

"Understood sir."

"Then let's get moving."

He frowned though. He'd gotten his command ship but the Cadre were delayed. Pity about that. He might see them catch up and pass his unit in transit or they might follow him in. Hopefully he'd get to see his old friends soon.

-~~~///^\\\~~~-

Dead Drop

 

Engineering Commodore I'r'll turned all four of her eye stalks on the planet Dead Drop below. The Horathians hadn't left her much to work with. She'd done what she could in Second Fleet's absence though. A modest orbital industry had replaced what had been scuttled. Three stations were in orbit of the planet. Satellites covered the planet and star system. Her people had just put the finishing touches on a basic repair slip. Their supply of fuel was assured by a trio of gas giant refinery platforms and a fuel depot in orbit of the gas giant. A second was currently being built in orbit of Dead Drop itself.

When the Veraxin finished processing her files she read the report on the battle once more. Garth's infrastructure had been shredded but there was still a lot left including lunar colonies. A lot of what the Horathians had rebuilt had been taken intact. There were also ships there to rebuild. She decided a move to Garth made sense, it made a better location for a naval base since it was on the front-line. There was nothing much for her to work with in Dead Drop. She got clearance from the Admiralty to change her station and put a call in to the courier that they would have a few extra passengers for their return journey.

-~~~///^\\\~~~-

First Lieutenant Salim Red read the change of station orders and then sat back heavily. So, that was it. Commodore I'r'll was abandoning Dead Drop to go to Garth and better pickings there. In a way he wished her the best of luck. Unfortunately, it left him and his command rather high and dry.

Oh, they'd still get support, and, according to a recent copy of the shipping schedule General Pendeckle and Colonels Bear and Aberdy were en route with their divisions to relieve him. The Army's Sixth and Seventh Divisions were en route as well. General Kodiak and Fourth Division were en route but they would most likely pass through Dead Drop on their way to Garth. That was good. But it meant he was all alone until the calvary turned up.

The good news was that the intel from the Neos and the Rainbow resistence cell had allowed his small scratch force of Marines to take out a lot of the organized Horathian resistance. They had some issues in the cities and towns but there were no signs of organized resistance in the hinterlands.

Of course, that was usually when all things went to hell. And, when word of the navy's pulling out got to the natives, they'd certainly have an excuse to get restless. The locals who had been won over to their side would get justifiably nervous. The supporters of the Horathians might get embolden to try something frisky.

He wrote a note to his people warning them of that. Not that they wouldn't figure it out on their own.

-~~~///^\\\~~~-

Blockade Snippet 2

Sitrep:
Up to chapter 39 in We the People.

   For those of you asking what that is, We the People is Founding of the Federation 6. It is the beginning of the Federation and the lead in to the Hyperspace War. (the follow up book)
I'm freewheeling it for the most part. Lots of threads running around, nothing has come together yet. Lots of tie-ins to short stories. I'm trying to strike a balance with them which isn't easy.

I'll do a better write up later. :)

On to the Snippet!

Chapter 2

 

Garth

 

In the 2 months since the last battle, Vice Admiral Amadeus White had done his best to consolidate his forces and resupply them as well as the forces of Fifth Fleet. The fleet train had yet to arrive, it would be another 2 months before they got to him.

They were making the best out of it though. The ship crews were even making headway on some of the easier repairs. Every warship had internal replicators, spare parts, and engineers willing to use both to set their ships right. But they were stymied by large projects. And that didn't even cover the mess of captured ships or the 4 ships from TF 2.4 that had been crippled. Their surviving crews were still being sorted out. Those that had returned to duty had been transferred to other ships in the fleet.

TF 2.4 was a shadow of it's former self. He should by rights dissolve the unit and fold them into the others but he'd backed the surviving captains insistence on staying the course. On the books 6 ships remained in the task force so it was still viable... even if only 2 ships, an Arboth and a Resolution were manned at the moment.

Fifty-six ships in the Stennis convoy had made a mess of things for him. The courier and 8 freighters had escaped. Seven of the 47 warships had survived the battle with TF 2.4. The Nimitz class carrier Stennis was currently being used as a prison barge. Several people had put in a request for the ship once proper prison facilities were erected on the ground or elsewhere.

So, 16 ships that were empty and lifeless. Six of them were still coming in to the inner star system. The rest had been placed in parking orbits together with Admiral V'r'z'll's Fifth Fleet. Four of the ships from the late Admiral Einezberg's command were what the engineers termed, 'iffy'.

TF 2.2 and TF 2.3 were sitting near the spreading wreckage from the battle at the H002 jump point, covering it while TF 2.1 continued to remain 1 AU back as a ready reserve. Eventually that spreading wreckage would be used to create defenses in the star system.

One group that wasn't with them were the Marines. He'd stripped out every Marine in Second Fleet and sent them to Fifth Fleet and the planet. They'd switched off control duties on Stennis with a selection of MPs from both fleets as well. MPs were handling some of the guard duties on some of the colonies as well.

He rubbed his chin. It still wasn't enough. Commander Briggs and his people had given them tons of information but they hadn't broken the back of the enemy's forces on the planet. It was going to take more time, more pressure, and more importantly, more manpower and weapons to do the job.

He had recommended Renee for a Medal of Valor for her sacrifice. It was the least he could do for her and Trajin.

-~~~///^\\\~~~-

Rear Admiral V'r'z'll still didn't understand why Commander Briggs refused to take the military governorship of the planet. He certainly acted as the planet's leader but seemed reluctant to take on the mantle.

Her fleet was busy making good on their repairs while also performing ground bombing and reconnaince missions. She'd wondered why Admiral White had set things up that way, once the Marines had engaged she'd finally understood and agreed with the division of labor.

Her negotiations with the enemy's Captain Ozman had ended abruptly. She had no idea if the human female had been killed or not.

She turned two of her 4 eyestalks to Stennis. She longed to put the ship back in service, this time fighting for the right side. The engineers weren't sure about how much it would take to put the carrier back into service. Most of her forces had been decimated too, not that she'd want her pilots to fly such deathtraps.

The next largest ship to survive was a Derfflinger class battle cruiser. The late Commodore Mayweather's people had done a bang up job beating the rest of Stennis's battle line into wreckage but they'd had a few that had gotten off more lightly than others. That and a Derfflinger was a tough customer to kill completely without getting a nuke into her guts. She was battered though, and her sister ships had been turned into wreckage.

She had no idea what the Admiralty would plan to do with the ships. Most likely they would be patched up enough to be able to jump and then sent back to Antigua to be rebuilt. She hoped the carrier would stay but it wasn't her decision.

Pity about that.

-~~~///^\\\~~~-

Agent N'gumo grimaced as the patrol passed. He had to be casual, you couldn't give yourself away by reacting to the Marines too much. Yes they expected some fear and dirty looks, but dropping down was dangerous.

So was acting too nonchalantly though. Which was why he was trying to find the right balance. Fortunately, the enemy was trying to bribe the population with giveaways of food as well as free medical clinics.

He had passed on them as potential targets but so far General K had refused them. He wasn't sure what the General was waiting for. He knew the importance of getting information... was he going to set up a patsy to make a strike to gauge the enemy's responses? He hoped so, though he hoped he wasn't the fool the General dangled out on a limb to get the information.

He wasn't sure he was alive. He had no clue. He'd been wounded three times but had so far survived. He'd narrowly missed getting killed by 3 KEW and 2 drone strikes. Some Horathians saw him as lucky.

He just wanted to find a way to hit back and really hurt the enemy. Somehow, someway he would hopefully get his chance before his ticket came up.

-~~~///^\\\~~~-

Okay, the whole blog refusing to change the font color is getting OLD.  >:P

Blockade Snippet 1

Sitrep:
   I finished Act II of We the People and I'm taking today off. I'd planned to get some projects done but Dad's still under foot. (no pun intended) And, I did something to my left ankle a few days ago and it is apparently not getting better. I don't like putting weight on it. Ugh. (I keep aggravating it when I exercise I guess)

   I sent Blockade to Rea last night. Given that today and Sunday are holidays I don't expect it back from her until near the end of the month. So, expect the book to be published in early May.

On to the Snippet!

Act I

Chapter 1

Executioner H002 star system

 

The elderly white haired human tucked his hands behind his back as he heard the latest report. He was intensely grateful for some good news. He knew he wasn't the only one.

Once they'd fallen back he'd started to loose hope that they'd outrun the enemy. After all, the enemy was much faster than his wounded ships were in hyperspace. But it was not to be. There was no sign of the Federation Navy. None.

Or, they were laying in wait in hyperspace and had somehow obscured their ion trail. He couldn't put anything past them at this point.

The escape from Garth had been brutal. The only reason he'd gotten anything out was because he'd been leery about engaging the enemy and had retreated. That they'd anticipated that retreat was a bit humiliating. Only the running engagement, the decimation of his fighters, along with constant retacking to alter their course had allowed them to escape.

Decimation of his fighters again, he reminded himself.

"No sign of the enemy. No recent ion trails in the area, no sign of the enemy. It looks like they didn't follow us," Lieutenant Myron Chekov, his staff tactical officer stated. Myron looked haggard despite being in a clean uniform and having adequate sleep since the battle.

"That's good news," Admiral Cyrano De Gaulte said quietly. "We live on to fight another day," he murmured.

His command had been hammered by the enemy. There were plenty of words to describe it, he just didn't want to use them. The only thing he could hope for at this point was to get them home so they could pass on the hard lessons they'd learned to those who would ultimately replace them.

He'd sent a ship ahead with word but it wasn't enough.

"Sir, the convoy is approaching, shall we have them heave to so they can resupply us?"

The admiral thought about it for a few seconds but then shook his head. He didn't like being vulnerable. "No, I want to put some distance between us and the jump point to Garth. Have them lay in a course to come along beside us. We'll do what we can about replenishing while underway. If there is no sign of the enemy we'll spend a day or two at the jump point making what repairs we can," the admiral ordered.

"Aye aye sir."

"Sir," he turned to Sedric. "Sir, we just got an updated shipping schedule from the convoy. They are asking about the Stennis convoy. I've got the details..." the Intelligence officer held out a tablet.

Cyrano reluctantly took it and scanned it. He didn't want to, but he forced himself to read it. So, reinforcements had been coming but they'd arrived late. No doubt he'd passed them in hyper. "Order a messanger buoy to be put out. Order all convoys to stop and turn around," he said as he scanned the document again.

On the third read he closed his eyes in pain at the news. "There is nothing we can do for them."

"Hopefully they can get out," Berney said. Commander Berney Yashanaka was the admiral's chief of staff. He looked haggard. They all did. It wasn't the first retreat they'd been on but it was most likely their last. They were being forced back to their homeworld.

Myron had half heartedly put forth the idea of setting up an ambush in the empty star system. But it was wasted breath. Their ships needed too many repairs, they needed too many supplies. The Federation would just roll right over them. Besides, there was little to nothing to use in each of the empty star systems. That was 1 reason why the empire just passed right through them.

In other words, he couldn't fight a fighting withdrawl. As much as he'd like to it would be a death sentence for the remaining ships.

"Hopefully. Hope is in scarce supply at the moment," Sedrick stated.

Myron frowned. The protracted battle had been brutal. He wasn't the only one despondent over it. The admiral had been gentle about the hot-wash they'd performed on the first day in hyper but he couldn't help but feel like he was going through the motions.

"I have that course for you sir," Jeremy stated holding out a tablet.

"Pass it on to the other ships and then get us underway. I want us clear of the jump point as soon as possible," the admiral growled.

-~~~///^\\\~~~-

Berney grimaced as the meeting broke up. Apathy and low morale were prevalent throughout the ship and most likely the fleet. Or, what was left of the tattered fleet, he reminded himself.

Myron was taking the brunt of it. He could see that the younger man was taking their repeated drubbings personally. On some level he wanted to agree, he wanted someone to blame. But it wasn't Myron's fault.

Each time things seemed to be picking up they got the rug pulled out from under them and another drubbing. It was wearing on everyone heavily. He'd heard a few of the medics muttering about battle fatigue.

He shook his head. They needed to find something to do, some way to turn it around. He was afraid though that once they returned to Horath they'd be seized as scapegoats.

Well, there was one thing going for them there though, they wouldn't have to worry about carrying the burden on their shoulders anymore, he thought.

-~~~///^\\\~~~-

Blockade

Sitrep: I'm waiting on the last of the feedback from the remaining Betas before I send Blockade off to Rea. Wayne will gladly tell you it is brutal. :)

In other news, I just finished the first act of We the People and shot it off to him today. I'm hoping to finish it by the end of the month.

I tried my new 3D pen this afternoon... it is... interesting. I need a lot more practice with it obviously. I also realized it is designed like most objects, for someone who is right handed. (I'm left handed) That might be an issue.

In other news I received an interview request today, I am having problems with Spectrum and my phone so I just found it. I accidentally erased the message. Oops? I'm a chatty talker but not thrilled about being cold called anyway.

And finally, the cover of Blockade: