Novels by Jamiu

A thirty-ton iron monster emitting blinding steam is grinding its tracks straight toward us, and a single locked drive pin is about to push it right off the edge of the cliff!The ground shuddered under my boots as Sarah and I pressed our backs against the cold rock wall of the narrow mountain pass. Emerging from the thick smoke ahead, a massive steam-powered mechanical crawler ground erratically up the steep dirt trail. Heavy iron treads chewed through the loose gravel, throwing showers of stone into the dark abyss below. White steam hissed violently from its side vents as the iron beast lurched sideways, its heavy metal snout swinging wildly toward the sheer drop-off. Inside the open iron cab, a terrified pilot frantically pulled on a pair of locked steering levers, shouting for help over the deafening roar of the boiler."The left track is locked solid mid-turn and the steering arm just snapped!" the trapped operator screamed, leaning far out of the iron cab as the crawler lurched

An explosive pressure back draft will detonate the entire iron furnace and shower the valley in liquid fire if molten slag flows backward into the jammed air cylinder!Sarah and I sprinted around the mountain bend, our boots pounding against the hard dirt as thick black smoke poured across the tree line. Ahead of us, panic-stricken foundrymen were fleeing out the doors of a stone ironworks, coughing violently and shouting in sheer terror. Inside the dark, soot-covered building, a massive cold-blast iron furnace glowed with blinding orange heat. The primary double-acting wooden blowing tub sat completely locked mid-stroke. Pressure was building up dangerously fast inside the hearth, while the turbine pit groaned under a violent mechanical strain."Run for your lives!" a terrified founder named Thomas screamed, stumbling out into the yard and pointing back toward the glowing stone stack. "The main blowing tub has frozen solid mid-stroke! If that trapped air pressure forces molten slag b

A single day of damp valley heat will turn an un-ginned pile of raw seed-cotton into a steaming, mold-rotted heap of worthless trash if those steel saw blades stay locked for another hour.Heavy, dust-laden air choked the bustling valley ginning shed as Sarah and I rushed through the wide wooden doors. Outside in the yard, regional weavers stood beside empty flatbed wagons, holding canvas sacks for the clean white lint needed for their looms. Inside the crowded shed, frantic workers shouted over the sudden, violent screech of locked machinery. Right in the center of the main floor, a heavy steel saw-cylinder sat frozen mid-rotation inside its seed-box breast. Massive piles of raw seed-cotton lay trapped against the iron rib grate, while down below, the main drive belt squealed loudly against a stuck pulley."The air humidity is climbing fast through the valley right now, Walter!" a young gin operator named Frank shouted, waving a fiber-dusted arm toward the open side shutters. "If we

The scorching afternoon sun will turn thousands of pounds of cut sugarcane sour inside the staging yards if the crushing wheels stay dead for another hour. Thick, humid heat wrapped around Ethan and Sarah Vance as they stepped inside the steaming brick sugar mill. Outside in the staging yards, stacked mounds of raw late-season sugar cane baked under the blazing sky. Inside the sweltering building, frantic sugar-boilers shouted over the sudden shutdown of the water drive. In the center of the room, a pair of massive stone edge-runner wheels sat frozen mid-circuit inside a smooth granite trough. Crushed cane stalks lay trapped beneath the stone rims, while overhead, the heavy drive gears rattled hard against a locked clutch shaft. "The afternoon heat is rising fast out in those open staging yards right now, Lemuel!" a young sugar-boiler named Tobias shouted out, waving his sweat-stained hat toward the sun-drenched doorway. "If we cannot get these twin stone runners moving to extract

A single night of hard frost on these un-pressed apple bins will ruin thousands of gallons of sweet juice before tomorrow morning.Crisp autumn air carrying the sweet, sharp smell of crushed fruit filled the chilly orchard pressing house as Ethan and Sarah Vance walked inside. Outside in the yard, farm hands stood beside long rows of oak aging barrels, holding wooden funnels and bucket pails. Inside the timber building, frantic orchardists shouted over the groaning drive gears overhead. Right in the middle of the floor, a massive twin-screw cheese press sat locked halfway through a layered press of apple pomace and clean straw. Sweet juice dripped slowly into the stone troughs, while overhead, the water-driven gantry gears rattled hard against a stuck shaft."The frost is coming down off the high ridge before daybreak, Daniel!" a young orchard worker named Caleb shouted out, waving his sticky hand toward the open side doors. "If we cannot get this twin-screw press driving down to sque

A sudden downpour of autumn rain will rot every handful of un-scutched flax straw into dark sludge before nightfall if these blades stay locked.Chilly river air blew straight through the open shutters of the valley flax mill as Ethan and Sarah Vance crossed the dusty wooden threshold. Outside along the lane, regional weavers waited anxiously beside covered carts, holding empty canvas bags for fine linen fiber. Inside the clattering mill room, frantic flax-dressers shouted over the sudden silence of the turbine drive. Right at the main scutching berth, a multi-bladed wooden scutching wheel sat locked mid-rotation. Large bundles of retted flax straw lay piled high on the work benches, while beneath the floor, the turbine drive shaft vibrated against a jammed clutch arm."The rain clouds are rolling down the valley slope right this minute, Philip!" a young flax-dresser named Jacob yelled out, pointing toward the dark gray sky framed by the open shutters. "If we cannot get this wooden sc

When the sky bleeds red, you do not stand around asking questions if you want to stay alive."Arthur, get up!" Elena screamed, her arms wrapping tight around my shoulders as I forced my knees back onto the cold deck floor.The pain ripping through my right hand felt like liquid iron, but I forced my eyes open and pushed myself to my feet. "I am fine! Vaelen, what is coming out of that rift?""Sensors are failing!" Grand Commander Vaelen yelled, his holographic form flickering violently as waves of thick red energy crashed through the room. "Multiple massive signatures emerging from the crimson gate!"I grabbed the railing of the observation deck, watching in horror as a fleet of fifty colossal, obsidian dreadnoughts glided out of the bloody portal. They were covered in jagged red spikes, their hulls pulsing with a dark, suffocating power that made the air in my lungs feel like ash."That energy..." Commander Bran stammered, pulling his rifle off his shoulder with shaking hands. "That

A planet-killer does not ask for permission before it erases your life from the sky."Full power to shields, now!" I roared, throwing my hands over the tactical console as the entire bridge of Starward One turned blood red."Target lock confirmed on our position!" the pilot yelled, his teeth grinding as he yanked the thruster controls back. "That massive cannon is charging at ninety percent!""Get us between that monster and the fortress!" I ordered, stepping directly to the front view-port. "We draw its fire away from the Iron Bastion!""Arthur, their shields are made of pure dark matter!" Elena called out, her hands gripping the rail beside me as the hull shuddered violently. "Our forward cannons cannot pierce that armor from the outside!""Starward One, can you hear me?" the comms screen flashed, revealing the battle-scarred warrior from the fortress. "I am Commander Bran of the Seventh Hearth Regiment! Our shields cannot take another direct hit!""Bran, hold your ground!" I replie

A dead ghost ship never speaks unless someone is still alive inside the grave."High Commander, our long-range communication array just intercepted a rogue transmission!" my lead communications officer shouted. His fingers slammed across the main console as bright alarm lights flickered along the bridge of *Starward One*.I stepped down from the command platform, my eyes narrowing as I watched the cycling energy graphs on the main screen. "Where is that transmission coming from?""It is coming from the outer rim of the Solitude Sector," the officer reported, adjusting his headset. "It is way beyond the mapped boundary of the ten-thousand-gate network.""Beyond the mapped gates?" Elena asked, walking up beside me with a look of sharp curiosity. "Is it an automated signal from another gatecrafter relic?"Grand Commander Vaelen stepped up to the central display, his blue holographic form analyzing the incoming data stream. "No, Commander. Look at the raw wave signature. My deep-scans ind

When a world opens its eyes after ten thousand years of cold sleep, fear is always the very first thing it breathes in."Landing thrusters locked," the shuttle pilot announced, his fingers flicking across the lit control panels. "Touching down in the central plaza of Nova Astraea right now."Arthur leaned over the front console, watching the sleek glass towers of the capital city reflect the warm light of the newly ignited Helios Forge. "Keep all weapons lowered, everyone. We are coming here as allies, not conquerors.""The city is waking up fast," Elena noted, adjusting her leather belt as she checked her sidearm. "Sensors show thousands of citizens emerging from the underground vault lifts every minute."The heavy landing ramp hissed open, letting in a cool, crisp breeze that smelled of fresh water and ancient stone.Arthur, Elena, and Grand Commander Vaelen led a joint diplomatic landing team down the metal ramp onto the pristine white marble floor of the central plaza. Fifty vangu

A cold sun does not warm a sleeping city, but it makes a great grave until someone strikes a match."Sensors are locking onto our exit trajectory!" the pilot shouted, his hands working the thrusters as the blinding golden light of the network tunnel dissolved around them. "Exiting hyper-space now!"Starward One and a strike detachment of twelve living crystal warships dropped smoothly into real space on the far side of the Solitude Sector."Report on local stellar conditions!" Elena ordered, stepping up to the tactical railing as the forward view-port cleared.The bridge crew stared out into a vast, silent expanse of perpetual twilight. Suspended in the center of the system floated a colossal, dark mechanical sphere the size of a small moon, surrounded by a ring of four massive, dormant planets."This is the Astraeus System," Grand Commander Vaelen reported, his blue holographic form standing beside the navigation board. "And that massive construct at the center is the Helios Forge, a

An ancient door will never open for a tyrant, no matter how much fire he holds in his hands."Hold our position two miles out," Arthur commanded, staring through the front view-port of Starward One as the flagship drifted through the quiet void above Solaria-Prime. "Look at the size of that structure."In the distance floated the sector's primary orbital star gate. It was a colossal, hollow ring constructed from dark crystal and shimmering starlight, stretching over fifty miles wide."Construction crews are already laying the foundation for our first surface base down on the planet," Elena reported, stepping up beside him with her tablet in hand. "But if we cannot unlock this main orbital ring, our pioneer ships are stuck in this single system.""Sensors are picking up a central control bridge near the inner rim of the ring," Grand Commander Vaelen chimed in over the comms link. "However, my long-range scans have just detected an ancient energy signature standing guard inside.""What