Commander Henry Gallant
by H. Peter Alesso
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Blurb
He thought
Alaina loved him, but now she’s found someone else. A tidal wave of loss and
grief swept over Henry Gallant, leaving him undecided about what to do next, or
how to move forward.
Despite his sorrow, he goes on a
dangerous mission to an invading aliens’ home world in the Gliese-581 star
system. There he uses a neural interface to penetrate their communication
network and steal a high ranking alien’s identity. Through this artifice he
learns about their history and society, and discovers a way to hinder and
possibly defeat them.
A side-effect of linking into the
alien network—which was created for autistic savants—is that Gallant’s mind was
stimulated and enhanced to the point where he begins to experience
superintelligence abilities.
Upon returning from his mission,
there is concern that Gallant might pose an even more serious threat than the
aliens. While he struggles to fend off those who doubt his loyalty, he fights
to win back Alaina.
This is the fourth book of The Henry
Gallant Saga, but it can be read as a standalone story.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Excerpt
Excerpt
Alaina
Hepburn strolled across the walkway, smack-dab in the middle of Halo’s
well-trimmed verdant garden park, lavish with diverse foliage and a flowing
water fountain glistening under a brilliant summer sun. Several bronzed statues
adorned the area attracting a glanced from pedestrians as they passed while an
occasional car flew overhead. However, it was Alaina’s eye-catching outfit and
radiant youthful vitality that captured the most attention of those around her,
not merely because she was attractive—though her blond hair, blue eyes, and
well-tanned skin accented her appealing figure—and not because her behavior was
so unusual so as to stir excitement. Everyone who passed offered her a warm
greeting—for she was well-known to the people of Elysium. No, what attracted
the curiosity of those nearby was her bearing—with shoulders back and head held
high, she led one to wonder what adventure she was just returning from—or, better
yet, was just about to embark upon.
When
Gallant entered the park on his way to a meeting at the town hall, the impact
of seeing Alaina again struck him like a shock wave. His reaction was unlike
what might be expected from the methodical logical captain who so recently
fought a battle from the bridge of the Warrior. Now he was simply a man
rediscovering his lover—filled with the joy of her presence, the relief of her
safety, and the sensuality of her being—the emotional tizzy seething beneath the
surface was enough to cause the fringes of his vision to grow hazy, excluding
all others from sight. He felt a sense of well-being flood over him, creating
the desire to seize and hold her. Despite his wish to run—he walked toward her
along the intersecting walkway.
When
she noticed him, she came to an abrupt stop and turned to face him. The
surprise on her face couldn’t have been more pronounced. He could only guess
that her emotional state was as heighten as his own.
Any
passerby might have assumed that they were two old acquaintances meeting
casually to exchange friendly greetings, but his heart was pounding and his
palms were moist. A gust of wind blew a tangled lock of his hair across his
forehead causing him to swipe it away mindlessly.
“Henry!”
she said, biting her lower lip.
Her
exclamation was short and sharp, giving Gallant a start. As it invariably
happened, he was mesmerized by her. He stammered, “I . . . I said, ‘I’d be
back.’”
~~~~~~~~~~~~
About The Author
As a scientist and author
specializing in technology innovation, H. Peter Alesso has over twenty years
research experience at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL). As
Engineering Group Leader at LLNL he led a team of scientists and engineers in
innovative applications across a wide range of supercomputers, workstations,
and networks. He graduated from the
Giveaway
Thanks for hosting!
ReplyDelete