Perpetual Wars - Novel Excerpts
The Recruit
As PCF-19 began to get close to the two hovering discs they began to take on a different glow. The color changed from a bright white towards more of a blue. The pitch of the whirring sounds that the discs made also changed dramatically going much faster which indicated an increase in the spin.
PCF-19 was now within almost 200 yards and Skipper Hampton gave the order, “Release safeties and open fire.” Byron Rivett’s Twin 50’s immediately gave off the familiar “chattering sound” these guns made when they were fired, accompanied by the clinking sound of the empty brass cartridges as they fell to the deck. The bright orangey-red tracings showed them going in on the targets. Meanwhile, Michael had started firing his M60 which gave off a sound like “tooka-tooka-tooka-tooka” and also lit up with orangey-red tracings towards the target.
“Strange,” he thought, “We are going full speed, but the two discs haven’t changed position relative to us. What are they doing?”
Michael opened up his M60 at rapid fire. In that moment, the boat was engulfed in a powerful beam of bluish white light. It was the last thing that Michael would remember of that day. PCF-19 was instantly obliterated in an explosion.
As PCF-19 began to get close to the two hovering discs they began to take on a different glow. The color changed from a bright white towards more of a blue. The pitch of the whirring sounds that the discs made also changed dramatically going much faster which indicated an increase in the spin.
PCF-19 was now within almost 200 yards and Skipper Hampton gave the order, “Release safeties and open fire.” Byron Rivett’s Twin 50’s immediately gave off the familiar “chattering sound” these guns made when they were fired, accompanied by the clinking sound of the empty brass cartridges as they fell to the deck. The bright orangey-red tracings showed them going in on the targets. Meanwhile, Michael had started firing his M60 which gave off a sound like “tooka-tooka-tooka-tooka” and also lit up with orangey-red tracings towards the target.
“Strange,” he thought, “We are going full speed, but the two discs haven’t changed position relative to us. What are they doing?”
Michael opened up his M60 at rapid fire. In that moment, the boat was engulfed in a powerful beam of bluish white light. It was the last thing that Michael would remember of that day. PCF-19 was instantly obliterated in an explosion.
Book 1: Excerpt from C10 The Cua Viet River p. 138
Cover Characters for The Recruit
From Left to Right: Michael Smith; Aphrodite; Athena
Gods In Space
Aphrodite and Ares arrived together. Michael almost fell out of his chair at the sight of the two of them. They were a couple and yet they weren’t. Aphrodite was as usual, a vision of breath-taking beauty. Her thick blonde hair was pulled back into a tight folded French twist hairstyle which fully revealed her beautiful face and her ears. Like Athena’s and Demeter’s gowns, Aphrodite’s was also low cut showing a lot of cleavage which was far more bountiful for her than the other two women. Aphrodite’s color was clearly red though. Her gown was bright red and she had large ruby earrings and a ruby necklace laced with diamonds. She also wore bright red high heeled shoes. Every eye in the dining room was fixated on her and she was aware of it.
Michael had to tear his eyes away to be able to get a look at Ares. While Aphrodite was a vision of beauty, Ares was a vision of strength and power. His bearing was one of command and dominance. He was an incredibly large and muscular man. Michael judged his height to be nearly 6 feet 6 inches and his weight close to 230 lbs. He was 50 pounds heavier than Michael and four inches taller. There was no question, Michael would have no chance in any kind of physical contest with this man.
Michael offered his right hand to Ares who reached down with his right hand and took hold of Michael’s as firmly as possible. Ares pulled Michael towards him and then using his left hand he struck Michael a blow to his cheek near the side of his mouth and knocked him to the deck.
Ares said boldly and loudly for everyone to hear, “I’m Ares, the God of War and that is how I say hello!”
Michael hit the ground hard landing sitting up on his butt. As he started to collect himself to get back on his feet, Athena screeched, “What the hell do you think you are doing Ares?”
Ares responded calmly, “I have to see what kind of a man you have brought to dine with me.”
Michael got to his feet quickly and stated, “Now that you have said hello, do you mind if I say hello back?”
Book 2: Excerpt from C12 Feasting with the Gods, p. 207
Cover Characters for Gods In Space
From Left to Right: Michael Smith; Athena; Ares
Atlantean Gunnery Master
Malapan managed to make his way back towards the Temple and he had arrived on an empty street, having momentarily eluded his pursuers. The Temple and his salvation were in sight when he was suddenly intercepted by a group of four men who possessed both swords and buckler style shields. Malapan only had his walking stick with which to defend himself.
As the four men approached Malapan, they insulted him, yelling out, “Korantian bugger bitch. We are going to stick our swords up your ass. Then you can tell us how it compares to a Korantian phallus!! What do you think of that?”
Malapan did not respond to their insulting threats. He was saving his energy for what he knew was likely a hopeless struggle. He was glancing about for a place where he could take up a defensive position that would enable him to fend the men off for a moment and perhaps allow him to escape. He began moving towards a narrow alleyway in the hopes that there would not be any new assailants to contend with. The four men were closing in on him. They continued to hurl epithets his way as they did so.
Suddenly a powerful and commanding voice called out from behind the four sword bearing men, declaring, “Here’s another Korantian bugger bitch for you to deal with!”
It was Devalapan. The situation for Malapan’s assailants had now changed drastically. Instead of facing a diminutive male acolyte from the Korantian Temple of the Living Gods, carrying a short walking stick, the four men now found themselves contending with a mountainous, heavily armed, and angry Korantian Temple Guard.
All of the Korantian Temple Guards were extremely well equipped. They all wore armor on their legs in the form of grieves which protected their shins and calves. They wore leather skirts with armored plating to protect their upper thighs and hips. A solid metal chest plate and back plate were worn over the shoulders, and they had more padding that hung down and protected their upper arms. The whole upper assembly was joined together by chain straps.
In terms of weaponry, each guard carried a long dagger, a short dagger, and a long sword all attached to a belt. Finally, each one held a long solid metal spear tipped with a sharp and wide metal point.
Only one of Malapan’s four assailants had the sense to run off at the sight of him. The other three turned from Malapan and tried to face him down. If they had been fighting any other Temple Guard, a three to one advantage might have been enough. Against Dev, they had been outmatched when the odds were four to one.
The man running off might well have stayed to fight in light of how things turned out. Dev launched his spear very accurately and spitted the poor villain before he even made it thirty feet away. Dev did not want to take a chance that the escaping felon might double back and surprise him from behind. He had no sooner loosed his spear than he drew his long sword to deal with the three remaining men. His tactic in fighting with them was very straightforward. He was going to rush through them and get between them and Malapan. As he did, he intended to try to eliminate one of them right away. Then he would turn back and face the two remaining men with Malapan safely behind him. If they ran away, that would be fine. If they tried to stand and fight, he would dispatch them in turn.
Dev charged through the three men and as he did, he rained a powerful cutting stroke down on the sword and buckler of the man in the middle of the three. Dev’s blow struck the middle assailant’s sword, buckler and then body, cleaving them all in two in that same order. As Dev turned back to face the remaining two attackers, he could see the fight was over. As the two surviving men looked down at their now bisected companion, they simultaneously emptied their bowels into the street, after which they both ran off in two completely different directions.
Book 3: Excerpt from C16 Dev the Enforcer p. 459
The Atlantean-Alliance Gunner's Anthem
Cover Characters for Atlantean Gunnery Master were rendered by Connor Macgregor
From Left to Right: Athena, Michael Smith; Altaire Mason
Love and Loss
Ares made an announcement, “We will begin the fitness testing with some wrestling between the groom and Albin Mason, the s.o.b. who is standing beside him.”
Ares paused for a moment to allow the groups to respond with laughter to his jibe.
He continued, “I mean of course, the son of the bride.”
Michael and Albin found themselves being illuminated with spotlights while the rest of the room was dark. Ares stepped away and signaled for Michael and Albin to begin wrestling.
The two men began circling each other. There were a lot of jeers coming from the crowd egging the two men on to fight. Michael and Albin were circling trying to find an opening in the other’s defense. Michael gave Albin a few feints like he was going to shoot at his leg, but Albin quickly countered. Albin tried to get ahold of one of Michael’s arms, but Michael parried him away. As the two men continued to jockey for position Michael could hear Ares making some crude and joking commentary remarks.
Ares mocked, “I think the Gunnery Master has misunderstood the purpose of this contest. It is not to teach another dance. It is to put his opponent on his backside! I think he is more worried about protecting his testicles for his bride instead of demonstrating that he has a pair of them!”
There was laughter coming from all corners of the room in response to Ares. Michael ignored the audience and concentrated on trying to gain an advantage. Suddenly, as Albin circled the angle of the spotlight seemed to blind his right eye. Michael took this opportunity to launch an attack on his right leg and he managed to take hold. He immediately got both arms on Albin’s leg and lifted him up to get him off balance. Albin was trying to keep from going down while also getting some leverage on Michael to pull him down. The result was that they both ended up off their feet. Michael managed to get himself in a dominant position behind Albin and grab on. Although he had some control over Albin, he didn’t have the strength to overpower him and pin him. Albin tried every twist and turn possible to escape but he couldn’t shake Michael loose. The result was that the two men skittered about the floor with neither being able to do very much. Although it seemed like forever to Michael, he was very glad as Ares called an end to the match and pronounced it to be a draw.
Book 4: Excerpt from C.4 Phylo’s Bacchanalian Feast p. 93
WARNING - Readers are advised to have some facial tissues handy while reading this novel!!
Cover Characters for Love and Loss were rendered by Connor Macgregor.
From Left to Right: Michael Smith; Altaire Mason; Dorzan Hindman
Staredown Across The Void
Michael and Lilia readied their lasers along with their remaining missiles and railgun munitions. They both opened up a powerful rate of fire on the Korantian vessel just as she came into laser range. Because they were trying to be so precise in targeting specific parts of the ship’s propulsion and operating systems, as well as her gun ports, they did not succeed in time to disable one facing gun before the Glantia returned fire with a single laser. As a result, a Korantian laser beam cut through some of the light speed shielding striking near Lilia’s Gunnery station. This resulted in a small explosion and the decompression of the Foregun Bay. Had Michael and Lilia not been strapped into their Gunnery chairs and wearing their pressure suits, they would have died instantly. Despite this, Lilia’s seat was displaced in the explosion.
Michael discovered that his Gun had shut down on him after the strike. It didn’t really matter at that point because the Caledon had sped out of laser range and was now so far past the Korantian ship that the Foreguns could no longer be used to target it anyway. Lilia’s Gunnery station was completely destroyed because of the laser blast it had taken. The moment Michael realized this, he unstrapped himself from his Gunnery chair and ran to check on Lilia. As he did, he took a moment to signal for Medical Assistance. Michael began tending to Lilia. She was lying on the floor still strapped to her now displaced Gunnery chair. There was a small hole in her pressure suit on the right side below her rib cage. The air was escaping from her suit and some blood was flowing. Michael looked at her face and he could see that Lilia was still conscious. She had an expression of fear and pain on her face. There were also some tears in her eyes. Michael was about to reassure her when she started gasping for air which indicated she was having trouble breathing. Michael wasn’t sure if it was because she was losing air from her suit or if she had a collapsed lung. Regardless he did the one thing that made sense in this moment. He clamped his hand over the hole in her suit. He began to look around for an emergency seal kit. There was none at hand! Lilia was going to die!
Book 5: Excerpt from C11 The Snare p. 268
Cover Characters By Connor Macgregor
From Left to Right: Athena; Michael Smith; Lilia Quadra
Poem: Staredown Across The Void
Space, so dark and so cold.
Our enemy is bold.
We hide in a shadow.
Around us the star’s glow.
Our trap is set.
We listen to the net.
We wait and we wait.
The enemy is late?
The ship holds steady.
The gunners stand ready.
We recheck our gear.
Why do they not appear?
The engines power down.
The Captain wears a frown.
The crew picks up the pace.
The ship enters normal space.
What fortune is fating?
Is the enemy waiting?
Our weapons are primed.
The targeting devices are timed.
We stand ready as the ship arrives.
We prepare to defend our lives.
The night is suddenly alight.
We find ourselves in a fight.
The enemy ship springs into view.
The Captain alerts the crew.
The gunners begin to fire.
The tension is like a live wire.
The missiles start to fly.
The enemy makes reply.
It is our turn to fear.
How did they know we were near?
The engines begin their flow.
We fire our last salvo.
We don’t want to be destroyed.
We hide behind an asteroid.
Our anti-missiles fill the sky.
Our offensive batteries reply.
The enemy’s trap is well laid.
The ship strains to evade.
We fight for survival.
How did they plot our arrival?
The enemy has bit.
We have taken a hit!
Our response is still strong.
The ambushers have gone.
We power up and escape.
We return the ship to shape.
We waited long and steady.
The enemy was ready.
Our presence unveiled.
Our ambush failed.
Now we take flight.
We fly the speed of light.
Time passes in space.
We set course for our base.
What fortune is fating?
Is the enemy waiting?
Our weapons are primed.
The targeting devices are timed.
William Joseph Patrick
Now Available: Perpetual Wars (Book 6): Special Relativity Series - Return to Earth
Michael tucked Aphrodite’s sword under his arm and brought his laser rifle to bear and fired very quickly and accurately knocking two of the laser rifles out of the hands of the trio of Korantians that had been doing a lot of damage. Then he dropped his Laser rifle and took Aphrodite’s sword in hand.
He looked like an avenging Golden angel with the wings on his helmet as he raised his sword. The single Korantian who still had an operating rifle got off a few shots that hit the chest of Michael’s armor. If Michael had been wearing regular Space Marine armor he likely would have died. The female shaped breast plate of Aphrodite’s armor that had been reinforced inside had stopped the penetration of the laser bolts! Michael leaped upon the surprised Captain Nematin and severed his head neatly from his body! Michael then dispatched a second Korantian while the two Space Marines who were with him took down the third.
The Korantian ship was now secure! The cost had been high! One Space Marine had been killed, one wounded, and four unarmored members of the assault team had been killed! Michael realized then and there that unarmored people should not be used in boarding operations. It was a painful lesson! Michael knelt down beside the wounded Edwin Grube when another figure appeared wearing a pressure suit. Michael looked up to see the beautiful visage of Aphrodite. Grube was conscious although in tremendous pain.
He gasped weakly, “A true Goddess here to assist me along with the armored embodiment of the same! The armored Goddess is the most incredible fighter I have ever seen! It has been a great privilege Gunnery Officer Smith!”
“The privilege is mine, Corporal Grube. Now let Goddess Aphrodite tend to your wounds!”
Aphrodite remarked, “Yes. Let me make sure you are stable so we can move you to the Medical Bay.”
Michael stood back and surveyed the scene of the battle. He began to feel great shame and sadness as he surveyed the carnage. He had murdered people close up with a sword in his hand! It was covered in blood and so was he. The beheaded bodies of eight Korantians lay where they had fallen! Suddenly Michael sensed a hand touching his armored shoulder from the side. He looked to see the helmeted head of Lilia Quadra beside him.
“There is nothing more for you to do here Michael! I came to take you back aboard the Cassius!”
“I feel very ashamed! I am responsible for all this blood and a lot of deaths, Lilia!”
“You are responsible for more lives! Don’t lose sight of this Michael! We need you! I need you! Come back with me to the Cassius. We have to get underway!”
Lilia took Michael by the hand, and she gently led him back through the floor breech point and back into the Cassius. He followed her blindly and obediently.
Excerpt from C.2 - Rescue of the Janus pp. 55-57.