Lord Banshee- Fugitive

by Russell O Redman

  It was still worrisome that there had been two attacks on our ship. Something was wrong on the Moon, normally the most pacifistic world in all human space. I probably would not have time to uncover the problem.

  Our lighter hit the pad with professional precision. There was a brief elevator sensation as our pad dropped below the surface, to be replaced with a new pad ready for the next landing. The gantries seized the ship as it slowed to a stop, swung us into a docking bay and clamped us in place. The next lighter was due to arrive in less than half an hour, the last one about three hours later.

  In defiance of the odds, we had made it to the Moon. The Viceregal fleet was breathing our exhaust, so we had no time to waste. I had to hide, to make contact with the other Banshees, and then to escape to the Earth as quickly as possible. The Moon was too small and too weak to protect me. In fact, the surest way to kill everyone on the Moon would be to overstay my very feeble welcome.

  The medics on the Lansdorf must have seen my confessions in the dreams, and the poloffs would recognize my real identity all too soon. Once the Lunar Viceroy seized control, the hunt would be on.

  But how could we get to the Earth? It would be hard to escape the Moon again, harder still to evade the Viceregal fleet. The earth stations and the shuttles were the only conduits to the Earth that were open, even in principle, and would be under intense scrutiny.

  It was impossible. And I hated that word.

  Coming soon!

  Nightmare Wars: Book 3

  Lord Banshee

  Lunatic

  The Martian Imperium has seized power, trapping the Banshees on the Moon. The Moon cannot shelter us for long. If they capture us, I will face Martian justice as the Ghost and Leilani will be tortured to death as the Ghost Wife. The rest of the team will be executed as Ghost Followers. We must escape to the Earth, the only place large enough to hide us. But how?

  We are surrounded by the war fleets of the Imperium whose internal rivalries are as old and bitter as their contempt for the Earth. The Emperor has sent his children as Viceroys for the Earth and Moon. I know in horrifying detail what will happen if they attempt to enforce Martian justice on either planet. A genocidal nuclear war seems inevitable.

  I am no longer the terror that I was on Mars but I will bring to the task every resource I still command. I can be pushed in a wheelchair. If necessary, I can crawl away from trouble, dragging my medical field station behind me. I only break down in shrieking fits of terror occasionally. I know how to unlock doors. I have incredible nightmares, which warn me about the overwhelming scale of the threat.

  I refuse to despair. I am on a Mission, and I have a Plan.

  To counter the military might of the Imperium, my Plan is simple: I will follow the narrow Path of Justice wherever it leads. I will listen for every opportunity, pull every string, chase every desperate chance. Our own strength is not enough. To survive, we are going to have to befriend our enemies as they try to kill us.

  It is a Lunatic plan, but it is our only hope.

  Titles in the Nightmare War series:

  Lord Banshee: Fairy Dust

  Lord Banshee: Fugitive

  Lord Banshee: Lunatic (coming mid-2018)

  For more background on the world of Nightmare Wars, see my blog at:

  http://roredman.ca/blog/author