“I dinnae like it, cap’n,” Iseabail Crannach said. She ran a hand over her hair, failing utterly to tame the frizz, and stuck her hands in the pockets of her lab coat. &ld… Read More
Joe canted his head. “Could leave a lot of weight behind, you know, if we’re racing.”
“How much?” Cannon said.
Iseabail ticked off items on her fingers. &l… Read More
The train wove around the verdant hills of central Panama, passing small villages nestled against the slopes as it clattered downhill toward Panama City.
In a first-class carriage, Nathan… Read More
For his part, Cannon leaned back and stretched his legs. Finally, after two years, he was mere days from putting the whole ugly affair in Panama behind him. He had mixed feelings about the… Read More
Cannon and Iseabail disembarked. Cannon collected their bags from the porters.
“Where now?” Iseabail said.
“Out the west door,” Cannon replied, putting on his be… Read More
Leaving their bags, Cannon and Iseabail made their way to the portside lounge. Though the Red Banner was smaller than Inconstant, she didn’t need so large a flight deck. Freed from th… Read More
Cannon and Iseabail sat at their table for a full hour. At two o’clock, midway through their vigil, Red Banner set out, the stirring strains of the Internationale playing over her lou… Read More
The Hawaiian folded his paper and set it aside, then gestured to the empty chairs at his table. Cannon pulled one out for Iseabail, then sat next to her. “First,” the Hawaiian c… Read More
“Then perhaps,” said Wailani, “you’ve heard of our most distinguished passenger, Artiom Volkov?”
Cannon didn’t need to feign his excitement. “I h… Read More
Iseabail pulled the cabin door closed. “Three-time heavyweight champion, eh? I dinnae think ye can take him anymore.”
Cannon paced, or tried to. The narrow confines of the cab… Read More
Somewhere in the middle of the stream of passengers, Cannon and Iseabail entered the room on the balcony level. In two rows, one on each side of the door, stewards in gleaming white uniform… Read More
Dinner passed pleasantly. Stewards served black bread, borscht, potatoes, and fish, whisking away dishes and refilling glasses with speed and efficiency entirely out of keeping with Cannon… Read More
Bleary-eyed, Cannon reached for his pocket watch. He sat bolt upright on seeing that it read nine o’clock. Then he remembered, spinning the dial on its side until it read seven, then… Read More
Cannon looked into the distance at the ostentatious red banner hanging at the forward end of the dining room, as though he were deep in remembrance. “When I was a mere boy,” he… Read More
Opening the book, Cannon took a moment to reacquaint himself with an alphabet he knew by heart. Fred Jane’s men had cobbled together a deck plan of Red Banner. The passenger spaces ma… Read More
Bethany Jennings, an author of young adult SF&F, does this thing called WIPJoy, where we authors talk about a work in progress over the course of September. Find other authors on social… Read More
“Did you two have a nice chat?”
“Besides tha’ the conversation was pleasant, I found out how we migh’ go abou’ gettin’ an invitation tae the cap… Read More
And so they did. They watched the liner pass, leaning over the railing above the bank of windows and waving, though Cannon doubted the passengers below could see them. Later, they found hal… Read More
Wailani jolted upright as though he’d grabbed a live wire. “I did not. You have a copy?”
Cannon nodded.
“Where did you find such a thing?”
“Ye dinn… Read More
After a long and lazy but profitable evening at the card table, Iseabail and Cannon returned to their cabin. Cannon shut the door.
“He knows,” Iseabail said.
“Pardon?… Read More
Wailani left them. Cannon raised his eyebrows at Iseabail.
“Ach,” she said. “I hope his whatsit’s as good as he says.”
Cannon smiled. “Our Mr. Wailan… Read More
It was no use skulking around while the crew was cleaning up for the night, so Cannon set his alarm clock for the wee hours of the morning, reclined on the couch, and closed his eyes.
He… Read More
Cannon found himself on a catwalk which crossed the zep’s beam. Across the centerline was another companionway which led up to the dining room. Far forward was yet another, which led… Read More
With any luck, when the Russians came to, they’d jump to the obvious conclusion. The last thing Cannon needed was the crew nosing around his cabin.
He passed a few more compartments… Read More
Cannon woke a few hours later to the sound of the shower running and the distinct feel of a damp chill to the air. The door to the washroom was open. He stood next to it, looking away, and… Read More
“Good,” Cannon said. The wall clock chimed the first few bars of the Internationale. It read eight o’clock. Cannon turned his watch back two hours as the captain announced… Read More
“Wha’, tha’ easy?” Iseabail sipped from her teacup. She sat across from Cannon at a table in the corner of the lounge, far from anyone else. Nevertheless, they spoke… Read More
Cannon passed a few hours in the lounge, paging through an English-language volume of Chekhov’s greatest hits. Despite the Soviet translators’ best efforts to cloud matters, Can… Read More
Iseabail regarded Cannon with some skepticism. “Cannae ye tie yer tie any straighter?”
Cannon lifted his chin and looked at his neck in the mirror. “It isn’t any di… Read More
Cannon and Iseabail had barely exchanged pleasantries with Wailani before the stewards made their signal. The trio proceeded to the table and found the placards marking their places. Cannon… Read More
The stewards whisked the soup dishes away and replaced them with plates. The main course seemed to be a straightforward chicken cutlet.
Cannon let his sit for a moment. “Mr. Wailani… Read More
Dinner wore on through the evening. The conversation turned to the topic of archeology. Cannon, though he hadn’t been back to the Subcontinent after stealing Inconstant in late &rsquo… Read More
“Ach, fresh air.” Iseabail threw her head back and breathed in deeply.
Cannon could hardly disagree. Honolulu was not an infrequent port of call for the Long Nines, and if any… Read More
They returned to the Red Banner and went aboard. The steward checking their tickets at the top of the ramp threatened to confiscate their vodka, extracting from them the usual bribe. They s… Read More
The dinner rush was just beginning as they left. They navigated upstream toward the lounge, finding it nearly deserted, and went to the forward end of the room. There, Cannon knock… Read More
There were four place settings, done in fine white china with blue patterns. A merry bubbling sound came from the samovar standing at the center of the table; a teapot waited next… Read More
Two weeks ago, if someone had told him he would be growing fond of Russian food, Cannon would have been dubious. Beets, cabbage, and excruciating poverty were hardly his favorite ingredient… Read More
By the time they pushed away their plates, the clock read 7:20. Cannon kept his poker face on as they moved to the sitting room. Half of it was given over to plush red chairs and a sofa, ar… Read More
By the time they pushed away their plates, the clock read 7:20. Cannon kept his poker face on as they moved to the sitting room. Half of it was given over to plush red chairs and a sofa, ar… Read More
The door opened in front of him, and Cannon tensed. Kopeikin stormed through, slammed the door closed, and looked to his left, down the hallway toward the washroom. Cannon flicked the cork… Read More
Volkov looked up. “You are not archaeologists.”
Cannon lowered his pistol incrementally. “Pirates, actually.”
Volkov nodded. “Is very valuable item in my&m… Read More
Out the pane of bulletproof glass in front of her, Emma could just see the Red Banner running at full speed due west. Inconstant tailed the Soviet airship by a good five miles. Southwest of… Read More
“This is no’ better than sneakin’ along the catwalks,” Iseabail groused.
Cannon unfolded the deck plan tucked in his waistcoat pocket and studied it. He pointed af… Read More
Cannon swung his legs over the catwalk railing and landed as quietly as he could. He pointed his Mauser toward the centerline along the catwalk and waited. No Russians appeared in his sight… Read More
Cannon padded along the catwalk. Further forward, behind them, came the sound of boots rattling on steel. He flattened himself against the bulkhead behind him. Iseabail scrambled to follow… Read More
Iseabail became aware of a snapping sound, and looked up. Cannon, glowering impatiently, withdrew his hand from its place next to her ear.
“Sorry,” she said. “Money&rsqu… Read More
Emma settled a headset over her ears, bent the microphone into place, and plugged the cable into a box on the fuselage. “How are we supposed to find the skipper?” she wondered… Read More
“There!” Emma called. A long line of white smoke, stirred into whirling eddies and vortices by the zeppelin’s propeller wash, stretched from one of gondolas along its side… Read More
“They’re here!” Iseabail cried.
Cannon had abandoned his position by the door, and now crouched behind the engine block, leaning out to exchange fire with a trio of Sovi… Read More
Cannon undid his belt and handed it to Iseabail, ducking out from behind the engine to remind the remaining Russians what a bad idea it would be to come any closer. “Get across,&rdquo… Read More
In one smooth motion, Cannon kicked Kopeikin’s pistol out the hatch and picked up his belt. The pistol skipped off the decking, clanked against one of the railing’s poles, and f… Read More
A little hinting at Emma’s background here. I want to expand that into a fuller story sometime.
If you purchase (or have already purchased) the e-book edition of Nathaniel Cannon and t… Read More
Cannon waited for Joe to cross the line. Together, they passed through Inconstant‘s bow platform hatch. The airship’s engines thrummed to life, her propellers reversed to push h… Read More
“Warm and welcoming,” Emma said.
“If we have to leave this way,” said Cannon, “it’ll be warmer than the alternative.”
Emma pondered this and co… Read More
Baby Name
Gender
Meaning
Origin
Iakovos
M
Supplanter
Greek
Ian
M
God is gracious
Scottish
Iaokim
M
God will establish
Hebrew
Ichabod
M
The glory has departed
Hebrew
Ike
M
Laughter
Hebrew
Ila… Read More
Looking for a perfect Scottish name for your baby girl? Look no further! Scottish baby girl names are known for their unique charm, rich history, and lyrical sound. Whether you have Sco… Read More