Earth Vs. Aliens (Aliens Series 1) (39 page)

The man’s smooth manner turned to a glower. “Did you never learn civility? Such a lack of breeding!”

Jack felt all too tempted to drop the asteroid right then. But even falling at just one gee through Earth’s atmosphere would result in destruction far beyond the old League buildings. Innocent citizens would be killed. Though how many innocents resided in a city that had made its name as a center of diplomatic talk which rarely meant much was a matter he wondered about.

“My mother Julia Munroe taught me civility. And she stated it should be shown to people who deserved civility, and who offered civility to all visitors. I gave it up after I put my long sword through the guts of a rockrat who wanted to kidnap my youngest sister and rape her in his habdome.” Jack paused, wondering briefly if Maureen might just fire a geo-penetrator into the man’s dressing room, the GPS coordinates of which they had long ago acquired. Tempting. “As for breeding, well, my Grandpa Ephraim of Tennessee gave his life in the Battle of 2:1 Kirkwood Gap in 2072 when he rammed a Unity frigate, killing all on board. And himself, sadly. I prefer to live and enjoy making idiots like you pay heed to normal people.”

“An American? That explains your rudeness. And your threats.”

“Yes, it does. And did I tell you? In the Asteroid Belt, we will renew our celebration of the Fourth of July and we will reinstate the Bill of Rights for all Belt citizens.” Jack grinned. “Perhaps your Unity citizens may choose to do the same, after seeing more broadcasts of Aliens attacking humans.”

“Enough!” the man said, his glower moving to blunt decisiveness. “Yes, to your question. The Unity Congress disavows all claim to control over people, property and locations lying beyond Earth’s atmosphere. While we ask for the return of captured naval personnel, we will not launch warships against any craft—so long as it does not threaten Earth. Acceptable?”

“Acceptable,” Jack said. “And make sure your congress has a publicly broadcast session in which it votes to pass legislation to guarantee exactly what you just said. If I do not see such a broadcast within the next three days, my calling card will come to visit your dressing room.”

“You are most disagreeable. But the Unity Congress will do as you say, within the timeframe you require. Now, may I take leave of your unpleasant presence?”

Jack nodded slowly, still smiling. “You may leave. AV off.”

“Wow!” yelled Denise. “That was some wild diplomatic hoodoo!”

Max reached up to touch their fusion drive controls that had lowered from the Pilot cabin’s ceiling. “Leaving station above Geneva. Heading for the Belt and Mathilde.” The man grinned at Jack, his face shiny with humor. “Think your sister Elaine can wait that long to have a first date with Ignacio?”

“Max!” yelled Cassie from behind Jack.

Elaine glared at him, ignored Max and began setting up the NavTrack vector for 253 Mathilde.

Jack ignored them all and looked to Maureen, who had increased power to the mechhands as their drive thrust put strain on the giant boulder they had grabbed from its NEO placement near the Lagrange spot that lay between the Earth and Moon.

“Milady, do you think you’ll have to bed fifteen Belters in order to gain fifteen volunteer commerce raiders? For our scavenged grav-pull drives?”

Her slap was hard and stinging. “Young man, your Grandpa Ephraim would have been much more subtle. You need to learn subtle. And anyway, half of our new ship volunteers are likely to be women captains. What do you say to that!”

Jack touched his right cheek, winced, then said the only thing he could say.

“I hope you have a grand time doing whatever you choose to do—before we head out to battle more Aliens!”

THE END

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

T. Jackson King (Tom) is a professional archaeologist, journalist and former Hippie. He learned early on to question authority and find answers for himself, partly due to reading lots of science fiction novels. He also worked at a radiocarbon dating laboratory at UC Riverside and UCLA. Tom attended college in Paris and Tokyo, then helped organize anti-Vietnam War demos in Knoxville, Tennessee. Tom is a graduate of UCLA (M.A. 1976, archaeology) and the University of Tennessee (B.Sc. 1971, journalism). Tom has worked as an archaeologist in the American Southwest and has traveled widely in Europe, Russia, Japan, Canada, Mexico and the United States of America. Other jobs have included short order cook, hotel clerk, legal assistant, telephone order taker, investigative reporter and newspaper editor. He also survived the warped speech-talk of local politicians and escaped with his hide intact. He writes hard science fiction, anthropological scifi, dark fantasy/horror and contemporary fantasy/magic realism. Tom’s published science fiction novels are
ALIEN ASSASSIN
(Wilder Publications, 2014),
THE MEMORY SINGER
(Fantastic Books, 2014),
ANARCHATE VIGILANTE
(Wilder Publications, 2014),
GALACTIC VIGILANTE
(Wilder Publications, 2013),
NEBULA VIGILANTE
(Wilder Publications, 2013),
SPEAKER TO ALIENS
(Wilder Publications, 2013),
GALACTIC AVATAR
(Wilder Publications, 2013),
STELLAR ASSASSIN
(Wilder Publications, 2013),
STAR VIGILANTE
(2012),
THE GAEAN
ENCHANTMENT
(Wilder Publications, 2012), 
LITTLE BROTHER’S WORLD
(Fantastic Books, 2010),
ANCESTOR’S WORLD
(Ace Books, 1996, with A.C. Crispin), and
RETREAD SHOP
(Warner Books, 1988, 2012). His short stories have appeared in
JUDGMENT DAY AND OTHER DREAMS
(Fantastic Books, 2009). His poetry has appeared in the anthology
MOTHER EARTH’S STRETCH MARKS
(Motherbird Books, 2009). Tom lives in Los Alamos, New Mexico, USA. He has three grown children. He can be reached at
[email protected]
. More information on Tom’s writings can be found at
www.tjacksonking.com/
.

PRAISE FOR T. JACKSON KING’S BOOKS

RETREAD SHOP

“Engaging alien characters, a likable protagonist, and a vividly realized world make King’s first sf novel a good purchase for sf collections.”–
Library Journal

“A very pleasant tour through the author’s inventive mind, and an above average story as well.”–
Science Fiction Chronicle

“Fun, with lots of outrageously weird aliens.”—
Locus

“The writing is sharp, the plotting tight, and the twists ingenious. It would be worth reading, if only for the beautiful delineations of alien races working with and against one another against the background of an interstellar marketplace. The story carries you . . . with a verve and vigor that bodes well for future stories by this author. Recommended.”–
Science Fiction Review

“For weird aliens, and I do mean weird, choose
Retread Shop
. The story takes place on a galactic trading base, where hundreds of species try to gain the upper hand for themselves and for their group. Sixteen year-old billy is the sole human on the Retread Shop, stranded when his parents and their shipmates perished. What really makes the ride fun are the aliens Billy teams up with, including two who are plants. It's herbivores vs. carnivores, herd species vs. loners, mammals vs. insects and so on. The wild variety of physical types is only matched by the extensive array of cultures, which makes for a very entertaining read.” –
Bonnie Gordon,
Los Alamos Daily Post

“Similar in feel to Roger Zelazny's Alien Speedway series is
Retread Shop
by T. Jackson King. It's an orphan-human-in-alien-society-makes-good story. Well-written and entertaining, it could be read either as a Young Adult or as straight SF with equal enjoyment.” –
Chuq Von Rospach,
OtherRealms 22
“If you liked Stephen Goldin’s Jade Darcy books duo, and Julie Czerneda’s Clan trilogy, then you will probably like
Retread Shop
since it too has multiple aliens, an eatery, and an infinity of odd events that range from riots, to conspiracy, to exploring new worlds and to alien eating habits . . . It’s a fun reader's ride and thoroughly entertaining. And, sigh, I wish that the author would write more books set in this background.” –
Lyn McConchie, co-author of the
Beastmaster
series

STAR VIGILANTE
“For a fast-paced adventure with cool tech, choose
Star Vigilante
. This is the story of three outsiders. Can three outsiders bond together to save Eliana's planet from eco-destruction at the hands of a ruthless mining enterprise?” –
Bonnie Gordon
,
Los Alamos Daily Post

STELLAR ASSASSIN

“T. Jackson King’s
Stellar Assassin
is an ambitious science fiction epic that sings! Filled with totally alien lifeforms, one lonely human, an archaeologist named Al Lancaster must find his way through trade guilds, political maneuvering and indentured servitude, while trying to reconcile his new career as an assassin with his deeply-held belief in the teachings of Buddha. . . This is a huge, colorful, complicated world with complex characters, outstanding dialogue, believable motivations, wonderful high-tech battle sequences and, on occasion, a real heart-stringer . . . This is an almost perfectly edited novel as well, which is a bonus. This is a wonderful novel, written by a wonderful author . . .Bravo! Five Stars!” –
Linell Jeppsen,
Amazon

ANCESTOR’S WORLD

“T. Jackson King is a professional archaeologist and he uses that to great advantage in
Ancestor’s World
. I was just as fascinated by the details of the archaeology procedures as I was by the unfolding of the plot . . . What follows is a tightly plotted, suspenseful novel.”–
Absolute Magnitude

“The latest in the StarBridge series from King, a former Rogue Valley resident now living and writing in Arizona, follows the action on planet Na-Dina, where the tombs of 46 dynasties have lain undisturbed for 6,000 years until a human archaeologist and a galactic gumshoe show up. Set your phasers for fun.”–
Medford Mail Tribune

THE GAEAN ENCHANTMENT

“For magic, a quest and a new battle around every corner, go with
The Gaean Enchantment
. In this novel, Earth has entered a new phase as it cycles through the universe. In this phase, some kinds of “magic” work, but tech is rapidly ceasing to function. In the world of this book, incantation and sympathetic magic function through connection to spirit figures who might be described as gods.” –
Bonnie Gordon,
Los Alamos Daily Post

“In
The Gaean Enchantment
the main character, Thomas, back from Vietnam and with all the PTSD that many soldiers have—nightmares, blackouts—finds his truth through the finding of his totem animal, the buffalo Black Mane. He teaches Thomas that violence and killing must always be done as a last resort, and that the energies of his soul are more powerful than any arsenal . . . Don’t miss this amazing novel of magic and soul transformation, deep love, and Artemis, goddess of the hunt and protector of women.”–
Catherine Herbison-Wiget,
Amazon

LITTLE BROTHER’S WORLD

“If you’re sensing a whiff of Andre Norton or Robert A. Heinlein, you’re not mistaken . . . The influence is certainly there, but
Little Brother’s World
is no mere imitation of
Star Man’s Son
or
Citizen of the Galaxy
. Rather, it takes the sensibility of those sorts of books and makes of it something fresh and new. T. Jackson King is doing his part to further the great conversation of science fiction; it’ll be interesting to see where he goes next.”–
Don Sakers,
Analog

 
"When I’m turning a friend on to a good writer I’ve just discovered, I'll often say something like, “Give him ten pages and you’ll never be able to put him down.” Once in a long while, I'll say, “Give him five pages.” It took T. Jackson King exactly
one sentence
to set his hook so deep in me that I finished
LITTLE BROTHER’S WORLD
in a single sitting, and I’ll be thinking about that vivid world for a long time to come. The last writer I can recall with the courage to make a protagonist out of someone as profoundly Different as Little Brother was James Tiptree Jr., with her remarkable debut novel
UP THE WALLS OF THE WORLD
. I think Mr. King has met that challenge even more successfully. His own writing DNA borrows genes from writers as diverse as Tiptree, Heinlein, Norton, Zelazny, Sturgeon, Pohl, and Doctorow, and splices them together very effectively.” –
Spider Robinson, Hugo, Nebula and Campbell Award winner
“
Little Brother's World
is a sci-fi novel where Genetic Engineering exists. . . It contains enough details and enough thrills to make the book buyers/readers grab it and settle in for an afternoon read. The book is well-written and had a well-defined plot . . . I never found a boring part in the story. It was fast-paced and kept me entertained all throughout. The characters are fascinating and likeable too. This book made me realize about a possible outcome, when finally science and technology wins over traditional ones. . . All in all,
Little Brother’s World
is another sci-fi novel from T. Jackson King that is both exciting, thrilling and fun. Full of suspense, adventure, romance, secrets, conspiracies, this book would take you in a roller-coaster ride.” –
Abby Flores,
Bookshelf Confessions