Six Sentence Sunday – Science Fiction Continues

I’m changing pace, leaving Ancient Egypt (temporarily) for science fiction romance. Here are six more from my current WIP PRINCESS OF SHADOWS (title subject to change!).

Princess Shalira is explaining the term “princess of shadows” to the hero, Major Mike Varone, Sectors Special Forces:

I have to get away from here, before the emperor dies,” she said with a bitter laugh, adding “Playing the princess of shadows won’t protect me after his death.”

“Princess of shadows?” Nothing about that in our briefing. Mike remembered the empress had also used the term to refer to Shalira.

“It’s an old folktale, a girl of royal blood who hid from her enemies in the shadows of the palace walls, disguised as a beggar, until her true love rescued her.” Touching one delicately tinted eyelid, Shalira said, “It’s meant as an insult to me, since I can’t see, not even shadows, and I’ve lived the past fifteen years on the fringes of the court, tolerated, protected only because my mother was the emperor’s Favorite till her death.”

Here’s the story blurb:

Blind since childhood due to an attempted assassination plot, Princess Shalira is resigned to an arranged marriage with a warrior chieftain… until she meets Sectors Special Forces Major Mike Varone, sent to the planet Majumdar to investigate a crashed spaceship, lost in the planet’s mountains.  After Mike saves her from another assassination attempt, she persuades her father the Emperor to order him to join her caravan, going to meet her bridegroom.

 Mike resists his growing attraction to her but the pair bond further as they work to retrieve sacred artifacts from her mother’s tomb, narrowly escaping another ambush. Mike offers Shalira the opportunity to go off planet with him, but she insists on carrying out her father’s wishes to create an important alliance by marrying the chieftain. Heartsore, Mike promises to deliver her safely to her bridegroom and walk away.

 But when they reach the mountain camp, the chieftain is revealed to be a brutish thug, with no intention of honorably marrying Shalira. Can Mike rescue her, will they win the race against time to accomplish his mission, escape the hostile warriors hunting them and make it off the planet?

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Six Sentence Sunday – More Science Fiction Adventure

Going back to my SFR , STILL out on submission now, set in the same universe as my recently published WRECK of the NEBULA DREAM. Andrianda (Andi) Markriss, a planetary representative for Loxton Galactic Trading, has been spending a lazy summer with her best friend in the highly exclusive summer compound of the planet Zulaire’s ruling nobility, networking. On a day when a number of strange  and disturbing things have already happened, Captain Tom Deverane, Sectors Special Forces, unexpectedly shows up with a troop of soldiers and demands she leave with him. Immediately.

Andi doesn’t take this very well….in fact, she refuses to go. Later in the evening, all hell has broken loose, as the captain predicted.
Trying to avoid spoilers here, after certain “events”, she and the soldiers are on the run. 

In the excerpt two weeks ago Tom was taken suddenly ill. Last week Tom and Andi discussed his illness and as promised, here are the next six sentences in that conversation:

“This assignment was unusual, having a squad under my command since Mitch and I work alone 90% of the time,” he said, reaching out to take her hand, twining his fingers through hers, stroking his thumb across her palm.  “I would never put my guys at risk – I get about a week’s warning before an attack comes on, which gives me time to lie low.”

“What kind of warning?”

“The whole visible spectrum of colors shifts on me, like an aura, enough so nothing looks normal and for sure nothing smells or tastes right – I know an attack is coming and I know what I have to do. I was starting to see the first symptoms the day the orders changed, which was another reason I wasn’t pleased to be diverted to the Obati summer compound. “

Biting her lip Andi drew little circles in the quilt with her free hand, saying, “I’m sorry.”

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Six Sentence Sunday

Here’s the last excerpt from my new book Wreck of the Nebula Dream, science fiction with romantic elements, available from Amazon and Barnes & Noble. Thanks to everyone on the Six Sentence Sunday hop for being so wonderful & supportive!

The situation: Nick Jameson, Sectors Special Forces, has unexpectedly wound up traveling to his next assignment via a new luxury liner. The ship has problems early in the voyage but then suffers a catastrophe of Titanic proportions. The excerpt comes after Nick and Mara and their party have been through a lot (no spoilers so I can’t explain why Nick’s voice is raspy but trust me, the man has endured a harsh ordeal)… but still aren’t safely off the ship.

“This is one weird damn voyage,” Nick said, his voice raspy from the hours of tortured agony.

“I certainly never had any other business trip like it, ” Mara agreed, with a small smile. “Even if we don’t make it out of here, I’m not sorry I took this journey with you.”

He gazed at her, a matching smile spreading itself across his face. Just looking at this woman makes me happy – I don’t care if that sounds hokey.  “Neither am I, lady, neither am I.”

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