“Did you say well? We got the piss kicked out of us. Another minute and we’d be in our evacuation crafts, watching Star Warden tear apart.”
“Twenty-eight percent, Admiral.”
Gentry was pleasantly shocked.
Star Warden was a beast. It had taken twice as much damage from larger weapon fire in the past and the shields had never reacted this poorly. The one time the shields were off, during a surprise attack, Star Warden’s armor had held strong, showing minimal damage and little loss of human life. Today, the shields had been almost completely drained. If Callisto hadn’t stopped pummeling them, Star Warden would have been a dead ship flying.
This told Gentry that whoever was down on Callisto was dangerous and more powerful than any race or species he’d ever encountered, including his own.
Gentry’s face hardened and his eyes grew cold. This group on Callisto had to be stopped. In fact, they had to be eliminated. Any race this strong was a direct threat to human survival – to Earth’s survival.
He leaned forward. “Ready nuclear heads.”
Bogle tilted her head. “We can’t do that, Sir.”
“We can and we will. Launch when ready.”
Bogle abandoned her post and rushed to Gentry’s side. “Down there is an archaeological and resource goldmine. Call it off. We’ll come back after we’ve had more time to think about our next action.”
Gentry pushed Bogle away from him. “Launch when ready.”
“You’ll be destroying a resource bed that we could use for eons. And, we don’t know if they truly are hostile. It could be an automated response. Perhaps we’ve entered a ‘no fly’ zone and the machines are programmed to repel all ships they don’t recognize…”
“They shot first. That’s hostile enough. Their technology is more advanced than ours, Bogle.”
An intelligence officer chimed in. “Nuclear warhead ready. Keys locked in. All we need is yours, Admiral.”
Gentry paced over to an officer’s station. He typed in a code on the station’s control panel and a small drawer slid outward with a long, thick shining key tucked inside. He grabbed the “fire control” key and slid it into a keyhole designated “Admiral.”. Two officers standing side by side, their own “fire control” keys inserted into their designated nuclear launch keyhole.
The Admiral eyed them,“Commencing launch in three, two, one...now.”
They simultaneously turned their keys.
Bogle’s shoulders slumped.
She was disappointed in him. Big deal. She needed to grow a set. This was war. The sooner she learned that, the better off she’d be. Gentry held his position.
The view screen dimmed, to save the crews eyes from the coming nuclear explosion.
The warhead wasn’t large, but it was powerful. In ten seconds, a mushroom cloud would erupt on Callisto and Star Warden would be too far away from Callisto’s atmosphere to either feel the blast or suffer from fallout or radiation.
Callisto’s turrets locked onto the warhead the second it left Star Warden. In a flash, the turrets fired in unison, filling the view screen white. A moment later, the screen filled with orange and red flames, then evaporated in the vacuum of space.
The warhead was hit close to Star Warden. Too close.
Gentry watched in horror as the bridge cracked in half. The view screen split down the middle and all air was sucked into space along with everything and everyone else.
Gentry saw Captain Bogle spin away toward Callisto.
She reached for Gentry as he catapulted in the opposite direction.
Star Warden was buckling in on itself, explosions blasting holes in its sides, extinguishing seconds after.
People spilled out of the holes in all directions, spinning in space’s cold, oxygen-deprived death grip.
Gentry’s vision narrowed, blackness crowding his periphery, until he lost sight entirely. His body stiffened as the oxygen drained from his blood.
His heart stopped.
His brain shut down.
Darkness filled him, followed by a flash of light. He was a man among the stars, just as he’d always wanted to be.
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Destination Atlantis (Book 2 of the Ascendant Chronicles)
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Acknowledgments:
First and foremost, to my editor and amazing writing coach, Kate Pickford. Without her, I could not have written this and if I by chance I could, it wouldn’t have been half as good as it is now. She came to me like an angel from heaven.
Wait! That was a terrible and over-used cliche.
Okay... she arrived on my doorstep, holding an incredible gift – herself.
How could she hold herself? That’s horrible. I’m not making Kate proud right now.
Let me start over.
Kate messaged me when I was in dire straights. She took me by the hand and guided me, step by step, through the writing process, selflessly giving me and this book the attention it needed. From the second draft to the last draft, she weaved her magic through it and became the miracle that I was desperately needing at the time. I can’t thank Kate enough. She has been with me through the ups and downs with this project. She is a master with words and a master at character and plot building, trajectory, and hooks. She does it all.
Julie Clayton, editor. She edited my “first try” with this book. (Kate Pickford edited all of my next “tries”). When Julie was done with my first try, she offered me some of the best advice I could have recieved: “Start over. Write it anew. You can do better than that.”
And, I did. Thank you, Julie. You’ve been there since day one of my writing career. Also, without you, the majority of my books wouldn’t be half as good as they are.
Debbie Gregg. Your information and ingenuity, along with your “in-service-to-others” life has always inspired me. Without you, I wouldn’t be half the man I am. You guided me for years and shaped a lot of my life. Thank you.
John Shaughnessy. This guy is amazing. Look him up. He has written books on the pyramids and his information is strewn throughout this book. Thank you, John. I really appreciate all the information you gave me and continue to give me to this day.
Mom. My biggest fan. You keep me up when I’m down and tell me to keep going when I think I can’t make it as an author. Thanks for being my rock and loving me unconditionally, even when I’m being a “little shit”, as you like to say.
Slade Roberson. You have been a wonderful friend and ally from the moment I met you at the Best Sellers Summit in Nashville, Tennessee. Thank you for being there for me whenever I needed you. Your insights are priceless and your service to others and to the greater goal in life continues to inspire me.
Kim Jacobs. You are a sunshine to everyone you meet. I am so proud and lucky to call you my friend. You, just like Slade, keep me going and going and going. Your pep gives me pep. Thank you.
Jennifer B. You have been the greatest proof-reader any author could ask for. Thank you so much for giving me exactly what I need, finding almost every error after the final edits, and also being a great friend.
Last, but not least, my love, Lotus Hartley. You have more patience with me than I probably deserve. Thank you so much for going on this journey with me and being my life partner.
And to all of the author’s that let me use their names in this book. You’re the bad guys and the good guys in this book, but in truth, you’re all the good guys in real life. I know the characters in these books aren’t your personalities and don’t have your appearance, but it was still a blast to write. Thank you for everything you’ve given me from vital author information to the tricks of the trade.
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Brandon Ellis, Project Atlantis (Ascendant Chronicles Book 1)
Project Atlantis (Ascendant Chronicles Book 1) Page 28
