“That’s not what we call their species, but…apparently so.”
Nika’s mind recoiled at the notion of anyone calling a Sogain a ‘friend.’ The ethereal creatures occupied a plane of existence far outside real, tangible life—the manner of life that Asterions had consciously chosen to honor—and she struggled to imagine how such an existence had room for friendship.
But what mattered right now were the far-reaching implications of the woman’s statement. “They’ve been watching us, then?” Watching her, far more extensively than she’d assumed, and reporting her actions to others. Spying, in other words.
“It’s what they do, when they’re not creating pocket universes for shits and giggles.”
Nika arched an eyebrow in question.
“Yes, they’ve been watching you—the Asterions—for a long time. And, yes, it’s creepy, but they do actually mean well. Which is why I’m here.”
The revelations were piling up fast now, and she needed to stay focused on the essentials. “You said it wasn’t what ‘we’ call their species. Who’s ‘we’? Are you an Anaden?” The woman did look vaguely so, but 700,000 years was a long time. Species evolved.
Alex’s face screwed up in what might be annoyance. “Not…exactly. Listen, do you mind if we sit and get comfortable? You and I have a lot to discuss.”
“Do we? You still haven’t given me a reason to trust you.”
“I haven’t tried to injure you or commandeer your ship.”
Nika snorted. “If your ‘friend’ told you anything at all about me, you know if you tried you would fail spectacularly.”
“True. If I had brought Caleb, though….” Alex shrugged. “All right. Can I get something that is definitely not a weapon from my pocket?”
Nika jerked a nod but moved a finger over the Glaser trigger.
Alex reached into a side pocket of her pants and produced a small rectangular object, then placed it in her palm and held it out toward Nika. Made of a semi-translucent mineral, thousands of fibers rich jade in color wove through its interior in ordered rows at sharp angles to one another.
“What is that?”
“We call it a Reor slab, but I suspect you have a different name for it, or for what it contains. Look more closely—no, look differently.”
Nika cycled through every band, but the fundamental profile of the slab didn’t change. A prickle rose in the base of her neck—anticipation tinged with foreboding—as she toggled on the kyoseil ocular setting.
Ghostly strings of spectral luminescence undulated from her to and into the innocuous little slab, where they shifted angles and colors before radiating outward in every direction.
Her gaze rose to meet Alex’s as she holstered the Glaser and motioned to the couch. “You’re right—we do have a lot to discuss.”
Fourteen years after The Displacement, a tenuous alliance among humans, Anadens and over a dozen alien species has taken root. The wounds of war and revolution have begun to heal and peace and prosperity are within reach.
But when Nika Kirumase, leader of a splinter group of former Anadens thought aeons dead, arrives bearing a warning of a terrifying enemy advancing across the void, that alliance will be pushed to the breaking point and beyond.
Riven Worlds Book One
Amaranthe ♦ 14
Coming this Winter
***
A Note From the Author
At the end of Requiem, I said ‘the story of Aurora has come to an end, but the story of Amaranthe is just beginning.’ I hope you knew I meant it.
But before we go forward, we need to go back—or at least I do. Over the next several months, the books of Aurora Rhapsody and Asterion Noir will be lightly rebranded, keeping their trilogy subtitles but bringing them all under the rubric of the AMARANTHE universe. If you’re all caught up with your reading, this won’t have any impact on you. For new readers, it is my hope that this will present a clear, consistent and easy-to-follow roadmap of my books.
If you’re curious what the rebranding will look like, I’ve included a graphic at the end of this note.
So what comes next? Fourteen years have passed since the events of Requiem. A lot has happened during that time, and few things will be precisely as we left them. Humans have tried to adapt to living amongst dozens of alien species; Anadens have tried to adapt to living without their Primors and integrals—to living as equals rather than rulers. No one will claim the transition has been easy or smooth, but it hasn’t descended into rampant bloodshed…for the most part.
Now the Asterions are returning to a changed empire, and they’re about to toss the dynamite that is the Rasu into the middle of it.
I expect Riven Worlds to be six novels, but I reserve the right to change my mind along the way. A new series will follow it, and another after that, all under the Amaranthe banner. Alex, Caleb, Nika and Dashiel will likely demand to be the brightest stars much of the time, but not always. The journey may take us to some unexpected places with fascinating new characters and dangers. The universe is quite literally the limit.
But no matter where we travel, you can expect the same kind of stories that have brought you here: grand and complex tales of adventure, struggles and heroism woven through with intricate layers and interconnections that bind together into a cohesive whole. Tales of purpose and meaning, with evocative locations, inventive technology and memorable characters who fight, fail, persevere and refuse to fade away.
If you haven’t already, subscribe to my newsletter to stay informed about Continuum’s release and all the Amaranthe news. And if you haven’t read the Aurora books yet, now’s the time—you’ve got about six months to catch up before Continuum arrives! Book One, Starshine, is free to download at all major online retailers, and Vertigo (Book Two) is free to newsletter subscribers.
What do you think? Are you excited? Let me know. I love hearing from readers. The beauty of independent publishing is its simplicity: there’s the writer and the readers. Without any overhead, I can find out what I’m doing right and wrong directly from you, which is invaluable in making the next book better than this one. And the one after that. And the… *checks notes* …thirty after that.
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AMARANTHE UNIVERSE
* * *
STARSHINE Amaranthe #1
Aurora Rising Book One
VERTIGO Amaranthe #2
Aurora Rising Book Two
TRANSCENDENCE Amaranthe #3
Aurora Rising Book Three
SIDESPACE Amaranthe #4
Aurora Renegades Book One
DISSONANCE Amaranthe #5
Aurora Renegades Book Two
ABYSM Amaranthe #6
Aurora Renegades Book Three
RELATIVITY Amaranthe #7
Aurora Resonant Book One
RUBICON Amaranthe #8
Aurora Resonant Book Two
REQUIEM Amaranthe #9
Aurora Resonant Book Three
SHORT STORIES OF AURORA RHAPSODY Amaranthe #10
Collection
EXIN EX MACHINA Amaranthe #11
Asterion Noir Book One
OF A DARKER VOID Amaranthe #12
Asterion Noir Book Two
THE STARS LIKE GODS Amaranthe #13
Asterion Noir Book Three
CONTINUUM Amaranthe #14
Riven Worlds Book One
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
Many thanks to my beta readers, editors and artists, who made everything about this book better, and to my family, who continue to put up with an egregious level of obsessive focus on my part for months at a time.
I also want to add a personal note of thanks to everyone who has read my books, left a review at retailers, Goodreads or other sites, sent me a personal email expressing how the b
ooks have impacted you, or posted on social media to share how much you enjoyed them. You make this all worthwhile, every day.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
G. S. JENNSEN lives in Colorado with her husband and two dogs. She has written thirteen novels and short story collections, all published by her imprint, Hypernova Publishing. She has become an internationally bestselling author since her first novel, Starshine, was published in March 2014. She has chosen to continue writing under an independent publishing model to ensure the integrity of her stories and her ability to execute on the vision she has for their telling.
While she has been a lawyer, a software engineer and an editor, she’s found the life of a full-time author preferable by several orders of magnitude. When she isn’t writing, she’s gaming or working out or getting lost in the Colorado mountains that loom large outside the windows in her home. Or she’s dealing with a flooded basement, or standing in a line at Walmart reading the tabloid headlines and wondering who all of those people are. Or sitting on her back porch with a glass of wine, looking up at the stars, trying to figure out what could be up there.
Table of Contents
Title
Book List
Dramatis Personae
Galaxy Map
The Story So Far
Contents
LATENCY Mirai
CHMOD 1
PRESENT DAY MIRAI JUSTICE CENTER
MIRAI TOWER
2 HATAORI RENEWAL CLINIC
GUIDES STORAGE FACILITY
3 MIRAI JUSTICE CENTER
MIRAI
4 JUSTICE EVIDENCE WAREHOUSE
5 MARIS’ LOFT
6 MIRAI
ALIASES 7 MIRAI
8 MIRAI ONE PAVILION
SYNRA
9 MIRAI ONE PAVILION
10 MIRAI ONE PAVILION
NIKA’S FLAT
11 NIKA’S FLAT
12 MIRAI
NESTED ARGUMENTS 13 MIRAI ONE PAVILION
KIYORA
14 NIKA’S FLAT
15 MIRAI ONE PAVILION
16 RIDANI ENTERPRISES
MIRAI ONE PAVILION
17 WAYFARER
SOGAIN STELLAR SYSTEM
18 MIRAI ONE PAVILION
HATAORI RENEWAL CLINIC
19 MIRAI
READ/WRITE/EXEC 20 MIRAI ONE PAVILION
21 NIKA’S FLAT
EBISU
22 ADV DAUNTLESS
PLANET III-E183-31B
23 CONCEPTUAL RESEARCH TESTING FACILITY
24 CONCEPTUAL RESEARCH TESTING FACILITY
25 ADJUNCT HACHI
CHECKSUM 26 MIRAI JUSTICE CENTER
MIRAI
27 MIRAI
28 MIRAI ONE PAVILION
29 MIRAI ONE PAVILION
30 CONCEPTUAL RESEARCH TESTING FACILITY
MIRAI ONE PAVILION
MIRAI
31 MIRAI ONE PAVILION
32 MIRAI
MIRAI ONE PAVILION
33 MIRAI ONE PAVILION
34 MIRAI ONE PAVILION
35 MIRAI ONE PAVILION
MIRAI
MULTITHREADING 36 NIKA’S FLAT
37 MIRAI ONE PAVILION
MIRAI JUSTICE CENTER
SYNRA
38 NIKA’S FLAT
39 MIRAI ONE PAVILION
EBISU
40 MIRAI ONE PAVILION
41 MIRAI JUSTICE CENTER
MIRAI ONE PAVILION
42 TOKI’TAKU
43 CHOSEK
44 KIYORA
45 MIRAI ONE PAVILION
46 NIKA’S FLAT
47 SYNRA
MIRAI ONE PAVILION
ROOT ACCESS 48 TABIJI
49 RASU STRONGHOLD
50 RASU STRONGHOLD
51 RASU COMMAND PLATFORM
52 RASU STRONGHOLD
53 MIRAI ONE PAVILION
NAMINO
54 MIRAI ONE PAVILION
55 MIRAI JUSTICE CENTER
MIRAI ONE
56 NIKA’S FLAT
MIRAI ONE
57 NIKA’S FLAT
58 WAYFARER
A Note From the Author
About the Author
The Stars Like Gods Page 36
