by T. G. Ayer
He didn’t respond.
Nerishka shifted to study Dresden’s face again. “I don’t understand,” she said, frowning. Then she paused, considering what he’d said, and what he hadn’t, and realization dawned on her. “You never left the Hand, did you?”
Dresden gave a rueful smile.
“Undercover?”
He nodded.
“Does the team know?”
He shook his head.
“Oh boy,” Nerishka said softly. “Maybe it’s a good thing I won’t be around for that little heart to heart.”
Dresden’s face remained implacable. “I’m not looking forward to that day.” He pushed off the wall and walked to the doorway. “You coming to the galley? Kelem declared that he’s making roast beef sandwiches.”
Nerishka nodded and smiled. “Wouldn’t miss it.”
Dresden held her gaze for a long moment, and just when she thought he was about to leave, he cleared his throat and said, “You could have told me you know? I would have understood. I would have been OK with it.”
Nerishka stared at him for a moment as he hovered in the doorway. Then she smiled sadly. “Maybe I didn’t want you to be OK with it,” she whispered as he turned to walk away.
Dresden stiffened and met Nerishka’s gaze. He nodded slowly, his expression unreachable. Then he walked off, leaving Nerishka staring at the empty doorway.
She swallowed hard, nodding slowly, mimicking Dresden’s movements. Then she took a deep breath.
“It is what it is,” she whispered to herself as she headed for the galley.
She didn’t have time to rescue a relationship, to put the pieces back together. Not right now.
Right now, she had another destination. Another mission. A different mark.
Back to being the Death Dealer.
* * * * *
Later that evening, as the Teshub came within a few light seconds of Nimrud Station, Lyra alerted Nerishka to an encrypted message that had come in from Jeriah a day prior.
Lyra replied.
Nerishka drew a deep breath.
Lyra sent a smile into Nerishka’s mind.
Nerishka shook her head as her AI counted down, but opened her message on three, feeling her breath catch as she scanned through the contents.
There was no response, and Nerishka initiated a diagnostic run on her connection to her AI.
It initialized, began its scan, and then ended.
Nerishka sat up, her brow furrowing.
THE END
* * * * *
With the unveiling underway, the Hand’s mission has changed. Now they must facilitate the knowledge of the Transcend while still ensuring that nefarious individuals don’t use advanced tech to exploit others, or unbalance the Inner Stars further.
All while supporting the Transcend’s war effort against Orion.
Nerishka’s next mission will send her to the coreward side of the Praesepe cluster, where she must find out if an individual named Nightshade is importing biotech from Orion.
Tech that could transform—or kill—trillions.
Then she gets a mission from Tanis Richards that changes everything.
Get Death Mark and find out what’s next.
* * * * *
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THE BOOKS OF AEON 14
Keep up to date with what is releasing in Aeon 14 with the free Aeon 14 Reading Guide.
The Intrepid Saga (The Age of Terra)
- Book 1: Outsystem
- Book 2: A Path in the Darkness
- Book 3: Building Victoria
- The Intrepid Saga Omnibus – Also contains Destiny Lost, book 1 of the Orion War series
- Destiny Rising – Special Author’s Extended Edition comprised of both Outsystem and A Path in the Darkness with over 100 pages of new content.
The Orion War
- Book 1: Destiny Lost
- Book 2: New Canaan
- Book 3: Orion Rising
- Book 4: The Scipio Alliance
- Book 5: Attack on Thebes
- Book 6: War on a Thousand Fronts
- Book 7: Fallen Empire (2018)
- Book 8: Airtha Ascendancy (2018)
- Book 9: The Orion Front (2018)
- Book 10: Starfire (2019)
- Book 11: Race Across Time (2019)
- Book 12: Return to Sol (2019)
Tales of the Orion War
- Book 1: Set the Galaxy on Fire
- Book 2: Ignite the Stars
- Book 3: Burn the Galaxy to Ash (2018)
Perilous Alliance (Age of the Orion War – w/Chris J. Pike)
- Book 1: Close Proximity
- Book 2: Strike Vector
- Book 3: Collision Course
- Book 4: Impact Imminent
- Book 5: Critical Inertia (2018)
Rika’s Marauders (Age of the Orion War)
- Prequel: Rika Mechanized
- Book 1: Rika Outcast
- Book 2: Rika Redeemed
- Book 3: Rika Triumphant
- Book 4: Rika Commander
- Book 5: Rika Infiltrator (2018)
- Book 6: Rika Unleashed (2018)
- Book 7: Rika Conqueror (2019)
Perseus Gate (Age of the Orion War)
Season 1: Orion Space
- Episode 1: The Gate at the Grey Wolf Star
- Episode 2: The World at the Edge of Space
- Episode 3: The Dance on the Moons of Serenity
- Episode 4: The Last Bastion of Star City
- Episode 5: The Toll Road Between the Stars
- Episode 6: The Final Stroll on Perseus’s Arm
- Eps 1-3 Omnibus: The Trail Through the Stars
- Eps 4-6 Omnibus: The Path Amongst the Clouds
Season 2: Inner Stars
- Episode 1: A Meeting of Bodies and Minds
- Episode 3: A Deception and a Promise Kept
- Episode 3: A Surreptitious Rescue of Friends and Foes (2018)
- Episode 4: A Trial and the Tribulations (2018)
- Episode 5: A Deal and a True Story Told (2018)
- Episode 6: A New Empire and An Old Ally (2018)
Season 3: AI Empire
- Episode 1: Restitution and Recompense (2019)
- Five more episodes following…
The Warlord (Before the Age of the Orion War)
- Book 1: The Woman Without a World
- B
ook 2: The Woman Who Seized an Empire
- Book 3: The Woman Who Lost Everything
The Sentience Wars: Origins (Age of the Sentience Wars – w/James S. Aaron)
- Book 1: Lyssa’s Dream
- Book 2: Lyssa’s Run
- Book 3: Lyssa’s Flight
- Book 4: Lyssa’s Call
- Book 5: Lyssa’s Flame (June 2018)
Enfield Genesis (Age of the Sentience Wars – w/Lisa Richman)
- Book 1: Alpha Centauri
- Book 2: Proxima Centauri (2018)
Hand’s Assassin (Age of the Orion War – w/T.G. Ayer)
- Book 1: Death Dealer
- Book 2: Death Mark (August 2018)
Machete System Bounty Hunter (Age of the Orion War – w/Zen DiPietro)
- Book 1: Hired Gun
- Book 2: Gunning for Trouble
- Book 3: With Guns Blazing (June 2018)
Vexa Legacy (Age of the FTL Wars – w/Andrew Gates)
- Book 1: Seas of the Red Star
Building New Canaan (Age of the Orion War – w/J.J. Green
- Book 1: Carthage (2018)
Fennington Station Murder Mysteries (Age of the Orion War)
- Book 1: Whole Latte Death (w/Chris J. Pike)
- Book 2: Cocoa Crush (w/Chris J. Pike)
The Empire (Age of the Orion War)
- The Empress and the Ambassador (2018)
- Consort of the Scorpion Empress (2018)
- By the Empress’s Command (2018)
Tanis Richards: Origins (The Age of Terra)
- Prequel: Storming the Norse Wind (At the Helm Volume 3)
- Book 1: Shore Leave (June 2018)
- Book 2: The Command (July 2018)
- Book 3: Infiltrator (July 2018)
The Sol Dissolution (The Age of Terra)
- Book 1: Venusian Uprising (2018)
- Book 2: Scattered Disk (2018)
- Book 3: Jovian Offensive (2019)
- Book 4: Fall of Terra (2019)
The Delta Team Chronicles (Expanded Orion War)
- A "Simple" Kidnapping (Pew! Pew! Volume 1)
- The Disknee World (Pew! Pew! Volume 2)
- It’s Hard Being a Girl (Pew! Pew! Volume 4)
- A Fool’s Gotta Feed (Pew! Pew! Volume 4)
- Rogue Planets and a Bored Kitty (Pew! Pew! Volume 5)
ABOUT THE AUTHORS
Michael Cooper likes to think of himself as a jack-of-all-trades (and hopes to become master of a few). When not writing, he can be found writing software, working in his shop at his latest carpentry project, or likely reading a book.
He shares his home with a precocious young girl, his wonderful wife (who also writes), two cats, a never-ending list of things he would like to build, and ideas…
Find out what’s coming next at http://www.aeon14.com
* * * * *
T.G. Ayer is a Kiwi author (of South African origin) whose passion for strong females—and ability to spin a fairly decent sentence—has resulted in over 40 published titles spanning 3 pen names and over 5 genres. Tee’s alter ego, Toni Vallan, writes Psychological Horror and Romantic Suspense.
Writing since 2010, Tee lives in Auckland, Middle Earth, about an hour’s drive from Hobbiton. She loves the beach and her readers, is a nerd, and a geek, hates crowds, and sings like Adele (only in her head). If she could grow up to be Wonder Woman she’d die happy.
She’s blessed with 2 almost fully-grown girls, and a husband who plays just the right amount of golf to maintain the peace. Most days, Tee can be found typing away at her laptop, creating more words, all the while craving donuts.
Be sure to check out her other books