Hostage Rescue (Princess Rescue Inc Book 2)

by Hechtl, Chris

  5 other civilians.

  Maggie

  Odette

  Doug Castile

  Elliot White: Actually CIA

  Terrans who returned:

  Wanda Smith-chemist/ assistant nurse/paramedic Bring Latte machine for doc and coffee. - brought family.

  Sydney-Heart- male vid tech/historian/physics minor -Australian/Canadian

  Fred Roshenko- Canadian geologist/metallurgist/amateur paleontologist/botanist

  Sergio Velenkov- Russian lab assistant and pilot/ physicist/amateur astronomer

  Gegory Yvetskov polish jew- cook/nutritionist/barber/first aide tech

  Jessie Adams -quiet communication's tech/computer wiz

  Master sarge Wayne Waters- lead noncom gunner/climber/ all around joat -Retired. Brought sister with him and her family.

  Sergeant Ginger Lewis- gunner/ pilot -Ended career.

  2 surviving air crew. (1 pilot, 1 Major.)

  Science Expedition:

  Bic: Wagonmaster

  Shri: driver and student scientist, male.

  Uri: female

  Convoy:

  Convoy Master: Bernardus: Big, broad shouldered man.

  Captain: ( princeps ) Augustus Devitis (son of Vito) Brown hair. Roman nose. Also a knight.

  Lieutenant: ( legatus ) Silvius Tycho

  Healer ( medicus ) : Eudoxia

  Knight Companion: Gordian.

  Shield Maiden: Brynhild: wife of Knight Companion. Doughty fighter. Mother was from Duluth.

  Beast Master: Varius: Brother to Bernardus. -KIA

  Blacksmith: Tacitus: Engineering student of Max.

  Sergeant: Viggo (means lightening) -Grandparents were refugees from Duluth.

  Ladies in Waiting: 2 from Imperium, Agnes, (tall and long face, brown hair) Euphrosyne. (short and plump, black hair, roman double chin -KIA) 1 from Duluth Freydis. (young, red head, freckles-MIA)

  Emma- new lady in waiting. Native. Spy for Rassmusen. Parents dead. Family died before the war. Her betrothed died in the Imperium. Her future inlaws had abandoned her when they ran from the capital. Merchant daughter, trained in reading, writing, and deportment.

  Duluthians in convoy:

  Siegfried, lord of Appleworthy: 14-year-old, was a squire during war and then elevated to knight before big battle. Parent died in battle. Has acne on his face. Long lean frame. Going through a clumsy stage.

  Baron Farragut: Duluth baron, survivor of battle. Becomes crown loyalist after wounds treated.

  Viscount Wesdt Duluth lord, survivor of battle

  Earl Ticundus: fit young lordling eager to prove himself

  Count Malory

  Duluth:

  King Richard Duluth -KIA due to illness or old age in previous year

  King Author Duluth -KIA in final battle by sniper

  Innkeeper: Olsen. Wife, family.

  Dominus Hansen: lower lord. (viscount). Old, set in his ways. Lives in a square keep.

  Domina Berg: Widow, husband and 3 of her sons had died in the war. Bitter but respectful. Viscount. Youngest son returned maimed. Missing a foot.

  Domina Rassmusen: Overweight, jowls despite recent loss of weight. 40's. Widow, her husband and sons had died in the war. Long hard face. Conspire to kill Princess Zara.

  Petersen: Knight. Injured in a fall and couldn't go to war. Has a wife and daughter.

  Tavern/Innkeeper II: Haugen

  Hakon Earling: Bastard son of a lord. Assassin. Archer with a crossbow. Wears a hoody like Assassin's Creed.

  Decius: Castle medicus. Old, arthritis in his hands. Close minded mostly, but likes to teach. Crotchety about basic ailments. Into pharmacology.

  Eyton

  Zana

  Tolgen Petrov: Russian. In Duluth, was a boy when he came to the planet with his family. Only survivor of his family. They were fleeing Stalin's purges in 1951. He had 6 children, has 12 grandchildren, 4 neices and nephews, 5 grand nieces and nephews.

  Arthritis. Missing teeth, 1 eye cataract. Withered but still getting about and doing chores and mindful of things.

  Granddaughter brought him to the castle. Hoping to unload him.

  Dominus Percival -knight -Conspirator. His father had been a lesser lord attached to Duke Emory. He'd pissed the duke off many years ago and fled before the duke could come to arrest him. He fled to Duluth where he took a wife of a clansman he'd saved. He had been adopted by the clan. When the father had died without a male heir he had taken the lands for his own.

  When both parents had passed on Percival had inherited them. He had several cousins who were rich merchants. They helped fund the conspiracy.

  Percival had been raiding near Emory when the news of the disastrous battle and death of the king had reached him. He'd fled with other soldiers north back to their holdings.

  Dominus Fenton -conspirator. Acne scars, long rat like face. Cautious.

  Stephan: Guard in the castle. Eager for revenge. The Drott had saved him after he had killed another in a training accident. He owed the drott much.

  Freya: Mate of Stephan. Works in the castle. Conspirator. Red hair, hot temper.

  Drott (general/chieftain/warlord) Olaf Lothbrok: primary war leader of the conspirators. Had at 1 time led the palace guard. He'd planned a last stand but had been drunk the night before the princess had arrived. Some said his daughter and granddaughter had arranged for him to be drunk and hungover so he could not resist the arrival.

  Gray hair, beard. Broad shouldered, but muscles slowly turning saggy. Beer belly. Thick battle scarred hands. Something of a legend in that he'd killed several beast with his bare hands. He had reportedly killed a young Basilisk alone. He had a tooth around his neck on a leather thong. Wore a ragged cape/cloak that his late wife had made.

  He had a lock of her hair woven in a bracelet.

  Reminder he was like the Castle Wyvern captain of the guard from Disney's Gargoyles.

  Lief Thornson

  Cnut Bloodaxe

  Dominus Rollo the boneless: Drunked Dominus. Very old.

  Gunnar: Cheese crafter. Singled out by Deidra for reward for his fantastic cheeses. Dairy farmer. He has a holding on the outskirts of the capital with caves underneath. One side has a secret exit out into the hinterland.

  Ivar: Guard militia.

  Katnis

  Liam: Baker. Liam the baker. He has a wife and family.

  Acresius

  Pirate:

  Hasan Cao: Hard faced Indonesian pirate captain. Captured, transported to capital. Had been on the planet 12 years. Pirate on earth too. Had captured multiple prize ships. Good with a blade.

  Glossary of Terms

  Imperatrix: Queen/ruler

  Dominus: lord

  Domina: lady

  Drott: Duluthian/Norse term for chieftain/warlord/general

  Thrall: slave

  Maniple: Fire team/squad. Small amount of soldiers.

  Miles: Soldiers or troopers.

  Earth/homeland: Patria

  Ver: spring

  Aestas: Summer

  Autumnus: autumn/fall

  Hiems: Winter

  Time:

  Hour: hora

  Day: dies

  Week: hafta -turkish

  Month: mens

  Year: annus

  1 year: 4 seasons -18 total months

  winter: 8 months

  spring 4 months

  summer: 2 months

  fall: 4 months

  1 month = 8 weeks (octo)

  1 week = 5 days (quintas)

  Measure:

  Digitus: 18.5 mm

  Uncia: Inch or the size of a thumb

  Pes: Foot

  Gradus: 0.74 meters

  Pace: 1.48 meters

  Miles Passus: Mile. 1.48km

  Leuga: League(Gallic) 2.22km

  titans (rhino trikes) -bestrum barrus

  Branack: riding mount. Therapod.

  Magna Praetorium: Great hall.

  Pecunia: money

  Healer: Medicus

>   Taberna: inn/tavern

  Vita Sodalis, the life mate or life bond.

  Flora and Fauna

  All native animals have 6 legs of some sort.

  Note to the reader : The Basilisk, Branack, Imp, Hex rat, and Rhino Trike I created. The new animals I used Jai Hao, a talented artist's work as a reference. I of course added my own twists. You can see his work as a sort of jumping off point on Artstation.

  Catawba plant : Colorless neurotoxin. Iit causes instant swelling. Paralytic poison that shuts down breathing and swells the trachea of victim shut. Holistic cure but it is slow to act. Poison is fast acting, killing in seconds but wears off in an hour.

  Wild boar: Terran boar. They can get massive if they manage to avoid predators.

  Juxta Cerva: Near deer: Massive deer like ancient Irish deer but with 6 legs. The convoy killed several, 1 after the attack to help feed people. Very good eating.

  Basilisk: Deep forest apex predator. Six limbs, stocky predator with armor. Six eyes, tendril like hair, spikes on the spine from the head to tail. Very hard to kill. Aggressive, cunning, feared by all.

  Branack: Six limbed bipedal domestic animal. Used to as a domestic mount or to pull carts. Wild Branack have 3 horns on their heads. Domestics have them removed. Very light, skittish.

  Hex Rat: Six limbed pest. It has fur and spikes and a rat tail.

  Imp: wide eyed gliding monkey like creatures. Six limbs, with the middle limb more vestige and used as a thin support strut for the skin flaps used as gliding wings. The skin flaps connect from the upper arms near the wrist to the ankles on the lower legs like flying squirrels.

  Arboreal, with a tail. Cute, trainable. Skin, no fur. They start the size of a finger and grow to a bit above hand sized.

  They act as bats, mostly nocturnal. Some consider them pests.

  Rhino Trike; Also known as a Titan : Primary mount of cavalry like knights. Predator, 6 limbs, heavily armored.

  Anteater Giraffe: Long legged creature. Walks like it has only 4 legs but they have near vestigial limbs on their chest like other giraffes. Long neck. Folds of thick leather skin on the back to protect from predators. The head has a cobra crest of flesh. The inside of the crest is colored for males.

  They have elbow and hock spikes.

  They have a long muzzle and a very long tongue. They tend to attack a termite mound at the top, that drives the insects down. They then use their small arms to dig out a hole at chest level and then back up to stick their head into the nest at that point. Theorized that they can cover their eyes.

  They have short hair on their underside around their heads and necks. Short whip like tail.

  Bella Giraffe: Bright green creatures with fans of spine like feathers. The spines are yellow but are tipped with bulbs of blue or purple. The head has a split crest that fans out. More fans are on the shoulders, hips, and small ones on the legs. They look a bit like deer and do not have natural camouflage. Theorized they are poisonous. The make throaty calls, lifting their muzzles to the sky. Graceful body and rodent like head, long neck.

  An accidental discovery found that the spine tips glow in the dark.

  They have near vestigial limbs on their chest like other giraffes.

  Sandhopper: Kangaroo like creature, spindly forward sets of legs, 1 set used to touch the ground when on all fours. The rear legs are more robust. Hops like a kangaroo. Long tail. Furry, with manes of fur around the neck. Long neck with a horse like mane, long ears. The nose is an elephant trunk.

  Ventox toad: Giant toad with a crest and large throat. Very loud. Argued if it came from Earth or not. Bright colors, highly poisonous.

  Yumyum beast: Armadillo like beast. Thick pads of armored skin plus scales covering the spine. Mouth with prehensile lips for grazing. Four eyes, 2 long pointed ears. Head is facing down at ground level. It has 6 small legs tucked under armored folds of skin. Paddle like tail. Possibly related to Hippolow and other animals.

  Vacuum like grazer.

  Hippolow: Paddle face creature, almost a hammerhead face that is on the ground like a vacuum. It has horns like a cape buffalo and 2 sets of eyes under the horns. Six hippo like legs, short and stocky with the rear set longer. The rear hips sport 2 giant horn growths. The older the beast the larger they are. They tend to spiral like ram horns. Coupling is back to back. They fight by backing into each other. Theorized the rear horns protect its hind from predators.

  Moonstroller: Massive Elephant like creature. Six legs, big forward end. Beak. Pads of armored flesh on top protect it from predators. Feet like an elephant. The tail has 3 clusters of 3 giant tails, each with fans of feather like fur. Theorized that the tail is a display item, distraction, and a counter balance to the large front end.

  They move slow and are herd oriented.

  Warbeast: Elephant sized beast, predator. It has an X shaped head on a meter long neck, with flat rectangular horns on either side of the head and the base of the split jaw. They stick out to the sides but are swept backwards.

  It has 4 eyes and 2 sets of massive legs tipped by fearsome claws. The legs have spikes and flat areas that make it look like it is comfortable swimming. It has a giant bone crest where the neck meets the shoulders, and a series of plates along the back.

  What makes it even more unusual is that it has crab like legs, 1 set between the 2 ambulatory legs, and another 2 sets along the underside of the long flat tail.

  Spines stick up from the top of the body from the shoulders to the tail. They are over 2 meters long on some of the larger adults.

  The top is mottled in greens and tans while the underside skin folds are white or cream. Very rarely have they been caught and domesticated as war beasts, usually by catching a very young one. Like the Rhino Trike they are extremely dangerous to both friend and foe alike. They cannot be bred. Usually they have to be killed when they become too dangerous to handle, any attempt to release them into the wild would mean they would hunt people.

  Eritromos: Scorpion analog, it has 10 legs. Black or dark brown on top, tan underneath. Split tail that it curls like a scorpion. It has spikes on its long body that stick out to the sides and a hammerhead like head. It has short spine like hairs on its body. They can get up to a meter long.

  Fhanno: Possibly related to the Gigasara and Stormbeast. It has a beak and crest with moose like antlers. The body is rhino like but unarmored. It tends to stick to the forest and grasslands.

  Stormbeast: Possibly related to the Gigasara, this rhino like beast has 6 stocky legs and an armored back. Two spine like structures stick out forward beyond the head. Massive spines cover the back. It is colored to look like rock.

  It has a beak underneath and side mounted eyes. It can move quickly when startled. Tends to remain in the grasslands.

  Snapslash: Turtle like creature, it has spines and armor on its head, body, and tail. The tail has a massive bone hammer. The legs terminate in long claws. It has a beak. It has small pig like eyes and ears and is ill tempered, tending to slash at anything that comes near it.

  Alasya sea horses: Coastal creatures, herd mentality. Look like a cross between a sea horse and a Terran horse but with 6 legs. They have long thin rearward facing spines on their head, neck, and back.

  The head has been specialized to come together in a very narrow tube. It sticks the tube into giant flower like things that grow in some areas along the coast. It has barnacle like parasites on its sides and back.

  Gentlethorn: Strange creature that inhabits coastal areas. They have a spine covered exoskeleton, 6 limbs, and a sea horse like body. The legs are long and have ax head like feet. The head is horse like with tendrils behind the head.

  They are in a theorized symbiotic or parasitic relationship with giant barnacles. They used their feet to climb over the rocks and giant barnacles to stick their heads into the opening on top, avoiding the tentacles.

  Gigasara: Rhino like creature with a long beak instead of a normal head. It has folds of armored skin as well as rock like spikes along its spi
ne. The creature sticks to swamps and the coastal areas. They dip the head into water and scoop up food like a pelican, revealing a throat sack that expands. Water leaches out of it but food remains within. The animal is considered an omnivore since it is indiscriminate in what it scoops up, plants, krill, crabs, anything that goes into the beak is eaten.