And I'm going to prove it! Love, lust, and competition. Anna went to the annual Gathering for Alternate Realms just looking for a little fun. Already one of the top-ranked players of the blockbuster alternate reality game, she expected nothing more than a good time and some real competition. What Anna didn't expect was Erin: the best player to ever grace the game and the most beautiful woman she's ever seen.Sparks fly as the competition between the two gamer girls heats up. Always the very best, neither wants to tear their eye from the prize, but the more time they spend trying to defeat one another the more they start to realize that what's in front of them might just be far more valuable than winning any game! Love Games is the latest novel by Mia Archer, author of your favorite geeky lesbian romances!

    Beam Piper with active table of contents.Works include:The AnswerThe Cosmic ComputerCrossroads of DestinyDay of the MoronDearestThe Edge of the KnifeFlight From TomorrowFour-Day PlanetGenesisGraveyard of DreamsHe Walked Around the HorsesThe KeeperLast EnemyLittle FuzzyThe MercenariesMinistry of DisturbanceMurder in the GunroomNaudsonceNull-ABCOomphel in the SkyOmnilingualOperation R.S.V.P.PatrolPolice OperationRebel RaiderThe ReturnA Slave is a SlaveSpace VikingTemple TroubleTime and Time AgainTime CrimeUllr Uprising

    Scott Carver is asked to make this decision when "M.O.D." asks him to help plan a revolution.

    It is a lonely job, and a thankless one for the most part. Until something goes wrong. Until a ship is in distress. In the 23rd century, this job has moved into outer space. A network of beacons allows ships to travel across the Milky Way at many times the speed of light. These beacons are built to be robust. They never break down. They never fail. At least, they aren't supposed to.

    They founded the global business Supercute Enterprises as teenagers, armed only with a phone, a collection of their favourite cuddly toys and a love of all things kawaii. Thanks to them, the Supercute aesthetic is now a way of life.In a world dominated by massive conglomerates, Supercute has continued to grow bigger and more powerful, morphing from an entertainment company to a ruthless organisation fighting for their right to the world's water.Now Mox and Mitsu face a choice. In a world that is tearing itself apart, who will win in the battle for ultimate control - and where will Supercute draw the line . . .

    Where scientists and schoolgirls, fair folk and Romans, intergalactic bandits, utopian revolutionaries, and intrepid orphans solve crimes, escape from monstrous predicaments, consult oracles, and hover over volcanoes in steam-powered airships. In Steampunk!, fourteen masters of speculative fiction, including two graphic storytellers, embrace the genre's established themes and refashion them in surprising ways and settings as diverse as Appalachia, Ancient Rome, future Australia, Canada's Muddy York Toronto, and alternate California. Get a preview of the anthology by sampling one of these inventive tales for free - Cory Doctorow's "Clockwork Fagin," in which orphans use the puppet of a dead man to take control of their lives.

    The station is in a security lockdown and the sole apparent occupant, a Union captain, offers Kieran an entire ship if he can disable the lockdown. Kieran realizes that he’s probably dealing with a criminal, rather than an actual captain, but he’s just desperate enough to accept. He flies out to the nearest station and returns with a slicer and some dangerous-looking backup. As he’s making his approach to the station, Kieran hears a garbled cry for help over the comm. He hopes it’s just his imagination.But it’s not. Half the station’s crew is being held hostage, while the other half appear to be masquerading as Union officers. Kieran and his team disable the lockdown, and to Kieran’s amazement, they are given a ship as promised. As they are leaving the station, they see an entire fleet of Union cruisers pouring out of the newly-reactivated space gate. Kieran is confused. What are so many warships doing on the frontier? The Union isn’t at war.Kieran sets out to investigate, but along the way strange things start happening to him and his crew. At first there seem to be logical explanations, but before long the answers are not so clear. As time goes by, Kieran realizes the horrible truth:He wasn’t the only one trying to escape. . . .

    His kind serve as a benchmark for XHumans to measure how far they’ve progressed, and a reminder of what homo sapiens once was.His life changes when eight-hundred-year-old Ryu crosses over from the World of Rivers and Lakes, looking for a lost temple; and Aya, a beautiful hacker whose Sensory Interface perceives the EtherCloud as Feudal Japan, learns that XHumans aren’t as perfect as they thought.They’ve edited out the genes which allow for Cultivation.That will give Ken a chance to surpass them. And maybe use mythical martial skills to save the world from an oppressive government, spirit beasts, and alien invaders.A Cultivation system based on Daoist Five Elements and Eight Trigram Theories, written by an Acupuncturist/Wing Chun Sifu.WARNING: This story contains graphic scenes describing the Daoist methods of Dual Cultivation, but no harem elements. Suggested audience 18+.

    Dropped in the void and left for dead, lost in survival sleep for centuries, she awakes to find her world has changed and hitches a ride on a decrepit freighter. Tamara and the crew work together to fix the dying ship, try to fight off pirates with a Republic Naval warship captain ruthlessly pursuing them, all while trying to turn a profit. The Argos Cluster is a dangerous place, but some of the worst threats are those left behind.

    Even though she believes true love will never find her, Jenna vows to help other women find their own true loves by opening a dating service. If she can’t find love for herself, she’s determined to find love for her hopelessly inept clients. Through messy mash-ups and zany adventures, Jenna and her best friend and business partner, Dale, help a Turret’s juggler lose her balls, an Elizabeth Taylor impersonator drop her White Diamonds, and a woman with multiple personalities find a girlfriend that adores all of her. Along the way, Jenna discovers that just because she’s given up on love, that doesn’t mean love has given up on her.

    

     Doctor Orfea Leung has come here to escape her past of mercenary violence. Krissana Khongtip has come here to reinvent herself from haunted spy to holy cyborg. But the utopian peace of Shenzhen is shattered when the haruspices begin committing suicide, and the pair are called upon to solve the mystery—and survive the silent war between machines . . .

    Tasked with a new mission, he is sent to the hives of Hy Brasil to check on the loyalty of a notorious troublemaker. With the galaxy at war and half the Imperium’s armies in rebellion, any hint of heresy on the Throneworld must be stamped out. Amon’s mission draws him into a web of deceit and betrayal, where no one can be trusted and nothing is at it seems. Can he unravel the truth and secure Terra for the Emperor?It's an in-depth look at Terra itself, and how treachery lurked at the Imperium's heart even as the Heresy began. There's also a fantastic, action-packed look at what the Custodians do when they're not out fighting.Running time 1 hour and 27 minutes. Read by Jonathan Keeble

     Constitution: The year is 2650 75 years ago, an alien fleet attacked Earth. Without warning. Without mercy. We were not prepared. Hundreds of millions perished. Dozens of cities burned. We nearly lost everything. Then, the aliens abruptly left. We rebuilt. We armed ourselves. We swore: never again. But the aliens never came back. Until now. With overwhelming force the aliens have returned, striking deep into our territory, sending Earth into a panic. Our new technology is useless. Our new ships burn like straw. All our careful preparations are wasted. Now, only one man, one crew, and the oldest starship in the fleet stand between the Earth and certain destruction: ISS CONSTITUTION Warrior: We repelled the Swarm, for now. But they won’t stop: they’re inhuman. They have no inhibitions. No conscience. And no mercy. But from the crucible of battle has risen an unlikely hero. Captain Timothy Granger, at the helm of another time-tested battleship, will take the fight to the enemy. He’ll discover their secrets. Find their homeworld. Destroy it before they destroy ours. He will save us all. He must. Or we’ll die. Victory: United Earth burns. The Swarm runs rampant across our space. We mourn the loss of thousands of ships and millions of fallen comrades. Billions of fathers, mothers, sisters and brothers--all gone, all dead. It is time we end this, for our moment has come. But victory never comes without sacrifice. Heroes are not taught nor trained, but forged in blood and ashes. Our grandchildrens' history books will tell our story, and glorify the heroes and legends. The Swarm will be conquered; we will prevail. At any price.

    BEFORE their race became the mystical beings we now call angels, they ruled the earth as mortals in an age of mystery. Gabrius, a humble stargazer and astronomer must decipher cryptic messages as ancient as the universe itself to unravel the growing corruption of the Lightbringer before he is overtaken by the greatest villain of all time. The world as we know it hangs in the balance as one man learns to follow his heart against impossible odds and discover his true power and a destiny that has since become legend. As the Lightbringer's power grows, the seven high Seraphim must hone their unique mystical abilities to lead the fight for all they hold true and rise to meet their destiny as heroes of legend to prevent the cataclysmic end of their race's reign on earth. In a rich, epic adventure that gives new wings to the original war between good and evil, we unlock answers to some of the greatest mysteries of the ages and catch a unique glimpse into the secrets of the unseen realms.