Projects

Second Command is set in the far future when Earth has divided into governmental alliances that compete for resources in distant star systems.  The real power might be held by corporations that work for the highest bidder in the lucrative business of terraforming suitable exoplanets.  A tenuous peace exists based on complex and often misunderstood treaties governing the legal process by which governments can identify, analyze, and claim territory.

Fleets of starships are spread thinly across the vastness of space.  Interstellar travel is made possible by utilizing the discovery of higher dimensional space.  Nothing can exceed the speed of light and caution must be taken to avoid reaching velocities that could result in significant time dilation.  However, in some of the alternate universes, the distances between locations are shorter than in Prime Space.  Communication is limited in both HDS and in star systems without connections via dedicated and expensive relays.

Governments send specially designed survey ships on long missions to gather the information needed to claim exoplanets that can be terraformed and colonized.  The crews are comprised of military personnel and civilian technical experts.  Together, they must operate on their own to complete their assignments within the timelines designated in the treaties.

The story follows a military officer, Lieutenant Commander Francis Monet, and a xenolinguistics expert, Dr. Rachel Weiss, who are trying to make sense of a relationship interrupted by careers that often take them to different star systems for years at a time.  Monet has his first assignment as the executive officer on a survey ship, and he has a mysterious past of previous assignments that make him a seemingly odd choice for the position. He even has some self-doubts concerning the role he must play.  Meanwhile, Rachel is assigned to a different survey mission and wonders about her value to the team since all the alien cultures discovered so far have been long extinct.

Their actions, along with the friendships they build with other crewmates and the conflicts they encounter, will shape the future of the human race as it expands across the galaxy.  The competition between governments for resources is reaching a breaking point and could devolve into war at any time.  Francis and Rachel must navigate the darkness of space and the political intrigue that lurks in the shadows.

This military science fiction thriller might be the first in a series.