Sunday, August 31, 2014

Tristand MacFallan - 9

We've been out of the towers for a week now and already my wife seems  listless and disinterested in the world that's dying around us. I don't blame her, of course I don't, but our child is growing inside her and is the one spark in the hell that has become our lives.
I've heard there are some groups forming their own villages, self sufficient and sustainable - though how this is possible with our parched world, I have no idea. I can only hope it's true, and only hope one of them will accept us into the fold.

Friday, August 29, 2014

Corporal Sienna Jade-13

Since that news came out I have turned down two offers of marriage. Not all women are being as choosy as there has already been a couple of wedding. I guess if you don’t find someone now your chances get slimmer as the good ones get snapped up. After Lt Zane I vowed no more officers and no more Army guys. Maybe I’ll meet a nice civilian on board, or maybe I’ll just keep to myself and devote all my time to study. Me, Sienna from the slums a fully qualified doctor! Dr. Jade has a nice ring to it—better than some cheap ass wedding ring.

Doctor Lily Kwan - Personal Log #7

Now what do I do? They want me to meet the expeditions Chief Scientific Officer in person. But I cant, I just cant! Theres no way in hell I can get out of the Tower without a bodyguard.

I need to think about this. There must be something I can do. Hang on I guess we could do it via vid screen. If Father finds out, hell be furious, but that wont be the worst part. Hell see to it I never set foot outside again.

On the other hand, its reasonable risk. Ive chatted with other researchers on the vid before and Father couldnt be bothered to ask who they were. If I ask Doctor Schmidt for the questions in advance, I can keep it short.  Yes! And Ill say hes in Europe so I have to stay up 'til the early hours because of the time difference.

When I weigh it all up, logically and calmly yes, Im going to do it!


God, Im so scared, so excited!

Tuesday, August 26, 2014

Alex Tariel-12

Stealing water was not as hard as I’d thought it would be—getting away with it was (not that I’d planned to). Shit I can’t believe I deliberately got arrested. What if I don’t get put on a ship and I have to work on one of the prison farms? Oh yeah and guess where that food goes—to the nice folk in the towers. Prisoners are cheap labor. No wonder they’re always arresting people for minor shit. Have to wait for sentencing and then play it by ear. Not that my life was great before but I had a decent job. I hope I haven't fucked myself over.

Friday, August 22, 2014

Corporal Sienna Jade-12

Not a rumor. Women are going to outnumbered 4:1 on the first voyage. Apparently it’s going to be better on the second voyage (I love how they are planning a second trip even though we haven’t left yet and we could all die of starvation once we get there). In the meantime what are all those horny prisoners going to do, each other? Or do they plan on working them until they drop? I hope not, that’s just so wrong. I don’t have a good feeling about this at all.

Tuesday, August 19, 2014

Alex Tariel-11

Okay today is the day. Water shortage again for those of us not in the towers. The plan is simple. Steal water, get arrested, get put on one those ships bound for Solitaire. If I don’t do it today I’ll back out. I’m thirty seven in a few weeks. Life expectancy here is fifty. I’ve probably already got chem-lung—that’s what kills most construction workers.

Saturday, August 16, 2014

Cover Reveal!

We have three gorgeous covers to share!

Is she willing to sacrifice everything to keep her secret and her lover safe?

It's the year 2202. Earth is grossly overpopulated and seriously polluted. Rita Songworth has spent half her twenty-two years trying to escape the dying planet. It's taken the last five of those years to realize making it in the hard-ass infantry is her only way out, via space transporter Earth Ship Siren.

But the journey to Unity, the new colony, isn't easy. Rita has to resist an attraction to hard, brutish prisoner, Tristan MacFallan, whose masterful hands create more than the beautiful art he's been assigned to make. His forbidden touch affects her profoundly and he sees things in her no man ever has before. But obeying Kane, her ex-lover and malicious lieutenant, who is appointed to keeping the prisoners under guard, comes at a high price. Is she willing to sacrifice everything to keep her secret and her lover safe?

Yours to Command by Shona Husk
He would do anything to protect her, if only she'd let him.
 
Corporal Sienna Jade wasn't given a choice about joining the mission to Unity. Seen as a troublemaker after reporting an assault by a senior officer, the army wanted her gone. Sienna resents the army for assigning her to Earth Ship Siren, and suspects the fleet's Unity mission will fail. But others would do anything to escape Earth ...
 
Alex Tariel knew his only chance to get a place on ES Siren was as a prisoner, so he stole water rations. As a former construction foreman, his skills make him a valuable prisoner on board, but still a prisoner unable to control his own life. Instead of keeping his head down, he gets involved in the fights set up for gambling privilege tokens, the only currency aboard ship among the prisoners.

Getting patched up by Corporal Jade might be the best thing that's happened to Alex on the trip so far, but becoming her ship husband puts him between her and the lieutenant who tried to kill her for kicks on Earth. While Sienna tries to keep control of her feelings for Alex, Alex would do anything to protect her, if only she'd let him.

As ES Siren faces its first crisis, a little trust and love goes a long way.
 
A man more potent than any drug.
 
It's 2202 and on board ES Siren, the brilliant Doctor Lily Kwan has worked in secret to develop an antidote for the aphrodisiac rape drug, sexmeth.
She'd be overjoyed if it wasn't for an embarrassing problem: the antidote has no effect on her extraordinary reaction to Connor Madison, the Siren's tough quartermaster. Scientifically, it should be impossible, but the man's a raging fever in her blood. If a single dark glance sets Lily on fire, a kiss might kill her dead – but what a way to go!

A former gang rat from the slums of a dying world, Con came up the hard way, so when geeky Doctor Kwan tops his hit list of possible drug runners, nothing's going to save her—not her family's money, nor her clever mind.

Not even the smile in her eyes.

Friday, August 15, 2014

Doctor Lily Kwan - Personal Log #6

My hands are shaking so much I can hardly type. I’ve done the research, found out everything I can about Unity colony and Solitaire. Oh my god, a whole new world – literally! The scientific reports are brief and contain only minimal data, mainly about climate and geology. There were blurry images of trees and grasses, but all so strange. I'm dying to know more, to touch, to test.

I stayed up almost ‘til dawn. In fact, the maid caught me asleep with my head on the desk. Thank god the poor woman’s illiterate or she might have reported back to Father about what was on my screen.

No question that I’m perfectly qualified for the post. Today I’m going to build a new firewall. Once that’s in place, I’m going to fill in those forms and send them. 

I won’t change my mind. I acknowledge my fear, honestly I do, but I intend to do this.

Corporal Sienna Jade-11

While there are plenty of Army women joining this trip I have heard an unsettling rumor that most of the prisoners they are sending (to do the hard labor of setting up is the governments excuse—more like empty the prisons) are men. Am I the only one who sees this is a problem for a new colony? Makes me think this whole thing is a sham of epic proportions.

Wednesday, August 13, 2014

Chief Rita Songworth - 8

I'm so glad I decided to try out for a position on the ES Siren. We mightn't get much, but we're fed, given clean clothes and a shower once a day. That's a hell of a lot more than what I've seen everyday civilians get. Guess this is my new family now. I can only hope my parents are still proud of me. I'm going to go and see them on my next training day off. Especially now that everything seems to be in place for us to leave any day now. It might be my very last chance.

Tuesday, August 12, 2014

Alex Tariel-10

Was working up today, way up above the smog line. At least if I fell from there I'd be dead, no medical bills. But while I was up there I realized two things. Those bastards in the towers have more space for one family than the whole house I share with Janet’s kids, her sister and kids, the Browns and Higgs families. I have the attic because I don't have kids. As long as I don't stand up it's fine. It’s a ridiculous waste of space in the towers. Two I want off Earth. If I can’t do it honestly then I’ll do something dumb. I don't know what yet. But I've got to do something to get on one of those ships.

Monday, August 11, 2014

Tristan MacFallan - 8

Guess I should thank my lucky stars I didn't end up in prison, or worse hung by the 'lawmen' under the control of the people from the towers after being accused of stealing. Ha. What a set up. And even though my wife knows I was framed - no pun intended - she's still blaming me to some extent. She loved living in the towers, away from all the crap that reminds her how close to starvation and chem-lung we are. Now I just have to find us some shelter and do whatever needs to be done to protect our unborn child.

Friday, August 8, 2014

Corporal Sienna Jade-10

Joy. There is a bug that dissolves flesh on Solitaire. Yuk, yuk, yuk. Also no vertebrates, although apparently some of the guinea pigs the first scientists took escaped and are now happily living wild. They are also twice the size of normal guinea pigs. Apparently regular guinea pigs are good eating according to some of the guys on base. When you live in the slums you get used to not asking what meat you’re eating, could be anything from flavored soy, to flavored lab meat to some unfortunate bird. At least in the Army it’s either real (stretched thin with veg) or they just admit straight up that it’s soyroom (the Army’s favorite protein). I hate soyroom. It doesn't matter how it's cooked it's still just wrong.

Wednesday, August 6, 2014

Chief Rita Songworth - 8

We trained with the electro-whips today--no use having guns when one bullet could destroy the whole ship. So much voltage in one handy little unit, I feel like a cowgirl about to lasso a bad guy. But it's serious stuff. The whips could be the difference between life and death, I'm determined to master handling it.

Tuesday, August 5, 2014

Alex Tariel-9

Janet and her hubby were arrested for stealing. They had been helping themselves to some of the food they delivered to the towers. I suspected but since I never asked I could honestly tell the cops I had no idea where the chooks (or the other meat) came from. One of the kids hid a few chicks...guess when they get a bit bigger we’ll have eggs again, until then it’s another mouth to feed. Janet’s sister is now looking after her kids. Janet’s sister has also put the word on me again—not going to happen. If I can’t afford a condom, I’m not having sex. No kid should be born into this. Apparently that makes me an ass. I suggested that was a place I could stick it and she threw a saucepan at me. She’s just stressed now we have two less adult wages coming into the house. Rent will be tight.

Monday, August 4, 2014

Tristan MacFallan - 7

Well I was right, our so called 'good fortune' at being given some rooms at the towers, wasn't ever going to last long. I was accused of stealing a priceless sculpture from the knob head who was formerly my employer and biggest fan. Odd though how much I wanted to leave, and now I'm scared shitless at what my wife and I will face out there in the big wide world. All alone again. I'm the provider...but what the hell can I find with drought, famine and overpopulation. Not to mention the pollution that's choking the air.

Friday, August 1, 2014

Corporal Sienna Jade-9

Errr I might have been hasty about the medical training. They colony they are setting up isn’t going to try and meet current tech standards (the distance will make repairs and spares too hard to source) so we are going back to basics. That means learning how to diagnose and treat without the fancy equipment we’re used to having access too. I want to cry.