Epsilon Eridani (Aeon 14: Enfield Genesis) Read online

  EPSILON ERIDANI

  ENFIELD GENESIS – BOOK 4

  BY LISA RICHMAN

  & M. D. COOPER

  SPECIAL THANKS

  Just in Time (JIT) & Beta Reads

  Gene Bryan

  Copyright © 2019 Lisa Richman & M. D. Cooper

  Aeon 14 is Copyright © 2019 M. D. Cooper

  Version 1.0.0

  Cover Art by Andrew Dobell

  Editing by Jen McDonnell, Bird’s Eye Books

  Aeon 14 & M. D. Cooper are registered trademarks of Michael Cooper

  All rights reserved

  TABLE OF CONTENTS

  FOREWORD

  WHAT HAS GONE BEFORE

  KEY CHARACTERS REJOINING US

  THE TECH OF ENFIELD GENESIS

  PART ONE: THE SNARE

  WEB OF DECEIT

  SPYCRAFT

  PART TWO: THE STING

  TARGET: ACQUIRED

  SLEEPING BLADE WAKES

  TRADE RELATIONS

  SETTING THE TRAP

  HOLDING ALL THE CARDS

  BIG REVEAL

  BIG GAME

  PART THREE: INFILTRATION

  THE ORIGIN OF SPECIES

  SHELL GAME

  MOTOR POOL, SLUDGE POOL

  IF IT WEREN’T FOR BAD LUCK

  INTELLIGENCE SNAFU

  PART FOUR: THE PLOT

  INTERIM PLAN

  A SPORT AS OLD AS GILGAMESH

  DEAD SHORT

  THIMBLERIGGING

  FOOD FOR THOUGHT

  PART FIVE: ARRIVAL

  WET CAT, ANGRY MARINE

  A SOLEMN CHARGE

  PRESIDENTIAL EXPANSE

  GEHENNA

  RECONNAISANCE

  PART SIX: EXECUTION

  DELICATE PROCESS

  A CONVENIENT LITTLE RIOT

  EVENING EXFIL

  TOO LITTLE, TOO LATE

  LITTLE BIRD

  CRASH AND BURN

  MARINES ON ICE

  STAR LIGHT, STAR BRIGHT

  THE BOOKS OF AEON 14

  ABOUT THE AUTHORS

  FOREWORD

  Cast your mind ahead a few years. We’ve made our first, fledgling steps toward colonization. Perhaps it’s a habitat in orbit, or a colony on the moon, maybe even Mars.

  For this to succeed, we’ll need systems in place to deliver everything our colonists need to survive. One critical component will be medical care and supplies.

  Now imagine our colony has in its possession a device. A digital-to-biological converter that can receive a file, transmitted from Earth, that will enable a doctor to reconstruct, on demand, any medicine a patient might need. Vaccines, antivirals, bacteriophages that kill infections. Insulin.

  Not having to ship supplies such vast distances, not needing to wait to receive them, would be life-saving. A game changer.

  But what would you say if I told you that this technology exists today? It does. It’s in its infancy, and it’s certainly not the size of a quarter, like the DBC units in Epsilon Eridani. But still, it exists.

  Tech advances like this are what fire my imagination, and what make me yearn to see the future. And if I can’t see it, well, within these pages, I can at least envision it.

  I hope that in some small way with these stories, Michael and I are able to fire your imagination as well.

  There’s one more thing I’ve been meaning to say, something that’s been on my mind for a while now. A recent event had me thinking that now might be a good time to tell you.

  A few weeks prior to the publication of this book, the phrase ‘like a house afire’ took on an entirely new meaning for me. Thanks to a faulty piece of equipment, I found myself surrounded by an alarming blend of flashing red-and-blue lights that shone against the backdrop of a two-story conflagration.

  I experienced heroism that night, on both a large and small scale.

  As I stood in the snow, surrounded by those whose duty placed them in peril on behalf of others, I knew that, however often we thank them, it isn’t nearly enough.

  It is this kind of heroism, the drive to stand between the innocent and the profane in all its forms, that draws me to such tales as those found in Aeon 14. Tales where good triumphs over evil, and the weak are defended by the strong.

  Idealistic? Tell that to the warrior who flies combat missions into hostile territory while under fire, or who charges forward into a wall of bullets to pull an injured soldier to safety.

  Naïve? Tell that to the scientist who refuses to let the most recent batch of failed specimens discourage him from finding the next cure.

  Jason, Terrance, and the Phantom Blade team are a disparate group, hailing from three different stars. They are diverse, both in culture and species, and yet they are united in purpose, their shared resolve compelling them to stand repeatedly between the innocent and the profane.

  It is my hope that the story told in this book honors those who currently serve, or have served, their country—be it military or civilian. We owe you a debt of gratitude we can never repay. This story is dedicated to you.

  The phrase “thank you for your service” is heard often; it is my hope that when you read it here, you know that it is deeply heartfelt.

  Lisa

  Leawood, 2019

  WHAT HAS GONE BEFORE

  An unlikely set of circumstances brought Alpha Centauri businessman Terrance Enfield and Proxan pilot-for-hire Jason Andrews together, along with an elite group of humans and AIs, to form Task Force Phantom Blade.

  The black ops team, based out of El Dorado, was founded by the planet’s prime minister, Lysander, the first AI to be appointed to such a high position throughout the known worlds. Terrance’s company, Enfield Holdings, is a legitimate business that also functions as the white-side face of the clandestine organization.

  Their first mission found the team going head-to-head against a criminal organization that had taken a ship full of more than two hundred and fifty AI refugees captive. Phantom Blade shut down the Norden Cartel, but not before they had managed to shackle and sell seventeen of the AIs from the New Saint Louis into slavery.

  Their second mission, directed by an AI commodore in the El Dorado Space Force named Eric, led the team to Proxima Centauri and pitted them against a sociopathic serial killer named Prime.

  Phantom Blade’s third mission was simple: find and repatriate the final two shackled AIs, sold by the cartel to an unknown entity in Tau Ceti, a star system thirteen light years away. Unbeknownst to the team, Tau Ceti had fallen victim to nanotechnology run amok—and the two shackled AIs had been acquired as a last-ditch effort to save the planet, Galene.

  The team ended up joining with Noa, the physicist forced to purchase the shackled AIs. Together, they stopped the phage, overthrowing an opportunistic tyrant bent on keeping the nanophage alive as a way to assure control over Galene.

  Their mission parameters now complete, Phantom Blade takes some well-deserved time off en route to Epsilon Eridani. Their ship, the Avon Vale, has been commissioned to seed the route with communication buoys to enable a more rapid exchange of information.

  While the team mulls over whether to disband or continue on as a covert team-for-hire, Terrance plans to set up a branch for Enfield Holdings to establish trade relations within the system.

  The factions within the Epsilon Eridani system, however, might have something to say about that….

  KEY CHARACTERS REJOINING US

  Beck – One of the first cats to have been fully uplifted by Jason’s mother, Jane Sykes Andrews, Beck (short for Bequerel, so named by Jason’s physicist father) bonded with Terrance as a kitten. Beck became an ersatz membe
r of Phantom Blade during his heroic actions on Galene in Tau Ceti, where he aided in the takedown of a band of marauders.

  Calista Rhinehart – Former ESF top gun, Calista was hired by Terrance to fill the role of Chief Pilot for Enfield Aerospace. Calista was recruited to Phantom Blade in the first Enfield Genesis book, Alpha Centauri. During their third mission, Calista was appointed captain of the Enfield Space Ship, ESS Avon Vale.

  Jason Andrews – Son of Jane Sykes Andrews, grandson of Cara Sykes, Jason is a pilot and a bit of an adrenaline junkie. He is also one of the first few humans to exhibit the natural L2 mutation, which means that the axons—neural pathways—in his brain have a significantly higher number of nodes than a normal L0 human. They function as signal boosters, which allow him to process information at lightning speeds, and give him much faster reflexes than unaugmented humans have.

  Jonesy – Calling him the ‘best assistant this side of Sol,’ Calista hired Jonesy for Enfield Aerospace as soon as his tour of duty was up. Jonesy followed Calista to Phantom Blade during their second mission, where he fell under the control of Prime, and was forced to try to kill Jason. During the long journey to Tau Ceti, Jonesy earned his engineering degree under Shannon’s tutelage.

  Khela Sakai – A former Marine Captain in the Galene Space Force, Khela led a fourteen-person special operations team instrumental in the overthrow of a corrupt government. Her efforts put her in harm’s way in more than the traditional sense: during Tau Ceti, Khela and Hana, the AI embedded with her, fell victim to the nanophage. Hana perished while embedded within Khela during Phantom Blade’s third mission.

  Kodi – An AI soldier on loan from the ESF to aid in the team’s second mission, Kodi embedded with Terrance Enfield during the team’s third operation, in Tau Ceti.

  Landon – One of five AIs asked to join the original Phantom Blade team, he was illegally twinned prior to the events in Alpha Centauri, for a black op that went south. Landon is the more outgoing and garrulous brother; he fell in the line of duty, defending Jason’s sister, Judith Andrews, from Prime in book 2, Proxima Centauri. In Tau Ceti, his twin, Logan, restored him, but Prime’s brutal attack still haunts Landon.

  Logan – Former ESF Military Intelligence profiler and AI-hunter, Logan was appointed by Senator Lysander to Phantom Blade. He has always been the more taciturn twin. Logan was instrumental in the team’s bid to wrest possession of Galene’s Main Elevator from hostile forces in the team’s third mission to Tau Ceti.

  Noa Sakai – As a young man, Noa had rejected his ties to the Sakai family’s ancient underworld crime Family, the Matsu-kai. Events in Tau Ceti force him to reluctantly embrace them one final time, in order to save the star system from the Phage. He joined Phantom Blade, along with his daughter, Khela, for their mission to Epsilon Eridani.

  Shannon – Former chief engineer for Enfield Aerospace’s TechDev Division, Shannon is one of the original five AIs recruited to Task Force Phantom Blade. She is currently embedded in the ESS Avon Vale, and harbors a secret longing to experience humanoid life.

  Terrance Enfield – Grandson of Sophia Enfield, and the former CEO of Enfield Aerospace, Terrance now runs Enfield Holdings, the shell corporation under which Phantom Blade operates. He is the first Enfield in Alpha Centauri to partner with an AI, a former El Dorado Space Force lieutenant named Kodi.

  Tobi – One of the uplifted cats bred by Jane Sykes Andrews as companion pets for families living in habitats and on ships. Tobi helped Tobias accompany Jason, carrying his core around in her harness, since AIs cannot embed inside an L2 human.

  Tobias – A Weapon Born AI, Tobias left Sol after the Sentience Wars to settle in Proxima. There, he formed a close friendship with the Sykes-Andrews family. Along with Lysander—another Weapon Born—he was influential in Jason’s early life as a friend, tutor, and mentor, often worn in a harness by a partially uplifted Proxima cat who accompanies the human.

  Weapon Born AIs – These are powerful creatures, among the first non-organic sentients in existence. They first appeared in Sol two centuries ago, the product of an illicit experiment involving the imaged minds of human children—a blank canvas upon which nation-states could forge the perfect, obedient soldier. What they got instead were intelligent, self-aware beings who fought for the right to exist in freedom. Tobias—and AIs of his ilk—are practically living legends to other AIs.

  THE TECH OF ENFIELD GENESIS

  Colloid Nano – Colloids are extremely tiny insoluble particles that are so light, they remain suspended in air. When grafted onto nano, colloid nano clouds can be released.

  Thanks to brownian motion, the force of the particles in the air around them is greater than the force of gravity attempting to pull them down, and so they float, and are susceptible to the activity of air currents.

  In the thirty-third century, colloid nanobots themselves aren’t capable of independent motion; production is not yet capable of creating any form of propulsion small enough to apply to nano.

  Colloidene Nano— A colloidene is made from a colloid particle but formed just like single-layer graphene. Patterned in a honeycomb lattice, it employs some of the click-assembly techniques used in chemistry.

  Pre-loaded common codes, or ‘bricks’, give nano creation a jump-start. The result is a nanobot programmed to rapidly alter existing nano to whatever the person controlling it needs it to be.

  E-SCAR – Electron-beam Special Combat Assault Rifle

  Elastene– A material made using electrospinning techniques on graphene. As its name implies, Elastene has shape-memory properties that allow it to store and release an unprecedented amount of mechanical energy. That means a ship clad in the substance can dissipate heat much faster than any other spacecraft in existence.

  Engines built from Elastene can run for longer periods, at up to twenty percent higher speeds than prior output allowed.

  Engineering Elastene into a metal foam creates a surface with an elasticity far more successful at deflecting micrometeorites and other impacts than current materials. Its shape-memory properties absorb the kinetic energy of the impact, spreading it across a much greater surface area.

  Wearable Elastene – During the fifty-plus-year journey to Tau Ceti, the engineers aboard the Avon Vale learned to extrude Elastene as a stretchy fabric.

  Most commonly used in military operations, Elastene can function as a deflector for weapons fire. In addition, certain Elastene weaves function as ultra-black Faraday cages, allowing for covert operatives to more easily obscure breaching nano from active scan.

  MFRs – Matchbook Fusion Reactors, a new power source invented by Enfield Aerospace on El Dorado in the late thirty-second century by then-chief engineer Shannon. It made use of a Localized Micro-Plasma, and was portable and interchangeable. Taking less than half the volume of current reactors, the new energy source allowed Phantom Blade to replace the original engines on their ship, the Avon Vale, with eight reactors where there had originally been only two.

  Snowflake Nano – Phantom Blade’s own personal, electronic breadcrumb trail. Each snowflake, like its namesake, has a unique geometric signature. That signature is contained in the database of a Phantom Blade app. The app registers the negative space created by each snowflake on whatever surface it resides. Once a snowflake is tagged as ‘in use’, the search app would keep track of the void that particular snowflake made, pinpointing its location while it remains in range. Also applied to micro drones.

  True Stasis – True stasis employs the cessation of all atomic motion, as opposed to its predecessor, cryo-stasis. With true stasis, there is no risk of cellular damage brought about by freezing. An individual in stasis could emerge decades—even centuries—later, essentially unchanged.

  PART ONE: THE SNARE

  WEB OF DECEIT

  STELLAR DATE: 03.05.3272 (Adjusted Gregorian)

  LOCATION: Presidium Offices, Humans’ Republic

  REGION: Hauptstadt, Barat, Little River (Epsilon Eridani system)

  “It
’s confirmed,” Giovanni Perelman informed the Citizens’ Council. “Our operatives have successfully infiltrated the Verdant Mining platform.”

  He allowed the news to sink in as his gaze rested momentarily on Premier Rachelle Feretti before moving to the other two in the secured room, deep inside Barat’s Presidium. Citizen Coletti was Barat’s Director of Commerce, while Citizen Savin led the planet’s Republican Guard.

  Both women held their expressions carefully in check as they awaited the premier’s response to his pronouncement.

  Feretti was by far the most dangerous person in the room, though Giovanni knew his own reputation was a bit disingenuous. He was the Citizen Director of Public Safety and Information, but there was nothing safe about the Human Republic’s top spy, although he did deal in information.

  As he awaited Peretti’s judgement, a part of his mind noted that, of the four, only the premier allowed herself a splash of color among an otherwise muted palette. None of the rest—including Giovanni—would dare.

  The severe lines and somber colors of their dress faithfully reflected the ruthless nature of the organization that had founded the colony almost two hundred years ago.

  Ironic, given that the most ruthless among them was the premier.

  It would have come as no surprise to anyone familiar with the Sol-based corporation, EpiGen, to learn it had spawned a totalitarian regime. Nor that this regime was primed to expand its territory in Little River.