Shadow of Empire
Page 33
The convoy consists of imperial Raider-class ground assault vehicles. Probability 93 percent.
The artificial intelligence implanted in Blackhawk’s brain was limited to the same sensory input as his own mind, but it was often able to make more effective use of the data.
Imperial Raiders are armed with dual particle accelerator cannons and can carry up to ten . . .
I am well aware of the specifications of imperial Raiders. There was an edge to the thought, directed toward the AI. Blackhawk had an odd relationship with the computer presence in his mind. He couldn’t dispute the fact that the AI had been incredibly valuable on many occasions, but there was still some part of him that resented the intrusion. Despite the indisputable usefulness of the intelligence, he frequently found himself sparring with it . . . pointlessly, he realized, but he did it anyway.
What the hell are imperial fighting vehicles doing on Castilla? More to the point, what are they doing on the way to Aragona’s estate?
He wondered for a few minutes if Aragona’s château was about to be attacked by his enemies, but as soon as the lead vehicle reached the gate it was apparent they were expected.
He stood stone still, watching the scene unfold. His grip tightened around his assault rifle, but that was pure reflex. He knew fighting wasn’t going to solve his problem, especially not a suicidal assault on Aragona’s villa.
Blackhawk had no idea what was going on, but this was the second time in six months he’d run into imperial involvement in the affairs of backwater worlds, and he didn’t like it one bit. He wasn’t a great believer in coincidence.
There’s no time to worry about that now, he thought, setting the topic aside. He knew immediately he had to change the plan. Katarina was planning to seduce Aragona and lure him back to his estate, where Blackhawk and Sarge’s crew were positioned to get them both out. But the château was going to look like an armed camp in a few minutes. There was no way they’d manage to sneak anyone in or out.
“We’re going to have to go with the backup plan, Sarge.” That meant getting back into the city—fast. And he’d have to break communications silence, at least briefly, to let Katarina know. Hopefully, he’d get to her before she and Aragona were on their way to the compound.
He reached into his pocket and pulled out a small controller, pushing one of the buttons with his index finger. The communication was short, just a microburst to a small receiver in Katarina’s ring. She wouldn’t get any details, just a prearranged signal telling her to move to the backup plan.
Just let it be in time . . .
“Let’s go, Sarge,” Blackhawk whispered. “We need to round up your boys and get back to Madrassa.” He took one last look at the château. The convoy was still coming, with no end in sight to the line of armored vehicles. That’s trouble. Big trouble.
“C’mon, Sarge. We’re already late.”
Continue reading Enemy in the Dark in trade paperback and eBook, on sale December 2015.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
JAY ALLAN currently lives in New York City and has been reading science fiction and fantasy for just about as long as he’s been reading. His tastes are fairly varied and eclectic, but favorites include military and dystopian science fiction, space opera, and epic fantasy—all usually a little bit gritty.
He writes a lot of science fiction with military themes, but also other SF and some fantasy as well. He likes complex characters and lots of backstory and action, but in the end believes world-building is the heart of science fiction and fantasy.
Before becoming a professional writer, Jay has been an investor and real estate developer. When not writing, he enjoys traveling, running, hiking, and—of course—reading.
He also loves hearing from readers and always answers e-mails. You can reach him at jay@jayallanbooks.com, and join his mailing list at http://www.crimsonworlds.com for updates on new releases.
Among other things, he is the author of the bestselling Crimson Worlds series.
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ALSO BY JAY ALLAN
FAR STARS
Shadow of Empire
Enemy in the Dark (December 2015)
Funeral Games (January 2016)
CRIMSON WORLDS
Marines
The Cost of Victory
A Little Rebellion
The First Imperium
The Line Must Hold
To Hell’s Heart
The Shadow Legions
Even Legends Die
The Fall
War Stories (Crimson Worlds Prequels)
MERCS (Crimson Worlds Successors I)
PORTAL WARS
Gehenna Dawn
The Ten Thousand
PENDRAGON CHRONICLES
The Dragon’s Banner
CREDITS
Cover design by Richard L. Aquan
Cover illustration © by Marc Simonetti
COPYRIGHT
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, organizations, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
SHADOW OF EMPIRE. Copyright © 2015 by Jay Allan Books. All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the nonexclusive, nontransferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, downloaded, decompiled, reverse-engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereafter invented, without the express written permission of HarperCollins e-books.
FIRST EDITION
Harper Voyager and design is a trademark of HarperCollins Publishers L.L.C.
ISBN 978-0-06-238890-2
EPub Edition NOVEMBER 2015 ISBN 9780062388919
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