Nua'll

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by S. H. Jucha


  Alex took off at a run for a lift to reach the city-ship’s bridge, with Julien striding smoothly beside him. On the way up, he confirmed with Tatia that the fleet’s ships had followed orders.

  Tatia sent,

  Alex couldn’t fault that reaction by the captains. They were responsible for the lives aboard their ships. He reached the bridge, where Cordelia displayed the fleet’s position and that of the black ship.

  Tatia arrived right behind Alex, breathing as hard as him.

  “Why do these things happen when we’re farthest from the bridge?” Tatia said between gasps of breaths.

  “Status,” Alex asked Cordelia.

  “No change, Alex,” Cordelia replied. She wanted to comment that if an update was necessary, she would have notified them, and, as their leaders, it might be better not to exert themselves in such a drastic fashion. But, she kept her thoughts to herself.

  “Details of the ship,” Tatia requested.

  The holo-vid image shifted to a closeup of the enormous alien battleship. Despite the lack of perspective, it obviously dwarfed the fleet’s Tridents. Moreover, its sleek design and matte-black hull gave it a sinister appearance.

  “Telemetry puts the length of the ship at approximately one point five kilometers,” Cordelia reported. “If those hull ports indeed house armament, the Freedom is greatly outmatched in firepower.”

  “Black space,” Tatia muttered.

  Alex was thinking of how to establish communication with the aliens, when Miriamal linked with him.

  Alex sent.

  The bridge audience heard Miriamal say, “Alex, the alien ship has hailed us. They’re repeating a sentence.”

  “In their language?” Alex asked.

  “Negative. In our language,” Miriamal replied.

  Alex glanced at Julien, who grinned. The SADEs had been correct in their conjecture that Artifice had shared information about humans with its defenders. The question was: What did the aliens intend to do with that information?

  “Transfer the aliens’ communication to the bridge,” Alex ordered.

  “We wish to speak to the human called Alex,” the Freedom’s bridge audience heard over the speakers. The cadence and style of the communication indicated a translation device was involved.

  Alex took a deep breath, and, in his best command voice, he replied, “This is Alex.”

  “We have been seeking you, Alex. We wish to converse with you. There is much to share,” the stilted voice said.

  — Alex and company will return in Artifice. —

  Glossary

  Dischnya

  Dischnya – Intelligent species in Omnian system

  Hessan – Squad leader under Homsaff’s command

  Homsaff – Heir to the Mawas Soma nest

  Neffess – Nyslara’s heir

  Nyslara – Queen of Tawas Soma nest

  Pussiro – Wasat commander and Nyslara’s mate

  Sawa – Celus-4, Dischnya home world

  Sawa Messa – Celus-5, Dischnya’s second world, now called Omnia

  Simlan – Squad leader under Homsaff’s command

  Soma – Term for Dischnya

  Wasat – Warrior commander

  Dischnya Language

  Dassata – Peacemaker, Alex’s Dischnya name

  Ené – Pronunciation of Renée

  Federation

  Artifice – Digital entity

  Faustus – Digital entity, adjunct of Artifice, originally identified as AR-13145

  Nua’ll – Occupy the comm spheres and the great spheres

  Harakens

  Edouard Manet – Trident commodore, partner of Miko Tanaka

  Jupiter – SADE directing the observatory platform, original ID Theodosius

  Miko Tanaka – Trident commodore, partner of Edouard Manet

  Sheila Reynard – Fleet admiral

  Teague – Alex and Renée’s son

  Terese Lechaux – Haraken president

  Tomas Monti – Partner of Terese Lechaux

  Méridiens

  Confederation Council – Supreme ruling body of the Méridiens

  Darse Lemoyne – House Leader

  Descartes – Trident senior captain, SADE

  Essie Cormack – Traveler lieutenant, wing person to Maurice Defray

  Gino Diamanté – Council Leader, partner of Katrina Pasko

  Independents – Confederation outcasts, exiled on Libre and Daelon, rescued by Alex Racine

  Katrina Pasko – House Leader, partner of Gino Diamanté

  Mahima Ganesh – Ex-Council Leader

  Maurice Defray – Captain and flight commander of OS Liberator fighters

  Merman – Trident senior captain, volunteers to protect the drones

  Shannon Brixton – House Leader

  Tindleson – Méridien freighter captain

  New Terrans

  Alphons Jagielski – Trident commodore, flagship is NT Arthur McMorris

  Anthony Tripping – Admiral killed pursuing a Nua’ll sphere

  Bart Fillister – Trident training captain

  Bertram Hardingsgale – Captain of the Rover, a passenger liner

  Caspar Manfred – Trident captain

  Clayton Downing – Usurper of the New Terran presidency

  Cyndi Voorhees – Trident captain

  Drew Stevens – Trident captain

  Hanklin – Trident captain

  Harold Grumley – President

  Lem Ulam – Captain of the New Terra, a colony ship

  Maria Gonzalez – Minister of Defense

  Nata (nah-ta) – Cloned New Terra girl

  Oliver – Méridien SADE in service to Maria Gonzalez

  Ude (u as in you) – Cloned New Terra boy

  Ollassa/Vinians

  Life Giver – A progenitor of the plant people

  Mist Monitor – Mesa Control crew

  Scarlet Mandator – Commander

  Omnian Sisters

  Miriamal – Aboard Freedom

  Miriamette – Aboard a Trident

  Miriamopus – Aboard Our People

  Miriamus – Aboard traveler, monitoring Faustus

  Omnians

  Alain de Long – Twin and crèche-mate to Étienne, Trident captain, partner of Tatia Tachenko

  Alex Racine – Partner of Renée de Guirnon, Star Hunter First, Dassata

  Ben Diaz – Known as Little Ben and Rainmaker, mining expert

  Beryl – Lead SADE of scout ship

  Bethley – Scout ship SADE, teamed with Killian

  Boris Gorenko – Ex-Earther, professor, medical expert

  Cedric Broussard – Z’s New Terran avatar

  Charlene – Etoya’s staffer

  Claude Dupuis – Engineering tech, program manager for SADE avatars

  Cordelia – SADE, partner of Julien, rear admiral, captains the Freedom

  Darius Gaumata – Trident rear admiral, flagship is OS Prosecutor

  Deter – Lead SADE of scout ship

  Edmas – Young engineer sent to Sol, partner of Jodlyne

  Ellie Thompson – Trident rear admiral, flagship is OS Redemption

  Emile Billings – Biochemist

  Étienne de Long –Twin and crèche-mate to Alain, Trident captain, partner of Ellie Thompson

  Etoya Chambling – Crèche administrator rescued from Daelon

  Franz Cohen – Fighter command rear admiral, partner of Reiko Shimada

  Frederica – Miranda’s New Terran avatar

  Genoa – Lead SADE of scout ship

  Gerling – Team leader, recovers the bodies of the wild ones

  Hector – SADE, captains the Our People, partner of Trixie

  Janine – Emile Billing’s wife

  Jodlyne – Engineer, partner of Edmas

  Julien – SADE, partner of Cordelia

  Killian – Plaid-skinned SADE, friend of Vivian, lead of sco
ut ship Vivian’s Mirror

  Linn – Lead SADE of scout ship

  Luther – Comms SADE

  Mickey Brandon – Engineer, partner of Pia Sabine

  Mincie – Emile Billing’s daughter

  Miranda Leyton – SADE, partner of Z

  Miriam – Engineering SADE

  Myron McTavish – Commandant of the Dischnya military academy

  Nema – Ex-Earther, professor

  Olawale Wombo – Ex-Earther, professor sent to Sol

  Pia Sabine – Head of medical suite aboard the Freedom, partner of Mickey Brandon

  Priita Ranta – Ex-Earther, professor

  Reiko Shimada – Fleet vice admiral of the Tridents, partner of Franz Cohen

  Renée de Guirnon – Partner of Alex Racine

  Storen – Ex-Earther, professor, xenobiologist

  Svetlana Valenko – Trident rear admiral, flagship is OS Liberator

  Tatia Tachenko – Fleet admiral, ex-Terran Security Forces major, partner of Alain de Long

  Trium – Scout ship SADE, teamed with Killian

  Trixie –SADE, partner of Hector, Omnian representative

  Verina – Lead SADE of scout ship

  Vivian – Teenager, an Independent from Daelon, dance partner with Killian

  Yoram Penzig – Ex-Earther, professor

  Yumi Tanaka – Lieutenant, pilot of the OS Redemption

  Z – SADE, partner of Miranda

  Swei Swee

  First – Leader of the Swei Swee hives

  People – Manner in which the Swei Swee refer to their collective

  Star Hunter First – Swei Swee name for Alex Racine

  Wave Skimmer – Hive Leader, called the First

  Places, Things, and Enemies

  Banisher – Mickey’s small vessel for removing probes

  Central Exchange – Haraken financial system

  Confederation – Collection of Méridien worlds

  Dagger – Original New Terran fighter

  Espero – Capital city of Haraken

  Flits – Single-person, anti-grav-drive flyers

  Government House – New Terran president’s residence

  Idona Station – Sol station at the crossroads to the far belt and inner worlds

  Omnia Ships – Business owned by Alex Racine and others

  Prima – New Terra’s capital city

  SADE – Self-aware digital entity, artificial intelligence being

  Shadows – Spider-like constructs create by Z

  Swei Swee – Six-legged, ocean-going, sentients

  TSF – Terran Security Forces

  United Earth – Previous government body ruling Sol

  Planets, Colonies, Moons, and Stars

  Bellamonde – Site of the Méridien’s naval academy

  Celus – Star of the planet Omnia

  Celus-5 – Home world of the Dischnya and Swei Swee species

  Daelon – Moon orbiting sixth planet of an unnamed system, last colony of the Independents

  Haraken – New name of Cetus colony in Hellébore system, home of the Harakens

  Libre – Planet invaded by Nua’ll, Alex Racine rescued Independents

  Méridien – Home world of Confederation

  New Terra – Home world of New Terrans, fourth planet outward of Oistos

  Oistos – Star of the planet New Terra, Alex Racine’s home world

  Ollassa – Vinians’ home world

  Omnia – World settled by the Dischnya, Swei Swee, SADEs, and humans

  Sawa – Celus fourth planet outward, Dischnya’s home world

  Sawa Messa – Celus fifth planet outward, Dischnya’s second world, now called Omnia

  Sol – Star of the Earthers

  Vinium – System named by Killian when his scout ship was captured

  Ships and Stations

  Freedom – Alex’s primary city-ship

  Il Piacere – House Diamanté passenger liner

  Last Stand – Haraken carrier

  New Terra – Earth colony ship

  No Retreat – Haraken carrier

  NT Arthur McMorris – Alphons Jagielski’s Trident

  OS Deliverance – Deirdre Canaan’s flagship Trident

  OS Liberator – Svetlana Valenko’s flagship Trident

  OS Prosecutor – Darius Gaumata’s flagship Trident

  OS Redemption – Ellie Thompson’s flagship Trident

  Our People – Second city-ship

  Outward Bound – Alex’s explorer-tug at New Terra

  Rêveur – Alex’s passenger liner

  Rover – New Terran passenger liner

  Sardi-Tallen Orbital Platform – Omnia’s premier ship construction and passenger station

  Scout ships – Small vessels crewed by SADEs

  Sojourn – Haraken explorer ship

  Stardust – Freighter used as repair platform

  Travelers – Shuttles and fighters

  Trident – Omnian tri-hulled, beam-armed warship

  Vivian’s Mirror – Killian’s scout ship

  My Books

  Nua’ll, the eleventh novel in the Silver Ships series, is available in e-book, softcover, and audiobook versions. Please visit my website, http://scottjucha.com, for publication locations and dates. You may register at my website to receive e-mail updates on the progress of my upcoming novels.

  Pyreans Series

  Empaths

  Messinants

  Jatouche (forthcoming)

  The Silver Ships Series

  The Silver Ships

  Libre

  Méridien

  Haraken

  Sol

  Espero

  Allora

  Celus-5

  Omnia

  Vinium

  Nua’ll

  Artifice (forthcoming)

  The Author

  From my early years to the present, books have been a refuge. They’ve fueled my imagination. I’ve traveled to faraway places and met aliens with Asimov, Heinlein, Clarke, Herbert, and Le Guin. I’ve explored historical events with Michener and Clavell, and I played spy with Ludlum and Fleming.

  There’s no doubt that the early sci-fi masters influenced the writing of my first two series, The Silver Ships and Pyreans. I crafted my stories to give readers intimate views of my characters, who wrestle with the challenges of living in space and inhabiting alien worlds.

  Life is rarely easy for these characters, who encounter aliens and calamities, but they persist and flourish. I revel in examining humankind’s will to survive. Not everyone plays fair or exhibits concern for other beings, but that’s another aspect of humans and aliens that I investigate.

  My stories offer hope for humans today about what they might accomplish tomorrow far from our home world. Throughout my books, humans exhibit a will to persevere, without detriment to the vast majority of others.

  Readers have been generous with their comments, which they’ve left on Amazon and Goodreads for others to review. I truly enjoy what I do, and I’m pleased to read how my stories have positively affected many readers’ lives.

  If you’ve read my books, please consider posting a review on Amazon and Goodreads for every book, even a short one. Reviews attract other readers and are a great help to indie authors, such as me.

  The Silver Ships novels have reached Amazon’s coveted #1 and #2 Best-Selling Sci-Fi book, multiple times, in the science fiction categories of first contact, space opera, and alien invasion.

 

 

 


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