Goliath

The Last Dreadnought

Humanity lost the war a long time ago. All those scattered worlds, stretching from one side of the galaxy to the other, are empty. Dead. The colonies and habitats ruins. The fleets destroyed.

Only the barren, desert world of Russou remains. A world of sand and stone. The only water a tepid brine. The last refugees of humanity clinging to life in their last cities. Their numbers dwindling by the year. It won’t be long before humanity is gone forever.

In one final taunt the victors have left the shattered remains of humanity’s once mighty fleets in orbit around the dusty planet. The Parking Lot. A graveyard of steel. A graveyard so vast it is easily visible from the ground even during the day.

One shape stands out amongst the wreckage. A giant: the largest, most powerful super dreadnought ever built. Unconquered in a thousand battles. Seven miles long, five wide. It was never boarded by the enemy. They didn’t need to. Its crew choosing to perish at their posts to protect a secret deep within its bowels.

The CSS Goliath.

Now it is a symbol of hope. Of all the things lost. Of all the things remaining to fight for.

But as Engineer Sollander leads her crew of scavengers aboard they will discover those passages are not quite as dead as they believed. The secret within its dark spaces was kept for a reason. Something still lurks within the warship’s heart. Something that aches for vengeance.

Once it is released everything will change.

Not all of them are going to get out alive.

Goliath is part of the Confederation Cycle, but can be read as a standalone.