BookHooks is a blog hop where authors share only a small snippet of a story, an enticement to read more. Today’s snippet is from Bringer of Chaos: the Origin of Pietas.
In this scene from Bringer of Chaos, Pietas is returning from a meeting where he refused to accept the ten hostages offered by a group of humans. He insisted on thirty hostages instead. His parents, both former leaders and still on the council, argue.
—
His parents trailed him back toward private quarters. “Pietas,” his mother called. “Wait!”
For her, he stopped, and turned around.
Small compared to most Ultras, and delicate of face, Helia ap Lorectic was as tough as any soldier. Like him and his father, she possessed an eidetic memory, and a fine scientific mind. If anyone was the hope of their people, it was she.
“Pietas, you know this is wrong. We agreed to those terms before we arrived.”
“It is not wrong, Mother, and the terms were made by the previous council head, not by me.” He opened the door to his quarters, and turned back to Helia. “They’ll agree to my terms or they’ll die.”
Mahikos stepped in front of his wife. “You will destroy these talks, you inflexible, intractable narcissist!”
“Why, Father. I’m impressed you know words that big. Thank you.”
The man lurched toward him.
“Stop it!” Helia positioned herself between the two. “Pietas, please. It took–”
“No, Mother. I never negotiate with humans from a position of fear.”
Mahikos jabbed a finger toward him. “You never negotiate at all.”
“Your precious humans have five minutes.” He shut the door in the man’s face.
His father’s shout of anger followed, and then his mother’s calmer tones, soothing. The thud of a fist rattled the door before Mahikos gave way to whatever it was Helia was saying to him.
“Just like old times.” His message board lit up. Furious texts and outraged faces filled the screen. “It seems I made every council member angry at the same time. How efficient of me.”
—
Bringer of Chaos: the Origin of Pietas
The immortal Pietas leads the fight against his people’s oppressors: humans. To end the war and save his kind, he agrees to peace talks. But when he attends, he’s betrayed, trapped within an unpowered lifepod, and left to die. His unlikely ally is Six, a human. Though he captured Pietas, he had no part in his betrayal. Together, they must cross an alien world and find the other Ultras. That is, if they can overcome their desire to kill one another…
Genre Military Sci Fi, Soldiers, Bad Boys, Adventure, and Angst
Available free on Kindle Unlimited
Amazon https://amzn.to/28QOTpb
Amazon print https://amzn.to/1SSmueB
He’s quite determined to get his own way. He’s a narcissist, too. It’ll be interesting how you manage to make him at all sympathetic.
So glad you said that. 😉 This character has given me grief through six different books, but by the end of this one, even if you don’t like him, you won’t be able to “not” respect him. He’s an incredible being.