New Military SF from legendary game creator Frank Chadwick Lieutenant Sam Bitka finds himself commanding a starship against an alien enemy who always seems one step ahead of him Lieutenant Sam Bitka US Naval Reserve is getting used to civilian life when he is called back to active duty Tensions between Earth & the alien Varoki are on the rise & Sam is assiged as tactical officer aboard the deep space destroyer USS Puebla Dispatched to the distant world of K&tok to protect human colonists he wants nothing more than to serve out his active duty time & get back to his civilian life But when the Varoki launch a crippling surprise attack against the Earth coalition fleet Sam finds himself suddenly in command of the USS Puebla a job he is far from certain he can discharge successfully What’s more mounting evidence points to a much larger & more sinister alien plan Now Sam must deal with faltering leadership in the human task force & an alien enemy who always seems one step ahead of them Time for Sam to step up & rise to the challenge of command About the Author Frank Chadwick is the New York Times number one best-selling nonfiction author of over two hundred books articles & columns on military history & military affairs as well as over one hundred military & science fiction board & role-playing games His game Space 1889 was the first Steampunk game & remains a cult favorite His other game writing credits include legendary fantasy game En Garde! groundbreaking SF role playing game Traveller The New Era & many others Chadwick’s SF novels include Come the Revolution How Dark the World Becomes & steampunk thriller The Forever Engine all from Baen Books