Showing results by author "Daniel Arenson" in All Categories

We hide in shadows. Our planet is lost. We are the last humans, and we must go home. Two thousand years ago, aliens destroyed Earth. Our fleets shattered. Billions died. The last humans fled a burning planet, heading to the stars. Today we are still refugees. Hungry. Afraid. Our enemies hunt us everywhere. So we hide. On distant asteroids. In rundown space stations. In deep caves on frozen worlds. And we dream. Of green hills. Blue skies. Golden fields. We dream of Earth. And for the first time, we have hope.

The hydrians, squids from another galaxy, topple our forests, fill our oceans, storm our cities. Years of civil war have weakened Earth. As the aliens attack, we fall fast. But some still stand. A group of heroes rises. The legendary Einav Ben-Ari, the Golden Lioness, leads the resistance. We are a young species. New to space travel. We dipped our toes into the cosmic ocean, and in its waters, we found venomous squids. Now we stand upon the shores of eternity.

In this anthology, you'll find 17 tales of conflict and heroism, exploration and discovery, endurance and triumph. Flee the apocalypse of modern-day Earth, fly a fighter in the cold emptiness of deep space, and find new life on the distant shores of an alien world. You might even discover something about yourself as each author opens a window on the soul of mankind.

They came from deep space. They came to destroy us. Fifty years ago bloodthirsty aliens devastated the Earth. Most of humanity perished. We fell into darkness. But now we rise from the ashes. Now we fight back. Marco Emery was born into the war. After his mother is killed, he joins the Human Defense Force, Earth's ragtag army. Emery must survive basic training, become a soldier, and finally face the aliens in battle. Against the alien onslaught, Earth stands alone. But we will fight. We will rise. We will win.

The starship Freedom was once a mighty warship. Today, she's a tourist attraction. The space wars ended long ago. The Freedom is now a flying museum; the tourists love it. The Changing of the Guard, the starfighter aerobatics, the starboard cannon salute...it's the best show in the galaxy. James King commands the starship Freedom. He hates his job. He was a real soldier once, back when the Freedom was a real warship. He never imagined himself running a tourist trap. Right after Christmas, he plans to retire. Then, on Christmas day, the aliens attack.

The Singularity has come. The machines have risen. Our robots, once loyal servants, now slaughter us. Our cars, planes, and starships have become machines of death. Cyborgs roam the land, deforming humans, growing their twisted army. Is a heartless, mechanized hell our future? A faint hope shines. Heroes still fight. Famous names. Einav. Marco. Addy. Lailani. The heroes of the Alien Wars. Names etched in our history, in our hearts. Four friends. Four humans...against an army of metal.

They called her a relic. They said she would never fly again. They said she was too old. Too large. A floating museum. But now the starship Freedom is the only hope of mankind. The aliens attack us everywhere. Vicious aliens. Bloodthirsty spiders from deep space. Our fleets burn. Our cities fall. Earth cries out for salvation. James "Bulldog" King, commander of the Freedom, answers the call. He will gather the fleet. He will lead an assault. This is the final stand of mankind.

Aelar, a mighty nation, spreads its tentacles. Its oared galleys storm the seas, and the waters run red with blood. Its legionaries swarm desert ruins, smiting barbarian hordes. Its crosses line the roadsides, displaying the dying flesh of heroes. The powerful Sela family has avoided the empire until now. The family has carved out an idyllic life between sea and desert, ruling a bustling port, a thriving city, and lush vineyards.

Earth burns. We call them the scum. They came from deep space. Creatures of claws and endless malice, they ravage the world. As the war flares, as cities crumble, Private Marco Emery and his platoon blast into space. They won one battle on Earth. Their next battle must be fought in the darkness. The scum will not rest until the last human is dead. Marco and his friends must defeat them. They must win. Or Earth will fall.

Not long ago, the starship Freedom was a museum ship. A relic of a bygone era. A rusty old warship converted into a tourist trap. Then the aliens attacked. Now, once more, the legendary Freedom flies to war. The war is brutal. The enemy is merciless. The rahs, vicious arachnids from deep space, crave only one thing. Human flesh. Before this terror, Earth’s fleet crumbles. Starships burn. Millions die. But the Freedom still flies. James King, her gruff old commander, still fights.

In the shadows, evil stirs. A race woven from arachnid and human DNA. They hunt like spiders. They think like men. They are the perfect killers. Like a virus, they invade the Freedom. James “Bulldog” King, commander of the Freedom, has fought alien fleets. This is different. This is worse. The infestation swarms through Freedom’s labyrinthine halls. Destroying. Eating up the Freedom from the inside. King must muster all his courage. All his strength. He must reclaim his ship. Or not only Freedom will fall—but Earth itself.

Under the leadership of James “Bulldog” King, the Freedom won battle after battle. Yet now Freedom faces her most terrifying foe. Not an alien fleet. Not a charging armada. But one ship. Nobody knows where the Tyranny came from. Nobody knows who pilots this mechanical terror. She emerged from the darkness like a demon from hell. And she craves the blood of men. She is larger than the Freedom. Faster. Deadlier. Marooned in deep space, the Freedom must face her alone. A great duel begins. Two starships. Two captains. Two iron wills.

The Aeolians. The galaxy's most mysterious aliens. For a million years, they've been hiding. No human has ever seen them. Until now. James King, commander of the starship Freedom, travels to their secluded world. He seeks to forge an alliance. To learn from the Aeolians their ways of war. According to myth, the Aeolians once defeated the rahs, alien spiders who are plaguing Earth. Aeolia's secrets can save humanity. But King soon learns that Aeolia harbors more secrets than he ever imagined. Something terrible happened to these aliens. Something they will not speak of.

Five years ago, we won our first galactic war. We defeated the scum, a race of alien centipedes. But the marauders are stronger, smarter, and crueler by far. And they will show us no mercy. Marco Emery, hero of the last war, struggles today as a civilian. Shell shock cripples him. Nightmares haunt him. Yet now he must become a soldier again. Now his old platoon must reunite. Together, they must defeat the greatest threat Earth has ever known. Or humanity will fall.

Long ago stood the kingdom of Requiem, a land of men who could grow wings and scales, breathe fire, and take flight as dragons. Requiem ruled the sky. But Dies Irae, a tyrant leading an army of griffins, hunted Requiem's people, burned their forests, and shattered their temples. Requiem fell. This ancient land now lies in ruin, its halls crumbled, its cries silenced, its skeletons littering the burned earth.

They walk among us. They look just like us. They plot our doom. Some call them the scummers. Hybrids. Humans with alien DNA. Years ago, they hatched in alien labs. They came to Earth as sleeper agents. Since then, they’ve been mingling with our society. They teach our children. They cook our food. They tend to our elders. All the while waiting. Biding their time. Hiding in plain sight. And now they strike. With devastating force. With terrifying cruelty. They bring Earth to its knees.

They say the world used to turn. They say that night would follow day in an endless dance. They say that dawn rose, dusk fell, and we worshiped both sun and stars.That was a long time ago.My people are the fortunate. We live in daylight, blessed in the warmth of the sun. Yet across the line, the others lurk in eternal night, afraid... and alone in the dark.I was born in the light. I was sent into darkness. This is my story.

It begins. The final battle between man and machine. Earth burns. The Dreamer, a cruel artificial intelligence, brutalizes our world. His robots reduce our cities to ash. His cyborgs march by the millions. Humanity is now an endangered species. But we still fight! A band of heroes undertakes a dangerous quest. Some call it a suicide mission. They fly to a computerized world, deep in space, where the Dreamer dwells.

War flares between man and monster...between Earth and the terror from the stars. We did not choose this war. The spiders attacked us. They trapped us in their webs. They devoured millions. No, we did not want this war. But we will win it! The starship Freedom rises. A legendary ship. A beacon of hope. A pillar of flame in the darkness. The fleet rallies behind her. All eyes gaze up at her light.

The final battle is here. The final stand of the starship Freedom. The final hope for Earth. Two galactic civilizations face off. On one side—the rahs. Arachnid predators from deep space. On the other side—humanity. Us. We have been fighting for years. Millions sacrificed their lives to bring us this far. Cities fell. Starships burned. Nations shattered. But we are still standing. Still fighting. It ends now.